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Beowulf & Grendel – DVD
This movie is rated R, and for good reason. While I have no issue with the R rating, the saga
was never like this.
I want to start off by saying this is an adaptation of the
book, it is by no means the story as told in the book. The move is sold
as a “modern adaptation” of the
book.
It is filmed in Iceland. To be honest, the scenery is lovely, and sets
the story well. Costumes – I’m mixed on
this. Some
look appropriate, others look a bit out of place. The accents also struck me as wrong. Sorry, this is a hodgepodge of accents,
ranging from Canadian to Scottish, to English to Norse inflections. No
one seemed to be on the same page with this.
I am not familiar with any of the cast. The director is Sturla Gunnarsson, who’s
credits include everything from Da Vinci documentaries to Ricky Nelson. Beowulf is Girard
Butler, probably most recognizable from his role in the 2004 production of “The
Phantom of the Opera”. Grendel
is played by Ingvar Sigurdsson, and I did not recognize any of his film
credits. But
familiarity with the cast is not as necessary as familiarity with
the saga, as you will be challenged in that respect.
But on to the actual film.
The scenery in Iceland is barren and mysterious, as is this movie.
It is a very violent film, taking us very visually into the slaughter
perpetrated by the Grendel. This movie
is presented as coarse in it’s approach and it’s language. We are given barbarians as interpreted by the
writer Andrew Rai Berzins and the director.
This movie presents us with a very raw and unrefined version of Beowulf. Some of the dialogue I felt is, well,
off. The language used is not of the
time period but modern. And while they were a randy bunch of barbarians,
the life style was overemphasized, in my opinion. Too many
parties, not enough story.
Overall these elements gave this movie more of a modern
slasher feeling than the classic epic I was expecting. Maybe too much modernization can spoil the
feel of a classic masterpiece. I was
left feeling disappointed rather than entertained and exuberant at the
conclusion of the film. I was looking for Beowulf and Grendel, I saw an
SCA reinactment in a Friday night drive-in B movie special.
The acting is... convincing
- the actors get into their
parts. But again, I was hard pressed
sometimes to
locate the original story amongst the various interpretations and modern
trappings included in the film.
Hollywood in Iceland. Their interpretation, their idea of what the
story is about and while interesting, not entertaining. I do not recommend this for young kids, and
you really do need to take this as the modern interpretation it is
intended. Overall, I found it – interesting.
boudica
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Fang You Very Much!
Some of the classic Black and White Universal
Studio's horror films from the 1930s and 40s they released under a
special collection called The Legacy Collection. This collection focuses on the classic Dracula and the films it spawned, or as I call them the "Sons of" movies in the Dracula vein. (pun intended)
These collections were themed movies, about 4 to 6 films in each
collection, that were focused around the one "big hit" and it's "Sons
of" features.
Dracula features the original classic staring Bela Lugosi in the
role he never got out of. This is a classic. No horror collection is
complete without this original film. It is the story of blood lust,
love and the daemons we harbor within ourselves. Love this film, it is
a classic Fang Feature, and I personally think Bela was the King of the
Vampires. "Children of the Night..."
The collection also includes Dracula in the Spanish
Version. Both films were made at the same time, and it is so different.
The same sets were used, the same script, but using different actors.
See, they made the English version during the day, and then filmed the
Spanish one at night. There is an introduction that explains it all in
English. But the film is in Spanish. Interesting Dracula, btw, he is
very classy. My Spanish is good enough that I made it through most of
the film. It's an interesting version. If you are Spanish speaking, you
will appreciate it.
In the "Sons of" films, we have Dracula's Daughter and Son of Dracula.
OK... bland. Sorry - very bland. Not much more I can say. Gloria Holden
looks the part well, but the plot plods and plods and this movie moves
slower than traffic on the LA Expressway at rush hour.
Lon Chaney Jr. is the "Son of" and we have a "Southern Version" that
limps. Yes, this movie moves to Southern USA. While Lon Chaney Jr makes
a fine Wolf Man, this Dracula is tortured, in the wrong place and the
supporting actors are a joke.
The last one is amusing, if nothing else. We do have all the "monsters" here in House of Dracula
featuring Lon Chaney Jr as the Wolf Man and John Carradine as the
Count, as well as Frankenstein's monster and the usual mob chase scene.
