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Twice Told Tales, a review by Danae Cassandra

Twice Told Tales
Year of Release: 1963
Directed By: Sidney Salkow
Starring: Vincent Price, Sebastian Cabot, Brett Halsey, Beverly Garland,
Genre: Horror

Overview:
It's spine-tingling terror... in triplicate! "Virtuoso of horror" (Los Angeles Times) Vincent Price dials up the depravity in this spellbinding trilogy of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "all-chiller" (LA Herald-Examiner) classics! Featuring "a demented genius! Poisonous plants! Oozing blood! [And] a corpse in a wedding gown" (The Film Daily), Twice Told Tales spins three diabolical nightmares of madness, mayhem and murder most foul!

My Thoughts:
This anthology film stars one of my all-time favorite actors, Vincent Price, so there's no way as far as I'm concerned to go too far wrong here. If you like Price, you'll enjoy this film.

That's not to say that all things are equal. The final story, "The House of Seven Gables" is by far the best one, and has the most atmosphere and horror attached. Price's character is also the only truly villainous one in this piece, unlike the tortured characters in the other two stories. The first story, "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment," is also quite good, the horror being more subtle here than in the final piece, but nonetheless present. The middle story, "Rappaccini's Daughter," I find to be the weakest and most predictable. There is the horror of the situation, but overall it is also the least 'horrific' if one can use the term here.

Recommended for fans of Price, or fans of 60's style horror. If you liked Tales of Terror (which is arguably better, but still...) you'll like this.

Bechdel Test: Fail

Overall: 3/5

(From Month Long Horror/Halloween Marathon on October 8th, 2014)

Swades: We, the People, a review by dfmorgan

Swades: We, the People

Year: 2004
Director: Ashutosh Gowariker
Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Kishori Ballal, Gayatri Joshi
Overview: Set in modern day India, Swades (Our Country) is a film that tackles the issues that development throws up on a grass root level. A country that is grappling with problems that development throws up, the India of Swades is colorful, heterogeneous and complex, with people of diverse cultures and attitudes. It is to this environment that Mohan Bhargava (Shah Rukh Khan), a bright young scientist working as a project manager in NASA, returns to on a quest to find his childhood nanny. In his attempts to persuade Kaveriamma (Kishori Ballal), the symbol to him of motherhood and family, to return to America with him, he gets drawn into the life of a village called Charanpur and finds himself searching for answers to the questions of progress and development that the village is facing. His curiosity is piqued by Gita (Gayatri Joshi - film debut), an admirable young woman teaching in the village primary school, who chooses to live here despite problems like casteism, prejudice and a lack of basic amenities.

The film uses the contrast between the highly developed world of NASA, which has been at the forefront of advances in space research, and this world back home in India, which is at the crossroads of development. What was a simple mission, prompted by nostalgia and affection, turns into a journey into the heartland of rural India, both literally and metaphorically. His quest becomes the journey that every one of us goes through in search of that metaphysical and elusive place called "home".

Watched: 17th. Oct 2010
My Thoughts: An excellent film. At its heart a love story with no real surprises but there is more with Mohan (Shah Rukh Khan) discovering himself along the way. Following his arrival at the village, where his nanny Kaveriamma (Kishori Ballal) now lives with Gita (Gayatri Joshi), Mohan finds himself attracted to Gita and also gets involved in the village way of life and the way that things are run there. This all leads up to an event where Kaveriamma gives him a task to complete and whilst on this task Mohan has an insight into the inherent problems of local village life. After this Mohan is attending a festival where the village council question him and he in turn questions them and he decides that action is needed to show his commitment. This is not the end though there are still a couple of further trials and tribulations.

I did enjoy this very much even though the picture quality was very grainy at times, this I put down to the original material as the poor quality generally appeared on interior shots where maybe the director was limited on film stock or equipment to achieve his aims.

My Rating: An enjoyable 4

Dave

(From Dave's DVD/Blu-ray Reviews on October 17th, 2010)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Season One: Volume One (1983/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia (United States) Length: 710 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles:

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Plot:
Excitement and adventure await those who enter the mystical land of Eternia! Join He-Man and the Masters of the Universe as they battle against Skeletor and his crew of dastardly villains in the greatest adventure ever told!

These first 33 episodes are only the beginning of the most phenomenal stories ever created in animation! Relive the excitement as you enjoy the adventure of the universe's greatest warriors. The power has returned!


He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
1.01 Diamond Ray of Disappearance
Writer: Robby London (Writer)
Director: Lou Zukor
Cast: John Erwin (Prince Adam / He-Man (voice)), John Erwin (Beast Man / Ram Man (voice)), Alan Oppenheimer (Cringer / Battle Cat / Mer-Man (voice)), Alan Oppenheimer (Skeletor (voice)), Linda Gary (The Sorceress (voice)), Linda Gary (Evil-Lyn / Teela / Queen Marlena (voice)), Erik Gunden (King Randor / Orko / Trap Jaw (voice)), Erik Gunden (Tri-Klops / Stratos (voice))

It has been now about 25 years since I became a fan of He-Man. I still enjoy this series and the characters even after all this time. For me this is not a series better left as a nostalgic memory. It still holds up.
And I just love the theme music. I never get tired of it.



Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on July 5th, 2011)