FILM REVIEW OF ''THE GRAND DUEL" (Italian-1972)

Prolific Spaghetti western scenarist Ernesto Gastaldi penned the script for this Lee Van Cleef continental oater "The Grand Duel," directed with considerable competence by Giancarlo Santi. Although he didn't helm any Spaghetti westerns aside from "Grand Duel" on his own, Santi served as Sergio Leone's assistant director on "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" (1966) and his masterpiece "Once Upon A Time in the West" (1968) as well as Giulio Petroni's assistant director on "Death Rides A Horse"(1967). In short, not only did Santi know how to stage gunfights, but he also knew about the conventions of the Spaghetti western bullet ballet. Originally, Santi was hired to direct "Duck You Sucker," but Rod Steiger's complaints prompted Leone to replace Santi. "The Grand Duel" ranks high up in the lower 25 Spaghetti westerns out of the best 100. Three things make it memorable.  First, this above-average shoot'em up benefits largely from Lee Van Cleef's iconic gimlet-eyed presence. Second, the mystery gradually unraveled --presented in surrealistic flashbacks--generates suspense and tension. Third, Sergio Bardotti & Luis Enriquez Bacalov’s unforgettable orchestral score that signals the tonal changes in the narrative.

Roughly speaking, the motives of the characters in "The Grand Duel" reverse the relationship between the old gunslinger (Henry Fonda) and youthful gunfighter (Terence Hill) in Tonino Valerii's "My Name Is Nobody." Meanwhile, Van Cleef's entrance in "The Grand Duel" imitates his striking introduction in Leone's "For A Few Dollars More." In these Italian horse operas, Van Cleef is presented initially as a commercial passenger. In "The Grand Duel," he rides in a stagecoach, while he rides in a train with his head bowed beneath a black hat in "For A Few Dollars More." In the latter film, Van Cleef concealed his face behind a huge Bible when he asked the conductor about the train making an unscheduled stop. The conductor warns him they aren't going to stop where Van Cleef's frock-coated, black hat clad character wants. Nevertheless, Van Cleef tugs the emergency cord, halting the train, and disembarks to fetch his horse from the freight car.

As "The Grand Duel" opens, lawmen fire warning shots at the stagecoach that Sheriff Clayton (Lee Van Cleef) is riding in and refuse to let Big Horse (Jess Han of "Escape from Death Row") enter Gila Bend. They explain that escaped killer Philipp Wermeer (one-time-only actor Peter O'Brien, aka Alberto Dentice) has holed up with a girl in town after breaking out of jail in Jefferson. The authorities have posted a $3-thousand bounty on Vermeer's head. Nevertheless, Clayton disembarks and strolls without any apparent concern past two lawmen and several bounty hunters to quench his thirst in Gila Bend. This introductory scene unfolds at a leisurely pace as it covers points, such as where the bounty hunters are hidden and Clayton's imperturbability in the face of death. Clayton indicates the positions of all the bounty hunters to Vermeer. Later, after our wrongly convicted hero eludes the bounty hunters during a furious horse chase. The villains kill his horse, but he flags down a stagecoach. The entire scene resembles the scene from John Ford's "Stagecoach" when Ringo (John Wayne) who was afoot clambered inside the vehicle.

The omniscient Lee Van Cleef hero dominates the action. The hooked-nosed, veteran Hollywood heavy delivers a stern but seasoned performance as the worldly-wise elder. Van Cleef smokes his signature curved pipe. Actually, when we meet Clayton, he is no longer the sheriff of Jefferson. He protested Philip Vermeer's conviction, and the authorities stripped him of his badge. Earlier, he had taken the Patriarch to court three times. Eventually, as the best man with a gun in the entire state, Clayton ushers in justice above the law. Anyway, one of the Patriarch's sons Eli Saxon (bald headed Marc Mazza of "Moonraker") accused Philipp Vermeer of killing the Patriarch, (Horst Frank in a dual role wearing whiskers), a wealthy, unscrupulous power-broker abhorred by half of the state. Vermeer suspects that the Patriarch had his father shot in the back because he learned about the silver on Vermeer's land. Meanwhile, Eli demands to know the identity of the man who killed his father. Clayton reminds Eli that the Patriarch was gunned down from behind and that Vermeer stood in front of them at the railway depot. Clearly, Vermeer couldn't have killed the Patriarch.
 

