Dick Tracy-15 Episodes (1937) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a great treat for Dick Tracy fans. Before television we had to go to the Saturday morning movie matinees to see our action heros.
Cartoonist Chester Gould created this action hero in the early 1930's and by the middle 30's the FBI and gangsters were in all the newspaper & radio headlines. So Gould countered with Dick Tracy G-man (in the movie serials) & Dick Tracy cop hero in the comic strip.
The "Dick Tracy" (1937) Republic Pictures 15 episode action serial launched Ralph Byrds career as the super crime solving G-man/Sherlock Holmes sleuth. The movie version was always the international view while the comic strip was the local city crime storyline.
Thanks to VCI Entertainment for a great restoration job & super loaded 2 DVD package.
This 15 episode action packed serial is over 290 mins long and is presented with great picture & sound.
Extra features include: a background Commentary by famous Dick Tracy writer Max Allan Collins who penned the comic strip for 15 years after Goulds retirement. Special photo montage & Photo Gallery. Bonus 1945 Radio Show: Dick Tracy in B-Flat - a musical rendition of Dick Tracy with the voice of Bing Crosby as Tracy, Dinah Shore as Tesh Trueheart, Bob Hope as Flathead and many more big radio stars of the 40's. This is fun stuff.
Summary: Action serials are always more about the action packed journey & how our hero escapes the bad guys at the cliff hanging ending chapters than the actual story. We need to have a thrill filled 20 minutes each week and then painfully wait until next week for the continuing saga to take us to more excitement until the finale on chapter/week 15.
Dick Tracy delivers all we expect in an action hero and this being one of the first serials gives us a taste of the world of 1937. Enjoy.

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Superman & Mole Men (1951) Review

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(More customer reviews)Sorry, but this has to be a dissenting opinion. As some of the other reviewers have noted, "Superman and the Mole Men" was later edited into a two-part episode for the George Reeves TV program, now rechristened as "The Unknown People." Sorry, folks, but in this case the "edited for TV" version is a distinct improvement and for one reason: THE MUSIC! The score used in the original movie is a pallid, third-rate job that does nothing to advance the action or to support the eerie, "film noir" feel of the camera work. But when the film was mixed down for presentation on TV, the show's producers had the genius to replace the film's soundtrack with some of the scariest, most vivid background scores then available. (As a matter of fact, this weird and wonderful music - used over and over again as background music throughout the first, black-and -white season of the 1950's "Adventures of Superman" TV show - has been helpfully collected on CD by the Varese-Sarabande label. You can order it right here, at Amazon.com!) I only wish the edited TV version was made commercially available; anyone who gets to know "Superman and the Mole Men" only through this original theatrical release will have no idea of how good it really is, or understand how the effective use of great background music can turn a third-rate movie into a very good film.

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The Lost Serial Collection - Clips and Chapters from 35 Extremely Rare Serials Review

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(More customer reviews)This anthology is overpriced for what it is. Most of the excerpts are too brief and lacking in context to be of much use or interest. The two episodes that are presented complete are not particularly distinguished. Print quality is very variable and often poor. The two-disk format might lead one to expect more: disk 1 is just over 90 min. and disk 2 is barely 50 min. The extremely interesting field of early serials deserves a better showcase.

