Reviews (2)

this episode
This video has two episodes that are highly ranked of my favorite episodes. The seal is my second favorite. BUY THIS DVD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tense, as usual
Of the two episodes in this video, the best is The Seal. It is always great to watch the IMF in action. In The Seal, an ancient and sacred seal has been stolen from an obscure country and in the interest of obtaining their favor in the Cold War, it is the team's duty to return the seal.

While this is an earlier episode, you can tell the show was hitting its stride. All the elements are there: timed sequences, the fake accents, a magician, hiding in equipment to gain entrances, fake ids and what is always best - watching the team psych out their prey.

I do not recall having seen this episode and I was surprisingly tense watching this show...there is so much going on and you know there is always the unexpected surprise. This show had everything including a trained cat! Don't miss it. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

If you are not a big Dr. Who and John Pertwee fan don't buy
The Colony is Space is definitely a classic John Pertwee Dr. Who. If you are a big fan
of John Pertwee, this is a must for your collection. I thought the video was okay. If you
are a huge Dr. Who fan I would recommend buying this. If you are not a Dr. Who fan and
are just getting started out, I would not recommend this video. The plot in general was fairly
solid, but too many things going on to concentrate on the plot. The Master arrives, but is a very
weak bad guy character that could have been left out. The video did not drag on like some of the
longer episode ones. The sound quality was fair and archive quality, so I had to adjust the
volume several times while watching. I believe this was a lost episode that was restored from
some old video tapes from PBS. I had never seen this video before until now, and it filled in
the gap for me. The story was classic Dr. Who will all the model ships, fake looking masked
aliens, and fair to poor quality sets. This IS Dr. Who with all the can fix anything,
karate fighting, expert at everything John Pertwee style. If you are getting started I would
recommend other Dr. WHO videos from John Pertwee like: Spearhead from Space,
Planet of the Spiders, Death to the Daleks, and my favorite Frontier in Space.

"Doctor! Come back at once!"
The Doctor gets a reprieve from his exile on Earth, only to do the bidding of the Time Lords. Landing on a planet with Jo Grant, the Doctor gets involved with some colonist close to starvation . Meanwhile, IMC, the ruthless mining corporation from Earth, is trying to remove the colonist from the planet. A very early politically correct/socially aware Who serial. It's also very padded and dull, but still fun. There are some silly-looking natives throwing spears and stones and a mud-fight. Captain Dents's hair-style is way cool...NOT! Not really much to say about this one, but it is far more interesting until the obligatory appearance of the Master arrives. Still, it's got it's moments. You just have to wait a while for things to happen...

Still, it's a Pertwee!
Whether you agree or disagree with the overall story being good or bad, this is still a good way to get your Jon Pertwee/Katy Manning fix. I first saw this on PBS, luckily one episode each Saturday, in 1976.

This is probably the weakest story of this particular season, although it promised a lot by being the first Pertwee adventure away from Earth. I think that too many elements were added for this story (Master, colonists, mining company, natives, Doomsday Weapon...eliminating something from it actually would have created more interest). The ending of Episode 2 is actually a fun cliffhanger.
It was fun to note that Jo Grant's reaction in the TARDIS was no different than most of the other companions before her (bigger inside than out, NOT ON EARTH, OH MY!).

I agree with the other guys
This story is typical of most 6-parters in Dr. Who, strong through the first 3 episodes but then dragged out as if it were really intended to be a four part story but they had to stretch it out.
As I have been collecting Dr. Who videos since the Mid. 90's, and I'm hoping the BBC will release the rest here by 2004, buying or not buying this video was not the question.
The biggest thing that stood out was the photocopied wall in the Doctor's TARDIS, which looked cheap.
Unless you're a collector like myself, I wouldn't recommened this one.

Another story against corporate imperialism
The Master is at it again. This time, he has stolen the file of the Doomsday Weapon from the Time Lords. In order to deal with it, a small group of Time Lords, presumably the Celestial Intervention Agency later mentioned in the Deadly Assassin story, use the Doctor to deal with it. The Doctor and Jo, who happen to be in the TARDIS testing out a new dematerialization circuit, get whisked off to Uxarius, on 3 March 2472.

They meet a group of colonists, headed by Robert Ashe, who are having such horrible luck, that "unless things improve drastically, [their] colony is in grave danger of starving to death." Since their arrival a year ago, they planted subsistence crops in order to reclaim worn out soil, but the crops shoot up, wither, and then die. They also live in an uneasy truce with the local race of Primitives, whom they give food, not helping their dwindling food supply. Not only that, but two colonists are killed by giant lizards. The Doctor and Jo promptly give their help as usual.

As if they didn't have enough troubles, a detachment from Interplanetary Mining Corporation, headed by the cold-hearted Captain Dent, arrive and claim mineral rights, in conflict with Ashe's claim that Uxarius was classified for colonization. An Adjudicator is sent for, however, they normally favour IMC in disputes. The hot-headed Winton, Ashe's deputy, favours an attack on IMC to drive them out, in contrast to the more diplomatically-minded Ashe. On the side of the IMC, there's the mineralogist Caldwell, who begins to question some of IMC's methods of getting their bottom line. The Adjudicator does come, and guess who it is?

Things heat up between the colonists and IMC, whose role in the colonists suffering may be connected. Then there's Norton, a survivor from another colony attacked by giant lizards and Primitives, whose behaviour in Episode Two becomes definitely suspect.

Colony paints a grim picture of Earth back home, "no room to move, polluted air, not a blade of grass, a government that locks you up if you think for yourself", a place where people don't live like human beings but like battery hens in floating 300 story islands. An unflattering picture is painted of corporations. Dent says in true fascist, corporate style, "What's good for IMC is good for Earth." As for the colonists, he doesn't care the least about their hardships. All he cares is about the profits they'll make in gutting Uxarius of duralinium. It's also an interesting look at the leadership styles and decision-making, Ashe, Winton, and Dent in particular, and why they either succeed or fail.

Other things: Mary Ashe says that "there's no animal life, just a few birds and insects." So, uh..., what exactly does that make birds and insects? Apart from that, Helen Worth stands out as Mary, as does Nicholas Pennell (Winton), Bernard Kay (Caldwell), and John Ringham (Robert Ashe), who also appeared as the ruthless Tlotoxl in Who story The Aztecs and the no-longer available The Smugglers as Blake. Another in-joke was a reference to how the Spanish ambassador was mistaken for the Master, as Roger Delgado (the Master) was himself half-Spanish, half-French.

Some padding is apparent throughout this six-parter, but it's a thoughtful story on the reaction against post-industrial urbanization (the colonists) and the ruthlessness of corporations (IMC). ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

A burnt-out architect (the peerlessly unhinged John Cassavetes) tries to get away from it all on a seemingly idyllic Greek isle in this extremely loose-limbed adaptation of Shakespeare's play. This pleasantly rambling, exquisitely lit portrayal of the middle-aged-crazies is rather broad even by writer-director Paul Mazursky's estimable standards, but Cassavetes's wholly unpredictable performance keeps the considerable preciousness from ever getting too thick. (He's aided by a uniformly wonderful cast, including Gena Rowlands, Susan Sarandon, Molly Ringwald, and especially Raul Julia as a wacked-out lech of a goatherd.) Not recommended for people trying to get out of reading the source material (for that, try the sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet), but patient viewers will find plenty of rewards amid the schmaltz. --Andrew Wright ... Read more

Reviews (22)

Great Mazursky-Cassavettes hybrid
As it did for another viewer, this movie really got inside my head. I think part of the appeal is the vicarious pleasure in seeing the Cassavettes character quitting his job, which he hates. I don't think the nervous energy Cassavettes of the Cassavettes character was just an act -- see Paul Mazursky's recent book . I'd like to add to the list of wonderful scenes another reviewer started: 1) the 'Dozing Scene' with the shot of sky through the trees, the hammock by the sea, and the little goat springing along then suddenly going to sleep; and 2) the 'Leaping Goats' scene. The intertwining of the two story timelines worked really well, great Greek scenery, and glimpses of early 80's New York City too, including the now lost World Trade Center. Gena Rowlands and Susan Sarandon were both fine in their roles as well. Raul Julia's Calibanos was more Latin American than Greek but I enjoyed his character anyway. Molly Ringwald's first film role--I thought she was cute. The second half of the film, after everyone joins up on the Greek island is a bit of let down, though, and the sacrifice scene didn't really make much sense to me.

