No one should expect a well-wrought, intricately developed plot from a film that was designed as a showpiece for the American baritone Laurence Tibbett,any more than one would expect it from a Warner's backstage musicals from the 1930s. Tibbett was one of the few stellar performers of the Metropolitan Opera who was equally at home and successful in popular music. (I believe at one time, toward the end of his opera career, he was featured on "Your Hit Parade", singing what were supposedly the five or six most popular songs of the week, judged by record sales.) At the Metropolitan Opera he played the lead in the premieres of American operas such as Merry Mount, Emperor Jones and The King's Henchmen. I believe that he made the first commercial recordings from Porgy and Bess as Porgy, using the same dialect as in this film when he sings the Negro spiritual "Glory Road" in a perhaps over-dramatic rendition. The role of Bess is sung by another Caucasian opera star. Helen Jepson,who made one more Hollywood appearance in the pathetic Goldwyn Follies.

The supporting cast of experience character actors,as often happens, manages to give the claptrap plot a measure of credibility. Virginia Bruce, the leading lady, was an actress/singer who never broke through to stardom, despite a lengthy filmography. She had a beautiful soprano voice and a lovely appearance, but did not project much warmth as in the manner of top stars, even in her one solo from Carmen, as the timid and loving Micaela. Her voice belonged in operetta, not in either opera or show business tunes. Jeanette MacDonald has the former cornered, and there were many with more sensuous voices who succeeded with the latter. But she did look terrific at the top of the "wedding cake" number in The Great Ziegfeld, the most prominent role of her career.


"Metropolitan" is a real find for opera lovers, with its absolutely glorious music and the heroic singing of opera star Lawrence Tibbett, one of opera's very brightest lights in the 1930s. Produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, "Metropolitan" showcases Tibbett in an absolutely ridiculous plot that features actors Alice Brady, Cesar Romero, Virginia Bruce, Walter Brennan and others. Brady, who later won an Oscar as Mrs. O'Leary in "In Old Chicago" is the stereotypical temperamental diva who forms her own opera company and keeps changing the premier opera every five minutes. First, it's Barber of Seville so we can hear Tibbett do "Largo al Factotum" - and Tibbett's is the version I was raised on; then after an angry fit, she decides to do Carmen - thus, we hear Tibbett do "The Toreador Song." Finally, after hearing Virginia Bruce sing "Micaela's Aria," she decides to banish the company. The group gets back on its feet before opening and decide to do "Cavalleria Rusticana" and "Pagliacci" instead! Those poor ticket holders! No idea what they were going to see, but we got to see Tibbett rehearse those glorious numbers plus perform "Si puo" at the end. One wonders what the vicious diva considered herself. In the beginning, she's angry that the Metropolitan Opera did not cast her in "La Sonambula" - a patently coloratura role, then she assigns herself "Barber," a coloratura role, and finally a mezzo role, Carmen! Hello.

Singing styles have changed over the last 70 years - no more fast vibrato, no more white high notes from sopranos, and the declamatory type of singing in opera, done a little bit by Tibbett in "Si puo" is reserved for very old, dried out singers close to retirement. But nothing diminishes the magnificence of Tibbett's gift. It's so wonderful to have him on film to appreciate.

Tibbett was an excellent actor as well as singer, and on stage he must have appeared quite attractive. But though his career overlapped that of Nelson Eddy and they were separated only by four years in age, Tibbett could not have achieved what Eddy did in films. While not anywhere near as good an actor, Eddy was considerably handsomer, younger in appearance, and his beautiful voice was more accessible to audiences. But if you have any interest in opera at all, try to catch this on Fox Movie Channel and listen to Tibbett sing "De Glory Road." You won't hear anything like that again.


Darryl Zanuck's first release after the merging of his 20th Century co. and Fox studio, this features the boyish baritone, Lawrence Tibbett, in his prime. He was a busy guy in the 30s: top Metropolitan Opera star, movies, concerts, recitals and many radio appearances. The usual backstage story is played out with cheerful verve by the superior cast. Tibbett singing highlights are the famous "Figaro" aria from Barber of Seville; The Toreador Song from Bizet's Carmen; the Prologue to Pagliacci; as well as his rousing concert showpieces, "On the Road To Mandalay" and "De Glory Road: a negro spiritual." Tibbett's autobiography is titled The Glory Road.


The passage of time could not be emphasized more emphatically than with the recent reissue by TCM of the 1935 rarity, "Metropolitan". The passing of the beloved American 'hometown' coloratura Beverly Sills may have prompted TCM to resurrect the more noted of the two movies made by the American 'hometown' baritone, Lawrence Tibbett. (The other movie was "Under Your Spell".) He was a product of Bakersfield, California.

It is unfortunate that the name has been so easily overlooked by many who may have been born ten years too late to enjoy his voice. It is incomprehensible today why such a magnificent voice coupled with a winning personality could not have resulted in a longer illustrious career for Mr. Tibbett, especially in the burgeoning Hollywood industry. It would certainly have helped to maintain a treasure trove of history for music lovers. Suffice it to say that this film does its best to rectify this oversight.

Mr. Tibbett provides us with a clear illustration of the power of his vocal abilities and also of his masterful interpretation of any piece be it operatic aria, Negro spiritual, or drawing room favorite.

In this 1935 movie he presents 'Largo al Factotum' from "The Barber of Seville"; 'The Toreador Song' from "Carmen" and the prologue from "I Pagliacci", 'Si Puo'. The second of a trilogy of spirituals by the noted composer, Jacques Wolfe, 'De Glory Road' is interpreted beautifully by Mr. Tibbett. And to accommodate the hoi polloi, the wonderful soliloquy of a British veteran of old Burma as imagined in a familiar poem by Rudyard Kipling and set to music by Oley Speaks, ' On the Road to Mandalay' is given its definitive interpretation by the greatest American baritone. (Paul Robeson is not considered here only because he was deemed to be a bass-baritone and did not have the opportunity to sing at the Met)

Both Virginia Bruce and even Alice Brady had creditable voices in their brief stints but were no match for Mr. Tibbett. MGM gave Miss Bruce the opportunity to display her musical ability further in the 1936 Eleanor Powell movie, "Born To Dance". She is the one who had the honor of introducing the Cole Porter classic 'I've Got You Under My Skin'. Also, as a nod to her pulchritude, she was the crowning model in the extravagant 'A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody' production number with the spiraling staircase in the 1936 "The Great Ziegfeld". Yes, she was the one at the top.

Alice Brady found that comedy was more rewarding for her in Hollywood than was music and enjoyed a long and illustrious career accordingly

Those of you who may have difficulty recalling the American baritones of yesteryear will be instantly and pleasurably reminded if you are fortunate enough to catch a viewing of "Metropolitan" on TCM.


Virginia Bruce was one of those,I know the face but i cant remember the name stars.She deserved better.A very pretty young woman, and a convincing actress, was Miss Bruce.She was however overshadowed by the Irene Dunnes, Norma Shearers,Greta Garbos that reigned Hollywood supreme.She was of those able and sometimes forgettable actresses such as Karen Morley,Frieda Inescort,Kay Johnson. However in Metropolitan, she shines in her own gentle, ladylike way.Lawrence Tibbett the great operatic baritone has some glorious moments and some great arias and songs.Miss Bruce is his love interest and if that is her singing ,which I doubt; she had a lovely voice as well. The great silent star, Alice Brady is brilliant, as the temperamental opera diva.The movie moves along at a good pace and has a nice 30's plot.It is an enjoyable film for the cultured, over 40s viewer.What a joy to not be immersed in political correctness or cringe at 4 letter words. With a cast like Tibbett, Bruce and Brady how could you go wrong?


This 1935 film showed recently on a TV movie channel and proved an innocent delight. The story line is simple, the ending happy, the people snappily dressed and the sets splendid. A fading prima donna is fired from the Met and starts her own opera company. A renowned conductor comes from retirement to conduct, and hires baritone Lawrence Tibbett, one of America's first operatic super stars, whose superb singing is the chief attraction of the film. He has a rich, focused voice and agreeable good looks. When the prima donna's voice fails, the conductor quits and all is about to fall apart, until the heroine Alice Brady, who wanted to be an opera star on her own, turns out to be an heiress and saves the day.The sound track suggests that someone has done a spectacular job of restoring the print; Tibbett's ringing voice impresses in baritone favorites, "The Road to Mandalay," "Largo al factotum" from Barber of Seville, "The Toreador Song" from Carmen, and "Si puo," from I Pagliacci.


Lawrence Tibbett's penultimate film. Oscar-nominated star of early talkies and 30s films is almost forgotten now. Good little film with terrific cast. Virginia Bruce, Alice Brady, Cesar Romero, Jane Darwell, Jessie Ralph, George Marion, Luis Alberni, Walter Brennan, Thurston Hall, Etienne Girardot, Mary Gordon are all familiar faces. Tibbett plays struggling singer who breaks free from dominating star, Brady. Several good arias and some nice cinematography. And it's not often you hear anyone referred to as "monkey wrench girl!"


Alice Brady is ideally cast as a temperamental diva. She is believable and hilarious. The voice with which she sings seems to be her own.

Virginia Bruce, a charming performer, is OK but no more as an ingénue.

The movie is Lawrence Tibbett's. He sings arias from several composers, as well as singing some appealing songs. (Was it common in those times for Caucasian opera singers to perform spirituals? Regardless: He sings one.) The plum is a long section of "Pagliaci," in which he is, of course, superb.

This is the only commercial movie in which I've seen Tibbett. He appears a bit stodgy and is certainly not conventionally handsome. But his singing is glorious; and singing is what this movie is about.about.


A curiosity primarily for the array of character actors (Walter Brennan, Jane Darwell, Alice Brady, Jesse Ralph). The usual backstage clichés: rehearsal begins with full costumes, sets and orchestra. The backstage area is spacious and well-lighted. And the show goes on in spite of the temperamental leading lady. One of the rare film opportunities to see Lawrence Tibbett. He sings extensive operatic excerpts, and it's not as stagy as one might expect for early filmed opera. This was filmed during the peak period of his career. Sadly, as his voice declined, he faded into alcohol abuse, arrests, and a life-ending fall.


This movie is a piece of crap. Period. The lighting is awkward. There is one noticeable blooper in every scene. There are plot holes left and right. The acting is awful. The budget is noticeably low. And for all these reasons, it's extremely entertaining.

