The Official Olive Films Thread

[kuro_sawa]

Fuller transcends the B-movie. Hopefully someone will get Park Row out on blu ray. I have the MoC dvd and it is one of my favourite of his if not the favourite.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by oildude

Fuller's film, even if flawed in some respects, is a very real reminder of the time in which it was made. There were good reasons for the red scare and paranoia in the Western democracies in the late 1940s through the 1950s, which we today see reflected in some of the films from that time. Communism seemed monolithic and lethally dangerous within a few short years after WWII. Stalin blockaded Berlin in an attempt to overturn the divided occupation of the former Nazi capital (and underestimated the U.S. during the 1948-1949 Berlin airlift). This was immediately followed by the Soviets successfully testing their first nuclear bomb in 1949. It wasn't just that the U.S. no longer had the monopoly on nuclear weapons, or that Russia had developed it own bomb.....STALIN had the bomb, and he got it much earlier than he would have working on his own thanks to a few high placed Communist-sympathizing spies working inside the Manhattan Project and the U.S. weapons program. The Soviets would have developed a bomb by the 1950s, and the West knew this, but the spies passed information that allowed Lavrenty Beria's science teams to verify development and testing concepts that worked and not waste time on false paths. It is hard for us to appreciate today the total impact and paranoia of that earlier-than-expected Soviet A-bomb test on world events.

To add to this shocking development, in that same fateful year of 1949, Mao's Communists finally overran all of China. In June 1950, North Korea launched its savage and bloody invasion of the South and suddenly the U.S. was leading a UN coalition fighting a hot war against Communist aggression only five years after the end of WWII. China's entry into Korea and increasing Soviet support (including fighter aircraft and pilots) threatened to escalated the consequences of a regional conflict. Concurrent with these events, the French were fighting their own war in Indochina. France, in trying to hang on to its colonial Indochinese empire, was using Korea and the Cold War as an excuse to successfully press the U.S. for enormous amounts of aid - and repeated requests for U.S. air force intervention which never came - in its war against the Communist-led Viet Minh. Dien Bien Phu put paid to that in 1954.

Communist spies really were inside the U.S. and other Western governments, and there were sympathizers and fellow travelers in other positions in society, including Hollywood. The red scare did not exist in a vacuum, and it wasn't an imaginary boogey-man. The world really was a dangerous place, issues were not always black and white and were frequently gray, and the democracies truly believed they were under mortal assault, from without but also from within.

For this reason, I loved watching The Atomic City and China Gate back-to-back yesterday. They're both fascinating films when viewed in the context of the time.

Senator McCarthy tends to be demonized in media these days, and the Red Scare is generally viewed as a witch hunt, but Soviet documents that were made public after 1991 showed that Communist infiltration in the United States was more serious of an issue than previously imagined.

I am also fascinated by another Olive title, The Red Menace (1949), because this film is considered campy by many contemporary reviewers, but some of the espionage techniques employed in the story were apparently quite authentic. As is, I think that it's a nifty film noir.

I have always been an enthusiastic fan of Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and of its source novel, The Body Snatchers, which was written by Jack Finney. A popular opinion is that the story was an allegory about McCarthyism, but I remember reading several years ago that Jack Finney clarified in an interview that the novel was actually about Communist infiltration. I wish that I could find that actual interview.


EDIT: My comments about The Red Menace from a few months ago...

This movie about the dangers of Communism gets a lot of flak in most reviews for being over-the-top or unintentionally comical, but I approached tonight's viewing in an earnest fashion, and I found it to be a surprisingly engaging noir-edged thriller. It's fun to watch the lead character, a disenchanted war veteran, become ensnared into the Conmunist Party by a couple of femme fatale-esque babes, and I loved the sinister opening sequence that leads to an extended flashback.

It's interesting how The Red Menace touches on a few issues that are still edgy today, namely during a sequence when a character launches into a tirade about hyphenated-Americans and racial stereotypes. The movie also takes on a renewed resonance in the wake of Soviet archive documents that were released to the American press following the collapse of that government in 1991 to prove that the Red Scare was not just a pointlessly paranoid witch hunt after all.

This movie would make a fine double feature with the Val Lewton production, The Seventh Victim, or with Don Siegel's Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

[oildude]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

For this reason, I loved watching The Atomic City and China Gate back-to-back yesterday. They're both fascinating films when viewed in the context of the time.

