Here are some promotional stills and glamour shots of the real Lamarr. Maybe I'll dig around to see if I can find some suitable images of Sutherland and feature her on some Wednesday as well.
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Hedy Lamarr
In "Hollywoodland", the time-traveling heroes of "Timeless" went to 1941 to save Orson Welles' "Citizen Kane" from oblivion. Along the way, they met Hedy Lamarr (portrayed by Alyssa Sutherland), 1940s superstar and brilliant inventor who came up with the basic idea that led to WiFi.
Sunday, March 25, 2018
Sherlock Sunday: The Great Detective on TV
Sherlock Holmes (39 half-hour episodes, produced 1954-1955)
Starring: Ronald Howard, Howard Marion Crawford, Archie Duncan and Kenneth Richards
Directors: Steve Previn (25 episodes), Sheldon Reynolds (9 episodes) and Jack Gage (4episodes)
Rating: Six of Ten Stars
From 1954 through 1955, Ronald Howard starred as Sherlock Holmes, with Howard Marion-Crawford as Dr. Watson, in a 39-episode series that was produced in France with a British cast. The half-hour episode were mostly original stories, with some drawing heavily on some of Doyle's original tales (like "The Case of the Red Headed League," and "The French Interpreter," which was almost a straight adaptation of "The Greek Interpreter").
The series is more lighthearted than most Holmes adaptations that don't bill themselves as comedy, with Watson, Holmes and Lestrade taking turns at being the focus of humor, the butt of jokes, and even solving the mysteries at hand.
Ronald Howard's Holmes is a flighty, playful man possessed with an almost juvenile sense of humor. While he is every bit the genius one finds in the Conan Doyle tales, he comes across more like an overgrown child than a man who grows erratic when bored. But he is also probably far more fun to be around than Holmes would have been as he was written by Watson (and portrayed in most other adaptions). In fact, the boyish nature of Holmes as we find him here makes the cluttered rooms at 221B Baker Street seem almost like a clubhouse where he and Watson hang out after school. It's a sense that is enhanced by the good humor and comedy running through nearly every episode.
The comedic touches in the episodes is a nice addition to the Holmes tales, but an even nicer touch is the fact that Watson is repeatedly shown to be smart and capable. On more than on occasion, he even manages to out-do Holmes, primarily because Watson is more down-to-earth and less prone to flights of fancy. Another refreshing aspect to Watson's character is that he more than once stands up to Holmes rather fiercely, refusing to be the brunt of his jokes and on more than one occasion getting Holmes to apologize. In fact, the relationship between Holmes and Watson seems more real in this series than in several other versions, despite the buffoonery and antics.
Another interesting aspect of the series is the way Archie Duncan appears as several different characters throughout. His main role is as Inspector Lestrade, but he also appears as Lestrade's cousin and even one of the villains as the series unfolds.
Like all television series, this one is a mixed bag. Of the 39 episodes produced, a handful are excellent (like "The Case of the Jolly Hangman" where Holmes helps a widow by proving her husband didn't commit suicide, "The Case of the Perfect Husband" where Holmes must save an innocent woman from her psychopathic husband while attempting to prove that he has murdered half a dozen women previously) or "The Case of the Belligerent Ghost" where Watson is repeated assaulted by a dead man), a few are absolutely awful (like "The Case of the Texas Cowgirl" which has a nonsensical plot and a lame mystery, while "The Case of the Thistle Killer" was so weak that Holmes should hang his head in shame for taking so long to solve it), but most are decent little mystery tales. Some have darker tones than others--"The Case of the Perfect Husband" and "The Mother Hubbard Case" are chillers that deal with deadly serial killers, while "The Christmas Pudding" sees Holmes under real threat of death for perhaps the only time in the whole series--but the series can be a great introduction to Sherlock Holmes if you have young kids who are getting into mysteries.
There are a couple of different DVD packages that contain the entire series. I viewed the one issued by Mill Creek. The quality of the source tapes varies from episode to episode, but the sound is generally clear and the picture is only occasionally washed out. It's not perfect, but the three-disk set is very reasonably priced.
Friday, March 23, 2018
For the broken hearted on this Friday night.
It's the ultimate "that loving feeling's gone" ballad. Cheer up... it could be worse!
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
The Milla Jovovich Quarterly:
Looking Out for Spring
Looking Out for Spring
Spring is here. Milla is patrolling the streets, looking to pop a cap in Winter if he dares to show his cold nose again!
