Cinema Cycle - The Vikings

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE REVIEWED: 07/28/2017

TITLE:. The Vikings

FORMAT: Laserdisc

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 2 hours 2 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 27.5 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 7164.9 miles

SYNOPSIS: The illegitimate offspring of a Viking and an English Queen attempts to regain his honor and the kingship of Britain.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: An ego trip for Kirk Douglas (it is a Kirk Douglas Production), with a confusing plot and a lot of nice scenery.

PROS AND CONS:  This film was more interesting the second time around, when I was able to watch it in widescreen with better sound.  The plot is a bit confusing and a little on the fantasy side.

The production value of the film is quite good.  They built long boats and filmed much of the film is what appears to be a Norwegian Fjord.  That said, Kirk is good in his role which is larger than life.  Tony Curtis seems a bit odd in the role as the runaway slave who would eventually become King of England (we assume)

Janet Leigh is mostly eye-candy in this role and is mostly an object of affection and lust.  The best part of the film are the ones in which Kirk shows off his physical acting prowess.

To read an overview of this project, check out this status posting.  

This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.

Cinema Cycle - Hit The Deck

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE REVIEWED: 07/25/2017

TITLE:. Hit The Deck

FORMAT: Laserdisc

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 1 hour 52 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 25.8 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 7137.4 miles

SYNOPSIS: Three do-gooding sailors on shore leave are pursued by Shore Patrol for defending a woman’s honor.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: The fantasy factory of 1950s America.  Preaching good old American values with catchie song and dance numbers.

PROS AND CONS:  The con is, that this is a close copy of “On The Town” with a terrible script and acting.  The dialogue is simply used to stitch together the various musical numbers.

The Pros are, the great musical numbers.  This was the MGM musical factory at the height of its studio power, where lavish dance numbers were expected.

The young talent of Jane Powell, Debbie Reynolds and Russ Tamblyn are almost overshadowed by the prowess of Ann Miller.  All this dance talent combined with the choreography of Hermes Pan, makes for some surreal song and dance numbers.  

To read an overview of this project, check out this status posting.  

This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.

Cinema Cycle - Glenn Gould - The Goldberg Variations

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE REVIEWED: 07/21/2017

TITLE:. Glenn Gould - The Goldberg Variations

FORMAT: Laserdisc

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 58 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 13 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 7111.6 miles

SYNOPSIS: A performance of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, all 34 of them.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: Artistry and the lengths and depths that some go through to create art.  

PROS AND CONS:  If you like the piano, this is almost a must see.  The number of people throughout history that can play the piano this well could be counted on one hand.

Mr. Gould is supposedly reclusive and no longer performs in public.  He gives a brief interview prior to the performance and then delves into the Variations.  

The performance is astounding and a little on the bizarre side.  Mr. Gould almost morphs into the piano and becomes a part of the instrument.  

To read an overview of this project, check out this status posting.  

This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.

Cinema Cycle - Murder On The Bayou (A Gathering Of Old Men)

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE REVIEWED: 07/19/2017

TITLE:. Murder on the Bayou

FORMAT: Laserdisc

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 1 hour 32 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 21.1 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 7097.7 miles

SYNOPSIS: A group of elderly African-American men rally to protect a peer that is accused of murdering a white man.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: The reverse of a black lynching.  Empowerment of a repressed group against the establishment.

PROS AND CONS:  Wasn’t sure what to make of this film in the beginning.  It suffers most in the script and dialog, when the elderly cast individually get to recount their mistreatment by ‘white’ America in long five minute speeches.

The film starts to move along about half way through and becomes interesting when Richard Widmark enters the screen.  This must be one of his final films and his acting style reveals four decades of starring in movies.  He is like Jack Nicholson in Chinatown or Strother Martin in Cool Hand Luke.  He is a joy to watch.

The film is a targeted piece, aimed squarely at righting the wrongs done in the deep south regarding racism and apartheid.  In that aspect it is educational and informative.  

To read an overview of this project, check out this status posting.  

This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.

Cinema Cycle - Dr. Strangelove

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE REVIEWED: 07/17/2017

TITLE: Dr. Strangelove

FORMAT: Laserdisc

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 1 hour 44 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 24.5 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 7076.2 miles

SYNOPSIS: A deranged Air Force Base Commander orders his bomb wing to attack Russia in 1962.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: Farce and surreal comedy in a high order.  Possibly the best American Comedy ever made.

PROS AND CONS:  The more I see this film the better it gets, by leaps and bounds.  There is something to be side for living through the turmoil of several decades and then looking back at the way it really was.

You forget how good the acting is in this film if you haven’t seen it for a while.  Any of the performances of; Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Slim Pickens or Keenan Wynn would handily win an Oscar today.  To see them all in character in this film is a sheer delight.  

Every comedy sketch group from Second City T.V. to Saturday Night Live owes their existence to this work.  Another notch in the tripod for what may just be the greatest director of all time, Stanley Kubrick.

To read an overview of this project, check out this status posting.  

This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.

Cinema Cycle - Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE REVIEWED: 07/06/2017

TITLE: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

FORMAT: HD-DVD

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 1 hour 48 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 25.1 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 7051.7 miles

SYNOPSIS: A 1930s aerial mercenary solves the mystery of a mad scientist bent on destroying the world.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: Suspension of reality in a Gothic vision of an alternate future reality.

PROS AND CONS:  Visually, this film is a homage to the concept of steampunk Gothic and the allure of America in the 1930s.  From the standpoint of plot, the story-line is actually pretty laughable.

Much of the film is Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow bickering like estranged high school sweethearts as they fly around the world in a vintage 1940’s Curtis P-40 Warhawk.  

The real star of the film are the visuals and production design, which is almost all rendered through digital effects.  The film has a noir-ish look and feel that is really stunning.

To read an overview of this project, check out this status posting.  

This film is a part of my LaserDisc Collection.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.