Eclipse 1945: The Wicked Lady

Whoho!

Nice hats.

And doilies.

She’s so wicked!

This is a lot of fun. It’s totally over the top and delighting in its own absurdeties. This was released just after WWII, and was the highest-grossing movie in the UK of the year, and I can totally see why.

(They had to reshoot scenes like this for the US release because of the excessive Margaret Lockwood boobage on display.)

George Harrison!?

It’s a bitch-off!

I feel like I should love this, but I just don’t. The performances are great, and the plot is a lot of fun, but I’m not really feeling it.

It might just be me.

The Wicked Lady. Leslie Arliss. 1945.

This blog post is part of the Eclipse series.

Eclipse 1932: Les Croix de Bois

I had really expected more French movies in the Eclipse series from Criterion. But it’s… mostly Japanese and British movies?

I think we have a theme.

Was this filmed as a silent movie originally? It kinda seems like it — it’s got scenes with speeded-up action and stuff.

And these bits.

But then it totally changes into a modern aesthetic. Well. 30s modern? That’s modern, isn’t it?

This is a film about the Great War — seen from the trenches. And you’d expect something more upbeat than this in 1932? But it’s all about mud, stenches, lice and people dying for no particular reason.

This looks great… the other movie in this Eclipse box set is Les Misérables, the four-and-a-half hour movie from 1934. Which has gotten a new restoration and is has been released on blu-ray after Criterion did their DVD release. So I think I’m gonna skip the Eclipse version of that, and get the Eureka blu-ray instead.

*shopping achieved*

Wooden Crosses. Raymond Bernard. 1932.

This blog post is part of the Eclipse series.

Eclipse 1945: Madonna of the Seven Moons

Mm-hm.

Well, that’s not threatening at all!

I’m enjoying this. It’s a quite weird movie. That is, it’s not clear what this movie is going to be about. I think…? that the movie started with the woman above being raped (by that guy with high wasted pants up there), but then we’re warped to a time twenty years later, and it’s mostly about her daughter.

This one, in the stylish shorts.

So I’m guessing it’s going to be about late repercussions of trauma or something? But told as a frothy comedy?

And what’s happening now?! Has she been taken over by a spirit? She’s suddenly wearing a shawl! Is she Roma now?

YES! IT”S A PSYCHOTIC BREAK!

This movie is awesome.

I love that:

Gainsborough is sometimes criticized as a purveyor of “high toned” tosh for shop girls

I’ve always aspired to be a shop girl.

But it does drag on a bit, doesn’t it?

Madonna of the Seven Moons. Arthur Crabtree. 1945.

This blog post is part of the Eclipse series.

PX97: The Complete Maus

The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (173x240mm)

If you’ve following this blog series, you may be asking yourself — “didn’t that guy already talk about Maus? Excessively?” Yes, I have like a lot.

So I don’t quite know why I bought this edition now — I think it just popped up (because of the banning thing) and I may have been thinking that it’d be nice to have a complete hardback edition?

I was also wondering whether they’d spruced it up a bit since the paperback edition back in the early noughties, or perhaps added an introduction by Stan Lee (“again with the mice!”) or had a redesign by Chip Kidd or a new afterword by Michael Chabon. Something horrible like that.

I don’t actually recall any of this — I was really surprised when it showed up in the latest shipment of comics from over the pond.

But since I’ve got it, let’s just take a look at it?

The book is very handsome and sturdy. And, *phew*, no redesign, and absolutely no additional texts. It’s just as devastating a reading experience as ever.

It’s printed on matte paper, and looks really good.

The other complete edition I have, the paperback from 2002, uses shiny, non-absorbent paper, which makes the artwork look really sharp… but also kind of incongruous?

So this may be the best edition of Maus I have, and I’m happy I bought it anyway.

And… I don’t think I’ve got anything further to say about Maus that I haven’t already, so I think I’ll just stop there.

And this is the final post in the Punk Comix mini bonus track section (but I may do further posts in the future if I happen upon some other books from this generation that are interesting).

This blog post is part of the Punk Comix series.

Eclipse 1966: 愛の渇き

This is an odd movie, even for a Koreyoshi Kurahara movie.

But he’s gotten a new lens! The bits in the margins are no longer in squash-o-vision, so when he pans the camera, it’s no longer nauseating.

OK, the lens is still kinda fishy, but not as extreme as in earlier years.

So, OK, this movie is all about that woman being horny for this guy?

In that case… perhaps… this isn’t the most brilliant casting ever? Because it’s just not quite clear why that is.

But I mean, it’s kind of brilliant anyway. Lovely cinematography.

As pretty as this movie is, it’s a bit on the aimless side? I think I see what they’re going for, but they’re not getting there consistently. Some scenes are great, and some are just… there.

Thirst For Love. Koreyoshi Kuraharai. 1966.

This blog post is part of the Eclipse series.