The vicious and degenerate "Grand Duel" villains qualify as challenging adversaries. David (Horst Frank of "Johnny Hamlet") rules the Saxon clan, while Eli serves as Saxon City's marshal, and Adam Saxon (Klaus Grunberg of "Fire, Ice, and Dynamite") runs the saloon. Grunberg plays Adam as a depraved homosexual who wears a vanilla-white suit, fedora, and constantly caresses a long scarf looped around his neck. The first time that we see Adam, he guns down an old man that his henchmen have thrown out of the saloon. Later, Adam massacres a wagon train with a machine gun and Brother David orders him to leave no eyewitnesses. David's words: "In a violent country, he who seizes today, controls tomorrow," epitomizes his treachery.

"The Grand Duel" plays out in three settings: first in Gila Bend; second at the isolated Silver Bells stagecoach station, and third in Saxon City where a showdown occurs in the stock pens in traditional western style. The final showdown scene is very atmospheric with Lee Van Cleef and his adversaries opening huge gates to each of the stock pens before they finally settle down to the shootout.  Santi never lets the action malinger. He does a good job with the first large-scale gunfight at the stagecoach station. The bounty vermin not only blow-up the stagecoach, but also shoot each other to increase their shares after Vermeer surrenders. The Saxon City shootout when Vermin pole vaults to safety is neat. The black & white night sequence that he stages during the Patriarch's killing has surrealistic quality. Meantime, hardcore Lee Van Cleef fans won't want to miss "The Grand Duel" for its several shootouts as well as the twists and turns in Gastaldi’s screenplay. Get the letterboxed Wild East DVD; it surpasses the full-frame, public domain DVD or the foreign, semi-letterboxed version.

FILM REVIEW OF ''THE AVENGERS" (2012)

Since the epilogue in “Iron Man” (2008) when Nick Fury broached the idea of the Avengers Initiative to billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist Tony Stark, Marvel Comics has been patiently whetting our appetites for “The Avengers.”   This imaginative ensemble epic assembles not only Iron Man and Hulk, but also Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Nick Fury.  Agent Phil Coulson returns, too.  Ostensibly, these paragons of virtue are all that stand between Thor’s scheming step-brother Loki and the fate of mankind.  Happily, Loki brings more to the table than he did in Kenneth Branagh’s anemic “Thor.” Indeed, Thor and Loki seem to have matured considerably during the interim.  Loki ranks as a first-rate, diabolical villain; he is ready, willing, and eager to kill anybody who confronts him, and actor Tom Hiddleston relishes every moment with glee.  Ultimately, “The Avengers” (**** out of ****) qualifies as Marvel’s ambitious attempt to deliver an all-star, no-holds-barred, alien invasion thriller to rival the “Transformers” franchise.  Of course, we know already that our heroes won’t capitulate, but this PG-13 extravaganza takes everything down to the wire.  Inevitably, the extraterrestrial villain--only hardcore Marvel Comics fans may recognize him—who boasts about subjugating Earth is as presumptuous as audiences who fail to appreciate the artistry of “The Avengers.” “Serenity” director Joss Whedon gives every super hero an opportunity to perform an integral role in this larger-than-life smackdown.  Reportedly, Whedon shot more footage of Captain America than reached the screen.  Nevertheless, the fish-out-of-water, World War II hero still participates in a major way.  Melodramatic, with more humor than you might imagine, but just enough tragedy to make things bittersweet, “The Avengers” doesn’t wear out its welcome.  Moreover, this 142-minute, far-fetched nonsense holds up under repeated showings.  I’ve seen it four times, and it loses none of its spontaneity.  The 2-D version is better than the 3-D version. 

“The Avengers” opens with audacious Asgardian exile Loki (Tom Hiddleston of “Archipelago”) cutting a deal with malevolent aliens elsewhere in the galaxy.  Afterward, he materializes on Earth and snatches a formidable source of energy, the Tesseract, from Nick Fury's (Samuel L Jackson) SHIELD outfit. If you’re interested, the Tesseract appeared initially in “Captain America, the First Avenger.”  Once Loki gets his power-hungry hands on the Tesseract, he plans to use it to unlock a portal in space.  Since science isn't Loki's strong suite, he recruits Professor Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgård of “Thor”) with the use of his glowing scepter to handle the mysterious cube.  Loki wants to open the portal so an extraterrestrial barbarian horde, the Chitauri, can storm Earth.  The Chitauri are merciless reptilian warriors who resemble humans but wear silver armor and careen across the skies in trios on chariots.  Before he leaves with the Tesseract, Loki also recruits Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner of “The Hurt Locker”) to do his evil bidding. Meanwhile, Fury sets out to recruit his own team.  First, he recruits Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans of “The Fantastic Four”) who hasn’t quite grown accustomed to the 21st century.  Chiefly, Captain America doesn’t know what most of the popular phrases mean.  Former Russian spy Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) lands in Calcutta to round up Dr. Bruce Banner whose alter-ego is the Hulk. Fury needs Banner because he is an expert in gamma rays. Agent Coulson calls on Iron Man with specific requests.  Eventually, Thor barges him when he learns about Loki's treachery.  Everybody boards a futuristic aircraft carrier that does more than ply the high seas.  Throughout "The Avengers," Whedon does a masterly job of interspersing comedy with suspense.  "The Avengers" contains some brilliant comic moments, but Whedon doesn't allow things to turn campy.  Moreover, Whedon manages to muster enough time for each hero to make a contribution as they contend with Loki.

