Belli Reviews

The Count of Monte-Cristo (1975 TV Movie)

Passable telling of the tale

[18 October 2002]

A good TV effort for this timeless tale. Chamberlain's performance carries the story along. I recently picked up the video at a yard sale and was disappointed to find the "tableaux" scenes missing. Too bad, as the sequence of Dantes' confrontation with Mondego makes a lot more sense after the deleted scenes.

The Man in the White Suit (1951)

A little gem

[13 October 2002]

I remember the fuss raised about this movie when "Star Wars" debuted. As if something new had been discovered, but 50's sci-fi fans already had this one down as a favorite. If you like early Alec Guinness also check out "The Captain's Paradise".

I never forgot the unique sound Stratton's lab apparatus made and laughed out loud when it re-appeared in Bunsen Honeydew's lab in "The Muppet Movie".

beep, boop, bleep, boop......beep, boop, bleep, boop....

The War of the Worlds (1953)

One of the 50's best sci-fi flicks

[29 September 2002]

I saw this film on the big screen in a theater in 1953. When the Martian put his three-fingered hand on Ann Robinson's shoulder, I came off the seat about three feet. Good and scary. BTW, have you noticed the resemblance between the cobra-shaped Martian weapons in this film and the teardrop lamppost visible on the left-hand side of the screen when the ID4 observer is monitoring the nuke blast results? Someone in the ID4 SFX unit had a sense of humor.