This well-sourced documentary benefits from the cooperation of the Doolittle family and their willingness to share an exciting archive of photographs documenting the life of Jimmy Doolittle and his role in the evolution of military aviation. The film is narrated by Gardner Doolittle who appears to be a family member with access to a trove of engaging anecdotes and observations. Gardner Doolittle is also the sole narrator, and I think this story suffers from a lack of movement and a variety of voices. Gardner has a voice and a speaking style reminiscent of Tom Brokaw. Toward the end of this 84 minute film, it starts to get a bit wearing.
Reviews
10 Reviews
A Strange Adventure
(1956)
A Good Print Makes A Much More Enjoyable Movie
6 August 2021
I have just finished viewing this film on a Kino Lorber dvd, and it is one beautiful print. The sound is good, and the optics are as fresh and sharp as they must have been when the film first came out in 1956. Granted the script is a bit pedestrian, but Marla English sure looks great in a swim suit, and Ben Cooper's hot rod would be a winner at any classic car show. For those who are wondering, the State of California maintained a number of isolated mountain cabins for government hydrologists whose job it was to measure the snow pack throughout the winter. Luther and his sister Terry were state employees, and that is why a state-of-the-art "snow cat" would be sent to investigate when they stopped transmitting data. The Kino Lorber dvd includes a very informative audio commentary by film historians Toby Roan and Jay Dee Witney.
Rider of the Plains
(1931)
A Good Yarn about Reformed Bandits
19 July 2021
When my Dad was a boy in the late 1920s, he spent a lot of Saturday afternoons at the local theater watching cowboy movies. One of his celluloid heroes was Tom Tyler, and that is why I purchased this dvd. It turned out to be a pretty good western, despite its cheap production values and Alpha Video imprint. Tom Tyler was a tall, handsome fellow, who in both looks and voice, reminds one of a young Gary Cooper. He wasn't much of an actor, but "A Rider of the Plains" gave him a rare opportunity to appear in a good yarn about bandits who change for the better under the influence of a good woman (Lilian Bond) and a needy orphan boy (Andy Shuford). These are the themes that would be more fully developed later in "Shane" and "Hondo," but this was 1931, and we need to make allowances for the evolution of sound equipment and bulky cameras. My Alpha Video print was a little washed out, but still watchable, and there was a humming sound that was persistent, but not intrusive. Another reason to like this movie is the presence of Lilian Bond, a vivacious British actress who made the transition to Hollywood, and appeared in many quality films including "The Old Dark House" with Charles Laughton and "Air Mail" with Gloria Stuart, both in 1932, and "The Westerner" with Gary Cooper in 1940. In "A Rider of the Plains," Bond plays a pretty store clerk who captures the heart of bad boy, Tom Tyler. At just 57 minutes, it's a nice little western to watch when there's just an hour to spare before that trip to the bunkhouse.
All for Liberty
(2009)
A Patriotic Film for the Entire Family
28 June 2020
I ordered this dvd from the Edward R. Hamilton catalog for just $5.95, and I am so pleased with it that I intend to purchase additional copies for my friends. The acting is professional, the costumes are historically accurate, and the film fills its 82 minutes with non-stop action. Those of us who watch small, independent films are often disappointed by amateurish acting and poor production values, but this movie sets the standard for quality optics and editing. And what a great story it tells ! These are not the familiar Founding Fathers one sees in so many other films about the American Revolution. Outside of South Carolina, most viewers will never have heard of these patriots, but their story teaches us so much about the sacrifices of nameless men and women who were willing to risk their lives to get out from under the oppressive thumb of British rule. There are no four letter words, or gratuitous sex, but a lot of danger and a few bloody battle scenes. All in all, a very good film for the entire family on any patriotic holiday weekend.
Bugles in the Afternoon
(1952)
A good Western, but it sure doesn't look like Montana !
17 May 2020
"Bugles in the Afternoon" was filmed in the desert around Kanab, Utah, and because of that arid landscape, many viewers may assume that Fort C.F. Smith and the Custer Battlefield were located somewhere in the American Southwest. Please keep in mind that the actual battlefield is located Southeast of Billings, Montana near what is now the border with Wyoming. The area along the Little Big Horn River, and eastward to the rise of Rose Bud Creek is characterized by rolling hills, which on that fateful morning of June 25, 1876 were probably still covered by green prairie grass, not rocks and sand. Though somewhat muddled geographically, this is still a most entertaining movie !
