Author Archives: chipkaufmann

My wife and I have recently been working our way through the films of Lizabeth Scott, one of our favorite Noir actresses, starting with our personal favorite THE LOVE OF MARTHA IVERS. Others we have viewed include STOLEN FACE, TOO LATE FOR TEARS, PITFALL, DARK CITY, and now DEAD RECKONING. Of that group, we foundContinue reading “DEAD RECKONING: Pretty Good Noir Let Down By Rambling Screenplay”

THE MECHANIC is the best of the 6 movies that Charles Bronson made with director Michael Winner. They were filmed between 1972 and 1985. It was the second film made right after CHATO’S LAND and just before THE STONE KILLER (1973). The notorious and wildly successful DEATH WISH (it spawned two sequels) would follow aContinue reading “THE MECHANIC (1972): Flawed But Fascinating Charles Bronson Flick”

I love Philip Marlowe movies. I especially love those from the 1940s when Raymond Chandler was still new and the Marlowe character was a hot property. Dick Powell got it started in 1944 for RKO with MURDER, MY SWEET (changed from FAREWELL MY LOVELY so his 1930s fans wouldn’t think it was a musical). It’sContinue reading “THE BRASHER DOUBLOON: 1947 Philip Marlowe B Movie Is Pretty Good”

I first saw THE TELL-TALE HEART in the mid 1960s on one of those ubiquitous late night horror shows. In my hometown of Greenville SC. It was called INFERNO with the tagline “The meeting place of the Supernatural AND the Unknown”. The print was rather murky but several scenes stood out such as the murderContinue reading “THE TELL-TALE HEART Is A Forgotten Gem That Should Be Better Known”

Having been successful with their Gothic horror film BLOOD OF THE VAMPIRE, Robert S. Baker & Monty Berman next attempted to produce a black & white science fiction movie patterned after Hammer’s QUATERMASS series. Those movies dealt with alien invasions from outer space and how they were successfully thwarted. Once again they hired Hammer freelanceContinue reading “TROLLENBERG TERROR/THE CRAWLING EYE Is Pretty Good Until The Very End”

After the success of their Hammeresque Gothic horror film BLOOD OF THE VAMPIRE, Robert S. Baker, Monty Berman, and their Tampean Productions decided to tackle the story of Jack The Ripper. The story had been cinematically told a number of times before most notably in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1927 THE LODGER and John Brahm’s 1944 remake.Continue reading “JACK THE RIPPER (1959) Is Still Solid Entertainment”

British filmmakers Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman were among the first to try and duplicate the success of Hammer Films’ horror pictures and they did quite well. One of the reasons is that they used Jimmy Sangster, the same screenplay writer that Hammer did. He would write four of their five genre films. AnotherContinue reading “BLOOD OF THE VAMPIRE: Ersatz Hammer Horror From The Baker/Berman Team Is Surprisingly Good”

SPARROWS is the third of three recent releases from The Mary Pickford Foundation. The other two are LITTLE ANNIE ROONEY (1925) which has been around for years in substandard public domain copies and FANCHON THE CRICKET (1915) which was only recently discovered. All three have been beautifully restored and have been issued with newly commissioned Continue reading “SPARROWS: Mary Pickford’s Gothic Melodrama In Its Best Looking Incarnation”

I first saw THE LONG GOODBYE when it first came out in 1973 and I didn’t like it. I REALLY didn’t like it. As a fan of Raymond Chandler and Philip Marlowe I found THE LONG GOODBYE to be an insult to the character. It wasn’t the fact that the movie was given a contemporaryContinue reading “THE LONG GOODBYE: My Least Favorite Philip Marlowe Movie”

Like most of the other reviewers, I saw FEAR NO EVIL when it was first broadcast on NBC back in 1969. I must have been impressed at the time but all I could remember was Carroll O’Connor’s final scene with the mirror. So when I watched the movie again after 50 years it was likeContinue reading “FEAR NO EVIL / RITUAL OF EVIL: Made-For-TV Double Feature Is Still Entertaining 50 Years Later”