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This special 2-DVD set features clips, short sequences and chapters from over 30 extremely rare serials that may be lost forever, except for what you can see here. Some clips are very short, featuring usually one special stunt sequence. ZUDORA, THE HAZARDS OF HELEN, CAPTAIN KIDD, HAUNTED VALLEY, THE LIGHTNING RAIDER and others are represented by extended action scenes, and complete chapters are included of THE IRON CLAW featurng Pearl White and THE FLAME FIGHTER starring Herbert Rawlinson. Clips from a couple of rare but not completely lost serials, A WOMAN IN GREY and OFFICER 444 are included too. These scenes and chapters are presented as they might have been originally shown, each with a new opening title and music, and no intrusive narration or explanations. Stills and posters from some of the serials are also included. This is a collection no serial historian or collector can live without. The complete list of serial titles represented is listed below. A great value -- a massive amount of serial history all in one set!LEADING LADIES1912 What Happened to Mary (Mary Fuller)1914 The Hazards of Helen (Helen Holmes, Helen Gibson)1914 The Perils of Pauline (Pearl White)1914 Zudora (Marguerite Snow)1920 A Woman in Grey (Arline Pretty)SERIALS OF PEARL WHITE1916 Pearl of the Army (Pearl White)1916 The Iron Claw (Pearl White) (Chapter 7 Complete)1917 The Fatal Ring (Pearl White)1919 The Lightning Raider (Pearl White, Warner Oland) (Scenes from Chapter 1)1923 Plunder (Scenes from Chapters 9 and 15)1924 Terror (The Perils of Paris)SERIALS OF RUTH ROLAND1919 The Tiger's Trail (Ruth Roland)1920 Ruth of the Rockies (Ruth Roland)1921 White Eagle (Ruth Roland)1922 The Timber Queen (Ruth Roland)1923 Haunted Valley (Ruth Roland) (Abridged version of Chapter 6)LEADING MEN1921 Hurricane Hutch (Trailer)1922 Captain Kidd (Eddie Polo) (Scenes from Chapters 2 and 11)1925 The Flame Fighter (Trailer, Scenes from conclusion of Chapter 2, Chapter 3 complete)1926 Officer 4441927 Return of the Riddle Rider (Trailer)1928 The Mystery Rider (Trailer)MORE PERILS1916 The Shielding Shadow1919 The Masked Rider Trailer produced by the Serial Squadron1920 The Third Eye1923 The Steel Trail1924 The Fast Express1927 King of the Jungle (Trailer)1927 The Man Without a Face (Walter Miller)1927 Whispering Smith Rides (Trailer)1928 A Final Reckoning (Trailer)1928 The Haunted Island (Trailer)1928 The Scarlet Arrow (Trailer)1928 The Terrible People1929 Queen of the Northwoods

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Superman - The 1948 & 1950 Theatrical Serials Collection (1948) Review

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(More customer reviews)How lucky are we to finally be able to enjoy these two classic Superman serials now available on DVD. These have long been around on bootleg VHS or home-burned dvds, with poor picture quality and sound. The home-burned dvds I got off Ebay did not have the capability to fast forward or rewind, and were not formatted chapter-per-chapter. It's possible that only the die-hard Superman fans and fanboys alike have ever seen Kirk Alyn's portrayal of Superman. Most people think that George Reeves was the first screen Superman not realizing that there were two complete chapter serials starring Alyn as the Man of Steel long before the iconic tv show of the 50s.
That being said, this is a real delight to watch! The fanboys, to this day, continue to cry over the fact that in these serials, Superman's flying sequences were animated. Okay, so it wasn't the high-tech CGI of today's production capabilities. If you're able to get past that, you can enjoy these serials for what they are; pure escapist fun! It's a comic book that's come to life! Kirk Alyn's Superman is not like George Reeves' or Christopher Reeves' or anyone else who ever donned the cape and tights. You've got to see him and judge for yourself. His portrayal of Clark Kent is a little more "mild-mannered" in keeping with the character from the comics, and that's nice to see. Tommy Bond, who played "Butch" in the "Our Gang" and "Little Rascal" shorts is awesome as Jimmy Olson. For me, the real delight was Noel Neill as Lois Lane, the FIRST screen Lois Lane! She was about 27 or 28 when first cast as Lois and she is just too darn cute! She's absolutely adorable with her big hat that she wears in nearly every scene. She's assertive and risk-taking, just like the Lois in the comics of that era, while still remaining feminine. Her Lois Lane of these serials are night and day from her Lois Lane of the tv show and once again, it's very interesting to see both and make the comparison yourself.
The first serial, has Carol Forman, as the Spider Lady. The 1950 Serial, Atom Man Vs. Superman is a better serial than the first one in my opinion. The production values and the writing are a little better and more developed than the first. The flying sequences were still animated but there were "close-ups" of Alyn flying, which were actually him standing upright with his arms extended over his head and the camera laid over on its side to give a horizontal effect. Lyle Talbot's Lex Luthor/Atom Man is great! Talbot was a veteran screen and television actor and many fans will immediately recognize him as Police Commissioner Gordon from Columbia's 1949 chapter serial, "Batman & Robin." In fact, if you're a fan of old movie serials in general, you'll recognize some of the faces of the actors who play Luthor's goons and thugs from other serials. One of the Atom Man's chief lackeys is an actor who is Dr. Daka's henchman in Columbia's 1943 chapter serial, Batman...too cool!
These serials were made on shoe-string budgets in 1948 and 1950 and weren't meant to be more than what they were. They weren't designed to be big screen blockbusters, and they were made for the kids of that time. We've become so sophisticated and demanding of "our" superhero movies, that to me, it seems to quite unfair to deride these two works because of shortcomings with special effects, writing or even the acting. Indeed, how lucky we are to finally be able to enjoy these two classic Superman serials now available at long last on dvd! ENJOY!!!