Basically, the movie starts out with three women being arrested for (according to the Box description) "Crimes they didn't commit. After this, they are all sent to jail. All of these 'crimes' are just a form of self-defense, and would most likely result in a fine, at worst. To believe that a woman defending herself from an armed robber is worth jail time is laughable. In jail (which is constructed of an old elevator gate, and could be pushed over without effort) they all are released under the promise they find the killer of "Nitro Jones" (horribly played by Juvenille).Not surprisingly, he is in the movie for less than five minutes, yet gets the lead credit. Awesome. Following that is a period of awful fight scenes, terrible dialogue, and stereotypes.

This movie is one of the worst movies ever made, but it's a must see for this reason.

GOOFS: One of the girls call's the character "Baby Boy" by the actors name "Skip".

When Nitro says "It's hot in here" and touches his shirt, you can hear heavy feedback from the mike.

The tag-line is "Bad Girls with Big Guns". Only one of the girls actually holds a gun in this movie, and it is only to take it away from a bad guy.

The cover is obviously photoshoped and one of the girls on the cover isn't even in the movie.

Outside of Keefer's (a lawyers) office, you can easily see that a biohazard warning has been spray painted off the building.

The Hooker in the prison with the Angel's asks if they have anything she can smoke that's "Not a cigarette". Obviously, they'd have search all of them for drugs, so this question is down right unbelievable.

The Fight scenes are sped up so they can be performed slower in real life.


I watched Hood Angels last months as a couple of friends decided to put the movie on.

There are three main female characters in the film (Cinnamon, Felicia and Traci) who all get involved in bad situations but through innocent circumstances come together after they are sent to prison.

I believe that the film did have some potential as the main character Cinnamon tries to uncover the truth about her brothers murder and there are one or two twists along the way. The main antagonist in the film is Shayla who has instigated a lot of the trouble and she can be quite a bitch at times. Her cat fight with Felicia is probably one of the best fight scenes in the film.

There were however some disappointments, the acting could have been improved between some of the characters as they could have had more personality and the effects could have been a little better, also there is not a lot of action in the film until the final half an hour which is worth seeing.

Sadly i can only give this film 4 out of 10.


But the problem with "Hood Angels" is not just the lack of budget; it is also the lack of talent. The trailer promises an action-packed film, but the actual film is mostly talk, with about 3-4 fight scenes, all of which are spoiled by the disastrous editing (in one scene, a guy gets kicked in the face; in the next shot, he is holding his stomach!). The portrayal of the rap world is totally stereotypical (perhaps it's not so surprising that the director is white). From its straight-to-video look to the acting, "Hood Angels" is an amateurish production in all respects. Fortunately, one of the female leads, Kenia Brown, is stunning and athletic; unfortunately, she only appeared in one more film after this and then disappeared. (*)


If you actually seen this film. Im plays out to be a lot about Tupca Shakur / Suge Knight and the whole Death Row Records. Its very obvious that this is what the movie is really about. You have to be a fool not to think so. So the film is inspired by Tupac's life and experiences with Death Row Records. Red HQ, Juvenile as Tupac, Suge, etc. Even faked death, and came back. It a very good movie, about Tupac and Death Row Records.

The film in a whole is OK! But I would've felt like the director, Paul Wynne could do something more better.. Unlike Charlie's Angels (film-wise..) there was a lot of things.. Humour, action, love, etc.. which all makes up the whole film entertaining.. This one was almost hits the mark.. Mind you, the three lead characters were good. They stood out alright.. But this is a black urban version of Charlie's Angels.. The rap music did get me going.. There are musical tracks on there that I was really rocking to.. which made me (the viewer) kept going with the film..


Somebody get the mop because this thing needs to be cleaned up. I have seen some awful movies and this is right up there with them. Should that really surprise anybody? Anyway, its set up like a cheap version of Charlie's Angels. Except these girls come across as 'ghetto hood-rats', mind the slang lingo.

These girls can't act, can't shoot, can't punch, can't kick, but like to dress up like they are a cheap lay. And no, not a pretty cheap lay. But none of this should excite you.

I was also amused at all the bad camera work. The "too-focused" scenes and all the bad slow motion work. Yawn.

Overall, really cheap. Only an achievement to those with a $10 budget. "F"


This film was a failed attempt at recreating an urban version of 'Charlies Angels'. Don't get me wrong it could have worked if they had a better director and people that could actually act. I did not feel any chemistry between the three lead actresses all they did was say the lines. Also the way the three of them hook up in the end with the men is just ridiculous,in other films people get together naturally or there is a subtle hint that they might get together. Not in this film it was just like right your gonna be with him, you with him and so on. The action scenes were rubbish so unreal, they didn't have me hanging of the edge of my seat at all. I know that they had a low budget but there is so much they could have done. Some of the greatest films were made on a low budget i mean look at 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' that was a fantastic film. The case of this film fools you and so does what it says on the back of it as when i read it i thought it sounded really good. I still advise anyone to watch this film, as it is a good example of how bad a film can be and it gets you thinking how it could have been improved.


The beginning of the goddamn movie lets start there this girl is dong a half naked photo shoot and didn't expect to get paid to get naked that would have bumped up my ratting if i saw some buzzugaz!! then we can go to the horrible acting "us girls should stick together" "yeah us girls do need to stick together" Me--> "I hate my life" seriously I wanted to put out there use a better format than mp2 cause it will jump frame rates. Such as, "You don't need to do this. You don't need to use that gun!" what I thought she was supposed to say "Don't tell me what i can or can't do with this gun!" What was said "AHHHRAHHHAHHHRAHHHHGAHHHHHHH!" In conclusion I decided that I would rather bash dead babies against a brick wall than watch this movie!!!!! -thank you


OK this movie was worse then a b grade porn movie. I was even convinced that the chick that played traci was in this porn movie i had seen. I still dunno if it was her. The sound track was probably the best bit of the movie.

The story line is good. But If it had better directing, better actors it could be a good movie. Maybe down the future they might decide to do a remake. If not can someone pleaseeeeeeee suggest it.. I so wont be recommending it to anyone i know. Cept for a bad movie night or something.

The bit that made me laugh in the movie. Was when they were sitting in the office and they were about to be tied up with the tape and then the chic i cant remember her name gets the gaffer tap and she gets knocked to the ground by nitro. And then when nitro is getting to the girls they are all tied up.


I just saw this today.. I must admit, it's not a bad film.. but it needs a bit more action and excitement to it..

In this movie, it tells the story of three women from different backgrounds.. You got Felicia (played by KITA SHA) who's a model, Traci (played by ALLISON NURSE) who's a secretary and Cinnamon (played by KENIA BROWN) who's happens to be a sister of a rap star, Nitro (played by real-life rap star JUVENILE).

When NITRO gets murdered, her Sister Cinnamon tries to figure out who's responsible.. By doing this, she teams with her friends who she meets as they all first gets sent to prison by kicking some poor soul's ass.

As it goes on, it seems that there's more to just Nitro's murder.. but something more sinister. First it leads onto Nitro's manager J (played by LAYON GRAY) and then onto Shayla (played by Erica Goings).. Are you following me..? If not, you have to watch the movie again.. But I'm not gonna say who's really responsible..

The film in a whole is OK! But I would've felt like the director, Paul Wynne could do something more better.. Unlike Charlie's Angels (film-wise..) there was a lot of things.. Humour, action, love, etc.. which all makes up the whole film entertaining.. This one was almost hits the mark.. Mind you, the three lead characters were good. They stood out alright.. But this is a black urban version of Charlie's Angels.. The rap music did get me going.. There are musical tracks on there that I was really rocking to.. which made me (the viewer) kept going with the film..

For a low budget film like this one.. it was a good effort! So to say.. But if there was more action, more romance, more humour.. It would've been better.. The director Paul Wynne may've done a good job. He casted some really nice black actresses (Brown, Nurse and Sha) for the three leads.. Juvenile..? I don't usually hear from him a lot.. But it was nice to see him on screen. Layon Day's performance was good. But his character J kept his cool..! and so was Erica Goings..

At the end of the day, it's a kind of film you would watch on a rainy day.. I did. But as whole I'm giving it 7 out of 10!


Very good visual effects, especially light & shadow, for a porno. Almost had a plot, another plus. My only complaint is that the two leading ladies, Selena Steele (Raquel) and Raven I/Nellie Marie Vickers/Rachel Vickers/Vicky Vickers (Veronica) didn't have sex with each other, oh how hot that would've been!


You could do way, way worse than this for porn.

This is arguably my favorite porno. If you dislike Selena Steele, pass. Raven is the worst part of this film and that's a good thing. Selena + Raquel Darrian = near perfection. If you need guys, Rocco and Randy Spears are in it. Randy is the man.

There's a circle jerk with Zara Whites in the middle. This freaks some people out. Zara is hot, so don't focus on the guys. This shouldn't be a problem.

Look, very simply, the women are very hot and the sex is well shot. The plot makes Zero sense, but who cares? If you're looking for early 90's style porn, this is it.


While many of the porn films during this era still tried to have something resembling a plot, few were as out there as CURSE OF THE CATWOMAN. A riff on the old CAT PEOPLE flicks, this has a group of people who can apparently turn into big cats living it up at clubs. Selena Steele is at her best here, Rocco Sifredi (in an early role) doesn't say much (which is good. As long as he's only around to provide his extraordinary "talent" he's not irritating), and Patricia Kennedy is at her hottest. The scene of Rocco and Kennedy going at it in bed while Steele sleeps next to them is a scorcher, and the best of the film.


Made in 1992, this was typical of its era. In other words, big hair, fake breasts, funky wardrobe, feint plot, and really awful cheesy acting. Don't be fooled by the cover, there are no women in cat-suits in this movie. In fact, most of the women are not even very attractive. I'm not even quite sure what this movie was about. Some gang of women (and one man) are cats, and are waiting for the resurrection of a supreme cat. It's hard to follow the plot, because there really isn't one. There's basically just a bunch of sex non-stop throughout the whole movie, including a scene where the only really attractive girl in the movie dances while a bunch of men form a circle around her and masturbate (I think they call this a "circle jerk"), but anyway, it's really dumb. One of the guys during the circle jerk scene has a voice like Macho Man Randy Savage, I noticed it when he kept saying "oooooh yeah!", sounded like Randy Savage. HAHA.