Enjoyable, occassionally serious romp based on Shakespeare
Maybe it's just a sentimental attachment, but I've always loved this movie since I saw it over and over again, when my household first got cable TV. Great actors old (John Cassavettes and Gena Rowlands) and new (Molly Ringwald, Raul Julia, Susan Sarandon, all in early roles) abound in this modern retelling of Shakespeare's Tempest. Nominally a comedy, Tempest focuses on serious topics: infidelity, a young woman's coming of age, parent-child relationships, family conflict. Beautiful settings and realistic dialog. Happy endings in spite of the rocky conflicts each character goes through. Every time I watch it, I learn something new.

VERY REFRESHING MOVIE.
This is a very refreshing movie which does not happen too often. When I watched it I had a feeling that every actor (and they all were great) was free tp act on his or her own and the director just gave the general directions. One could see every actor, every talent at its best. Little things, little touches made it work. Good movie, great production, excellent actors and the perfect music. It is very reccomended.

Life's Barometer!?:
This film certainly hit a cord in my life .As I too was strugeling with some of the same issues in 1983. I was Battered with family problems,a sinking tenure in my own business,and 38 yrs of life in the cold & dreary north east{Baltimore Md.}. Although painful...., our leaving some life long freinds...,I sold everything!And I decieded to relocate our young family {Myself-wife & 12 yr old son }to the sunny so.west coast of Florida. "I trully believe that this verion of the movie "The Tempest" played a large part in my decision!" This movie is aluring. The chemistry of actors, the endearing music,harp & clarinet on those lazy days on the island ,and that beautiful feeling of an Oasis somewhere, for all to just get away to in a paradice right here on earth. "I recomend it, sure!" It is simply an emotionally stirring film .Why not create a curriculum for our collages that they also view this version of "The Tempest"? To be offered as a tool in weighing both the " positives & negitives" in their quest through ...,life. Mario Saint Michael Sciuto- Naples Fla. A side note: For us ,"It was a very good decision!" Thanks Tempest:

A great movie on many fronts.
This movie has it all. Romance. Comedy. Drama. Magic. Beauty. Coming of age. Man against man. Man against himself. Vengance and forgiveness. Excellent character development--their passions and their flaws are skillfully portrayed. ... Read more

Reviews (114)

A League Of Their Own (1992)
What an amazing movie! This has to be my favorite Madonna movie, other than Body Of Evidence. It features an all star cast: Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna, Lori Petty, Rosie O'Donnell, Jon Lovitz, Garry Marshall, and Bill Pullman.

Geena Davis stars as Dottie Hinson and Lori Petty stars as Kit Keller, two adult sisters who play baseball on a minor team in Oregon of 1943. Dottie is a married woman, whose husband, Bob Hinson (played by Bill Pullman) is overseas fighting in the war that was going on at the time. Dottie is an excellent ball player. Kit is a bitter person who is always being treated like crap. After a game, the two are in their barn milking cows, where a scout by the name of Ernie Capadino (played by Jon Lovitz) walks in and offers them a to try out for the All American Girls Professional Baseball League (A.A.G.P.B.L.). Dottie wants nothing to do with it, but Kit knows that this could be big chance for the both of them, so Kit talks Dottie into going. While on the way to Chicago for the try outs, they pick up Marla Hooch, who is an excellent batter. The three finally make it to Chicago. While getting ready to try out, they meet gal pals Doris Murphy (played by Rosie O'Donnell) and Mae Mordabito (played by Madonna). They all are chose to a team: The Rockford Peaches.

Tom Hanks is in the role of Jimmy Dugan, who is a washed up ball player, who is called by Walter Harvey (played by Garry Marshall) to coach the Rockford Peaches.

The Peaches become a smash, winning every game there ever is, all because of their most popular play, Dottie. Kit is angered at this and is traded to another team: The Racine Belles.

The Peaches finally make to the last game of the season. Their opponents: The Racine Belles. Dottie and Kit are up against each other for one final time. Who will win the championship? The Peaches? Or The Belles? Watch this amazing movie, based on the actual events of the A.A.G.P.B.L. This is a movie that is guaranteed to make you watch it over and over again.

My Absolute Favorite
This has alway been my all time favorite movie! I remember my mom and I were in Blockbuster Video store when I was nine, and she and I couldn't find anything. Then, she saw "A League of Their Own," she told me that I would love this movie. And boy was she right. I have seen this movie over 50 times, I know the entire dialogue, the songs, every moment, I can rehash line for line right now if I wanted to. I think this movie had the most well-rounded cast in over a decade. Geena Davis was amazing as Dottie Henson; a person who loved the game very much, although she tried to pull off that she didn't. Lorri Petty's best role to date, as Kit Keller, Dottie's younger sister, whom is always stuck in Dottie's shadow. The chemistry between Petty and Davis is amazing, they work so well together, they were extremely believable. Tom Hanks was fantastic as the alcoholic, ex-baseball star Jimmy Dugan, which of course, his classic urinating seen is a total laugh. Madonna and Rosie had made the laughs of the film, they were wise cracking and hilarious.

I can go on and on about this film, and the problem is, I can't quite articulate how much I love this film, and why I love it so much. I've cried many times, especially the scene with Betty "Spighetti" and at the end of the World Series. I love this film, Penny Marshall is a Goddess. She chose the perfect actors, and the perfect score, especially Madonna's "Playground" which still makes me cry at the ending sequences. This movie observes a part of history that is ignored. Many to this day, have no idea about the professional baseball league, grant it, this movie "idealized" what really happened, but it made you proud. I think this is still a must-see of a movie, it is still my all-time favorite movie, and it has been for 11 years.

Brilliant film!!
This is one of my favourite films, it made me want to watch it again and again. With an all star cast including Geena Davis, Lotti perri and Tom Hanks, who give brilliant and funny performances. This film is funny,tear jerking and an all round good film. The storyline is brilliant and what more can i say....its definately worth buying!

Good movie but......
Who in the world in Tom Hanks supposed to be. I know he wasnt a real baseball player b/c he said he hit 487 homeruns for Mr Harvys ball team, i have never heard of the guy. Was his name chaged or something? Oh yeah and Harvy Field????? Can u say Wrigley Field. But besides the little things that only people who love baseball would find it is over all a good movie.

I think this is a great movie!
Well I'm biased because my cusin is in this movie. He dances with madonna in the bar sceen.. But I still think that it's a good movie. ... Read more

Reviews (73)

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street 2 KA
Rod Serling was a very odd person. He went to school to become a P.E. Teacher and ended up wrighting over one hundred stories for T.V. One of these stories is Monsters Are Due on Maple Street. This story, as you've probably guessed, takes place on Maple Street. The characters Charlie, the annoying, smart-mouthed neighbor, and Steve, the actually intelligent neighbor, are two of the lead characters in the story. I think that if Charlie had only listened to Steve a lot of bad things wouldn't have happened.
I don't think this story was very realistic. In a real neighborhood people would go crazy just because the power went out and they certainly wouldn't think it was aliens that did it. People would say, "Oh, there goes the power again." Not "The electricity's off!!"(669). Oh no! The powers out! What are we going to do? (sarcastically) The electricity goes out in our neighborhood at least once every other month. Most people would be in side all day so only about three people would have seen the U.F.O. and they would have been kids. Who would believe them? I think the people in the story really over reacted.
There were a few parts of the story that were unbelievable, like when Mr. Goodman's car started. That was really weird. I really didn't see that coming. There was also when Pete Van Horn got shot. I didn't think anything like that would happen. I knew the ending couldn't be happy. The Twilight Zone never is. The stories always seem to be so tragic. What was Rod Serling thinking? He must have been a troubled child. Any way; I can't believe that Charlie actually thought that Pete Van Horn was a monster. "You killed him Charlie. You shot him dead!"(679) How dumb could he be?
I didn't really pick this story. Ms. Chabot told us to read it. I liked it though. I think it's funny to watch old science fiction shows. I laugh at the cheesy acting and the corny special effects. You can see the strings holding them in the air. I thought it was funny how one little boy made all the neighbors think that aliens were attacking their neighborhood. Nobody would believe that now-days. Maybe people were more easily convinced of those things fifty years ago.
I think the video Monsters Are Due on Maple Street and the teleplay Monsters Are Due on Maple Street are a lot the same. They used most of the same lines and used the same camera angles. Just like this line, "What was that? A meteor?" The story took a lot longer to read though. The video was only a few minutes. The book took days. It had more detail than the video did. Just like when they showed the space ship. You could see at least five strings coming off of it. Every body in the class laughed. It was really funny.

