Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #102 :: July 6•12

Walt Disney Productions

Ninety years of new films are celebrated this week, with the Walt Disney Company having several releases in different decades. This week also sees a classic film that was nearly destroyed by the studio, several stage-to-film adaptations, a Hammer horror, a groundbreaking film in the realm of CGI, the first pairing of Van Damme and Lundgren, and dragons in the year … 2020. All of these and more celebrate anniversaries this week. Are any of your favorites on the list?

1922

• No new films were released this week in 1922.

1932

July 8 – Million Dollar Legs (USA)

• Cast: Jack Oakie, W.C. Fields, Andy Clyde, Lyda Roberti, Susan Fleming, Ben Turpin, Hugh Herbert, Irving Bacon, George Barbier, Dickie Moore
• Director: Edward F. Cline
• Production Company: Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened in London on August 16, 1932, but did not get a general UK release until February 16, 1933. The film was inspired by the 1928 Olympic games held in Amsterdam. The film’s release was timed to coincide with the1932 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles. The film was developed for The Marx Brothers but they turned it down. Paramount gave in to W.C. Fields’ demand to purchase all of his dialogue for fifty cents. The surviving print of the film is the 1935 re-release which may have suffered some edits to meet the the approval of the 1934 Production Code.

1942

July 9 – I Married an Angel (USA)

• Cast: Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy, Edward Everett Horton, Binnie Barnes, Reginald Owen, Douglass Dumbrille, Mona Maris, Janis Carter, Inez Cooper, Leonid Kinskey, Anne Jeffreys, Marion Rosamond
• Director: W. S. Van Dyke
• Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: Based on the 1938 musical comedy of the same name by Rodgers and Hart. Originally planned for Jeanette MacDonald ten years earlier but the racy content put plans on hold until the show became a Broadway hit in 1938. The original director was Roy Del Ruth, who was fired after several weeks of production.

July 10 – The Magnificent Ambersons (USA)

RKO Radio Pictures

• Cast: Joseph Cotten, Dolores Costello, Anne Baxter, Tim Holt, Agnes Moorehead, Ray Collins, Erskine Sanford, Richard Bennett, Don Dillaway, Orson Welles
• Director: Orson Welles
• Production Company: RKO Radio Pictures, Mercury Productions, distributed by RKO Radio Pictures
• Trivia: The film premiered in Los Angeles on July 9, 1942. It was released in the UK in January 1943. Adapted from Booth Tarkington’s Pulitzer Prize–winning 1918 novel. Welles lost control of the film to RKO, which cut 40-50 minutes of footage from his 135 minute rough cut of the film. A happier ending (which was the same one from the book) was also included by RKO. Welles’ note on how he wanted the film cut survive, but the cut footage has been destroyed. Composer Bernard Herrmann insisted his credit be removed when the score was as heavily edited as the film. The film did receive four Oscar nominations including Best Picture, and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 1991. The Amberson mansion set was constructed like a real house with walls that could roll back, raised or lowered so the camera could appear to pass through them. Some of the sets were reused by Val Lewton for Cat People and Curse of the Cat People.

1952

July 9 – Something Money Can’t Buy (UK)

• Cast: Patricia Roc, Anthony Steel, Moira Lister, A. E. Matthews, David Hutcheson, Michael Trubshawe, Diane Hart, Charles Victor, Henry Edwards, Mary Hinton, Joss Ambler, Michael Brennan, Helen Goss
• Director: Pat Jackson
• Production Company: British Film-Makers, Vic Films, distributed by General Film Distributors
• Trivia: The film opened in New York City on September 30, 1953, followed by a general US release on October 10. Patricia Roc and Anthony Steel had an affair during the film’s production resulting in a child. Roc’s husband had been unable to have children and accepted paternity of the child.

July 11 – We’re Not Married! (USA)

• Cast: Victor Moore, Ginger Rogers, Fred Allen, Marilyn Monroe, David Wayne, Eve Arden, Paul Douglas, Eddie Bracken, Helene Stanley, Mitzi Gaynor, Louis Calhern, Zsa Zsa Gabor, James Gleason, Paul Stewart, Jane Darwell, Lee Marvin, Gloria Talbott, Richard Buckley
• Director: Edmund Goulding
• Production Company: 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: Adapted by Dwight Taylor from Gina Kaus’s and Jay Dratler’s unpublished work If I Could Remarry.

