One you've seen a few silent comedies you begin to notice that different rules are followed in shorts as compared to feature-length movies. Where the features tend to be carefully constructed, more realistic, and slower paced, the shorts are spontaneous, wilder, weirder, and definitely faster. It's in the short comedies that you'll find the "cartooniest" gags, heavier dollops of slapstick violence, nonsensical plot twists, and guys with bizarre facial hair. And this is even more the case in one-reel comedies than in two-reelers: the single-reel works of Charlie Chaplin, Harold Lloyd, Stan Laurel, and Charley Chase feature crazy, crude stuff they didn't dare put in their later, longer movies, things that often appear to have been improvised while the cameras were rolling.

APRIL FOOL is an example of what I mean. Charley Chase made this one-reel comedy back when his screen character was still known as "Jimmie Jump," and it's not as polished as some of his later work. This is a case where the charm of the leading man carries the day, for the gags are mostly predictable and routine, almost like reflex actions. Most of the story is set in the office of a newspaper called the Morning Megaphone; it's April 1st and apparently the staff has little else to do but devote the day to playing pranks on each other. (I suspect the only reason our setting is a newspaper office instead of, say, an insurance agency, was to justify a couple of title card quips about journalism: e.g., the editor has weak circulation like his paper, that sort of thing.) One of the best gags is the very first one, when the office boy puts tacks in all the chairs and everyone sits simultaneously --and then jumps up simultaneously. It's a cute visual, but it also reflects the level of wit that prevails thereafter. We know that when Charley is fooled with a rubber hammer that a real one will be mistaken for the fake one and that something will get broken (check!), that when cigars are handed out they'll ultimately explode (check!), and that when Charley receives a phone-call reporting a genuine fire the news will be regarded as a prank and thus ignored (check!).

Actually this last-mentioned gag is a little confusing in the way it's presented. It's the editor-in-chief's wife who has accidentally set their house on fire, but for some reason she keeps calling Charley and ordering him to tell her husband that their house is burning down. Why doesn't she call her husband directly? He has a phone on his desk. Better yet, why doesn't she call the fire department? It's almost like the producers of these short-shorts felt the limited running time justified illogical behavior by the characters, as if we wouldn't notice as long as the pace is fast enough. We do notice, but it doesn't matter: these one-reel comedies aren't much longer than cartoons so the people in them may as well behave like cartoon characters. When his house burns to the ground even the editor himself doesn't react normally-- he doesn't bother to comfort his wife, who is wandering dazed in the gutted ruins, but instead swiftly returns to the office to punch Charley in the nose!

APRIL FOOL is one of several Charley Chase comedies released on DVD by Kino within the last couple of years, a happy and long overdue development. This little comedy is far from the best of Chase's output to be restored and made available, but some of the others go a long way toward establishing his reputation for modern viewers as one of the great unsung talents of silent movies.


Basically it's a series of gags built around April 1st, April Fools day in the office of a newspaper. Office fool Charley at first gets the tricks played on him with mixed humorous results, then he turns the tricks on others only to have them backfire. Our lovable schlemiel (dolt) can always laugh at himself when things go wrong and that is why we love him. The plot is thin but, basically Charley's office nemesis Noah Young and rival plans to embarrass Charley and separate him from his love, the bosses daughter. Of course Charley has to win the girl in the end but his enthusiasm literally gets him in over his head and she finally saves his hide. Charley's 85th film out of 255, another one that needs to be put out on DVD!


It's Monday, April 1 at the morning "Megaphone", the newspaper that's six months behind all big public events. Cub reporter Charley Chase (as Jimmy Jump) arrives to find the newsroom involved in "April Fool's Day" hi-jinks. Mr. Chase is the victim of several tired and true April fool jokes. For example, Chase drinks from a water dribble glass. Then, Chase sits in ink. And, Chase lights an exploding stogie. When the editor's wife telephones for help, after her house catches on fire, everyone thinks it's an April fool joke. Editor's daughter Blanche Mehaffey, whom Chase loves, wouldn't play a cruel April fool's joke on Chase, or would she?


In this one, Matt Helm's antagonist is Count Contini, a gold smuggler, played by Nigel Green. He is aided by his gang of thugs and two female sidekicks, Linka (Elke Sommer) and Gwen Ya-Rang (Nancy Kwan). As might be expected, both try to seduce Matt, offering fake carrots. Interestingly for a Matt Helm movie, however, Linka is a rare woman in Matt's orbit who is the recipient, rather than initiator, of the first display of interest. Earlier, there is a nice scene in which Lola Medini (Tina Louise), a former associate of Contina, seduces Matt in connection with the intrigue.

Ultimately, it is Freya Carlson (Sharon Tate) who gets her man. She is a Danish tourist agent who leads Matt around in fulfilling his duties. Like Stella Stevens in "The Silencers," she is initially quite clumsy, and is involved in a nice wetlook scene (actually, so is Linka). Freya helps Matt foil the villains.

I'm focusing mostly on the women here, but hey, you can hardly beat this bunch in this male fantasy series. The only Bond movie that can rival this group is "Thunderball."


As I watched this movie I couldn't help smiling. The movie is essentially a spoof of James Bond flicks with super-guy fighting well-equipped villain. Seductive women and ridiculous gadgets are abundant. Some are as cute as they come (I am talking about women here). All are fallible (women). All women fall for our super-guy. He seemed to be bemused by this (who wouldn't). While he conquers one woman after another, he also manages to rescue a few tons of gold from the grip of the above mentioned villain (the later is usually considered to be the main plot - what a preposterous notion). One has to love the irreverent soundtrack. They don't make movies like this anymore. Pity. 9/10.


Count Massimo Contini (Nigel Green) is the mastermind behind a billion dollar gold robbery. His plan is to send the world markets into chaos. He may get away with it unless Matt Helm (Dean Martin) can track down the missing gold. But along the way, Helm will meet up the Count's hired muscle, a gorgeous female killer, and a ditsy woman who insists on helping him.

I suppose the best way to describe a Matt Helm film would be a light and breezy spoof of the James Bond movies. Nothing is very serious and you're sure that everything will work out in the end. Dean Martin plays Matt Helm about as laid back as could be imagined. Instead of a gun, you're more likely to see him with a drink in one hand, a cigarette in the other, a beautiful woman to ogle, and a quick quip. His fights scenes may leave a lot to be desired, but there's no denying his "cool".

The Wrecking Crew is actually one of the better Matt Helm films. The hiding place of the gold is ingenious, the spy gadgets are plentiful, and the women are everywhere. The cast is one of the better assembled for any of these films. Nigel Green and Elke Sommer make a wonderful pair as the distinguished master criminal and the sexy killer (roles very similar to the ones they played in 1966's Deadlier Than the Male). But Sharon Tate really shines as the ditsy Freya Carlson. It's incredibly sad to think that this would be Tate's last role before her brutal murder. She's a joy and a real pleasure to watch.


the wrecking crew was the last of Dino's Matt helm flicks. i always thought as bad as some people thought this was, I felt the ambushers was worst. Granted Dean was a little long in the tooth for this role but it wasn't as bad as say, Cannonball Run, where it was obvious he was only doing it for his own reasons. I always thought Dean after seeing this film felt he couldn't do the role anymore. i thought that was why he didn't do the ravagers which had been announced as the next Matt Helm movie. I only tonight discovered in an IMDb mini bio that he was so distraught after Sharon Tate's death he refused to do the role any longer. as a dean martin fan i enjoyed his film and singing career.


This,the fourth and last of the Matt Helm movies has a lot to recommend it and has serious credentials to be one of the most interesting films of the 60s and that is for a variety of reasons.One of these is the appearance of the late Sharon Tate who gives a very appealing comic performance in her final movie.The attractive 60s star Dahlia Lavi makes a good villainess and is a fine foil for Nigel Greene a respected English actor (who was later to die tragically) as the evil Count Contini.He had played a similar role in the earlier British spy thriller DEADLIER THAN THE MALE.Nancy Kwan also appears and so does Chuck Norris in a "blink and you'll miss him"screen debut.The reason Norris was in it at all was because of the movies' fight choreographer,none other than the legendary Bruce Lee himself and he does sterling work giving the many hand to hand combat scenes in THE WRECKING CREW a zest that was rare in action movies of the period that featured martial arts. All of this does not make THE WRECKING CREW a great movie but it is a highly enjoyable one and certainly the best of the Helm movies.Dean Martin seemed to be having fun as he always seemed to in this role and pound for pound this as good a spoof of the 007 movies as anything in the Austin Powers films.This is as Hollywood 60s as it is possible to get.As relevant to its era as "California Dreamin'."I'm proud to have it in my collection.


The best of the four Matt Helm films featuring the most entertaining plot, and the greatest number of beautiful women.Dean is funny as hell as usual, but it's Sharon's film all the way. Revealing a naturally funny comic ability, Sharon is an adorable doll, clad in unbecoming clothes and non-flattering eye glasses, before revealing the legendary Tate beauty in the memorable final scene. This film, along with Valley of the Dolls, revels the enormous potential of the tragic beauty.All in all, a good show.


Though it wasn't planned that way, The Wrecking Crew became the last of the Matt Helm series that Dean Martin brought to the screen. At the end credits it was announced that the audience could expect a new Matt Helm film The Ravagers would be coming out next.

It wasn't to be because Dino frankly got bored of the whole thing and in those days Martin would bore easily. You could tell it on the screen and in his performance that the Matt Helm series just wasn't interesting him any longer.

The Wrecking Crew was filmed minus Beverly Adams as Martin's private secretary Lovey Kravezit and the role of his boss MacDonald was taken over by John Larch in place of James Gregory. It was not as ridiculous as the third film in the series, The Ambushers which was clearly the worst of them. This one involved Nigel Green stealing a shipment of gold bullion worth a cool billion.

The gimmick here is that the USA does not want anyone knowing that such a shipment was stolen because of the financial implications. Which is why they've sent in Dino to get it back.