I found it funny, but I don't think it was meant to be. Carradine is
the stiffest Dracula I've ever seen, really. Stiff... And they sliced
some footage of Karloff into the film. I understand it is from the
"Bride of" movie. I caught that one!
Quality wise, these films are cleaned up, the sound is very good
and overall the appearance of these films is remarkable. There are also
extras, like the making of the film, theatrical trailers, stills, and
film history. This is a two disk set with a double sided DVD.
The original is well worth it, and if you are Spanish speaking,
this collection is worth it for a good Spanish version of Dracula. But
the "Son's of" are not really all that great, and are good only from
the standpoint of it "completes" the collection.
boudica
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A tale of two monsters - Bela and Boris
This collection is comprised of some of Bela
Lugosi's not so well known roles in which he did not play Dracula. But
it also contains some of the finest acting on his part and some of the
worst and all are overlooked or overshadowed in favor of his Dracula
role.
The films are all black and white, off beat and are horror films in
nature. They are good quality films visually, nicely restored and the
sound is good. There is one disk in this collection, double sided.
We start the rampage with Murders in the Rue Morgue, an
interpretation of Edgar Allen Poe's classic, and we find Lugosi as a
mad scientist looking for a human bride for his gorilla. Gorilla finds
girl, gorilla kidnaps girl, mad scientist injects girl with gorilla
blood, girl dies, repeat till we get to the star, then boyfriend tracks
them down, kills mad scientist and gorilla. Gorilla always loses girl.
Actually, it's not all that bad. Love the faces on Bela as the mad
scientist. It's amusing if nothing else.
The real reason to purchase this collection is the second film The Black Cat.
Staring Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, with Karloff as the Priest of
Satan and he plays the part very well. That stare – that glower... he
is so totally a minion of Satan. Oh, the cat-phobic Lugosi is a scream.
This is a classic chiller; sit on the edge of your chair film. Not to
be missed.
At times you have to wonder about this collection. Some of these
films Karloff is just as strong a character as Lugosi is and you got to
wonder - why did they call this the Lugosi collection?
Another very good reason to buy this collection and probably the best offering of this collection is The Raven.
Here again we are treated to the magical chemistry of Lugosi and
Karloff at it's very finest. This is set in a very art deco
photographed film of two enemies, one woman and torture and incredible
horror. This one will leave you stunned in its ability to shock. A
classic, not to be missed.
The Invisible Ray again presents us with the Lugosi/Karloff duo,
with Karloff as the misshaped doctor who is afflicted with a "deadly
touch" and Lugosi as the mad scientist who tries to cure him. Not as
good as the other two offerings, but it is one of those "mad doctors go
mad" films.
Last entry here is Black Friday. This is the final
Lugosi/Karloff entry, and it involves brain surgery, two friends,
gangsters and hidden money. This one plays with a more of a "Jekyll and
Hyde" flavor, with Karloff in the split personality role. To be honest,
Karloff is the movie, with Lugosi in almost a "walk in" part. The
acting is good, the film is not bad - but not the best and this makes
it not one of the better movies in this collection.
Overall, for the two films mentioned, this is well worth the
purchase. You can not find these films on their own (at least at the
time I purchased this collection you couldn't), and with the other
films thrown into the mix, this isn't a bad collection of Lugosi films,
though all but one also features Karloff, so it could be called the
Lugosi/Karloff collection. Collectors of classic horror films will not
want to miss this disk from their collection. boudica
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"The Air is Filled with Monsters"
Universal Studio's great black and white "horror"
films from the 1930s and 40s were put together in special themed
collections called "The Legacy Collection".
These collections were themed movies, about 4 to 6 films in each
collection, that were focused around the one "big hit" and it's "Sons
of" features.
The Frankenstein Collection is probably the best of the
collections, containing more films that were of better quality overall
than the other collections. Frankenstein was a big hit, and they
actually had better scripts and actors in the "Sons of" films than the
others.
We start with the classic Boris Karloff Frankenstein. This
film examines our right to be "god" when it comes to "life and death".
Karloff plays the monster, and while we see him growling around the set
check out his facial expressionsI It is well shot, love the angry mob
scenes, and is a classic horror film.
The next biggie is the classic follow up Bride of Frankenstein.
Still staring Boris Karlof, this is one of the few "Sons of" in these
collections that was almost as popular as the original. Gotta love the
hair, and her "eeps" in the film. It is a monster love story. Quite
bizarre and unique, it is a must have also. The title of this review
comes from a quote by Mary Shelley in this movie, played by Elsa
Lanchester, who is also the Bride.
