KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL is Inspirational

KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL (Blu-ray)

1952 / 99 min

Film Masters

Available at www.MovieZyng.com

Review by Mr. Paws😺

I’m a huge Quentin Tarantino fan, and one reason is that his love for movies is obvious in every frame he’s ever shot. And he’s always worn his influences proudly, drawing inspiration from countless classic and not-so-classic films…artistic masterpieces, sleazy exploitation and everything in between.

So when Tarantino enthusiastically champions an older film, I’m always eager to check it out (though I don’t always end up sharing his admiration). And whenever a critic or historian cites a comparatively obscure title that directly or indirectly influenced one of Tarantino’s, I’m similarly intrigued. In this case, it’s 1952’s Kansas City Confidential, a semi-classic slab of film noir that was one of the apparent inspirations for Reservoir Dogs.

And you can kinda see it, at least in the basic plot, which begins with a heist. Mr. Big (Preston Foster) anonymously recruits three other career criminals to commit a daring armored car robbery. Wearing masks, none of them know the identities of the others, assuring that if one is caught, he can’t finger anyone else. The plan also involves framing a floral delivery driver, Joe Rolfe (John Payne) for the crime. Sure enough, after the crew makes off with $1.5 million, Joe is apprehended and arrested. Since he’s also an ex-con, police are sure they have their man.

When you don't bother to use your turn signal.

When his alibi checks out, Joe’s released, but has lost his job and is now determined to find those who set him up. A tip leads him to Mexico, where Mr. Big has instructed his crew to wait until they can meet and divide the money. After one of them, Pete Harris (Jack Elam), is killed by local police, Joe assumes his identity for the meeting, locking horns with the other two crew members, Boyd Kane (Neville Brand) and Tony Romano (Lee Van Cleef), while awaiting the arrival of Mr. Big. However, he is already there and revealed to be retired cop Tim Foster, who has tipped off former police colleagues. But Foster’s motives aren’t quite clear. Is he working for the police, or himself?

I could’ve done without the superfluous romantic subplot between Joe and Foster’s law student daughter, Helen (Coleen Gray), whose arrival at the same Mexican village is a silly plot contrivance. But other than that, Kansas City Confidential serves up an entertaining story with a couple of cool twists, anchored by solid, economical direction by Phil Karlson. The overall performances are also good, and while Payne makes a suitably stoic antihero, the real kick is seeing three classic Hollywood bad guys in one movie (Elam, Van Cleef and Brand). 

As heist films go, Kansas City Confidential ain’t gonna make anyone forget The Killing or Rififi (or Reservoir Dogs, for that matter), but it’s pretty well put together on a limited budget. A few meandering moments notwithstanding, this is fun, fast-paced film noir that’s been given a nice Blu-ray restoration by Film Masters. And if you squint hard enough, you can kind of see its influence on Tarantino.

SUPPLEMENTAL BOOKLET - With a neat essay about Jack Elam.

Revisiting MINORITY REPORT and CATCH ME IF YOU CAN in 4K

MINORITY REPORT (4K UHD) and CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (4K UHD)

Paramount

Review by Princess Pepper😺

Remember back in 1993 when Steven Spielberg delivered two of the best films of the year? Visually and thematically, Jurassic Park and Schindler’s List couldn’t have been more different, but damn if he didn’t knock both out of the park. That's a year most directors can only dream of. Then he did it again in 2002 with Minority Report and Catch Me if You Can, both of which were huge hits and remain two of his best films of the 21st Century. Hardly seems fair, does it?

Both titles have are now released on 4K for the first time, though one has a better overall transfer than the other. Keep in mind, though, that there are no new bonus features included with either title (unless you count the digital codes). All the extra kibbles are carried over from previous releases. So these are mainly of interest for videophiles.

Tom puts together his favorite number.

MINORITY REPORT (2002/145 min) - Like most Phillip K. Dick adaptations, Minority Report plays fast and loose with its source material. From a cinematic standpoint, however, it’s one of those rare modern science-fiction films that serves-up an intelligent, thematically rich story, engaging characters and special effects-driven action in equal measures. It’s a film I frequently recommend to those who profess to hate the genre.

Tom Cruise plays John Anderton, the appointed head of Precrime, a police program that relies on technology and three clairvoyant “precogs” to apprehend and imprison murderers before they actual commit their crimes. However, when Anderton himself pops up as the future killer of a man he’s never met before, he goes on the run, convinced he’s somehow being set-up, even though the program has so-far been infallible. 