The American Invasion
(2012)
A Pretty Good Documentary
22 September 2018
This is the story of American flyers stationed in Britain during WWII. Most of us only know of this era from watching classic films like "Twelve O'clock High" and "Command Decision." Some of that history, both social and military has been covered more recently by "Yanks," "Hanover Square," and "Memphis Belle." The wonderful thing about documentaries is that they provide us with historical background and newsreel clips that can't be included in dramas designed for entertainment. This documentary focuses on the men who flew the B17 bombers into occupied France and later, into Germany. It devotes more than half of its time to the social interactions between the young American servicemen, and the local British villagers, and we see the result in the final newsreel clips of British war brides boarding ships to America, many with infants in their arms. To see another side of this story, don't miss "Bomber Boys," hosted by Scotch brothers Ewan & Colin McGregor. It details the RAF's use of the Lancaster Bomber in nighttime raids into France and Germany. To protect their planes, the RAF bombed at night, while the Americans concentrated on daylight tactical bombing that made them more visible to enemy fighters and anti-aircraft fire. Because of that policy, a tragic number of American 8th Air Force flyers were killed in the period dating from their arrival in the summer of 1942 to VE Day in 1945. Interviews with aging American veterans and British ladies, make this a fun and informative 90 minute documentary.
My Best Enemy
(2011)
Beware the dubbed version !
20 September 2018
Other reviewers of this film mention the chore of listening to the German language while reading subtitles, but believe me, it could be a lot worse. My copy of this dvd was dubbed rather than subtitled, and the uninspired American voices emanating from the mouths of the actors diminished the believability of this WWII drama. For a while, it was unintentionally funny to hear Victor Kaufmann's parents, Hannah and Jakob, conversing in a West Texas drawl, but the Nazi guards, who sounded a lot like Charley Sheen, were not very convincing. My dvd was marked as an IFC film marketed by Phase 4 Films. Try to avoid that label like the plague. The Trailer for My Best Enemy, available on this IMBD website, offers the original German language with subtitles, and provides us with a glimpse of what looks like a pretty exciting story, if one can just find a copy that's free of dubbing.
Away and Back
(2015 TV Movie)
A Hallmark Film with Star Power
8 June 2018
Like a lot of fellows, I became a fan of Minka Kelly when she played a high school cheer leader on the TV series Friday Night Lights. The good news is that she is just as convincing and attractive in this film, and the story line is something that the whole family will enjoy. In fact, the quality of the acting, and the great production values combine to make this one of Hallmark's best productions. Jason Lee plays the widowed father of three with just the right blend of manly resolve tempered by personal loss, and the knowledge that his children really need a mother. His youngest child, "Frankie" is played to perfection by ten-year-old Maggie Elizabeth Jones, and his son "Kyle" played by Jaren Lewison is very good in a lesser role. My only quibble with this film is its confusing geography, which traces an established migratory bird flyway south from Cheney, Washington to Wallowa Lake in north-eastern Oregon, but was mostly filmed in Alberta, Canada.
Murder by Invitation
(1941)
Don't Waste Your Time
11 April 2018
Though always pinched for cash, Monogram Pictures still managed to produce some pretty good movies. Unfortunately "Murder by Invitation" is not one of them. We've seen this creaky, old plot rolled out in dozens of 1930s and 40s mysteries, but never with such a poorly written script, or such bad acting. Wallace Ford, the leading man, is too old and too out-of-shape for the roll of a dashing reporter, and he looks out of place as the boyfriend of pretty "girl-Friday" Marian Marsh. The rest of the cast are equally unconvincing including the local sheriff, played by George Guhl, whose Upstate New York lawman acts like a hay-seed from Deliverance. Nothing makes much sense here. Sarah Padden, who plays the lady whose family has lived in the old mansion for generations, is perfectly willing to burn it down in order to flush out the murderer. The film is only 67 minutes long, but for those set on watching to the end, it will seem like an eternity.
The Man Who Died Twice
(1958)
Worth Viewing for the Character Actors
19 December 2017
This is one of those noir films that is salvaged from ignominy by the fine work of actors in minor roles. Rod Cameron, the male lead does a workmanlike job, but leading lady Vera Ralston is almost unwatchable. The script calls for a traumatized woman, but she gives us a helpless and annoying whiner. This would have been a much better film had she been replaced by a Marie Windsor, Caroline Jones, or Jane Randolph. Unfortunately, Ralston was married to the the boss of Republic Pictures, so she managed to mess up a lot of movies before she retired.
Fortunately there are several good character actors here including Louis Jean Heydt as police captain Andy Hampton, Mike Mazurki as the lovesick bartender Rak, Jesslyn Fax as the snoopy old lady, and Gerald Milton & Richard Kaplan as the quarrelsome hit men. Its not The Blue Dahlia, but I'd give this film a 6.5 on a scale of ten.
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