Joseph Baneth Allen's Blog, page 45
December 27, 2023
Tex: The Magnificent Outlaw
Just finished reading "Tex: The Magnificent Outlaw" by Mauro Boselli and Stefano Andreucci, published by Epicenter Comics.
Because Tex is an Italian comic - releases by Epicenter Comics are in English - I will provide a little background on this decades old comic book series.
Tex Willer is the main fictional character of the Italian comics series Tex, created by writer Gian Luigi Bonelli and illustrator Aurelio Galleppini, and first published in Italy on September 30 1948. It is among the most popular characters of Italian comics, with translations to numerous languages all around the world.
Tex's first adventure appeared on 30 September 1948, as a comic strip. At Tex is an unwillingly outlaw who was framed for a crime he did not commit, and who with a strong code of honor: he kills only for self-defense.
Tex's goal is to become a Texas Ranger. Thanks to the marriage with the beautiful Navajo girl Lilyth, he becomes Chief of the Navajos, known as Aquila della Notte (Eagle of the Night), and a defender of Native American rights. He also becomes the respected Indian agent of the Navajo tribe. He is also a blood brother to Cochise.
Tough, loyal, infallible with guns, enemy of prejudice and discrimination, Tex is very quick and smart, and has a marked disregard for strict rules; on the other side, he has no pity for criminals, of every race and census, nor regard for their rights, if they do not immediately cooperate with the law.
"The Magnificent Outlaw" is a tells a tale from Tex's younger days when he is on the run for a crime he didn't commit. He is on the trail of of those who can clear him from the charges against him and save him from the hangman's noose. [We do find in the pages that an older Tex is telling this story of his misbegotten youth to his son and his best friend Kit Carson. [The Tex series, while an Italian version of the American Old West, does incorporate actual history into the comic strip series.]
Riding into a bandit's nest, Tex seeks to make inroads, but runs up against some unexpected trouble in the form of a tenderfoot by the name of Will Kramer who only sees in shades of black and white and who just may cause the end of Tex.
Tex reminds me of the old full-sized black and white comic magazines published by Warren Publishing.
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Tex-Magnificen...
Because Tex is an Italian comic - releases by Epicenter Comics are in English - I will provide a little background on this decades old comic book series.
Tex Willer is the main fictional character of the Italian comics series Tex, created by writer Gian Luigi Bonelli and illustrator Aurelio Galleppini, and first published in Italy on September 30 1948. It is among the most popular characters of Italian comics, with translations to numerous languages all around the world.
Tex's first adventure appeared on 30 September 1948, as a comic strip. At Tex is an unwillingly outlaw who was framed for a crime he did not commit, and who with a strong code of honor: he kills only for self-defense.
Tex's goal is to become a Texas Ranger. Thanks to the marriage with the beautiful Navajo girl Lilyth, he becomes Chief of the Navajos, known as Aquila della Notte (Eagle of the Night), and a defender of Native American rights. He also becomes the respected Indian agent of the Navajo tribe. He is also a blood brother to Cochise.
Tough, loyal, infallible with guns, enemy of prejudice and discrimination, Tex is very quick and smart, and has a marked disregard for strict rules; on the other side, he has no pity for criminals, of every race and census, nor regard for their rights, if they do not immediately cooperate with the law.
"The Magnificent Outlaw" is a tells a tale from Tex's younger days when he is on the run for a crime he didn't commit. He is on the trail of of those who can clear him from the charges against him and save him from the hangman's noose. [We do find in the pages that an older Tex is telling this story of his misbegotten youth to his son and his best friend Kit Carson. [The Tex series, while an Italian version of the American Old West, does incorporate actual history into the comic strip series.]
Riding into a bandit's nest, Tex seeks to make inroads, but runs up against some unexpected trouble in the form of a tenderfoot by the name of Will Kramer who only sees in shades of black and white and who just may cause the end of Tex.
Tex reminds me of the old full-sized black and white comic magazines published by Warren Publishing.
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Tex-Magnificen...
The Invention Of Tomorrow - A Natural History Of Foresight
Just finished reading "The Invention Of Tomorrow - A Natural History Of Foresight" by Thomas Suddendorf, Jonathan Redshaw and Adam Bulley, published by Basic Books.
