Starring Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore
Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
In the distant future, a team of astronauts crash land on an alien world where apes are the dominant species, and humans are treated as dumb animals.
A landmark film in many respects, this well-known science fiction picture ushered in numerous sequels and a television series, and recent remakes have pushed the concept forward in new directions with more elaborate makeups and cutting-edge special effects. But the impact of the original is still potent, with John Chambers' ape makeup designs holding up well, and the notion of an ape society that closely mirrors our own at the forefront. With that emphasis on ideas, and its famous twist ending, the film almost plays like a big-budget episode of The Twilight Zone, and non-coincidentally Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling collaborated on the screenplay. Heston's entertaining performance, though it seems a trifle barbaric today, is without doubt a key part of the film's long staying power.
Showing posts with label Roddy McDowall. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Roddy McDowall. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
It! (1967)
Starring Roddy McDowall, Jill Haworth, Paul Maxwell, Aubrey Richards, Ernest Clark
Directed by Herbert J. Leder
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A mentally unbalanced museum employee discovers that one of the museum's statues may be the legendary Golem, and seeks a way to bring it back to life.
I'm very fond of this movie, an exciting mixture of sci-fi and horror with Roddy McDowall excellent in the leading role. It had to have been a difficult part to play, as in some scenes he's perfectly rational, and in others completely whacko, but still manages to evoke audience sympathy at times. The staging of the statue's rebirth scenes is very well-done, and the lighting, photography, and editing cleverly enhance its presence as a foreboding figure. Where the film's a bit weaker is in its screenplay, which borrows a bit too much from Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho to explain McDowall's strange unbalanced behavior.
Directed by Herbert J. Leder
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A mentally unbalanced museum employee discovers that one of the museum's statues may be the legendary Golem, and seeks a way to bring it back to life.
I'm very fond of this movie, an exciting mixture of sci-fi and horror with Roddy McDowall excellent in the leading role. It had to have been a difficult part to play, as in some scenes he's perfectly rational, and in others completely whacko, but still manages to evoke audience sympathy at times. The staging of the statue's rebirth scenes is very well-done, and the lighting, photography, and editing cleverly enhance its presence as a foreboding figure. Where the film's a bit weaker is in its screenplay, which borrows a bit too much from Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho to explain McDowall's strange unbalanced behavior.
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