Archive for March, 2011
‘Capone’ review!
On March - 21 - 2011
And now, with the Korean cinema blogathon finally over, we here at Varied Celluloid can start to settle down! Well, if by “settle down”, you mean post more film reviews and news items – then yes! Today we have a review for the previously mentioned Capone, from the good people at Shout! Factory who will be releasing the film on the 29th of this month! If you’re a crime film fan, this one may just prove to be worth your while!
CONTINUE READING HERE!
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Capone
On March - 21 - 2011
Capone (1975) |
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Director: | Steve Carver |
Writers: | Howard Browne |
Starring: | Ben Gazzara, Susan Blakely and Sylvester Stallone |
![]() | The Plot: Al Capone (Ben Gazzara) begins our film as a petty hoodlum who manages to finally catch the eye of mob boss Frankie Yale (John Cassavetes) and his right hand man Johnny Torrio (Harry Guardino), and begins to sneak his way into the organization. When he is given the opportunity to wipe out the boss by Johnny Torrio, Capone finally steps into the role of a kingpin and begins to muscle his way into the Chicago underworld. His biggest enemy however is Hymie Weiss, and the two gangs begin to clash almost immediately. Capone begins to see Johnny Torrio as being weak when the boss doesn’t want to run head first into a gang war with Weiss, and thus Capone has his right hand man Frank Nitti (Sylvester Stallone) slip Weiss’ gang information on Torrio’s location and the boss is nearly killed. Torrio at this point decides to leave the gang and the blood thirsty Capone takes over the operation. Will anyone cool this savage or will his own love affair with violence bring his downfall? |
The Review |
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Roger Corman, who had a cameo role in The Godfather Part II and who directed The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre (1967), certainly has a history with mafia related cinema. Always the opportunist, Capone may have been an attempt to capitalize on the popularity of The Godfather, but it is far from a duplication or simple cash-in. A more violent and antagonistic film that Francis Ford Coppola’s film ever attempted to be, Capone comes across as a delightfully eccentric piece of work that looks to try new and very different things with genre conventions. Ultimately, it acts as a piece based around a single run-a-way character in the form of Al Capone, played by the brilliant Ben Gazzara. We are never told directly whether or not Al Capone is a man to root for or against, and the movie takes a daring stand in that respect. The actions of Capone and his brutal behavior makes him seem like a madman, but due to Gazzara’s intimidating performance, you can read into this role in various different ways.




The Conclusion |
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Antonioni’s The Vanquished & Barilli’s Perfume of the Lady in Black coming to DVD
On March - 18 - 2011

As far as the film itself, it looks like it will grab the attention of any genre-fans. The story looks to follow three different instances of murder. The murders take place in three different locales: London, France and of course Antonioni’s Rome. All murders seem to be inexplicably committed by aristocratic young men with varying motivations. The film certainly has my attention, and after reading that brief summary: I know I must track this one down.
Special features for the disc include:
-The first draft of the story/film script for I Vinti by the writers of I Vinti: Michelangelo Antonioni
-Giorgio Bassani and Suso Cecchi d’Amico published by the film magazine “Cinema” 7/25/1954
-A developed and revised final story – the original screenplay of the three episodes obtained from the Bologna Cinemateque
-A Critical Anthology of the film that includes an analysis of the film, and a collection of different critiques of the movie
-The original exclusive, un-cut and elongated version of the Italian Episode from the film that was presented at the Venice Film Festival
-An interview with the producer, Turi Vasile, an interview with one of the protagonist, Franco Interlenghi.
-An exclusive rare short film by Michelangelo Antonioni entitled, Tentato suicidio, 22 Minutes, 1953.
-An 8 page booklet containing critical analysis of the genesis of the film

Special features for The Perfume of the Lady in Black includes:
-Documentary “Portrait in Black”
-Director’s Biography
-Director’s Filmography
Not exactly a weak lineup! Keep an eye on Varied Celluloid for further coverage whenever it comes in!
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Korean cinema blogathon 2011: ‘Thirst’
On March - 13 - 2011

Wow! It’s hard to believe that the Korean cinema blogathon is finally coming to a close. Seven days and seven reviews later, we are finally drawing to an end. This has certainly been a growing and learning experience for all of us involved. For those who haven’t dipped your feet into South Korean cinema, I hope that this week and these reviews have opened the eyes of some!
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Thirst
On March - 13 - 2011

Thirst (2009) |
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Director: | Park Chan-wook |
Writers: | Park Chan-wook, Émile Zola (based upon the book “Thérèse Raquin”) and Jeong Seo-Gyeong |
Starring: | Song Kang-ho, Kim Ok-bin and Kim Hae-sook |
![]() | The Plot: Priest Sang-hyeon (Song Kang-ho) is devoted to his faith and seeks to help those that can not help themselves. Through his selflessness, he volunteers for a secret experiment that looks to find a cure for the highly contagious and horrifying EV virus. After a short time with this group of “lepers”, Sang-hyeon is infected with the disease and ultimately comes close to dying. When he does, he is given a blood transfusion that also has the blood of a vampire mixed in with it. Sang-hyeon, who is now a creature of the night, is the only survivor out of the 50 infected members. When released from the hospital he begins to volunteer at the hospital so that he can feast off of coma victims and blood bags as a non-violent form of quenching his thirst. While working at the hospital he meets up with an old friend who has now married Tae-ju (Kim Ok-bin), an old flame of his. Sang-hyeon, who has uncovered a weakness with refusing the needs of the flesh, begins an affair with Tae-ju. With Sang-hyeon’s new disease, will this romance ultimately turn tragic? |
The Review |
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Okay, jokes aside, I have to contend that Thirst isn’t all bad. In fact, somewhere beneath the excess I have a good feeling that there is a “great” movie lying under that surface. As with any and all of Park Chan-wook’s work, it is a brilliantly made film for sure. It is a technical marvel with a polish that isn’t seen often. That is to be expected however, but the area where the film really excels in is its ability to grab the audience. If there’s any one thing I can say about the filmmaker, even when he makes a movie that I don’t particularly like, Park Chan-wook remains one of the most “watchable” filmmakers that I have ever seen. If you take ten minutes to sit down and watch any one of his films, chances are you’re going to find it hard to pull yourself away. I found the same addictive reaction with the last Park Chan-wook film I watched, which was Sympathy For Lady Vengeance. Despite it being a flawed film, it too includes enough interesting and inspired moments that its almost impossible to turn your head away from it. Thirst grabs you by the collar from the very start, with its bizarre rhythm and pacing during the opening moments as well as Song Kang-ho’s plight with the EV virus is grotesque. The use of music as texture during the introductory scenes, and the obtuse scene progression, is what really starts to make the audience wonder and ultimately stick with the movie. Park Chan-wook is brilliant when it comes to getting your attention and with Thirst he is as successful as ever in that regard.
The Conclusion |
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