FEATURED POSTS

10 Questions with Shane Briant

The talented British' born actor Shane Briant made his screen debut in the Hammer horror film Demons of the Mind. Since then he's gone on to appear in over 60 films and television productions including Straight On Till Morning (1972), The Picture of Dorian Gray (1973), The Mackintosh Man (1973), Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974), Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1974), The Naked Civil Servant (1975) and Lady Chatterley's Lover (1981). Currently Briant is focusing his attention on writing fiction and he has recently completed a psychological thriller called Worst Nightmares that will be released May 12th. I've admired his film work for many years so I was thrilled to get the opportunity to ask Shane Briant a few questions about his early movies and current writing projects. READ MORE

THIS MONTH'S FEATURED POSTS

The Girl On a Motorcycle (1968)

The talented director and cinematographer Jack Cardiff has passed away at the age of 94. As the tributes start to roll out from various news sites and film blogs its become clear to me that most people regard Jack Cardiff as a great cinematographer and have little regard or knowledge of his directing contributions, which is a shame. Cardiff was a brilliant photographer and his groundbreaking contributions to cinematography are well worth celebrating. But his impressive work as a director on films like the wonderful D.H. Lawrence adaptation Sons and Lovers (1960), the entertaining spy thriller The Liquidator (1965), the excellent erotic drama The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968) and the effective horror film The Mutations (1974) is also worthy of applause. READ MORE

THIS MONTH'S FEATURED POSTS

Favorite DVD Releases of 2008

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but overall 2008 was somewhat of a lackluster year for new Region 1 DVD releases of '60s and '70s era films when compared to the previous two years (See: 2006 and 2007). Some of my favorite DVD companies such as BCI Eclipse and most recently New Yorker Films have folded. Boutique DVD companies are releasing fewer products and what is being released is often of questionable quality. With the failing economy and the rise in popularity of Blu-ray discs, it seems like the number of new worthwhile DVD releases might continue to drop dramatically in 2009. READ MORE

THIS MONTH'S FEATURED POSTS

Resurrecting Yusaku Matsuda

Toru Murakawa's Resurrection of the Golden Wolf (aka Yomigaeru kinrô; 1979) is a wildly uneven Japanese crime film that left me wishing it had been helmed by another director. The film's script was adapted from a popular novel by Haruhiko Ooyabu and directors like Seijun Suzuki have had great success turning Ooyabu's hard-boiled fiction into films, but Toru Murakawa doesn't have Suzuki's eye for detail or his pop art sensibility. Resurrection of the Golden Wolf runs much too long and the dramatic filler weighs down the action, but even with its flaws the movie still keeps your attention thanks to the star performance of Yusaku Matsuda. READ MORE

THIS MONTH'S FEATURED POSTS

We Are Controlling Transmission

This year analog broadcasting is coming to an end. On June 12th 2009 television stations in the United States will stop broadcasting in analog and switch permanently to digital. Digital broadcasting promises to provide viewers with a sharper picture and more diverse programming options, but this unavoidable change is forcing millions of people to buy new television sets or opt for getting a converter box that will often cost them $40 or more. I feel for these people because I didn't have complete cable TV Access or a digital television myself until 2007. READ MORE

8 Comments »

  1. Peter Nellhaus says; March 25, 2007 @ 4:19 am

    Love with the Proper Stranger might be my favorite film by Robert Mulligan. It seems odd to think that mainstream American films were more truly adult forty years ago. A film you didn’t mention that I think is McQueen’s best later film is Peckinpah’s Junior Bonner. I saw The War Lover last June and found that to be an interesting film with McQueen playing an unlikable character.

  2. cinebeats says; March 25, 2007 @ 5:45 am

    I haven’t seen Junior Bonner or The War Lover so thanks for the recommendations Peter!

    Robert Mulligan made a lot of great films so I’d have a hard time picking favorites, but Love with the Proper Stranger is definitely one of them. I hope it’s released on DVD soon.

  3. Neil says; March 25, 2007 @ 6:00 am

    Dang! Now, I’m going to have to check out The War Lover, too. It looks quite interesting.

    I agree regarding Junior Bonner. It’s a fantastic movie, with great performances also by Robert Preston and Ida Lupino, as well as everyone really, but how many can I list? Honestly, I think it’s my favorite McQueen performance, though.

  4. cinebeats says; March 25, 2007 @ 6:23 am

    Thanks for adding another “thumbs up” for Junior Bonner Neil! I’ve added it to my list of “must see” movies. :)

  5. Jeremy says; March 25, 2007 @ 1:32 pm

    Wow,
    I can’t believe the man would have been 77. Great tribute to one of my favorites. Junior Bonner is terrific (Barbara Leigh has a small role) but I think I prefer The Getaway as far as Peckinpah collaborations go. Also The Cincinnati Kid, Thomas Crown Affair, Bullitt. The man made some classic films.
    One film I love that often gets overlooked is Soldier In The Rain with Steve and Tuesday Weld.
    Love With The Proper Stranger is near the top of my list of most wanted Dvds. Natalie Wood is another favorite and the two of them together are really incredible. And it is a very adult film on a serious subject. I can’t believe that it still hasn’t been released on disc.
    Great tribute….great photos…thanks for posting

  6. cinebeats says; March 25, 2007 @ 7:39 pm

    It’s weird to think of McQueen as 77…. but I think he would have been a cool old man.

    I haven’t seen Soldier In The Rain Jeremy so thanks for recommending it! I’ve been really curious about that movie since I caught the last 15min. of it on TV years ago but I’ve never seen the whole thing.

    That’s 3 votes for a DVD release of Love With the Proper Stranger so I hope someone at Paramount reads this. ;)

  7. Linda says; September 4, 2007 @ 3:31 pm

    Hi

    I came accross this thing you put on line about Steve McQueen.

    I recently saw Thomas Crown Affair again and I was reminded of how great and sexy he was. I read things on line that I never knew about him…..thanks to the modern information highway…. the internet.

    His life was certainly a paradox. I think he achieved greatness, especially considering his back ground. Thinking about him and reading about him is very sad…..since he died so young.

  8. Eric Olsen says; November 23, 2008 @ 12:44 pm

    Yes, Steve was one of the best acreen actors of the 20th Century.
    I appreciate your comments for favorite McQueen movie. However, he best displayed his fundamentally sensitive nature in the movie, Soldier In The Rain, opposite Jackie Gleason who also had one of his best performances therein.
    I may be off the wall and discriminating in my favorite movies for individual actors, and this is best shown when I say Paradise Alley was the best film for Sylvester Stalone.
    So Steve, until that time, God bless.


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  • Cinebeats chronicles one woman's love affair with '60s & '70s era cinema. Or as she likes to call it, cinema's Platinum Age! Blog design, updates and all original content is provided by Kimberly Lindbergs. She can be reached by email at:
    kimberly@cinebeats.com