There are much better pornographic theme movies than this one. The classic era of porn came to an end sometime in the late 80s, and everything after was just crap. The acting is too dramatic. They can't even have sex without over-acting. There's some clichés in this, there's always at least one person who likes to make weird facial expressions during sex. I do not recommend this movie.


Late 30's independent serial that feels like Poverty Row feature from several years earlier. This is a "yellow peril" tale of a half Chinese half western woman looking to take over Chinatown by destroying the Chinese merchants. Bela Lugosi stars as the scientific genius and main operative who uses his scientific skill to create havoc and to try and stop a detective played by Herman Brix from putting an end to the criminal endeavor. I'm of mixed emotions about this serial. To be certain it has all of the things you associate with a serial in spades, a great villain, great traps, and plot that just keeps going. However the serial is so poorly and evenly made and acted that you'll be sitting staring at the screen in utter disbelief. Not to put too fine a point on it this serial is a mess.

First off the serial is constructed like one of the annoying horror mystery films from a few years earlier when sound was just coming in. Everyone talks and talks and talks as if sound was still a novelty. More often then not when that happens the motion of the film just stops as we watch the dialog scenes. (Yes its fine when the action happens but those dialog scenes are deadly). It doesn't help that much of the film is poorly shot. The sets often look cheap and as though they have been thrown together randomly, or worse as if they are just walls with nothing behind them.

The cast is awful. Lugosi gives what is more often then not a nonperformance. Even in his drug addled later days he at least seemed to be connected to the action, here he seems to be in another film entirely. Its at its worst when Lugosi is alone on screen and he seems to be completely lost as if waiting for the director to tell him what to do. At times its probably his worst performance. The rest of the cast is a mixed bag but most of them seem to be either phoning it in or incapable of acting on screen. (The reporter comes off as an annoying chipmunk) When I watched the featurized version of this a few months back I stated that the only thing worse then that was the full version. Seeing the serial again for the first time in maybe two decades I have to revise that, the feature is worse. Granted this isn't a four star winner by an stretch of the imagination and maybe is only a 3 out of 10. However this scores over the feature simply because it has more chapter endings and serial like adventures then the feature.

For Lugosi fanatics and serial nuts only


The version I just saw was almost unwatchable. It came as part of a pack of 50 sci-fi movies. I suspected, but did not know, it had been a serial until reading the reviews here.

Pacing was terrible, jumps were made that made no sense, and the overall quality of acting and sets was deplorable. Also, the copy of the print I saw was in terrible shape. But considering it's vintage, better may not be possible.

The high-point for me was Luana Walters. Wow, was she beautiful! It's a shame she didn't play the bad part up more instead of having a conscious. Oh well.

Bela Lugosi was such an enjoyable

All-in-all, an almost passable and interesting time-waster on a Sunday night.


As long as Bela Lugosi was not playing the part of "Bela Lugosi" he was great. In Shadow of Chinatown he plays Victor Poten, the Eurasian scientist intent on destroying the Chinese people in Chinatown. Poten is hired by Sonya Rokoff, another Eurasian, to put an end to the tourist trade in San Francisco's Chinatown so that a new business cartel can take over the businesses there. Over the fifteen chapters Lugosi went through a few disguises and was given a chance to show his talent for playing different types of characters. His acting still appeared as if he were performing on stage rather than in front of a camera. Serials rarely had perfect lighting or camera angles, but Lugosi was able to look good in Shadow of Chinatown.

Herman Brix was excellent as Martin Andrews. He was always good in the serials that he made. Joan Barclay was not good as Joan Whiting. She overacted in almost every scene. In addition to bad acting, her character was more a nuisance than anything else. As Sonya Rokoff, Luana Walters was much better, though her character should have been stronger. The oddity among the cast was Charles King as Grogan. As many times as King played a tough character he rarely showed a mortal fear. Grogan's weakness when he was around the evil Poten was something unusual for a character played by Charles King.

I have read that heavy accents worked against some actors in the early days of sound film, but I also think that people in North America were more willing to accept certain accents at the same time. Vaudevillians had performed using dialects and brought them to radio and movies. In Shadow of Chinatown, the accents are integral to the characters. The strong Chinese accents of some of the actors may be authentic, but it is also obvious that some of the dialogue and accents are overplayed to the Chinese stereotype. The character Willy Fu always speaks in parables and proverbs, even in emergencies. Willy Fu seemed long winded at all the wrong times.

At a time when white actors would don costumes and wear makeup to appear as another race, Shadow of Chinatown used real Chinese actors. The credits undoubtedly prove this. Victor Poten's gang of thugs dresses in Chinese clothing as they commit their crimes in Chinatown. Whether or not it was an intentional swipe at the practice of using non-Asians as Chinese, there was an early scene in which Willy Fu discovers the fake Chinese and tells Martin Andrews about them. Either way, it is a nice plot element as it strips away a layer of Poten's cover.

The story in Shadow of Chinatown is weak, and the action and suspense are not as good as what was seen in other serials. The best reason to watch this serial is to see Bela Lugosi in a strong role. He is the saving grace of Shadow of Chinatown.


As I often say, I enjoy watching the master, Lugosi, in just about anything. The problem with this is he doesn't have much to do. In order to create a serial, it's necessary for the bad guy to continue to goof up, leaving his adversaries alive to continue the pursuit. The episodes are an endless trapezing of zombie like lackeys and air headed reporters. There's enough sexism to go around for a long time. The conclusion will make some gag. Chinatown businesses are the target of Lugosi who is "Eurasian" and very angry about something, I guess being Eurasian. He tries to destroy the town just for spite. It's an endless parade of pratfalls and silly hypnotism. The one young Asian woman is very beautiful. She is the honorable one in the film, but has been used by Lugosi and he has a hypnotic control over her. It all comes out in the wash, as if we cared.


I'm a big fan of the movie serials. I never watch even the best of them with the same critical eye as I do "real" movies. But even by those lowered standards, this film is a big bore-fest. People commenting on this list seem eager to use "worst movie of all time" to describe anything they happen to dislike, but I hesitate to use the phrase here, even though I am sorely tempted. I'm certain that there are other films that are worse than this, but I'm just as certain that I don't want to see them.

The movie is clunky and stereotypical, rather demeaning of Asians and women. That's actually par for the course for an action film of this vintage and is understandable even if not really forgivable. What is not really understandable is why an action thriller has only sporadic, stilted action, a cliffhanger has no real cliffhangers and something designed to bring you back to the theater week after week only makes you want to hurry ahead to the comedy. The plot--trying to keep the tourists out of Chinatown--is a ludicrous as the Monty-Pythonesque spike in the telephone gag used in the film. I saw the film on two DVDs; I bought the second part by accident and was confused a bit by it. I figured that starting at the beginning would help.

It didn't.

Try not to watch the film alone. It screams for MST3 treatment!


Eurasian Victor Poten decides to drive the Chinese merchants from their district in order to start his new race and eliminating any Asians or whites that stand in his way. Its up to Martin Andrews, author and expert on Chinese cultures (only thanks to his manservant Willy Fu) and reporter Joan Whiting to stop Poten's nefarious plot. This serial is absolutely forgettable with absolutely nothing to keep the viewer in any suspense to watch the next week's chapter or the serial throughout. The entire cast tries their best to make something out of this, but are overcome by the ineptness of the production crew. The only saving grace for this travesty is the banter between Herman Brix and Joan Barclay does make for some funny scenes. Rating, based on serials, 2.


Identical twin-filmmakers Michael and Marc Linn made this film when they were 15 and 16 years old, and think this film is more a rip-off than a parody of the _Indiana Jones_ films, the end credit actually says "based on...") but _Indiana Jed_ is full of youthful inspiration in the all-teenage cast. They spent almost $4,000, and budget constraints put the film in a contemporary setting, which gives the film a lot of funny twists in itself. Unlike the Jones film, this is a male-buddy film with Jed and Cmdr. Marc as the buddies, and the film is played for laughs, which it does effortlessly. Highlights include the character Jeremy, some drunken teenagers, Carl Schoenborn, and especially Hethe Henrickson as Beloch, a rival archaeologist (whose last name happens to be Henrickson), who is also the ultimate in ham villainy, who is after the Infinte Power, which will make him shoot rays like Emperor Palpatine. Unfortunately, because the brothers see the film as a rip-off, they have no plans to re-score it (it currently uses a temp-track that includes the Jones films, The Addams Family, The Rocketeer, Ricochet, The Hard Way, Mountains of the Moon, Sleeping With the Enemy, JFK, and lots of Cliff Eidelman's _Star Trek VI_ music, among others) and release it officially (which they can't in this current state), though they do sell it through their website. By the way, the film contains some stupendous car chases, in which windshield wipers are used as weapons...


Hey, what can I say? My son, my then-future son-in-law, and most of their friends were involved with it! A good amateur first effort. Filmed in and around Rapid City, South Dakota, with Stevens High School students and staff(?). Few movies out there will thank a local preacher for the loan of his car! A few of the people involved with this film went on to bigger and better things in the entertainment world. Part of the reason this movie was made, IMO, was a tribute to a very good and popular drama teacher. These guys discovered that the Black Hills and the Badlands were good movie ground before Hollywood did. Then they went on to experiment with making their own. This was big stuff for high schoolers in 1992! Now, it would be on YouTube. Compared to some of the stuff I've seen on SciFi channel lately, this is still awesome and certainly wears better.


When I was studying up on my own career as an amateur filmmaker, I learned that two high school kids in the early 90's had made a movie that supposedly was very good.

Well I hunted it down and didn't expect much, I mean, I've lived 60 miles from where it was filmed for my entire life, so i know what the area was like and being a big fan of the Indiana Jones series, I wasn't sure if they could pull it off. Boy was I wrong.

I'll admit, the acting isn't the best, but being at the same age as they were when they made this, I've seen in my own movies what limitations you have. But the humor and the style hit me. It was cleverly written, and although oftentimes seemed a bit TOO much like a copy or parody of the Indy series, it always saved itself in the end.

At risk of going overboard with compliments on the movie, it actually has inspired me to do my own movies full-feature, and I've since been impressed with the Linn brothers' other works.

So if you get a chance, and can set aside that it's an amateur film a decade old.....watch this. You will laugh and be amazed at what a fine job a group of high school students can do on a movie.