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Crimson Ghost - 12 Episodes (1946) Review

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(More customer reviews)As a child growing up in New York in the 50"s we were amazingly fortunate to receive a slew of TV channels. One of those channels.. 13.. I believe, had serials on everyday. What a wonderful treat watching after American Bandstand on ABC. Of course 40 years later, it isn't quite the same, but I watched it with my children whoose ages are 10 and 8. We had a grand time watching it together. But watching the episodes, one after the other, the patterns became quite repetitive. Every episode had the same fight albeit different places, and endings where a car either explodes or goes off a cliff. But who was the Crimson Ghost? In a nutshell, if you were into serials as a kid its worth seeing, especially a young Lone Ranger (Clayton Moore), and especially if you could share your memories with your children or someone else special

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The Perils of Pauline (1934) Review

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(More customer reviews)I know this DVD is cheap, but you certainly get what you pay for here. No restoration has been done on this 1934 serial, so we get very hissy, muffled sound and plenty of scratches and flecks etc on a washed-out, very rough-looking print. Oh and an alpha logo popping up on the chapter titles cards. The RHS text of some of the opening chapter summary cards is also cropped off.
This is the only DVD version available at the moment, so by all means buy it, but be prepared - you will certainly not benefit from DVD quality!

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Item Name: The Perils of Pauline; Studio:Alpha Video

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Gang Busters-13 Episodes (1942) Review