 Whedon's “The Avengers” emerges as the climax to several recent Marvel Comics super hero escapades.  Thor and Captain America toplined their own respective origins stories and generated well over a $100-million in box office receipts.  If you’ve been keeping track of Marvel movies, you know the least successful super hero of the quartet is the Hulk.  Unlike “Iron Man,” “Thor,” and “Captain America,” the pugnacious green gargantuan never formulated the right mix of leading actor, atmosphere, and narrative tone.  Marvel’s two “Hulk” movies failed to forge a charismatic hero after Marvel’s major success with him on prime time television.  Director Ang Lee’s “Hulk” (2003), with Eric Bana as the title character, took itself far too seriously and tackled unpleasant issues such as child abuse.  Marvel rebooted the character with director Louis Leterrier’s “The Incredible Hulk” with Edward Norton as the eponymous character.  This adventure surpassed “Hulk,” but remained half-baked.  Unfortunately, actor Edward Norton feuded with the studio over the film’s interpretation of the material.  Happily, for Hulk, lightening strikes the third time.  Mark Ruffalo looks ideal as Dr.  Bruce Banner and Whedon literally has remade the Hulk in Ruffalo’s own image.  Hawkeye and The Black Widow aren’t exactly in the same league with luminaries like Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, or Hulk.  These two are conventional agents of SHIELD with special skill sets. Neither, however, possesses Herculean prowess.  Lastly, ubiquitous Agent Phil Coulson hasn’t changed an iota.  Like Nick Fury, Coulson has appeared in most of the films.  More than any other character, Coulson makes the greatest impression in “The Avengers” when Loki throws down the gauntlet.

There are two kinds of super hero movies.  First, you have those brawny, exciting sagas, with sparkling verbal repartee, like “Iron Man” and “Captain America,” that are lightweight but suspenseful.  Second, like “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight,” you have those that are ominous, sophisticated, literate, and rely as much as possible on realism.  “The Avengers” belongs to the first category, and Whedon’s opus ranks as one of the best.  The action rarely sacrifices its momentum for expository information about either the heroes or the villains.  Iron Man has lost none of his quirky, irreverent personality. He has the best lines and his nicknames for his companions are hilarious.  He calls Thor “Shakespeare in Park” and refers to Hawkeye as Legolas. Captain America maintains his stiff upper lip.  Hulk acquires a mystique lacking in prior Marvel incarnations, and Thor becomes the hammer wielding equivalent of an intergalactic lawman.   Again, Loki’s evil machinations keep thing interesting.  “The Avengers” is the kind of movie where you need to stick around even as the end credits roll to learn more about the villains and the heroes. 

FILM REVIEW OF "BRAND OF THE DEVIL" (1944)

.

“Brand of the Devil” qualifies as a second-rate horse opera about three heroic Texas Rangers working undercover. They are trying to flush a gang of rustlers out that have been preying on a defenseless female rancher.  “Randy Rides Alone” director Harry L. Fraser helmed this thoroughly ordinary nag from a screenplay by Elmer Clifton. If you’re counting, “Brand of the Devil” is the fourteenth entry in the long-running PRC Texas Rangers franchise.  PRC produced 22 of these epics.  Incidentally, not only was "Brand of the Devil" (** out of ****) the last Texas Rangers movie starring Jim Newill but also it was his final film.  This saddle-sore sagebrusher unfolds with this noble foreword: "Dedicated to the law officers of the Old West, who led the fight for law and order in the pioneer days of the country in 1880."  Actually, our heroes have a rather easy time turning the tables on these owlhoots. Essentially, the good guys know their quarry because they have been investigating him. Nevertheless, the chief adversary is wily enough to last 57 minutes.  Texas Rangers Jim Steele, Tex Wyatt, and Panhandle Perkins appear separately in the town of Willow Springs so they don't look like friends.  Fraser establishes the identity of the villain early on while our heroes align themselves with the rustlers-plagued, damsel-in-distress.   Nothing spectacular occurs in “Brand of the Devil.” The most unusual thing occurs when the villains frame the frontier gal for rustling. One of her own treacherous ranch hands dresses up in drag like Molly. The owner of the cattle being rustled spots him and jumps to a hasty conclusion.  Earlier, Tex and Jim encountered him, and he asked them to serve as witnesses that Molly was rustling.