I saw this online a couple years ago and still can't forget it. If you ever get a chance to see this film, please give it a try. If you forget about the recording quality, you will be blown away. To think that this movie was made when the Linn's were in high school blows me away. It is paced well, and there is actually some decent acting. My only beefs about the movie is that it could have been changed from an Indiana Jones fan film. Maybe 'Tennessee Jed' or something.

But like I said before, I recommend this to any aspiring filmmaker. It really is a showcase of what you can do with a little planning and instead of watching TV, going out and shooting a movie with your friends.

8/10


When I first reviewed this movie on my website, I was very harsh regarding the acting. In retrospect, I was far too critical. Since then I've learned a lot about this movie, how it was made, and when. It's important to realize that this was made by high school kids! If you keep this in mind when you watch, it is in fact a terrific achievement, and a testament to the drive of young minds. It has cheesy moments sure, but as a whole you have a full-out feature based on a popular series, and it's well done for it's age. Check it out and get inspired to do one of your own..


I have seen this movie and I can tell you, it's incredible what you can do with a home movie camera. Having done some little projects of my own, I can say that these high school kids today are capable of anything. Keep up the good work guys, let's see what else you can do.


No, it's not Akira. It's not Ghost in the Shell. It's a different beast entirely, and just as good! The key to understanding and enjoying this film is knowing what it is: a sexy and violent movie adaptation of a video game! Things move fast, the animation is awesome, and it is pure eye candy! This is definitely testosterone theater. If you are looking for theme heavy, weighty intellectualism, with a deep message and all that, you won't find it here. This movie plays out just like a video game... lightning quick, assaulting the senses, and with quick flashes of amazing action. Throw in a little saucy nudity, some great perspectives of the female form, and some incredible character designs, and this film rises to the top of the genre. It is pure frivolous fun, which is why it can't be compared to Akira, Ghost in the Shell, etc. Its just as good, but very different.


I first saw this anime at the "Bad Anime Festival" at Ohayocon '06 in Columbus, OH. The show was not misplaced. The plot is all action and nudity, which is an asset for many viewers. The animation and sound were at best mediocre. The English dub features Bob Buchholz in an early role I imagine he'd sooner forget. The plot is disjointed and odd, with underdeveloped characters and incest. So if, like the previous reviewer, you are not looking for another Akira or Ghost in the Shell, this could very well be on your "to rent" list. However, if like me you appreciate Japanese art and good movies in general, I highly suggest that you give this one a miss. Happy viewing, everyone.


(WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS!)

>>Pros: The constant, shameless T&A scenes; decent action scenes; nicely animated

>>Cons: The constant, shameless T&A scenes; no point to this movie

>>Plot summary: Based on a video game that only appeared in America on the hard-as-hell-to-find, overly expensive, and now-defunct SNK Neo-Geo video game console, Voltage Fighters! Gowcaizer: The Movie is about a group of Japanese high school students with superpowers that must stop some kind of weird, evil force from destroying the world. That's about all the plot I could get out of this film.

>>Review: If you're an adolescent teenage boy who just went through puberty, you're gonna love this movie. The film's sole purpose is to just show off the female characters' bodies, and they do with great gusto. They wear little to no clothing, and they have huge breasts that seem to bounce in every direction. Also, the 2 main female characters, Karin and Shaia, don't seem to be very bright. Gowcaizer was produced and directed by Masami Ohbari, best known for his great work on Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture, but Ohbari didn't even come close to living up to Fatal Fury: TMP with this film. Masami Ohbari was also the creator and producer behind the Gowcaizer game. Anyway, the animation in this anime is pretty good, and the fight scenes are decent. They're reminiscent of that of Dragon Ball Z, but they don't get nearly over the top as what goes on DBZ. As for Gowcaizer's flaws, one thing I didn't like about this film was the incest romance between a brother and sister. Also, this film doesn't really make any since at all, and it doesn't try to either. This is just a below-average anime film that was made just to satisfy some type of pornographic lust, and that's pretty much it.

>>My last 2 cents: (None this time)

>>My rating: 4 out of 10


this is kind of a spin off of fatal fury. here, we have a big corporation, weird loves between family members, and generous jiggilation from the babes. now, i know this isn't a very good title, but its fun to watch when you get the chance. the animation is good, the story is ok, and the fighting scenes are radical. overall, this is a title to see, but probably not to own.


The story is hard to understand. The relationships of the characters are in a mess. It seem to me that they are all related some how. But other than good vs evil, I don't get much else. The nudity is a little over done; most of the scene are unnecessary. The only thing good about it is the two energetic school girls in this animation and there are some funny moments from them. (However, my favorite character is the magic dog that transformed into a long hair, short skirt girl.)


Okay, let me start with the bold statement that everybody is wrong when it comes to the supposed "best of anime," namely, Ghost in the Shell and Akira. These are the freak-show Stanley Kubrick works of anime, and more than likely scare the HELL out of newcomers to this wonderful art form. My approach? Start 'em on some Obari. Preferably Fatal Fury (Garou Densetsu in Japan) or the infamous Gowcaizer. Sure, there's a lot of bouncing boobs and the lion's share of violence, but it's actually a pretty cool 90-minute thrill ride. I mean, wouldn't you rather see an armored hero plow a villain into the ground and blast him through some buildings than see some kid start literally exploding? Tell me, who watches that kind of sick sh-t and actually enjoys it? And where are they? Normal, plain old people like myself don't want cerebral movies. We want enjoyable movies. And Gowcaizer, while low on plot, certainly is enjoyable.


There are some lovely, touching and dryly amusing scenes in this film. Kanin and the scriptwriters manage to form a substantive, if occasionally gossamer light, whole out of the playing of fine leads and canny comic incidents. The basic story may be the oldest of chestnuts, but it is here embellished with some degree of incisiveness. Grant's scene by the pool with Dunne and Scott reaches a fine pitch of hilarity, and who can forget the impressionistic scene of Scott's diving coming into Grant's mind and being presented in miniature on-screen?

That master player of light, witty material, Grant, is of course sublime, and I was surprised by Irene Dunne - who I had never previously seen in a lead film role. She was magnificently feline, as Pauline Kael says; dispensing slinky, fluttering phrases and quips, and making it clear what a laugh the character is having; she seems rather to be getting off on the entangled situation. The speech patterns are drolly created by Dunne; wonderful Southern hamming, or archetypal screwball dame quick-talk... Her warming, gadding-about voice is charms, along with deft facial acting; look at the "Oh Bianca..." scene at the hotel early on, where she sensuously reclines on a settee and gets Grant to pretend he is entering the room and kissing his new wife. Minxish mischief of the most heartwarming kind, aye...!

Remarkable to think that Ms. Dunne was over forty when this was made. She has the bearing of many years younger and conveys an impressive vigour. One takes to her unconventional good looks; her slight awkwardness as a 'star' is amusingly alluded to, under the surface, in her son's dialogue late on; very poignant little moment, that. Like Rosalind Russell and Kate Hepburn, she is no textbook beauty, and it is her characterful playing conveys a winking, winning attractiveness. Why is it that we have so few similarly idiosyncratic actresses around today? All - or rather much - has to be homogenised; pop star product looks are apparently required, and conveyor-belted into mainstream films. Film is missing the enticing depths of real-life when it opts for the conformist teenage boy's supposed 'dream woman' - mass-media-fostered - over a greater variety of people and appearances, as one encounters in actual reality.

The actor playing the world-weary, rather Robb Wilton-esquire magistrate ought to have been involved more than he was; an enjoyable turn, that would have been effectively woven deeper into the narrative. Randolph Scott amused slightly too, in his support role; a worthy foil. Things did perhaps get rather sentimental with the involvement of the couple's children, although this is hardly the worst such offender in Hollywood history. The insidious wryness seems completely blunted by the end, when the couple are finally reconciled. One may be charmed by the actors' performances, but it all starts to seem a bit indulgent, and the feeling grows that chances were missed.

But really, one must be indulgent, critically; there is priceless stuff in this film's fibre, and while it fires not on all screwball-comedy cylinders, it is a very pleasant feature with glorious screen presences making (deceptively) light of life.


I agree that Move Over Darling is a very good remake of My Favorite Wife, but Doris Day and James Garner, much as I like them, cannot reach the level of sophistication of Grant/Dunne. Randolph Scott does nothing to detract from the picture. Certainly no more than Chuck Connors does in the same role in Move Over Darling. The courtroom scenes with Grant and Granville Bates as the judge are superior, and Donald McBride as the hotel clerk is exceptional. Cary Grant's facial expression on the elevator when he first sees Dunne after 7 years is so memorable that I can still remember it 35 years after first seeing it. If you are a Grant fan, you have to see this movie.


...albeit a little slow-paced in the first half. Leo McCarey's chaotic pace which made The Awful Truth so much fun is missed here, but Garson Kanin directs capably in his absence and the script and actors deliver enough good wit and chemistry to keep it all balanced out in the end.

Cary Grant gets himself into an unwitting romantic pickle when he's confronted by his thought to be long dead wife on his honeymoon with his new bride. Hilarity ensues, as it does in every brilliant screwball comedy Grant was the star of, and there are some priceless moments along the way.

As in The Awful Truth, Grant and Irene Dunne make a fetching and compatible screen couple. Dunne's comedic felinity and tendency to affect nutty stereotypes in order to get what she wants is better than Katharine Hepburn's imitation of her in Bringing Up Baby and The Philadelphia Story. Grant and Hepburn were terrific in their movies together too, and not taking anything away from Great Kate, but Grant and Dunne's chemistry was just that much better and it's a shame they never made more comedies together.

Hilarious in-jokey scenes between Grant and Randolph Scott, and a near scene stealing turn by Granville Bates as The Judge round out a pretty funny flick.

The Doris Day/James Garner remake "Move Over, Darling" is memorable in its own right and viewed right after this would make for a good video double-bill.


Cary Grant's got a real problem on his hands. He thinks his wife was killed in a plane crash seven years ago. So he goes to court with Gail Patrick who he now intends to marry after getting the judge to declare Irene Dunne legally dead.

Wouldn't you know it, Dunne turns up the day of the honeymoon and puts Cary in an awful pickle. He's a lawyer and he's busy trying to work out all the ramifications of what's happened.