In this intriguing tome, Suddendorg, Redshaw, and Bulley explore how the ability to use memory to time travel grants human beings the ability to conceptualize the passing of time and how it gave us the ability to make plans and adjust them accordingly.
Strongly Recommended.
Five Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Invention-Tomo...
In this intriguing tome, Suddendorg, Redshaw, and Bulley explore how the ability to use memory to time travel grants human beings the ability to conceptualize the passing of time and how it gave us the ability to make plans and adjust them accordingly.
Strongly Recommended.
Five Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Invention-Tomo...
Poetic Justice - Featuring Blue Satan and Mrs. Kean
Just finished reading "Poetic Justice - Featuring Blue Satan and Mrs. Kean" by Patricia Wynn, published by Pemberly Press.
I discovered Patricia Wynn's "Blue Satan and Mrs. Kean" mysteries back in 2001 at the little independent bookstore that was at the Stores at the World Golf Center near St. Augustine here in Florida. There was a display of the first novel in "The Blue Satan Mysteries," - "The Birth of Blue Satan."
Now keep in mind that back in 2001, independently self-published books were not viewed favorably, as they are today. I didn't immediately buy "The Birth of Blue Satan," but was intrigued enough by it to research Wynn - who was an established and published mainstream writer of may regency romance novels. So, based on what I found, and an online interview I read where Wynn said that she had decided to go the self-publishing route to better control the quality of her work, I decided to give "The Birth of Blue Satan" a chance, not knowing if I would be reading the only book in the proposed series or the first book in an ongoing series that would eventually putter out without a real conclusion.
I'm glad I took the chance on "The Birth of Blue Satan."
Now nearly 22 years later, the Blue Satan Mysteries has come to a rousing and extremely satisfying conclusion with the 8th and concluding volume in Wynn's fun and delightful series - "Poetic Justice."
Wynn rather brilliantly move the series forward 10-years in the future with a series of letters which sums up what happened after when Hester Kean and Gideon Fitzsimmons, Viscount St. Mars, a.k.a. Blue Stan, finally get married and escape to France to start a new life together. Still their happily ever after remains a bit clouded because their finances will not cover the needs of their expanding family. Gideon and Hester have no choice after 10 years but to risk returning to England to clear his name and restore his inheritance in a risky trail in the House of Lords, but someone is trying to kill Gideon. Now it's a race against time to find who is trying to kill Gideon while trying to restore his reputation.
A very satisfying conclusion to this engaging mystery series.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Poetic-Justice...
I discovered Patricia Wynn's "Blue Satan and Mrs. Kean" mysteries back in 2001 at the little independent bookstore that was at the Stores at the World Golf Center near St. Augustine here in Florida. There was a display of the first novel in "The Blue Satan Mysteries," - "The Birth of Blue Satan."
Now keep in mind that back in 2001, independently self-published books were not viewed favorably, as they are today. I didn't immediately buy "The Birth of Blue Satan," but was intrigued enough by it to research Wynn - who was an established and published mainstream writer of may regency romance novels. So, based on what I found, and an online interview I read where Wynn said that she had decided to go the self-publishing route to better control the quality of her work, I decided to give "The Birth of Blue Satan" a chance, not knowing if I would be reading the only book in the proposed series or the first book in an ongoing series that would eventually putter out without a real conclusion.
I'm glad I took the chance on "The Birth of Blue Satan."
Now nearly 22 years later, the Blue Satan Mysteries has come to a rousing and extremely satisfying conclusion with the 8th and concluding volume in Wynn's fun and delightful series - "Poetic Justice."
Wynn rather brilliantly move the series forward 10-years in the future with a series of letters which sums up what happened after when Hester Kean and Gideon Fitzsimmons, Viscount St. Mars, a.k.a. Blue Stan, finally get married and escape to France to start a new life together. Still their happily ever after remains a bit clouded because their finances will not cover the needs of their expanding family. Gideon and Hester have no choice after 10 years but to risk returning to England to clear his name and restore his inheritance in a risky trail in the House of Lords, but someone is trying to kill Gideon. Now it's a race against time to find who is trying to kill Gideon while trying to restore his reputation.