Saturday, March 17, 2018
Friday, March 16, 2018
'Murder by Invitation' is a fine effort from Monogram
Murder by Invitation (1941)
Starring: Sarah Padden, Wallace Ford, Marian Marsh, Gavin Gordon, and J. Arthur Young
Director: Phil Rosen
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
After her scheming relatives fail to have her committed to a mental hospital, eccentric millionaire Cassie Denham (Padden) invites them to her remote mansion, ostensibly to show she forgives them and to determine who is worthy to inherit her wealth. Within hours of their arrival, the guests start to disappear, and it falls upon reporters Bob White (Ford) and Nora O'Brien (Marsh) to identify the killer before they fall victim themselves.
"Murder by Invitation" is a fast-paced comedy-mystery with all the Old Dark House tropes. The acting is solid from all performers, the dialogue is sharp and quippy, and even the buffoonish cops act logically in the steps they take to capture the murderer. The plot is also above average, as screenwriter George Bricker actually took the time to present several viable suspects and a few credible twists that made it hard to guess who the killer was, but not impossible because enough clues were provided to let the viewer play along.
Of special note in this film is Marian Marsh, who was at the end of her ten-year rollercoaster acting career. She gives an excellent performance as a sharp-tongued newspaper woman who can stand toe-to-toe with the boys that is different from the damsel-in-distress parts she was most-often cast in. It's a shame that marriage and burn-out caused her to, in her words, "drift away from the acting profession."
The only true weak spot of the film is the opening courtroom scene... and I may think of it as such because of changes in American culture. The allegedly mentally incompetent Cassie Denham is put on the stand to testify in her own defense, and almost every response she gives is met with gales of laughter from the gallery. The problem is that she's not all that funny; she's being a smart-ass and she's putting her obnoxious relatives in their places, but she's not being fall-out-of-your-chair laughing like the courtroom audience seems to think. Given the skillful way the rest of the film is put together, I can only assume that some banter that was hilarious in 1941 isn't in 2018.
Starring: Sarah Padden, Wallace Ford, Marian Marsh, Gavin Gordon, and J. Arthur Young
Director: Phil Rosen
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
After her scheming relatives fail to have her committed to a mental hospital, eccentric millionaire Cassie Denham (Padden) invites them to her remote mansion, ostensibly to show she forgives them and to determine who is worthy to inherit her wealth. Within hours of their arrival, the guests start to disappear, and it falls upon reporters Bob White (Ford) and Nora O'Brien (Marsh) to identify the killer before they fall victim themselves.
"Murder by Invitation" is a fast-paced comedy-mystery with all the Old Dark House tropes. The acting is solid from all performers, the dialogue is sharp and quippy, and even the buffoonish cops act logically in the steps they take to capture the murderer. The plot is also above average, as screenwriter George Bricker actually took the time to present several viable suspects and a few credible twists that made it hard to guess who the killer was, but not impossible because enough clues were provided to let the viewer play along.
Of special note in this film is Marian Marsh, who was at the end of her ten-year rollercoaster acting career. She gives an excellent performance as a sharp-tongued newspaper woman who can stand toe-to-toe with the boys that is different from the damsel-in-distress parts she was most-often cast in. It's a shame that marriage and burn-out caused her to, in her words, "drift away from the acting profession."
The only true weak spot of the film is the opening courtroom scene... and I may think of it as such because of changes in American culture. The allegedly mentally incompetent Cassie Denham is put on the stand to testify in her own defense, and almost every response she gives is met with gales of laughter from the gallery. The problem is that she's not all that funny; she's being a smart-ass and she's putting her obnoxious relatives in their places, but she's not being fall-out-of-your-chair laughing like the courtroom audience seems to think. Given the skillful way the rest of the film is put together, I can only assume that some banter that was hilarious in 1941 isn't in 2018.
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Abigail Spencer
One of my all-time favorite TV shows--"Timeless"--is back for a 2nd Season (after almost being cancelled on a cliffhanger)! To celebrate, and to illustrate the unifying theme of this blog, here's phere's actress Abigail Spencer. She plays the secret-society-busting, time-traveling-historian Lucy Preston on "Timeless.", showing us the unifying theme of this blog!
Saturday, March 10, 2018
'Tomorrow at Seven' is a one-suspect mystery
Tomorrow at Seven (1933)
Starring: Chester Morris, Vivienne Osborne, Frank McHugh, Allen Jenkins, and Henry Stephenson
Director: Ray Enright
Rating: Five of Ten Stars
A writer (Morris), working on a book about the serial killer known as the Black Ace, gets close to his subject while onboard a chartered flight where another passenger becomes the maniac's latest victim.
