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Monday 26 March 2012
Saturday 24 March 2012
PETER CUSHING: JULY 31ST 1986...WHERE WAS HE?
Where was Peter Cushing at 2.37 pm on June 31st 1986? Answer: Here signing his autobiography at GEORGE'S Bookstore, Bristol, UK!
Friday 23 March 2012
HAMMER FRANKENSTEIN FRIDAYS: COMPETITION: THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN!
ENTER OUR COMPETITION TO WIN A FABULOUS COLOUR PHOTOGRAPH FROM PETER CUSHING'S 1964 'THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN'. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS SEND US YOUR ANSWER BEFORE MIDNIGHT FRIDAY MARCH 30TH 2012. GOOD LUCK!
PETER CUSHING AS PAUL BEREFORD IN 'THE RETURN OF THE CYBERNAUTS' TV 'THE AVENGERS' SERIES 1967
Monday 19 March 2012
DR WHO: PETER CUSHING DOCTOR WHO TWO! PETER CUSHING ON THE DALEK MOVIES OF THE 1960'S
PETER CUSHING: ' DR WHO AND THE DALEKS: CRITICS AND THE SUCCESS'
“I had played Winston Smith in ’1984′ on television, and the next thing I played ‘Doctor Who’. I was doing it in the cinema while Bill Hartnell was doing it on TV! That’s the way it goes. It was no surprise to me to learn that the first ‘Doctor Who’ film was in the top twenty box office hits of 1965, despite the panning the critics gave us. That’s why they made the sequel and why they spent twice as much money on it. Those films are among my favourites because they brought me popularity with younger children. They’d say their parents didn’t want to meet me in a dark alley but ‘Doctor Who’ changed that. After all, he is one of the most heroic and successful parts an actor can play. That’s one of the main reasons the series had such a long run on TV. I am very grateful for having been part of such a success story.”
PETER CUSHING: 'TELEVISION SERIES OPPORTUNITY'
In an interview from the late 1970's, Peter Cushing comes up with a novel idea for finding a place for the two 60′s movies in the ‘canon’.
What do you remember of the two ‘Dr. Who’ movies you made?
They were very enjoyable. A little frustrating, though, because they were not quite what we planned.
What do you mean by that?
I think I speak for everyone involved when I say that we intended to make them a little darker. But they turned out well, very good entertainments and a hit with the children.
How close did you come to making a third?
Very close. I thought we would, and possibly a fourth. Sadly it didn’t come to pass.
Were you a fan of the TV series?
I thought it was very good. Very well made. But I didn’t watch TV then, and I don’t much now.
The character you played in those two films was very different from the character on the TV show. Were those films a complete remake?
Well I’ll tell you something I thought once. I just said I didn’t watch TV, but one of the few episodes of the ‘Dr. Who’ series that I saw was one that involved a kind of mystical clown (‘The Celestial Toymaker’? ), and I realised that perhaps he kidnapped Dr Who and wiped his memory and made him relive some of his earlier adventures. When Bill Hartnell turned into Patrick Troughton, and changed his appearance, that idea seemed more likely. I think that’s what happened, so I think those films we did fit perfectly well into the TV series. That would not have been the case had I taken the role in the TV series.
Were you ever asked?
Twice, as it happens. When Bill Hartnell was forced to quit, I was asked if I would be interested in taking the lead in the new series. I turned it down, which I now regret a little. It would have been fun. But at the time, you know, I considered myself a serious film actor and stepping into a television series seemed like a step backwards. I don’t know how serious the producers were about hiring me. But perhaps if I’d said yes, they would have been pleased and you would have had me fighting Daleks and Cybermen week in, week out. But I’m glad I didn’t in some ways, because Patrick was so wonderful.
You said you were asked back twice.
Yes, another time was quite recently, with Tom Baker’s Dr. Who. I don’t know the part, but they wanted me and I was interested by scheduling conflicts scuppered it. But perhaps in the future I’ll be able to take a part. I’d be very keen on that.
IMAGES: Marcus Brooks
PETER CUSHING: HAMMER FILM PRODUCTIONS : 'CASH ON DEMAND' REVIEW AND GALLERY
First, let's dispel a common misunderstanding: Hammer Films did not solely produce horror films. Throughout the decades, Hammer regularly released comedies, adventure films, literary adaptations, science fiction, and a variety of tense, sometimes Hitchcockian, thrillers. CASH ON DEMAND is precisely one of said tense thrillers, though comparisons to the Master of Suspense might be best left to other Hammer thrillers like SCREAM OF FEAR (1961) or PARANOIAC (1963); instead, CASH ON DEMAND relies on the superlative performances of its two leading actors, Peter Cushing and Andre Morell.
