KINO STUDIO CLASSIC BLU RAY : 'ARABIAN ADVENTURE' : FIRST TIME ON BLU RAY!

IT'S LAMP RUBBING : CARPETS FLYING : GENIES THREATENING AND VILLAINS PLOTTING WITH A CAST THAT'S MAGIC IN OL' DOWN-TOWN BAGDAD-VILLE ! 

Kino Lorber Studio Classics has just rolled out the global debut on Blu-ray of the 1979 movie, 'Arabian Adventure' : this film was previously only available in the U.K. as a dire DVD video transfer released in 2007. Kino Lorber's new blu-ray, licensed from Studio Canal, is good news and especially welcomed by collectors of the genre and Cushing / Lee fans alike. With FOUR MILLION budget, that was never going to stretch to the needs, Alan Hume's cinematography is never less than beautiful to look at, as you would expect!

VISUALLY MANY OF THE SCENES look great, very colourful, bright and quite new, even though the advance and progress in cinema visual effects does date some of what may have already been 'from another era' even at the time of its release, you aren't fooled by what you see. Special effects chief, George Gibbs, gives you a lot to look at and knows the market had changed, but cuts the cloth with what he has. Back in the day of Saturday family and kids matinees, that really didn't matter. 'There is something of a charm to watching some effects here that really do go back to the art of silent movies, smoke mirrors, forced perspectives and strings!' You don't feel cheated, you get the feeling of 'you along with the characters, are along for the ride, on those magic carpets and all' 😉😊 

PRODUCTION DESIGNER, Elliot Scott dressers the film beautifully and uses lots of tricks and techniques he would later go on to use in classics like 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' (1988), Labyrinth (1986) and two of the Indiana movies, 'Tempe of Doom' and 'Last Crusade' (84 and 89), but with more than the share he got from this four million budget. It is perhaps worth mentioning and keeping in mind that much like Connor's Amicus film 'At The Earth's Core' and some of his 'Edgar Rice Burroughs' films, 'The Land That Time Forgot' (1975) 'The People That Time Forgot' (1977)... THIS is for the KIDS and there is much in the style and look of this film that reminds one of 'Jabberwocky' (1977) and 'The Adventures of Baron Munchausen' (1988)... but made with pennies rather than mega-bucks!  

EVEN THOUGH this was post 1977 'Star Wars', it was I am sure, when produced neither chasing that newly hatched sci-fi audience or hoping to compete. Maybe the producers should have told the publicity and press office that point though . .

VISUALLY:
THE WHOLE FILM  has been opened up to 1.78:1 from its native 1.85:1. Many of the street scenes and in the market really do shine, so much so there is a little sign of bits and dots in the motion, but not distracting. Scenes shot in a semi light in caves and at night, fare much better, as the texture and grain of the visuals can be a little different scene to scene. As I mentioned about this film using traditional cinematic visual effects, the use of matts. Very much like the blu rays of Cushing's 'Dr Who and the Daleks' (1965) and sequel 'Daleks Invasion Earth 2150 AD' strings are visible and matts that would have passed in the theatrical release don't hold out in their blending with live footage, once cleaned and presented on what can be at times a double edge and 'reveal all' of blu ray presentation.

AUDIO:

Kino supplies a DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono (1557 kbps, 16-bit) as THE sound track, without frills. The pitch levels do vary from one scene to another. If you too are a headphone wearer, you will notice. Mixing seems to have been a problem, any scene with dialogue and background crowds, sees that dialogue buried. Composer Ken Thorne's quite fab score is a great accompaniment to the action scenes, and while it's there everything sounds impressive.

• A NEW Audio Commentary by Director Kevin Connor, Moderated by Screenwriter and Novelist C. Courtney Joyner - If there is one thing you can say about director's Kevin Connor's pride in this film, is his comments on the design and look of the film. I get the feeling that Joyner maybe hasn't sat and watched the film in sometime. Many of his questions, give Connor little to work with in his answers, which is a real shame. For an 82 year old Connor is still very sharp, but the questions sometimes leaves him sounding as if he doesn't know the answer or can't remember! Experience should have told Joyner, you need to prompt and connect with your subject, it's been a LONG time!
• Theatrical Trailer (2:54, 480i) - Not restored, but a window-boxed and slightly cropped original trailer for EMI's Arabian Adventure.

SO TO SUM UP:
IF YOU SAW THIS FILM  when it was first released, like all of Connor's similar films, it can only bring back memories of simpler times. It should also bring with it some warm smiles when cast members like Christopher Lee, Milo O'Shea, Milton Reid and Peter Cushing appear. Emma Samms and Oliver Tobias
are a good match and a young and talented Puneet Sira, is very entertaining and unknowingly well set for his future as a major Bollywood director in the years to come. 