"Tomorrow at Seven" is one of those films that needs to be remade. It's a story with TONS of potenial that is mostly unrealized because no risks are taken in the way the plot develops... and what is set up as the ultimate locked room mystery (a murder takes place with all suspects and potential victims together, in the air, in an airplane!) instead unfolds as a mildly interesting comedy with some dramatic moments and romantic overtones.
Maybe it's because it's 85 years since this film was made, but all the characters had barely been introduced when I settled upon who I thought was the Black Ace. I turned out I was right, despite the fact there was a second character who could just as easily have been the killer (and a third who would have been slightly more far-fetched but still plausible)... and I was right, because the cast of characters are the stock figures you expect them to be based on their roles at the beginning of the story and the physical appearance of the actors playing them; once the handsome, romantic male lead is crossed off the list as the murderer, there's really only one suspect left. (That said, there are some nice steps taken to cast suspicion around on a couple different characters... and what a great movie this could have been if more bravery had been shown in the plotting.)
As it stands, "Tomorrow at Seven" isn't a bad movie... it's just unremarkable. All the actors are good in the parts, the film moves along a good pace, and there's never a dull moment. Even the comic relief characters--a pair of bumbling police detectives (portrayed with great charm by Jenkins and McHugh)--are good, because they are actually funny instead of just annoying or stupid as is often the case in films from this period.
If you like "old dark house" flicks, or light mystery films from the early 1930s, "Tomorrow at Seven" is worth checking out if you dont' have to go out of your way for it.
(For my part, I think "Tomorrow at Seven" has inspired me to do another random mystery plot generator for the NUELOW Games blog, like "Who Killed Buck Robin?" and "Who Killed Major Payne?")
Starring: Chester Morris, Vivienne Osborne, Frank McHugh, Allen Jenkins, and Henry Stephenson
Director: Ray Enright
Rating: Five of Ten Stars
A writer (Morris), working on a book about the serial killer known as the Black Ace, gets close to his subject while onboard a chartered flight where another passenger becomes the maniac's latest victim.
"Tomorrow at Seven" is one of those films that needs to be remade. It's a story with TONS of potenial that is mostly unrealized because no risks are taken in the way the plot develops... and what is set up as the ultimate locked room mystery (a murder takes place with all suspects and potential victims together, in the air, in an airplane!) instead unfolds as a mildly interesting comedy with some dramatic moments and romantic overtones.
Maybe it's because it's 85 years since this film was made, but all the characters had barely been introduced when I settled upon who I thought was the Black Ace. I turned out I was right, despite the fact there was a second character who could just as easily have been the killer (and a third who would have been slightly more far-fetched but still plausible)... and I was right, because the cast of characters are the stock figures you expect them to be based on their roles at the beginning of the story and the physical appearance of the actors playing them; once the handsome, romantic male lead is crossed off the list as the murderer, there's really only one suspect left. (That said, there are some nice steps taken to cast suspicion around on a couple different characters... and what a great movie this could have been if more bravery had been shown in the plotting.)
As it stands, "Tomorrow at Seven" isn't a bad movie... it's just unremarkable. All the actors are good in the parts, the film moves along a good pace, and there's never a dull moment. Even the comic relief characters--a pair of bumbling police detectives (portrayed with great charm by Jenkins and McHugh)--are good, because they are actually funny instead of just annoying or stupid as is often the case in films from this period.
If you like "old dark house" flicks, or light mystery films from the early 1930s, "Tomorrow at Seven" is worth checking out if you dont' have to go out of your way for it.
(For my part, I think "Tomorrow at Seven" has inspired me to do another random mystery plot generator for the NUELOW Games blog, like "Who Killed Buck Robin?" and "Who Killed Major Payne?")
Wednesday, March 7, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Valerie Valusek
Over a ten year span, from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, Valerie Valusek gave shape to hundreds of characters for fantasy games and fiction publisher TSR. Here's a small sample of her work.
Valusek's last work for TSR was some last-minute art on a Ravenloft adventure module, which had been overlooked by an incompetent art director. Valusek was unfairly blamed for the scheduling problems and her long-standing relationship with TSR ended.
Valusek's last work for TSR was some last-minute art on a Ravenloft adventure module, which had been overlooked by an incompetent art director. Valusek was unfairly blamed for the scheduling problems and her long-standing relationship with TSR ended.