4jk
Rod Serling was a former boxer and a future PE teacher. He takes a path uncommon to jocks and science fiction. He wrote a movie called "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street." The characters in this movie are: Charlie the wise-cracker know it all, Steve the wise one, Don the laid back one, Tommy the kid who knows what's gonna happen, Sally his mother, and Pete Van Horn a scientist. You don't here a lot about Pete Van Horn because he leaves Maple Street at the beginning of the movie because he goes to another neighborhood to see if the power is on there. It all happens on Maple Street, USA.

My feelings as I read this book were that I couldn't understand why everybody was fighting and blaming each other. It's like you wanna yell " Jiminy Christmas." It's like what Rod serling said, "The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, and prejudice to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudice can kill and suspicion can destroy and a thoughtless frightened search for scapegoat has a fallout all its own for the children... and the children yet unborn.
Pg [684.]

I wonder why the town is so peaceful, now and days you see kids about 13-16 on the street smoking, drinking and doing drugs. You might see parents telling there kids there grounded and then later you see the kids sneaking out the window. I mean come on who in the right mind would believe that? "Maple Street, U.S.A., late summer. A tree-lined little world of front porch gliders, hopscotch, the laughter of children, and the bell of an ice cream vendor." Pg [668.]

My favorite part of The Monsters are Due on Maple Street, is when everybody was accusing each other of who where the aliens. Everybody was bickering and fussing about this and that and everything that was going on. Tommy came running up the street yelling an alien is coming, so Charlie took his shotgun and shot what was coming up the street. It was Pete Van Horn, Charlie shot Pete Van Horn. [He swings the gun around to point it toward the sidewalk. The dark figure continues to walk towards them. The group stands there, fearful, apprehensive, mothers clutching children, men standing in front of wives. Charlie slowly raises the gun. As the figure gets closer and closer he suddenly pulls the trigger. The sound of it explodes in the stillness. There is a long angle shot looking down at the figure, who suddenly lets out a small cry, stumbles forward onto his knees and then falls forward on his face. Don, Charlie and Steve race forward over to him. Steve is there first and turns the man over. Now the crowd gathers around them.] Pg 679.

I felt that the book was good. It was very weird I wonder what's going to happen to all of the other people in the book. I wonder if the aliens are going to take over the whole world. Like hypnotizing all of the animals in the whole world to attack and kill all the people in the world except for one person to tell them how all humans lived and the aliens will all move down to earth and start living like humans. Then the whole world will never be the same again. Are you wondering what happened to that one guy? Well they kept him alive, and hypnotize him to think that the aliens are really humans and he married an alien, which he thought was a human. Are you wondering what happened to the animals? Well there alive to but the aliens experimented on them and mixed all of them up. It is freaky dude. I just hope that one of you aren't the one left not killed, because if I were I would just not feel right but I couldn't feel right because I would be hypnotized. Well I change my mind I would want to be the one left behind because I would act like I was hypnotized then I would get some weapons and kill all the aliens in the world. Then I would search all over the world and try to find pieces of the people that were killed then I would go to a lab and clone everybody so that all the people in the world would be back to life but they would be clones but I still would be happy because all of my friends, teachers, family members and other people in the world would be alive. But before I could clone people I would have to read the manual on how to work the cloning machine, then after I read that I would have to read the manual on how to clone people. Then I would fix all the animals back together. Wow! Sorry got off the subject there. Well the book was good I like it a lot I hope you like it to. So you have to read "Monsters are Due on Maple Street"

1VJ
"The Monsters are Due on Maple Street," is a classical episode of the Twilight Zone. I like how it showed that we can be prejudice and suspicious. It's also interesting how all the "monsters", or aliens, had to do was flick on and off a few lights to scare the people. Then the rest was the peoples own doing. The movie is very dramatic, and is almost exactly the same as the teleplay. The fact that it is in black and white makes it even more intense, in my opinion. The video and the teleplay both had the same scene of fright where the lights go out and nothing works. This then goes on to mass confusion, foreshadows the coming of aliens, and shows the weak points of the human race.
The plot advances with chaos. The people get scared and confused. They blame each other for having something they don't. This causes mass confusion and general panic. Things only get worse after that. One thing happens after another. The suspicious grows and the people get paranoid, until someone is killed. This person was Pete Van Horn. "You killed him, Charlie. You shot him dead!" (679)
As the plot advances they also foreshow what will come. The aliens are the ones who cause all the lights to fail, but the humans are the ones who became suspicious. This foreshadows the doom of the humans. The aliens plan to go from Maple Street to Maple Street and do the same to cause the fall of humans. "Then I take this place... this Maple Street...is not unique."
Rod Sterling's theme for "Monsters are due on Maple Street" is you shouldn't be too quick to judge people. Or be suspicious of people who have things you don't. Chaos supports this theme in showing how easily we can become suspicious of others. Then from there chaos and mayhem come. The theme could also be a kind of moral. "They pick the most dangerous enemy they can find... and it is them selves" (682) I think this quote is a good quote to describe the theme.
I think "Monsters are due on Maple Street" is really great. It has a wonderful plot. When I read the teleplay, I thought it was just like the other Twilight Zones. (I have seen a few others. One was about a man being in isolation.) I really enjoyed the Monsters are due on Maple Street. The teleplay was almost exactly like the movie or visa versa. My favorite part in this one was at the end where the sudden quietness is shocking. Then the aliens come and start talking, and it fades out to Sterling's face and he said his "And this is the Twilight Zone." I also like the beginning/ending songs. In conclusion I think the teleplay and the movie were both equally interesting.

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street 1KC
" The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street"

Rod Serling, a screenplay writer for MGM in the 1950's wrote many famous science fiction teleplays, movies, Broadway shows, and television entertainment shows. Serling has won multiple Emmy awards for his work. He wrote 92 twilight zone episodes that were aired on CBS. They became one of America's most recognized, and most popular television series.
Some of Serling's most famous writings include: "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" and "Time Enough at Last". "Time Enough at Last" was written in 1959. I do not know when "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" was written but I assume it was around 1959.
Rod Serling died on June 28th, 1975. He died during a coronary bypass operation in Rochester, New York. Rod Serling's stories of aliens and super natural happenings are entertaining for all to this day. His name will live on in science fiction history forever.
"The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", a teleplay and television entertainment show, was written by Serling in the nineteen fifties'. I love how Serling describes les Goodman's car starting up with no one in it (673). This event brings chaos and unproven assumptions. Other things, such as flickering lights, happen all down Maple Street. They are mostly all blamed on Les Goodman because of his insomnia. These things bring complete and utter chaos.
Confusion breaks free when all of the lights and appliances down Maple Street turn off and stop working (668-669). This advances the plot to confusion. Chaos doesn't come until Les Goodmans' car starts up with no one inside. People turn wild as new and crazy things happen down Maple Street. Sound effects in this section of the teleplay are screams, crying, and gunfires.
Other crazy things happen down Maple Street. Lights flicker, appliances turn on and off, and again chaos starts up (683). Mostly these things are blamed on Les Goodman. They think he is an alien because his insomnia sometimes wakes him up. So to occupy himself he takes walks at night and claims to be looking at stars. But the families all down Maple Street think he is looking for his alien friends. This foreshadows who is behind all of the chaos and confusion.
I thought Rod Serling's teleplay, "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", was very realistic when referring to human nature. Even though it is believed that alien or outer space life forms are not real. The car starting then produces this assumption.
I thought it was interesting how Serling never gave a definite ending to "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street". He never gives a definite ending to the teleplay. I just assumed the chaos went on until every human life on Maple Street was dead or confused for their lifetime. Even though I am not into science fiction writings, I really enjoyed "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street". I would call this science fiction movie and teleplay one of the best from the 1950's.