One thing this film does not lack is the bevy of beautiful women working with and against Dino in his mission. They include in this film, Tina Louise, Elke Sommer, Nancy Kwan and Sharon Tate. The Wrecking Crew turned out to be the tragic Ms. Tate's next to last film.

Like the James Bond films, the Helm series also had some nice spy gadgets. The Wrecking Crew had one of the best of them. It was a portable helicopter that you carried in the trunk of your car. It gets Dino and Sharon out of a tight spot. It has to be seen to be believed.

Just as well the Matt Helm series ended here if Dino was as bored with it as he plainly shows.


I'm not familiar with the other movies in the Matt Helm series but this is all I need to watch.

Sharon Tate plays an MI5 agent posing as a clumsy Danish tour guide, Freya Carlson, who is to work with Helm. Tate stated at the beginning of her career that she wanted to do light comedy and "The Wrecking Crew" proved that that genre was indeed a perfect fit for her. This movie is the highlight of her all too brief acting career and my heart aches to think of what could have been.

Dean Martin's acting skills left a lot to be desired but he and Tate had great on screen chemistry. The rest of the cast reads like a Who's Who of Hollywood during its second (and last) Golden Age: Nancy Kwan, Elke Sommer, Nigel Green, Tina Louise (of "Gilligan's Island" in her small role of Lola Medina), among others. You have to remind yourself to close your mouth during the opening credits.

I'm in love with the 60's fashion and music and the fact that we get to see more of Sharon Tate (whereas the rest of her movies, with the exception of "The 13 Chairs" a/k/a "12+1," are primarily small roles where you don't get to see or hear her much).

Good stuff.


To get it right, that is. The best film in the Matt Helm series: best soundtrack, best villain, best female sidekick, best (by far) choreographed action and fight (thanks to Bruce Lee) sequences and best climax. Were these the same people who made Murders' Row and the Ambushers? Hardly seems likely.


If Matt Helm is the world's last hope in recovering one billion in stolen gold, then we're in big trouble. The aging Dean Martin is pathetic as a Bond-esquire government agent that women somehow (?) find irresistible, even those who aren't trying to use him in some way. Austin Powers (Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery) is most often compared to James Bond, but he's clearly more like this version of Matt Helm than he ever was to 007. Like Austin Powers, Helm's cover is that of an international fashion photographer/playboy. He is, in reality, only slightly sexier than Don Knotts character in "The Love God?". He seems on the edge of sobriety throughout the film, and in the scenes where he's up close and personal with his lovely co-stars, I couldn't help wondering if they were fighting the urge to throw up from his rank cigarette-booze breath! Talk about suffering for your Art! I probably feel the worst for the other actors in the film, because the whole project could have been better than it was. Yes, it was a parody of the secret-agent genre of the 1960s that peaked several years earlier, but I guess the picture is so disappointing because it seems to be built instead around the person of Dean Martin, and his real life image as that of a heavy drinking swinger. Please, I'm not completely disregarding his acting ability, because he did in fact make some pretty good movies before this one. I liked him in the films he did with Jerry Lewis, but Martin just seems to be taking it way too easy in this one, and not really even trying. Perhaps when you're an established "star", you don't have to.

The legendary Bruce Lee choreographed the fight scenes in "The Wrecking Crew", but I can't imagine him bragging too much about it. Tina Louise (Gilligan's Island) goes through the same kind of seductress routine she worked so hard to perfect with Bob Denver all those years on the "uncharted desert isle", and is as lovely as she ever was. Elke Sommer is convincing as a menacing moll, but Nancy Kwan is forgettable as a stereotyped Asian. I've seen that Chuck Norris was in the film as well, but I've never been able to spot him. Nigel Green is just plain annoying as the "Count" who's responsible for stealing the gold. Just try counting the number of times he says "schedule". Aaargh! He comes off as a poofy, snobby aristocrat. Alright, maybe that's how he was supposed to be.

Goofs: Although the film supposedly takes place in Denmark, everyone, including the cops who drive Ford automobiles, speak English with no accent whatsoever! There are a few shots near the beginning of Matt Helm driving through a Danish city, but that's it! The driving scenes with Matt Helm and Freya Carlson are obviously California. The scenes involving the train may be Europe, but I'm not sure. I'm in Germany now and have been in Europe for the past 4 years, and I have seen many areas that resemble the terrain in those shots. At various times in the film, characters watch video screens to see the train speed through the countrysidehow? Has the evil Count placed cameras along the track? Does he have tiny flying robots equipped with cameras to follow the train? I guess I'm looking too deep. The most glaring blunder has got to involve the astro-turf used in several shots to make the outside of the Count's estate. Matt Helm throws an exploding hanky (????) at a door seconds before he dives over a hedge onto the "grass". As he hits the grass, it compresses because of the extensive padding beneath, and a large area of the astro-turf kicks up. Come on, editor (Maury Winetrobe).

And now, Sharon Tateshe is probably the one reason to watch this film. She plays Freya Carlson, and got the most screen time in this film than in any other of her previous works. The only other movie she made after this one was called "12 + 1" in which she also had a major role. Sharon Tate was beautiful. She also came across as a very sincere actress in all of her roles, but "The Wrecking Crew" gave her the chance to be more that just a pretty face. She had said in an interview early in her career that she knew she could never do Shakespeare, but would like to try light comedy. She went on to say that she realized that comedy was very difficult because "you have to be so serious". I'm so glad that Sharon got the opportunity to do both this and "12 + 1" before her life was taken. She proved that she did in fact have very real potential as a comedic actress. Sharon really shines every time she's on the screen, and I really came away feeling like I had a much better concept of what she must have been like as a person than from any of her other films. Why on earth the director had in a red wig is beyond me. She had such beautiful blonde hair at that time in her life. I highly recommend this film to any fan of Sharon Tate. 8 out of 10 because of her.


The 4th and final M. Helm film, this is definitely the bottom of the barrel, except for the lovely and funny Sharon Tate near the end of career. There are other babes as well: Elke Sommer (hot for many years), Nancy Kwan lovely as always and Tina Louise who doesn't get to do much. Nigel Green is a noble villain and very creepy. Dino slogs along the best he can under the circumstances and Sharon Tate is just a joy! If she'd ever been given a decent role in a good film, I think she might have surprised a few skeptics about her talent.

A 3 out of 10. Best performance = Sharon Tate. All of these Helm flicks are cotton candy at best, but a pleasant reminder of bad fun films of the late 60's.


No movie clashes more than "The Wrecking Crew." We have an aging Dean Martin, a soon to be dead Sharon Tate, Chuck Norris, and Bruce Lee choreography. In short, in this film, the 50's the 60's and the 70's meet and they REALLY don't get along. There are tedious "erotic" scenes. There are tedious shoot-outs. Even the explosions are tedious. This film is so slow that you'll notice how bad the sets are. Even the opening song, as catchy as it is, is offensive. People often call "The Ambushers" the worst Matt Helm film, but that's something you can sit through without getting the runs. And Sharon Tate should have known better to be in this. You can see her struggling, her energy showing through despite the script, but being giving no more to say than, "Mr. Helm, help me!" The biggest problem is director Karlson who was responsible for the inept first Matt Helm film, "The Silencers". Skip this and see "Murderer's Row," the best in the series.


Comments have complained that this portmanteau film is dated. It would be better to say it registers a crucial political, cultural, and cinematic moment. Marco Bellocchio's short film works best to my thinking. His "Discutiamo, discutiamo" (Let's Talk; We're Talking; or maybe Talk and Talk, if you're inclined to be bored) is a dramatic imitation by students of the university movements of the late 1960s, and includes real differences of opinion (it starts with a lecture on Croce's aesthetics; later there's an attempt to set a Croce paperback on fire), and opinions worth remembering once existed. "La lotta continua" (class struggle), authoritarian schooling in ruling class values, the small percentage of youths of poor families in university--sure, that's so passé.

And for Bertolucci there's Julian Beck as Artaud; for Pasolini, dialectic around the pleasure of Ninetto Davoli. Even Godard's go-gauche, lordly treating every opinion as a quotation, letting all the wind out of what might be concern--or Amore. (See better Bellocchio's "La Cina è vicina" for a fashionable leftism.) The Rabbia or righteous wrath of the title is mostly also left to viewers back then or now, and maybe it didn't get rooted.


Once interested in viewing a script outline or a detailed dialog box inspired by the short séance "DEL FIORE DI CARTA", you are kindly requested to refer to the Italian revue ANTEPRIMA, No 5, Sassoferatto , Ancona, Italy, published in January 1998, page 31, where I published the film scenario entitled "ISMAEL", with a prologue about Laura Betti's opinion Nicolas Xenios, ISMAEL, Omaggio a Pier Paolo Pazolini, Translated and adapted by Tea Boldrini. The story is about an archetypal three-membered family of the western cultural context , who walk and talk about death in their typical middle class apartment . In parallel, a Guillotine is being prepared in a medieval small town in front of the prison where the leading role, Ismael, is about to be condemned to death by the local judge. The crowd is invited to accomplish the procedure by gathering in front of the prison, where the execution will take place as soon as the flower Narcissus near his prison window will faint. The unexpected fact will be that the prisoner's daughter, after her long prayers to God, will decide to replace the real flower Narcissus near her father's window by a similar paper flower that will, naturally, never faint. The result is that FEAR of the eternity will replace the existentialists fear for DEATH and the prisoner's shadow will purchase him for ever and ever.

The text is published in Italian. You are welcomed to read and comment on it my Italian speaking friends. Bye thanks


The most eagerly awaited Flynn movie has at last made it to DVD! Unavailable for some years except on a VHS tape and an obscure over priced Korean disc it, thankfully, is back in the Warner Bros. stable where it belongs. The wait was worth it for the disc is simply pluperfect! With rich vibrant three-strip Technicolor and sharply defined images it is a joy to behold! Flynn is terrific in the title role of the great lover and roue. Not withstanding perhaps a nod to the actor's own lifestyle the part was nevertheless Taylor made for him. And although it was said at the time that he was slowing down and that he hit the booze while filming there is no evidence of it on screen. The great swashbuckler cuts a fine figure in his many fabulous costume changes throughout the picture. These costumes - designed by the great Travilla - won the 1948 Acadamy Award for best costume design.