Senator McCarthy tends to be demonized in media these days, and the Red Scare is generally viewed as a witch hunt, but Soviet documents that were made public after 1991 showed that Communist infiltration in the United States was more serious of an issue than previously imagined.

I am also fascinated by another Olive title, The Red Menace (1949), because this film is considered campy by many contemporary reviewers, but some of the espionage techniques employed in the story were apparently quite authentic. As is, I think that it's a nifty film noir.

I have always been an enthusiastic fan of Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and of its source novel, The Body Snatchers, which was written by Jack Finney. A popular opinion is that the story was an allegory about McCarthyism, but I remember reading several years ago that Jack Finney clarified in an interview that the novel was actually about Communist infiltration. I wish that I could find that actual interview.


EDIT: My comments about The Red Menace from a few months ago...

This movie about the dangers of Communism gets a lot of flack in most reviews for being over-the-top or unintentionally comical, but I approached tonight's viewing in an earnest fashion, and I found it to be a surprisingly engaging noir-edged thriller. It's fun to watch the lead character, a disenchanted war veteran, become ensnared into the Conmunist Party by a couple of femme fatale-esque babes, and I loved the sinister opening sequence that leads to an extended flashback.

It's interesting how The Red Menace touches on a few issues that are still edgy today, namely during a sequence when a character launches into a tirade about hyphenated-Americans and racial stereotypes. The movie also takes on a renewed resonance in the wake of Soviet archive documents that were released to the American press following the collapse of that government in 1991 to prove that the Red Scare was not just a pointlessly paranoid witch hunt after all.

This movie would make a fine double feature with the Val Lewton production, The Seventh Victim, or with Don Siegel's Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

I missed your take on The Red Menace when you first posted, so thanks for the "reprint" edition. I will make it a part of my next Olive order from DD or DVD Planet. It is one of those titles I keep contemplating but pushing back for other higher priority releases.

[The Great Owl]

Last night, I watched the Olive Films Blu-ray of Men in War.

This gritty 1957 Antony Mann film tells the story of a platoon that finds itself isolated behind enemy lines during the Korean War and struggles to reach safety after being joined by a sergeant and a shell-shocked colonel. There's not much else to this plot, and that's what I really enjoyed about the film. Men in War hits the ground running and moves steadily forward by defining characters with their actions and mannerisms. This movie does not present us with any big picture exposition or sloganeering, and, instead, it simply shows us...well, it simply shows us men in war.

Robert Ryan, a stalwart of classic-era film noir movies, is incredible as the battle-fatigued lieutenant who must lead his troops miles across terrain scattered with hidden snipers and mines. Much of the film concerns his interactions with the abrasive sergeant, played well by Aldo Ray, who places top priority on protecting the colonel. A young Vic Morrow delivers a compelling performance as a soldier who must overcome his own physical and mental weariness. Excellent black-and-white cinematography and effective editing place us on the ground alongside these men.

A common flaw of war movies is that many of them unintentionally make war look like fun. The truly successful films in the genre are the ones that convey a sense of the trauma and exhaustion of the soldiers. Men in War delivers admirably well in this regard, because the high-strung tiredness of these men comes across in a convincing way.

[kuro_sawa]

What do you guys think was Olive's best release of 2014? For me it would probably be Cry Danger!

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by kuro_sawa

What do you guys think was Olive's best release of 2014? For me it would probably be Cry Danger!

I vote for Cry Danger as well. That was an excellent film noir with a good high definition transfer. I wrote a glowing User Review several months back.

Olive Films did not release as many titles in 2014, but they've had some real winners. Stranger on the Prowl, Caught, Sleep, My Love, The Pawnbroker, The Other Love, and High School Confidential are all spot-on.

Arch of Triumph and Armored Attack are sitting in my stack of still-unwatched Blu-rays, but I'll get to them soon.

I'm also leaning toward purchasing The Bells of St. Mary's, The Big Operator, and, especially, Fedora.

[HorrorBlu]

^ You know, I don't think I picked up anything from Olive during 2014. They cranked out most of the stuff I wanted during 2012 / 2013.

However, looks like they've got some great titles on the roster for 2015. I'm planning on picking up several of their February releases.