I've thought about it for a while and I came to the conclusion that it's Grant's professional training that prevents him from just confessing to one and all what's happened. Where a lot of the laughs come in is Grant trying to avoid marital consummation with Patrick until he can work it out.

Another factor comes into play when Grant learns that Dunne spent several years on the desert island with hunky Randolph Scott. Grant starts to feel a little less guilty then.

The whole mess is dumped on the judge who originally declared Dunne legally dead, Granville Bates. His role as the judge gives him some of the best lines in My Favorite Wife.

I do feel sorry for Gail Patrick though. Usually she plays a lot of bad girls and other women in movies. But she really is the wronged party here.

Dunne and Grant worked well together in another marital comedy, The Awful Truth and they were just as bright in My Favorite Wife as they were in the first film.

One interesting footnote it was a remake of this film Something's Gotta Give that Marilyn Monroe did not complete. Eventually it was made over with Doris Day and James Garner.

That one was good, but this one is great.


After his shipwrecked wife is declared dead and he takes on a new wife, Grant's first wife resurfaces, rescued after seven years on an island. This reteaming of Grant and Dunne after their success with "The Awful Truth" is pretty funny for the most part, as Grant tries to solve the problem of one wife too many while dealing with jealousy after learning that Dunne had a male companion (Scott) on that island. The only complaint is that the laughs stop in the last quarter of the movie, which is rather uninteresting as the focus shifts from comedy to romance. Bates, who is hilarious as a flustered judge, died in July 1940 but managed to act in 12 films released that year!


This splendid comedy is the one about the wife 'who comes back from the dead' only to find her husband, just that morning, remarried. Of course, she was never dead in the first place but stranded on a desert island with a hunky athlete as her only companion. The resulting complications are the stuff of a classic screwball farce and when the husband is Cary Grant and the wife is Irene Dunne and the writers are Sam and Bella Spewack you know you have a winner on your hands.

Bits of this movie have found their way into homages to the genre over the years and the whole thing was remade in 1963 as a vehicle for Doris Day and with considerably less zing. Leo McCarey, who directed Grant and Dunne in "The Awful Truth", (and won an Oscar for doing so), acts as producer here, leaving the direction to Garson Kanin who makes a very fine job of it. The supporting cast are pretty top-notch as well, with terrific cameos from Donald Mc Bride as an hotel clerk and Granville Bates as a somewhat bewildered judge. Even the children can act in this one and aren't in the least obnoxious in the way of most American moppets of the period.


The silliness of Cary Grant being too embarrassed and afraid of hurting his bride's feelings to tell her what happened--and the screwball results--gives way at the end to an interesting play of sexual tension between husband and wife as the wife refuses to give "privileges" till her husband affirms, not just his passion, but his commitment to her and the family.

For a comic but sophisticated peek at what men and women need from each other, it joins Friendly Persuasion and The Quiet Man.

Casting is excellent--you can't feel very sorry for the wronged bride or for the cheerful disappointed suitor; the kids are funny, neither sentimentalized nor smart alecky; the judge and hotel manager are gems; and Cary Grant and Irene Dunne manage to generate sparks while seeming as comfortable together as old shoes.


Two attempted remakes and dozens of rip offs have failed to diminish the hilarious complications and romantic musings of this often-imitated, never duplicated screwball farce. Loosely based on the Alfred Lord Tennyson poem "Enoch Arden" (Tennyson does not receive a screen credit in the finished film), MY FAVORITE WIFE piles on the fast-paced, snappy dialogue and outrageous, comedic misunderstandings at a frantic rate. Director Garson Kanin skillfully maintains the perfect serio-comedic tone throughout the film's runtime, and the picture is easily respected screenwriter's best film as a director. Interestingly enough, Kanin took over the directing duties from Leo McCarey (an Oscar winner as Best Director for 1937's THE AWFUL TRUTH, which also starred Grant and Dunne) after McCarey was injured in an automobile accident (McCarey also co-wrote the screenplay with Kanin and Sam and Bella Spewack).

The cast is marvelous, topped by yet another Oscar-worthy performance by Irene Dunne, who offers a multi-dimensional portrayal in a genre where one-note characterizations typically run rampant. Dunne was indeed a rare actress who could peerlessly balance madcap humor and genuine pathos, without ever appearing forced or contrived. Cary Grant is every bit Dunne's match as the befuddled husband who finds himself with one wife too many. Although his role doesn't permit him to display the jaw-dropping physical prowess that was showcased so remarkably in THE AWFUL TRUTH, Grant's mastery of internal comedy is given ample screen time here - especially in the final two-third when he discovers he may have a romantic rival.

The supporting cast is also diligently cast, although there's no animal scene-stealer, a la canine performer Asta's memorable turn as Mr. Smith in THE AWFUL TRUTH. Platinum-haired beefcake Randolph Scott is fun as Grant's rival for Dunne's affections, and the fact that Grant and Scott were lifelong friends and roommates only makes their scenes together even funnier (there's also a hilarious sight gag involving the two of them that will have even the most reserved viewer rolling on the floor with laughter). The appropriately rigid Gail Patrick plays the role of the stereotypical shrew as well as anyone could, and director Kanin also pulls natural performances from the two children in the cast. A comedy with a large dosage of wit and an ample amount of intelligence is quite rare, and MY FAVORITE WIFE has all of that and more in abundance - it's simply a picture where everything works.


Cary Grant and Irene Dunne were great together, and though "My Favorite Wife" is not as funny as "The Awful Truth," it's still pretty good. Ellen, lost at sea and presumed dead, returns after 7 years to find her husband Nick has remarried. She goes to his honeymoon hotel, which is a setup for one of Grant's best bits - he sees her as the elevator is closing and his head follows the door until it closes. However, he can't seem to tell his bride Bianca (Gail Patrick). Then he finds out that Ellen wasn't alone on the island but spent the 7 years with one Stephen Burkett. In another funny scene, Ellen gets a sheepish, short, bald shoe salesman to pose as Burkett. Nick has tracked the real Burkett down, and Stephen looks a lot more like Randolph Scott than the shoe salesman. In fact, he's played by Randolph Scott.

Grant is his usual riot and extremely handsome. He spends a lot of time talking to himself as he acts out what he's going to say to Bianca. Also, as in "Bringing Up Baby" and "I Was a Male War Bride," he gets to do something with women's clothing - this time standing in front a mirror and trying to figure out what to bring Ellen to wear. Dunne is very funny, posing as a southern friend when she meets Bianca, and also is quite touching when she first sees her children.

The only problem is that it all gets a little tired, particularly at the end with a prolonged scene having to do with Grant in the attic. As others have pointed out, the script has some holes, particularly the fact that a woman returning after 7 years gets no publicity. And poor Bianca comes off like a villain when she's a victim. Go figure. As amusing as "My Favorite Wife" is, it could have been better.

Nevertheless, with these stars, it's a delightful film, and some of the funniest scenes take place in the courtroom. The Judge, played by Granville Bates, is hilarious and a good example of "no small parts." He sure makes the most of his role.


"Quiet! I'll have no laughter in the courtroom," says the deadpan judge, but in fact the scenes in the courtroom deliver the only laughs in this movie, because they deliver the only breaths of fresh, honest air in the script.

Cary Grant's comedic flair shines as always, even when he's mugging for Garson Kanin (a director who should have stuck to writing). Too bad his character, the only remotely attractive one, is stuck with a lousy screenplay and two loser wives.

Nothing against Gail Patrick, who exudes cool intelligence and can deliver a cynical remark like a brunette Eve Arden. Unfortunately, most of her roles are thankless, and none more so than this one. As Wife No. 2, she's pure plot device, manipulated to the needs of the story.

But, as usual with her movies, it is Irene Dunne who makes this almost unwatchable, particularly in close-ups, when her ever-visible tongue threatens to flop out of her usually open mouth.

If you get stuck watching this, check out the score and the sound editing. Both are aggressively silly, in an attempt to make up for the lack of comedy throughout the film. A futile attempt.


I am not the biggest screwball comedy fan, since most movies just don't seem to really quite got 'it' and are more or less often too much more of the same and they get drowned by the movie its clever story and low key sentiments. "My Favorite Wife" was however a screwball movie that I really enjoyed watching.

It features all of the typical screwball elements, in which an odd unusual situations and how the characters handle them plays the central key element of the movie. Things get worse and worse when they get deeper and deeper into trouble when more facts slowly surface. It's a well written story that offers plenty of surprises with its moments and main plot-line, even though of course the movie in a sense is mostly predictable, just like any other genre movie.

Who knows, perhaps the movie would had been even better if indeed Leo McCarey ended up directing it, like originally was intended. He however got involved in an automobile accident shortly before the filming of this movie and he had to pass on the directing honers to less experienced Garson Kanin. Kanin obviously didn't do a bad job with it but McCarey was of course more experienced in the genre and was definitely most at ease and in his element with directing these type of movies. He has some great classics below his belt, also prior to the release of this movie. McCarey still served as the writer and producer of the movie though, so his touch is still notable within the movie.

The more I see of Cary Grant as a comedy actor, the more I start to like and appreciate him as one. He is of course still best known for the roles he played in Alfred Hitchcock movies but he successfully started off his career with movies such as this one. He was a great comedy actor who could play a regular guy, despite his always good look. While watching this movie it by the way also made me think; 'Wow, this guy would had made a great James Bond!'. Later I found out that he was actually asked to play the James Bond character in the first 1962 Bond movie "Dr. No" but he turned it down because he believed to be too old already at the time to play the character. He stars in this movie with Irene Dunn, with who he has appeared in in several movies together throughout their career, which also all happen to be the same type of movies. Both were just 2 of the best and most successful genre actors at the time.

One of the better movies that the '30's screwball genre has to offer.

8/10


Cary Grant had a definate talent for slapstick humor. He and Irene Dunne are superb in this film about a wife who "comes back from the dead" after seven years. Dunne just sparkles and twinkles as she reunites with her husband who has just remarried.

Grant had an underrated gift for comedy that should have been utilized far more often. He is perfect as the husband who's life is out-of-control when his wife returns the same day he's had her declared dead. His joy of realizing she's still alive is second only to the manic gyrations he puts himself through as he tries to deal with the situation without letting his new wife in on the news.

Too bad this isn't avaiable on DVD or VHS.


Everybody wants to be Cary Grant. I want to be Cary Grant.

