Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Johnny Deadline: Random Thoughts

 by JB

Oh, the flotsam and jetsam that swirl around one’s mind when it is time to attend to more serious matters...

1. I was watching the amazing new Warner Archive 4K Blu-ray disc of John Ford’s The Searchers the other night. Everything you may have read is true; it is one of the best transfers/restorations I have ever seen. The fact that The Searchers may just be the best Western film ever made is icing on the cake. I think the new disc is reason alone to switch to a 4K player if you are still on the fence, but what do I know? I just want you to be able to experience, AT LEAST ONCE BEFORE YOU DIE, this particular kind of cinematic pleasure.

Call me a sentimental fool.
As often happens when I am watching a cuddly, familiar film, I began to obsess over one of the minor players—in this case the character of Emilio Gabriel Fernandez y Figueroa, the Mexican gentleman who helps Ethan and Martin find Scar about three quarters of the way through the film. The actor looked familiar, though the beard he wears in The Searchers wasn’t helping me identify him. His voice seemed so familiar... To the IMDb I went!

Why, it’s Antonio Moreno. You know, Antonio Moreno, who played Dr. Carl Maia, Head of the Oceanographic Institute, in The Creature from the Black Lagoon! Got it! It is so cool that he was in both of these classic films, but there is more to the story.

Isn’t there always?
What a career Moreno had. He started out in silent films in 1912, appearing in two films directed by D.W. Griffith and about a hundred others before the advent of sound. He was a matinee idol, competing with Rudolph Valentino to be the ultimate Latin lover of the silver screen. He starred alongside Mary Pickford, Gloria Swanson, and Greta Garbo. He appeared with Laurel and Hardy in The Bohemian Girl. He’s in the Hitchcock film Notorious. He also directed four films, including Santa (1932), the film responsible for making Lupita Tovar—female lead in the Spanish-language version of Dracula’s—a HUGE star in Mexico.

WHAT? You don’t remember Lupita Tovar? You can read about her here.

2. Two weeks ago, I wrote about Ernie Kovacs just before what would have been his 106th birthday (January 23). On that day, YouTube channel “Clown Jewels” premiered the final episode of Kovacs' game show, Take A Good Look. This episode had not been seen since its premiere on March 16, 1961, less than a year before Kovacs’s untimely death.

The episode showcases all the wonders and absurdity of this famous game show (well it was famous TO ME). In format, it’s a blatant rip-off of What’s My Line, on which Kovacs had actually appeared as a member of the panel. Take A Good Look relied on weird little comedy sketches to provide clues for its contestants. The clues were funny, but there was NO WAY to clearly ascertain the correct answer from them. This would lead to very annoyed celebrity contestants. Cesar Romero, in particular, would become comically angry on a weekly basis because he was competitive by nature and wanted to win the game.

You can watch that here:



3. Sometimes, when one wishes to only surround himself with the old and comfortable, one’s thrill-seeking spouse steps in to demand the new and unfamiliar. This is why I recently ventured forth from my condo sanctorum and went to a new movie. It was terrific. The wife was right—my legs DO still work! It was a lovely evening. Dinner and movie? The Italian joint next to the theater has a real brick pizza oven... be still my beating heart. We saw September 5, and despite its single Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay, I feel it is being overlooked.

It’s a terrific film, detailing the tragedy of the Israeli hostage crisis during the 1972 Munich Olympics, carried live by ABC Sports because they were on the scene. Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch all give terrific performances. I cannot for the life of me understand why this film isn’t getting more attention. Is it that the film’s demographic is waiting for it to stream? Perhaps we will hear some discussion in a few weeks.
I think sometimes when a film finally goes to streaming, it joins such an ocean of other content that it simply gets lost. Let’s hope for a better legacy for this film. Incredibly well-written and compellingly edited, September 5 is a film that gets the details rights in ways that layer narrative upon narrative, each informing the other. I never get tired of watching people being excellent at their work—or movies that imply genuine journalism is important work to do.

In a few years, September 5 just might get the credit it deserves; it could turn into one of those “Well, This Is On So Let's Just Watch This” movies, like 12 Angry Men, Shattered Glass (featuring another great Sarsgaard performance), or My Cousin Vinny. It delivers.

6 comments:

  1. There's a blu-ray of Shattered Glass coming out in march, from Imprint

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  2. Also, about September 5, let's not forget the great Spielberg movie on the aftermath of the event

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    1. Yes, Munich is one of many Spielberg movies (like Bridge of Spies, The Post, Lincoln, and Catch Me If You Can) that don't seem to get talked about enough because their excellence is assumed. This is a phenomenon unique to Spielberg.

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  3. After your recommendation of the War of the Worlds 4k, I've come to appreciate when you recommend a new disc. I don't think you've steered me wrong yet. Thanks for The Searchers rec its going on the want list now. Any other newish recs?

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    1. Recent 4K purchases that exceeded expectations include North By Northwest, Horizon, and Galaxy Quest. The latter was quite an improvement from the older Blu-Ray disc.

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    2. Thanks for the recs. I've been eyeing that North by Northwest disc I may have to finally pull the trigger on it. Horizon is tempting but I'm hoping for a set with all Four movies when they finally finish their release cycle.(I'm manifesting it)

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