Boris Karloff reprises his successful monster role yet again with the original "Son of" in Son of Frankenstein.
I actually like this film. This is a remarkable in that it is almost as
good as the original, in some cases probably even better in that it
does have more of a plot, if that is possible. We also have Bella
Lugosi playing Ygor in this one. Very dramatic is Josephine Hutchinson
as Elsa von Frankenstein. And don't miss Lionel Atwill as Inspector
Krogh. Good acting, great follow up story and another "must have".
The silly entry here is Ghost of Frankenstein and while it
may have seemed humorous back in the 40s, I found it just silly. Lon
Chaney Jr is the monster, playing against Sir Cedric Hardwicke. Oh, and
Ygor... painfully reprised by Bela Lugosi. This becomes the bad joke
that gets all the airtime by classic comic acts on TV... the hunchback
dragging his foot around, being chased by the mad doctor for his brain.
In the end we have rampaging monsters and a predictable "death by
monsters".
The final entry is House of Frankenstein. We find Karloff
here as a mad scientist escaping from prison, bringing Dracula, played
by John Carradine, back to life, unfreezing the monster and throwing in
Lon Chaney Jr as the Wolf Man, to produce an all inclusive monsterfest
that allows everyone to go on a rampage till we see the monster drown
Karloff in the end. This started a chain of "all monster" movies that
are included in some of the other collections. Great for monster
lovers, not much in the plot department.
Quality wise, these films are nicely cleaned up, the sound is very
good and overall the appearance of these films is remarkable. There are
also extras, like the making of the film, theatrical trailers, stills,
and film history. This is a two disk set with a double sided DVD.
As I said, this is the better of the collections, with more of the
great films that started the horror film industry back then. This one
is a good one to own, and I do recommend it. boudica
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"You have read the curse. You dare defy it?"
The Mummy is one of Universal Studio’s black
and white "horror" films from the 1930s and 40s that was released in a
special collection called "The Legacy Collection". These collections
were themed movies, about 4 to 6 films in each collection, that were
focused around the one "big hit" and it's "Sons of" features.
The Mummy is the must have title classic featuring Boris Karloff
in one of his best "horror" roles. He plays a dual role here as "the
mummy" ImHoTep/"the modern" Ardath Bey. He is seeking his lost love,
the woman he died for thousands of years ago, and finds the lovely
Helen played by Zita Johann. Classic material, lovely shots of Egypt,
and a great film overall. Especially love the "flash backs" which
builds a great story that carries into that current day. The Title for
this review comes from this film.
The collection also includes The Mummy's Hand. While not
as good as the original it is supposed to be "spooky". But it lacks the
chemistry and a good strong cast and it is more of a comedy than a
horror film. The original story is changed, and this one is a lemon in
my opinion. Kharis is the mummy’s name, we have a "High Priest of
Karnak" who controls the mummy, two very comic archeologists and
rampaging "on command" mummy.
These are all "Sons of" movies, featuring Mummy's. Not as good as the
original in my opinion, but for the time period, they were good box
office follow-ups that attracted attention and the public back then
seemed to like it.
Lon Chaney Jr. stars as the mummy in The Mummy’s Tomb and
to be honest, the script is lacking and this is not a good vehicle for
Lon Chaney Jr.'s excellent talents. The story follows the "changed"
script, with Kharis the mummy, and Mehmet Bey as the controlling High
Priest who travels to the US to kill off tomb desecrators. We move from
Egypt to – "Cajun Country". Huh?
Lon Chaney Jr. reprises his role in The Mummy's Curse and
again, he is good, but the script fails him. Again in Cajun Country, we
end up with the mummy who was formerly buried in quicksand now showing
in an irrigation ditch and going on a rampage looking for a woman.
And finally, we see The Mummy's Ghost again with Lon
Chaney Jr. as Kharis and featuring John Carradine as the High Priest
Yousef Bey. Again, the story spins, but we are treated to a couple of
great actors in a film that was not totally bad, but not anywhere near
the original.
The films keep to the "lost love" theme, but never make it as good
as the original. And running through some of these films, you will
catch where they clip out of the earlier films to fill in the later
ones. Some of the acting by some of the lesser characters is just plain
bad.