The supporting cast were well chosen too! Robert Douglas is great as Flynn's adversary - the evil Duke DeLorca. His dark eyes blackened even more to make him look that bit extra villainous. Alan Hale is once again Flynn's faithful sidekick but after 12 movies this was to be their final picture together. He died the following year. The female lead is taken by the beautiful Swedish actress Vivica Lindfors. Here she plays Margaret Queen of Spain and the one true love of Juan. Lindfors' final film was "Stargate" in 1994! She died in 1995 at the age of 75.

"The Adventures of Don Juan" is well directed by Vincent Sherman and is probably his best remembered movie. The atmosphere, the colour and the sets in the court scenes are really very impressive. But now and then the film gets a little bogged down with some palace intrigue until the picture's famous set piece - the brilliantly staged sword-fight on the magnificent palace staircase. It ranks as one of the cinema's finest duels and Flynn will always be remembered for it even though that amazing leap with the knife was performed by stuntman and B picture actor Jock Mahoney.

Then, of course there is the music by Max Steiner - one of his very best scores! Particularly splendid is his music for Juan's Parade into London with its masterful use of bells and chimes. Also the wistful Ballade which accompanies Juan on his many and various balcony climbings, the driving action music for the fight in the palace and the gorgeous love theme for the scenes with Juan and the Queen especially for the sequence near the end. Here the theme is heard in full bloom as the lovers say farewell to each other forever ("I shall be the only one who knew, for just a little while, that there was no Queen"). Interestingly Flynn's usual swashbuckling composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold - who had served him brilliantly on past successes such as "Captain Blood", "The Adventures Of Robin Hood" and "The Sea Hawk" -was originally slated to score "The Adventures Of Don Juan" as far back as 1945, but by the time the picture went into production the esteemed composer had left Hollywood and returned to his birthplace Vienna. As brilliant a composer as Korngold was it's difficult to imagine he would have topped Steiner's exceptional score. But alas we will never know!

So quite a wonderful disc all round with good extras consisting of a commentary by director the late Vincent Sherman and Flynn authority Rudy Behlmer, a trailer and some instantly forgettable old fashioned shorts but the movie is all, so enjoy. En Garde!


The film opens in 17-Century Europe...

After many shameful incidents, Don Juan is forced to return to Spain where he discovers a country without life, driven to war, and a King in petticoat with a dissatisfied Queen...

But, despite of all the court's intrigues, Don Juan saves the lovely Queen and the confused King Philip III (Romney Brent) from the treacherous schemes of a malicious minister, the great Duke De Lorca and his puppeteers Raymond Burr & Douglas Kennedy...

His farewell scene with the Queen of Spain remembered me "Prisoner of Zenda."

Don Juan, wisely, persuades the Queen that her duties lies with her people, and after kissing her, he says: "I shall be the only one who knew that for a little while there was no Queen."

Flynn had the flair and style to play, with elegance, the charming manipulator, gaining admiration through his charisma, talents and abilities, seducing loving maidens, coming against angry husbands, causing a striking impression on the tall, dark, beautiful Queen...

Challenging the mighty Duke De Lorca, he makes his point as the loyal and devoted friend to the crown, when he declared: "Some men prefer the conquest of beauty to the conquest of a throne."

Viveca Lindfors plays a generous Queen who fights for peace and works for the welfare of her people... She is brave enough before an impertinent traitor who dreams to be a future king... She is a passionate young woman before Don Juan, her eventual true love...

Robert Douglas played a stupendous villain in many adventure films, crossing swords with great stars (Burt Lancaster, Cornel Wilde and Robert Taylor). As Duke De Lorca, he was a very ambitious minister with a hand of steel... "I'm Spain!, he expressed once... His declaration remembered me Vincent Price in "The Three Musketeers," when he states, in his role of Cardinal Richelieu, "I'm France!"

The duel between De Lorca ("I warned you, Señor, this time I shall cut deeply.") and Don Juan ("This time, I'm wearing my old clothes.") is exciting and stylish...

With humorous moments displayed by the sympathetic dwarf actor Jerry Austin (Don Sebastian) and with a splendid exhibition of young swordsmen, lovely ladies, secret plots, drinking escapades, swords clashing, furious fights, and with a great complementary score by Max Steiner, "The Adventures of Don Juan" is a great entertaining swashbuckler, highly recommended...


They truly don't make 'em like this anymore (more's the pity). Errol Flynn plays the role he spent his whole life "training" for -- Don Juan -- in this spectacular Warner Brothers adventure film. There is so much to recommend this film; it's a shame American audiences didn't respond to it the way European audiences did at its initial release. Flynn does his best work in years as Don Juan, ably supported by perennial sidekick Alan Hale and Robert Douglas as the evil Duke De Lorca. The costumes are amazing, the sets splendid, the Technicolor never looked better -- but to top it all off, the swordplay, choreographed by the legendary maestro Fred Cavens (Adventures of Robin Hood, The Mark of Zorro) is second to none. From the brief duels with jealous husbands to the scenes in the fencing academy to the final rapier and dagger brawl (capped by a spectacular leap performed by stuntman Jock Mahoney) the sword work here is awesome. (btw, historical fencing fans should note the use of Thibaults' Mysterious Circle on the wall of the fencing school, completely appropriate since this is the Spanish school of rapier play). Future Perry Mason Raymond Burr has a memorable role as one of the villains in this court intrigue adventure, and Viveca Lindfors is excellent as the Queen, but it is Flynn, with his wit, panache and blade skill, who dominates, just as it should be. For terrific entertainment in the classic Hollywood tradition, take a look at The Adventures of Don Juan! UPDATE 2/9/07 This film will soon be available on a new DVD in the second Errol Flynn collection box set, along with another good Flynn film, The Dawn Patrol.


If you love swashbucklers, period movies, buddy movies, or Errol Flynn, you must love this movie. For swashbuckling, you have a series of wonderful fight scenes, each one convincing, each one a delight. For period movies, the costumes are excellent and the history just accurate enough to be useful, but not so accurate as to be dull. Flynn and Hale are perfectly matched foils here, with Hale getting some of the wittiest lines in the movie. And this is Flynn's perfect part, still ladykiller enough to carry off the love scenes, still fit enough to persuade as the great duellist. Watch it.


In the end of the Seventeenth Century, Don Juan de Marana (Errol Flynn) is repatriated from London to Madrid after a serious diplomatic scandal caused by his affair with a British fiancée on the Eve of her marriage with a Spanish noble. The Spanish ambassador in London Count de Polan (Robert Warwick) sends a recommendation letter to his friend Queen Margaret (Viveca Lindfors) to give an opportunity in the court to rehabilitate Don Juan from the gossips and rumors about his love affairs, and he is hired as instructor of the art of fencing in the Spanish Academy. He secretly falls in love for Queen Margareth but becomes loyal to her and her irresponsible and weak husband, King Phillip III (Romney Brent). Don Juan discovers the plan of the Machiavellian Duke de Lorca (Robert Douglas) that intends to declare war to England and rules Spain. With the support of his friends, Don Juan defends the Queen, the King and Count de Polan against Duke de Lorca and his men.

"The Adventures of Don Juan" is a charming, witty and delightful adventure full of romance and comedy. Unfortunately the cinema industry forgot how to make awesome movies like this one without the need of sex scenes or gore and sadism. The athletic Errol Flynn is amazing, fighting with foil and seducing the women in the story and the audiences in the real world, using intelligent and witty lines. The gorgeous Viveca Lindfors performs a queen with stylish elegance and class. The traitor Robert Douglas is the perfect villain, with treachery, ambition and Machiavellism. In the end, this movie is highly recommended for the whole family as a great entertainment. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "As Aventuras de Don Juan" ("The Adventures of Don Juan")


I expected to see Flynn looking out of shape, trying to relive his past glories in this 1948 film. Instead it turns out that in The Adventures of Don Juan, not only is our hero still swashbuckling up a storm and almost as handsome as ever -- let's not forget, ten years and many events have now elapsed since Robin Hood -- but he is also man enough to laugh at himself along with the audience. The role of Don Juan could not be carried off by many actors, and casting Flynn in this role could easily end up being farcical. Instead, he pulls off the role with humour and grace.

And he still looks excellent in tights! More than good enough for me.


Don Juan really was Flynn's last big budget extravaganza, and it really is a sumptous production. If ever any one was born to play Don Juan then it was Flynn. Solid support from Viveca Lindfors, Robert Douglas and Alan Hale. The film is up there with Robin Hood and its a shame that it is not more widely seen today. Enjoy.


Like his swashbuckling predecessor Douglas Fairbanks, Errol Flynn tackled the part of Don Juan in his late years, he was 39 when he made this film for Warner Brothers. Like Fairbanks, Flynn plays an older and wiser famous lover who's getting a bit bored by it all. Not unlike the real life Errol Flynn.

The Adventures Of Don Juan finds Tirso De Molina's famous lover sent home after a couple of escapades in the newly formed Kingdom of Great Britain. King Philip III and Queen Margaret give our hero a chance to redeem himself by teaching at the royal fencing academy.

He's up to his neck in trouble soon enough, but not the kind of trouble Flynn's usually in. The first minister Robert Douglas is planning a move against the Queen who he sees as his main obstacle for total power in the kingdom. And the great lover starts behaving more like Sir Lancelot and less like Don Juan where Queen Margaret as played by Viveca Lindfors is concerned.

Although Philip III was not the great ruler his father Philip II was, by no means was he as big a fool as Romney Brent plays him. The real Queen Margaret who was his Hapsburg cousin did in fact have considerable influence over domestic and foreign policy in Spain.