-Archie Leach

I doubt that the above quotation is on Cary Grant's tombstone, but it should be. Just as "On the whole, I'd rather be in Philadelphia" should be on W.C. Fields' stone (unfortunately, it isn't), Cary's quote would make a fitting epitaph to a career that spanned more than three decades.

All of which has nothing to do with My Favorite Wife; it's just one of my all-time favorite quotes and I love to use it.

What would you do if you declared your wife legally dead after seven years in order to marry another woman, and she came back? Furthermore, what would you do if you found out that during those seven years she was alone on a deserted island with another man? That's the situation facing Nick Arden (Grant), and while some men may relish the idea of having two wives, it nearly drives him insane!

Ellen Wagstaff Arden (Irene Dunne) has just returned after seven years to find that her husband Nick has married Bianca Bates (Gail Patrick). Stephen Burkett (Randolph Scott)is the athletic gentleman (check out the way he dives into a swimming pool) who spent seven years alone with Ellen.

Both Stephen and Ellen (or "Adam and Eve" as they called each other) insist that nothing happened, but Nick isn't so sure. When Ellen explains that Stephen was out of commission with a broken leg for the first six months, Nick replies, "That still leaves six and a half years." To allay his fears, Ellen introduces a short, bald, shoe salesman to Nick and claims he is Mr. Burkett. The humor in the scene arises from the fact that Nick has already met the real Mr. Burkett at his club.

Adding to the mix are the two children Ellen left behind when they were still infants. So now we have two problems: Nick has to tell Bianca that he's already married, and Ellen must tell the children that she's really her mother.

Cary Grant was a master of this type of comedy, and the film's screenwriter and producer is Leo McCarey, who began his career making Laurel and Hardy shorts (when McCarey directed the Marx Brothers in Duck Soup, he took the title from a 1927 L & H short; Groucho considered him the only first-class director the Brothers ever had). Randolph Scott, whom we usually associate with Westerns, does a fine job as Nick's rival. And Gail Patrick, who played Carole Lombard's snobbish sister in My Man Godfrey, really makes us feel sorry for her. The poor girl had no idea what she was getting into.

As implausible as this whole scenario is, a fine cast makes it work.


It's obvious that the main reason for this film's existence is an attempt to recapture the magic of the first pairing of Cary Grant, Irene Dunne, and Leo McCarey, namely 1937's "The Awful Truth." Unfortunately, the material isn't quite up to the task. The plot seems aimed at children; it can't be taken seriously, as it completely ignores any adult consequences arising from it. The film's saving grace is sex. While implicit in other screwball comedies, here it seems more pronounced, perhaps an attempt by Grant, Dunne, and McCarey to prop up the obviously weak material. And it works, creating for adults who care to look a sexual dimension, a dimension under the surface, one that's funny, outrageous, and even daring for something made in 1940.

Cary Grant has married Gail Patrick. Married couples on their wedding night have sex. Irene Dunne rushes to stop this and succeeds. (Patrick complains to her mother on the phone that they drove "all night, **all** night!!) But Dunne seems to be a rather liberal lady, having no qualms about Grant's hesitation in telling his new wife the truth, nor with him going so far as to bringing her home and carrying her over the threshold! As Dunne has dallied with Randolph Scott, perhaps she's giving Grant the option of dallying with Patrick. Grant's hesitation in telling Patrick the truth may be an indication that part of him does want to at least consummate his new marriage. When outside forces prevent him from absent-mindedly doing so, as in the arrival of the insurance claim adjuster, he expresses relief. When he learns of the existence of Scott, he embraces jealousy as a means of getting his mind off wanting to make love with his new bride.

It's interesting that even though Randolph Scott makes the obligatory declaration that, despite being on an island alone with Irene Dunne for 7 years, nothing happened, Dunne never validates this. In fact, her bemused expressions seem to indicate that she has trouble buying this as much as Grant does. The film is in fact consciously ambiguous here; it does nothing to paint as impossible the idea that perhaps Dunne and Scott were actually intimate on the island.

The sexuality of the film comes to a climax in the last scene. Grant "wants to go to bed" in her room, while Dunne won't let him as long as he won't forgive her. She lies in bed, cooing with ecstasy at how comfortable she is, her expression dangling sex, suggesting if Grant needs time to think about it, he can wait until Christmas: "We'll have a **lovely** Christmas; what's 59 days more?" Grant can't take it anymore, forgiving her "for whatever happened" and comes back dressed as Santa Claus, looking to get his present now.

Like "Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House," the film has a number of sight gags and jokes at the expense of Cary Grant's sexuality. Here it uses the well known fact that Cary Grant and Randolph Scott lived together for a number of years when Grant was between marriages as "bachelors." It has Grant almost swoon at the sight of a topless Scott taking a dive, and later has Grant sitting in his office, reliving the moment in his mind. And then there's the scene of Grant looking through women's clothing, holding them up to a mirror, while telling a doctor, "I have to go, he's waiting for me in the car!"

The hilarious sexual undertones of the film are really brought to life through Irene Dunne. Her delivery, her expressions, her energy, are all very saucy. Cary Grant is very good reacting against her. It's for this reason that the two are able to rise above the silly material to create a rather sophisticated sex comedy, one that forgives natural indiscretions on the part of each party, and it's for this reason I give the film an 8/10.


This has got to be one of THE funniest films I have ever seen! Nick (Cary Grant) was married to Ellen (Irene Dunne) for 4 years before she was shipwrecked, and presumed to be dead. 7 long years later, he remarries (to Gail Patrick) - just as Ellen has finally been rescued. She turns up at his place only to find that he's on his honeymoon, so she hightails it to the hotel to go surprise him. Nick gets himself into an awful pickle trying to find the right time to tell his new wife (whom he has been married to for only a few hours) what has happened, and also telling the children that the new lady that they are enjoying the company of is actually their mother. The plot can only thicken when Nick finds out that Ellen wasn't alone on that island for 7 years, but she had company in the shape of a very athletic (and very single!) man..

Funnier than Grant and Dunne's previous comedy, The Awful Truth, and just as sweet as Penny Serenade; this is a definite 10 out of 10!


I was really looking forward to this being a fan of Cary Grant, Irene Dunne and screwball comedies, but I was very disappointed.

My main concern was the dismal treatment of Gail Patrick's character (Bianca). It wasn't her fault that Irene Dunne (Ellen) wasn't dead yet she is treated so rudely and offhandedly that I found it irritating and frustrating.

In addition it often simply wasn't funny.

Don't waste your time on this, watch and watch again "The Awful Truth" starring the same pair instead, and contrast the treatment of Ralph Bellamy's character with that of Patrick's.


I hate to say anything bad about a film like this, but when there are so many similar films and I have seen a lot of them, it's easily to make comparisons and nit-pick. Let me say, first of all, that I am not complaining about this film. "My Favorite Wife" is easily enjoyable, with a well-written plot that is engaging from the beginning. It's funny, and like all great romance films, there is real emotion here. It involves Cary Grant finding his wife, whom he thought was dead after a shipwreck, seven years after the incident alive and well. Trouble is, he is remarried and he believes she is in love with a man she met on the island. It's all screwball fun and somewhat touching as their romance is rekindled and their children discover their mother for the first time. It has a similar feel to most other Cary Grant films ("The Awful Truth," etc). Irene Dunne plays Grant's wife as well here as she did in that film. The ending of the film seemed a little out of place and took a bit too long to wrap up. This came close to ruining the film for me emotionally. Despite that, if you're looking for some clean, easily-likable comedy, this is for you. Not the best of it's kind, but still entertaining.

*** out of ****


After seven years of his wife, Ellen, presumably being lost at sea, Nick Arden marries his latest flame, Bianca. Only to get on his honeymoon to find that Ellen has in fact survived, and spent the seven years on a tropical island with another man called Stephen Burkett.

My Favorite Wife is based around the Alfred Tennyson poem entitled "Enoch Arden". Numerous adaptations have been made, but few, if any, are as frothy as this Cary Grant and Irene Dunne starer. Grant and Dunne are re-teamed here after their massive success with the quite marvellous The Awful Truth in 1937, and tho the role of Ellen was touted to Jean Arthur, it was Dunne who grasped the role and created sizzling comedy once again with the fabulous Grant. The Awful Truth director Leo McCarey, was all set to direct this piece but a car accident put paid to that and the reins passed to jobber Garson Kanin, who aided by a firing on all cylinders cast, weaved a splendidly delightful picture.

Tho the movie's obvious charm lays with it's two main stars, it would be a big disservice to forget the contributions of Randolph Scott as Stephen Burkett and Gail Patrick as Bianca. Scott's laid back persona is perfect foil to Grant's more batty approach work, while Patrick in the tricky role of the neurotic second wife is fabulous, and it remains a mystery as to why she didn't go on to better and brighter things. Tho the ending is never in doubt, and the last quarter dries up on the gags front, My Favorite Wife still stands the test of time as a screwball picture of note, see it if you get the chance, it should brighten your day. 7.5/10


I am writing this review because after years of watching this movie and loving every minute of it, every time I watched it, I have just watched 'Move over Darling' for the first time and thought I'd write a review of both and compare them.

Firstly this original and black and white version is so much better. Although the later film does have identical dialogue in parts and James Garner and Doris Day are great in the roles, they just do not to it as good as Cary Grant and Irene Dunne done...er did. For instance, the scene where Nicholas Arden first sees his wife in the hotel lobby and he follows the lift doors closing. Hilarious and Garner does it superbly, but that was a typical Cary Grant action and no-one can do it better.

The film opens with Nicholas Arden (Grant), who having lost his wife to a shipwreck seven years ago, is filing his petition to get have his missing wife declared legally dead, so he can marry Bianca, a fox-clad beauty played by Gail Patrick.

However, having happily made his vows and is all set to settle down with wife number two, wife number one, hilariously portrayed by Irene Dunne, makes an unexpected return from her shipwrecked paradise, determined to get her husband, life and home back.

Grant now has to spend the rest of the movie realising that his one true love has returned and must find a kind, and considerate way to 'dump' his new bride.

Add to his misery and torment, Grant's discovery that his wife has not been the lone shipwrecked victim these last seven years, but has been a jungle mate to a muscle bound Adonis played by Randolph Scott, news made worse by the fact that their affectionate nicknames for each other during that time seem to have been Adam and Eve.