MICKEY ROONEY still stands as a bit of surprise casting! As a family adventure film, this one has ALL the ingredients, severed up as the complete package of a great and sparky adventure tale, produced ten years before this one was made. Now decades later, there is no shame in that. This is an above average transfer, even if in it's audio it would have benefited a little more care. A negative mind you, that will go quite unnoticed by the majority of those who have come along for the ride... on a carpet of course!

A DIFFERENT DOCTOR WHO FROM A DIFFERENT TIME THAT COULD HAVE BEEN?

#MEANWHILE IN A #TARDIS, not that far away! Here is a FINE piece of 'imagine IF' art from the twitter page of 'Timeless Tim'! #PeterCushingISDrWho! I have no idea who did this work, but would love to so I could congratulate them. IF only. You can see how the whole concept would work. The image of Peter Cushing is from around the mid 1960's 'Frankenstein Created Woman' time, the lab coat 1957, 'The Curse of Frankenstein', a wonderfully appropriate TARDIS interior . . an the 1970's K9, is the cheery on the cake...it crosses all kids of era's, styles and Doctor Who periods of time Just like all the best episodes, all about time 😊 Over at the Facebook PCASUK Fan Page we are asking, 'Would YOU have WATCHED this, as a TV series??' Feel free to join in on the opinions and comments!

CONNECTING NICELY to the post above, here's a great photograph on set of Cushing's Dr Who in 'Dalek Invasion Earth 2150 AD' I remember when first seeing this pic when I was I my early teen and being shocked that the set was actually INSIDE the lots at Shepperton studios! Clever chaps, these film makers 😃

ALSO MARKED AT THE   FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE TODAY MAY 14TH is  the birthday of Eric Morecambe, one half of the most successful comedy team in the UK. Still missed, loved by all, with Eric's passing back in 1984, it left a hole not only in the entertainment world but also in people's hearts. With his partner, Ernie...they provided one of tv's longest running gags, 'Peter Cushing and his Money!'... he did eventually get it , but not until the boys, had a lot of fun with it, stretching over many years and several programmes. God bless, Eric, Happy Birthday and thanks for all those precious memories and laughs 😅😀 

ABOVE is one of my favourite Peter Cushing guest spots with Eric and Ernie! Peter has come for his money, paying for when he is first appeared on their show. It's ironic that the BBC wanting value for money, also show a clip from that previous show, in this one!! Eric's teasing of Ernie for being tight with money was really a cover for the reputation the BBC had for being known as notoriously tight and mean with paying anyone... except their executives, in the 60's and 70's! Times haven't changed....

YOU CAN EASILY jump on board the PCASUK Facebook Fan Page, by clicking  RIGHT HERE!. PCASUK, it's posts, features and competitions are open to EVERYONE, whoever, wherever you are!

THE 1960'S DR WHO TARDIS IS A 'WRITE' OFF IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE!!

BACK IN THE MID 1960'S Peter Cushing appeared and starred in not one but TWO feature films, as Dr Who. 'Dr Who and the Daleks' (1965) and 'Daleks Invasion Earth 2150 AD. When I say, Dr Who please do not for all is sacred, mistake THIS Dr Who for the BBC Doctor Who that has been gracing our television screens for the past ?? years, also that Doctor and tv show, well... originally ran from 1963 to 1989. There was an unsuccessful attempt to revive regular production in 1996 with a backdoor pilot, in the form of a television film titled Doctor Who. The programme was relaunched in 2005, and since then has been produced in-house by BBC Wales in Cardiff. Also as dedicated viewers of said tv show and Doctor Who often tell me, 'The first film 'Dr Who and the Daleks' features a much different Doctor from the one we currently know, on tv. 

TO START WITH, he is entirely human. Barbara Wright from the tv show is no longer his granddaughter's teacher, but another granddaughter of The Doctor himself. Still with me? William Hartnell, tv Doctor Who was quite  annoyed at being passed over for the role of Dr Who and that Peter Cushing was cast in the role. The reason? Cushing was seen as a better known face to the cinematic world and therefore more capable of launching Dr Who to a wider audience, in was a children's film and family entertainment. Cushing does actually play the part with more warmth and childish humour than the famously grumpy Hartnell, and is for all intents and purposes a fantastic Doctor. So yup Cushing's Dr Who certainly IS NOT canon. Cushing himself always maintained that his Doctor was a proper Doctor, though not necessarily the First One, that he was so clearly based on. 

BUT CUSHING'S Dr Who did have a pretty neat TARDIS! It looked the same as the one in the tv series, but this one in TWO films and BIG SCREEN was ..IN COLOUR! Like the Tardis, all the DALEKS were in colour for the first time too! What a blast and . . what a COUP! 😉 Not THE Doctor, but full colour TARDIS and stars of both shows and films, the DALEKS as well.. for the first time!