The Adventures of Don Juan was given a sumptuous production and won an Oscar for Costume Design and was nominated for Art&Set Design. I think the film's best asset besides Errol Flynn is Max Steiner's music. As Flynn films usually are well scored, this one even stands out among that group.

The Adventures of Don Juan marked the thirteenth and last film that Alan Hale made with Errol Flynn. If Alan Hale or Frank McHugh did not appear in Warner Brothers production it didn't seem quite right. Jack Warner kept those two guys busiest of all at his studio.

Although Errol was getting older and his hedonistic living was starting to show, the part calling for an older and wiser Don Juan was well suited for him. One wishes he'd done the role back in the middle Thirties as a young man however.


THE ADVENTURES OF DON JUAN was the last of the great swashbuckling classics Flynn would star in.Though Flynn isn't exactly in his prime here nobody was ever better as the dashing devil may-care swashbuckling hero! Once again Flynn is reunited with his greatest screen sidekick Alan Hale,who is always a delight.Viveca Lindfors plays the Queen with grace and a strong will and her beauty further enhances her performance. Robert Douglas is no Basil Rathbone but he still makes a fine villain.The score by Max Steiner is very fast paced and exciting and the duel between Flynn and Douglas is also nicely staged. All in all this is a truly entertaining adventure with Flynn as dashing and heroic as only he could be!

MY RATING: 9/10


Don Juan is sent back to Spain because of his numerous romantic escapades and becomes involved in training the royal army in sword fighting, while also catching the eye of Queen Margaret. Don Juan and the queen are unaware of Don Rodrigo, the minister of state, who is planning accumulate the power to seize the throne from King Philip. Queen Margaret upsets Don Rodrigo, by trying to maintain her power, who is also at odds with Don Juan. Don Juan and the queen are eventually captured by Don Rodrigo and his aides, but the great romantic escapes from the dungeon to stop Don Rodrigo from going ahead with his plans. The film is good, but plays more as a parody of Flynn's former films such as Robin Hood, Sea Hawk, etc., with little emphasis on action until the final reel, which gives us one of filmdom's best sword fights with Flynn vs. Douglas and his men on the staircase. Lindfors plays more for eye candy rather than give a good performance. Hale (in his last film w/ Flynn) plays the role adequately, and Douglas is superb as the villain. Nice script with many humorous touches. Rating, 8.


Errol Flynn is back in swashbuckling costume eight years after the excellent "The Sea Hawk", and it feels like he never went away. I was expecting this film to be not that good, and I imagined Flynn as looking tired and puffy as a result of his wild lifestyle. However, I was pleasantly surprised. It's a wonderful piece of entertainment. Of course, the plot is really no different from any other swashbuckler, but it's still a heck of a lot of fun. Flynn is perfectly cast as Don Juan- really, who else can you picture but the Tasmanian Devil in the role? This film is about Don Juan in love, with his Queen (a suitably regal Viveca Lindfors), and putting his life on the line for Spain. Aside from the natural ageing process, and looking a little puffy around the face, Flynn is as attractive, charming and witty as ever. Alan Hale, his sidekick in many of his previous films, joins in again. He's Don Juan's loyal friend who keeps the horses under the boudoir window so Flynn can make a quick get-away if a jilted husband bearing a sword arrives. We even have Una O'Connor there, which makes us all sigh and remember Robin Hood. The Warners team do a great job in creating a fresh new swashbuckler for more cynical Post-War audiences (Flynn character is more knowing and sarcastic, but in a good way), whilst being an affectionate tribute AND send-up to the earlier great classics. I guess Warners capitalised on news of Flynn's rape trial and reports of his hedonistic lifestyle in creating this film. But Flynn seems to take it in good humour. The costumes, sets and colour are first rate, as is Max Steiner's stately score. And the last line is a classic!


This was Flynn's last big one. He was only 38 at the time but had begun drinking in the afternoon, causing problems on the set, what with multiple retakes and a major binge that lasted several weeks. It's not "The Sea Hawk" or "Robin Hood." Still, the film was artfully edited and clearly a lot of money was spent on it. The Technicolor photography is outstanding and nobody ever looked quite so natural in a gaudy period outfit as Flynn. It holds one's interest.

The story has Flynn as Don Juan, lover and swordsman, returning to Spain at the beginning of the 1600s. It's really a pastiche, kind of like "The Sea Hawk" with elements introduced from various other films of the genre. There's the well-intentioned Queen, the beautiful Viveca Lindfors of the plump lips and strong features, surrounded by weaklings and traitors who want to go to war -- except for Don Juan, of course. (Cf., "The Sea Hawk.") There's the comic sidekick, Alan Hale. (Cf., all of Flynn's Warners pictures.) The good guys disguised as hooded monks. ("Robin Hood", "The Mark of Zorro.") The hero and villain, face to face and belly to belly, straining at their crossed swords, and the villain sneakily withdrawing a dagger from his belt ("Robin Hood"). The hero captured and thrown into prison to await execution, only to make a spectacular escape. ("Robin Hood", "The Mark of Zorro.") Shadows fighting on the castle wall. ("Robin Hood," "The Prisoner of Zenda".) And so on. Some shot are edited in that are taken directly from "Robin Hood" and "Elizabeth and Essex." Robert Douglas is Duke de Lorca, the heavy. He makes a slimier heavy than Basil Rathbone did. Douglas is okay but Rathbone was a nonpareil with his tall figure, abrupt movements, and darting glances. Perc Westmore was responsible for the make-up. He should be proud of himself for the task with which Flynn must have presented him. But he should be ashamed of himself for what he did to the villains. You know how you can tell the principal villains from everyone else? They all have dark eye shadow, so they look like the ghouls or zombies in a Grade C horror flick. Douglas has this sinister curl down the middle of his forehead that looks painted on.

The director, Vincent Sherman, doesn't seem to have compelled any of the performers to act with any subtlety. It's not that kind of movie. But everyone is professionally competent. Alan Hale -- well, it's as if he were your fond uncle. Viveca Lindfors probably puts the most effort into her work. When Flynn enters her life she becomes positively, and literally, breathless. And watch the fleeting expressions that cross her features when Flynn confesses his love for her -- the briefest of half-hopeful smiles followed by a scowl of indignation.

The amours of Don Juan occasion some amusing moments. One of the many young ladies who come to watch him instruct the members of the fencing academy leaves her fan behind. When Flynn calls this to her attention, she replies, "You WILL return it, won't you? It's the house on the Plaza Madrid. The last house on the right." "Oh, on the RIGHT," says a resigned Flynn, who has heard this hundreds of times before.

The budgets on Flynn's pictures dropped dramatically after "The Adventures of Don Juan." He chain smoked, used drugs, boozed it up daily, and never complained. He died at the age of 50, having lived as he pleased.


The Baron shines as Don Juan. He does with a period role what Elvis did with a song he makes it his own.There may have been better swordsmen technically but no one had Flynns charisma or showmanship when it came to sword fighting. Today's actors when you dress them in seventeenth century attire look like twenty-first century blow dried wimps dressed in costume. Flynn looks like he belongs in whatever time the film is set. It is impossible to visualize any other actor as Juan. And make no mistake Flynn was an actor.Just because he made it look easy does not mean it wasn't acting.If you want to see how an epic should be made watch this motion picture. There is no CGI here these are real sets and real actors. In this day of remakes I rue the day they get around to Flynn's films no one can fill his boots.


I've always been a huge fan of Flynn's movies. When he was into the role, he was as good an actor as anybody. Of his swashbucklers, the "BIG THREE" were always Captain Blood, The Adventures of Robin Hood and The Sea Hawk. But two movies often omitted from a list of his best are The Adventures of Don Juan and The Master of Ballantrae. Don Juan is a movie in the vein of Burt Lancaster's Crimson Pirate or The Flame and The Arrow, being a tongue-in-cheek swashbuckler that scores on several points. Flynn was clearly comfortable with light comedy; it featured some great "bad guy" work by Robert Douglas; and, despite production problems caused BY Flynn's excesses, the editing in of sequences from Robin Hood and Elizabeth and Essex worked very well. The fencing scenes were thoroughly enjoyable! All in all, I would recommend this film to anybody who is a fan of the genre.


When we saw this epic swashbuckler on it's original release in the late 40s, little did we know that it was to be Errol Flynn's last great adventure/love story. It is still the essence of Flynn's screen personna, and it still brings joy to his fans. The only drawback here: Viveca Linfors is no Olivia deHavilland. Chemistry is sadly missing, but this is nit-picking. It is sumptuous on every level, and when a first-time viewer sees that staircase, a "WOW!" is to be be expected. Robert Douglas seemed to make a career of playing heavies, and in this film, he raises villainy to an art form. It has been a longtime coming, but THE ADVENTURES OF DON JUAN is finally available in DVD's glorious Technicolor reproduction. Let's wallow in it.


Errol Flynn may not have been one of the best actors of his time, but I think arguably he was the best action star/swashbuckler of his time and remains one of the best to this day. When Errol Flynn had a sward in his hand and the wit it took to play these roles with a straight face he was in his element. After getting to know his personality through his writings and of the observations of those that knew him best you get the feeling that Flynn was not really acting in this film, but simply portraying himself. As with all his best roles i.e. Robin hood, Captain Blood, The Sea Wolf etc. he remains the only actor to capture the flair and fun of a Swashbuckler. When Flynn played a dramatic part he seemed forced and uncomfortable. In his writings he states he always wants to play dramatic roles, but the Studios would not offer him the parts. I can understand the reservations of the studios because he simply did not make a great dramatic actor, but he did make a great action film.


I'm sure anyone who has read Mr. Flynn's autobiography, "My Wicked, Wicked Ways", will agree his real life was as exciting as Don Juan's. Women, adventure and a bit of his "wicked ways" makes for enjoyable reading for an Errol Flynn fan. Having said this, "The Adventures of Don Juan" is a wonderful, entertaining movie with Mr. Flynn looking handsome, fit and very comfortable in this role. The fencing scenes, costumes and a terrific Max Steiner score are excellent. The supporting cast simply adds to the entertainment value. After many years it was a pleasure to see this movie once again and realize what a wonderful actor Errol Flynn was. No other actor could have played the part better, or looked as good in tights.