CASH ON DEMAND concerns the fastidious taskmaster Mr. Fordyce, who runs a small but very successful bank outside London. Fordyce, played wonderfully by Cushing, makes for a bizarre protagonist; his casual cruelty and condescension aren't exactly the types of behavior you find yourself identifying with, especially when he butts heads with his second-in-command, Pearson (Richard Vernon), over a minute detail that coldly warrants Fordyce to threaten Pearson with termination.
Enter one Colonel Gore Hepburn (Morell, who you might recognize from other fine Hammer products like PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES from '66 or '59's HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, where he played Watson to Cushing's Holmes), a supposed representative from the bank's higher-ups. Once Hepburn and Fordyce are alone, however; we come to the real plot: Hepburn is an impersonator whose true purpose is to rob the bank, and to earn Fordyce's cooperation, Fordyce's beloved wife and son are captured and threatened. What unfolds has the elements of a heist film, parts of a police procedural, a dash of Hitchcock's tired and true "the wrong man," and, finally, an ironic ending worthy of EC Comics.
The core of this film is the interactions between Fordyce and Hepburn. The role of Hepburn was actually originated by Morell himself in an earlier television adaptation, and his mastery of the part certainly shows; Morell plays Hepburn with erudition, patience, and truckloads upon truckloads of charm, but occasionally drops those to demonstrate to Fordyce his deadly seriousness. Cushing, meanwhile, plays Fordyce as a nervous, stuffy, and traumatized victim who also happens to "learn a thing or two" from Hepburn, believe it or not.
You have to give credit for utilizing characters like Fordyce and Hepburn; while not uncommon to use rather unlikeable characters are protagonists (see Hammer's Frankenstein and Quatermass films, repectively), it is something of a rarity today, supplanted by the notion the audience should innately identify with the main character and can only do so if that character acts in a way audiences can or would like to picture themselves acting. With Fordyce and Hepburn, not only do we get richer characters, but it becomes a more layered film, instead asking us to question why we find Hepburn such a charming, likeable fellow - and for all intents should be our protagonist - when, in fact, Hepburn is a lying criminal who has spent a year with his circle of conspirators to map out the patterns and details of the bank's assets and has ensured Fordyce's abducted wife and son will be murdered unless he escapes with nearly £93,000. Fordyce, on the other hand, sops with perspiration as he attempts to stave off a complete breakdown, even telling Hepburn he has nothing - not even friends - apart from his family. This does, I suppose, make the film's ending that much more of a conundrum, but I'll keep from spoiling it so that you might get the most mileage as possible.
Overall, CASH ON DEMAND is a compelling and tense film, pitting the actions of two polar opposites against one another in the midst of a complicated bank robbery. The cinematography is crisp black and white with perhaps a hint of Expressionism, but plays second fiddle to the performance of the actors themselves. Cushing and Morell carry the film, keeping sharp dialogue as snappy as possible, and it is doubtful even the most cynical of modern film viewers will be unable to watch CASH ON DEMAND.
REVIEW: Ryan Baker
HERE.
IMAGES: Marcus Brooks
Saturday 17 March 2012
PETER CUSHING: 'CONE OF SILENCE' / 'TROUBLE IN THE SKY' REVIEW AND GALLERY
CAST:
Michael Craig: Capt. Hugh Dallas. Peter Cushing: Capt. Clive Judd. Bernard Lee: Capt. George Gort Elizabeth Seal: Charlotte Gort .George Sanders: Sir Arnold Hobbes. Andre Morell: Capt. Edward Manningham. Gordon Jackson: Capt. Bateson. Charles Tingwell: Capt. Braddock. Noel Willman: Nigel Pickering. Delphi Lawrence: Joyce Mitchell. Marne Maitland: Mr. Robinson. William Abney: First Officer Jack Hedley: First Officer. Simon Lack: Navigator. Hedger Wallace: Navigator. Charles Mylne: Steward Howard Pays: Steward. Ballard Berkeley: Commissioner. Charles Lloyd Pack: Commissioner Homi Bode: Controller. Anthony Newlands: Controller.
