Blu-ray Review: The Killers (1964)

Don Siegel's 1964 film had the distinction of being the first made-for-TV movie, but ended up playing in cinemas after the network pulled it from schedules. 'The Killers' is a remake of Robert Siodmak's 1946 film, starring Burt Lancaster and Ava Gardner. Here, Lee Marvin plays the role of hitman Charlie Strom who, with the aid of accomplice Lee (Clu Gulager) leave us in no uncertain terms of his ruthless streak when he visits a school for the blind, leaving bodies in his wake. Strom's mission is to locate a guy by the name of Jerry Nichols (John Cassavetes), who used to be a racing driver under the name of Johnny North and who walked away with a million dollars after a robbery. Strom duly identifies and shoots his target, but the fact that North accepts his fate with no attempt to run leaves Strom with a burning desire to find out more.
The puzzle leads him to one Sheila Farr (Angie Dickinson); a gold-digging dame known as 'The Wrecker', who takes North's concentration away from his job, much to the concern of his business partner Earl (Claude Akins). In turn, Farr introduces sugar daddy Jack Browning (Ronald Reagan in his final screen role), who is mixed up in the million dollar heist and is out for revenge. Reagan usually played "best friend" of the leading guy in his feature films, so a nasty role like Jack Browning represented a real sea change and a chance to expand his cv. Unfortunately, Reagan didn't see it like that. He hated the role, and only took it because he was broke. It's by no means a great performance, but just about convincing enough to capture Browning's mood and motivation

Of course, Lee Marvin was used to playing guys with a mean streak, and the role of Charlie Strom has to be one of his most memorable, ably supported by Cassavetes and Dickinson: one outstanding feature of 'The Killers' is that whoever gets top dog of the situation, good will not triumph.

This Blu-ray disc from Arrow Academy is an absolute highlight of UK first quarter releases, with some fascinating supplementary material. The film is presented with two choices of aspect ratio: 1.33:1 for TV and 1.85:1 for theatrical screenings. Picture quality is outstanding, with an abundance of fine detail, robust skin tones and a fine layer of grain. Fans of this film will be delighted with this presentation.

The extras begin with 'Screen Killer: Dwayne Epstein On Lee Marvin', being a 30 minute interview with the author of 'Lee Marvin: Point Blank.'Epstein does more than enough to prompt folks to invest in his book, declaring Marvin pretty much invented the modern American Cinema Of Violence, and going on to chart his career as a marine and his bout of post traumatic stress disorder which led to alcohol-related problems. Marvin's formative acting years on the stage are also mentioned (sadly not the occasion when he left Lee Strasberg's studio with a defiant "Fuck You!"), and his ability to understand the dark side of the characters he often played. It really is a fascinating interview, and it was with a genuine sense of regret that the interview came to an end: full marks to High Rising Productions Calum Waddell and Naomi Holwill for another superlative disc extra.
The aforementioned pair are also responsible for 'Reagan Kills: Marc Elliot On Ronald Reagan', which is a 20 minute interview with the writer of 'Reagan: The Hollywood Years'. Elliot gives us the lowdown on Reagan's career as an actor and as US President, acknowledging he was not a truly gifted actor but a survivor; how he hated the role of Jack Browning and objected deeply to having to slap Angie Dickinson, and moves to his stint as President Of The United States. Reagan was anti-union and his actions including the Pakco air strike (where he fired one of my wife's cousins for hisa paart in the strike) are covered, together with his home and foreign policy. it's a fascinating interview, and leads us to a final piece: a ten minute interview with Don Siegel shot in 1984 and originally made for French TV's 'Cinema Cinema' programme. Here, Siegel talks about his work in second unit for many directors, his dislike at being known as an action director and his constant battles with producers. 'The Killers' must rank as a personal triumph, and was certainly ahead of its time.Arrow's disc is rounded off a photo gallery and comes with a 40 page booklet (which Ididn't receive)that contains text interviews, projectionist notes and 'about the transfer'. This Blu-ray disc is Region B, contains subtitles for those of us who are hard of hearing and is released on 24th February.