This evening I sat down with my two kids aged 11 and 12 to watch The Adventures of Don Juan. Both kids found the movie fun and engaging. Comparing it to The Three Musketeers and Robin Hood. Getting my two children to agree on a movie is pretty spectacular.

We all enjoyed the action scenes, and the humor that Errol Flynn displays throughout the movie. The costuming was well done not overly lavish as some of the movies from the 40's can be. The scenery was confined to a few well done sets.

The acting was genuine from almost every character including the young Raymond Burr. The script did follow the story line of many swashbuckling hero type movies but the quality of the actors made the movie fresh.

One of the things I like best about this movie is that the good was truly good and the bad truly bad. There is a theme of redemption for Don Juan who, in the end, quietly leaves to pursue his life. (and of course women) He leaves Spain in the hands of King Phillip III and the Queen to her King. He loves the Queen but knows he cannot have her. A noble ending for a gem of a movie.


I'll second all other comment-writers who point out the witty humor and Errol Flynn's still nimble swashbuckling at 38 in this very entertaining film, but I'd also like to point out another feature of Errol Flynn's performance (also applicable to many other of his films):

He is also good at delivering more serious lines in exchanges with the villains (in a very believable, underplayed manner) and, for that part, more sincere dialogue with the beautiful ladies.

I think this is an often overlooked part of Errol Flynn's charm and why many of his films, although light in subject, make for truly timeless pieces, just like The Adventures of Don Juan.


I'll admit that I can't be the most fair judge of this movie. I'm a fencing instructor and so I'm pre-disposed to enjoy sword fighting movies. But, a movie where the romantic lead becomes a fencing instructor?? OK, you had me at 'hello.'

Beyond that, every person who appears on-screen has the best costumes you'll ever see. In re-viewings of this film, my wife and I spend whole scenes saying, "I'd look good in that," or "That outfit would suit you." And we're talking about Renaissance fashion!

So, you have sword fights, romance and period drama all at once. If any one of those sounds good you, you'll like this film.


Regardless of what anyone may say,this is a fun picture from beginning to end. EVERYTHING WORKS, from an aging Errol Flynn, Alan Hale as his sidekick, a witty script, great action, a young Raymond Burr as a sword fighting (!) bad guy, to one of Max Steiner's best scores. Some may say Flynn was in decline, but have to rank this up there with his best; it does not drag anywhere: kudos to Vincent Sherman as director---he keeps it going. The love interest--Viveca Lindfors--is properly stoic because she cannot get him at the end and they both know it. The aging Flynn's other trysts are romantic and humorous like Cary Grant (although Grant's were cosmopolitan not swashbuckling)in his last pictures. The king s played properly ineffectual; the main villain is wonderfully evil---and correctly dispatched at the end. Flynn is no "wussy" and stands up to every challenge. That's another reason this film is so good. Relax, watch, and enjoy.


this was apparently Warners last big Budget swashbuckler with Errol Flynn, and Don Juan must have clothed him to a T! so to say! After 1925 there was Anna Q Nilsson, Greta Garbo, Ingrid Bergman Signe Hasso, and Marta Thoren and Mai Zetterling! And so it was very fun to see Viveca Lindfors in such a lavish big budget movie! In glorious Technicolor!!! The movie in itself is just such an old matinée movie that some TV-channels just show in early morning hours. It's just a fun filled 100 minutes, not to be taken serious! It was directed by Vincent Sherman! much later known for Young Philadephians with Paul Newman in 1959! When did they let Erroll slip their contract?????


Robin Hood, Elizabeth and Essex, They Died With Their Boots On -- add these to this movie, and you have a great combination. Errol Flynn was always so handsome and charming. Wish he could have lived forever. It is so wonderful that his images can be preserved in these excellent films.

Yes, Don Juan was the great lover. He also had to be a great politician, what with dealing with kings, courtiers and husbands. If I were a movie director, and could get Errol Flynn to act for me in a leading man role, I know I could get a great performance out of him every time. RIP, Errol. You were the best.

12/10


A rare find. 10 out 10 in my estimation. Apparently Flynn later in life wanted to be considered a talented actor rather than simply a ladies' man or "matinee idol". I think he was an excellent actor, a characterization borne out in his performance as Don Juan in this film.

The cinematography is brilliant, the dialog, though typical of films of this genre, is tongue-in-check and thereby hilarious as well as highly entertaining. The acting is superb across the board.

The film, true to the studio system protocols of the era, is stylized, but the stylization works brilliantly. I am certain that any contemporary aspiring director, writer or actor who is serious about his or her craft can learn an immense amount from this film.


At the age of 38 Errol Flynn was considered past his best but there is no evidence of this in THE ADVENTURES OF DON JUAN.This is a sumptous feast of a swashbuckling movie,better than CAPTAIN BLOOD and THE SEA HAWK and eclipsed only by the magical THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD. The action is splendidly realised in this picture which captivates from the start with its magnificent score by Max Steiner which accompanies the fight sequences with gusto.Flynn is at his fencing best here,using mannerisms and gestures in his fighting scenes which look both comical and threatening at the same time.A fine and witty script is well served by the entire cast and it is always good to see Alan Hale as Flynn's companion in arms especially in a role like this which is Little John in all but name. At the end of the movie when all wrongs have been righted the Queen asks Don Juan where he will go next.He replies that he will go where most legends go,namely oblivion.I laughed at this line realising as we all should that oblivion will never provide a home for Errol Flynn.


Don Juan (errol flynn) is a romantic well know lover in spain. He has many storys about him. THis adventure involves saving the queen from a villion, which is trying to control spain. Don Juan wins the queens heart and saves spain. It's a funny romantic Adventure. The costumes are great, the director is great too.


I really enjoy all three Halloweentown movies though the only thing missing from Halloween High was Marnie's friend Luke. Maybe he's too old to be in High School anymore but that doesn't mean he couldn't have come over to give some moral support. ;-) These movies maybe intended for kids but I really enjoyed them! When the first two came to TV, I taped them and had a neighbour copy them onto a few more VCR tapes for other kids I knew. A Halloween movie that's not at all scary is something I enjoy. I can't wait to buy all three movies on DVD! :o)

I am having someone I know who lives in the U.S. pick up a copy of each movie for me and mail it to me. Though I'm the only with a VCR copy of Halloween High and one day hope to pass the third installment onto all of my neighbourhood kids since I know they enjoyed both Halloweentown one and two.


This movie was very good. It was funny, mysterious, cool, and interesting, it wasn't as good as number 1, but it was still great! Disney should keep it going with good movies like these. I liked all of them(except number 4) because of the originality they put into the characters and the plots. The acting was excellent and the character Sophie was still as cute as can be! Dylan grew, certainly grew. He grew all ugly looking and what not. Even more dorky but that doesn't matter. The writing was excellent and it still had all the excitement from the original film. You will enjoy Kimberly J. Brown's performance because she is a great actress and very pretty. Enjoy all of these movies, i suggest buying them ALL!! 9/10


I really liked the movie. The only thing I didn't like was the actual town, Halloweentown, because it was smaller. It was just the pumpkin in the middle and some buildings around it. That was really boring and not as special as the first one. That could have been better.I didn't like that at all. It should have been like the 1st one a big town and with more depth that really sucked. But other than that I really liked the acting and the script. I really love the costumes and the cool special effects. They might not be as good as some other movies but is really interesting and fun. Kids will love this movie. Especially kids that were born in October or even November. The whole series is great and fun for the whole family.


The thing that distinguishes Halloween II from other TV movies is the fact that it has an actual plot. Most of the TV movies I've seen have the plot of a fourth-grade picture book.

This film's storyline actually works for the most part. The only flaw is the time travelling. If they could travel through time, why not stop Kalabar before all of this every happened?

I thought Kimberly J. Brown's performance was brilliant. She has the charm and the ability to be the next major child actress. All she needs to do is to put a bit more emotion to her acting.

Also, the special effects were impressive for a TV movie. It's hard to find TV movies with special effects comparable to a full-length film. The special effects here surpasses many theatrical productions.

Obviously, this is not an Oscar-worthy film, but it's very impressive for a small-budget film.

Final rating: 3 out of 4.


Just like the first, this little movie is still just as cute, and remains as a great piece of entertainment for children, even if it is straight-to-TV material. From the acting to the story, all is adequate for the kind of end result those behind the scenes were imagining.

There's a lot less "scary images" than the first, and a lot more mystery to intrigue your 11-year-old child. From the slapstick to the one-liners, the comedy will work nicely as well.

All in all, I highly recommend a family to watch this in October. It's completely harmless and innocent, and its targeted audience is sure to find entertainment in it.


This movie is the one of my favorite movies ever!!!!!! Kimberly J. Brown is really good at it. And Daniel Kountz was really good 2. This movie is also funny and a lot more action than the first one. The one thing that I did not like about this movie is the Halloweentown. That gray spell is dumb. Other than that this movie is great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sophie was also a good actor too. What was cool is how Mrs. Cromwell turned into that green goblin by Kalabar's Spell. But The First Halloweentown movie is a little better. One funny thing about this film is when that girl became Dracula and said "I'm also really thirsty". That was really funny. Halloweentown II Kalabar's Revenge is awesome!!


This is not a "bad movie" at all. I never watched the movies at all until like a week ago and i thought the movie was VERY good!!! It was one of the best movies I've seen. I thought it was also a very good plot. Marnie Cromwell had to save her family before it was too late and she did. It's not a remake it's a sequel. It was a very good continuation of what I can understand, even though I've never seen the first one and this was my first time watching the second one. i thought it was weird how when marnie met Luke and didn't know he was really evil so he stole aggie's spell book and used it against them. So the movie was excellent and i would recommend it to anyone and everyone!


