D.O.A. and BORDERLINE: A Great Collection...Save For One Thing

FILM NOIR CLASSICS: D.O.A. and BORDERLINE (Blu-ray)

1950 / 171 min (2 movies)

VCI Entertainment

Review by Mr. Paws😺

On one hand, this Blu-ray double feature from VCI Entertainment is a must grab for film noir fans, since it pairs an influential classic with a forgotten gem. On the other hand, the bonus features raise a huge red flag that one can hope isn’t an ominous sign of things to come.  

The influential classic is D.O.A., which boasts one of the greatest premises in noir history, that of a hapless man trying to solve his own murder with the time he has left. Frank Bigelow (Edmond O’Brien) is an accountant on vacation in San Francisco. Visiting a doctor after a night of drinking, he learns he’s been deliberately poisoned and will die in a day or two. With his time running out, Frank sets out to find out who wants him dead and why. 

Ingeniously plotted, D.O.A. serves up plenty of suspense, plot twists and questionable characters as Frank uncovers a connection between his predicament, the alleged suicide of a local importer and a stolen chemical called iridium. After a somewhat languid opening act, the film is urgently paced and atmospheric, anchored by a tour-de-force performance from O’Brien (no stranger to the genre). Though remade several times since, this remains the definitive version and still darkly thrilling after all these years. 

On the more obscure side of the spectrum is Borderline, which might be the closest the genre ever came to a film noir romantic comedy. This one stars Fred MacMurray and Claire Trevor as a couple of cops, working independently, trying to bring down a drug smuggler in Mexico. Both are deep undercover, yet do not know the other is also a cop, which leads to plenty of interesting moments when they’re tasked with posing as a married couple to smuggle dope across the border.

Frank defends his parking space.

Though not a comedy per se, Borderline is often pretty amusing, mostly due to its overall tone and the interplay between Johnny McEvoy (MacMurray) and Madeleine Haley (Trevor). At the same time, the action and noir elements keep things lively. Also no stranger to the genre, MacMurray makes an entertaining tough guy, while Trevor has fun with a character that holds her own amongst her male foes and colleagues. This isn’t film noir in the purest sense, but it’s highly enjoyable.

Sharing the same disc, both films are given pretty good Blu-ray transfers, with Borderline boasting slightly better picture and sound. But alas, I must take issue with the supplemental material. If something seems off about all four of these rudimentary career summaries, that’s because it’s painfully obvious they were created with ChatGPT. What exactly is the point of using AI to belch out generic histories containing no insights beyond what it liberally steals from other sources? Surely these films deserve a little more effort (and respect) than that, and I can’t imagine physical media enthusiasts thinking this qualifies as any kind of bonus.

Still, the movies themselves are well worth adding to your collection.

EXTRA KIBBLES

BLU-RAY & DVD COPIES

FEATURETTES - Edmond O’Brien: The Man Who Made Every Second Count; Rudolph Mate: The Eye Behind the Shadows; Fred MacMurray: From noir Shadows to Disney Light; William A. Seiter: Hollywood’s Hidden Craftsman. Sorry, but AI ain’t gonna make anyone appreciate these two films more than they already do.

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OUR 10 FAVORITE FILM COMPOSERS

BY THE FRISKY FELINES AT FREE KITTENS🐈‍⬛

We won’t bother catsplaining the importance of music to a movie. Instead, we’ll just sugeest you try watching Halloween without John Carpenter’s urgent keyboard-driven score. That being said, Carpenter didn’t make our list, but the legends who did are responsible for diverse bodies of work that not only greatly contribute to the films they were composed for, most of them are also impressive pieces of stand-alone music. 

