SPIKES GANG, WOMAN OF STRAW and other UA Obscurities

Talk about the latest movies and video releases here!
Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
AndyDursin
Posts: 34185
Joined: Tue Oct 05, 2004 8:45 pm
Location: RI

SPIKES GANG, WOMAN OF STRAW and other UA Obscurities

#1 Post by AndyDursin »

Several never-released-on-video, relatively obscure items have shown up on the MGM HD channel (255 on directv) over the last couple of weeks. I've caught bits and pieces of these:

WOMAN OF STRAW -- Basil Dearden-directed, 1964 released thriller with Sean Connery (inbetween Bonds), Gina Lollobrigida and Ralph Richardson was a real surprise. Well directed, slow mounting suspense (kind of like a serious, British "Weekend at Bernie's"!) with production design by Ken Adam and good performances. Well worth catching.

THE SPIKES GANG -- Bank robber Lee Marvin saddles up with a group of teenage bandits (Ron Howard, Charles Martin Smith and Gary Grimes) in this quite watchable 1974 western written by Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. Richard Fleischer's direction isn't anything special and the movie has a TV kind of look, but it's entertaining and even somewhat "realistic" with a good Fred Karlin score. The downer ending reinforces the notion that you ought to listen to your parents!

NOTHING PERSONAL -- Incredibly stilted 1980 teaming of Suzanne Somers and Donald Sutherland is a total waste of time...no surprise this never got a release on video.

All three have appeared on the MGM HD slate and will surely be re-run -- I'd definitely check out WOMAN OF STRAW for Connery fans, I'll be keeping an eye out for a rebroadcast too.

Post Reply