Even though there are a few stupid parts, overall I really like this movie. To me, they dumbed-up Debbie Renyolds, and I think Kimberly J. Brown has really improved since the first one. In the first one she seemed very one dimensional and didn't show a lot of emotion, in the second and third she has more character and showed better emotion. The acting is better from everyone and better lines. It doesn't feel like they're just reading off of a script but are putting themselves into it. The magic and the spells are more advanced as Marnie is growing up, and the wardrobe is better suited for all of the characters. I personally like it, I'm actually watching it now and would recommend it to others.


I think this is the best movie ever cause when i first saw halloweentown i totally loved it and then when i saw halloweentown 2:Kalabar's Revenge i totally loved it too. and if you haven't seen the first halloweentown then you probably won't understand halloweentown 2:Kalabar's Revenge.

*MARNIE CROMWELL*


I'm really not sure how I wound up watching this one; After all, I despised the first movie. But somehow I always wind up watching the Disney Channel. And I have to say that I was really impressed by this one! It was just... different than the first. I thought the characters were more developed, and they weren't acting like idiots. And the plot... wow, this one actually had a plot.


This was a nice sequel to Halloweentown. The plot was engaging. The acting was just as good as the first one. The villain was amusing, yet not sugar-coated. The character development from the first one to the sequel was VERY well done. No being a big fan of TV movie sequels I was pleasantly surprised.

Bottom line... if you liked Halloweentown... you like Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge.


possible spoiler - don't read if you don't want to know. The talented Kimberly J. Brown reprises her role from the first Halloweentown, with Debbie Reynolds playing her grandmother. I find it impressive that Kimberly can interact effectively with a star of that magnitude, it says a lot for her professionalism at 16 years old. While the plot of both movies is pure fantasy, the second movie adds more characters to the mythology of Halloweentown, and builds on the foundation of the first movie by reviving the villain in a new guise, and shows both the naive nature of the teenage Marnie - and of her vulnerable mother. Watch out teen actresses - a 10 year old is nipping on your heels! Sophie has a much greater role in this movie than the first, and is a real charmer. Give her three years or less, and we may see that young actress in a title role in Disney movie! The younger brother has also grown quite a bit, and has a greater role in this movie. Pure enjoyment. The only negative is some occultism, which is troubling - particularly the very real occult practice of reading spells backwards. Treat as fantasy only, and make sure you or your kids are not interested in trying out the magical techniques presented.


This movie foretold the downside of the "reality TV" craze twenty years before it happened. Wonderful brooding cinematography around greater Glasgow at its most depressed. This is definitely a film which deserves to be in greater circulation and better known than it currently is. Romy Schneider's last film, ironically enough, and an excellent very real performance in a fairly artsy 70s vein. I should note I saw this in Glasgow some years ago, and it was the European cut, not what sounds to be a bowdlerized American version which misses some of the point.


In a bland, sterile, heavily automated future where dying from terminal illness has become virtually obsolete, the fact that best-selling writer Katherine Mortenhoe (a fabulously fiery, feisty turn by Romy Schneider) has a rare mortal sickness that will bring about her untimely demise makes her a prime subject for a tasteless mondo-style live atrocity TV show. But the fiercely proud and self-sufficient Katherine refuses to prostitute her impending death into a hideous spectacle for a jaded audience's sick enjoyment. So amoral, opportunistic director Vincent (a sleazily appealing Harry Dean Stanton), the man responsible for the lurid, top-rated "Death Watch" series, has cameras implanted behind the eyes of eager beaver reporter Roddy (the one and only Harvey Keitel, who's excellent as usual). Roddy befriends the unsuspecting Katherine and secretly records her final days in all their ghastly intimacy.

Directed in a crisp, low-key, thoughtful manner by Bertrand Taverneir, with a lucid, intelligent, provocative script by Taverneir and David Rayfiel, sumptuous, prowling, appropriately voyeuristic cinematography by Pierre William Glenn, a beautifully melancholy tone, a frantic screaming violins classical music score by Antoine Duhamel, a deliberately gradual pace, and a lovely cameo by Max Von Sydow as Katherine's wise, reclusive schoolteacher father, this eerily prophetic and gravely philosophical film ruminates on a compelling variety of very timely and topical post-modern issues: technological advancements making it easier to invade a person's privacy and causing creativity to stagnate (Katherine's novels are actually written by a computer that she strictly programs ideas into), technology overwhelming mankind so greatly that it causes people to become unfeeling, dispassionate automatons, the morbidly irresistible allure of real life tragedy, man's denial of his own mortality, journalistic ethics, dying with your dignity intact, even fate vs. free will. A brilliant, moving, and most accomplished thinking man's science fiction gem.


A great film, and quite scary, specially for Tavernier's view over the media (television here, but just replace that word, and nothing will be different), in a not so far future. Sad, because was Romy Schneider's last film. She, and Harvey Keitel, are in the leading roles, under Tavernier's direction the two in top form. In a way, this was ahead of other future "prophecy films", sure one of the best.


SPOILERS!

I was shown this film in a course called "Modernism & Modernity" in the Cinema Dep't at Binghamton University back in 1986 and have never forgotten it (thank you Prof. Walsh). I have gone on to use it in my own Media Studies high school class, for it is perhaps even a more relevant critique of a celebrity and "reality" obsessed screen culture today than it was when it was released in 1980. It also serves as a fine example of how the genre of science fiction need not rely on "futuristic" expensive locations and effects, for it is incredibly location-driven and the bleakness of the Scotland it was filmed in reflects its interior contemplations on the "progress" of humanity via technology. (In these ways, it reminds me of the recent "Children of Men" by Alfonso Cuaron.)

The idea of video cameras being implanted in someone's eyes is brilliant and full of narrative possibilities. And unavoidable for us it seems. The portrayal of the reality TV show producer as being callous and only interested in ratings - with his firm belief that everyone/viewers have a "right to know" pushes the story into the opposites: "If everything is of interest, nothing is important", says the dying woman in a society where there is no natural death.

Sight as knowing and the eyes as technology opens up many theoretical discussions, especially because of the Oedipal-like scene where Roddy blinds himself for "knowing" too much.... for his shame in that knowing, as if sight gives you knowledge. (Yet as Hitchcock showed us again and again, sight is unreliable.) Reading in another user's comment that the original film's story had Katherine's death a falsity set up by the producers in order to set their show in motion made me gasp, for that makes all of the film's meanings even more powerful and painful. Wow.

This film may very well be the most memorable film I have ever seen and, yes, I agree with all the other comment-writers that it should indeed be brought into the light of day (WITHOUT "remaking" it!!!!!)


I'm saddened that no one seems to remember Romy Schneider-- at least in the USA they don't. Arguably the most beautiful woman who ever lived, she deserves a place next to Ingrid Bergman, Sophia Loren, Bardot, and Liz, among others, as one of the great screen beauties. This is not her best film and she was a bit past her prime at this point, but anything with Romy is worth seeing. Haunting to watch knowing that she died soon after. The film itself is highly flawed, which is a shame because it had all the right elements-- great director, brilliant cast, fascinating script. What went wrong? Would be interesting to see if someone else can make a successful remake. Perhaps in the hands of Mr. Minghella?... but more likely they'd give it to a Hollywood director who would cast Meg Ryan in the Romy Schneider part. So, let's leave well enough alone. Please.


This was a pretty clever film mixing live characters and human voices for the dogs and cats. The dubbing is extremely well-done, and so is the humor. It's a funny story, although it displays the typical whacked-out father, which is another political correctness feminist agenda (mother = good; father = bad). Other than that, it is a very entertaining film even with a bunch of silliness.

Check the cast out. How often to you see Susan Sarandon and Charleton Heston in the same movie. Now THERE is diversity, even if it's only their voices!

People here complain the film is too much for kids, and not adults. Well, isn't that terrible? Imagine the nerve of these filmmakers, doing something just for children!


Why can't people just let a movie be cute instead of analyzing it to death. Sure the plot is a bit much--cats are trying to prevent a Mr. Brody from inventing a vaccine which will cure dog allergies--thus making dogs more popular than cats. With a "Mission Impossible" format dogs and cats battle each other for domination of the world.

The plots gets carried away with itself toward the end, but who cares?

 The dog and cat agents are all good (their voices, excuse me). Especially, good is the voice of the persian cat, Mr. Twiggles, whose owner is bedridden. The housekeeper/nurse makes Mr. Twiggles' life a horror by continually dressing him in feminine outfits which he hates.

Another favorite is Lou, the beagle puppy who is adopted by the Brody family and is drafted as a secret agent in the war against cats.

I gave this movie 8 stars.


This movie is so cute! It's all about the eternal fight between cats and dogs. (And it's funny to notice that cats are always the bad ones) We have famous actors as Jeff Goldblum as Professor Brody and Elizabeth Perkins as Mrs. Brody. The famous voices are from Tobey Maguire as Lou,Alec Baldwin as Butch and Susan Sarandon as Ivy,only to mention a few. The story is kind of simple: Professor Brody is trying to find a formula to cure the people's allergies to dogs, being himself one example of an allergic person to them. The cats of course, are worried about this,because the cure of the allergy would make dogs even more popular among humans,making the cats rejected. The story turns around Lou and his dog spy friends,who needs to protect the formula and also save Lou's owners of the evil cats. Ps: The dogs have a high tech technnology to cause all the humans jealous. ps2:Ivy,rules. ps3:Mr.tinckles is hilarious.