The following consists of 10 composers, along with 10 of the scores that best represent their range and talents (from iconic to underrated), as well as the one we feel is their greatest overall and has us purring the loudest. Feel free to disagree, but like your dog, you’d be wrong.😸

10) HANS ZIMMER - Thelma & Louise; The Lion King; Broken Arrow; Crimson Tide; Gladiator; Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl; Black Hawk Down; Inception; Dunkirk; Dune. BEST SCORE: Interstellar

9) JOHN BARRY - From Russia with Love; Goldfinger; Thunderball; You Only Live Twice; The Lion in Winter; Midnight Cowboy; Mary, Queen of Scots; The Black Hole; Dances with Wolves; Chaplin. BEST SCORE: Raise the Titanic (it’s almost the sole thing that makes the movie watchable)

8) DIMITRI TIOMKIN - The High and the Mighty; Gunfight at the O.K. Corral; High Noon; The Alamo; Duel in the Sun; The Old Man and the Sea; The Fall of the Roman Empire; The Thing from Another World; Dial M for Murder; Lost Horizon. BEST SCORE: The Guns of Navarone

7) JAMES HORNER - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; 48 Hrs.; Aliens; An American Tail; Willow; Field of Dreams; Braveheart; Titanic; Deep Impact; Avatar. BEST SCORE: Apollo 13

6) MAX STEINER - King Kong; Gone with the Wind; Angels with Dirty Faces; Jezebel; Dark Victory; Sergeant York; Now Voyager; Rhapsody in Blue; The Caine Mutiny; The Searchers. BEST SCORE: Casablanca

5) ELMER BERNSTEIN - Sweet Smell of Success; To Kill a Mockingbird; Birdman of Alcatraz; The Magnificent Seven (1960); The Great Escape; Hawaii; Thoroughly Modern Millie; National Lampoon’s Animal House; Airplane!; Cape Fear (1991). BEST SCORE: The Ten Commandments

 

4) JERRY GOLDSMITH - Planet of the Apes; Papillon; Chinatown; The Wind and the Lion; Logan’s Run; Alien; Star Trek: The Motion Picture; Gremlins; Total Recall; L.A. Confidential. BEST SCORE: The Omen 

3) ENNIO MORRICONE - For a Few Dollars More; The Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Once Upon a Time in the West; The Bird with the Crystal Plumage; Exorcist II: The Heretic (the movie is balls, but the score is wonderfully eclectic); The Thing (1982); Once Upon a Time in America; The Mission; Bugsy; The Hateful Eight. BEST SCORE: The Untouchables

2) BERNARD HERRMANN - Citizen Kane; The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951); North by Northwest; The 7th Voyage of Sinbad; Journey to the Center of the Earth; Psycho; Mysterious Island; Cape Fear (1962); Obsession; Taxi Driver (the guy certainly left on a high note). BEST SCORE: Vertigo

1) JOHN WILLIAMS (who else?) - The Poseidon Adventure; The Towering Inferno; Jaws; Star Wars (and its sequels); Close Encounters of the Third Kind; Superman (1978); E.T. the Extraterrestrial; JFK; Schindler’s List; Saving Private Ryan. BEST SCORE: Raiders of the Lost Ark

GEORGE STEVENS: A FILMMAKER’S JOURNEY (4K): Heard of This Guy?

GEORGE STEVENS: A FILMMAKER’S JOURNEY (4K UHD)

1984 / 112 min

Warner Archive Collection

Available at MovieZyng

Review by Mr. Paws😺

George Stevens may not be a household name like the Hitchcocks and Capras of the world, but chances are you’re familiar with his work. If the likes of Shane, A Place in the Sun (my personal favorite of his), The Diary of Anne Frank and Giant don’t ring a bell, you clearly need to see more movies. Maybe you could start with this one.

Stevens had a long and interesting career, beginning in the silent era and anti-climactically concluding with 1970’s The Only Game in Town. In between are a slew of classics, not-so-classics and should-be-classics…a filmography to be envied, to be sure. Who better to chronicle that career than his own son, George Stevens Jr.? And if that name doesn’t ring a bell, he’s the guy we can thank for the American Film Institute and the Kennedy Center Honors (long before a certain flatulent, orangutan-haired, behemoth turned it into a joke).

Stevens Jr narrates the film, offering insights into his father’s filmmaking approach, ambition and creativity, a director always striving to try something new (as his eclectic filmography certainly demonstrates). Along the way, many of his biggest films (and one of his most notorious flops) are showcased in lengthy segments with key scenes, production footage and interviews with those he worked with. Regarding the latter, it reads like a who’s-who of Hollywood stars and power players, some in archival interviews, others who participated for the sake of this film. 

"Hey guys...what does this button do?"