1OE
The Monsters Due On Maple Street

"The Monsters Due On Maple Street" was probably the only kind of movie that was supposed to be scary back then. Since I'm in the year 2003 that movie was pretty dumb, but back in that time it must have been awesome. The aliens looked really dumb with those two antennas. I liked seeing all the fake shooting and killing. I can now see how far we have come with movies since then. The movie was confusing until the alien started to talk. They told their plan of taking over the Earth by flickering some lights and making some stuff mess up. When they said that, it put all the pieces of the movie together, and foreshadowed that the human race would end because of prejudice.
I think the way he ended the movie was great. He told about the plan and makes you think, could that happen to us? That is how he advanced the plot, he told the story about the alien's plan and then had them talk and tell how everybody is the same. He had the aliens take off saying they were going to take over the world just by sitting down. Then left for another place to terrorize.
When the aliens talk it foreshadows the Earth in complete destruction. Dying because of them assuming that their friends are the enemy, when really they are the most dangerous because they terrorize people as innocent as them. When the aliens talk they say the theme of how people can be so prejudice. "They find the most dangerous enemy they can find............and it's themselves" (682). It is the probably the best and easiest plan the aliens have ever come up with.
The theme in this story is not to be prejudice. My part advanced the theme by talking. The aliens tell their plan about using prejudice to destroy the humans. As much as that sounded stupid, it was smart. The aliens could actually make their plan work, and that is what The Monsters Due Maple Street shows. About everyone has a little bit of prejudice inside him. After reading the story, realizing the theme, and thinking about it, you will think could that happen to me?
The book and movie are so close to each other. You can read from the book and they will say almost all of the same lines in the movie. That is what helps me relate to the movie. I can just see if the picture was same in the movie as in my mind. In other movies they are far off from the book, so it changes the whole view of the story. The author picked a great way to show how everyone can be so prejudice. When I read the story I also was prejudice. I thought Charlie was the alien, but as I found out nobody was. That surprised me a lot. This was the first book that showed that nobody was the bad guy, and that made the story's end great. ... Read more

Reviews (40)

Roughriders- true to form, accurate and inspiring!
Of all of the recent genre of movies depicting vignettes of American history, Roughriders goes the extra mile to capture the essence, mood and feeling of Victorian America as it flexed it's international muscles for the first time! Berenger and the supporting cast are outstanding, and the battle scenes are among the most accurate ever made. This is a must see!

Cowboys become Military Legends
This excellent mini-series (directed by John Milius) details the training and employment in battle of one of the most legendary units in American military history: the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, better known as the "Rough Riders".
Raised by then-Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt, a New York aristocrat-turned Dakota Territory rancher, the Rough Riders were perhaps the most unusual of all the volunteer regiments to be raised to fight in Cuba in 1898.
Comprised predominately of cowpunchers and lawmen (with a small sprinkling of outlaws), as well as a few Park Avenue socialites, the Rough Riders went on to be employed as (next to the 10th US Regular Cavalry, one of the regiments of "Buffalo Soldiers") some of the most effective troops in the War. The taking of the Spanish strong point in the San Juan Heights was pivotal to the defeat of the Spanish in Cuba.
Milius gives us a story which is equal parts western, period piece and war movie. The casting is especially masterful. Western stalwart Sam Elliott plays the commader of "G" Troop, Captain "Bucky" O'Neil, an Arizona Territory sheriff who ultimately falls victim to the bullet of a Spanish Mauser rifle in front of the San Juan Heights.
Tom Berenger portrays Theodore Roosevelt, and we see Roosevelt go from enthusiastic amateur soldier to hardened warrior. We also see the genuine affection Roosevelt felt for his regiment of cowboys. Gary Busey is thoroughly enjoyable as Maj. Gen. "Fightin' Joe" Wheeler. Wheeler was a Democrat Congressman from Alabama who led the Cavalry Corps of the US expeditionary force in Cuba. More significantly, he was a West Point graduate...and had served as a CONFEDERATE cavalry general in the Civil War. His command in Cuba was seen as being a significant step in the reunification of the US following the Civil War.
The battle scenes are well choreographed and the acting is superb throughout. Elmer and Peter Bernstein's score reinforce the "western" flavor of this film. My only regret (and it's a small one) is that the uniforms worn by the actors were not more accurate in detail. They retained a bit of "Hollywood" in watching the budget, and this shows in some of the small things (such as the hats worn by the actors portraying soldiers). Other than that, I have no complaints with this movie. It's fun, inspiring....and makes me proud to be an American, but above all else, proud to be a Westerner!
Gotta like it when cowboys save the day....and they did historically in 1898 at a hill in Cuba....

Great war movie, great cast, great future president
This movie deserves to be better known. It's primary subliminal lesson is that the Spanish-American war was not the kind of cakewalk that folks who use John Hay's oft-quoted phrase, "A splendid little war," make it out to seem. Quite to the contrary, it was deadly beyond imagining.

And it brought forth some great heroes, too, some of whom you will meet in this movie. The most famous, of course, is TR himself, Teddy, the "cowboy" who became our 26th president -- portrayed in the film delightfully human (as when he flirts with his wife) and courageous by Tom Berenger. Another familiar face (Gary Busey of "The Buddy Holly Story") portrays General Joe Wheeler, the only Confederate general to wear blue in the war of 1898. And Sam Elliott is cast in the role of another one of the Rough Rider heroes.

This film is a magnificent tribute to the men who fought the war that finally re-united a nation in an act of bloodshedding that was all but routine. "Rough Riders" makes clear just how far from splendid this "little war" really was, as well as just how heroic were the men who fought in it.

Please put this classic on DVD!!!!
There's not much to say here that hasn't been said by others.
This is one great film, historically accurate, and fun too,
while it gets all of this across. Why this is not yet on DVD,
when a great number of lesser films are, is anybody's guess.
I'll add my plea here too: PLEASE get this great film onto a
DVD format!

Outstanding!
John Milius did an absolutely amazing job of putting together a film that depicts the establishment and deployment of the 1st U.S. Vounteer Cavalry. Milius has done wonderful justice to his longtime hero, Theodore Roosevelt, who he once said was the embodiment of everything great about America.

As Americans, we take so much of our heritage for granted. In this day and age of our all-volunteer armed forces, high technology and limited warfare, any discussion of our heritage and sacrifice in the blood our ancestors made is neatly compartmentalized for Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. This is a shame.

Sometimes, the people who are supposed to be leading us aren't much help, either. Our elected and appointed officials often flounder in the face of bad press without explanation. The end result is that no one can understand how our government can ask people to fight and die in places far away, for causes that sometimes seem to have more to do with whether or not we can maintain our standard of living than anything else. The wars we fight now seem to be fleeting events that come and go. Tragically, the dead are gone, and life goes on without them.

In his various career incarnations as Governor of New York, the Secretary of the Navy, and as President, Roosevelt was always one to inspire controversy. As a Lieutenant Colonel assigned to the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, he was no different. To Roosevelt, war was not the drudgery of hell on earth, but an enobling excercise, one which all Americans should aspire to. Amusingly, after one visit with Roosevelt, author Mark Twain remarked that it was easy to see the Roosevelt was "cleary insane."

Whether you agree or disagree, Tom Berringer is the perfect Roosevelt. He portrays TR as a man of vision and backbone, as the sort of man who would one day forge the United States into the awsome power that it is today. Berringer's performance in "The Rough Riders" is possibly the best of his career.