[klauswhereareyou]

Speaking of Sam Fuller, doesn't Olive still have Run of the Arrow up their sleeve?

[mrjohnnyb]

Originally Posted by kuro_sawa

What do you guys think was Olive's best release of 2014? For me it would probably be Cry Danger!

For me it would be The Pawnbroker, but honestly 2014 was not as good between Olive and me as 2013 was...and it was a far cry from the great year that 2012 was.

[kuro_sawa]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I vote for Cry Danger as well. That was an excellent film noir with a good high definition transfer. I wrote a glowing User Review several months back.

Olive Films did not release as many titles in 2014, but they've had some real winners. Stranger on the Prowl, Caught, Sleep, My Love, The Pawnbroker, The Other Love, and High School Confidential are all spot-on.

Arch of Triumph and Armored Attack are sitting in my stack of still-unwatched Blu-rays, but I'll get to them soon.

I'm also leaning toward purchasing The Bells of St. Mary's, The Big Operator, and, especially, Fedora.

When I pickd up the blu I had seen it only once before and just remembered that I had enjoyed it. I was surprised when I felt like watching it a third time the next night after my first blu-ray viewing. One thing that stuck out to me after seeing it in 1080p is how much of it takes place in broad daylight! Made me think of other noir flicks that have primary scenes outside in the daytime. I could watch this one over and over though

Fedora is my next Olive purchase, I love being able to add another Wilder blu to the stack. After the holidys taking some toll on my bank account I am waiting on a good sale to get that one and some older Olive titles I haven't bought yet.

[Jobla]

This was a better Olive year for me, highlighted by:

THE PAWNBROKER (a blind buy for me)
COME BACK TO THE FIVE AND DIME, JIMMY DEAN, JIMMY DEAN
HIGH SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL
THE BIG OPERATOR
FEDORA

Nice print of CAULDRON OF BLOOD too, although that film isn't on my list.

[Akijama]

The following MGM titles are coming in March:


Alice's Restaurant (Arthur Penn)

Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold

Behind Enemy Lines (1997)

The Facts of Life (1960)

How to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980)

Night Game (1989)

What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (Blake Edwards)

Without a Clue (1989)

Best Seller (1987)

Chattahoochee (1989)

Convicts (1991)

The End of Violence (Wim Wenders)

Vincent & Theo (Robert Altman)

[duggie walker]

Originally Posted by Akijama

The following MGM titles are coming in March:


Alice's Restaurant (Arthur Penn)

Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold

Behind Enemy Lines (1997)

The Facts of Life (1960)

How to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980)

Night Game (1989)

What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (Blake Edwards)

Without a Clue (1989)

Best Seller (1987)

Chattahoochee (1989)

Convicts (1991)

The End of Violence (Wim Wenders)

Vincent & Theo (Robert Altman)

Best Seller! A terrific thriller with James Woods on top form as a ruthless hitman playing opposite Brian Dennehy. A neglected minor classic, imo.

[javi92]

Olive is really cranking them out. Hopefully they don't let their QC suffer.

[Akijama]

Dirty Dozen Double Feature is also coming in March.

Amazon pre-order

[Jaymole]

What a range of titles....2 there that I will definitely be picking up (Alice's Restaurant & Best Seller)...and Vincent & Theo if it is the unedited version.

[atfree]

Originally Posted by javi92

Olive is really cranking them out. Hopefully they don't let their QC suffer.

As these upcoming releases are from MGM/UA library, I would bet the quality will be similar to the Kino Lorber Studio Classic titles from that library.

[filmmusic]

Originally Posted by Akijama

Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold

One off my wish list, but I have made a vow never to buy a Bluray without English subtitles!
Why Olive had to pick that?
I hope it doesn't release any other from my wishlist..
First Krull from Mill Creek, now this..

[dsman71]

Olive has some other cool stuff that Im sure Akajima will be posting when they are announced. I know one title but its not scheduled for March, Ill just wait for Akajima to post

[Akijama]

Originally Posted by dsman71

Olive has some other cool stuff that Im sure Akajima will be posting when they are announced. I know one title but its not scheduled for March, Ill just wait for Akajima to post

Lol! Or someone else.

Btw, are you referring to an MGM title? Spill the beans. Teasing is not cool!