NEW FROM THE WARNER ARCHIVE COLLECTION
The Americanization Of Emily (1964/Blu-ray) – James Garner and Julie Andrews star in this underrated black comedy from legendary screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky and director Arthur Hiller. Garner plays a smooth naval officer based in London who falls head over heels in love with war widow Andrews. The movie’s reputation has grown steadily over the years, so I’m very happy to see it making its high-def debut.
The Big House (1930) – Wallace Beery stars in the original prison drama as hardnosed con Butch Schmidt. Warner Archive has released this title before but this time, they’re including not one but two alternate versions created for foreign-language markets: one in French (with Charles Boyer, directed by Paul Fejos, who was reintroduced to modern audiences recently thanks to the Criterion release of Lonesome) and another in Spanish.
Beyond Betrayal (1994) – This week’s TV offerings kick off with Susan Dey as an abused wife who escapes her violent husband (Richard Dean Anderson, a long way from MacGyver), only to have him hunt her down.
The Delphi Bureau: The Merchant Of Death Assignment (1972) – Laurence Luckinbill stars in the pilot episode to the short-lived TV series about a super-top-secret spy with a photographic memory. In this installment, he has to track down whoever is responsible for the disappearance of a fleet of airplanes.
The Girl In The Empty Grave (1977) – Small town police chief Andy Griffith has a mystery on his hands when a girl, supposedly murdered months ago, suddenly reappears. This TV-movie also stars James Cromwell as Andy’s deputy and future Breaking Bad star Jonathan Banks.
Duel Of Hearts (1991) – Alison Doody, Michael York, Geraldine Chaplin and Benedict Taylor star in this very British period romance based on the novel by very British period romance novelist Barbara Cartland.
The Rose And The Jackal (1990) – Christopher Reeve and a great big bushy beard star as detective Allen Pinkerton, head of the Union’s first Secret Service formed by President Lincoln. He falls in love with his target, a Confederate spy played by Madolyn Smith Osborne.
Eight Is Enough: The Complete Fifth Season (1980-81) – It’s the end of the road for the Bradford clan in their fifth and final season. As with most TV shows about large families, more kids are added to the final go-around, including a baby and Ralph Macchio as Abby’s nephew, who comes for a visit and sticks around for the rest of the series.
- Adam Jahnke