PRODUCTION CREW:
Director: Charles Frend. Script: Robert Westerby, based on the novel Cone of Silence by David Beaty. Producer: Aubrey Baring. Cinematographer: Arthur Grant. Editor: Max Benedict. Art Direction: Wilfred Shingleton: Music Director: Gerard Schurmann: Make Up: Freddie Williamson.
COMMENTARY AND REVIEW:
After his unforgettable second turn as Van Helsing in Hammer’s BRIDES OF DRACULA (1960), cinema icon Peter Cushing strayed from appearing in horror films for a period of a few years. This was on the suggestion of his wife, who feared that his further typecasting in these kinds of pictures was inevitable (he would of course return soon enough to his most famous role of The Baron in EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN), and ultimately it was. Rarely seen, TROUBLE IN THE SKY (aka CONE OF SILENCE) is one of the first of his non-genre efforts from this period, and its supporting cast plays like a “who’s who” of Hammer Films thespians.
Veteran British pilot Captain George Gort (Bernard Lee, several years before immortalization as “M” in the James Bond series) crashes his passenger jet on takeoff, and the blunder finds him in front of a court inquiry. As Gort’s previous flying record is immaculate, he is allowed to continue to pilot, but his peers make sure to keep a close eye on him. Gort’s daughter Charlotte (Elizabeth Seal, VAMPIRE CIRCUS) believes her father to be innocent and totally competent in his job, seeking the help of examiner Captain Dallas (Michael Craig, MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, VAULT OF HORROR), who at first mistakes her as a reporter, starting a soon-to-be blossoming romance off on a wrong foot. As Gort continues to pilot aircrafts, a subsequent flight proves even more tragic, but perhaps there is more than human error getting in the way of this airline’s good name.
Somewhat talky with a lot of technical jargon thrown into the screenplay (based on actual events), TROUBLE IN THE SKY is a fairly straightforward drama aided by a top notch cast of familiar Brit character actors. There’s several court room scenes featuring a career-waning George Sanders (whose billing is fairly low on the totem pole) as a lawyer who uses a model airplane to recreate the initial accident and intimidate poor Gort, well played by Lee. Sanders must have shot all his scenes in a day, as they all take place on one set. There’s a bit of (and I mean a bit) of the disaster genre reflected here (a decade before Hollywood’s AIRPORT) when on one of the flights, a hail storm causes a cracking cockpit window to eventually burst, prompting our heroic pilots to isolate it with a cushion! Most of the picture deals with the plight of the aging Gort, and how his mostly stuffy co-workers deal with the controversy, as Captain Dallas puts the moves on his unmarried daughter.
Second-billed Cushing plays Captain Judd, who gets some dirt on Gort through a blonde airline hostess (Delphi Lawrence, THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH), and does his best to out him, as he obviously thinks he’s past it (as they say in Britain). Cushing looks cool in a captain’s uniform, playing the character as a chain smoker with his usual onscreen suaveness, but also an air of superiority that makes Judd somewhat villainous. Also in the very impressive cast is Andre Morrell (PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES), Noel Willman (KISS OF THE VAMPIRE), Charles Tingwell (DRACULA, PRINCE OF DARKNESS), Marne Maitland (THE REPTILE), Jack Hedley (THE ANNIVERSARY), Charles Lloyd Pack (HORROR OF DRACULA), Anthony Newlands (SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN) and Hedger Wallace (TORTURE GARDEN). If that wasn’t enough, horror fans with keen eyes will spot Gerald Sim (DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN) and Geoffrey Bayldon (THE HOUSE THAT DRIPPED BLOOD) in very brief bits.
When Universal Pictures released TROUBLE IN THE SKY theatrically in the U.S. in 1961, the picture was short some 16 minutes. Presented on DVD here as part of VCI’s “Best Of British Classics” series, the film is in its uncut 91-minute form. The only downfall is that its 2.35:1 aspect ratio has been reduced to full frame. Although beginning and end titles are widescreen, the rest of the picture has been cropped (with a slight letterboxing) with most of the picture information missing on the sides. Other than that, the black and white image fairs well, with minimal blemishes and surprisingly, not much in the way of grain. The mono English audio track is in fine shape, and there are no extras on the disc, except for a standard chapter menu.
