Monday, April 6, 2015

WALK EAST ON BEACON! (1952)

That exclamation point in the title is the most exciting thing about WALK EAST ON BEACON!  The film centers on a Communist terrorist sleeper cell operating in America and the FBI's efforts to unmask them and bring them to justice.  The story is told in a very dry procedural way.  There were a few moments during the middle (while the agents were trailing the taxi driver, the professor being blackmailed) that were entertaining, but for the most part the entire thing was a bore.  I think a lot of this comes for the lack of a strong leading role character, the extreme black/white (good vs. evil) portrayal of the FBI agents versus the KGB agents and then the plodding direction by Alfred L. Werker.

WEOB! is not a bad film just a low-key propaganda piece made at the early stages of the Cold War.  If you are looking for an interesting historical piece then this is a good choice (the early 1950's street scenes were great) , but if you're looking for an exciting crime procedural then you'd be better off watching the excellent T-MEN instead.
Since WEOB! was filmed in Boston is the early 1950's I can only guess that the "Timilty for Mayor" sign in the background was for Joseph F. Timilty who was the Boston Police Commissioner from 1936 to 1943 until he was "indicted on charges of conspiracy to permit the operation of gambling houses and the registration of bets".  He ended up losing the 1951 race for mayor.

WITCHING AND BITCHING (2013)

I had a blast watching WITCHING AND BITCHING.  Things start off quickly with a really fun jewelry store heist pulled by some dudes wearing street performer outfits.  They make their exciting escape from the city, but once they are out in the countryside they run into a trio of witches living in a huge rundown mansion.  The youngest witch falls in love with one of the criminals and the two older witches want to use his son in a ritual.

There's a bunch more going on, but you're just going to have to discover it for yourself.  Lots of action and funny situations, imagination galore, cool music, great lighting, unannoying computer graphics, super quick pace that never lets up, a few gruesome scenes but honestly this film is so lighthearted that I wouldn't technically even call it a Horror film but more of a very dark comedy with a lot of Horror elements.  Either way, WITCHING AND BITCHING was a lot of fun and a welcome bit of fresh air in a genre that seems to be filled with mostly recycled garbage.  Highly recommended for fans of darker comedies and horror.

Also Carolina Bang is quite possibly the hottest movie "goth punk" female in movie history.  I would love to see her character again...maybe as a vampire.