Howard Hughes' Hell's Angels
by Howard Hughes
from Universal Studios
Two bright facets light up Hell's Angels, a 1930s aviation melodrama. One is the extraordinary footage re-creating World War I air battles; the other is 18-year-old Jean Harlow. Both are enough to offset the cornball story and stilted dialogue, the latter added late in production, with the advent of motion-picture sound. The movie, almost three years in the making, with a budget of nearly $4 million--very high for its day--was the obsession of eccentric millionaire director Howard Hughes. Apparently, the authenticity of the dogfight scenes was so important to Hughes that he piloted a plane himself, and ended up breaking a few bones in the process. More shocking, it's said that three pilots lost their lives making the movie. The sequence depicting an epic encounter between the British Royal Flying Corps and a German zeppelin is especially stunning, thanks to the eye-popping use of hand tinting. A bombing raid on a German munitions depot is also remarkably convincing.
The movie's other bombshell, Jean Harlow, fairly jumps off the screen as an upper-class floozy who plays fast and loose with the two leading men, RFC pilots Monte and Roy Rutledge (Ben Lyon and James Hall), one a scoundrel and one a saint. Harlow glows in the film--it's immediately obvious why her appearance here put her on the fast track to Hollywood stardom. Beauty, sex appeal, vulnerability, audacity--whatever the intangible something is that makes a movie star, it's clear Harlow had it, even as a teenager. --Laura Mirsky
The Bride of Frankenstein
by James Whale
from Universal Studios
It appeared, at the end of the epochal 1931 horror movie Frankenstein, that the monster had perished in a burning windmill. But that was before the runaway success of the movie dictated a sequel. In Bride of Frankenstein, we see that the monster (once again played by Boris Karloff) survived the conflagration, as did his half-mad creator (Colin Clive). This remarkable sequel, universally considered superior to the original, reunites other key players from the first film: director James Whale (whose life would later be chronicled in Gods and Monsters) and, of course, the inimitable Dwight Frye, as Frankenstein's bent-over assistant. Whale brought campy humor to the project, yet Bride is also somehow haunting, due in part to Karloff's nuanced performance. The monster, on the loose in the European countryside, learns to talk, and his encounter with a blind hermit is both comic and touching. (The episode was later spoofed in Mel Brooks's Young Frankenstein.) A prologue depicts the author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, being urged to produce a sequel by her husband Percy and Lord Byron. She's played by Elsa Lanchester, who reappears in the climactic scene as the man-made bride of the monster. Her lightning-bolt hair and reptilian movements put her into the horror-movie pantheon, despite being onscreen for only a few moments. But in many ways the film is stolen by Ernest Thesiger, as the fey Dr. Pretorious, who toasts the darker possibilities of science: "To a new world of gods and monsters!" Absolutely. --Robert Horton
One of the most popular horror classics of all time and an acclaimed sequel to the original Frankenstein. The legendary Boris Karloff reprises his role as the screen's most understood monster who now longs for a mate of his own. Colin Clive is back as the overly ambitious Dr. Frankenstein, who creates the ill-faed bride (Elsa Lanchester). Directed by the original's James Whale (hislast horror film) and featuring a haunting musical score, The Bride of Frankenstein ranks as one of the finest films not only of the genre, but for all time.
King of the Royal Mounted
by William Witney
from VCI Entertainment
Mile-a-minute action, with a thrill for every mile! Starring Allan Lane as your favorite cartoon hero Sergeant King who comes to life on the big-screen in a sensational new adventure. Based on the famous Zane Grey story about the Canadian mounted police. The serial deals with the Mounties' pursuit of foreign agents who have come to Canada to obtain a valuable mineral to use in their warfare against England. Bonus Features: Actor Bios| Chapter Menu| Bonus Serial Trailers. Specs: DVD9; Dolby Digital Mono; 211 minutes; B&W; 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio; MPAA - NR; Year - 1940; SRP - $29.99.
The Return of Chandu
by Ray Taylor
from Vci Video
This classic cliffhanger, in 12 mesmerizing chapters, stars Bela Lugosi in a rare turn as the hero. He plays Chandu, a mystic magician with supernatural powers, who battles the black magic Cult of Ubasto on the magic island of Lemuria, in order to free the lovely Princess Nadji. Inventive sets and excellent music make for entertaining fun! Bonus Features: Chapter Selection Menu|Actor Bios|VCI Cliffhanger Promo|Bonus Serial Trailers. Specs: DVD9; Dolby Digital Mono; 208 minutes; B&W; 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio; MPAA - NR; Year - 1934; SRP - $19.99.
The Return of Chandu the Magician, Vol. 2
by Ray Taylor
from Alpha Video
The Return of Chandu the Magician, Vol. 1
by Ray Taylor
from Alpha Video
Mr. Wong, Detective
by William Nigh
from Alpha Video
Alan Ladd: Beast of Berlin
by Sam Newfield
from Alpha Video
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