In 1898, the American nation was, in many ways, still rebuilding from the civil war. For the people of America, this was the dawn of an industrialized nation, and for the first time, American industry was forging the tools that would take our Naval Forces into the twentieth century. Yet it would be twenty years before the new technology of the tank and airplane would be implemented in land warfare. The Spanish-American war is unique in that in many respects, both politically, strategically and tactically, it was a prelude to World War One.

Without going into a plot synopsis (I'm not going to explain something you can see for yourself), I will say that the story unfolds perfectly and the direction is impeccable. All of the supporting actors, Brad Johnson, R. Lee Ermy, Dale Dye, Brian Keith, Sam Elliott, Gary Busey and George Hamilton are superb in their roles.

Yes - this is a film that should have been a theatrical release. Yes - this is a film that ought to be put on a two-dvd set with lots of extras. Yes - this is a great film.

The "Rough Riders" was made for presentation as a made for TV film for Turner Broadcasting. It was first broadcast in 1998, roughly 100 years after the Spanish American war. I'll give Ted Turner credit; I don't agree with him on very much, but I will say that Turner Broadcasting performed a great service in broadcasting "The Rough Riders".

In a day and age where films depicting shoddy characters with even shoddier values are routinely churned out and targeted for specific demographic groups, "The Rough Riders" is an anomoly. It is an inspired film. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

A classic documentary
This superb documentary, despite being criticized for its use of fictitious re-creation scenes, provides convincing proof that a Dallas man was wrongly accused of killing a police officer. The accused man, who had been put on death row for 12 years, was eventually freed because of this film. Comprised mainly of interviews of the people involved in the murder case (including, chillingly, the person believed to be the real killer), the film paints a frightening picture of our justice system gone haywire. The dramatic re-creations, complete with film-noir like camera work and music score, to some violate the rules in documentary films, which traditionally contain only 100% documentary footage. Director Errol Morris' response to the criticism was that, "the re-creations are not supposed to depict the truths, but the LIES people have told. I believe David Harris shot the policeman, but the re-creations NEVER show that."

A bit of injustice was served to this film as well, as it was not nominated for a best-documentary oscar.

One of the damnedest documentaries I have ever seen.
I am a movie buff from Widener University, who bought this documentary on VHS as an afterthought while buying two other critically acclaimed docs, Streetwise and Gates of Heaven (both given 4 stars by Roger Ebert, who's like a second father to me). Although some people might not like the fact that this VHS version was pan-and-scan, the visual impact of the filmed interviews as well as the soundtrack still shines through. Anyone who wonders why so many people oppose the death penalty should see this film. People who have served jury duty (or are considering it) will also benefit. The Thin Blue Line not only shows how justice can miscarry all too easily, it makes its viewers get to know the interviewees all too well. Errol Morris's reconstructions of the different versions of Officer Wood's murder show up the inconsistencies of the witnesses' testimony so strongly that the real murderer, David Harris (who was only sixteen when he shot Wood)confessed to the crime. Of course by then Harris had nothing further to lose; he was already on Death Row for a subsequent murder. I would be surprised if Roger Ebert didn't raise his rating for this doc from 3 1/2 stars to four and include it in his list of "The Great Movies."

Solid Filmmaking.
Errol Morris is one of the few filmmakers who allows real people to speak their voices. One can tell when seeing his documentaries that the people speaking are talking from their hearts and minds, and not reading a screenplay or Q-card. In his movies, one can sense a level of rawness not found from other filmmakers. In 'The Thin Blue Line', Morris tries to aquit an innocent man of murdering a police officer.
The story is told in a breath-taking fashion, with Morris going back to the scene of the crime and telling it from as many viewpoints as possible. When doing this, he also exposes the manipulative nature of people, showing how they will go to great lenghts to save themselves and make a quick dollar. The subject matter might bore some people after a while, but the last interview with the real killler at the end of the film is simply haunting and unforgettable.

Amazing
I watched this film in my film and Lit class, then over the weekend I rented it and watched it several more times, it is truely astounding, as a native Texan I have always mindlessly supported the death penalty, but this movie gave me my doubts.

PS. David Harris is still on Death Row and is scheduled to be executed on 6/30/2004, crazy he's now 44

Not impossible
Another reviewer claims that it is impossible to see this film and still support the death penalty. I guess I am refuting that "impossibility" to a possibility. I wholeheartedly support the death penalty AND this is my favorite documentary of all time. Yes, this film clearly shows through interviews (new testimonials?), visuals, re-enactments, and other evidence that the innocent CAN go to jail and even death row. It is a sad justice system, but it still doesn't dissuade me from the death penalty to those that are guilty and deservant of their crime.

Now this film just needs to be re-released on DVD with an addendum to let know viewers know that Mr. Adams was exonerated. Most people may know already, but some viewers will watch this without knowing the case and the repercussion that this film has caused. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Neil Simon wrote this 1976 spoof in which virtually every famous fictional detective of the 1930s and 1940s congregate at the home of a mysterious fellow (Truman Capote) to try and solve the mystery of who's trying to kill them all. Simon's jokes are mostly obvious, and the film's real appeal is the clever concept matched with fine--sometimes legendary--actors. Peter Falk plays a very Bogart-like Sam Spade equivalent, James Coco is a Hercule Poirot wannabe, Peter Sellers does a Charlie Chan bit, David Niven and Maggie Smith are reflections of Nick and Nora.... You get the picture. Lighthearted and silly, this is cotton-candy comedy for the cast as well as viewers. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (76)

Super Sleuths on trial
Did you ever notice that many mystery novels are really unsolvable because they don't reveal the most necessary clues until the last three pages (or not at all)? Playwright and Screenwriter Neil Simon (THE GOODBYE GIRL) surely noticed this and he takes revenge on our behalf. He invites caricatures of these super-sleuths to a murder mystery party with a challenge to solve the murder of a wealthy eccentric portrayed by Truman Capote. The mansion is filled with all that can be expected, from secret passages, rainy weather and a suspicious butler played by soft-spoken Alec Guinness. Scattered throughout is the quick humor of Neil Simon.

The all-star cast includes David Niven and Maggie Smith as a NICK AND NORA like couple. James Coco is a HERCULE POIROT-like detective with a young James Cromwell (BABE) as his assistant. Peter Sellers makes a CHARLIE CHAN-esque appearance. Elsa Lanchester Brennan is a MISS MARPLE like sleuth and Peter Falk makes a fun spin on SAM SPADE with Eileen Brennan at his side. Nancy Walker portrays the house chef. The mystery takes second seat to the comedy;... But, this film is all about laughter. Followed up by a sequel, THE CHEAP DETECTIVE.

One of Neil Simon's Best!
Hilarious beyond compare. That describes "Murder by Death." Spoofing everyone from Miss Marple to Sam Spade, Charlie Chan to The Thin Man, and everyone in between, Neil Simon's script (outdoing such Simon classics as "The Odd Couple") is so far out there that one can only fall in love with this movie.

Being a big fan of mysteries, parodies, and all-star casts, this was the movie for me. The whole cast has a ball and hams it up to High Heaven. I love David Niven and Maggie Smith as Dick and Dora Charleston. Smith especially soars, giving an offhanded, almost nonchalant performance that leaves you rolling in the aisles. Elsa Lanchester is great as Jessica Marbles, and Estelle Winwood, in a very small role, gets a few good lines as her senile nurse. (Watch for their entrance!) James Coco is a comic riot as the always-hungry Monsieur Perrier. Peter Sellers is classic again as Inspector Wang (with every line funnier than the last). He has more proverbs than all the fortune cookies in Chinatown: "Treacherous road like-a fresh mushroom..." Peter Falk is insane as really-not-quite-there Sam Diamond, and Truman Capote gets in a fun cameo appearance as their puckish host, Lionel Twain. Smith, Coco, Sellers, and Falk shine. But two of the best performances are in rather small roles played by a pre-"Star Wars" Sir Alec Guiness (so don't expect to hear the Force theme on his entrance) showing his comedic talent as the blind butler, Bensonmum, and "Rhoda" alum, the great Nancy Walker, as the deaf-and-dumb cook, Yetta. These two have some of the funniest scenes in film history, each playing marvelously off the other's shortcomings. (Watch for when Bensonmun "fires" her--even holding the door open and pointing out--while she looks on, bewildered!)