Sunday, March 4, 2018
'The Perfect Clue' is flawed
The Perfect Clue (1935)
Starring: Dorothy Libaire, David Manners, and Richard 'Skeets' Gallagher
Director: Robert G. Vignola
Rating: Four of Ten Stars
A rebellious rich girl (Libaire) and a hard-luck ex-con (Manners) must rely on the help of her besotted friend (Gallager) when they are falsely accused and arrested for murder.
"The Perfect Clue" is a film with no clue about what it wants to be. It lurches back and forth from being a screwball comedy, to being a melodrama, to being a romantic comedy, to being a crime drama. To make matters worse, what's presented is a fair to awful example of those genres, and when it's at its best--in crime drama mode--it feels at times like we're watching scenes from an entirely different movie.
The acting ranges from standard for a film of this period and budget-level, to quite good. With the exception of one scene that feels like it was being performed for the stage, Libaire is excellent throughout. I've never been a big fan of Manners, but he is worse here than I've ever seen him; not only is he playing a fairly unpleasant character, but he's doing so with a manner that makes me wonder if he wanted to be anywhere but working on this picture.
While Libaire and Gallagher elevate the film with their performances, everything else about it drags it down... and the Four-star rating I am giving it is on the brink of slipping to a Three.
By a curious coincidence, Libaire and Manners, who had been extremely busy and appeared in a number of successful films during the early 1930s, were at the end of their careers by the time the co-starred in "The Perfect Clue". Libaire would only make two more films, Manning five more.
Starring: Dorothy Libaire, David Manners, and Richard 'Skeets' Gallagher
Director: Robert G. Vignola
Rating: Four of Ten Stars
A rebellious rich girl (Libaire) and a hard-luck ex-con (Manners) must rely on the help of her besotted friend (Gallager) when they are falsely accused and arrested for murder.
"The Perfect Clue" is a film with no clue about what it wants to be. It lurches back and forth from being a screwball comedy, to being a melodrama, to being a romantic comedy, to being a crime drama. To make matters worse, what's presented is a fair to awful example of those genres, and when it's at its best--in crime drama mode--it feels at times like we're watching scenes from an entirely different movie.
The acting ranges from standard for a film of this period and budget-level, to quite good. With the exception of one scene that feels like it was being performed for the stage, Libaire is excellent throughout. I've never been a big fan of Manners, but he is worse here than I've ever seen him; not only is he playing a fairly unpleasant character, but he's doing so with a manner that makes me wonder if he wanted to be anywhere but working on this picture.
While Libaire and Gallagher elevate the film with their performances, everything else about it drags it down... and the Four-star rating I am giving it is on the brink of slipping to a Three.
By a curious coincidence, Libaire and Manners, who had been extremely busy and appeared in a number of successful films during the early 1930s, were at the end of their careers by the time the co-starred in "The Perfect Clue". Libaire would only make two more films, Manning five more.
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Barbara at Home
French actress Barbara Laage shows that some movie stars have their priorities straight. Here she is spending some quality time at home with three of life's necessities: Comfortable shoes, books, and money (an abundance of the latter which can provide an abundance of the former).
'The Lady from Shanghai' is a beautiful mess
The Lady from Shanghai (1947)
Starring: Orson Welles, Rita Hayworth, Everett Sloane, and Glenn Anders
Director: Non-Credited [Orson Welles]
Rating: Six of Ten Stars
A chance encounter with Elsa (Hayworth), the younger wife of a famed trail attorney (Sloane), ends up drawing an independent-minded sailor (Welles) into a web of jealousy, hatred, and murder.
"The Lady from Shanghai" is, like every Orson Welles-directed film beautifully shot and visually ahead of its time. It is also features a cast that is perfect for their roles, with Rita Hayworth, as the title character, and Glenn Anders, as a creepy lawyer, being particularly excellent. Unfortunately, the fine performances and brilliant visuals are undermined by a plot-line that's jumbled and haphazard and which leaves the characters underdeveloped and just a little too mysterious. Hayworth's character in particular could have done with a little more background exposition.
Film historians (including Peter Bogdanovich in the documentary included on the version of the DVD I watched) say that Welles cut of the film was almost an hour longer than what was ultimately released by Columbia Pictures. While I think two-and-half hours might have been a big much run-time wise, I also wish the studio hadn't been quite so aggressive with their chopping. I can't help but wonder if some of the character actions would have made more sense if we what we've been with hadn't been a little closer to what Welles' had intended. (He was so unhappy with the final product that he had his director credit left off--even if it was the score and the sound work in general he the most upset about.)
