Cinema Basement

 A retrospective by Brooks Rich So this is going to be a little different coverage for a film as I don't want to give away anything about this film. This is one of the most forgotten films I've ever covered. No one seems to know this thing even exists. The joy of this film is going into it completely cold. Discover it as it unfolds. The basic idea is filmmaker Werner Herzog puts together an expedition to go finally prove the existence of the Loch Ness monster. Of course things go wrong and instead of making a documentary about the monster and the science behind it, Herzog's film turns into a documentary about a failed expedition to find the monster and how fast people turn on each other. It also explores Herzog's reputation as a filmmaker, especially the legends surrounding the making for Fitzcarraldo, such as that he apparently forced actor Klaus Kinski to continue doing the shoot at gunpoint.  Herzog is a fascinating figure in the world of cinema and this film gives a...

 A retrospective by Brooks Rich Sex therapist Dr. Joan Allenby, a mesmerizing Lindsay Crouse, finds her lover and business partner in bed with her secretary. She decides to murder him by role playing in a dark wig as a woman called Lisa and luring him back to their office where she kills him. She uses her attendance at an event for a music school as an alibi. Things point to this mysterious Lisa initially until Columbo realizes they can't find the victims keys which begs the question, how did the victim and this Lisa get into the office? Sex and the Married Detective is the third episode of the eighth season, which is the first season of the show's return after what was supposed to be the last episode in 1978. I prefer the original run of the show as there are some moments in the second run that just don't work for me. Whether it's a stupid non-sequitur comedy scene or even a sixty second musical or dance number, it sometimes feels like the writers and producers are try...

 A retrospective by Brooks Rich Welcome to Cinema Basement's newest segment, Just One More Thing, an exploration and appreciation for Columbo and named for his famous catchphrase, which often preceded a crucial question that begins to unravel the killer's plot. Now that we've covered the first two films that led to the official run of the series, it's time to find a place for the rest of them. Not every episode is a gem, some are downright no good, but they all have the most lovable detective in TV history.  Arrogant and narcissistic food critic Paul Gerard, played by Louis Jourdan, who plays the exact same character in 1983 as Kamal Khan in Octopussy, extorts money from restaurant owners in exchange for glowing reviews. When Vittorio Rossi tries to back out and threatens to expose the scheme, Gerard fatally poisons him with poison from the Japanese fugu blowfish. Gerard has a near perfect alibi as he had already left and Rossi died after opening the wine bottle that ki...

 A review by Forrest Humphrey  So here we are at last, and a little late to the party. Nevertheless, the four film Monsterverse was leading here, the great rematch between King Kong and Godzilla. Perhaps surprisingly the film did extremely well given the odds stacked against it. with the world is still in the grip of the pandemic and the poor reception and box office haul of its predecessor, “King of the Monsters” fresh in people's minds. Released in theaters and HBO Max at the same time, “Godzilla vs. Kong” was a huge success, but how well does the film actually hold up? Well, that's a mixed bag, as this is the most polarizing film of the Monsterverse. All the problems with the monster action in the previous two Godzilla films have been addressed. There are nowhere near as many cuts in the action, finally giving the audience the multiple minute fight scenes they've been begging to see for years. Almost every set piece is set in the daytime, and the one night scene is i...

 A retrospective by Forrest Humphrey Here we are, a little over a week before “Godzilla vs. Kong” hits theaters/streaming services, and its time to look at the most recent Monster-verse film: 2019's “Godzilla: King of the Monsters.” While I find 2014's “Godzilla” mostly serviceable and “Kong: Skull Island” to be a silly good time, I'm more torn with “King of the Monsters.” To be blunt, I think this is the worst film of the Minster-verse, but it also hurts to say so given there are several things about the film I love. Director Michael Dougherty wanted to take a different approach than the 2014 film, calling to mind “Alien” to “Aliens” in terms of respecting Gareth Edward's slow build in the previous film but wanting to ramp things up in this sequel, and I will say that has been achieved. The movie moves along very quickly, and the various monsters start showing up minutes into the film, with a new action set piece never to far away. But for reasons I will get into, th...

 A retrospective by Brooks Rich An ambitious and cold lawyer named Leslie Williams, played by Lee Grant, murders her boring husband and then stages his kidnapping, paying off the "ransom" and then uncovering the body to make it look like the kidnappers killed him anyway. Of course she also pockets the ransom money. It seems like a perfect crime. But her stepdaughter suddenly arrives without warning and is hassling her. More importantly a frumpy detective in a raincoat is also hounding her, setting off a game of cat and mouse.  After the success of Prescription Murder another TV movie with Peter Falk as the lovable Lieutenant Columbo was greenlit. Once again we see a murderer plan and carry out a crime and then watch as Columbo slowly figures it out and traps them. Ransom for a Dead Man has a different feel then Prescription Murder. It's more like a '70s Neo noir than a classy whodunit like Prescription Murder. The music is different too. This would become a highlight ...