The classic lines are everywhere. Falk: "I gotta go to da can. Sometimes I talk so much, I forget ta go." Lanchester: "Pardon my language, but it scared the ca-ca out of me!" Smith: (in response) "You know, Dicky, I like her. I really like her." Capote: (chastising Sellers' broken English) "IT! IT! Use your damn pronouns!" Perrier's driver: (About a chocolate bar with almonds instead of nuts) "The man at the store had no nuts." Coco: (responding) "He was short?" Sellers: "Look! Voice come from cow on wall!" But the best line in the whole movie is when the butler has been gone for quite some time and not returned with their meal, and starving Coco, in detective mode, says, "The most important question is: Where is the butler? And why has he not returned...(Screaming dramatically)...WITH OUR DINNER! "

I was in a murder-mystery play last year in which one character was a sendup of Truman Capote; I loaned this video to the actor who had that part. And this week, I'm playing a role in Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians," in which Estelle Winwood (Ms. Marbles' nurse in this film) originated the stage role of Emily Brent in 1944.

This is a really fun movie to watch on a Friday night with lots of friends--for even more fun, watch it back-to-back with "Clue!"

Grade B+ Neil Simon
Despite the (mostly) excellent cast this movie production of Neil Simon's play leaves a little to be desired. In particular I think that director Robert Moore needed to work harder toward getting the timing of his players down pat and focusing the jokes. I also think it was a mistake to cast Truman Capote in the role of Lionel Twain, the eccentric millionaire who invites the five world famous detectives to his estate with the idea of matching murderous wits with them and fooling them. Although he looks the part, Capote stands out like a sore thumb amidst the much more experienced and talented cast, so much so that I almost felt sorry for him. He pronounces his lines competently but with neither flair nor finesse.

The premise of the play reveals Neil Simon's satirical intent: the characters are all caricatures of famous fictional detectives: Inspector Sidney Wang (Peter Sellers ) as a Charlie Chan type; Sam Diamond (Peter Falk) as a Sam Spade type; Inspector Milo Perrier (James Coco) as a famous Belgique detective of similar name (Agatha Christie's Poirot) who could also be Georges Simenon's famous French detective (except that he cries out, "Not Frenchie--Belgie!"). The absurd plot begins as the detectives motor toward Twain's haunted, fog-shrouded castle in northern California for a dinner that is never served. Everything is played as a farce ("farce --n. 1. a comedy based on unlikely situations and exaggerated effects." --Random House College Dictionary) and everybody tries to ham it up. I particularly liked Peter Sellers as the Chinese Wang with his #3 adopted Japanese son in tow. Alec Guinness plays the blind butler ("The butler did it!") while Nancy Walker has a small part as the blind and deaf cook. David Niven is mildly amusing as the debonaire Dick Charleston who, unbeknownst to his wife (Maggie Smith), has only a buck-seventy-some in his tuxedo pocket (and some stamps) after going through some of her millions.

Representative joke: When asked by his #3 adopted Japanese son why HE has to clean up the dead body, Inspector Wang tells him, "Because your mother isn't here." By the way, the makeup on Peter Sellers ("Inspector Slanty," according to Sam Diamond) is especially well done. As usual Peter Sellers manages to look more like the character he playing than himself, so much so that one needs to do a double take to realize it is Peter Sellers at work.

One of the problems with a movie like this is that all the actors are trying to upstage one another and every line and pratfall is played as MY moment in the spotlight so there is little contrast around which to frame the best bits. Still, afficionados, especially those viewing this repeatedly, will find plenty to crack up about.

See this for Neil Simon, one of America's most popular playwrights, whose semi-sophisticated, upbeat comedies delighted theater and movie audiences for several decades beginning in the Sixties. I particularly loved The Out-of-Towners (1970) with Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis; The Good-bye Girl (1977) with Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason; and the unforgettable The Odd Couple (1968) starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau. Simon and Peter Falk followed this up with The Cheap Detective (1978). Incidentally, Falk's work here and in The Cheap Detective and in a couple of earlier Columbo movies served as a proving ground for his long-running TV hit Columbo.

I love this movie!!
This movie has you guessing the whole time! The jokes are very funny, I would reccomend this to anyone who likes stupid humor defenetly worthit.

The World's Greatest Movie
My family and I affectionatly refer to this movie as the 'the world's greatest movie,' and we've seen it so often that my sister and I, when we email each other or call each other, end each message with a quote from the movie.

In order to truly appreciate the tremendous amount of laugh lines, you've got to watch it at least a dozen times. My sister and I have watched it at least 30 times if not a lot more, and just this past weekend while I was visiting her in Ithaca, she picked up on another laugh line that we'd never even noticed!

The movie seems a bit dry at first, and would probably be a better fit as a stage play; a hilarious one at that. The movie is a spoof on Agatha Christi's "And Then There Were None," and has characters who are spoofs of other TV detectives; i.e., instead of Nick and Nora Charleston, it's Dick and Dora Charleston. This movie is not necessarily for everyone, but it starts to grow on you. The first time I saw it I really didn't think it was that funny, but the more I watched, the funnier it got. Buy this movie! ... Read more

Description

The Doctor and Sarah land on the desolate planet Karn amid a spaceship graveyard and are soon welcomed by Professor Solon, who is inordinately preoccupied with the Time Lord's capacious skull. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

Silly episode with huge logic holes
Yes, it's nice to see Doctor Who take a break from all the science fiction and fantasy to land in a horror setting. But it's still just another evil villain looking for a new body episode except that Morbius, the disembodied brain of the title, isn't nearly as entertaining a villain as the Master. Who fans sometimes complain that Tom Baker jokes too much and displays humor at inappropriate times, but if ever there was an episode that could use a little camp it's this one, what with the evil scientist, his large, unwitting assistant, and the brain that desperately needs a good head. The writers/producers seemed to have come up with a great idea and no way to really make it work over 4 parts. But the biggest problem is just the plot inconsistencies. Not that Doctor Who gets big points generally on realism, but at least it doesn't usually contradict itself without an attempt at an explanation. Without giving away too much of what plot there is, let's just say that if the mad scientist goes on and on about how perfect the doctor's head is and how much care needs to be taken with it, he doesn't need to come up with tricks to let a group of old women take it off for him. And why not keep the doctor's body as well? Although that would spoil the one moment in this episode that merits it a second star -- the "creature" finally coming to life (which is, truth be told, a great Who moment). If this episode had a sense of humor or a villain with more than one dimension it might have rated as campy fun. With 20 years worth of episodes from which to choose, and most more worthy than this week effort, give this one a pass.

A "bland" Frankenstein story? No way
In the Gothic Tom Baker era of Doctor Who which saw stories influenced by classic horror and sci-fi, The Brain Of Morbius takes on Frankenstein, Igor, and the monster.

On landing on the forbidding world of Karn, the Doctor's in a right sulk, angry at the Time Lords. "Meddlesome interfering idiots, messing about with my TARDIS, dragging us a 1000 parsecs off course." His sulk doesn't last long after seeing a spaceship graveyard, a castle, and a headless body.

He also meets Professor Mehendri Solon, a foremost Earth neurosurgeon, and his hulking barbarian servant Condo, who has a long thick eyebrow and a hook for his left hand that Solon once calls a "chicken-brained biological disaster." Condo is counting on Solon to reattach his real left hand, which had to be removed to save his life. Solon though, is endeavouring to find a head suitable to house the brain of Morbius, something that'll be his greatest and last operation. This is puzzling, as Morbius was a renegade Time Lord who with his followers fought the Time Lords and was defeated and executed by vaporization on Karn. However, what is the weird headless creature with one giant claw in Solon's laboratory?

