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On Her Majesty's Secret Service, a review by Rich

On Her Majesty's Secret Service



When his usual intelligence sources fail, James Bond (Agent 007) enlists the aid of crime boss Draco to track down Ernst Stavro Blofeld, head of the evil SPECTRE organization. The trail leads to the mountains of Switzerland, where Bond goes undercover in Blofeld''s hi-tech headquarters. He encounters a bevy of seductive women, but none more beautiful than Draco''s daughter, Tracy, who wins 007 over with her fervent independence, caustic wit and love of adventure. Bond pledges his eternal devotion to her, but there are more immediate concerns: Blofeld is poised to unleash horrific germ warfare weaponry that will endanger every living thing on earth. Bond''s adventures hurl him through artillery-laden ski pursuits, and a dramatic avalanche drive

Unlike a stereotypical Bond, this was very close to the book, Lazenby was a bit one-dimensional but in a film with a gritty plot, actual spy work, emotions and vulnerability, it worked ok. Perhaps Georges downfall for his future as 007 was simply he isn't hard enough, he lacks a certain edge when it comes to physicality and presence.
Kojak is not Blofeld, I much preferred Donald Pleasance in that role. Diana Rigg a passable Bond girl.
This was back to basics with Bond having to save the world with wit, charm and intelligence, and very few gadgets to assist, which is in line with Flemings original book. The music is one of the better offerings in the whole series, and the stunts and effects do not suffer overly from dating. The dark ending I thought could have been worked better, and as we know we now have the next offering with Connerys return to avenge Blofeld.
 



(From Riches Random Reviews on March 9th, 2009)

Kidnapped, a review by Achim

Title: Cani arrabbiati
Year: 1974
Director: Rabid Dogs, Mario Bava, Kidnapped, Mario Bava
Rating: NR
Length: 191 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: Italian: Dolby Digital Mono, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Riccardo Cucciolla
Don Backy [Aldo Caponi]
Lea Lander
Maurice Poli

Plot:
It was to be the most startling film of Bava's entire career: After a botched payroll heist, a trio of vicious criminals take hostages in a desperate getaway that explodes with cruelty, degradation and shocking violence. But when the film's financier was killed during the last stages of production, his entire estate -- including the sole unfinished work print of RABID DOGS -- was seized and impounded by an Italian court. Mario Bava's final masterpiece -- one of the most intense EuroCrime thrillers of all time -- would remain locked away for nearly 23 years.

This presentation includes both the finished version known as KIDNAPPED featuring footage shot by producer Alfredo Leone and Mario's son and longtime assistant Lamberto Bava as well as RABID DOGS -- Bava's original unfinished film -- now with a newly created opening credit sequence.

Extras:
Scene Access
Trailers
Featurettes
Production Notes

After a successful robbery a group of four gangsters is on the run, with the police hot in pursuit. One gets shot They took three hostages, a young woman and a man with his sick son, who he wants to bring to the hospital for urgent surgery. Going around the police roadblocks the tension in the car rises, with the leader of the thugs being tough but calm headed and reasonable and the two younger ones getting more and more heated up.

Bava tells this simple story that concentrates on the different characters and their interactions. There is several scenes with high tension in which Bava builds up the suspense excellently. Camera work is great and on par with the best of Bava's other films. The good acting is here only hindered by the almost mediocre dub-work. Especially Maurice Poli as the leader of the gang nicknamed "Doc" shifts moods nicely. The car chase in the beginning is excellently done, funnily enough without any over-the-top action and rather at a more realistic "medium" speed.





My notes on Rabid Dogs:
While Kidnapped is the advertised feature here, I am not entirely sure why Anchor Bay chose this one over Rabid Dogs. Rabid Dogs, as seen in the cover text, is the film as Mario Bava intended it. There seems to be no content missing, so shooting had apparently wrapped, and we'll never know how far away Bava was from completing the film when it was ripped out of his hands. The transfer on the disc looks basically the same, only a few shots are obviously more heavily deteriorated; I assume they actually used the Kidnapped print, removed what shouldn't be there and then added only the needed shots from the work print. The music may have gotten some changes as well, we may never know. (Unless my guesses are actually clarified in the documentary I am about to watch .)

Rabid Dogs is only slightly different than Kidnapped. The opening credits are presented in a stylized fashion, much better than the simpler ones in Kidnapped. There is a two short scenes missing in the film, which hinted at the ending and were ultimately more irritating than they helped and the ending runs a little longer than Kidnapped, adding one more reveal at the end. While the changes don't necessarily make it a worse film, they are not Bava's choices and therefore simply shouldn't be there. Had I found that one discussion on IMDb earlier than I would have watched Rabid Dogs as the main attraction and Kidnapped as the special feature, not the other way around.

(From Mario Bava marathon on July 27th, 2009)

Doctor Who Marathon, a review by Tom

Doctor Who
Series 2.03 School Reunion
Writer: Toby Whithouse (Writer), Bob Baker (Original Characters By), Dave Martin (Original Characters By)
Director: James Hawes
Cast: David Tennant (The Doctor), Billie Piper (Rose Tyler), Noel Clarke (Mickey Smith), Anthony Head (Mr Finch), Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane Smith), Rod Arthur (Mr Parsons), Eugene Washington (Mr Wagner), Heather Cameron (Nina), Joe Pickley (Kenny), Benjamin Smith (Luke), Clem Tibber (Milo), Lucinda Dryzek (Melissa), Caroline Berry (Dinner Lady), John Leeson (Voice of K9)

The story itself is nothing special, but it is great to see the doctor reunite with Sarah Jane Smith. And I like how the meeting affects Rose.




(From Doctor Who Marathon on March 27th, 2014)