Streaming Tiefland Online

Tiefland (1954)iMDB Rating: 6.2
Date Released : 1 April 1954
Genre : Drama, Romance, Musical
Stars : Bernhard Minetti, Leni Riefenstahl, Aribert Wäscher, Karl Skraup." />
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Watch Tiefland Trailer :

Review :

Sensuous and Forbidden

I'll get my ass kicked for saying this (so what else is new), but this is a great movie. The composition of the visuals makes it utterly compelling. The Spanish setting comes totally to life, and I speak as someone who has visited the country. The cruelty of the aristocrats, the desperation of the peasants, the sensuality of the señoritas…it's all typical of the place, and you can see it in Spanish movies like Los Santos Inocentes (1984). That this should have been achieved by a bunch of foreigners shooting in 1940 is a tribute to the genius of director-star Leni Riefenstahl.

LR was originally a dancer, and it shows in her superb command of flamenco dancing here. Having seen the real thing, I can swear that she is as good as any of the Spanish dancers who have grown up doing mudanzas and seguidillas. Being the director, she has the advantage of getting the camera to ogle her every sensuous gyration at close range.

The story concerns a gypsy beggar-dancer who wanders into a Spanish village, where a shepherd falls in love with her…and a Marquis falls in lust with her. It must be said that the more romantic scenes are cliché, almost like Valentino, but the more carnal scenes really give off sparks.

Riefenstahl's main concern is with nature and the mountains. The constant theme of the story is the contrast between the purity of the high mountain pastures (moisture and fresh air) and the corruption of the Tiefland (lowland) with its cruel aristocracy and downtrodden peasants - "the men are bad and the women are sick". The scenes of nature photography are first-rate, and anyone who hasn't seen Tiefland is missing out on a major part of the development of cinema. Especially of note are the fast motion scenes of clouds rolling in and lightning striking, also the opening scene with the shepherd wrestling a (very real) wolf. Many of the scenes seem to be directly taken from Goya's paintings of peasant life.

It is interesting to consider that LR's "mountain-films" may have been the ancestors of the spaghetti-western. Tiefland and The Blue Light have many of the features of a western, and could easily be re-made as such (although they would lack the animal magnetism of LR). Try comparing Tiefland to A Fistful of Dollars, you'll see what I mean.

Tiefland was mostly shot in 1940, though for various reasons it wasn't released until 1953. It seems that the extras in the film are gypsies recruited from concentration camps, so the bitterness they exude may be more than just acting. That peasant woman who snarls "you rat" probably really means it. In this sense, Tiefland is a movie about itself and a fascinating social document that takes us back through time and space. (One way we can sympathise with these people is to appreciate their performance for us here). There are even some who maintain that the love-hate relationship between the dancer and the Marquis is a comment on LR's own relationship with Hitler, although I must leave this to others more knowledgeable about European history.

I would like to thank the Imdb-ist who sent me a decent copy of this film, which I never would have thought to watch. You should see it too, dear reader.

Streaming Due soldi di speranza Online

Due soldi di speranza (1952)iMDB Rating: 7.2
Date Released : 10 April 1952
Genre : Comedy, Romance
Stars : Maria Fiore, Vincenzo Musolino, Filomena Russo, Luigi Astarita." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Watch Due soldi di speranza Trailer :

Review :

Great mood established with romance and Naples.

Is love the only ingredient needed to enable a young couple to be married? Through most of this motion picture the answer seems to be no, as Antonio and Carmela are in love and yet the odds are against them getting married. This is the simple plot line which focuses in on the two very well developed characters and their fight to be accepted together. The strong personality and overwhelming free spirit of Carmela, excellently portrayed by Maria Fiore has to be one of the most interesting female characters in film history. The story starts out with Antonio having served time as a soldier and returning home to his financially challenged mother and sisters. Almost at once Carmela is on the scene flirting with Antonio. His main concern, though, is securing a job. The rest of the film switches back and forth between Antonio and Carmela and his trials and tribulations with both his short term employment ventures and the problems arising with young love. Their situation isn't helped with Carmela's brother and father being against their proposed marriage. Village life is very well explored in this movie that has a very broad appeal. Mack Sennett felt that a fast pace was the key ingredient to a good movie and Two Pennyworth of Hope moves along at the speed of light. The VCR timer and other sources give this a running time of 95 minutes. Technically speaking the movie isn't in b&w as a red film stock was used as a source for this VHS video version. The white subtitles need to be encased in black as about 10% are impossible to read.