This one just gets better with age. In this kitty’s humble opinion, it remains Spielberg’s best science-fiction film. Along with War of the Worlds, it’s certainly his most aesthetically unusual, especially the desaturated colors and oddball lighting choices. Yet these touches fit the tone of the story and give the FX-driven imagery a surreal, almost dreamlike quality. I’d also argue this film also features one of Cruise’s better performances, nearly succeeding at making the viewer forget he’s Tom Cruise.

The 4K transfer restores Minority Report in all it’s washed-out, lens-flared glory. The overall image is excellent, with a lot of detail and grain retention. 5.1 DTS-HD Master audio track is the same as the original Blu-ray, but does the job nicely.

EXTRA KIBBLES: FEATURETTES - The Future According to Steven Spielberg (this is the best of the bonus features); Inside the World of Precrime; Philip K. Dick, Steven Spielberg and Minority Report; Future Realized; Props of the Future; Highlights from Minority Report from the Set; Commercials of the Future; Previz Sequences; From Story to Screen; Deconstructing Minority Report (multi-part feature); The Stunts of Minority Report (three-part feature); ILM and Minority Report (six-part feature about various special effects sequences); Production Concepts (five-part feature); STORYBOARD SEQUENCES; TRAILERS; DIGITAL COPY

"I told him I was from Uranus."

CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (2002/141 min) - As he got older, Steven Spielberg appeared increasingly willing to give any genre a shot. This time, he brings a fast, fun game of cat-and-mouse, loosely based on the real life of Frank Abagnale Jr. During the mid-sixties, Frank (Leonardo DiCaprio) successfully forged millions of dollars in checks, passing himself off as a pilot, a doctor and a lawyer, all while he was still a teenager. Pursuing Frank is Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks), a straight-laced fed obsessed with catching his quarry. Though on opposite sides of the law, the two discover they have more in common than either would care to admit, even developing some mutual respect for each other. 

Anchored by excellent performances by the two leads, both characters are dynamic enough that it’s difficult to peg either as a concrete protagonist or antagonist. It's fun to watch Frank Jr. and Carl try to outwit each other, and both are so likable that viewers may find themselves rooting for both. Once again, Spielberg continues his string of terrific, decidedly adult fare that showed he was more than a fantasy merchant. The breezy tone he achieves suits the whirlwind story, though it does plays a bit fast and loose with the facts of the story (but who cares?).

That being said, I’m not quite as enthusiastic about the 4K transfer here. Granted, the movie looks and sounds great, but to be honest, I didn’t notice a hell of a lot of improvement over the Blu-ray release (it might even look worse in places). The 5.1 DTS-HD Master audio track is also identical to the original Blu-ray. 

EXTRA KIBBLES: 4K, BLU-RAY & DIGITAL COPIES; FEATURETTES - Catch Me if You Can Behind the Camera; CAST Me if You Can: The Casting of the Film (five-part feature); Scoring Catch Me if You Can (interview with John Williams); Frank Abignale: Between Reality and Fiction (four-part feature with cast, crew and Abignale himself); The FBI Perspective (featuring technical advisor William J. Rehder); Catch Me if You Can: In Closing; PHOTO GALLERIES

A HYENA IN THE SAFE: The Groovy Side of Giallo

A HYENA IN THE SAFE (Blu-ray)

1966 / 92 min

Celluloid Dreams

Review by Mr. Paws😼

Now here’s a rare - and weird - piece of Italian giallo. While also incorporating heist, mystery and psychedelic elements, A Hyena in the Safe is an interesting obscurity from the mid-60s that I suspect few fans of the genre have seen…much less heard of. 

Months after a massive diamond heist, the international crew who committed the robbery gather at mansion to open the safe where they're being kept. Each person has a key, but the safe can only be opened if all six are used. However, there are complications. First, one of the crew, Boris, has since died and supposedly gave his key to sultry wife Anna, who no one entirely trusts. Worse yet, cocky, drug-addicted safecracker Albert has apparently lost his key, leading to more suspicion, especially of Jeanine, the girlfriend he brought along. 

Then one-by-one, people start dying. Everyone is a suspect, including Boris, whom some are convinced isn’t actually dead. Part of the fun of watching this is we suspect everyone, too. Throughout the narrative, we don’t know who to trust, especially with damn near each character teaming up with another to screw over the rest…at least until one of them dies. In fact, it may not be just one person doing all the killing.

"She came with the jacket."