A very satisfying conclusion to this engaging mystery series.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Poetic-Justice...
December 25, 2023
Blazing Saddles
Just finished watching "Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles," first released by Warner Brothers on the silver screen back in 1974.
Now as frequent readers of my reviews know here on Facebook, Goodreads, and other Social Media websites know, I do not subscribe to any streaming services. I prefer to have the movies and television shows I watch on good old fashioned DVDs and Blu-ray DVDs. Once you buy a movie on DVD and/or Blu-ray, you own it outright and it's available 24/7/365 - something that you can't do with a streaming service. Plus the chances are good that you are owning the original version of the movie and not the latest release version of "Star Wars" for example with added upgraded special effects.
Why am I mentioning this? Well, despite the fact that "Blazing Saddles" is considered to be the top 6th ranking comedy movie of all time by the American Film Institute, I'd be willing to wager that on any streaming service that makes it available for viewing is that there probably is a "trigger warning" about the language and stereotyping that occur in "Blazing Saddles." And I'm willing to bet that nobody will understand the historical context of American Indians speaking Yiddish.
"Blazing Saddles" was Mel Brooks first commercial success and it allowed him to make other comedy movies that poked fun of a variety of troupes.
Brooks did poke fun at prejudice and was perhaps the first film maker to show a "cowboy" in a gay relationship beating "Brokeback Mountain" by decades.
Brooks also used comedy to show that it is possible for divisions to be set aside and conquered when everyone works for the common good.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - but if you're a snow flake offended by the humor of another time, this movie isn't for you.
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Blazing-Saddle...
Now as frequent readers of my reviews know here on Facebook, Goodreads, and other Social Media websites know, I do not subscribe to any streaming services. I prefer to have the movies and television shows I watch on good old fashioned DVDs and Blu-ray DVDs. Once you buy a movie on DVD and/or Blu-ray, you own it outright and it's available 24/7/365 - something that you can't do with a streaming service. Plus the chances are good that you are owning the original version of the movie and not the latest release version of "Star Wars" for example with added upgraded special effects.
Why am I mentioning this? Well, despite the fact that "Blazing Saddles" is considered to be the top 6th ranking comedy movie of all time by the American Film Institute, I'd be willing to wager that on any streaming service that makes it available for viewing is that there probably is a "trigger warning" about the language and stereotyping that occur in "Blazing Saddles." And I'm willing to bet that nobody will understand the historical context of American Indians speaking Yiddish.
"Blazing Saddles" was Mel Brooks first commercial success and it allowed him to make other comedy movies that poked fun of a variety of troupes.
Brooks did poke fun at prejudice and was perhaps the first film maker to show a "cowboy" in a gay relationship beating "Brokeback Mountain" by decades.
Brooks also used comedy to show that it is possible for divisions to be set aside and conquered when everyone works for the common good.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - but if you're a snow flake offended by the humor of another time, this movie isn't for you.
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Blazing-Saddle...
Snoopy Annual 1990
Just finished reading "Snoopy Annual 1990" published by Ravette Books.
There was another artist who drew Peanuts strips other than creator Charles M. Schulz. Peanuts had their own monthly comic book published by Dell Comics, and later Gold Key Comics in the late 1950s and 1960s. Dell Comics required original Peanuts comics to be published in the monthly Peanuts comic book, so since Schulz couldn't keep up with Dell Comics demand, he turned to friend and fellow comic strip artist Jim Sasseville to create the comic stories in Dell's monthly Peanuts book.
The "Snoopy Annual 1990" is a mixture of previously ran "Peanuts" newspaper comic strips that have been colorized and original prose stories that stay true to the Peanuts' characters.
Highly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Snoopy-Annual-...
There was another artist who drew Peanuts strips other than creator Charles M. Schulz. Peanuts had their own monthly comic book published by Dell Comics, and later Gold Key Comics in the late 1950s and 1960s. Dell Comics required original Peanuts comics to be published in the monthly Peanuts comic book, so since Schulz couldn't keep up with Dell Comics demand, he turned to friend and fellow comic strip artist Jim Sasseville to create the comic stories in Dell's monthly Peanuts book.
