Although Graham Greene was less than pleased with the first film version of his 1955 novel, Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s 1958 effort remains a haunting rendition, mostly due to the excellent performances by two leads and actual filming in the relatively new republic of South Vietnam…
After a steady stream of films, screen star Tyrone Power had his eyes on producing his own biblical epic, given the genre had become a mainstay in cinemas with widescreen formats and stereophonic sound – perfect for exploiting sprawling vistas, rich colours, and lavish romantic soundtracks that bridged classic tales of romance and tragedy with modern audiences…
Scent of Mystery aka Holiday in Spain makes its premiere debut on home video, and alongside a review of the new Blu-ray, there a review of the Kritzerland soundtrack CD + interviews with Cinerama preservationist Dave Strohmaier and Redwind Productions producer Brian Jamieson.
Holiday in Spain / Scent of Mystery was initially planned as an alternative evolution of film exhibition by its original benefactor, Mike Todd, one of the partners in the 3-panel, super-widescreen format Cinerama in the early fifties. Widescreen films had existed as early as the twenties and early thirties…
Long a top collectible LP, Kritzerland’s limited CD rescues a very rare Mario Nascimbene score from oblivion, as well as providing some details on an even more rare film – the first and only movie presented in the branded Smell-O-Vision process…
Tales of Giant Bugs on VHS, a Podcast Interview, and Tape Swapping
In addition to a review of the 3D short film ROACH (2022) on VHS, I’ve an interview with its maker, SCHNUDLBUG, and links to an essay I wrote for the latest issue of BRANDON LIM’s zine, FILM FVCKERS, titled “THE GREAT TAPE SWAP”
Now Where Were We? Right. Let’s go back to LAST NIGHT (1998)
Don McKellar’s LAST NIGHT (1998) is the first review after a long pause in activities at KQEK.com
Gothic Steele: An Angel for Satan (1966)
Review of AN ANGEL FOR SATAN / UN ANGELO PER SATANA (1966), Barbara Steele’s last Italian Gothic, on Blu-ray from Severin Films
Tales of Giant Bugs on VHS, a Podcast Interview, and Tape Swapping
In addition to a review of the 3D short film ROACH (2022) on VHS, I’ve an interview with its maker, SCHNUDLBUG, and links to an essay I wrote for the latest issue of BRANDON LIM’s zine, FILM FVCKERS, titled “THE GREAT TAPE SWAP”
ArtScopeTO 10: Interview with Abstract Painter Donna Wise
For my occasional podcast series ArtScope TO, Abstract Painter Donna Wise discusses her unique techniques, and working during the 2020-2021 pandemic.
Podcast: Jason Pichonsky on Restoring Julian Roffman’s THE BLOODY BROOD (1959) + PHOBIA (1980)
Alongside a podcast with CanCon film historian Jason Pichonsky are revised reviews of Julian Roffman’s THE BLOODY BROOD (1959) + John Huston’s PHOBIA (1980), both from KINO Lorber / Unobstructed View.
The core story involves a pilot who runs into an available, functional spacecraft, and boots up into the planet’s now-toxic atmosphere, relying on the craft’s occasionally bristling AI navigation system to find a strata safe from dense clouds, and a roving giant bug determined to make a meal of the tiny craft and its pilot.
Assorted characters collide and interact in the lead-up to Earth’s demise at precisely midnight.
BR: Angel for Satan, An / Un angelo per Satana (1966)
Had Barbara Steele remained in Europe – especially Italy – during the early 1970s, she may well have appeared in giallo thrillers…
BR: Cannibal Man / La semana del asesino / Apartment on the 13th Floor, The (1972)
Cannibal Man has a palpable crime-drama feel – the events unfold after daily title cards – and one can sense Hitchcockian sensibilities…
BR: No One Heard the Scream / Nadie oyó gritar (1973)
After the grisly thriller Cannibal Man (1972), Spanish auteur Eloy de la Iglesia opted for a far less graphic thriller which is part giallo…
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