Watch Denver and Rio Grande (1952) Online

Denver and Rio Grande (1952)iMDB Rating: 5.9
Date Released : 3 November 1952
Genre : Western
Stars : Edmond O'Brien, Sterling Hayden, Dean Jagger, Kasey Rogers
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Edmund O'Brien and his team of railroading men try to build a rail line through a mountain pass, while a group of less scrupulous construction workers sabotage the entire operation in the hopes that they can get their tracks laid first and get the money from the railroad.

Watch Denver and Rio Grande Trailer :

Review :

Rival Railroads Collide Head-On -- Literally And Figuratively

Denver & Rio Grande is one of those entertaining 1950's "B-plus" Westerns -- that is a "B" picture cast but top-notch "A" production values. This Technicolor oater about a right-away shooting war between rival railway companies actually qualifies as a minor classic of the genre. Not for the dramatic acting or Frank Guber's average screen play, but because of high powered action sequences in, on, and around authentic 19th Century railroad rolling stock, all enveloped in gloriously scenic Colorado Rocky Mountain locations.

Unlikely leading man Edmond O'Brien is one of yours truly's favorite actors, whether he is in a lead or a supporting role. But Eddy looks somewhat uncomfortable in his Western togs, even a little peaked at times, as if all that Rocky Mountain sunshine and fresh air disagreed with his constitution. Could be he was wishing to be back in one of those dimly lighted, smoke-filled, noir bars which were his more typical cinema habitat. A much more familiar face to the celluloid Western environment, tall, stiff actor Sterling Hayden is cast against type here as the ruthless leader of the bad guys. You may have thought Hayden was stiff in his more typical heroic roles, but as a villain in Denver & Rio Grande, he's so wooden it's difficult to distinguish him from one of the telegraph poles. Dean Jagger, as real-life railroad builder General William J. Palmer, adds a touch of class to the cast, but doesn't have much to do. He looks like he's about to go to sleep through most of the picture, but as always, he has his moments. On the other hand leading lady Laura Elliot (aka Kasey Rogers), best known for her role in popular TV sitcom Bewitched, shows a little spark as the General's pretty secretary with a grudge against O'Brien. The ever reliable J. Carrol Naish, often seen as a gangster or a cynical cop, refreshingly gets a sympathetic, clean-cut role as the nattily attired railroad construction engineer. But never mind, the real stars of this picture are gorgeous Rocky Mountain scenery and the thrilling, nostalgic steam locomotives.

If the dramatic acting of the fine cast did not seem up to par, you can blame flabby direction by director Byron Haskin, who was more of a special effects technician than a director anyway. But once the action sequences start, Haskin is in his element. Denver & Rio Grande is nothing if not action-packed, and isn't that what we all love in Westerns? When the two railroad companies get serious about going after each other, they employ military tactics along with prolific volleys of (mostly inaccurate) gunfire from railroad cars to take and re-take miles of track and telegraph stations. One of the top action scenes is the actual "head-on collision of two bull locomotives", as it was heavily advertised at the time of the picture's 1952 release. The result is not disappointing, though Haskin cheated a bit with a dynamite explosion at the point of impact to make the shock of collision more spectacular. He really had to. Those old locomotives were such solidly constructed masses of steel, they could have just bounced apart without showing much apparent damage or the desired boiler explosions. By the way, as a minor point, this much ballyhooed train wreck does not happen at the climax of the movie, as stated by Leonard Maltin and others. It is one of the events building toward the climax, and it occurs quite some time before the end of the picture.