With such 'naked' truths scratching the surface, it's not long before Grant's trouble's really start as with two Mrs Ardens out and about, living, breathing, walking and talking, the authorities are starting to sit up and take notice. Bigamy is after all a crime.

As with 1937's 'The Awful Truth' Grant and Dunne prove what a great comedic team they made and that their performances were by no means a fluke. It is also my opinion that Irene Dunne was a more natural comedienne than she was a singer...good voice though she had. She was just more of a joy to watch in these kind of roles, the opposite of her 1963 counterpart Doris Day, whom i always preferred as a singer.

The one failing of both these films however is the character of Bianca, she is such a tragic figure when you think about it, she's neither nasty, vulgar, cruel, malicious or evil. Just a woman who loved a man enough to marry him, yet in both films she becomes a victim. Maybe she should have been written to be a gold-digger or a liar or a cheat, just so you don't feel so sorry for her. The Comedy can become a bit tainted and black as a result

Anyway. A True classic and a great example of screwball comedy.


Although not as wacky and funny as either Bringing Up Baby or Arsenic And Old Lace, this is a very funny and memorable Cary Grant comedy. I don't understand how someone could be disappointed by the movie, as one comment on IMDb stated, but everyone has their own taste (and I sure know of a lot of beloved films I hated).

Irene Dunn plays Grant's wife who has been lost at sea for many years. She and a man she is shipwrecked with were finally discovered and she returns home to Grant on the eve of his wedding! Apparently, after so many years he is ready to have her declared legally dead and proceed with his new fiancée. Her arrival sure throws a monkey wrench into their plans! However, when Grant finds out she was stranded along with the handsome Randolph Scott (FYI--he really was Cary Grant's best friend in real life), Cary isn't sure whether to get remarried or return to Dunn!

FYI--The same year this film debuted, another film with almost the exact same story line also came out called "TOO MANY HUSBANDS". While this other film was amiable enough, MY FAVORITE WIFE is better in every way. If you only see one of these films, be sure it's MY FAVORITE WIFE.


Hilarious RKO comedy of 1940 with impeccable credits both cast and writing/directing and crew. With editing by Robert Wise! What a combo! Obviously a smash hit in its day and must have a wonderful experience to see in the 3000 seat movie palace. Screened a lot on TV in Australia, anyone lucky enough to roar with laughter at this almost perfect screwball comedy will instantly agree how hilarious and exact it is. In the 60s, it was ineptly remade as a Doris Day vehicle also successful and equally well crafted but not nearly as much fun. Somehow it works better as an art deco comedy. The courtroom scenes are almost lifted verbatim into WHAT'S UP DOC in the 70s. Interesting and sad too, to see the very talented child actor Scotty Beckett long before his untimely descent into crime and early death. The obvious rapport between housepals Grant and Randolph Scott is slyly enjoyable too. This is champagne Hollywood. Imagine a hideous remake today for the multiplex mob: Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore instead of Cary Grant and Irene Dunne... with Rob Schneider in the Randolph Scott role. Add swearing and punching and edit using a lawnmower.


Although Cary Grant is justifiably remembered as a screen legend (indeed he was probably the most adept of any of his contemporaries at romantic comedy), it seems criminal that Irene Dunne is almost forgotten these days. This is the second and most lightweight of three very fruitful screen pairings they had during this period - the other two are the even more insane divorce farce, "The Awful Truth", from 1937 and 1941's child adoption tearjerker, "Penny Serenade". With her insinuating laugh and sophisticated but down-to-earth manner, she is a wonderful screwball heroine, even if she lacks the haughty glamour of Katharine Hepburn or the brazen beauty of Carole Lombard.

Here Dunne plays Ellen Wagstaff Arden returning home after seven years shipwrecked on a desert island. The problem is that her husband Nick has just gotten remarried to a high maintenance socialite named Bianca. Further complications ensue when it's disclosed that Ellen was not alone on the island and that her companion was an athletic Adonis named Stephen Burkett, of course a bachelor. The ending is obvious from the beginning, but there are some hilarious set pieces along the way, in particular, when Ellen recruits a timid shoe salesman to impersonate Stephen and also when her ruse is exposed as the real Stephen pops up from the country club swimming pool. In 1940, the same year he made classics like "The Philadelphia Story" and "His Girl Friday", Grant is at the top of his game, and Dunne matches him every step of the way. It does seem a bit of a stretch to think that the principal characters would be celibate for seven long years, but such was 1930's Hollywood convention.

Randolph Scott gamely plays the dumb-as-dirt Stephen, an ironic choice given the rumors of the actor's relationship with Grant. As Bianca, the glamorously venomous Gail Patrick - expert at such roles from classics like "My Man Godfrey" and "Stage Door" - knows her fate in the movie but doesn't really show her talons until the courtroom scene. In scene-stealing bits are Granville Bates as the frustrated judge and Donald MacBride as the confused hotel clerk. The only drawbacks are the overly precocious children played hammily by Scotty Beckett and Mary Lou Harrington. Directed with comic mastery by Leo McCarey, it's a frothy confection from a bygone era, and the far inferior 1963 Doris Day remake only proves how unmatchable Grant and Dunne are. The DVD has a surprisingly pristine print transfer, and extras include an unrelated comic short featuring humorist Robert Bentley and a condensed 1950 broadcast of the movie featuring Grant and Dunne.


Much better than the Doris Day Rock Hudson remake. Lawyer husband has wife declared dead after 7 years lost at sea and remarrys the day she returns after her rescue. Movie moves into high gear when Nick (Cary Grant) sees his first wife as the elevator door closes in the hotel on the way to the honeymoon suite with his bride and he's on the spot to break it to his new bride but then finds out his wife was stranded with a hunk of an anthropologist (Randalf Scott). She makes it worse by hiring a milque toast shoe salesman to impersonate the anthropologist so as to mislead Nick into thinking there was nothing to worry about but he's on to her. Many very funny scenes in the courtroom where a cantankerous judge weds, annulls, declares death and fines people for contempt.

If you like old fashioned romantic comedies, you'll love this


A very good comedy, able to refresh anyone under heavy stress, acting three good stars Cary Grant, Irene Dunne and the "cowboy" Randolph Scott, who in fact did a little as a supporting actor. Irene is a dead wife who came back to her home and family, and found his husband (Cary Grant) married to another nice lady. However, Cary simply loves his real wife, so the problem was how to get legally rid off the new wife and to come back again to her real one. The law, obviously, has the last word in this matter.


Cary Grant & Irene Dunne were a great screen team --all 3 of their films were winners--but this one was the very best. Gail Patrick usually played a glamor puss &, as in this film, she was,as usual, very haughty. However, a very interesting sidebar to this film is watching Grant & Randolph Scott together. They made their 1st movie together back in 1932--a film called Hot Saturday. In My Favorite Wife,a stand out scene was when Grant 1st sees Scott on the diving board. His eyes light up and even later, in his office, he cannot get the image of Scott out of his mind. Of course, anyone might react that way if their wife had been alone with him for 7 years--but--these guys certainly looked ( and apparently did) like 2 guys who really appreciated each other--in more ways than one.


I don't know if this movie would strike today's viewers as being so amusing. I mean, it's STILL extremely amusing today, but in 1940 some of the subjects that gags are built around were taken more seriously. In middle America divorce was rare, for example. As late as 1964 one of the reasons Nelson Rockefeller lost the Republican nomination was that he had recently divorced and remarried. We didn't have a divorced president until Reagan, 16 years later. And at one point Cary Grant is sent to gather some clothes for his wife and a psychiatrist sees him examining the dresses in her closet and posing in front of the mirror, holding up the dresses in front of him, trying on different women's hats. The suggestion of homosexuality and cross-dressing must have been outrageous at the time. Homosexuality was still "the love that dare not speak its name" and was thought by everyone in Bassett, Nebraska, to be a mental disease -- those residents who had heard of it, anyway.

The jokes are built around a simple enough plot. Grant, believing his wife (Dunne) to have drowned 7 years earlier in a shipwreck, remarries. But Dunne shows up vibrantly alive, having made it to an island. Grant tries to hide Dunne's identity from his bride while trying to figure out what to do. Halfway through the movie he discovers that Dunne was not alone when she was rescued from the island. Also rescued was another survivor -- the robustly masculine, handsome, and athletic Randolph Scott, who is also in love with Dunne.

That reminds me. When I said earlier that homosexuality was taken seriously, I meant it. Careers could be ruined by rumors -- whole lives could go down the drain. Grant and Scott happened to be pretty good friends and they shared a house at the time this movie was being shot. Rumors began that they were both gay, based on nothing more than their living in the same house. Both careers survived, but the rumor about Scott lingers on.

The greatest character in the movie is undoubtedly the judge, Granville Bates. What a crabby face! What an irritable and impatient man! Someone in the courtroom opens her compact and begins applying makeup, and the reflection of the light reaches him. "Hey! Put that thing away! What are you trying to do, blind me? I won't have any of that in this courtroom. Try washing your face instead of painting it. (pause) There's such a thing as contempt of court, you know. (pause) Don't let ME get after you." The other great performance comes from Cary Grant. Nobody has ever been better at light comedy than Grant, I swear. His every statement is funny. Even his hesitations, like "Well ---" And he uses the skills he learned as an acrobat to add to his success. Watch him scuttle across the balcony of the house with his wife's dresses, his legs working like a marionette's while his head advances in a level line without bouncing at all. It belongs in the Ministry of Funny Walks.

Randolph Scott is good too in one of his freewheeling earlier roles. His chest is always puffed out, his voice loud and resonant, his gestures flamboyant, everything that was deliberately dropped from his later roles in the Boetticher Westerns.

I could never really get with Irene Dunne. I understand that she was a genuinely decent woman, but her on-screen appeal eludes me.

It's a good thing that film lasts as long as it does, because they no longer make many comedies as successful as this one.


100/100. The is one of the greatest romantic comedies of all time, everything comes together perfectly - direction, screenplay, score, cinematography and the cast, and what a terrific cast. Irene Dunne and Cary grant are excellent,and have such an amazing rapport, the supporting cast is outstanding, especially Gail Patrick, Granville Bates and Donald MacBride. Randolph Scott is well cast. Nominated for three Oscars, original screenplay,original music score and for art direction. There are so many memorable scenes and it is often laugh out loud funny. A great and unforgettable classic. The pacing is amazing, thanks to director Garson Kanin.


