Reblog If You Appreciate Him

Reblog if you appreciate him

Happy birthday to one of my ultimate heroes, the incredibly talented Mr Rolly Crump. I bow down to you sir.

RIP Jan Michael Vincent

SANTA CLAUS aka SANTA CLAUS VS THE DEVIL (Dir: Rene Cardona, 1959).

Unraveling like one of my better fever dreams, the weird and wonderful Santa Claus is a 1959 Mexican production, re-cut and dubbed into English by schlock movie producer K Gordon Murray and released in the US in 1960.

José Elías Moreno stars as Santa as he is pitted against devil minion Pitch, portrayed by dancer José Luis Aguirre, in a bid to save the festive season from the clutches of Lucifer.

Seemingly made with an eye on the international market, Cardona’s film is a mishmash of Mexican, US and British cultural references (who knew Merlin the Magician was an ally of Santa?). Santa’s workshop (which is in space by the way) is filled with some frankly freaky gadgets. Everyone knows that “he sees you when you’re sleeping” but who ever thought it was through a re-purposed vacuum cleaner hose with a human eye on the end? Or that he listens to us by way of what looks like a severed human ear attached to a fan? All of this is relayed to Santa via a bulky bit of machinery complete with a massive pair of human lips!

It is true that much in this children’s film could terrify those of a sensitive disposition and no one would argue that it is a good film. In fact many would argue that it is a very bad film. It is certainly camp and kitschy and little of it makes much sense, but it does features some weirdly attractive mid-century style sets and it means well; I have to admit that part of me enjoyed it un-ironically.

With its copyright having long-ago lapsed, Santa Claus is easily to find on-line in varying states of decay. If you are inclined to watch it (and you really should be!) I suggest you find a decent print and settle yourself down for 95 minutes of incredulous festive fun!

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Movie number 30: Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates (Norman Foster, 1962). Originally shown in January 1962 in two parts on the television anthology series Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color, Hans Brinker was released to cinemas internationally in 1964. An adaptation of the popular children’s novel by Mary Mapes Dodge, the movie stars Rony Zeaner as the titular Hans, a struggling Dutch artist who enters a skating contest in hope of winning the prize money to pay for an operation for his father who is injured while attempting to repair local sea defences.

Despite its TV origins Hans Brinker is, like virtually all Disney releases of its era, a high quality product. While it’s narrative is divided neatly in two halves and the fades for commercial breaks are noticeable I can imagine watching this on original release, probably as the second half of a double bill, unaware of its made for TV status due to its high production values. Shot on location on the Zuider Zee and in Rembrandt’s Amsterdam home and featuring a largely Dutch cast and crew it is markedly different in tone from Disney’s American product. It is a slow moving drama punctuated by the excitement of the storm battled dam rescue, a kidnapping and the inevitable skating contest. Davy Crockett’s Norman Foster directs in a low-key yet professional manner as befits the story.

While I found much to enjoy in this movie I will admit it is probably something of an acquired taste and possibly of interest more to Disney historians than casual viewers. However, if you are in the mood for low-key family drama cum Netherlands travelogue you could do much worse than seek out Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates.

GANGSTER SQUAD: (Dir: Ruben Fleischer, 2013).

Don’t be fooled into thinking that this movie is the first film in the ‘La La Land’ franchise! In spite of featuring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in leading roles against a backdrop of Los Angeles, Gangster Squad is, as its title would imply, a pretty violent yet kinda glossy mob movie.

Josh Brolin heads up a fabulous cast including Gosling, Stone, Nick Nolte, Giovanni Ribisi and Michael Peña in a fictionalised account of the LAPD’s attempts to wrest control of the city from Mob boss Mickey Cohen, a heavily made-up Sean Penn seemingly channelling Al Pacino’s Big Boy Caprice from Dick Tracy (Warren Beatty, 1990). The cast cannot be faulted. Neither can cinematographer Dion Beebe who utilises every conceivable shade of brown in a stylish recreation of 1949 LA.

However, as terrific as the cast is and as lovely as it looks, Gangster Squad is perhaps not quite the movie it may have been. With its dark, noir-ish themes and its vintage Los Angeles setting it kind of gives the impression of wanting to be LA Confidential (Curtis Hanson, 1997). While it is undoubtedly a quality production, it just isn’t as good as that masterpiece.

I love a 1930s gangster movie almost as much as I love a 1940s crime thriller, so I guess Gangster Squad had a lot of built-in appeal for me and I did enjoy it. It’s just that I have seen this sort of thing done better. As noir homage LA Confidential can’t be beat. If it’s a lovingly recreated 1930s era gangster flick you want, check out Joel and Ethan Coen’s superior Miller’s Crossing (1990).

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