The Sisterhood, a society of virtually immortal women who guard the Sacred Flame and the Elixir of Life, become alarmed when they realize the Doctor is a Time Lord. They are protective of the Elixir and the Sacred Flame, which has been gradually dying. No flame means no elixir and pretty soon, no Sisterhood. Fearing that the Doctor has been by the Time Lords to steal the last of their Elixir, they kidnap him and sentence him to death. However, aging leader Maren, and her young subordinate Ohica, are thrown when he returns of his own free will (for help) and realize he's not out for their Elixir.

Throughout her travels, Sarah has been kidnapped, cryogenically frozen, hypnotized, and more. Here, she gets blinded (temporarily). As for the Morbius Monster, it is described as "made from butcher's leftovers," "potpourri," "Mr. Allsorts," and as "Chop Suey, the Galactic Emperor." It has to be seen to believed. Hmm, Dr. Who vs. Chop Suey--sounds like a bad sci-fi/kung-fu story. Never mind.

The scene where a brain drops on the floor offended some medical students, but it made for unintentional laughs. However, scenes of strangulation and someone being gassed by cyanide probably didn't go well with Mary Whitehouse, the UK's Tipper Gore on television.

Philip Madoc (Solon) turns in his best performance in a Who story, a performance that's very crucial to the story. He runs the gamut of emotions, enthusiastically welcoming, cool and rational, angry, desperate, exasperated, and distressed, especially in the brain-dropping scene. Cynthia Grenville (Maren) and Gilly Brown (Ohica) also do well in their roles.

But who is Robin Bland, the writer? Former script-editor Terrance Dicks turned in his story the day he went on holiday (big mistake, because the producer and current script editor Robert Holmes were unable to contact him) and when he got back, he was incensed, as the story had been changed so much that it was more Holmes' work. Dicks asked his name to be removed and have some "bland pseudonym" put in its place. When he saw the aired story, credited to Robin Bland, he'd calmed down since then and was disarmed by the joke.

The initial video release was an edited 60 minute programme, and it wasn't until 1996 that it was released in its entirety. This is one of the more popular stories, as the BBC saw fit to include this among the original video releases in the 1980's. Along with the story and strong characters, the studio sets work well, particularly Solon's castle.

Highly Recommended
I hid behind the sofa when I first watched this episode. It was black imitation leather. Funny what sticks in the mind. I love this episode, even though I haven't seen it in almost 30 years. Corridors, a brain, garish lighting, Sarah-Jane, Mary Shelley. I recommend it for any youngster today.

Evil gets a head
With the possible exception of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" I can't think of a show in all television history that makes fun of itself so gleefully without losing its dramatic integrity. This is why I loved "Who" as a kid catching it in fuzzy 22 minute re-runs on late-nite PBS, and why I love it now, when I can watch it on VHS and DVD without being tortured by sadistic fundraisers hawking Channel 26 tote bags.

During Tom Baker's run (I'm not very familiar with the other Doctors yet, having grown up with #4) the writers of the show tended to have the most fun when they borrowed from classic horror tales and concepts. "The Brain of Morbius" follows in this tradition, being more or less the concept of "Frankenstein" set in space, or rather, on a stormy, abandoned graveyard of a planet named Karn.

The story opens with the Doctor throwing a comic tantrum because the Tardis has been diverted to this out of the way dump of a planet against his will. He suspects the Time Lords are manipulating him into doing some dirty work for them, and of course, he's right. Within 30 seconds Sarah, whose portrayal by Liz Sladen I am coming more and more to appreciate as I get older, has discovered not only a number of wrecked spacecraft all in a tiny area but also the headless body of a freshly murdered space traveller. Why is he headless? Why have all these ships crashed in the same spot? Why has the Tardis been diverted to Karn, which was once the seat of power for a renegade Time Lord named Morbius? And while we're on the subject, who lives in that spooky castle on top of the mountain?

"Morbius" like all Who episodes good and bad, has a lot of competing plot elements in it. On the one hand is the Sisterhood of Karn, a group of immortal, telekenetic biddies given to bad makeup, chanting and a burn-them-at-the-stake-first, ask-questions-later mentality. On the other is Dr. Soren (Philip Madoc) and his hook-handed, ape-like assistant Igor, uh, I mean, Condo, who live in the spooky castle with a lot of surgical equipment and seem to have a strange interest in heads with large craniums. The Sisters want to kill the Doctor because they think he's after their Elixir, which is the secret of their immortality and the reason the supposedly dead Morbius came to Karn in the first place. Soren wants the Doctor's severed head to play host for a certain brain he's keeping in the basement. Sarah, who is blinded by Maryn, the grumpy crone who runs the Sisterhood, wants her sight back. And poor Condo just wants to know where Soren is keeping his arm.

Philip Madoc, who later returned to play a small part in the forgettable "Power of Kroll" is spectacular here. He recites incredibly campy and villainous dialogue with such relish it is impossible not to laugh. The best thing about "Doctor Who" has always been the classic, mustasche-twirling evil of its bad guys, and this episode is no exception. Similarly, Baker and Sladen are in very good form, as is the actress who plays Maryn, and the guy who does the voice for Morbius shows what fans of old radio shows have always known -- to make evil come alive, all you need is a great voice.

Of course "Morbius" is not a perfect episode. The scenes with the Sisters are overlong, dreary, and replete with whispery chanting which is so annoying that even the Doctor, who is about to be burned at the stake, can't help complaining, "This music is terrible!" They are nasty, murderous, self-absorbed hags who seem not much better on the moral scale than the crazy Dr. Soren; I can't say I cared whether the reborn Morbius, who looks like he's been put together from spare parts from your local zoo and/or aquarium and is topped off by a fishbowl holding his brain, strangles them all with that nasty-looking crab claw or not. Also, I can't help but feeling a wee bit sorry for the old fella. Living as a disembodied brain in a jar filled with glowing green goo, with only the crazy Dr. Soren and the incredibly stupid Condo for company, has got to be a huge downer. Who can blame him for being so cranky when he wakes up?

As for the controversy surrounding what the Doctor does to Soren, all I can say is, when push comes to shove, Tom Baker's Who shows in numerous episodes that he can be one mean SOB. Besides, as the original Frankenstein discovered, sometimes it's best to let sleeping body parts lie.

This is a GREAT episode!
Some say this was not as good an episode but I must disagree. This is an intriguing Frankenstein type Dr. Who adventure that really has an interesting and chilling plot. The evil villin in this story is Morbius, who once was a timelord like Dr. Who but was destroyed, or so the timelords thought. All that is left is Morbius's brain and he is desperate for a HEAD to put it in. The problem is that most of the alien life forms that he has brought down from the sky have not been suitable homes for the brain of Morbius, that is, until the unexpected entrance of the good Doctor. Dr Solon gets soooo excited at the sight of the head of Doctor Who, that you almost can see him salivate. Hehe. Unfortunately, the Doctor stumbles upon the sisterhood, who hate all intruders, especially males!!! Sarah, the close companion of the Doctor, is as useless as ever and gets herself into more trouble then she is at helping and eventually gets herself temporarily blinded by the ring of the leader of the sisterhood. You can imagine how helpful Sarah is after that! lol. One of the interesting character of this episode is the igor looking helper of Dr. Solon. Dr. Solon has promised (igor) is arm back if he helps him find a head for Morbius's brain. I am not sure how igor lost his arm??? Hmmmm. At any rate, the tale evolves around the Doctor attempting to stop the resurrection of Morbius into a new head while keeping the sisterhood from killing him at the same time. There is a lot of running back and forth between Dr. Solon's laboratory and the caves of the sisterhood. In the end... well, I wont spoil the ending, but I do suggest you add this episode to your collection of Dr. Who's. You wont be disappointed. This episode is one of my favorite with Sarah as the Doctors companion. Have fun! ... Read more

Reviews (10)

This movie has it all!
If you are looking for humor, suspense, romance, and a little horror thrown in to add spice, this movie has it all. Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh team up and show you how close Harry and Bess really were. The thrill of the death defying escapes keeps you on the edge of your seat, while the courtship of Harry and Bess warms your heart. A good movie for the whole family.

