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| Watching Any Good Serials? | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Apr 12 2006, 09:28 AM (88,334 Views) | |
| rodney | Apr 7 2009, 12:41 PM Post #1351 |
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Charter Member
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Perils of the Royal Mounted is pretty good, but not great by any means. |
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| panzer the great & terrible | Apr 7 2009, 09:07 PM Post #1352 |
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Mouth Breather
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To name four that nobody else will-- The Lost Planet -- if you like movies about inventions with silly names, this is nirvana. Cody of the Pony Express is a decent western serial with cool historical references that have nothing to do with history. I love Terry and the Pirates, but be warned, it's a send-up, not a real serial. The Spider Returns is in the same mold. Terry was made on a huge budget for a Columbia serial -- lots of sets, bit players, even crowd scenes. Don't know how that happened, or why director Horne chose that opportunity to go as far over the top as he possibly could, but I bet it would be a good story if you could find somebody who knew. Smiley can tell you about the sea picture he loves 'cause I haven't seen it yet. Something about a car that can go underwater. I have it somewhere, mislaid. Edited by panzer the great & terrible, Apr 8 2009, 09:48 AM.
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| Life is just a bowl of cherries, it's too mysterious, don't take it serious... | |
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| Black Tiger | Apr 7 2009, 10:12 PM Post #1353 |
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Same here. Great serial that really captures the flavor (and body count) of the pulp magazine series that inspired it. Edited by Black Tiger, Apr 7 2009, 10:13 PM.
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| Sgt Saturn | Apr 8 2009, 06:10 AM Post #1354 |
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Charter Member
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Actually, Cody is next up when I finish King of the Congo. I can remember seeing parts of it on the big screen as a kid. I liked it then; we shall see how much time may have changed my opinion. |
| The Ol' Sarge | |
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| panzer the great & terrible | Apr 8 2009, 09:44 AM Post #1355 |
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Mouth Breather
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I think you'll agree with me that it's fun to watch. Not Romeo and Juliet, but fun. |
| Life is just a bowl of cherries, it's too mysterious, don't take it serious... | |
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| cinemalover | Apr 9 2009, 08:46 AM Post #1356 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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Thanks again for the answers to my questions, it's appreciated. There are a few Columbia titles that look curious but I know nothing about and was hoping anyone could let me know if they were worth investigating. The titles are: The Son of the Guardsman Black Arrow The Sea Hound Jungle Raiders Probably cases of the titles being more intriquing than reality, but I am looking to expand my Columbia serial library. Thanks |
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| KanSmiley | Apr 9 2009, 09:30 AM Post #1357 |
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Charter Member
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Cinemalover: THE SEA HOUND is on my Top 10 list. Not many have it that high but I enjoy Buster Crabbe and the high seas type of story. If you see and enjoy THE SEA HOUND then I would recommend PIRATES OF THE HIGH SEAS it is a carbon copy (or should I say a fax) of THE SEA HOUND. Buster Crabbe wears the same clothes. The ship name is "Rambler" in PIRATES. Both serials have one name villains...The Admiral and The Governor. In fact Crabbe made the comment one time that Columbia could have saved a lot of money had they filmed them at the same time. |
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http://www.saturday-matinee-memories.com/ intoxicated, adj.: When you feel sophisticated without being able to pronounce it. | |
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| Don Diego | Apr 9 2009, 09:39 AM Post #1358 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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I'll cast a vote for SEA HOUND and add one for JUNGLE RAIDERS as well. SON OF THE GUARDSMAN is a Robin Hood wannabe type of story you might like but there are many better Columbia westerns than BLACK ARROW. |
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| cinemalover | Apr 9 2009, 10:04 AM Post #1359 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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Thanks KS. I've always enjoyed Crabbe and thought that he should have had better opportunities in his career. He wasn't the best actor around but he did have a good stage presence that transcended his thespian skills. I think he would have made a great second or third lead in many "A" pictures, especially if they had an adventurous theme. |
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| cinemalover | Apr 9 2009, 10:06 AM Post #1360 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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Thanks DD. The Son of the Guardsman sounds like it might be a little different than your average serial, which would make a nice change of pace. Is Jungle Raiders more along the lines of a Jungle Jim epic (also a Columbia standard) or is there something else to it? |
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| panzer the great & terrible | Apr 9 2009, 02:14 PM Post #1361 |
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Mouth Breather
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A word of warning. The performances in Son of the Guardsman are extremely amateurish even for a serial. If you get a kick out of laughing at movies this may be just your cup of tea -- otherwise I wouldn't recommend it. It's sort of like small town community theater. Why they made a Robin Hood serial and didn't call the hero Robin Hood is an enduring puzzle to me. Did they think nobody would notice? |
| Life is just a bowl of cherries, it's too mysterious, don't take it serious... | |
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| Pa Stark | Apr 9 2009, 03:55 PM Post #1362 |
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Charter Member
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Amen to Panzer's comments. Funniest part is the heroine disguises herself as a boy, and no one notices "he" has boobs. Has some very weak cliffhangers. Chapter one ends with the hero's canoe overturning. Whoop de doo. |
| Honest and Lovable Pa Stark | |
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| Black Tiger | Apr 9 2009, 09:57 PM Post #1363 |
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Charter Member
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Agree with Panzer and Pa. Son of the Guardsmen is lame. I give Katzman credit for trying something different, but the effort of sitting through this is best served after you've gone through nearly all of the other Columbias. The last two Columbias were worse due to the excessive stock footage and poor continuity. Fav Columbias - Spider's Web, Secret Code, Batman, Overland With Kit Carson, Secret of Treasure Island and The Shadow. Green Archer and Deadwood Dick are also fun. |
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| rodney | Apr 11 2009, 02:37 PM Post #1364 |
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Charter Member
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Chapter 12 has at least three or four cases of this during the fight scene. I bet it's a hoot to see in the theater. |
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| panzer the great & terrible | Apr 11 2009, 04:12 PM Post #1365 |
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Mouth Breather
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Jungle Raiders is the story of a doctor who goes into the jungle to find a missing colleague and gets captured by Aztecs. Did I forget to say the doctor has a miraculous healing powder? There's also a bad guy at the trading post, as there so often is, and there's a mean jungle princess too. So then the doctor's son and the colleague's daughter set out to rescue both of 'em and a serial is born. I doubt if anybody would think of this as a change of pace, but it has an above-average cast and tidy direction by Western specialist Lesley Selander. Two and 1/2 stars. |
| Life is just a bowl of cherries, it's too mysterious, don't take it serious... | |
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6:53 AM Jul 11