“Brand of the Devil” opens as one of our heroes, Jim Steele (Jim Newill of “Spook Town”), attempts to infiltrate the gang of rustlers. The tight-lipped  chieftain, duded-up Jack Varno (I. Stanford Jolley of "Backlash"), refuses to hire him, even after Jim triumphed over an opponent in a bar room brawl.  Meanwhile, Panhandle Perkins (Guy Wilkerson of “To Kill a Mockingbird”) masquerades as "Branding Iron" McGee.  He claims he can forge branding irons that no rustlers can duplicate. Later, angry rancher Molly Dawson (Ellen Hall of "Voodoo Man") storms into the Gold Ace Saloon in Willow Springs.  She claims Duke Cutter (Reed Howes of "The Walking Hills") has purloined her white stallion. Molly starts throwing liquor bottles at the bar. Varno urges his henchmen to restrain Molly before she destroys his entire stock. Our gallant protagonists, Tex Wyatt (Dave O'Brien of “Reefer Madness”) and Steele, intervene for Molly.  Varno's gunmen tangle with Tex and Jim.  Adroitly, Jim blows the gun out of Panhandle's fist and then blasts out the saloon lights out. Jim is incredibly adept with his revolver. Molly, Tex, and Jim skedaddle into the night.  After Molly, Jim, and Tex have cleared out, Varno discovers a card with the mark of the devil's brand on it. Varno supervises a band of gunmen rustling beef in the territory.  The sight of the card unnerves Varno since the devil's brand serves as the emblem of his gang.  Moreover, only Varno and his three partners know about the symbol. The actual symbol is a white devil’s pitchfork against a black background. Mind you, the Texas Rangers aren’t advertising their official presence until they feel that it is necessary. Eventually, the villains to learn about their true identity, but not before Panhandle manages to infiltrate their ranks.  

The next morning our heroine rides back into Willow Springs. She locates her stolen white stallion along with its saddle in the stable where Duke had stashed him the night before for Varno to inspect. Panhandle watches with concern as Molly saddles her horse.  He suggests she contact the authorities.  "A lot of good the law does," Molly retorts defiantly, "Why in two months rustlers have taken most of my cattle.  I've complained and even written to the Rangers asking for help, and do they show up, they do not. From now on I'm taking the law into my own hands," Molly informs Panhandle as she appropriates her stolen horse.  "And if they want to stop me, just let them try."  No sooner has Molly ridden off on her horse than Varno and his henchmen pursue her.  Tex and Jim gallop up just as Varno and company have halted Molly.  "You two seem mighty interested in other people's business," Varno observes.  Varno's men invite Tex to look at the brand on the stallion. Tex admits the animal could belong to anybody because it has two brands. Molly pleads with our heroes. "There's not much anybody can do unless you can prove he is yours," Jim concedes.   "I'd like to give you two a friendly tip," Varno warns them.  "Keep out of my business, and you'll live longer." At this point, Tex and Jim have become Varno's mortal enemies. "You know," Tex states, "I didn't like you when I first saw you and right now I like you less because I think that horse belongs to Miss Dawson." Tex knocks Varno to the ground with a single blow when he tries to draw on him. Varno is pretty fed up with our heroes now and threatens them. "After that warning, we'll be sure to keep our backs away from you." Reluctantly, Tex allows Varno to ride away on Molly's steed.  Of course, Molly isn't happy with the outcome.  "You'll get your horse back," Jim assures her.  "You bet I will," she  vows,"but after what's just happened, I can see it won't be through you two."