However, the most interesting (and harrowing) aspect of A Filmmaker’s Journey chronicles the World War II years, when Stevens enlisted to document America’s involvement, particularly the liberation of France. His camera also vividly captured the horrors of war in footage that’s often unnerving. And according to George Jr., this is the only American war footage shot in color, and wasn’t publicly available before. Affected by his experiences, Stevens turned to more serious themes upon returning to Hollywood and created some of his greatest films.

At first, I was kinda curious why Warner Archive would choose a documentary from 1984 for a 4K restoration. However, the stunning transfer does underscore Stevens’ aesthetic gifts (and made me want to watch Shane again). Not only do the lengthy clips from his movies look and sound great, the WWII footage looks almost brand new. The disc’s bonus features also offer testimonial and personal insights from three modern masters (Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan, Guillermo del Toro). Revealing, affectionate and very entertaining, George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey is a must-watch for film buffs.

EXTRA KIBBLES

4K & BLU-RAY COPIES

3 ACADEMY MUSEUM LECTURES - In three separate lectures, directors Martin Scorsese, Guillermo del Toro and Christopher Nolan offer analysis and appreciation of specific films. Del Toro, discussing The Greatest Story Ever Told, and Nolan, discussing Shane, speak before an audience at the museum. Scorsese also discusses The Greatest Story Ever Told, but shot in 2026, presumably for this release.

Revisiting SPEED RACER in 4K

SPEED RACER (4K UHD)

2008 / 135 min

Warner Bros  

#InPartnershipwithWB 

Review by Stinky the Destroyer😼

I hate Speed Racer. Always have.

I’ve hated it since I was a kid, when the original Japanese series used to air on weekday afternoons. I’d occasionally rage-watch the thing, incredulous over its jaw-dropping stupidity and animation that made Scooby-Doo look like the work of Walt Disney (and I hated Scooby-Doo, too. What the hell's wrong with me?).

I also hated the 2008 movie adaptation, equally incredulous that such gifted filmmakers as the Wachowskis (Bound, The Matrix) would resort to pumping out a slab of bloated, soulless eye candy. I gave the movie a shot anyway (on DVD), but made it about halfway through before I couldn’t take anymore. Bereft of interesting characters or an engaging story, this was a movie that solely existed for the hyperanimated, seizure-inducing action scenes. My main takeaway was that if I had subjected myself to Speed Racer in a theater, I'd need to season my popcorn with crushed Dramamine.

But a few years ago, I participated in a podcast with a couple of guys who championed the film, making enough valid arguments in favor of a personal reassessment. Then again, these were the same two guys who also openly praised Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band without a whiff of irony. However, when my daughter and her boyfriend recently caught it at a packed revival screening, they also really enjoyed it. That, and the fact the movie was even deemed worthy of a theatrical re-release, suggested there’s a cult appeal to Speed Racer that has, so far, eluded me. 

Speed dances like everyone's watching.

Perhaps it was time to give Speed Racer another chance, which presented itself with this 4K release. First off, I gotta say that the video transfer is absolutely stunning. The admittedly wonderful production design and disorienting racing sequences really pop on 4K. This is one of those movies where every color under the sun is thrown on-screen, all of which are vividly rendered. There are two audio options, Dolby Atmos-TrueHD 7.1 and DTS-HD MA 5.1, and both are excellent…a striking balance of sound effects, dialogue and music. This means, of course, that the show’s earworm of a theme song (resurrected for the movie) has been stuck in my head ever since. If my Speed Racer-loving podcaster friends are reading this…drop what you’re doing and grab this disc right now. 

For fans, the technical upgrades alone are probably worth replacing their old Blu-ray or DVD copies. But sweetening the deal are the bonus features, including an entertaining new interview with the Wachowskis, as well as some other featurettes that aren’t quite new, but haven’t been included on previous Blu-ray releases. All told, this is a must own for those who love the film.

As for this writer…my opinion of the film hasn’t changed (though I did manage to stick with it to the end this time). Speed Racer remains aesthetically interesting for a while, but once the novelty wears off, it’s like watching my daughter play Mario Kart on the Rainbow Road track for two hours. 

EXTRA KIBBLES

FAST/FUTURE/FAMILY: SPEED RACER REVISITED - This is a new interview with co-directors the Wachowskis, both of whom have fond memories of making the film. Also includes some behind-the-scenes footage.