The "Snoopy Annual 1990" is a mixture of previously ran "Peanuts" newspaper comic strips that have been colorized and original prose stories that stay true to the Peanuts' characters.
Highly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Snoopy-Annual-...
Inspector Gadget Annual 1986
Just finished reading "Inspector Gadget Annual 1986" published by World.
My late cousin Hannah was the one who introduced me to the fun world of British annuals when she bought me the Doctor Who 1980 Annual and mailed it out to me for my birthday. Hannah was a great fan of science fiction and greatly encouraged me and my sister to read. To the best of my knowledge, while Hannah made a yearly month long vacation trip to San Diego every year, she never traveled overseas. I was named for her father, who was killed in combat during the Second World War.
Now, if your not familiar with British annuals, they are hardcover collections of original prose stories and comic book adventures designed for young readers and fans of television shows. I have the "Lost In Space," "Land Of The Giants," "Star Trek," "The Lone Ranger," "The Man From U.N.C.L.E," "Bugs Bunny" an my other annuals in my library.
The "Inspector Gadget Annual 1986" is a collection of short prose stories where Inspector Gadget, Penny, and Brain the Dog find themselves going up against Dr. Claw, and these stories do remain faithful and true to the original cartoon series.
My favorite tales in this collection are: "Inspector Gadget and the Loch Ness Monster," "Dr. Claw Drops Out," "Anchors Aweigh," "Inspector Gadget and the All-Seeing Eye," and "Inspector Gadget's Breakdown."
Great Classic fun with Inspector Gadget and crew.
Highly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Inspector-Gadg...
My late cousin Hannah was the one who introduced me to the fun world of British annuals when she bought me the Doctor Who 1980 Annual and mailed it out to me for my birthday. Hannah was a great fan of science fiction and greatly encouraged me and my sister to read. To the best of my knowledge, while Hannah made a yearly month long vacation trip to San Diego every year, she never traveled overseas. I was named for her father, who was killed in combat during the Second World War.
Now, if your not familiar with British annuals, they are hardcover collections of original prose stories and comic book adventures designed for young readers and fans of television shows. I have the "Lost In Space," "Land Of The Giants," "Star Trek," "The Lone Ranger," "The Man From U.N.C.L.E," "Bugs Bunny" an my other annuals in my library.
The "Inspector Gadget Annual 1986" is a collection of short prose stories where Inspector Gadget, Penny, and Brain the Dog find themselves going up against Dr. Claw, and these stories do remain faithful and true to the original cartoon series.
My favorite tales in this collection are: "Inspector Gadget and the Loch Ness Monster," "Dr. Claw Drops Out," "Anchors Aweigh," "Inspector Gadget and the All-Seeing Eye," and "Inspector Gadget's Breakdown."
Great Classic fun with Inspector Gadget and crew.
Highly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Inspector-Gadg...
The Young Protectors - Engaging The Enemy
Just finished reading "The Young Protectors - Engaging The Enemy" published by AMW Comics.
Created by Alex Woolfson, who writes the series, "The Young Protectors" is an ongoing web-comic that began back in 2012. It's not a free web series and it is protected behind a paywall on Patreon.
"The Young Protectors - Engaging The Enemy" was published after a very successful Kickstarter campaign that raised the funds to produced this volume. I found an autographed copy that was being sold as part of a library fundraiser that had been donated by the previous owner of the volume.
"The Young Protectors" take place in an alternative reality only slightly different than our own. To combat the growing number of crimes committed by people with superpowers in the mid-20th Century, the government announced the formation of super hero teams to combat the growing problem.
The Young Protectors is just one such government sponsored team, and I'm not sure where it's based in the United States. I want to say California, but my reluctance to break open my wallet to do a deeper diver into this web comic is limiting my knowledge.
"The Young Protectors - Engaging The Enemy" is the first part of a story the "Engaging The Enemy" story arc in the Young Protectors universe where Kyle, a 17-year-old boy, who is not only struggling with being a superhero who can control fire, but who is also having a hard time accepting himself for who he is and is afraid of being rejected and judged by the world if he lets it be known who he is.