Denver & Rio Grande is a nicely turned out Western. The sets are very good, though most of the scenes are filmed in the great outdoors. Costumes are true to the time, place, and occupation of the characters. Particularly impressive were the authentic looking six-gun leather and the colorful variety of hats. The chubby O'Brien liked to foster an everyman image, and he did little to improve his unglamorous looks. Here his rough working man outfit includes a floppy black hat which looks as if it has been roundly stomped on by a couple of overweight saloon floozies. But it is the trains steaming around the mountains, the water tanks, stations, piles of cross-ties, telegraphs, and other supporting railroad equipment that really grab the eye. The excellent train sound effects made all of this as stimulating to hear as to see.

For all its flaws this is a highly entertaining picture. If you are a fan of exciting, flavorful Western action with chugging, puffing, hissing, clanging, whistling, steaming, smoke-belching, greasy, sooty, oil-dripping, jerking, screeching, cinder-flinging Nineteenth Century trains -- and how could anyone not be -- Denver & Rio Grande will take you where you can find it!

Streaming The Prisoner of Zenda (1952) Online

The Prisoner of Zenda (1952)iMDB Rating: 7.0
Date Released : 14 November 1952
Genre : Adventure
Stars : Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr, Louis Calhern, Jane Greer
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

English trout fisher Rudolf Rassendyll is about the only tourist not coming for the coronation of Central-European King Rudolf V at Strelsau, but happens to be a distance relative and is approached on account of their canning resemblance to stand in for the drunk king, in order to prevent his envious half-brother Michael, who arranged spiking his wine to seize the throne when the reputedly less then dutiful Rudolf stays away. The ceremony goes well, and he gets acquainted with the charming royal bride, related princess Flavia, but afterward the king is found to be abducted; he must continue the charade and once the hiding place, the castle of Zenda, is found is involved in the fight between political parties for control over Rudolf V, his the throne and his bride, for which a formidable third candidate, Michael's disloyal co-conspirator Rupert of Hentzau, was waiting in the curtains.

Watch The Prisoner of Zenda Trailer :

Review :

I like this version more.

I bought a duel set of "The Prisoner of Zenda" that contains both 1937 and 1952 versions, and like the 1952 version much more. First of all, Granger's handsomeness and style fits more to the fairy-tale adventure story of prince and princess, Coleman is too sophisticated for the Rassendyall character. Other casts are better also; Kerr is much prettier and princess like, and Mason is a more impressive villain. I also think that the fighting scenes are better, more elegant and better choreographed. With no less significance is the color ,makes the costume and characters look more sensational, and gives more feeling for the romantic fairy tale .

This movie is pure entertainment, I first saw it in high school, loved it, I still enjoy it 30 years later .

Streaming Le grand jeu Online

Le grand jeu (1954)iMDB Rating: 6.1
Date Released : 12 April 1954
Genre : Drama
Stars : Gina Lollobrigida, Jean-Claude Pascal, Arletty, Raymond Pellegrin. Pierre Martel is a brilliant lawyer in Paris who has fallen in love with a ravishing Italian girl, Sylvia Sorrego and they take up housekeeping on a luxurious scale beyond his means, and Pierre commits a few irregularities and is asked to resign the Bar Association. He heads for Algeria and tells Sylvia to sell everything they own and join him there. Sylvia is a no-show and Pierre, broke, with a ..." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Pierre Martel is a brilliant lawyer in Paris who has fallen in love with a ravishing Italian girl, Sylvia Sorrego and they take up housekeeping on a luxurious scale beyond his means, and Pierre commits a few irregularities and is asked to resign the Bar Association. He heads for Algeria and tells Sylvia to sell everything they own and join him there. Sylvia is a no-show and Pierre, broke, with a dishonored name and having lost the woman he loves, dons the hair-shirt he wears the rest of the film and becomes a human wreck, and he joins the Foreign Legion. Pierre and his friends Mario and Fred engage in a bit of globe-hopping warfare for the next four years and are sent back to the camp in Algeria. There, they discover a house/castle near the camp called "The Last Stop" run by Madame Blanche, who spends most of her time reading playing cards. When she isn't reading cards, Madame Blanche runs a few prostitutes on the side and arranges for three ladies of the evening to spend a night in ...