 After our heroes have a rendezvous with Panhandle, they ride up onto a valley where they meet another fellow, Jeff Palin, who explains that his cattle are being rustled.  He gives Tex a set of field glasses to view the rustling.  From a distance, it appears that a woman is supervising the rustling when in fact it is Molly's ranch hand Henry Wilburn (Budd Buster) doing it.  Our heroes run down Wilburn and they give him to Panhandle. Meanwhile, the sheriff arrests Molly and puts her in jail.  Varno has a conference with his cronies and they pick cards to see who will "silence" Molly.  Bucko gets the task but cannot do it so Varno takes it.  Later that evening, Varno shoots into the jail cell that Molly occupies.  Afterward, Varno learns from the sheriff that Tex and Jim are Texas Rangers and they have taken Molly into custody.  Varno decides to set a trap for the Rangers and uses Panhandle to set it.  When our heroes show up at a cabin in the old cottonwoods, Bucko is waiting for them.  Tex and Jim go after the cattle while Panhandle rides off to protect Molly.  Bucko catches our heroes at the cabin while Varno and his henchmen chase Panhandle after he exits Molly's ranch. Varno leaves the chore of disposing of the Rangers to Bucko.  Up till now Bucko has been portrayed as a straightforward villain but he reveals his buffoonish nature when he is left alone with the Rangers to kill them. 

 Ostensibly, this low-budget, lightweight western is about defending the weak from the wolves.  Just as the heroes have standards, so do the villains.  When Varno asks his hired gunman Bucko Lynn (perennial western heavy Charles King) to "silence" Molly, Bucko balks.  He has no qualms about killing guys, but he draws the line at the opposite sex. Elmer Clifton's screenplay is satisfactory up until Bucko is left with Tex, Jim, and Panhandle tied up and ready to die.  The cretinous Bucko decides to strum a guitar while Jim warbles a lackluster version of "Old Paint."  So engrosses is Bucko in the melody that he keeps his eyes shut while Panhandle and Tex work their way out of their bonds and jump him.  Sadly, "Brand of the Devil" is available only as a scratchy public domain print.  This lame sagebrusher is strictly a potboiler, though Wilkerson is pretty funny. 

FILM REVIEW OF ''THE FAN" (1996)

 Oscar-winning actor Robert De Niro has made a name for himself playing psychos in memorable Martin Scorsese pictures, such as “Mean Streets,” “Taxi Driver,” “Goodfellas,” and “Cape Fear.”  In “Top Gun” director Tony Scott’s thriller “The Fan,” De Niro creates another psycho but one with greater credibility.  As Gil Renard, De Niro plays a Willie Loman-like knife salesman whose obsession with baseball in general and the San Francisco Giants in particular takes him over the edge.  When the Giants play $40-million to obtain the services of Atlanta superstar slugger Bobby Rayburn (Wesley Snipes of “White Men Can’t Jump”), Gil gives new meaning to fan worship.  He thinks that Bobby can solve all of the Giants’ problems.  During a radio call-in show, Gil defends Bobby from the barbs of catty talk show host Jewel Stern (Ellen Barkin).

The plot of “The Fan” (** OUT OF ****) cross-cuts between the lives of Gil and Bobby.  Gil’s sales sink to the point that he finds himself out of work with the knife company that his father formed.  Nevertheless, Gil’s descent into self-destruction isn’t the only one.  Bobby shows up in the Giants’ locker room and learns to his chagrin that he will suit up a number 33 instead of his lucky number 11.  As it turns out, rival Giants’ outfielder Primo (Benicio Del Toro of “License to Kill”) wears number 11 and refuses to give it up for less than a half-a-million bucks.  Their first day in the outfield, Primo and Bobby collide in persuit of a fly ball. During the collision, Bobby loses his good luck necklace with the number eleven on it.  Afterward, Bobby falls into a batting slump.  He starts striking out on a regular basis.  Before long the fans are booing him every time that he steps up to home plate.  Gil decides to give Bobby a little help, but this is the last thing that Bobby needs.

Veteran action director Tony Scott pulls out every cinematic trick to propel “The Fan” along to a thrilling conclusion.  Unfortunately, the film loses momentum in the last half hour because predictability paralyzes it. By that time, Gil has turned against Bobby.   The gratuitous, blood-squib squirting finale comes as less of a thrill and more of a thud in a film that is ultimately downbeat.  In other words, you won’t feel chipper after to watch it.  RoberDe Niro’s psycho character earns a little sympathy because his son in the film loves him.

