1980 - CADDYSHACK on BLU RAY

A very unfunny movie which somehow made a pile of money.  Probably the anti establishment focus and the silly scenes between Bill Murray and the gopher puppet sold the film to the 80's audiences.  Viewed today it's all pretty stupid to put it mildly.

 The film certainly wasn't lacking for comedians.  Ted Knight, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray and night club comic Rodney Dangerfield mug and crack jokes throughout the film.  Some are funny most are not.  Chase certainly did not bring his "A" game to the film, and Dangerfield doesn't even try to build a character. 

The behind the camera talent featured writers from Animal House, Doug Kenny and Harold Ramis where that comedy at least had a reasonably talented director in John Landis who could pace the scenes.  Ramis can barely stage any of the action as the film moves along from one set piece to another. 

However who am I to argue since the film has a big cult following today.

98 minutes, written by Harold Ramis, Doug Kenny and Brian Doyle-Murray.

1990 - DICK TRACY - on Blu Ray

The star/director/producer of Dick Tracy, Warren Beatty goes for the comic book look.  Staying with a minimal amount of primary colors The cinematographer, the legendary Vittorio Storato gives the film a real eye popping look.  This truly a comic book movie in the best sense of that over used term.

Trying to duplicate the legendary comic strip's very oddball villains, a lot of famous and not quite so famous actors are made up in some of the strangest makeup that has every been in a film.  The villains include names like Mumbles, Flattop, Itchy, Pruneface, Spud and Lips.  The look of their makeup corresponds to their names.  It's sometimes a little jarring to see such creatures in what already is a highly stylized film. 

Beatty also cast his current girlfriend Madonna probably for box office appeal.  She sings a few Stephen Sondheim songs and is photographed very carefully to put it mildly.  Beatty probably got as good a performance out of her as any other director could.  Also along for the ride is Al Pacino as the crime boss.  As usual with Pacino, he is completely over the top with his performance.  The makeup job on him only accents his typical hammy acting.

105 minutes.

1950 - PANIC IN THE STREETS, Kazan starts to grow as a filmmaker

The director Elia Kazan really gets out of the studio for this story about a modern day plague that might strike the city of New Orleans.  Two hoodlums are infected with the plague and it's up to the authorities to find them in 48 hours. 

The stars are Richard Widmark who is kind of over the top with his performance and Paul Douglas who's underplaying seems a little more in tune with the film's tone.  One of the strength's Elia Kazan brought to his films was his ability to get good performances out of his cast.  I'm not sure what happened with Widmark but everyone else is very good in this film particularly Zero Mostel as a small time hood.

The attraction of this film is really the on location filming in New Orleans.  Kazan and his cinematographer Joseph MacDonald really capture the flavor of and the era of the city in the early 1950's.  The Blu Ray makes the images really stand out.  The on location chase at the end of this film is very exciting. 

Not one of Kazan's great films but Panic In The Streets is very good. 

96 minutes. written by Richard Murphy,  Daniel Fuchs, Edna and Edward Anhalt