THE INFLUENCE of the colour DALEKS did I am sure, go some way to what would soon become an international hobby... making YOUR OWN DALEK! Even though the TV series promoted some spin off full colour covered annual books for the kids at Christmas, it was only when the films displayed to the public and fans, DALEKS in FULL COLOUR and presented on a BIG SCREEN, that anyone had the opportunity to see them up close, moving in FULL TECHNICOLOUR, for the first time. . . and THE TOPS OPENED, to reveal a scaly thing on the floor ! Magic! 😀😊😉

THE DALEKS LOOKED AMAZING, but as a five year old boy, the thing that interested me the most, was THAT TARDIS! Looking at it now, as an adult, it does look uncannily like someone has thrown the contents of a dodgy self employed cowboy electrician's van onto a film set, to me at that time it was MAGICAL both INSIDE and OUT. After the films were wrapped, so was the interior of the time machine. But the exterior, of course survived! 

IT SEEMS THE TARDIS had survived and was finally purchased by a 'wood-turning-and-machine-company' who... 'can supply everything for the woodworker from machinery, hand and power tools to hundreds of accessories and of course the one thing that all woodworkers require – Timber' .... in Somerset, England! Well, sadly wood-turning, screw drivers, any chisels or DIY and all things that go buzz are all very uncharted lands to me. I know as much about any of these things, as I do brain surgery. Though, I have watched Cushing's 'head-work surgery' in 'Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' quite a few times! On finding this company and trying to figure what their connection was to Cushing's olde Tardis, it still took me a quite while to fathom out what it actually was they were selling! Unlike their vast variety of tools on offer, sadly I am not that sharp!

THEN THE PENNY DROPPED . . PENS! Or indeed, Pen Blanks: 'Pen blanks are little pieces of wood common to the pen turning industry. Many other wood workers find these pieces of wood to be perfect for their niche, they are  easy to turn and finish and are very tactile when fashioned into a writing instrument'. So, these are strips of wood, pieces of the tardis, that can be turned on a machine and used for the barrel of a pen! YOU WRITE with it! Hmm an interesting hobby, if that floats your boat or flies your Tardis!

SO HOW DID THIS COMPANY, come up with this idea, it's weird choice to arrive at when in fact they have a WHOLE piece of movie Doctor Who sorry... Dr Who . . movie history in their possession? Then came the bad news in the product description: 

'Doctor Who Tardis Plywood pen blanks. This is the very first Mk1 Tardis that was created for Peter Cushing for the film 'Dr Who and the Daleks' and was originally constructed in 1965'.  

'Can we just point out that this Tardis was in terrible condition, the sill fell off in transit and when we moved it on its own wheels the actual door fell off. Sadly it's been left outside and as it's a 54-year-old film prop it wasn't designed for the outdoor English weather, we've managed to salvage what we can and these are the first blanks available from what must be one of the most iconic and well known film-related prop.'

'These plywood blanks we would only recommend for the more experienced turner, I've made a dozen or so now and I found you cannot put any pressure when turning, so takes time plus you must have sharp tools.The blanks measure 5 inches x 20mm x 20mm and come complete with a certificate.'

MY GOODNESS! 😕  How depressing reading was that? 😔😑 So THAT is what has happened to the Cushing's Dr Who Tardis! Cut up into 5 inch pieces!!? Blimey! Well, I guess 'tis better than what happened to so many painted glass matts, props and goodies during Hammer films move from Bray studios in the 1960's. That was a lot to do with SKIPS, and I am not referring to the dance or gym rope kind! At least, there is something I can have and hold, the TARDIS in the body of something useful and to keep in my pocket.. to eventually leak in my jacket pocket! Can I STILL write? Do I have £44.99 in my piggy bank savings? Never mind, all is good! Now where do I buy a wood lathe and a sharp chisel? - Marcus Brooks

COME JOIN US YOU'LL BE MOST WELCOME HERE!!!

KINO LORBER BRINGS BOTH 1960'S DR WHO FILMS TO THE USA ON BLU RAY FOR FIRST TIME!

SOME #GREATNEWS! #KinoLorber is putting out both #DrWho films starring #PeterCushing on blu-ray for the first time in US. The release dates have been announced but I am not sure the if current situation would effect these. I will keep you posted here!