It is difficult for audiences to hate a villain who can elicit sympathy from another character.  Their troubled father-son relationship shows a human side of De Niro’s Gil Renard so he never degenerates completely into a toxically overblown monster.  Instead, he is a man who paranoia and poor luck undermines him and takes him into the danger zone.  Wesley Snipes brings a virile athletic presence to the role of Bobby Rayburn.  Ellen Barkin hovers on the sidelines as a tabloid-minded sports announcer, but her role appears to have gotten lost on the editing room floor.  Sorry, guys, no nudity here either. “The Fan” is a must see for De Niro fans, but if you’re not up for foul language and the grim side of the human psyche, this R-rated effort may be out of your league.

FILM REVIEW OF ''THE ISLAND OF DOCTOR MOREAU" (1996)

Sitting through “Prophecy” director John Frankenheimer’s pretentious, half-baked, horror fantasy “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” (** out of ****) starring Oscar-winning actor Marlon Brando and Val Kilmer, may be enough to turn anybody into an animal.  Presumably, the financial success of genetic thrillers such as “Jurassic Park” and “Species” prompted producer Edward R. Pressmen to reanimate H.G. Wells’ literary classic for its third rendition.  Ironically, this deeply flawed but imaginatively updated version suffers a fate similar to that of the genetic mutants created by the titular villain on his remote island.

The movie opens on three plane crash survivors who have been adrift in the Java Sea for days.  Two of them are killed by a shark leaving our hero, Edward Douglas (David Thewlis of “Naked”), a United Nations peace negotiator.  Douglas awakens to the sight of a sailing vessel hovering over him.  He collapses from exhaustion and reawakens to find Montgomery (Val Kilmer of “Tombstone”) attending him.  Douglas is too weak to do anything more than swoon.  Eventually, the ship deposits them at an exotic island where the research center of Dr. Moreau is located.  Montgomery persuades Douglas to join him; on the basis that they have a telecommunications system on the island that Douglas can use to contact the UN.  As we soon learn, however, Montgomery is lying.  The island is actually the home and refuge of Dr. Moreau, a brilliant geneticist who was forced into seclusion due to his controversial experiments on animals.  Moreau has learned how to transform common animals into human beings, or almost human beings.

 Douglas finds himself trapped on the island, surrounded by Moreau’s beastly creations.  He tries to escape several times to no avail.  First, he stumbles in on an ungodly birth scene, and then finds himself in a half-man, half-animal zoo at an abandoned military airfield.  Finally, Douglas meets Moreau.  They argue about which way the scales of morality should tilt and dredge up Biblical passages to support their arguments.  Moreau tries to explain how his experiments will help mankind.  He reveals that he has discovered that the devil is a collection of genes.  Moreau means to sort out those bad genes and produce an ideal human.  He is even willing to accept a failure or two along the road to success, which accounts for the vast number of beast-men.  Moreau keeps these ugly creatures under his thumb by means of implants which he uses to shock them into paralysis.  Meanwhile, Montgomery keeps the creatures dazed and confused with narcotics.

The inventive but predictable Richard Stanley and Ron Hutchinson screenplay updates the 1896 Wells novel and does a good job of establishing the action in the 1990s.  The opening 40 minutes introduces audiences to everyone and everything they need to know about the plot.  Sadly, the script packs no surprises.  If you cannot figure out what’s going to happen from one moment to the next in the film then you must be on horse tranquilizers.  Suffice it to say, “Moreau” doesn’t qualify as a date movie, (unless you never want to see your date again).  Some of the gruesome looking creatures may even go on to inhabit the island of your dreams.  Stan Winston’s creature designs are impressive.  His mutants look as convincing as mutants could possibly look.  Sometimes, they are even nauseating.  Typically, they retain the basic shape of the animal from which they were mutated so they have a beastly looking head, hands and feet, while the rest of them is hidden beneath their apparel to conserve on costs.  The first grisly glimpse that Douglas gets is a multi-breasted beast mother siring an “E.T.” infant.  The other animals are a hideous collection of mutants with claw hands and snaggled teeth.  They gallery of beast men and women appears twice as grisly, gyrating their horrid bodies as Montgomery peddles narcotics to kill them happy. 

Marlon Brando treats moviegoers to another of his characteristically peculiar performances.  There is nothing ordinary about Brando’s brilliant but eccentric Dr. Moreau.  Brando stages a dramatic entrance, swathed in white garments under a pagoda-style hat, resembling a Japanese Kabuki actor in sunglasses.  He tolerates the steamy island heat and wears chalky make-up to preserve his delicate skin from the sun.  Metaphorically, this sun allergy relates somehow to Moreau’s moral infamy; he cannot stand up to the light of morality.  He appears like the great white hope in the camp of the beast men.  Brando adopts the same sissified voice that he used for his Fletcher Christian in the 1962 version of “Mutiny on the Bounty.”  He also never appears twice in the same wardrobe.  One scene finds him garbed like a nocturnal fridge raider while in another scene he appears bundled up like an Arab sultan.