... they don't make them like this anymore? If not someone should. In connection with another film I stated that most errors or unrealistic situations can be overlooked if we are compensated via Style, Class, Sophistication etc and this movie proves my point. It is 1) unrealistic that Irene Dunn, missing at sea for seven years, should reappear on the very day that husband, Cary Grant, has succeeded in having her declared dead and then, moments later, remarried in the same courtroom and 2) that Grant's mother would not have attended the wedding; presumably the writers needed Dunne's mother-in-law to be in when Dunne (who naturally would not have known about the new wedding so would have no reason to attend and try to stop it) resurfaced though a little thought could have solved this. Gail Patrick is saddled with the typical Ralph Bellamy part but the whole thing moves along lickety-spit and generates lots of laughs and good feeling. A minor gem.


Any movie with Cary Grant, to me anyway, is wonderful. It is trite to say, but there really is no actor like him today. Geoge Clooney could have been, but to his credit (unfortunately for us Cary-like lovers) he has chosen to accept the challenge of many different roles and sees himself as an actor, not a specific type of person, acting. I like both these men, in any case.

Irene Dunne is also fabulous, her timing is the best of anyone this side of Madeline Kahn, but Dunne was more sophisticated and played off Grant beautifully. One cannot imagine Kahn as a Cary Grant leading lady!

And Randolph Scott! Wow. Where has he been all my life? Oh yeah, dead. Too bad, he is also perfect for this film. I wouldn't mind seven years on a Pacific Island with someone who can swing from a trapeze like he can.

Oh yes, the film...great escapism, but I must say I think both "Nick" and "Ellen" as husband and wife were insensitive clods to Gail Patrick's character, "Bianca." That poor woman would have made some man a good wife, too bad not Nick.

This is one of my favorite movies and I heartily recommend it to anyone who wants to see how the other half lived in the 1930s.


This is a fine film, it has a lot of talented people in it. Carey Grant, & Irene Dunne are great & really the whole cast is great. The comedy genius of Leo McCarey (who did some fine comedies with the Marx Brothers) is involved & the film is well done.

The only problem is that now the plot seems a lot tamer than it was then. Back when we had morals in society, a man & a woman alone on an island for 7 years that were not married to each other was a big scandal. Now, with single women having kids without fathers, some having multiple kids with multiple fathers & with an anything goes types of morals involving girl & girls the plot in this seems to innocent. In the early 1960's this one was remade with Doris Day & James Garner (after Marilyn Monroe died tragically during her filming of it).

If you want to see a fine talented cast making a fine film, this one is for you. When it was made, the theme seemed more mature than today, but this one can still give you a smile & make you miss the age of moral decay which today represents by taking you back in time to a era where this humor comes from.

161


Michelle Brown (Kimberly Williams-Paisley) has the perfect life - a wonderful job, a wonderful boyfriend, and she just bought the dream house she's been waiting for her entire life. But when she gives away all of her personal information to a depressed drug user in need of money named Connie (Annabella Sciorra), her entire life falls apart.

I absolutely loved this TV movie. It's full of suspense and emotional scenes, but more importantly, it's full of truth. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the nation - every 6 minutes, someone's identity is stolen. The fact that the movie was based on a true story makes it all the more scary, and you have to be prepared for reality to slap you in the face.

It's a big eye-opener. You can also learn a lot from this movie: What to do if it happens to you, etc.

"Identity Theft: The Michelle Brown Story" aired last night, but if you missed it and have the opportunity to see it again, I highly recommend that you do.


Did any other wonder, after Connie drove to Michelle's home in the NM van she had stolen, why Michelle didn't (a) get the license plate number and (b) call the investigator who had been working her case???? I'm hoping that this was just a production error

Other than these points, my husband and I loved the movie, knowing that identity theft can happen to anyone under any circumstance. I'm so glad that, since Michelle's ordeal, legislation has been implemented for tougher sentences. It's so unfortunate that identity theft occurs every six seconds as stated in the movie. It just might be worth closing established accounts and open new ones every so often to help prevent it.


While I am glad there is a movie such as this to help inform people about this sort of thing, there were a few things about the movie that angered me. while I do not want to spoil the movie for anyone...I was very angry what the real Michelle had to go through. Also, it was very disappointing that the criminal got such a light sentence. Anyone who commits this type of crime should be given harsher penalties otherwise, when they are released, they may just do it again. There just isn't enough being done about identity theft and frauds these days. A slap on the wrist is just not enough. Also, victims should NOT be afraid to fight back harder. Being scared when you see someone commit a crime against you is not going to stop criminals. If this had been me, (thank the Lord it wasn't) she would not have been able to get away. She would not have had the opp. to do some things she did.....


I thought this movie was excellent, entertaining and very informing of people like Connie Volkos. She is a despicable thief, a nut and definitely personality disordered and sociopathic. She is not concerned with ruining other people's lives and is oblivious to the devastation she causes. She takes no responsibility for her actions and thinks she can just get away with things. It all started when Michelle Brown (the victim) walks into the loan office were Connie worked, with a skirt on that Connie liked. When her credit card is declined at the store she steals Michelle's credit card and information and dishonestly has the luxuries life, she wants. In the end all I can say to her is that, "Hey when you've layed around your whole life, you don't just get to say one day, "Oh I think I want what everybody else has worked so hard for their whole life". It does not work that way".


I like this movie very much. Anyone committing or having committed ID Theft should be made to watch this movie no less than 20hrs a day and not less than 2yrs every day. Maybe then people will understand what kind of damage they have caused and stop and think about it. I can personally related because two people in my extended family did this and they're getting off the easy way. No sympathy should be the punishment. Anyway I thought the movie was directed and performed with the excellence to make this seem so realistic and not twist the truth of what happened. I think everyone should watch this movie. It really gives you an idea of what can happened when you least expect it.


Poor handled material about a real story concerning a young woman (Williams) who has all her data and her identity too stole by an ambitious and ill minded secretary (Sciorra). The movie goes on and on, never offering any climax moments or interesting facts, until the constrained ending when informations about the facts and the persons involved are given like a policial report.

The story of this movie has potential, indeed. Nowdays, one of the big problems in commerce activity is the real possibility of one has all his or hers personal information (name, number of social security, ID or credit card)used by stealers and modern pirates in a series of crimes.

Unfortunately, 'Identity Theft' never hits the bull eye. In my opinion, I think this movie was made almost with an amateur touch, like a second grade production. I give this one a 3 (three).


For all of the above whining about the graphic sex and violence, get over it. Thats what makes Anime worth watching. Personally I have a hard time getting through a Anime unless it does include lots and lots of graphic sex and violence. If ya liked Series like Bible black you'll like this. What I find to be really annoying is these whiners running around complaining about the sex and violence because it " is unnecessary". I say BS! It is necessary and it is appreciated. The more the better. It's because of these dull trolls that the US has an edited version thus making the best and only version worth watching in my opinion harder to find. If graphic sex and violence offends you, quit watching adult cartoons numb nuts.


It's very simple, if you enjoyed Urotsukidoji: Legend of the Overfiend, you should enjoy this Urotsukidoji outing. It has more Demon and Man-beast action....action meaning rape and gore. That's right! Monster Rape and bloody gore! Throw in the characters from the first one like Megumi and that little flying gimp monkey thing, and you're right back at home.

My only gripe with this flick was that it ended way too abruptly. It did set up for the next outing, but it made it feel like a TV series....but it was 84 minutes long. Eh, whatever. I'm still gonna find it, watch it and love it. Urotsukidoji forever!!


Legend of the Demon Womb is one Japanese animated feature which is far too stupid, ridiculous, and removed from reality to be either offensive or misogynistic. In the movie's infamous beginning scene, a cyborg Nazi mad scientist operates a monstrous "death rape machine" for a bizarre Satanic ritual in which naked women are hooked up to a gigantic engine and systematically raped with metallic dildos over and over again until they climax in a final orgasm of death - to summon a demon from another dimension called the Evil King to Earth! Years later that scenario is replayed again, but conducted by the late scientist's now grown son who has become an evil sorcerer. STUPID enough for you? This is a continuation of the first film, Legend of the Overfiend while bearing little in actual continuity (wasn't the earth being destroyed at the end of the first one?). But like the first one, the graphic depictions of demonic rape is rampant throughout, but now with mechanical rape added on. Graphic violence, blood, and gore is generously splashed across the screen. This film belongs to a category of adult anime called "erotic grotesque" in which sex and violence are combined and played out to the most absolute mind numbing and shocking extreme. We basically get a front row seat to view the twisted sexual perversions of Satanists, demons, man-beasts, and other supernatural beings. The film is beautifully animated, insanely imaginative, and incredibly disgusting. Storywise, this film is like the fevered wet dream of a perverted lunatic. To sum it up, Legend of the Demon Womb is a lot of extremely ridiculous, sadistic, soft core porno nonsense in the guise of fantasy anime, but basically harmless if viewed by sane adults (as it should be).


I saw not as many people reacted on this film as on the previous part "legend of the overfiend". That's a shame because when you've seen that part you should see the all the next parts as well to get the big picture. Personally I think this is the best trilogy of the series. It is very dark, and some sick people where behind it regarding to the big machine to evoke the demon God. I liked Myunhi Hausen JR. Although I don't think he's cute like some previous reviewer said :-)

Because it's hard to rate only one part of the whole series I just give them all a 9 for originality, story, darkness and drawing style.


one of the best anime's on the planet!although difficult to understand-i.e. too much sex and porn obscuring the plot, this film is fantastic!And also young Muhnihausen II is soooooo cute!^_^everyone on this planet should watch this coz it rules!!!!!!!!buy it now!!!!!!!!


Don't get me wrong, I liked the initial Legend of the Overfiend, but man, Munnihausen, Jr. sure is cool. I don't quite know where this story fits into the first's, though I have read that some people prefer to view it as an alternate storyline. The animation is good and not much has been cut out of the original edit (if you are watching the cut version). My only complaint would be the lack of screen time that this film allots to Amano, who is clearly the best character. If you're having a hard time finding this film to rent, you shouldn't look for it in Blockbuster or Hollywood video. Although Hollywood video used to rent the edited versions of the film, I guess they stopped when they realized that kids could rent them (in all honesty the covers do no justice to the graphic content).