Now this is where some people are going to be concerned about. Kyle is 17-years old, but he's approached by Duncan, the 50-something super villain known as the Annihilator. Duncan pressures and blackmails Kyle into giving him a kiss. And later, when Kyle is invisible, Duncan takes take an inappropriate advantage, but both back off until a week later when Kyle will turn 18 and be "legal."
"The Young Protectors- Engaging The Enemy" offers nothing ground breaking, though I'm sure that when it first came online in 2012, it was breaking new mold. But there was nothing to entice me story wise to want to learn more, i.e. became a Patreon supporter of Wolfson's. I don't think inappropriate subject matter should be rewarded and The Young Protectors being minors and put in inappropriate situations doesn't make for great comic book literature.
Not Going to Recommend.
Zero Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Young-Protecto...
Created by Alex Woolfson, who writes the series, "The Young Protectors" is an ongoing web-comic that began back in 2012. It's not a free web series and it is protected behind a paywall on Patreon.
"The Young Protectors - Engaging The Enemy" was published after a very successful Kickstarter campaign that raised the funds to produced this volume. I found an autographed copy that was being sold as part of a library fundraiser that had been donated by the previous owner of the volume.
"The Young Protectors" take place in an alternative reality only slightly different than our own. To combat the growing number of crimes committed by people with superpowers in the mid-20th Century, the government announced the formation of super hero teams to combat the growing problem.
The Young Protectors is just one such government sponsored team, and I'm not sure where it's based in the United States. I want to say California, but my reluctance to break open my wallet to do a deeper diver into this web comic is limiting my knowledge.
"The Young Protectors - Engaging The Enemy" is the first part of a story the "Engaging The Enemy" story arc in the Young Protectors universe where Kyle, a 17-year-old boy, who is not only struggling with being a superhero who can control fire, but who is also having a hard time accepting himself for who he is and is afraid of being rejected and judged by the world if he lets it be known who he is.
Now this is where some people are going to be concerned about. Kyle is 17-years old, but he's approached by Duncan, the 50-something super villain known as the Annihilator. Duncan pressures and blackmails Kyle into giving him a kiss. And later, when Kyle is invisible, Duncan takes take an inappropriate advantage, but both back off until a week later when Kyle will turn 18 and be "legal."
"The Young Protectors- Engaging The Enemy" offers nothing ground breaking, though I'm sure that when it first came online in 2012, it was breaking new mold. But there was nothing to entice me story wise to want to learn more, i.e. became a Patreon supporter of Wolfson's. I don't think inappropriate subject matter should be rewarded and The Young Protectors being minors and put in inappropriate situations doesn't make for great comic book literature.
Not Going to Recommend.
Zero Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Young-Protecto...
The Lost World
Just finished reading "Zagor - The Lost World," published by Epicenter Comics.
A little background is probably needed in this review because I suspect that a majority of American readers are not familiar with Zagor and the universe he inhabits.
Zagor is a comic book character created by editor and writer Sergio Bonelli (pseudonym Guido Nolitta) and artist Gallieno Ferri; and was first published In Italy by Sergio Bonelli Editore back in 1961.
Zagor's back story is a complex one that rivals how Bruce Wayne became Batman.
Zagor is Patrick Wilding, the son of Mike and Betty. He is a western-tarzanesque character living in a fictional forest named Darkwood, located in Pennsylvania, north eastern United States. His name Zagor comes from his Indian name "Za-Gor Te-Nay", whose fictional meaning is "The Spirit with the Hatchet". Though the writers do not mention exact dates, Zagor is supposed to be active during the first half of the 19th century, or around 1825–1830. Zagor fights to maintain peace all over his territory, protecting the Indian tribes and hunting down criminals regardless of their skin color. Son of an army official retiring to live as a pioneer and trapper in the forests of the north-east, Patrick Wilding sees his parents die at the hands of a band of Abenaki Indians, led by Salomon Kinsky. Taken in by the middle-aged trapper nicknamed "Wandering Fitzy", the boy grows up with only one thought on his mind: revenge. Patrick becomes Zagor when he's realizes that the revenge he sought has cost the life of Fitzy, his second father, who died saving his life.
