Reviews
Gladiator (2000)
Well done movie, for action fans.
The movie is straight forward without the usual fanfare. Action fans will enjoy the fight scenes. Interesting items relating to the movie were that after 100 movies and 1000 books on the Caesars and Rome depicting the Pretorian Guard with their cloaks and helmet plumes colored red, this movie dresses them in black.It also appears that the choreographer of the battle scene, at the start of the movie, is the same person who did the battle scenes for Braveheart or at least copied the approach. The other note of comparison is that Commodus did not have the strength of power to have Maximus killed for his defiance in the arena whereas Caligula would have certainly ignored the people's demand for life. The movie does depict the power struggle within the Senate and the harsh brutality of the Roman Arena. As an action movie fan, I found the movie very enjoyable.
Kings of the Sun (1963)
Shame it is not on video
Enjoyed this movie very much. Acting was good and so was the story line. At no time does the movie get away from the story line. Yul Brynner plays his role of the Indian chief as only Yul Brynner can portray a character. The idea of the Myans being chased into south Florida by a band with superior weapons is very plausible. Just a shame that it was never released on video.
Walk Like a Dragon (1960)
Typical western with a slight twist
The movie is very typical of westerns with the exception of the role played by Mel Torme. Also it was different with a chinese man becoming a gunfighter. Very unusual for that time era. Jack Lord plays the usual hero. Protect the girl - fall for the girl - lose the girl.
Bad Bascomb (1946)
An original movie of a bad guy turned good.
This was a good movie without any of the present day special effects. No swearing, no nudity and no sex. Just plain old good acting. Unfortunately, you have to be a fan of the older movies to really appreciate the quality of this movie and the actors of the era. J. Carrol Nash played the same type of villain as he did in Beau Geste, with Gary Cooper.