1953 was a year in which two rival formats duked it out in cinemas: 3D via Gun Fury, and ‘glasses free’ CinemaScope via Beneath the 12-Mile Reef, both on Blu via Twilight Time. Also covered is Night People (1954), another early ‘scope production, on Blu via KL Studio Classics / Unobstructed View.
Between 1953-1954, Columbia’s foray into 3D spanned 8 films, with some productions benefitting from a mix of strong direction, scripts, casts, and 3D cinematography, but Gun Fury demonstrates the pitfalls of working with variable elements, and a team unable to fully grasp the demands of 3D…
Fox’s 3rd CinemaScope film is a visual stunner – more beautiful than the format’s debut with The Robe and the portraiture that dominated How to Marry a Millionaire – plus it’s a perfect cast, written, and produced work of romance and escapism set in Key West’s Greek community…
After years as an experienced writer-producer at Twentieth Century-Fox, screenwriter Nunnally Johnson made his first film as director with this virginal Cold War espionage thriller set in postwar Berlin…
Reviews of two Wonder Woman adaptations: Patty Jenkins’ 2017 theatrical hit (Warner Home Video) with Gal Gadot + the 1974 TV pilot (Warner Archives) with Cathy Lee Crosby.
There have been many attempts to capture the magic of DC’s popular heroine in film, a TV pilot, TV series, and animated productions, but Patty Jenkins’ 2017 film showcases Princess Diana (Gal Gadot) in an almost classically structured superhero adventure film, spending an unusual level of detail on her backstory…
For years after the cancellation of the Lynda Carter Wonder Woman series (1975-1979), this oddity floating in syndication, perplexing series fans because although it was a WW feature length drama, it starred Cathy Lee Crosby in a production that seemed tightly budgeted, and just looked and felt all wrong…
Just posted: a new ArtScopeTO podcast interview featuring abstract painter Chris Marin, whose series Passages can be seen at Toronto’s Urban Gallery, Oct. 5-28, 2017.
Reviews of two mummy tales: Tom Cruise’s disastrous The Mummy (2017) from Universal + ITV’s excellent mini-series Tutankhamun / The Mummy of Tutankhamun (2016).
When Stephen Sommers pitched to Universal’s studio brass his vision to reinvigorate their classic monsters into a new franchises, he hit gold with The Mummy (1999), a boisterous and blatant homage of sorts to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) that benefited from high energy, broad humour, and the buddy-buddy pairing of a male and female leads…
Dunking the Audiences: CinemaScope vs. 3D
1953 was a year in which two rival formats duked it out in cinemas: 3D via Gun Fury, and ‘glasses free’ CinemaScope via Beneath the 12-Mile Reef, both on Blu via Twilight Time. Also covered is Night People (1954), another early ‘scope production, on Blu via KL Studio Classics / Unobstructed View.
A Tale of Two Wonder Women: Gal Gadot (2017) + Cathy Kee Crosby (1974)
Reviews of two Wonder Woman adaptations: Patty Jenkins’ 2017 theatrical hit (Warner Home Video) with Gal Gadot + the 1974 TV pilot (Warner Archives) with Cathy Lee Crosby.
ArtScopeTO 04: Interview with Abstract Painter Chris Marin
Just posted: a new ArtScopeTO podcast interview featuring abstract painter Chris Marin, whose series Passages can be seen at Toronto’s Urban Gallery, Oct. 5-28, 2017.
Tut-Tut-Tut Part I: A Tale of Two Mummies
Reviews of two mummy tales: Tom Cruise’s disastrous The Mummy (2017) from Universal + ITV’s excellent mini-series Tutankhamun / The Mummy of Tutankhamun (2016).
Tales of Long Gone Hot Summers
It might be October, but it sure feels like a warm August, so let’s dig into William Faulkner’s The Long, Hot Summer (1958) + Tennessee Williams’ Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) on Blu from Twilight Time.
ArtScopeTO 04: Interview with Abstract Painter Chris Marin
Just posted: a new ArtScopeTO podcast interview featuring abstract painter Chris Marin, whose series Passages can be seen at Toronto’s Urban Gallery, Oct. 5-28, 2017.
Comrade Detective’s Joe Kraemer and the Art of the Satire
In my latest podcast, composer Joe Kraemer discusses the fine art of scoring satire for the Amazon exclusive series Comrade Detective: Season 1 + King Cohen: The Wild World of Filmmaker Larry Cohen, and more!
ArtScopeTO 03: Hanna Kostanski’s 20th Century Toronto: Intersections & Interactions
ArtScopeTO Podcast interview with Hamilton-Toronto painter-photographer Hanna Kostanski, whose series 20th Century Toronto: Intersections & Interactions can be seen at The Urban Gallery.
Between 1953-1954, Columbia’s foray into 3D spanned 8 films, with some productions benefitting from a mix of strong direction, scripts, casts, and 3D cinematography, but Gun Fury demonstrates the pitfalls of working with variable elements, and a team unable to fully grasp the demands of 3D…
BR: Beneath the 12-Mile Reef (1952)
Fox’s 3rd CinemaScope film is a visual stunner – more beautiful than the format’s debut with The Robe and the portraiture that dominated How to Marry a Millionaire – plus it’s a perfect cast, written, and produced work of romance and escapism set in Key West’s Greek community…
After years as an experienced writer-producer at Twentieth Century-Fox, screenwriter Nunnally Johnson made his first film as director with this virginal Cold War espionage thriller set in postwar Berlin…
Written during his busiest period (1968-1970), Quincy Jones’ score for John and Mary was quite sparse, leaving obligatory space for the film’s myriad dialogue exchanges and source music, but the score is memorable for being atypical of the material Jones was writing at the time: action comedies (The Italian Job, The Hell with Heroes), comedies (Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice,Cactus Flower), and the funky style of They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!
For some soundtrack fans, it was a bit of surprise to learn the composer of pioneering synth scores had begun his career with large orchestral scores for John Boorman’s Excalibur (1981) and Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal (1982)…
LP: Bourne Identity, The (2002)
The first film in the enduring franchise gave John Powell the perfect opportunity to write what remains both his definitive action sound, and the definitive action score of that decade, blending large orchestral sounds with layers upon layers of electronics…
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