Fine family entertainment, if a bit cute
Definitely a 1950's movie: accessible entertainment and a G rating are more important than historical accuracy or character development. Many of Houdini's finest tricks are not shown, and we never get more than a millimeter below the surface of this gifted althlete and showman. But the escapes are impressive, Houdini's struggles as a beginner are good, and the movie concludes with his increasing interest in death and seances. Tony Curtis is well-cast, but Janet Leigh is definitely too blond for the role of his wife Bess.

George Pal's Magician Among the Spirits
This romanticized look at the career of Harry Houdini played with charm by Tony Curtis is full of the mysterious "other worldly " effects that George Pal made his reputation on in productions to come. In several scenes, Curtis taps into the Spirit world to...escape from a straight jacket, find the hole to get out of the frozen Detroit river, and seek out an experienced peer to solve the "Man in a Bottle" trick. He also manages in the process to stigmatize Halloween forever as a "bad omen" and gives new meaning to a Mother complex greater than Richard Burton's in "Alexander the Great". Still, the movie is a marvelous dose of "entertainment" and the sets are superb, there is a great veteran supporting cast and the screenplay is well written. This was a VERY popular movie and Tony Curtis does a great job in the role, even though there is a lot of deviation from the real Harry. It needs a DVD polish and presentation of extras with trailers and perhaps some interviews. It would be interesting to hear from Tony Curtis about this film after all these years. Good family fun!

great classic
This is a wonderful film and tribute to the life and legacy of Harry Houdin. A must see. Tony Curtis and Janet leigh are wonderful and romantic in it as Harry and Bess. It is entertaiining amzing and great for the entire family.

Houdini: The Escape from Humdrum to Stardom
HOUDINI is not meant as a movie that is true to life. If it were, then the finished product might have been more factual but less entertaining. Tony Curtis plays Houdini as a young Jewish man who seeks more than the dullish life that as Erich Weiss he was born into. Early on, the audience learns that the solid, conservative life that his family thought to place him is simply not in his plans. He makes a rational analysis as to how he can make the leap from the ordinary to the extraordinary. It is in showmanship that he will excel. With no small amount of humor, Curtis gives Houdini a patina of technical virtuosity with escapes combined with razzle-dazzle country fair sideshow barking. This reaching out for the seemingly unobtainable for one of his humble class extends even to his choice of a wife. He marries a woman whom he feel sure that his mother will reject. For one of the few times in his life,he is wrong. Mama Weiss eagerly embraces her new daughter-in-law.
The force of this film lies not in the continuity of the Houdini character from scene to scene. Rather, the intensity lies in a series of vignettes, each roughly pointing Houdini in the same direction: to ever newer and more dangerous escapes. Most people who discuss this movie point to the grand finale, the Chinese Water Torture Chamber scene, where Houdini is very nearly killed in attempting an impossible escape. This scene is dramatic certainly, but I see it as only the culmination of a long series of lesser escapes, with paradoxically the most interesting one occurring at the midpoint. Shortly after his marriage, Houdini and his wife attend a dinner in which the MC dares volunteers from the audience to wriggle out of a straight jacket. Houdini leaps at the chance and along with several others attempts to escape. What distinguishes this escape from the climatic Chinese Water Torture escape is the focus on the man, rather than on the gimmick. As the stalwart young man leap and crash off the stage, attempting to break out of their bonds, Houdini stands motionless. He stares at a twirling chandelier, almost as if he were summoning up his inner chi for the strength and flexibility to escape. Ever so slowly, he maneuvers his fingers which appear behind his back. The audience in the ballroom and the audience in the theater collectively let out a gasp of surprise. Sweat drenched, Houdini tosses off the jacket to win first prize. It is this scene, and others like it that lend this biopic its emotional wallop. The tragedy of the movie is not unlike the tragedy of the man. Had Houdini retained a bit more of the Erich Weiss latent within him, his life might not have ended prematurely either on film or in real life. ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Semi-educational movies?
While the YIJ series takes some liberties with history, these movies are a great way to learn about the crucial events of the turn of the century. Some even seem to be more of a thinking-person's adventure, which is quite a departure from the swash-buckling Indiana Jones movies.

Too bad this series is so under-rated! I only wish Lucas would produce more! I don't understand why real-quality shows like this don't ever seem to last longer on the networks. Guess it needs to be on Discovery, the History Channel, or TLC.

Shadows in the mist tell intriguing stories
In a significant way, the two hours of this episode could not be more mismatched. Hour one is a film noir exploration of the paranoia associated with a life of espionage. Hour two takes a decidedly more phantasmagoric tack, resulting in scenes of no small terror.

In Hour One, Indy is a spy in Turkey, trying at once to get married and complete a mission for the French Secret Service. It is easily the best-directed hour of the entire series. The lighting, pulled focuses, and intriguing camera movements all evoke the bittersweet emotion the plot would have us feel.

But it's hardly an original plot. It's "From Russia With Love" meets "The Maltese Falcon" meets "On Her Majesty's Secret Service". Fortunately, these are all very good films, so the trip is one we're more than willing to take.

Hour two is perhaps more questionable in this regard. It's a fantastic journey through the dark side of Romanian mythology, and while appropriately creepy for a Haloween party, it marks a significant departure from the traditional themes of Indy plots that some parents may wish to shield their younger children from. I wouldn't call the violence "needless", as other reviewers have, but it is graphic. It is, in short, classic gothic, and it's done very well.

All in all, then, this is an episode well worth your time, but, along with "Trenches of Hell" and "Temple of Doom", it's one of the few Indiana Jones episodes inappropriate for young children.

Definitely not for young children
After reading another review on this site (gypsy18, 5/31/01), I was shocked to see that the reviewer's child had the exact same reaction, almost word-for-word, as did my son. He was equally upset that such violence could have come from the mind of George Lucas.

This video was in the children's section of the store, and it had a "family" label stuck right on it. We asked the store to remove the label, as it is NOT appropriate.

THIS EPISODE ABSOLUTELY NOT FOR CHILDREN!
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones is an extraordinarily well done series. My son, age 8, just loves it. But it was a mistake buying MASK OF EVIL. My son (usually a tough little guy) was almost physically ill from a particularly bloody scene (although the violence was performed behind a curtain). He had trouble sleeping & actually started crying in the middle of the day from the trauma of remembering this scene! He said, "Mom, I wish we'd never bought this one." My son also said, "Mom, why did George Lucas let this one be unrated? That was bad!" Out of the mouths of babes! Vampires are just too violent a subject for children I think (& some adults, including me)!

The Best!
It has it all with spies and vamprires! We see indy's first supernatural adventure but at the beging it is a spy thriller. ... Read more

Reviews (11)

One of Hayward's Best
Susan Hayward stars in this biography of Lillian Roth, a talented singer pushed into the spotlight by her stage mother, and when she is unable to deal with her insecurities and the tragedies in her life, she turns to alcohol. It's one of those roles that every actress must dream of getting, and Hayward really sinks her teeth into it. She goes from glamour to degradation, with a very realistic portrayal of Roth's descent into alcoholism. She puts everything into it, and her performance is forceful and truthful. Jo Van Fleet is also terrific as her grasping mother, too eager to give her daughter the life she never had, and her scenes with Hayward are among the best in the film. It must have taken a lot for Roth to write her life story and let it be filmed, but she has in Hayward an actress that lays bare the painful honesty and ultimate courage of her struggle. It's a tribute to Roth and to the fine work done at Alcoholics Anonymous.

Lillian Roth cries today
The biopic is a corrupt movie genre. Do they ever get it right?! Probably the worst offence against the life of a singer is to cast an actress who cannot sing, and this is the downfall of this film. For whilst I have never seen or heard Lillian Roth perform, I can guess that she needed to have more going for her than Susan Hayward does in this treatment. It is said that Hayward did her own singing, presumably because it was felt the Jolson Story way, with someone miming the singer's own recordings, is too false. However, Hayward's singing is flat and she sounds as though she is dubbed anyway. The only number that isn't a total embarassment is her rendition of Happiness is a Thing Called Joe, perhaps because it is less demanding and the cameraman spares us the indignity of Hayward trying to dance. One might explain away her l