REVIEW: George Reis
IMAGES: Marcus Brooks
Friday 16 March 2012
HAMMER FILM PRODUCTION: PETER CUSHING 'SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST' SIGNED PHOTOGRAPHS
After effectively revitalizing many of the classic Hollywood monsters, it’s not surprising that England’s Hammer Films would take on a folklore hero most famously played by Errol Flynn in 1938. Though this is not the first (1954’s MEN OF SHERWOOD FOREST) or last (1967’s A CHALLENGE FOR ROBIN HOOD) time Hammer would depict the legendary character, 1960’s SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST is certainly the best known of their Robin Hood features. As part of a grand promotion of classic adventure and excitement, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is releasing the film on DVD along with THE BANDIT OF SHERWOOD FOREST (1946), PRINCE OF THIEVES (1948) and ROGUES OF SHERWOOD FOREST (1950).
A loner riding on horseback (Desmond Llewelyn, soon to be “Q” in the “James Bond” series) is shot with an arrow in the back by the henchmen of the Sheriff of Nottingham. The man barely escapes with his life, falling in the hands of Robin Hood (Richard Greene) and his men, all notorious outlaws. The fair Marian (Sarah Branch, HELL IS A CITY), witness to the well-meaning abduction becomes an acquaintance of Robin, soon setting up a meeting between him and the Sheriff (Peter Cushing), but our hero does not want to hand over the injured man, even with the large monetary offer on the table. Soon, the Sheriff and his henchmen are on the track of Robin and his camp, even killing one of their rogues in cold blood. A wanted man, Robin disguises his identity to come into the attention of Edward, Earl of Newark (Richard Pasco, THE GORGON) who competes with him in various archery competitions in the hopes of exploiting him as a paid assassin. But as Robin is lead to believe it’s the Sheriff he wants slayed, a plot to kill the incoming Archbishop Hubert Walter (Jack Gwillim, THE MONSTER SQUAD) becomes our do-gooder’s top concern, and he’ll do anything in is power to prevent harm's way.
SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST is one of many Hammer big-screen projects adapted from a popular television series (a practice they would continue successfully well into the 1970s), in this case "The Adventures of Robin Hood" which was produced in England from 1955 through 1960, and also featured Greene in the title role (he co-produced the movie in association with Yeoman Films). Terence Fisher – at the time Hammer’s ingenious darling for resurrecting Frankenstein, Dracula and the Mummy to worldwide revenue – had directed some episodes of the series, so he was a natural to helm this larger-scale theatrical production. None of the other major players from the TV series (where Alan Wheatley portrayed the Sheriff of Nottingham for five years) would be cast in the film, instead Hammer used a lot of their stock players and a number of other familiar thesps.
SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST is never going to top any Hammer fan’s “best of” list, and although it’s far from a perfect film, you should still give it a try. Beautifully shot in widescreen on location in Ireland as well as the impressive confines of Bray Studios, director Terence Fisher injects the film with sorted horse chases, sword fights, and the expected comic book violence in which characters are hit with arrows left and right. But the screenplay is one dimensional, many of the action sequences fail to make a memorable impact, and even though the cast is of top caliber, nobody really stands out with Greene being a passable Robin and Sarah Branch a beautiful but forgettable Marian. With a number of elaborate costume changes, Peter Cushing makes a great Sheriff of Nottingham; you only wish his character was allowed to be more evil, or at least more villainous. Ultimately, he’s upstaged by Richard Pasco who actually shares more scenes with Greene.
The players also include a well-cast but underused Nigel Green (THE FACE OF FU MANCHU, COUNTESS DRACULA) as Little John, Dennis Lotis (CITY OF THE DEAD/HORROR HOTEL) as Alan A'Dale, Derren Nesbitt (BURKE AND HARE) as the doomed Martin of Eastwood and Niall MacGinnis (NIGHT OF THE DEMON) as the rotund Friar Tuck, who is played mostly for giggles. In one of his numerous early 1960s appearances for Hammer, a young Oliver Reed plays Lord Melton, one of Edward’s (Richard Pasco’s) bratty cronies. Introduced by harassing Robin and then having his pet falcon pierced by his mighty arrow, Reed’s Melton sports a ridiculously exaggerated lispy accent, and the actor has very little screen time, but is instrumental in one of the key death scenes.
REVIEW: George Reis
HERE
IMAGES: Marcus Brooks
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