Volume 1 Number 10 of UK Monthly Film Review is now available in PDF format. The bulletin includes all movies that went into general theatrical release for the first time in the UK during the period 30 September to 27 October 2023 or debuted on a streaming platform having been released theatrically in other territories….
Month: October 2023
Film Review – YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974)
YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974, USA, 106m, PG) **** Comedy dist. 20th Century Fox; pr co. Gruskoff-Venture Films / Crossbow Productions / Jouer Limited; d. Mel Brooks; w. Gene Wilder, Mel Brooks (based on characters in the novel ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley); pr. Michael Gruskoff; ph. Gerald Hirschfeld (B&W | 1.85:1); m. John Morris; ed. John C….
Film Review – TOWED IN A HOLE (1932)
TOWED IN A HOLE (1932, USA, 21m, U) ****½ Comedy, Short dist. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM); pr co. Hal Roach Studios; d. George Marshall; w. Charley Rogers, Stan Laurel, George Marshall (all uncredited); pr. Hal Roach; ph. Art Lloyd (B&W | 1.37:1); m. Marvin Hatley (stock), Leroy Shield (stock); ed. Richard C. Currier. cast: Stan Laurel (Stan),…
Richard Roundtree – The Man Who Was Shaft
My first memory of Richard Roundtree was seeing him in the TV series Shaft sometime in 1974 on Granada TV here in the UK. I thought, even in this sanitised version (I knew of no other at that point), he was the coolest thing on TV. I then realised there were some paperback novels on…
Richard Roundtree dies aged 81
I woke up this morning to hear the very sad news of the passing of actor Richard Roundtree at the age of 81. Richard had recently suffered from pancreatic cancer, having survived breast cancer back in 1993. He will, of course, be forever remembered for his groundbreaking role as private detective John Shaft in Gordon…
Film Review – 65 (2023)
65 (2023, USA, 93m, 12) **½ Action, Adventure dist. Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) (USA), Columbia Pictures Corporation (UK); pr co. Beck Woods / Bron Creative / Columbia Pictures / Raimi Productions / Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE); d. Scott Beck, Bryan Woods; w. Scott Beck, Bryan Woods; pr. Zainab Azizi, Scott Beck, Deborah Liebling, Sam Raimi,…
Book Review – THE SECOND MURDERER (2023) by Denise Mina
THE SECOND MURDERER (2023) *** by Denise Mina This hardback edition published by Harvill Seeker, 2023, 245pp © Denise Mina, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-78730-285-3 Blurb: It’s mid-September, a heatwave has descended on the parched hills of LA and Private Detective Philip Marlowe is called to the Montgomery estate, an almost mythic place sitting high on top of Beverly Hills….
Book Review – 77 NORTH (2023) by D.L. Marshall
77 NORTH (2023) **** by D.L. Marshall This paperback edition published by Canelo, 2023, 362pp © D.L. Marshall, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-80436-431-4 Blurb: An agent the world thinks is dead can be useful. John Tyler has gone rogue, pursuing an international vendetta against those responsible for killing his brother. But he’s lured back by the CIA for one…
50 years since Shaft debuted on TV – a missed opportunity
On Tuesday 9 October 1973, Shaft made its move from big to small screen with the broadcast of ‘The Executioners’ as part of the CBS New Tuesday Night Movie series. “Shaft on TV makes Barnaby Jones look like Eldridge Cleaver,” was the verdict of critic Cecil Smith of the Los Angeles Times after viewing the…
UK Monthly Film Review September 2023 (Vol 1 No. 9) issue now available
Volume 1 Number 9 of UK Monthly Film Review is now available in PDF format. The bulletin includes all movies that went into general theatrical release for the first time in the UK during the period 26 August to 29 September 2023 or debuted on a streaming platform having been released theatrically in other territories….