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(More customer reviews)VCI Entertainment and Universal Pictures presents a film based on the radio program by Phillips H. Lord "Gang Busters" (1942) (Dolby digitally remastered), with 13 Chapters based on a real radio show in which unsolved crimes were reenacted in the hope of catching the criminal, stories were combined with original and completely ficitional...dedicated to law enforcement officers throughout the nation, in grateful recognition of their unending war against crime..story line has twists and turns as "The League of Murdered Men" with mad scientist (Ralph Morgan) at the helm...is there a mysterious death stimulating drug that presumes a person dead only to be resurrected by this mad man Prof. Mortis (Morgan)...will Lt. Bill Bannister (Taylor) and Det. Tim Nolan (Armstrong) stop this gang of misfits who is terrorizing the city...can Vicki Logan (Hervey) and Happy Haskins (Davies) who work for the local newspaper, get in the way or be of some assistance bringing the villains to justice...what is this strange hideout in a subterranean cell that is located beneath the city's subways...don't touch that dial or leave the theater until the final chapter is over and done with "Law and Order"....just remember double thrills, chills, mystery and suspense...hitting the bull's eye with excitement...don't miss a single spine thrilling episode..return next week to this local theater for another episode of action and adventure that will keep you thrilled until the next chapter.
Under director's Ray Taylor and Noel Smith, associate producer Ford Beebe, Original screenplay by Morgan B. Cox, Al Martin, Vic McLeod, George H. Plympton, dialogue director Jacques Jaccard, musical score by Ralph Freed, Charles Previn, Heinz Roemheld, Hans J. Salter, Frank Skinner and Franz Waxman...the cast includes Kent Taylor (Lt. Bill Bannister), Irene Hervey (Vicky Logan), Ralph Morgan (Dr. Clayton Maxton aka Prof. Mortis), Robert Armstrong (Det. Tim Nolan), Richard Davies (Happy Haskins), Joseph Crehan (Police Chief Martin O'Brien), George Watts (Mayor Hansen), George J. Lewis (Joey Morrions aka Mason), Ralf Harolde(Halliger-henchman), John Gallaudet (Wilkinson-henchman), William Haade (Mike Taboni), Vic Zimmerman (Ted Lane, alias Barnard), Johnnie Berkes (Mr. Grub ), Pat O'Malley ( Police Chemist Crandall), Eddie Dean (Blair, Police Lab Tech), William Desmond (Rogan's Death Witness), Karl Hackett (Henry, crooked watchman), Carleton Young (Highway Patrolman)........great stuntwork by Carey Loftin, David Sharpe, Tom Steele, Ken Terrell and Dale Van Sickel....meanwhile back to our Universal Serial which is always good till the last drop and this serial is no exception...there is a great deal of entertainment here for the cliffhanger fans out there...all courtesy of VCI Entertainment, who in my humble opinion is the best there is in restoring early serials and features.
CHAPTER TITLES:
1. The League of Murdered Men
2. The Death Plunge
3. Murder Blockade
4. Hangman's Noose
5. Man Under Cover
6. Under Crumbling Walls
7. The Water Trap
8. Murder by Proxy
9. Gang Bait
10.Mob Vengeance
11.Wanted at Headquarters
12.The Long Chance
13.Law and Order
BIOS:
1. Kent Taylor (aka Louis William Weiss)
Birth Date: 5/11/1907 - Nashua, Iowa
Died: 4/11/1987 - Woodland Hills, CA
2. Irene Hervey
Birth Date: 7/11/1909 - Venice, CA
Died: 12/20/1998 - Woodland Hills, CA
3. Robert Armstrong (of the film "King Kong" fame)
Birth Date: 11/20/1890 - Saginaw, Michigan
Died: 4/20/1973 - Santa Monica, CA
4. Ray Taylor (Director)
Birth Date: 12/01/1888 - Perham, Minnesota
Died: 2/15/1952 - Hollywood, CA
If you're into vintage serials as I am, why not pick up a copy of the following titles from VCI Home Video:
VCI CLIFFHANGER TRAILERS:
1. Buck Rogers (Buster Crabbe)
2. Adventures of the Flying Cadets (Bobby Jordan)
3. Drums of Fu Manchu (Henry Brandon)
4. Jungle Girl (Frances Gifford)
5. The Phantom (Tom Tyler)
6. Zane Greys "King of the Royal Mounted" (Allan "Rocky" Lane)
7. Secret Agent X-9 (1945) (Lloyd Bridges & Keye Luke)
8. Adventures of Red Ryder (Don "Red" Barry)
9. Secret Agent X-9 (1937) (Scott Kolk & Henry Brandon)
10.Zorro's Cliffhanger Collection (Reed Hadley, John Carroll & Linda Stirling)
11.Dick Tracy's G-Men (Ralph Byrd)
12.Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe (Buster Crabbe)
13.Jungle Jim (Grant Withers & Raymond Hatton)
14.Miracle Rider (Tom Mix & Tony Jr)
If you crave action, drama and plenty of adventure then this is the place for all of the above...check out another release from VCI Entertainment and Republic Pictures present Zane Grey's "King of the Royal Mounted" (1940) (digitally remastered), 12 Chapters of vintage serial loaded with action sequences...is there a discovered substance called "Compound X", which may cure infantile paralysis...has Tom Merritt stumbled on such a rare find...is there a war between Canada and sources known later as the "Father Land".....get out there as they're going fast, this is the one you've been waiting for.
Great job by VCI Entertainment for releasing "Gang Busters" (1942), the digital transfere with a clean, clear and crisp print...looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '30s, '40s & '50s...order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment where there are plenty of copies available on VHS, stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with deadly adventure from the "King of Serials" VCI...just the way we like 'em
Total Time: 255 mins ~ VCI Entertainment 1731 ~ (1992)

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