His Kind of Woman gets a UK DVD release

From Odeon Entertainment's Hollywood Studio Collection comes the 9 May DVD release of the Robert Mitchum, Jane Russell 1950s melodrama.

Deported gangland boss Nick Ferraro (Raymond Burr) has hatched a scheme to re-enter the States and take charge of his crime racket. Dan Milner (Robert Mitchum) is a professional gambler who is roughed up by Ferraro's hoods and then offered $50,000 to leave America and head to the remote Mexican resort of Morros Lodge.En route, Milner bumps into the beautiful Lenore Brent (Jane Russell), a nightclub singer and mistress of Hollywood star Mark Cardigan (Vincent Price). As Milner settles into the rich playground of Morros Lodge, his every move is watched by Thompson (Charles McGraw), one of Ferraro's henchmen.Realising that he may be in over his head, Milner decides to make his own enquiries as to the identity of his paymaster. But Nick Ferraro is not the type of man to be investigated...

"Both Mitchum and Russell score strongly. Russell's full charms are fetchingly displayed in smart costumes that offer the minimum of protection." VARIETY

How egg-citing! Egghead's taking over Gotham City on ITV4

Batman, Thursday, 3pm & Friday 8.45am, ITV4 (Sky 120, Virgin 118, Freeview 24, Freesat 117)


The World's Greatest Criminal Mind causes trouble for the caped crusaders in An Egg Grows in Gotham when he forms an alliance with Mohican Chief Screaming Chicken in an attempt to take Gotham City. Then, in The Yegg Foes in Gotham, Egghead claims Gotham City for his own as the Dynamic Duo are eggs-communicated.

For more on these episodes, including clips from the show, head on over to my Batman page at (The Sound of Vincent Price).

And here's something novel. Egghead has raised his bulbous cranium once again in Issue 16 of the comic Batman: The Brave and the Bold. How egg-cellent is that?

The Vincentennial is looking in good shape. Scheduled for May 19-28, 2011 in Vinnie's hometown of St Louis, Missouri, there's screenings of nearly 20 of Price’s major works; participation by filmmakers/actors, critics, and academics - including Vincent's daughter Victoria and Roger Corman; and an exhibition of Price-related memorabilia.

Check out the Vincentennial website for the complete schedule.

In tribute to the late Jane Russell, BBC2 screens His Kind of Woman

Sunday 13 March, 12noon, BBC2

In this oddly surreal parody of a film noir thriller, Robert Mitchum plays a gambler holed up in a luxurious resort in Baja California where he falls for Jane Russell's sultry Lenore and finds himself being forced to help an exiled hoodlum (Raymond Burr) return to the States.

As conceited actor Mark Cardigan, given to spouting cod Shakespeare even at the most dangerous of moments, Price is at his most hysterical. Unforgettable.

Catch The Whales of August today on TCM

TCM, 1.10pm & 5.00am, Monday 7 March (Sky 317, Virgin 415)

This is a little gem about two elderly sisters living on an island off the coast of New England. Not only was director Lindsay Anderson to be congratulated on making one of his finest films, but also in achieving the almost impossible in getting legends Lillian Gish and Bette Davis to play the sisters.
Gish edges out her rival with her intuitive warmth, but that isn't to say Davis doesn't have some striking, subtle and emotive moments. Also good are Ann Sothern, as the sister's old friend and Vincent Price as the Russian emigré who tries to batten on to the sisters before confessing that 'I have spent my life visiting friends'.
Full of poignant moments, the film has an ending that is certain to have you on the verge of tears. Gish is simply a marvel, Davis as cantankerously indomitable as ever. Together, they carve out a memorable movie memorial in roles for once worthy of their own greatness. (Review, courtesy of TV Times)

For more information and audio clips, see my Whales of August page (The Sound of Vincent Price)

Nicolas Roeg: London's BFI celebrates the legacy of the visionary British director

This March the BFI Southbank is celebrating the work of Nicolas Roeg.

From The Masque of the Red Death, Roger Corman's lurid tale about an evil prince (Vincent Price) who sells his soul to the devil, to Puffball, Roeg's long-awaited return to the big screen, here's a chance to savour one of Britain's most visionary, maverick directors and his amazing collection of works in which taboos are embraced and explored.

Other highlights include screenings of Performance (with producer Sandy Liberson), The Man Who Fell to Earth (introduced by screenwriter Paul Mayersberg), and Eureka (which Roeg will introduce himself). Jenny Agutter will also be attendance at the screening of Walkabout on Saturday 6 March.

Meanwhile, Sight & Sound magazine presents The Roeg Legacy on Tuesday 22 March, in which Nick James leads a discussion about the director's ouevre.

For more information, log onto the BFI's website.

Farewell, Jane Russell!

Yep! Another Hollywood legend has left this mortal coil. RIP Jane Russell. What a woman! What an amazing life!.

I can just picture her now sharing a cocktail or two with her former leading men Victor Mature (Las Vegas Story) and Robert Mitchum (His Kind of Woman), while Hoagy Carmichael tinkles the ivories and Vincent lets rip his sly sense of humour.

Scream and Scream Again's Michael Gothard in The Valley

In the cult classic Scream and Scream Again, future James Bond baddie Michael Gothard famously played the blood-sucking human cyborg Keith, the serial-killer creation of Vincent Price's Dr Browning.

But did you know that Gothard was really quite an actor himself, appearing in such avant-garde fare as Don Levy's surreal suicide underground cult Herostratus and Barbet Shroeder's psychedelic road movie The Valley (now out on Blu-ray).

For more on this 1972 rediscovered classic, read my review...

Boris Karloff: More Than a Monster Biography

I'm really enjoying this new biography on Boris Karloff, which traces the actor's career from plain Billy Pratt from Enfield, London to becoming the first King of Horror.

It's also got some great recollections about Karloff's film projects with Vinnie.
A must for all horror fans!

Read my full review at MovieTalk.

Catch House of Wax in 3D on YouTube

While researching my article for the 3D Japanese ghost story Shock Labyrinth, I came across some clips on YouTube of The House of Wax and The Mad Magician in 3D.

I'm going to dig out my old red/glasses and try it this weekend.