A similar air of mystery surrounds Val Kilmer’s Montgomery.  Montgomery gravitates between moments of extreme clarity and apathetic zombie like drug dazes.  Either the script is purposefully vague or (more realistically) the editors sheared Kilmer’s performance to reduce the film’s running time to 90 minutes so they could squeeze in more showings and parlay a quick profit.  Ultimately, Montgomery assumes a Lucifer-like character in his apparent rivalry with Moreau.  Again, the script doesn’t clarify this part of the story.  Is Montgomery Moreau’s rival?  We never know for certain.

Audiences are meant to identify with the David Thewlis’ narrator.  Incidentally, Thewlis replaced actor Rob Morrow of CBS-TV’s “Northern Exposure.”  As Douglas, Thewlis is required to make his eyes bulge and to act in a manner that makes him appear ineffectually wimpy. The Stanley &  Hutchinson screenplay doesn’t allow Thewlis to cut the heroic profile that Michael York did in the 1977 version of “The Island of Doctor Moreau” with Burt Lancaster as the eponymous character.  The best that Thewlis can do is fire ill-aimed bullets at the rowdy beasts.

The trouble with this take on Wells classic is that movie audiences may find themselves frustrated because the only sympathetic character is a dud.  Thewlis does hold his own in his confrontations with Moreau as they argue about morality.  Moreau alleges that they has found evil and resolves to destroy it.  In destroying it, Moreau has recreated evil in his own warped image.  The atmospheric photography by William Fraker makes “Moreau” both fun and interesting to gaze at for long stretches.  Fraker lensed the action on location in sunny Australia.  In fact, “Moreau” looks as god as any movie that Frankenheimer has directed. The 66-year old director carved out his reputation back in the 1960s with classics such as “The Manchurian Candidate,” “Seven Days in May,” “Grand Prix,” and “Seconds.”  In his 1979 thriller “Prophecy,” Frankenheimer explored the theme of wildlife gone crazy because of polluted streams so he brings considerably artistry and some knowledge about the genetics in “Dr. Moreau.”

“The Island of Dr. Moreau” ranks as an ambitious but flawed horror fantasy.  Anybody who relishes Frankenheimer’s version of “Moreau” can hope that someday New Line Cinema will release a director’s cut that restores the lost parts of the film.  Indeed, an unrated director's cut was released, but it included on four extra minutes of footage. This well-made but routine epic concludes with Douglas moralizing about how Moreau’s island serves as a microcosm of the world and that we must all go in fear of man’s unstable nature.  The only thing that audiences can really go in fear of is the sequel that might lie over the horizon.  Troubled plagued the production from start to finish. Kilmer switched characters from Douglas to Montgomery.  Reportedly Kilmer--who was enduring a divorce at the time--clashed with director Richard Stanley.  Kilmer's clout was such that Stanley was gone and Frankenheimer took over the helm.  Frankenheimer experienced similar problems with Kilmer as well as Brando.

FILM REVIEW OF ''GET THE GRINGO" (2012)

Mel Gibson is back in top form as a gimlet-eyed career criminal in freshman director Adrian Grunberg's "Get the Gringo," (*** OUT OF ****) a gritty, gory, hard-boiled crime thriller set inside a corrupt Mexican prison, like Tijuana's El Pueblito, where anything goes. Good movies don't dawdle, and rarely does this bullet-riddled, shoot'em up about life behind bars telegraph its next move. Any prison where an inmate's family can move in with him while he serves time is pretty unusual. This prison resembles something out of a trigger-happy Robert Rodriguez actioneer. Men come and go with loaded weapons in plain sight. You can even shell out bucks for a shot of heroin administered by needle in a grungy shop. Everything in this replica of Tijuana's El Pueblito has a price. As an anonymous convict, Gibson provides the kind of voice-over we usually hear in a loquacious Martin Scorsese film. Gibson's sarcastic commentary about El Pueblito with its unusual routines and procedures highlights the surreal nature of the squalid setting. Nobody delivers a bad performance, and Hollywood regulars like Bob Gunton, Patrick Bauchau, and Peter Stormare flesh out the film with familiar faces.