Starring: Orson Welles, Rita Hayworth, Everett Sloane, and Glenn Anders
Director: Non-Credited [Orson Welles]
Rating: Six of Ten Stars
A chance encounter with Elsa (Hayworth), the younger wife of a famed trail attorney (Sloane), ends up drawing an independent-minded sailor (Welles) into a web of jealousy, hatred, and murder.
"The Lady from Shanghai" is, like every Orson Welles-directed film beautifully shot and visually ahead of its time. It is also features a cast that is perfect for their roles, with Rita Hayworth, as the title character, and Glenn Anders, as a creepy lawyer, being particularly excellent. Unfortunately, the fine performances and brilliant visuals are undermined by a plot-line that's jumbled and haphazard and which leaves the characters underdeveloped and just a little too mysterious. Hayworth's character in particular could have done with a little more background exposition.
Film historians (including Peter Bogdanovich in the documentary included on the version of the DVD I watched) say that Welles cut of the film was almost an hour longer than what was ultimately released by Columbia Pictures. While I think two-and-half hours might have been a big much run-time wise, I also wish the studio hadn't been quite so aggressive with their chopping. I can't help but wonder if some of the character actions would have made more sense if we what we've been with hadn't been a little closer to what Welles' had intended. (He was so unhappy with the final product that he had his director credit left off--even if it was the score and the sound work in general he the most upset about.)
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Hannah Simone
Hannah Simone is a fashion model-turned-actress who is best known for her role on the sit-com "New Girl." Born in London, England, she grew up traveling the world. She holds a degree in political science from the University of British Columbia, and before finding success as a model and actress, she worked as a Human Rights and Refugee Officer for the United Nations.
Simone's acting career has focused almost exclusively on comedies. Her most recent major role, aside from "New Girl", was in the made-for-Amazon Prime mockumentary "Killing Gunther."
Simone's acting career has focused almost exclusively on comedies. Her most recent major role, aside from "New Girl", was in the made-for-Amazon Prime mockumentary "Killing Gunther."
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Jon Malin
Recently, artist Jon Malin made comments and sent Tweets that got members of the self-appointed fascistic thought police squad who like calling themselves liberals up in arms. Almost immediately, they started threatening his ability to make a living, as is their favorite tactic--destroy those they don't like so they can be an example for anyone else who might DARE to express an unapproved thought.
There's an article about the situation, with some quoted Tweets here (which contains links to the Podast interviews that seem to have been what initially made him a target of the fascist-minded, would-be censors.
I had never heard of Jon Malin until I came across this latest headhunt by retrogrades pretending to be liberals, and I'm not likely to buy the titles he is currently working on. However, anyone who's living is being threatened by rampaging assholes is deserving of support, so here's a gallery of Malin's artwork. You can see more of it here. (My favorite personal favorite piece of the selection below is the picture of the mid-1990s X-Men.)
There's an article about the situation, with some quoted Tweets here (which contains links to the Podast interviews that seem to have been what initially made him a target of the fascist-minded, would-be censors.
I had never heard of Jon Malin until I came across this latest headhunt by retrogrades pretending to be liberals, and I'm not likely to buy the titles he is currently working on. However, anyone who's living is being threatened by rampaging assholes is deserving of support, so here's a gallery of Malin's artwork. You can see more of it here. (My favorite personal favorite piece of the selection below is the picture of the mid-1990s X-Men.)
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Picture Perfect Wednesday: Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow is the daughter of actress Maureen O'Sullivan and writer/director John Farrow. She began acting in the late 1950s, but her career truly took off after she starred in the horror film "Rosemary's Baby" (1968). During the 1980s and early 1990s, she was closely associated with writer/director Woody Allen who wrote parts specifically for her in many of his films.
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
Woody Allen's underappreciated homage to early cinematic thrillers
Shadows and Fog (1991)
Starring: Woody Allen, David Ogden Stiers, Mia Farrow, James Rebhorn, Kathy Bates, Donald Pleasance, Lily Tomlin, John Malkovich, John Cusack, Madonna, and Michael Kirby
Director: Woody Allen
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
A serial killer is terrorizing a German city and the citizens have formed a vigilante squad to catch him. After being cajoled to join them, Kleinmann (Allen) soon finds himself wandering the dark and foggy streets alone, dodging the killer (Kirby) and being drawn into the lives of other lonely people wandering the night.