Sure, this is pretty much a kids' movie, but it's still fun. I didn't care for the boy who starred as the Brody kid (they could've picked someone better), but I really liked the dog voices (Alec Baldwin, Tobey Maquire, etc.) & some of the cats too. Yes, it was an "animal" movie--I wasn't as interested in the humans at all--& their acting wasn't great (although I did like Sophie the Maid for some reason). But the movie did have some funny moments. As a dog lover I especially liked Lou (Tobey Maquire) & Butch (Alec Baldwin). As a Chihuahua lover, I would've loved to see at least one in the movie. Oh, well. Btw, the person who commented that the boy was drinking Hi-C was wrong. It was Capri Sun (but, yes, blatant advertising--uncalled-for). Still, I liked the movie. I thought it was cute & funny. Besides, I'm still pretty young at heart even though I'm past 40 (not immature, mind you! LOL). I gave it 8 out of 10, maybe a bit high, but so what? *grin* If a movie can give me at least half a dozen or so laughs, it's OK by me! LOL (Too bad so many people are SO serious & old-thinking--stay young at heart!) :)


In the town of comic book land there is a home that lives the lonely young boy without a friend. Until one day Lou the Beagle puppy arrives on the scene.

Set around the game of espionage, with similar themes to Mission: Impossible, James Bond and to a great extent Austin Powers; Cats and Dogs animates the spy game with great bravado and even greater humour. This is a stylish and extremely witty parody that has the cat world fighting for world domination and to see dogs put in their place, outside in the doghouse, where humans would, as is the cat's goal, be allergic to the canine breed and thus welcoming the feline race into their homes.

This is a high octane fun and friendly family movie that is built around the life of young Scotty (Alexander Pollock) and his scientist father (Jeff Goldblum) who whilst working too hard at trying to make a breakthrough for a cure to prevent dog allergies in humans. Unaware of his neglect, young Scotty, as too his parents, is completely oblivious to the fact that the parallel world that revolves around them is in great danger of crossing the divide of talking animals and dumb humans.

Cats and Dogs is more than puppets meet Muppets; it is more than that, even though just as entertaining, it has progressed to greater levels. If you want to see Mr. Tinkles, the white Persian, that strangely resembles the white cat seen in the Bond and Austin Powers movies, giving his orders, over a grand table and log fire in his mansion. If you want to see secret agent dogs fighting Devon Rex's ninja style, a knife throwing Russian Blue hair-balling big style and a gigantic army of mice reading an instruction manual, all at once, on how to concur the world then this is the movie for you.

With an intelligent and comical script, good sets and capable staff, such as Tobey Maguire, Alec Baldwin, Jon Lovitz, Michael Clark Duncan, Susan Sarandon and the great cinema legend Charlton Heston in the limelight, some very good special effects and plenty of spills and action, you really cannot go wrong.

This is your typical laugh a minute family day in at the movies, and whichever side you cheer for, you are always guaranteed to end up stroking that funny bone until well after your sides ache.


After getting panned by reviewers and critics alike, I went along to the local two dollar theater with little expectation. What I saw was a very funny movie, with some excellent dialogue and set at a great pace. The story is silly and some of the special effects look rough around the edges, but who cares? The story and many memorable quotes make this a great film for kids and adults alike. I may get this as a DVD when it's released!

Quite the sleeper hit.


I thought this movie had an interesting premise to work off of- the enmity between cats and dogs. However, one problem I had with it (besides its general low quality) was the fact that the cast the cats as the criminal buffoons. (Bear with me please - I'm at least half serious). I mean, dogs as the smart ones? Come on. Cats taking over the world is believable, but casting most of them as the not-so-smart, criminal stooges was going a bit far. Cats are smarter and more, hmm, elegant than dogs. Face it, in a showdown between cats and dogs that wasn't purely reliant on mass or strength, cats would own the dogs.

Now if they had cast the dogs as the villains of the piece...that would be better. Cats like the position they're in - pampered and very little required of them- why go to the trouble of taking over and running the world when it already serves you? Another thing- dogs are the ones who chase the cats, very rarely the other way around- bit of insecurity or jealousy perhaps? Dogs also often have to actually perform, exercise, do handy things or otherwise. If they would play it as the dogs trying to oust all the freeloading superior cats....that could have been real fun.


Cats and Dogs is one of those films that are to silly for words, if I had a dog with doghouse I would check for a secret button. Makes you wonder what are dogs barking at each other when they meet in the park or is that to much spotted dogs? Though the whole underground transport system to dog HQ went a bit far to believe. It reminded me of Bond. Hightech dog house, how did they think of it. Hilarious.

Saw it again on TV this week it wasn't as funny as the first time and probably would be even less funnier the third time. Favorite part: the house maid pampering Mr. Wiskers the I want to rule the world cat boss.

I've to agree that some of CGI effects where unrealistic and that's why I skipped on Garfield this year. Jurrasic Park Jeff Goldblum didn't have much of a role other then being inventor of the cure. I think that can be said of the whole Brody family though I enjoyed the scenes in the garden with the kid playing with the dog. The voice cast went pass me, didn't recognize one of the 'famous' actors.

See it, laugh and have a good time!


This movie is imaginative, but the implication that all cats are evil while all dogs are good does a disservice to cats. I guess the presa canario that tore out that poor woman's throat in San Francisco must have been a good dog, huh?

This movie is strictly for children.


Hey, I laughed my butt off watching this film! It was a laugh a minute thrill for me. Once in a great while, Hollywood will actually make a movie for the sole purpose of entertainment, and this film is one of them.

I don't see this as a cruel movie in regards to animals, but it's more like a live action cartoon. We saw this type of thing in the old Tom and Jerry cartoons, and the writers gave the same formula a James Bond/Mission Impossible theme and gave us this great comedy. It's not anti-cat, as someone wrote in these pages, and I say that because the cats are decidedly the funniest characters in the movie. Hey, I own two cats and two dogs, I love them all, and a true animal lover will love this film.

A hilarious triumph! However, I will suggest that if you only love cats, stay away, or you might be offended. Other than that, great film for seeing over and over.


This movie was super cute! CATS RULE! I love the idea of cats trying to take over the world and dogs trying to stop it. Just cute! Although, when the dog was taken in the beginning, shouldn't it have been dog-napped? Oh well. Still it's a cute, warm movie. Especially if you're in a silly mood or have young children!


I found this to be a movie full of unrealistic stunts, odd situations and weird looking puppets that only a 10 year old would believe. Cats, who fly airplanes, cough up spiky hairballs and fight karate. There were dogs who live in doghouses that are filled with computers and satellite hook-ups, that also provide shuttle transportation to "Control". I went into this movie expecting Shrek, and came out disappointed.

A word of warning-This is NOT a movie for cat lovers. Cats are portrayed as the typical villain, obsessed with world domination. While dogs are made out to be the heroes who not only save the world from allergies but also rescue the humans. If you're looking for meowing fluff balls that save the day, you're watching the wrong movie. *** out of *****


If my 3-year old could review this movie, she'd probably give it high marks. She can watch it over and over. Of all her movies, this is one that I really don't enjoy. I like its idea of a war between cats and dogs who are secretly more technologically advanced than we are, and a lot of cleverness went into the situations, but the dialog is corny. There's a load of great acting talent, but their main instruction seems to have been to ham it up for the kids. I'm not particularly fond of the animations in this, either. When a movie like this comes out and does something that hasn't been done before (in this case, mixing live-action and animation to tell a story with talking and ninja-fighting animals), it makes a big splash. Then, a few years later, when technology's improved and many other movies can do the same thing but make it look more realistic, that first movie will be forgotten if there isn't a great movie behind all the effects. And in this case, there isn't. It's a fun movie for kids, up to a certain age. If you have kids and want to leave them alone with this and feel safe that they're watching something wholesome, OK. But if you're looking for something to watch with them, there's not much here for an adult to enjoy. Even "Sesame Street" will drop a line, like a movie reference, that's clearly there to make the adults laugh. Some better comedy would really have gone a long way with this movie. Once the novelty wears off, it's a waste of time.


I thought this movie was going to be only a movie for the kids, but I watched it with my cousins, and I was surprised. I laughed a lot. It had some really cute and hilerious moments. And Jeff Goldblum is in it! What more could you want? If you don't mind a little cute humor, I'd recommend "Cats & Dogs".

7/10


Cats & Dogs starts off hilarious, and manages to put in some clever ideas throughout (such as the whole underground military base), but it just gets a little old. The animations for the talking animals was impressive (as was many of the animatronics), but the scenes with completely CGI characters (such as a lot of Mr. Tinkles) just looked way too cartoony. The movie felt as if it was stretched out, and could've had about 20 minutes shaved off of it. I was a little disappointed, but otherwise, it was entertaining.


I had the pleasure of viewing this very clever film with my 10 year old daughter. Her opinion: "It was GREAT" (and believe me, she can be quite picky)

I was especially humored by the "Russian," a cat in serious need of an attitude adjustment.

The special effects were just a tad hoaky, but it suited the spirit of the comedy perfectly.

If your children liked "Spy Kids," they will thoroughly enjoy this movie. If you have ever had a pet cat or dog, this film will really tickle you too!


Hard to watch! This movie is a DOG, and I don't mean that in a nice way! I was annoyed at how infantile and brain-dead ALL the adults are in this movie. As a scientist, I was especially insulted by the scientist-father character; it might make the child laugh, but who would want to grow up to be THAT? The humor is infantile and the jokes are contrived and forced. Expect all dog-cat stereotypes in this woofer.

 I suppose that this movie was aimed at the very young. I fully expected to find dippers and teething rings on the movie house floor. This movie might be a little young and childish for the dipper set!

 I give it 4 out of 10 because the special effects are well done- the animals do seem to talk and even act.. whew!

NO Cats & Dogs 2! If i have to take my daughter to that one TOO, it is

I that might have an accident on the carpet!


What do you get when you have a movie that isn't funny enough to be called a comedy, and too boring to be called an action movie? The answer of course, is `Cats and Dogs' the movie. For a film with a very humorous premise; and a trailer promising plenty of action; the film was curiously lacking in both. I kept waiting for something funny to happen! But aside from a few bones that producers threw our way the audience is kept waiting in vain.

Watching `Cats and Dogs' was an excruciating process for me. I can't stress enough how utterly pedestrian and tired this script is. In fact, I can only assume it was later used to line a box of kitty litter. Unless this is the first movie you've ever seen -- you'd find more entertainment value chewing an old dog bone than you would from watching this coughed up furball they laughingly call a comedy. 2 STARS OUT OF 5.