While logic and plausibility may not be in large supply, that’s never been a prerequisite for good giallo. Watching the story unfold is pretty entertaining - as is the morally questionable behavior of its characters - and comes to an amusingly ironic conclusion. Overall, the performances are quite good, featuring a cast of largely unknown actors, many of whom didn’t go on to do much else. But the film’s strongest assets are aesthetic. A Hyena in the Safe has great production design and stylish cinematography, along with a few creative death scenes. Appropriately, this disc features an excellent restoration that nicely captures the colorful psychedelic vibe prevalent throughout the film.

A Hyena in the Safe isn’t some lost classic. Director Cesare Canevaro is certainly no Argento or Bava, nor does his film hold a candle to the best giallo of the era. But it’s a lot of devious fun in the moment and worth discovering for genre fans. In addition to a nice batch of revealing bonus features, ordering this disc through the Celluloid Dreams website will also nab you a series of 12” x 8” lobby card replicas.

EXTRA KIBBLES

FEATURETTES - 7 Guests for a Massacre is a good 50-minute retrospective featuring interviews with director Cesare Canevaro, and others; The Mysteries of Villa Toeplitz takes a look at the mansion location today.

VIDEO ESSAY - Schrodinger’s Diamonds is an interesting analysis by Andy Marshall-Roberts.

AUDIO COMMENTARY - By critic Guido Henkel.

TRAILER

IMAGE GALLERY - With posters and lobby cards.

REVERSIBLE COVER

BLACK PHONE 2: Another Call From The Grabber

BLACK PHONE 2 (Blu-ray)

2025 / 114 min

Universal

Review by Josey, the Sudden Cat🙀

2021’s The Black Phone didn’t really leave the door open for a sequel, but when has that ever stopped anybody, especially in the horror genre? When your film becomes a sleeper hit, of course you wanna keep the ball rolling. Naturally, director/co-writer Scott Derrickson finds a way, and if you haven’t yet seen the first film, I suggest you stop reading now to avoid spoilers.

At the end of The Black Phone, notorious child murderer The Grabber (Ethan Hawke) was killed by his latest abductee, Finney (Mason Thames), who had considerable help from the ghosts of previous victims, as well as his clairvoyant kid sister, Gwen (Madeleine McGraw). The sequel takes place four years later. Finney is an angry teenager still tormented by his experience, while Gwen is having dreams of child murders that occurred at Alpine Lake Camp decades earlier, where their mother was a counselor. These dead kids were the first victims of Wild Bill, who’d someday achieve infamy as The Grabber.

The Grabber may be dead, but he’s still plenty pissed, and one hell of a Chatty Cathy this time around. Black Phone 2 brings him back as sort of a revenge-fueled Freddy Krueger, hell bent on making Finn suffer by torturing and killing Gwen. The siblings end up at the same camp, figuring that destroying The Grabber for good requires finding the bodies of his first three victims (though I’m not sure how they come to that conclusion). Helping them out are Ernesto (Miguel Mora), the brother of one of The Grabber’s victims who’s sweet on Gwen, Alpine Lake supervisor Armando (Damian Bichir), and a couple of religious zealots whose main narrative purpose appears to be showing how awful Fundamental Christians can be (admittedly, seeing them repeatedly put in their place is pretty satisfying).

"Other people need to use the phone too, you know."

While resurrecting a killer as a supernatural entity has been done a gajillion times before, Derrickson at least deserves a scratch behind the ears for not simply cranking out the same movie over again. Additionally, Black Phone 2 has its share of creepy, atmospheric moments (setting the story at an isolated camp during a winter storm is a nice touch), as well as dedicated performances by its cast. But overall, the movie is merely watchable without ever creating the dread of the first film, despite some disturbing sequences. Visually, The Grabber has been given a gruesome upgrade, but he also talks too much this time around, which tends to defuse some of his menace, as does seeing him skating around on a frozen lake like a demented hockey goon.

And after two movies, I’m still not sure why an actor like Ethan Hawke would bother with such a role. He does a fine job, but even more so than the first film, he’s buried behind a mask and prosthetics, and none of The Grabber’s dialogue really requires an actor of his caliber. Like Jason Voorhees, the character could’ve been played by anybody. Still, for a sequel to a film that arguably didn’t need one, Black Phone 2 is well-directed and just engaging enough to justify its existence.

EXTRA KIBBLES

FEATURETTES - Dialed In: The Cast of Black Phone 2 has the cast discussing their characters and praise their co-stars (though Ethan Hawke is noticeably absent); A Story Carved in Ice; Frozen in Time is about the shooting locations and setting..