In addition to straight forward adventures, Zagor also encounters many supernatural foes and has even fought against aliens.
"The Lost World" sequence is part of Zagor's ongoing quest to find Dexter Green, a former friend and ally, who betrayed him and left him to die. Zagor and his friend and traveling companion Chico, are deep in the Amazon tracking a lead on Green's whereabouts when they discover evidence that their friend Henry Summers and his wife, the former Russian Princess Nadia are alive and trapped on a vast mountain plateau that is home to warring tribes of Australopithecus and dinosaurs.
"The Lost World" is reminiscent of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Professor Challenger's encounters with dinosaurs, yet the stakes are higher because the only avenue of escape gets cut off by a tribe not wishing its "gods" to desert them.
GREAT FUN!
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/165487058330
A little background is probably needed in this review because I suspect that a majority of American readers are not familiar with Zagor and the universe he inhabits.
Zagor is a comic book character created by editor and writer Sergio Bonelli (pseudonym Guido Nolitta) and artist Gallieno Ferri; and was first published In Italy by Sergio Bonelli Editore back in 1961.
Zagor's back story is a complex one that rivals how Bruce Wayne became Batman.
Zagor is Patrick Wilding, the son of Mike and Betty. He is a western-tarzanesque character living in a fictional forest named Darkwood, located in Pennsylvania, north eastern United States. His name Zagor comes from his Indian name "Za-Gor Te-Nay", whose fictional meaning is "The Spirit with the Hatchet". Though the writers do not mention exact dates, Zagor is supposed to be active during the first half of the 19th century, or around 1825–1830. Zagor fights to maintain peace all over his territory, protecting the Indian tribes and hunting down criminals regardless of their skin color. Son of an army official retiring to live as a pioneer and trapper in the forests of the north-east, Patrick Wilding sees his parents die at the hands of a band of Abenaki Indians, led by Salomon Kinsky. Taken in by the middle-aged trapper nicknamed "Wandering Fitzy", the boy grows up with only one thought on his mind: revenge. Patrick becomes Zagor when he's realizes that the revenge he sought has cost the life of Fitzy, his second father, who died saving his life.
In addition to straight forward adventures, Zagor also encounters many supernatural foes and has even fought against aliens.
"The Lost World" sequence is part of Zagor's ongoing quest to find Dexter Green, a former friend and ally, who betrayed him and left him to die. Zagor and his friend and traveling companion Chico, are deep in the Amazon tracking a lead on Green's whereabouts when they discover evidence that their friend Henry Summers and his wife, the former Russian Princess Nadia are alive and trapped on a vast mountain plateau that is home to warring tribes of Australopithecus and dinosaurs.
"The Lost World" is reminiscent of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Professor Challenger's encounters with dinosaurs, yet the stakes are higher because the only avenue of escape gets cut off by a tribe not wishing its "gods" to desert them.
GREAT FUN!
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/165487058330
The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Just stopped watching "The Man From U.N.C.L.E" released by Warner Brothers.
For those who came in late, "The Man From U.N.C.L.E" was a popular television show which ran for four seasons on NBC starting back in 1964. Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, was involved with the television show. Pity he wasn't available for this train wreck of a movie.
Guy Ritchie co-wrote and directed this origin story of how Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin first teamed up and how U.N.C.L.E. was created.
I'll give it a point for trying to be '60s styling cool, but it falls flat with its story. I stopped watching about 25 minutes into this debacle.
STRONGLY NOT RECOMMENDED!
ZERO STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Man-U-N-C-L-Bl...
For those who came in late, "The Man From U.N.C.L.E" was a popular television show which ran for four seasons on NBC starting back in 1964. Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, was involved with the television show. Pity he wasn't available for this train wreck of a movie.
Guy Ritchie co-wrote and directed this origin story of how Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin first teamed up and how U.N.C.L.E. was created.
I'll give it a point for trying to be '60s styling cool, but it falls flat with its story. I stopped watching about 25 minutes into this debacle.