DR. WHO AND THE DALEKS (1965)
• NEW Audio Commentary by Writer, Film Critic, Film Historian Kim Newman and Screenwriter, Writer, Film Historian Robert Shearman
• Audio Commentary with Actresses Jennie Linden and Roberta Tovey and Author Jonathan Sothcott
• Dalekmania: 57-Minute Documentary
• Interview with Author #GarethOwen
• Restoring #DrWhoandtheDaleks
• Optional English Subtitles
• Dual-Layered BD50 Disc
• Theatrical Trailer
Release Date: July 7th #2020

DALEKS' INVASION EARTH 2150 A.D. (1966)
• NEW Audio Commentary by Writer, Film Critic, 

Film Historian #KimNewman and Screenwriter, Writer, 

Film Historian Robert Shearman
• #Dalekmania: 57-Minute Documentary
• Interview with Actor #BernardCribbins
• Interview with Author Gareth Owen
• Restoring Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.
• Optional English Subtitles
• Dual-Layered BD50 Disc
• Theatrical Trailer
Release Date: July 7th #2020

PCASUK FEATURE on the HISTORY of the DALEK MOVIE merchandise with #CallumMcKelvie with GALLERY HERE!  

 MORE PCASUK DR WHO DALEKS HERE!

 

ANOTHER #CALLUMMCKELVIE  Dr Who feature with STILLS GALLERY on 'DALEK INVAISION EARTH 2150 AD' RIGHT HERE!

AT HOME WITH PETER CUSHING: GALLERY TWO : SOUNDS NATURAL BBC RADIO FOUR JANUARY 1972

PETER CUSHING AT HOME and on the beach. GALLERY Part TWO: Wednesday December 1st 1971. ON SEEING these rare and unpublished photographs for the first time, it maybe isn't obvious at first glance, who the man in the pics actually could be. A neat and trim moustache, the absence of a hair piece and several pounds of body weight along with clothing that wasn't the usual attire familiar to the thousands of cinema goers, who had watched him on the big screen and over the past three decades.1971, this year had been a year that changed Peter Cushing's life forever. The loss of his wife, #HelenCushing in #January after many years of fighting her illness, set Cushing on a path of work, that would have psychically and emotionally exhausted many others . .

THE GRIEF AND LOSS effected everything in Cushing's life, except as he saw, his one distraction away from the loneliness and pain. Work. These unpublished stills were taken in December 1971, as part of a #RadioTimes magazine feature, promoting a BBC radio programme Peter had recorded earlier on July 27th -29th July 1971 at his home in #Whitstable. The programme 'Nature Spectacular' focused on the wildlife and birds of which Peter was very familiar and loved around his beach front home. I am sure you have seen the many watercolour's and sketches that Peter produced over the years, here on PCASUK. He was a lover of all nature. Wildlife, birds, flowers, sea life . . .

THIS LOOK INTO Peter's home study, gives us a peep into the things that surrounded his day, the photo portrate of his late wife, the paperwork, the delicate bird figures he made and his desk. Just a few weeks before these photographs were taken, Cushing had began his journey, in 'keeping busy' in March until April, he returned in his first film just weeks after Helen passed, #Hammerfilms 'Twins of Evil'. September he filmed his award winning performance as Arthur Grimsdyke in Amicus films, '#TalesfromtheCrypt' at #Sheppertonstudios, work on Hammer's #DraculaAD1972' as Van Helsing with #ChristopherLee as the Count, kept him busy from September 27th until November 5th along with several radio appearances from September 30th until early November.

ABOVE: THE PHOTOGRAPHS in this feature were a series of snaps taken by a photographer from the BBC RADIO TIMES listings magazine, to provide a photo illustration to support and promote the above BBC RADIO programme. Sounds Natural was a weekly radio programme that interviewed guests and celebrities on their views and opinions on the subject of their choice, within the theme of countryside and nature in the UK. Cushing's programme centred on wildlife and countryside of his home in the seaside town of Whitstable in Kent. A town that had been home to he and his late wife, Helen since the late 1950's.

THE RADIO TIMES 1ST -7TH JANUARY 1971 : There was of course much to choose from to grace the pages of this weeks issue of the BBC listing magazine, 'Radio Times'. Ironically, characters that Peter Cushing himself was more than familiar with.... Dr Who and the ever popular Daleks were rolling the drums for the arrival of a new series of episodes were Jon Pertwee's tv Doctor Who would be taking on the fiends for another welcomed and entertaining and cliff hanger battle. Cushing had played a 'version' of the good Dr / Doctor in two full colour films during 1965 and 66, 'Dr Who and the Daleks' and 'Daleks Invasion of Earth 2150 AD'. Neither of which are really canon to the tv series...or are they? Decide for yourself : HERE! 
 

CUSHING brought the year to an end, with shooting Hammer films, 'Fear In The Night' with Ralph Bates and Judy Geeson .... hence the little moustache, of his character headmaster, Michael Carmichael. #PeterCushing was allergic to spirit gum that would hold on a false tash, so he grew his facial hair when roles required it! A busy time, indeed. - Marcus Brooks