Author Archives: chipkaufmann

I am so happy for this release as it finally allowed me to see Rupert Julian’s THE YANKEE CLIPPER in something other than the truncated 1998 Critic’s Choice VHS version which was taken from the Killiam Collection. That version ran less than an hour and had narration from Paul Killiam himself. It was probably takenContinue reading “THE YANKEE CLIPPER Sails Again”

The PHANTOM OF THE OPERA with Lon Chaney that most everyone knows is not the original version of the film. It is a 1929 reissue with several changes made to accomodate the addition of sound. Ironic that one of the most famous silent films of all time should be known from a sound version thatContinue reading “PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925) Is Still The Most Famous Movie Version”

What do William Lawes, Smokey Robinson, Christopher Marlowe, and Dr Strangelove have in common? They are only a few of the many individuals alluded to in what is one of the most unique movies ever made. If you are familiar with the movies of Jim Jarmusch such as DEAD MAN, NIGHT ON EARTH, or MYSTERYContinue reading “ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE (2013): Complex, Layered, & Literary”

Roddy McDowall’s only directorial effort, THE BALLAD OF TAM LIN, is one of the most misunderstood films of its time. Based on a ballad by Robert Burns, the story was updated to then contemporary 1970. The original story tells of a medieval knight who is seduced and held captive by a witch before being savedContinue reading “TAM LIN: A Beautiful Poetic Romance, Not A Horror Film”

American International Pictures or AIP as they were generally known was probably the most influential distribution company in American movie history. Over the course of a quarter century (1954-1979) they released over 450 movies and launched the careers of such notable directors as James Cameron & Martin Scorsese and performers Bruce Dern & Jack Nicholson.Continue reading “AIP TITLES: 4 From The 1950s Through The 1970s”

Oliver Reed once said that “Hammer gave me my start, (Michael) Winner gave me my craft, and (Ken) Russell gave me my art.” Well in 1963’s THE SCARLET / CRIMSON BLADE you can see the arrival of the Oliver Reed we all know 5 years before his international success in OLIVER!. Here he crystallizes hisContinue reading “THE CRIMSON BLADE Marks The Arrival Of Oliver Reed”

Whenever a classic film gets remade, there are always those who say that’s it not as good as the original and that is certainly the case here. However, taking that into consideration, this reworking of James Whale’s 1932 version is better than I remember it being. I had seen it years ago (in black &Continue reading “THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1963) : Not Good But Not As Bad As I Remembered”

ike another reviewer, I first became familiar with Rex Ingram’s THE MAGICIAN through Carlos Clarens’ book AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF THE HORROR FILM back in the late 1960s. A few years later it was one of the films/stories selected by Peter Haining in his fascinating 1971 collection THE GHOULS which featured the source material thatContinue reading “THE MAGICIAN (1926): Great To Have It At Last”

I am grateful for this Warner Archive release of the Turner Classic Movies version of this rare Tod Browning film. Up until now I only had it on a VHS tape which was dubbed from a PAL released in the U.K. The picture quality was OK but the transfer was a little too fast (typicalContinue reading “THE BLACKBIRD: Not Tod Browning & Lon Chaney’s Best But Still Worthwhile”

There was a time not that long ago that when Tod Browning was remembered, it was for either directing the Bela Lugosi DRACULA (1931) – (to which all the credit was given to Lugosi) or as the man responsible for FREAKS (1932) a horror film that featured real deformed carnival performers and was a notoriousContinue reading “THE SHOW (1927): Tod Browning’s Macabre Gem”