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Carnival of Souls, a review by addicted2dvd

Title: Carnival of Souls: The Criterion Collection Year: 1962 Director: Herk Harvey Rating: NR Length: 78 Min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Mono, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Mono Subtitles: English

Stars:
Candace Hilligoss
Frances Feist
Sidney Berger
Art Ellison
Stan Levitt
Tom McGinnis

Plot:
Herk Harvey's macabre masterpiece gained a cult following through late night television and has been bootlegged for years. Made by industrial filmmakers on a modest budget, Carnival of Souls was intended to have the "look of a Bergman" and "feel of a Cocteau," and succeeds with its strikingly used locations and spooky organ score. Mary Henry (Candace Hilligoss) survives a drag race in a rural Kansas town, then takes a job as a church organist in Salt Lake City. En route, she becomes haunted by a bizarre apparition that compels her to an abandoned lakeside pavilion. Criterion is proud to present the ultimate special edition of this eerily effective B-movie classic that continues to inspire filmmakers today.

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes
Gallery
Production Notes
Outtakes/Bloopers

My Thoughts:
This is one I have watched a few times before. I originally got this one in a cheaply made freebie boxset. After enjoying it so much a friend of mine got me the 2 disc Criterion edition for my birthday a couple years ago. I really have a hard time putting my finger on what it is about this movie I like so much... so it is a really hard one to review. It really is kinda different then what I usually watch. But I think it is definitely worth checking out.




Count:
Movie Count: 81
TV Ep. Count: 47 I Made It! (10/20)
Other Count: 8 I Made It! (10/15)

(From Month Long Horror/Halloween Marathon: 2010 on October 23rd, 2010)

Sabrina, a review by Danae Cassandra

Sabrina
Year of Release: 1954
Directed By: Billy Wilder
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, William Holden
Genre: Romance, Comedy

Overview:
Sabrina is charming, humorous and aglow with some of Hollywood's greatest stars. Humphrey Bogart, William Holden and Audrey Hepburn star in a Cinderella story directed by renowned filmmaker Billy Wilder (Sunset Boulevard, Some Like It Hot). Bogie and Holden are the mega-rich Larrabee brothers of Long Island. Bogie's all work, Holden's all playboy. But when Sabrina, daughter of the family's chauffeur, returns from Paris all grown up and glamorous, the stage is set for some family fireworks as the brothers fall under the spell of Hepburn's delightful charms.

My Thoughts:
This was a lovely movie to watch on Valentine's Day.  Audrey Hepburn is charming and lovely, Holden is appropriately handsome, charming and unreliable, and Bogie is dapper and serious.

While I understand her noticing David first, because he is handsome and wild, and Linus is so solemn and practical, I can't understand ever preferring David.  I guess that is the side-effect of watching this at 40 - and the point of the film, in Sabrina growing up and becoming more mature.  In fact, each of them has a nice character arc, and I found the script and story to be very well done. 

This is an old-fashioned romance, so don't expect anything racier than dancing and kissing.  There was also a much more romantic feel to it than many more modern films.  You don't see films like this any more.  Recommended for lovers of classic cinema.

Bechdel Test: Fail

Overall: 3.5/5

(From Within My (Mom's) Lifetime Marathon on February 15th, 2015)

Tom's Time-Travel Movie Reviews, a review by Tom

Blackadder: Back and Forth


My thoughts:
Great reunion special for Blackadder! Here we again have a chance to see Queenie from Blackadder II. And a chance to see our characters in modern times.

Rating:

(From Tom's Time-Travel Movie Reviews on January 4th, 2008)