I have a weird relationship with Woody Allen movies. The films most people praise, I find irritating and barely watchable. Meanwhile, his flops and failures, I find immensely entertaining.
Like "Shadows and Fog." It's a film that many viewers find confusing and unsatisfying, and by all accounts it was a total bomb at the box office. Myself, I enjoyed it, because I like the movies that Allen was spoofing/giving homage to--the moody, German silent movies from the earliest decades of the 20th century, such as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari."
Allen and his cinematographer use the black-and-white medium beautifully, using the shadows and fog of the title to their absolute greatest potential. The characters and the world they inhabit also perfectly capture the mood and feeling of a silent-era thriller/horror movie--expect, of course, for Allen's character who wanders through the landscape lost and confused (when he isn't working against his nature and trying to be a heroic gentleman to Mia Farrow's displaced circus performer character. Despite two seemingly strong elements to form a uniting center of the film's plot--Allen's character and the killer on the loose--that center does not exist. Like many of the silent pictures that "Shadows and Fog" draws its inspiration from, the film feels more like a collection of vignettes than a coherent whole.
If the viewer recognizes and appreciates the source material Allen is drawing upon, "Shadows and Fog" is a lot of fun... but I can understand the frustration of those who "aren't in on the joke," so to speak. Those viewers will probably be even more frustrated by the fact that Allen really doesn't bring anything new to the table in that humor or character department that even audiences in 1991 hadn't seen in other films from him. Without seeing the constant wink-and-nods relating to silent movie style and story-telling, this film quite possibly comes across as a meandering, uninspired mess that adds insult to injury with its abrupt ending that leaves almost every single story line unresolved.
I agree with viewers who might find the ending to "Shadows and Fog" weak and unsatisfying. It makes perfect sense within the framework of the film, but I would have liked it to be a bit a punchier than it is. Such a stylish movie that features great performances from every cast member (even Madonna and Woody Allen who I sometimes feel is the worst part of his movies!) should have delivered something that reminded viewers of all those good things rather than making them feel let down.
Starring: Woody Allen, David Ogden Stiers, Mia Farrow, James Rebhorn, Kathy Bates, Donald Pleasance, Lily Tomlin, John Malkovich, John Cusack, Madonna, and Michael Kirby
Director: Woody Allen
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
A serial killer is terrorizing a German city and the citizens have formed a vigilante squad to catch him. After being cajoled to join them, Kleinmann (Allen) soon finds himself wandering the dark and foggy streets alone, dodging the killer (Kirby) and being drawn into the lives of other lonely people wandering the night.
I have a weird relationship with Woody Allen movies. The films most people praise, I find irritating and barely watchable. Meanwhile, his flops and failures, I find immensely entertaining.
Like "Shadows and Fog." It's a film that many viewers find confusing and unsatisfying, and by all accounts it was a total bomb at the box office. Myself, I enjoyed it, because I like the movies that Allen was spoofing/giving homage to--the moody, German silent movies from the earliest decades of the 20th century, such as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari."
Allen and his cinematographer use the black-and-white medium beautifully, using the shadows and fog of the title to their absolute greatest potential. The characters and the world they inhabit also perfectly capture the mood and feeling of a silent-era thriller/horror movie--expect, of course, for Allen's character who wanders through the landscape lost and confused (when he isn't working against his nature and trying to be a heroic gentleman to Mia Farrow's displaced circus performer character. Despite two seemingly strong elements to form a uniting center of the film's plot--Allen's character and the killer on the loose--that center does not exist. Like many of the silent pictures that "Shadows and Fog" draws its inspiration from, the film feels more like a collection of vignettes than a coherent whole.
If the viewer recognizes and appreciates the source material Allen is drawing upon, "Shadows and Fog" is a lot of fun... but I can understand the frustration of those who "aren't in on the joke," so to speak. Those viewers will probably be even more frustrated by the fact that Allen really doesn't bring anything new to the table in that humor or character department that even audiences in 1991 hadn't seen in other films from him. Without seeing the constant wink-and-nods relating to silent movie style and story-telling, this film quite possibly comes across as a meandering, uninspired mess that adds insult to injury with its abrupt ending that leaves almost every single story line unresolved.
I agree with viewers who might find the ending to "Shadows and Fog" weak and unsatisfying. It makes perfect sense within the framework of the film, but I would have liked it to be a bit a punchier than it is. Such a stylish movie that features great performances from every cast member (even Madonna and Woody Allen who I sometimes feel is the worst part of his movies!) should have delivered something that reminded viewers of all those good things rather than making them feel let down.
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