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bodger1
Reviews
In Search of... (1977)
Man, this is best show! Where ARE the DVDs?
In Search of is the best show! Yeh, I know there are a few goofs and inaccuracies, but this show is so well done and Leonard Nimoy did just an excellent job as the narrator. He even wrote two episodes: Great Lovers and Vincent Van Gogh. The latter is very poignant too. Several episodes are very educational and informative. Pyramid Films sold them for educational purposes to schools. They are still useful today!
As for the dvds, I have little hope they will ever be released. Universal Studios is sitting on a gold mine, but they don't seem to realize this. Even if we were blessed with a DVD release, they would probably only release one season, like they did with Night Gallery. In Search of deserves better! They deserve uncut, season sets with extras. Come on Universal!
That's my rant. Bodger1
Dot and the Kangaroo (1977)
Has anyone read the book?
Man, this is a sad film! I first saw this on HBO in 1980 and I enjoyed it, but I did not like the ending. Dot crying over her lost friend is just heartbreaking! I wondered recently if the book could be this sad too?
Being curious, I decided to track down the original source novel by Ethel Pedley. I read it and was surprised at how good it was and close to the movie and how different too!
Warning! Spoilers follow! Do not read if you don't want to know what happens! Well, after the same adventures as in the movie (except for the part about the hideous monster, the bunyip), Dot and her kangaroo friend make it to her home.
Her father is about to shoot the kangaroo, but Dot intervenes. They all become friends when Dot explains how the kangaroo saved her life. However, the best part of the book is when the kangaroo FINDS her lost joey! This is the only case where I have seen the book have an upbeat ending, whereas the movie does not. The only problem I had with the book was that it was dated.
I mean really dated with its' views on race! It was published in 1899, so there were some unfortunate racial stereotypes mentioned when they meet the aborigines. Still, this is very interesting historical fiction! My recommendation is to see the movie first. Then, read the book. Keep in mind the publication date!
That's my rant! Bodger1.
Geld oder Leber! (1986)
Geld oder Leber = Money or Liver?
Man, is that what that means? Yes! It is a play on the German saying of GELD ODER LEBEN (Your money or your life). Leber means "liver" in German. In fact, one of the characters gets a LIVER when they ask this question! Mike and Susanne Juing are desperate for money. To supplement their income, they resort to robbing banks and jewelry stores. They are pretty unsuccessful, except for one time! They manage to steal jewels and hide them in a goose in a grocery store.
After they celebrate their victorious robbery, they come back to the store where they hid the jewels. The goose has been sold! Thanks to the store owner, they get a list of the buyers and hunt for the jewels and the goose! Along the way, they meet many strange people, and even run into Austrian pop star, Falco.
GELD ODER LEBER is a neat, compact little comedy that runs only 80 minutes. While a lot of it is unbelievable, it is has some neat sight gags and was a GREAT way to practice my Deutsch! Mike Krueger and Ursula Monn are fun enough and make for a nice couple.
However, the soundtrack is the best part! Austrian pop band EAV sing several songs for the soundtrack.
Falco sings a live version of his hit, THE SOUND OF MUSIK! That alone, is worth admission.
All said, it is a pity it is not widely available in the states! It was never released here, but if you can get a hold of the DVD if you visit Austria and/or Germany and have a region free DVD player it is worth it! Especially if you love Falco's music.
That's my rant! Bodger1
Falco - Hoch wie nie (1998)
Great Falco documentary. Could use a DVD release.
Man, this is a great, but ultimately sad documentary.
HOCH WIE NIE (Higher than ever) is the seventh track on Falco's second album, JUNGE ROEMER (Young Romans). This movie is about Falco's life from birth in Vienna, Austria in 1957 to his untimely death in the Dominican Republic in 1998.
Throughout the movie, several celebrities tell about their work with Falco. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Brigitte Nielsen are among them.
Falco's old band mates such as Bernhard Rabitsch and his brother Thomas and record producers also reminisce about how it was to work with him. Among them are the Bolland brothers, Rob and Ferdi who worked with Falco to produce his most famous song, ROCK ME AMADEUS.
In the most especially poignant scenes, Falco's mother, Maria Hoelzel, remembers her son. We see photographs of Falco from early childhood to adulthood.
Clips of Falco's most famous videos are included, as well as early clips from his first bands like Drahdiwaberl and Hallucination Company.
We see a wide variety of work that, tragically, came to an end on a Dominican Republic road. The end funeral is set to music with Falco's cover version of Bob Dylan's IT'S ALL OVER NOW BABY BLUE. The end credits have the song, WE SAY GOOD-BYE, which is tribute written by the Bolland brothers and sung by Alida.
In all, this is a great documentary that no Falco fan should be without. This documentary is mostly in German, but if you can get a hold of the 2000 DVD release, FALCO-EVERYTHING, some of the same interviews with Falco here can be found on that disc and they have optional English subtitles.
Hopefully there will be a re release of this on DVD someday with optional English subtitles as well. That's my rant. Bodger1.
Recorded Live (1975)
Wacky short film I saw on HBO
Man, this is one seriously messed up short film! I saw this a billion times on HBO in 1981 and 1982.
John Goodwin gets this note in the mail telling him to go to a job interview. He drives over to this big house and goes in. At first, he sees no one. Then, he goes in a room where two reels of videotape unspool from their reels and become one giant blob-like wad.
This videotape-wad-thing chases Goodwin throughout the house. Every effort to escape is sabotaged. He does manage to get a hold of a magnet to pick up a pair of scissors on the floor and, for a few minutes, has the upper hand.
Unfortunately, it does not last. He goes into a room and puts the magnet down for a second. The wad, which has burrowed under the carpet, ambushes him. Goodwin desperately reaches for the magnet, but it is in vain. He is engulfed and devoured. The wad next spits out his clothes, types up another letter to another victim, then spools itself back onto the reels. The end. Oh, I forgot! A jolly piano song plays.
This film did freak me out, but I could not turn away! I even dreamed that thing was loose in my grandparents house and we tried to get it! I think if I had the magnet and scissors, I would have dived onto the thing! What the heck! I was surprised to find out that the team behind TREMORS started out here! John Goodwin was also in that film too! He did an excellent job and he should be proud!
There was also a music video which came out around 1984 called VIDEO and was sung by Jeff Lynne. At the end of that video, a man rolls around on a wad of videotape on the floor and that instantly reminded me of RECORDED LIVE! Thats my rant. Bodger1.
Ripley's Believe It or Not! (1982)
Man, Ripley's Believe it or Not with Jack Palance is EXCELLENT!
I absolutely love this show! Jack Palance was excellent as the host! I loved it on ABC in the eighties. I last saw this show in 1997 on the SCI-FI Channel and I miss it terribly! I was able to tape many of the episodes off of TV, but I have watched them so much that they are getting worn out. Some tapes from 1984 and 1985 are literally on their last legs! I wish this 1982-1986 version of Ripley's Believe it or Not would get a release on DVD as Season Box Sets. So far, there is only the Dean Cain 2000-2004 version on DVD and it was only released in a BEST OF-style DVD. I did write to Columbia Pictures a while ago, but there has been no response. I urge Ripley's fans to write and beg for this excellent show to be released on DVD! That's my rant! Bodger1.