FEATURETTES - Speed Racer: Ramping Up is a behind-the-scenes featurette; Speed Racer: Supercharged focuses on the various vehicles; Speed Racer: Car-Fu Cinema showcases the action sequences; Spritle in the Big Leagues goes on-set with the actor who plays the film’s most obnoxious character.

SPEED RACER: WONDERFUL WORLD OF RACING - THE AMAZING RACER FAMILY is a faux documentary about the main characters.

What to Make of THE BRIDE!

THE BRIDE! (Blu-ray)

2026 / 126 min

Warner Bros 

#InPartnershipwithWB  

Review by Stinky the Destroyer😽

As I write this, I’m still not quite sure what to make of The Bride! 

Overall, it’s pretty abrasive, with dialogue that often wavers between juvenile and pretentious (to say nothing of pretentiously juvenile). The film’s aesthetic and tone frequently seem like pandering attempts to appeal to the fringe crowd, created by folks who’ve clearly drawn inspiration from better movies aimed at the same audience. Here, it generally comes off as insincere and superficial. 

By the title character’s third or fourth smirking, expletive-loaded, literature-quoting tirade, I found myself going, Yeah, yeah, I get it…this ain’t my granddaddy’s Bride of Frankenstein.

On the other hand, I wouldn’t want it to be, and the basic story of The Bride! is actually pretty neat. You just have to slog through a lot of showboating to appreciate it. Set in 1936, Jessie Buckley plays both the ghost of Frankenstein author Mary Shelley, and a depressed escort named “Ida.” Shelley narrates the set-up: following her most famous novel, she died before writing the story she really wanted to tell. In limbo for centuries, she possesses Ida, who’s then killed after running afoul of a mob boss named Lupino. Shortly afterwards, she’s brought back from the dead by Dr. Euphronious (Annette Benning) as a mate for the late Dr. Frankenstein’s creation, “Frank” (Christian Bale), who’s dying of loneliness.

The undead soon-to-be lovers end up on the run after Frank savagely kills a couple of thugs attempting to rape Ida. While Isa has no memory of her previous life, Mary is apparently capable of channeling the angry souls of other women wronged or betrayed by men, including those killed by Lupino. This turns the pair into Bonnie & Clyde-like folk heroes by similarly-marginalized women everywhere, who adapt Ida’s monstrous appearance to inflict payback of their own. Meanwhile, detective Jake Wiles (Peter Sarsgaard) and his secretary, Myrna Malloy (Penelope Cruz) lead the nationwide manhunt against them, though tellingly, Myrna does all the actual detective work without credit…at least until a key moment in the story when Wiles’ connection to Ida is revealed. Lupino himself also orders his guys to find Isa and put her down for good.

Frank and Ida forget where they parked.

Feminism and female empowerment are major ongoing themes throughout the film, addressed both subtly and blatantly. While I personally feel these provide a great foundation on which to base the story, I can also see insipid mouth-breathers screaming “woke!” at the whole idea. That is, if the movie had managed to get enough box office attention to earn the wrath of those same mouth-breathers. Instead, The Bride! bombed, meaning they missed the opportunity to boost their butthurt over a film that gleefully rips the Band-Aid off of societal misogyny. 

After a lumbering, obnoxious first act that might prompt some to shut it off, once it settles into the story, The Bride! ends up being fairly engaging, despite frequent detours into moments calculated to solicit WTF? reactions (good or bad). The two protagonists eventually grow somewhat endearing as more is revealed about them, and are well realized by Buckley and Bale (along with some impressive make-up design). At the very least, there reaches a point when we feel compelled to see how things turn out for these two.

So I guess I now do know what to make of The Bride! Worthy themes notwithstanding, the film is never as bold as it obviously aspires to be - visually or narratively - and it’s definitely too long and repetitive for its own good. However, there’s enough earnestness and creativity on display that it would be a shame to dismiss the movie entirely.

EXTRA KIBBLES

FEATURETTES - Stitching Together THE BRIDE! is your standard-issue promotional piece featuring interviews with director Maggie Gyllenhaal and most of the primary cast; Designing the Look covers the creative make-up design; The Muse and the Reimagined Monster focuses on creating the titular character; The Bride Party is about the main cast.