ATLRetro

by Anthony Taylor
Contributing Writer

Welcome to Apes on Film! This column exists to scratch your retro-film-in-high-definition itch. We’ll be reviewing new releases of vintage cinema and television on disc of all genres, finding gems and letting you know the skinny on what to avoid. Here at Apes on Film, our aim is to uncover the best in retro film. As we dig for artifacts, we’ll do our best not to bury our reputation. What will we find out here? Our destiny.

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA – 1961
Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 50th Anniversary Edition
5 out of 5 Bananas
Format: Compact Disc
Music by: Paul Sawtell, Bert Shefter
Album Producer: Nick Redmond
Liner Notes: Randall D. Larson
Label: La-La Land Records
Tracks: 16
Run Time: 56 minutes
CLICK HERE TO ORDER

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA – 1964-68
Original Television Soundtrack Collection – 4 Disc Set
5 out of 5 Bananas
Format: Compact Disc
Music by: Alexander Courage, Robert Drasnin, Jerry Goldsmith, Lennie Hayton, Joseph Mullendore, Nelson Riddle, Paul Sawtell, Herman Stein, Leith Stevens
Album Producers: Jeff Bond, Neil S. Bulk, Kevin Burns
Liner Notes: Jeff Bond
Label: La-La Land Records
Tracks: 142
Run Time: 4 Hours, 58 Minutes, 50 Seconds
CLICK HERE TO ORDER

Producer Irwin Allen had created several award-winning and successful films by 1961, but that was the year he inadvertently hit on a formula that would serve him well for the rest of the decade and beyond. With VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, Allen combined quasi-military action with sci-fi themes and an apocalyptic disaster scenario. In essence, he created the combination he would borrow from, add to, subtract from and use for television and film projects well into the 1970s. From this seed, the producer would plant a television dynasty consisting of a small screen version of VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, the TV series LOST IN SPACE, THE TIME TUNNEL, and LAND OF THE GIANTS, as well as feature films such as THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE and THE TOWERING INFERNO.

In 2011, La-La Land Records released a great 50th Anniversary Edition disc of music from the film, VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, with music by Paul Sawtell and Bert Shefter. The duo’s orchestral score is a great counterpoint to the film’s action, featuring soaring strings and stinging horns throughout. The film’s theme song, sung by Frankie Avalon, is included as well, as is the original demo recording and an alternate song that was rejected, and it’s easy to see why. The package includes a well put-together booklet with in-depth liner notes for every cue.

This year, the company released a deluxe, four-disc set of the music from the television series version of VOYAGE, and I confess that as a fan of the show I was blown away by the level of detail and the sheer amount of music included. Sawtell returned to score the pilot for the series, Eleven Days To Zero, as well as write the main title theme for the show, which has become the most recognizable cue of his career. The modern, maritime-inspired track with the stuttering harp and marimba highlights is unforgettable. The rest of the music measures up as well, with wonderful work from STAR TREK theme composer Alexander Courage, Oscar™ winners Jerry Goldsmith, Nelson Riddle, and so many more. The forty-page booklet with notes by Jeff Bond is an indispensable resource for series fans and film music lovers.

La-La Land Records is a company that truly caters to aficionados and hard-core fans of film music, and these releases reflect their commitment to that audience. Both sets are lavishly constructed to satisfy, and do not fail to do so. If you were thrilled by the exploits of the crew of the Seaview at any point – even if you were aware that some of the episodes were truly awful – grab both releases. Though Irwin Allen may not have always had the best writers on his series, he certainly had the best art directors, designers, model builders, special effects technicians and musical directors.

FLYING LEATHERNECKS – 1951
3 out of 5 Bananas
Starring: John Wayne, Robert Ryan, Don Taylor, Janis Carter
Directors: Nicholas Ray
Rated: Not Rated
Studio: Warner Archives
BRD Release Date: September 15, 2020
Audio Formats: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
Video Resolution/Codec: MPEG-4 AVC, 1080p
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Run Time: 102 minutes
CLICK HERE TO ORDER

John Wayne and Robert Ryan fight the Japanese as well as each other in Nicholas Ray’s FLYING LEATHERNECKS. As Wing Commander and Executive Officer of a USMC air attack group in the Pacific in 1942, the actors play men who are two sides of the same coin—Wayne is cold and impersonal in his leadership style, but has a soft emotional center that he keeps to himself, while Ryan wears his heart on his sleeve but struggles with parsing the harsh realities of war. As the two career officers shepherd a group of short-timer, hotshot pilots that steadily succumb to the enemy, they eventually meet in the middle, but not without some fireworks first.

As the son of a USMC pilot myself, I’ve seen almost every film ever made on this subject matter and this one is an entertaining, sobering look at what must have been, to borrow the title of another film, hell in the Pacific. It doesn’t pull punches as the flight group withers due to enemy action, and the combination of actual air combat and training footage serves to maintain a gritty, realistic feel throughout.

Flying-Leathernecks-1951

Warner Archive’s single disc package features a crisp, colorful, newly restored print of the film along with the theatrical re-release trailer. Picture and sound are both very good with no artifacts present, making for an entertaining watch. Recommended for WWII movie lovers and John Wayne fans but give it a shot even if you’re skeptical – it’s better than you remember.

Anthony Taylor is not only the Minister of Science, but also Defender of the Faith. His reviews and articles have appeared in magazines such as Screem, Fangoria, Famous Monsters of Filmland, SFX, Video*WatcHDog, and more.