Quality wise, these films are cleaned up, the sound is very good
and overall the appearance of these films is remarkable. There are also
extras, like the making of the film, theatrical trailers, stills, and
film history. This is a two disk set with a double sided DVD.
These "collections" do contain some films that you will not find
anywhere else, and if you are a big fan of the old Universal horror
films, especially The Mummy,
and cameos by classic actors, this collection will fill the bill. This
one was a bit better in that it did have one classic movie and one "Son
of" that wasn’t so bad. But it does have some pretty cheesy films
included. boudica
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When the Wolf Bane Blooms...
Universal Studio's classic "horror" films from the 1930s and 40s were released in a special collection called The Legacy Collection, tied together by horror themes, such as this one labeled The Wolf Man. This collection contains 4 movies and a documentary.
Wolf Man is a classic tale of man fighting his inner daemon.
Staring the great Lon Chaney Jr., he presents us with the tortured soul
Larry Talbot, who struggles with the beast within. A classic film, well
worth it if you are a big Wolf Man fan.
The collection also includes Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man.
While not as good as the original, it does come in a close second, with
Bela Lugosi as the monster and Lon Chaney Jr. reprising his role as the
Wolf Man. Again we are confronted with our inner beasts, and the
constant struggle to keep them in place.
There is also She Wolf of London featuring of all people
June Lockhart and the female of the species is on the loose in London.
Actually, very bland and uninteresting. One of the lemons in this
collection.
The final movie is the original Werewolf of London which
is also quite unremarkable. Not even the cast is worth mentioning as
you probably will not recognize anyone. I didn’t, and I am a big "old
movie" fan.
Quality wise, these films are cleaned up, the sound is very good
and overall the appearance of these films is remarkable. There are also
extras, like the making of the film, theatrical trailers, stills, and
film history. This is a two disk set with a double sided DVD.
There is a documentary called Monster by Moonlight which
worth mentioning. It is a narration about "The Immortal Saga of the
Wolf Man". It blends together clips from the films with myths, history
and fiction about the Wolf Man. Interesting, probably one of the better
offerings unique to this collection.
These "collections" do contain some films that you will not find
anywhere else, and if you are a big fan of the old Universal horror
films, especially The Wolf Man
this collection will fill the bill. This one was a bit better in that
it did have two classic movies well worth watching as well as an
interesting documentary.
boudica
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"I meddled in things that man must leave alone"
Universal Studios packaged some black and white
"horror" films from the 1930s and 40s under their special collection
called The Legacy Collection. Reviewed here is their Invisible Man collection featuring 5 films all with the “Invisible” theme.
The Invisible Man is a classic. Featuring Claude Rains as the
lead, it is a film that tells of one man's madness in his search for
science and the tragedy that comes of it. The original is the only
decent film in this bunch, in my opinion, and you should probably buy
this one separate from the rest if you want to add it to your classic
horror film library.
The collection also includes, The Invisible Woman about a
woman model who is tested with a formula that turns her invisible. It
has gangsters, is very corny and stars Virginia Bruce and of all people
John Barrymore. Not worth it at any price in my opinion.
There is also The Invisible Agent taking place in WW2 with
staring bit parts by Peter Lorre and Sir Cedric Hardwicke. Very dated,
and the two stars add just a touch of humor to a very dull and outdated
film.
Then there are the "Sons of" movies, as I call them. The Invisible Man Returns and The Invisible Man's Revenge. The Returns
movie features Vincent Price in the lead, and Sir Cedric Hardwicke, and
in this one, we try to make the mad scientist visible again. While it
was nominated for an Academy Award for Special Effects, it is as
tortured as Price’s performance.
In the Revenge film we see John Carradine in a bit part.
The film is a rerun of the first but no where near as good. I believe
at this point the luster has worn off and we are just re-writing the
script and adding new actors, creating a poor second to the first.
Quality wise, these films are cleaned up, the sound is very good
and overall the appearance of these films is remarkable. There are also
extras, like the making of the film, theatrical trailers, stills, and
film history. This is a two disk set with a double sided DVD.
These "collections" do contain some films that you will not find
anywhere else, and if you are a big fan of the old Universal horror
films, especially The Invisible Man,
and collect cameos by classic actors, this collection will fill the
bill. But to be honest, this one was good for the original film and the
follow ups are just so much filler. Better off buying just the original
film. boudica |