4K UHD Review: High Society
Though her career only spanned six years and eleven films, Grace Kelly is considered one of the most iconic, fashionable stars in cinematic history. Released in 1956, High Society is a remake of Philip Barry’s social satire The Philadelphia Story. Co-starring Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Celeste Holm and Louis Armstrong, there are several jazzy Cole […]
DVD Review: Frank Sinatra The Timex Shows -Volume 1
[amazon_link asins=’B06XS2BBJ5′ template=’ProductAd’ store=’moviegazetteo-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’427f8fbd-4173-11e7-8b6b-dfcd0e1e8ddb’] This release combines Frank Sinatra’s first two TV specials from the late 1950’s. The first, The Frank Sinatra Timex Show, was broadcast on ABC on October 19, 1959. Produced by Sammy Kahn, orchestrated by Nelson Riddle, Timex finds the then 44-year old crooner at the top of his game. […]
The Frank Sinatra Collection: A Man and His Music / A Man and His Music Part II (DVD)
By the time Frank Sinatra closed in on his fiftieth birthday in 1965, he needed little introduction. He sold millions of records, made several hit movies and even won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as Private Angelo Maggio in 1953’s From Here to Eternity. Some (perhaps rightly so), assumed the arrival of […]
The Detective (1968) (Blu-ray)
Following the success of Tony Rome, Frank Sinatra returned to the role of hard boiled investigator with The Detective. Based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Roderick Thorp, The Detective is far more serious and adult in tone than Tony Rome, but touched on some surprising themes for the era and saw […]
Sinatra: All or Nothing at All (DVD)
Attempting to produce an extensive documentary on such a well known figure as Frank Sinatra is a herculean task. Alex Gibney’s Sinatra: All or Nothing at All is an impressive effort. Divided into two parts and running just north of four hours—though it hardly feels like it—Gibney structures the film around the eleven-song set during […]
Frank Sinatra: Five Film Collection (Blu-ray)
December 12th marks what would have been Frank Sinatra’s 100th birthday. Warner Brothers Home Entertainment is celebrating the occasion with the May 5th release of the Frank Sinatra: Five Film Collection on Blu-ray. Packed with bonus features, including a 32-page photo book, the set includes the Blu-ray debuts of the newly remastered 1945 musical Anchors […]
A Hole in the Head (Blu-ray)
After experiencing a career decline in the early 1950’s, Frank Sinatra began a career rebirth with the eve-of-Pearl Harbor drama From Here to Eternity, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. By the end of the 1950’s, Sinatra had reclaimed his title as the top recording artist in the world, and […]
Blu-ray Review: The Miracle of the Bells
Slightly odd and highly saccharine to be sure, The Miracle of the Bells (1948) hasn’t gotten a lot of respect over the years. By 1948, Frank Sinatra’s supposed mob association was openly discussed. As a result, his portrayal of a priest was candidly mocked, with Time Magazine asserting, “St. Michael ought to sue.” Nonetheless, the […]
Blu-ray Review: Suddenly (1954)
Made by Frank Sinatra before he won an Academy Award for From Here to Eternity (though it was released nearly a year later), Suddenly marked the first time Sinatra played the “heavy.” The title refers to a small town in California where Sheriff Tod Shaw (Sterling Hayden) knows everyone by name. Strangers often pass through […]
Blu-ray Review: The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
Not a box office hit when first released, in the nearly fifty years since, The Manchurian Candidate has taken its place among the greatest espionage films ever made. While The Manchurian Candidate seemed to foreshadow much of the political and social turmoil that would erupt across the American landscape during the 1960’s, it seems oddly […]