*Art Credit: Anthony Taylor as Dr. Zaius caricature by Richard Smith

Rock & Roll Monster Bash presents THE DEVIL’S RAIN (1975); Dir. Robert Fuest; Starring William Shatner, Ernest Borgnine, Ida Lupino, Eddie Albert, Tom Skerritt, Keenan Wynn and Joan Prather; Sunday, June 2; Starlight Six Drive-In; Buy tickets here. Trailer here.

By Aleck Bennett
Contributing Writer

It’s Rock & Roll Monster Bashin’ time, kiddiwinkies! And if you’ve spent all day celebrating at the Starlight Six Drive-In, there’s no better way to cap off the night than with a double-bill of diabolical delights. And it doesn’t get more diabolical or delightful than THE DEVIL’S RAIN.

Okay, I’m biased. Let’s get that straight from the start. Around my house, if there’s a movie made in the ‘60s or ‘70s about a bunch of folks worshipping Our Downstairs Neighbor, I’m giving that sucker the benefit of the doubt. And likewise, if your name is Robert Fuest, and you’ve directed a movie about anything, I’m giving that sucker the benefit of the doubt.

This is why it’s constantly puzzled me that folks give THE DEVIL’S RAIN such short shrift. Even in the limited genre that is Satanic Cinema of the Sixties and Seventies, it gets relatively little love. And I’m not talking about pitting its reputation against that of established classics like ROSEMARY’S BABY. I’m talking stuff like THE BROTHERHOOD OF SATAN, THE WITCHMAKER, BEYOND THE DOOR, ALUCARDA, and on and on and on. I mean, sure, huge chunks of the movie don’t make a lick of sense. But that’s never stood in the way of a film building up a cult following.

Partially, I think it’s got to have something to do with the prevailing notion that anything touched by the Hand of Shatner outside of the STAR TREK franchise is somehow shameful at worst, and best appreciated as camp at best. And maybe it’s got something to do with so much of the cast being composed of actors either well past their prime and heading for the Irwin Allen Disaster Movie Retirement Home (Ida Lupino, Keenan Wynn, Eddie Albert) or so early on in their careers that they don’t make much impact (Tom Skerritt, John Travolta). Maybe it’s because Ernest Borgnine spends most of the movie going so over-the-top that you can’t see bottom anymore. Maybe it’s because the movie’s promotional tagline is so grammatically incorrect that I’ve been trying to decipher it for decades (“Heaven help us all when…The Devil’s Rain!” Huh? When the Devil’s Rain does what? Are you trying to say “when the Devils rain?” or “when the Devils reign?” Are you confusing your plurals and possessives?)

Or maybe it’s because some people don’t like to have fun, for crying out loud. Because this is one fun movie.

Re-hashing the plot won’t help anybody, so I’ll just say this: Ernest Borgnine is the reincarnation of a devil-worshipping warlock burned at the stake long ago, and he’s back (and holed up in a church in the desert) to obtain a book kept hidden over these many years by William Shatner’s family. There’s a Snowglobe of the Damned called “The Devil’s Rain” that contains the souls of those Borgnine has ensnared. There’s some pseudo-scientific gobbeldy-gook about ESP that brings Shatner’s extended family of Tom Skerritt, Eddie Albert and Joan Prather into the mix. There are flashbacks to the burnings. There are lots of folks in black robes with no eyes (including John Travolta) running around doing Borgnine’s bidding. And maybe they’re made of wax or something because they all tend to melt.

Like I said: big chunks that don’t make a lick of sense.

Ernest Borgnine in THE DEVIL'S RAIN.

But what works in this movie, works like crazy. Fuest’s direction is—as always—stylish and visually fascinating. Don’t forget, this is the guy who directed THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES and DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN, the Michael Moorcock adaptation THE FINAL PROGRAMME (aka THE LAST DAYS OF MAN ON EARTH) and numerous episodes of THE AVENGERS. The guy’s got flash if he’s got anything. There’s a prevailing sense of dread cast over the entire film from its opening frames, with the stage being set by the opening titles presented over the hellishly hallucinatory artwork of Hieronymus Bosch. There’s the unique in media res opening that delivers the sense that we’ve been dropped into the movie after its first reel, leaving the audience disoriented as they try to piece together what’s happening. There’s Ernest Borgnine invoking the spirit of Satan and turning into a Baphomet-headed beast. There’s the presence of the High Priest of the Church of Satan, Anton Szandor LaVey (ANTON FREAKIN’ LAVEY, people!) as both the film’s technical advisor and Borgnine’s High Priest, playing the pipe organ and sporting a diabolically groovy helmet for some reason. There’s fantastic makeup work from Ellis Burman, Jr. There’s an insanely great score by Al De Lory. And it ends exactly like it ought to end.

Let me say this: if this movie had been made in Italy, the horror community at large would be salivating over THE DEVIL’S RAIN like it was Edwige Fenech in STRIP NUDE FOR YOUR KILLER (Italian exploitation fans represent!). But because of its familiarity—being ever-present on late-night TV, the drive-in circuit and relatively easy to get on home video through the years—it’s easily overlooked. Don’t make this mistake, dear readers! This movie deserves a re-evaluation and a re-appreciation. Much like Shatner’s career has developed a post-TREK rehabilitation, we should go back and give the Devil his due.

Aleck Bennett is a writer, blogger, pug warden, pop culture enthusiast, raconteur and bon vivant from the greater Atlanta area. Visit his blog atdoctorsardonicus.wordpress.com