You never really know for certain where things are going in this violent, amoral, tongue-in-cheek, 95-minute melodrama."Get the Gringo" opens with Driver (Mel Gibson of “Payback”) and his wounded partner in clown outfits careening down the highway with cops in close pursuit. Desperately, Driver plows his car through the border fence, and the Mexican police arrest him. The Texas police try to persuade their Mexican counterparts to remand him into their custody. Instead, one glance at two duffel bags bulging with a million dollars prompts the Mexicans to keep him on their side of the border. Once Driver lands in the big house, he gets chummy with a 10-year-old kid (Kevin Hernandez of "The Sitter") who is plotting to exact revenge on another criminal, Javi (Daniel Gimenez Cacho of "Cronos"), who killed his father. The 10-year old's mother and father were incarcerated for selling narcotics. Initially, Driver uses cigarettes to bribe the youngster into silence. You see, the youngster saw Driver rob a fat, slimy heroin dealer after he set a fire to create a distraction. Afterward, Driver decides to use the youth as his eyes and ears inside the prison. Interestingly, "Get the Gringo" could be compared to the silent Charles Chaplin comedy "The Kid" because an adult sets out to help a less fortunate child. Primarily, the filmmakers use the child to make Driver appear more sympathetic. Gradually, Driver learns the ropes and uses them to get ahead of the opposition. 

Before long Driver's nemesis Frank (Peter Stormare of "The Million Dollar Hotel") dispatches professional killers to ferret out the millions that Driver stole from him. They track down the crooked cops who arrested Driver and start cutting off toes to recover the purloined millions. Meantime, Driver struggles inside the prison to gain Javi's confidence and engineer a deal so he can get out, go back to America, and kill Frank. Driver has no respect for anybody but himself, and he abhors Javi with a passion. It seems that the bathrobe-clad prison kingpin has singled out the 10-year old for preferential treatment. As it turns out, the youth has a liver compatible with Javi's blood type, and Javi needs a fresh liver.  Javi hires a surgeon (Patrick Bauchau of "A View to a Kill") to harvest the youngster's liver and transplant it into his body.  Interestingly, "Get the Gringo" could be compared to the silent Charles Chaplin comedy "The Kid" because an adult sets out to help a less fortunate child.  Indeed, aside from the urchin who befriends him, Gibson is as virtuous as Saint Peter compared with the murderous malcontents who populate the prison.

.

Life in "Get the Gringo" is cheap, and death occurs when you least expect it. Three armed guys stroll into the prison at one point and try to ice Driver. They hit everybody but Driver. Bodies litter the premises. The Warden (Fernando Becerril of "Ravenous") informs Javi, who rules the prison with his thugs, that the government plans to shut them down as a consequence of the gunfight. Of course, the whole point to any prison picture is how the hero manages to escape. Happily, Gibson survives with everything intact, while the treacherous villains bite the dust. Grunberg orchestrates several chaotic shoot-outs, and Gibson is by no means a typical convict. When they fingerprint him, the authorities discover that he has burned off his fingerprints. Everybody is out to take advantage of him, even some treacherous Americans, but Driver turns the tables on everybody.

 "Blackout" production designer Bernardo Trujillo has performed miracles with the closed down Veracruz prison where "Get the Gringo" was lensed on location. Grunberg and Trujillo have managed to recreate a world teeming with the dregs of humanity, a microcosm of Hell, where men degenerate into brutish savages and display no qualms about killing each other. Basically, what you've got is survival of the fittest in the worst place on Earth. This miserable hell hole turns out to be a paradise ripe for the plucking for the self-serving Driver who has just eluded the Texas police with several millions of dollars in loot.

Initially, "Get the Gringo" was entitled "How I Spent My Summer Vacation." At least the latter title has some irony, but "Get the Gringo" gets to the point quicker and summarizes the action. Director Adrian Grunberg gives a good account of himself. The prison setting looks thoroughly authentic, and Grunberg relies on Mexican music to evoke the culture. Fans of Mel Gibson who haven't seen him in a gripping action thriller since his "Lethal Weapon" days won't feel like they have been shortchanged. Gibson has done nothing like "Get the Gringo," and no Hollywood epic has depicted life behind bars as "Get the Gringo." Life below the border has never been presented so pungently unless you've seen something comparable like Luis Buñuel's 1950 crime movie "The Young and the Damned."  Incidentally, "Get the Gringo" is available in America only as a video-on-demand through Direct TV, while the film is showing in theaters in the rest of the world.