Watch Le grand jeu Trailer :

Review :

FLESH AND THE WOMAN (Robert Siodmak, 1954) **1/2

Not really epic material, this is a fated romantic drama (a typically French quality) set against the exotic background of the Foreign Legion – and, actually, a remake of Jacques Feyder's 1934 film LE GRAND JEU (also this version's original title).

The plot involves a successful young lawyer (Jean-Claude Pascal) who, due to a shady deal, finds himself penniless and separated from his wife (Gina Lollobrigida). Stranded in Algeria, he's persuaded to join the Foreign Legion – where he befriends a couple of similar losers (played by Raymond Pellegrin and Peter van Eyck). All three lodge in the tavern run by an ageing fortune-teller (Arletty) and occasionally go out in search of a good time with the local girls…eventually meeting up with one who's a dead-ringer for Lollobrigida! Soon, the buddies fall out over her (and one of them even winds up dead, an event which Arletty had actually predicted!) – though the girl, naturally, is drawn to the hero (even if her sweet-natured character differs from that of his materialistic wife). At the end, Pascal does run into the latter and discovers that they have nothing more in common – which, therefore, gives him free rein to start life over with his new-found love.

This was one of the first international efforts Siodmak made following his spell in Hollywood (to which he returned sporadically thereafter). Consequently, while his best work may have been behind him, the director manages to lend a reasonable amount of style to the melodramatic (even unlikely) proceedings. That said, the wretched print I watched didn't do the film any favors – being not only muddy and exceedingly scratched, but was besides distressingly plagued by any number of missing frames!

Watch Lady Possessed Online

Lady Possessed (1952)iMDB Rating: 6.8
Date Released : 26 January 1952
Genre : Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Stars : James Mason, June Havoc, Stephen Dunne, Fay Compton. In a London nursing home, Jean Wilson, a happily-married American woman, while in a state of self-consciousness, hears Jimmy Del Palma, angrily berate the hospital management for the out-dated treatment used on his wife, who dies a bit later. When she is well again, Jean rents the former home of Del Palma, a famous concert pianist, and his late wife. Not knowing why, she begins to fall in love ..." />
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

In a London nursing home, Jean Wilson, a happily-married American woman, while in a state of self-consciousness, hears Jimmy Del Palma, angrily berate the hospital management for the out-dated treatment used on his wife, who dies a bit later. When she is well again, Jean rents the former home of Del Palma, a famous concert pianist, and his late wife. Not knowing why, she begins to fall in love with the absent man and on hearing about his wife's death, dreams of taking her place. Her dream comes to close to becoming reality.

Watch Lady Possessed Trailer :

Review :

The 43 Year Old James Mason

Having caught the attention of Hollywood in 'Odd Man Out' (I don't know why), James Mason was shipped across the pond to appear in films like these and act alongside some of the studios finest actresses. This film was not worth the flight.

Streaming A Slight Case of Larceny Online

A Slight Case of Larceny (1953)iMDB Rating: 6.2
Date Released : 5 June 1953
Genre : Comedy, Crime
Stars : Mickey Rooney, Eddie Bracken, Elaine Stewart, Marilyn Erskine
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Two army buddies down on their luck open up a gas station and get involved in a price war - in a somewhat underhanded way.

Watch A Slight Case of Larceny Trailer :

Review :

A fun goofy movie I would love to see again!

I first saw this movie in New York while on a job interview trip in 1968. I have not seen hide nor hair of this movie since. I do, however, remember what a funny, slapstick romp it was. I realize it was a "B" movie, and likely was shot on a budget. But no expense was spared to maximize the comedy content. The scene of those two knuckleheads in the basement with the sparking electric drill was just great. Very enjoyable, I would love to see it again. Alas, my local television stations never had a print of it to run, and I am sure the networks wouldn't waste airtime on it today. I wonder why it has not been released on videotape? Somebody is sitting on a great early '50's comedy. If you are a Mickey Rooney fan, don't miss a chance to see this one. It is wonderful.