AUDIO COMMENTARY - By director/co-writer Scott Derrickson.

DELETED SCENES

LAW & ORDER: THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL SERIES: TV's Greatest in One Big Box

LAW & ORDER: THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL SERIES (DVD)

1990-2010

20,718 min (20 Seasons; 456 Episodes; 104 discs)

Universal

Available at www.MovieZyng.com

Review by Carl, the Couch Potato😸

The original Law & Order gets my vote for the greatest TV series of all time. Even if one doesn’t concur, you’d be hard pressed to name another show that remained so remarkably consistent after 20 years, while surviving countless casting changes. Ratings may have dipped in later years, but in terms of new stories, the quality of writing and an uncanny knack for introducing viable new characters to replace departing ones, it never wore out its welcome. Not bad for a series where the narrative structure of every episode was almost identical.

Not to date myself, but I remember getting hooked on the show back in the 90s, when it aired on Thursdays at 10:00. Juggling both work and college at the time, this was the only weeknight I was compelled to stay up a bit later. Sure, I’d be a little groggier on Friday, but these stories (“Ripped from the Headlines!”) were almost always worth the need for that extra cup of coffee the next morning. 

Syndication was a godsend, since many of the cable networks picking up the show knew its bingeworthiness before binging became commonplace, and there was nothing better than a Law & Order marathon on TNT or A&E. On another personal note, a life-threatening illness once put me in the hospital for three months, and during those endless hours & days between tests and procedures, those marathons (which seemed to air almost daily) were some of the few bright spots of those dreary, bedridden days. It didn’t matter that I’d seen most of the episodes before, because they were almost always rewatchable, and as it turns out, timeless. Today, it’s still hard not to get sucked into an old episode when it shows up on TV. Even my two daughters, who weren’t even alive when it first aired, have gotten into it.

What’s ultimately great about having all 20 seasons of the original Law & Order on DVD is you’re not subjected to the scheduling whims of whatever network is currently airing re-runs, to say nothing of having to sit through commercials. Better yet, no streaming service required! But best of all, it turns out that even after 35 years, I still hadn’t seen every episode ever produced, and it wasn’t until now that I finally caught the series pilot, “Everybody’s Favorite Bagman” (which didn’t actually air until episode six of Season One). In fact, there were quite a few episodes during the first couple of seasons that were new to me, probably because it was during the Jerry Orbach era (starting Season Three) that I originally got hopelessly hooked (and it doesn’t seem like those earlier years show up in reruns quite as often).

Jerry hands Chris his pink slip.

For the sake of expediency, I have not gone through every single episode (yet). That would literally take weeks…without pausing to sleep, eat or go to my day job. So instead, I viewed a few episodes from each era, determined by major casting changes. I’m personally partial to those featuring Sam Waterston, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jesse Martin, Benjamin Bratt, Dennis Farina and, of course, Jerry Orbach, who made Lenny Briscoe the show’s greatest character (losing Orbach was a huge blow, but successor Farina was wonderful in his own right). But there are great episodes from every year, including the last couple (which I felt were the weakest, but still featured solid storytelling). 

In addition to good writing and well-rounded characters, one thing I always liked about the show was its unpredictability. Never afraid to tackle dark (sometimes very dark) subject matter, you never knew whether or not a particular episode was going to end happily, with justice being served. Even the actions and motives of its major characters would occasionally be morally or ethically ambiguous. Much like real life, I suppose. 

Every season has been released on DVD before, but never together in a single massive boxed set. I don’t know if there are any technical upgrades for this one, but the overall picture and sound quality is very good, though the older seasons show some inevitable signs of age. Speaking of which, Law & Order has been around so long that the first four seasons were shot in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, which was standard for TV back then (dark days indeed), so I had to adjust my settings. Subsequent seasons widened things up to 1.78:1. Each season come in its own individual keepcases, all of which are housed in a sturdy, nicely designed box. 

While Law & Order has since been revived with new seasons (and a mostly new cast), this set features only the original series run. That suits me just fine because, while decent, the rebooted series just doesn’t quite have the same punch (or maybe the formula has finally run its course). The twenty seasons featured here (on 104 discs!) represent dramatic television at its very best. If you haven’t already been collecting this stuff on DVD over the years, Law & Order: The Complete Original Series is a must own. 

EXTRA KIBBLES

DELETED/EXTENDED SCENES

CAST PROFILES

SET TOUR 

CROSSOVER EPISODES - Episodes of other NBC shows of the era where L&O characters appeared.