Poster Art: The Films Of John Cassavetes

Blu-ray Review: Opening Night

And for every wrinkle, there's a pain
and for every pain, there's a year
and for every year, there's a person

One of the most important home video releases of the year comes to Blu-ray, courtesy of the BFI.
John Cassavete's OPENING NIGHT was released in 1977 and remains a truly inspirational work, and not just for movie buffs.
Indeed, this film should be compulsory viewing for any aspiring director, actor/actress, writer and cameraman.
OPENING NIGHT is built around a play - 'The Second Woman' - which is finishing its out-of-town run before transferring
to New York.
The play concerns a woman who wants to fall in love, but is painfully discovering her time has passed. Myrtle Gordon
(Gena Rowlands) is surrounded by a dream team of a crew: playwright Sarah Goode (Joan Blondell); director Manny Victor (Ben Gazzara); producer David Samuels ( Pual Stewart) and actor Maurice Aarons who are aware they have a star in their midst whose performance will make or break the play.
Myrtle, however, is struggling to accept she is no longer the young girl of 17 who could "do everything", and for her, the play's central theme of growing old gracefully is a little too close to home.
Soon, Myrtle begins to change lines of dialogue and walk offstage in the middle of scenes. This leads to a series of confrontations that reside uneasily alongside the death of a young girl who was knocked down outside the theatre seeking an audience with Gordon.
This is a tragedy that has a profound effect, with Myrtle witnessing an apparition that may either be a ghost or her own younger self, refusing to be ousted by the 'second woman'.
Whichever theory you go with, it's an utterly compelling premise, carried along by Rowlands who can say more with a single look, a gesture, than many artists with two hour's worth of dialogue. This really is a magnificent performance, but it certainly doesn't dwarf the rest of the cast.

Gazzara as the long-suffering director; Blondell and Stewart who run the whole gamut of emotions as their ship slowly sinks and Cassavetes himself, who teams up with Rowland to delive some wonderul improvisation when the play opens in New York, while sharing a love/hate relationship with his leading lady.

As with many great films, it's the small things that leave almost as much of a mark as the major sequences:
Goode asking Myrtle her age - a series of requests that go unanswered as Myrtle cannot bring herself to utter two simple numbers and her arrival at a wake, where one of the grieving relatives declares, "You don't have children. If you had, you wouldn't have come here". It's a devastating encounter, that amplifies the passing of time during Myrtle's unfulfilled life, but still she presses on, determined to find a different way to play the role and find something human in the production

Dollars and reputations may well be on the line, but for Myrtle, the most important thing is to learn to grow old gracefully and brushing aside fears of being typecast as an older woman if the play is a success.
OPENING NIGHT certainly repays multiple viewings, and this BFI disc is the ideal vehicle for such a journey.

The transfer appears in the orignal aspect ration of 1.85:1. The film was transferred in high-definition on a Spirit Datacine from a 35mm colour reversal internegtive. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris and scratches were removes using the MTI Digital Restoration System. The mono 2.0 audio sountrack was remastered at 24-bit from a 35mm magnetic audio track, and audio restoration tools were used to reduce pops, hiss and crackles. The result is a presentaion that exhibits rich, well saturated colours and sharp detail.

On the extras front, we are treated to a commentary track with Bo Harwood ( music score composer)and Mike Ferris
(cameraman), moderated by Tom Charity. The track is a mixture of anecdotal and scene specific - the latter largely taking over for the last half hour - and it's a genuine pleasure to hear two of Cassavetes' 'family' talk about working with the man. Both have excellent recall and hold forth on a multitude of subjects, including how John always got his own way; the challenges of recording sound onstage and offstage simultaneously; the lighting for that wonderful mirror scene and the possibility that Bette Davis may have ended up playing the Sarah Goode role. While it's speculated that Davis would possibly have been harder on Rowland's character that Joan Blondell was, rest assured JC would have had the last word.

This BFI release also has 'Memories Of John' (DVD disc) and 'Falk On Cassavetes' (DVD disc) and an illustrated booklet featuring interviews wit and essays from Tom Charity, Al Ruban and Peter Bogdanovich (who, along with Peter Falk, has a cameo at the end).

Some 35 years and change later, OPENING NIGHT remains an astonishing work, and it's a joy to see it in the best possible light. The Blu-ray is locked to Region B.