STRONGLY NOT RECOMMENDED!
ZERO STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/Man-U-N-C-L-Bl...
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Just finished watching "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly," released by Metro Golden Mayer back in 1966.
Confession time, I have never seen "A Fistful of Dollars" and "A Few Dollars More," the previous two movies in director Sergio Leone's classic Spaghetti Western trilogy, but that is not required to watch this movie, at least in my opinion.
The Man With No Name is perhaps actor Clint Eastwood's most iconic and remembered role outside of Dirty Harry.
"The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" is a lengthy epic set in 1862 in New Mexico during the Civil War. Many people are unaware of the Civil War history depicted in this film, which is a valuable reason in itself to see it. The Union Army turned back a serious Confederate push through the Southwest to reach California at the 1862 Battle of Glorietta Pass, a battle regarded by historians as one of the key engagements of the Civil War. This film is set in the aftermath of the battle, during the Confederate retreat following the destruction of its supply trains.
"The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" chronicles an effort by three outlaws to recover $200,000 in Confederate gold buried in a cemetery. The outlaws, each out for himself. form shifting alliances and fight with each other to recover the stash. Clint Eastwood plays a taciturn bounty hunter known as Blondie. Lee Van Cleef, the most vicious of the three, plays a sadistic killer, Angel Eyes. The third outlaw, Tuco, played by Eli Wallach, is a comic figure yet also ruthless and unrelenting in killing and in his quest for the gold. These three outlaws at times team up and work together, especially Blondie and Tuco, when it seems advantageous to do so. But they also will abandon, double-cross, and kill each other without compunction, when given the need and the opportunity.
It's the grey areas of each character that makes "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" compelling to watch. Even Blondie, who is "The Good," is compassionate enough to ease the passing of a dying soldier, but not too compassionate enough to not steal his belongings.
There was a proposed sequel and a script for "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly 2" was written, but Eastwood turned it down because he didn't want to work with director Sergio Leone ever again. Perhaps also intriguing, is the notion that Eastwood knew that Spaghetti Westerns had run their course - much like the current decline of superhero movies now.
Strongly Recommended.
Five Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Good-Bad-Ugly-...
Confession time, I have never seen "A Fistful of Dollars" and "A Few Dollars More," the previous two movies in director Sergio Leone's classic Spaghetti Western trilogy, but that is not required to watch this movie, at least in my opinion.
The Man With No Name is perhaps actor Clint Eastwood's most iconic and remembered role outside of Dirty Harry.
"The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" is a lengthy epic set in 1862 in New Mexico during the Civil War. Many people are unaware of the Civil War history depicted in this film, which is a valuable reason in itself to see it. The Union Army turned back a serious Confederate push through the Southwest to reach California at the 1862 Battle of Glorietta Pass, a battle regarded by historians as one of the key engagements of the Civil War. This film is set in the aftermath of the battle, during the Confederate retreat following the destruction of its supply trains.
"The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" chronicles an effort by three outlaws to recover $200,000 in Confederate gold buried in a cemetery. The outlaws, each out for himself. form shifting alliances and fight with each other to recover the stash. Clint Eastwood plays a taciturn bounty hunter known as Blondie. Lee Van Cleef, the most vicious of the three, plays a sadistic killer, Angel Eyes. The third outlaw, Tuco, played by Eli Wallach, is a comic figure yet also ruthless and unrelenting in killing and in his quest for the gold. These three outlaws at times team up and work together, especially Blondie and Tuco, when it seems advantageous to do so. But they also will abandon, double-cross, and kill each other without compunction, when given the need and the opportunity.
It's the grey areas of each character that makes "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" compelling to watch. Even Blondie, who is "The Good," is compassionate enough to ease the passing of a dying soldier, but not too compassionate enough to not steal his belongings.
There was a proposed sequel and a script for "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly 2" was written, but Eastwood turned it down because he didn't want to work with director Sergio Leone ever again. Perhaps also intriguing, is the notion that Eastwood knew that Spaghetti Westerns had run their course - much like the current decline of superhero movies now.
Strongly Recommended.
Five Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Good-Bad-Ugly-...