I enjoyed Cats & Dogs much more than SpyKids. The talking dogs and cats were much more realistic than those flying kids in SpyKids.

Cute, fun, certainly a kid film, but enjoyable for the parent accompanying the children.


At three times during this movie I seriously considered walking out (which I have never done). Why did I stay? I guess I hoped it would take a turn for the better. Needless to say, it didn't... it only got worse.

I think the reason I hated this movie so much is that I wanted it to be something else. I wanted an original take on this ancient rivalry, instead of the standard "cats bad, dogs good". (Forget an original story, I just wanted a marginally good one.) I wanted the animals to be real characters, treated with respect and earning our emotional reactions, instead of being used as props - hurt, tossed around, put into scary situations - to manipulate our emotions.

That it's a "kid's movie" is no excuse. What an insult! Kids don't deserve quality entertainment? Movies have to be dumbed down for the kid audience??

If you can handle watching a disturbing, strange, disconnected family (and not in a good/funny way), a squirmingly bad kid actor, some very ugly cats, sloppy editing, and as many cliches as you could ever want, then go see this movie. There are one or two clever moments, and some of the people around me did seem to enjoy it. But make sure you catch it on dollar night.


This move is quite fun. No award winner but really enjoyable. Kids will love this film but I think most adults will too. Sean Hayes as the evil cat was excellent and quite funny. Yes it was a little hokey but hey, I wasn't expecting anything different. Jeffrey Goldblum's performance left a little to be desired but considering the role, it was allright.

Overall I was quite pleased with all the animal characters and laughed quite a bit throughout the film. I definitely recommend this film but try to see it on a matinee.


somewhat silly and the plot is very corny but a good time if you just watch the amazing special effects of the dogs talking and so forth. esp the fight with the ninja kitties .. not as sentimental as babe but good fun .. enjoy


I remember exactly when I saw this movie. I was at one of those dollar theatres that would show a bunch of movies that had already made the rounds and I had just paid to see "Bad News Bears - Breaking Training"... I could only watch it for about 5 minutes and it was soooooooo bad I was having trouble keeping my popcorn down. So rather than ask for my dollar back, I just got up and walked into the movie they were screening next door. I wanted someone to stop me so I could tell them how bad the Bad News Bears movie was but no one did. So that is how I found myself in the movie "The Cannonball Run"... It was really funny and I was delighted to have stumbled upon it. I really hate bathroom humor but the proctologist in the ambulance really cracked me up when he put his finger out when being told he would have to examine a patient. I would recommend this movie to everyone, but males will probably enjoy it more.


This film is for those who just want to have a little fun. By no means am I saying this is a comic treasure, but with a cast like this, and the antics you see on screen, make The Cannonball Run pure fun. Love the performances by Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and Adrienne Barbeau.


It has been said that Hausu is like Beetlejuice as directed by Dario Argento, only about ten times better than that would be. While this description is admittedly vague, it's hard to think of one that comes any closer to being satisfactory. Nobuhiko Obayashi's film defies comparison, seamlessly blending comedy, horror, and gorgeous visuals in a way that really must be witnessed in order to be appreciated.

The plot itself is nothing very new, and is a kind of supernatural take on Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians" -- Seven Japanese girls venture off to visit Grandmother in her big, spooky house, unaware that the house is in fact a demon that consumes virgins. One by one, they are killed in increasingly bizarre ways -- One is eaten by a piano, one by bedding, to go on would be giving away far too much.

But the story isn't really what's important here. Suffice it to say you have never seen a film like this before -- part satire, part camp, part coming-of-age story, merged with horror that is truly disturbing. The laughs are terrific and the scares are genuine; you may often feel unsure whether to laugh or shudder, and don't be surprised to catch yourself doing both at once. As if this weren't enough, add to that Obayashi's completely unique visual flair; not a single shot goes by without astounding imagery and effects.

It is impossible to adequately describe Hausu for someone who hasn't seen it. But if what I've written has made it sound even the slightest bit interesting to you, you owe it to yourself to seek it out and see for yourself. Oh, and there are no subtitles, but you don't need them. Seriously.


In the hands of experimental Japanese filmmaker Nobuhiko Obayashi, the tale of seven "unmarried" young high-school girls who, during a school break, travel to a spooky, remote hilltop house to visit the reclusive, mysterious Aunt of one of their fold only to be consumed one at a time by the Ghost-House/Aunt in increasingly novel ways, is escalated into a spastic, phantasmagorical confetti burst of avant-garde techniques and tonalities. Not a minute goes by without some kind of imaginative and spirited experimental visual manipulation or interjection; from kaleidoscopic color schemes, to frame and time altering collage montage, to wild, high-concept mixed media integration (animation, mattes, props, sets, etc), to mini-movie injections (lovingly parodying/mimicking everything from silent film stylistics, to romantic fantasies to obligatory action scenes). Any and all workings of the film form are here incorporatedly warped; from imagery and editing to music and sound to content and presentation. Even the sketches of characters and their respective performances by the actors are hemmed in time with the overall off-the-wall configuration. (Example: Each girl is intentionally drawn with their stock personalities (the musician, the over-weight eater, the athlete, etc) novelly paraded in gleeful iconic irreverence.) The moods and tones of the film are equally melodic in their own discordant tangential way; seamlessly walking the line between comedy, horror and the deadpan aloof. It all adds up to a whole lot of fun. Where else could you see a girl eaten by a piano, an upright Bear helping cook dinner at a roadside noodle-stand or a man turned into a pile of bananas because he doesn't like melons!? With all its packed in candy-colored confections and novel door prizes, "Hausu" is a cinematic surprise party all in one...just add you.

Get an English Subtitled DVD at: allcluesnosolutions.com


"Hausu" (AKA House) from 1977, is one of the strangest Japanese (or otherwise) films I've ever laid eyes on. Seems like a young girl and her friends go to visit the young girl's aunt in a big old house in the middle of nowhere, and auntie is not quite what she seems. You see, auntie was to have gotten married but her fiancée died in the war and she never got over it. So now she lives in this big house all by herself (with a strange long-haired cat the girls call Snowball) and when the girls arrive, things at first seem idyllic, but then change as the girls start to meet with odd fates, one by one. Now, this was described as "if Dario Argento directed Beetlejuice" but while that's appropriate in some ways it doesn't quite say enough. It seems like auntie is no longer among the living and has to have unmarried women (or girls) in order to maintain her life-force, meaning, that she takes theirs. Oops, not exactly a good way to spend a holiday. This is chock full of bizarre happenings and imagery and at times it appears to be a children's show, and at other times it appears to be a children's show by way of David Lynch or Dario Argento. Young Oshare, the niece of the woman who owns the house, may or may not be changing in ways that she & her friends would prefer not to happen, while the other girls are merely falling victim to the evils of the house. The mayhem in this is mostly done with over-the-top effects and results in lots of severed limbs & bodily fluids but for all that it's not exactly graphic, for it's macabre without being too gruesome. I had never heard of Nobuhiko Obayashi before (the director) and in looking at his list of films I've never heard of any of them either...I confess that after seeing "Hausu" I'm interested in finding more by him & hope it's as entertaining as this. An absolutely bizarre "lost" film, part horror, part comedy, part parody, part kid's show (sort of), almost indescribable but well worth seeing for anyone that likes truly weird stuff. 8 out of 10.


Hausu is basically the most bizarre Haunted House movie I've ever seen. The story follows a group of girlfriends who head to the country for vacation. They go to one of the girl's Aunt's house to spend their time. But beknownst to all of them the Aunt isn't really who she says she is. And there's a cat named Snowflake that obviously has some issues. Girls begin experiencing the supernatural and things don't seem to be slowing up. Reading back what I just wrote kinda makes the movie seem not so interesting. Seems like just another haunted house flick. But if you pop in this flick, almost immediately you will realize you've never seen a film like this. Filmed in a lively, colorful way mixed with a fantastic soundtrack, the flick exceeds on all levels of production. Combine the production values with a children's movie feel, then combine that with some blood, violence and nudity, you get a very different hybrid genre of a flick. Hausu is a flick that all fans of unique horror or cinema for that matter should check out.


This film is impossible to describe, or review, or assign an arbitrary number out of ten. In fact, calling it a film throws up the very idea of what constitutes a film. It is filmed, yes. As far as I can tell, the actors knew they were being filmed and were probably paid (in drugs maybe), but yet I struggle to define this as a film. It just doesn't seem right.

Hausu is an experience. Quite an experience. You can actually pinpoint the moment where the film-makers got bored and began ingesting large amounts of LSD. It's about the time the floating head appears, followed by the girl-eating piano, and then the malevolent cat spirit that gushes blood, and the carnivorous lamp. This, of course, assumes that the film- makers were clean to begin with. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is no doubt in my mind that the film-makers started on some type of cannabis, explaining the nonsensical edits, preeeety colours and crazy scene involving a man and a bucket. Then they moved on to something harder, perhaps skunk. That would explain the talking watermelon (at at least, I think it was a talking watermelon). By the time we get to the 'Hausu' in question, dear readers and viewers, it is clear that we are being directed by hypomanic drug fiends, so tweaked on psychoactive hallucinogens that they've lost all concept of reality, rationality and reason. The orgy of drugs that precipitates throughout the crew eventually spills on to the filmed scenarios, where our hapless (and one can only assume drug-addled) girls are being subjected to a series of criminally insane scenes of violence, comedy and epilepsy-inducing flashes of colours.

The experience eventually ends, rather solemnly I must say, although after at least 20 minutes of non-stop psychotropic hallucinogenia, it acts as a welcome buffer zone as you gravitate back into reality. Hausu is an astonishing experience. I kinda want to watch it on drugs, but I value my life too much. If someone does manage to, and lives, please post a comment describing your experiences. I'm sure many will be fascinated.