1962

July 11 – Tarzan Goes to India (USA)

• Cast: Jock Mahoney, Levi Aharon Aharoni, Leo Gordon, Mark Dana, Feroz Khan, Simi Garewal, Murad, Jagdish Raj
• Director: John Guillermin
• Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: The film was released in the UK on December 16, 1942. Jock Mahoney’s first appearance as Tarzan, the 12th actor to play the character. Don Bragg was originally to take over the role from Gordon Scott, but he injured his foot and could not travel to India.

1972

July 6 – Butterflies Are Free (USA)

• Cast: Goldie Hawn, Edward Albert, Eileen Heckart, Paul Michael Glaser, Michael Warren
• Director: Milton Katselas
• Production Company: Columbia Pictures
• Trivia: Based on the 1969 play by Leonard Gershe. Eileen Heckart received an Academy Award for her performance (she was also nominated for the Tony Award but lost to co-star Blythe Danner). The film was also nominated for Cinematography and Sound. The film was also nominated for five Golden Globes including Best Picture, Actor (Albert) and Actress (Hawn), and Albert won Most Promising Newcomer – Male. The show’s New York City location was changed to San Francisco for no apparent reason. Along with Heckart, Paul Michael Glaser reprised his Broadway role. The Perry’s Restaurant in the film is an actual location still in operation as of 2022, with several additional locations.

July 9 – Fear in the Night (UK)

• Cast: Judy Geeson, Joan Collins, Peter Cushing, Ralph Bates, James Cossins, Gillian Lind, John Bown, Brian Grellis
• Director: Jimmy Sangster
• Production Company: Hammer Films
• Trivia: The film was released in the US in October 1974. Also known as Dynasty of Fear and Honeymoon of Fear. Released as a double bill in the United Kingdom with Straight on Till Morning, another Hammer film featuring similar themes. In the United States, the film was released as part of a double bill with Demons of the Mind. Derived from a script written by Jimmy Sangster called Brainstorm that was originally developed for Universal Pictures in 1963. In 1967 he retitled the film The Claw. The last of three films directed by Jimmy Sangster. Ralph Bates’ fifth and final Hammer film.

July 11 – La Vallée (France)

• Cast: Bulle Ogier, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, Valérie Lagrange, Michael Gothard, Jérôme Beauvarlet, Miquette Giraudy, The Mapuga tribe and its Chiefs
• Director: Barbet Schroeder
• Distribuor: Imperia Films
• Trivia: The film was released in the UK in March 1975. Also known as Obscured by Clouds. Pink Floyd recorded an album, Obscured by Clouds, as the soundtrack to the film. After recording had finished, the band fell out with the film company, prompting them to release the soundtrack album as Obscured by Clouds, rather than La Vallée. In response, the film was retitled La Vallée (Obscured by Clouds) on its release. Actress Monique Giraudy is actually an alias of Miquette Giraudy, vocalist and synthesizer player with the progressive rock/space rock band Gong with her partner Steve Hillage; they later formed the electronic group System 7.

July 12 – Now You See Him, Now You Don’t (USA)

Walt Disney Productions

• Cast: Kurt Russell, Cesar Romero, Joe Flynn, Jim Backus, William Windom, Michael McGreevey, Ed Begley Jr., Richard Bakalyan, Joyce Menges, Alan Hewitt, Kelly Thordsen, Bing Russell, Edward Andrews, George O’Hanlon, John Myhers, Pat Delany, Robert Rothwell, Frank Welker, Mike Evans
• Director: Robert Butler
• Production Company: Walt Disney Productions, distributed by Buena Vista Distribution
• Trivia: The film was released in the UK on July 30, 1972. Sequel to the 1969 film The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes and was followed by 1975’s The Strongest Man in the World. The Medfield College exteriors were on the Disney lot. The green Volkswagen Beetle used by Schuyler was two Herbie cars from The Love Bug . Mike Evans’ film debut. The first Disney film to be shown on television in a two-hour time slot, in 1975.

1982

July 7 – Aphrodite (France)

• Cast: Horst Buchholz, Valérie Kaprisky, Delia Boccardo, Capucine, Catherine Jourdan, Yves Massard, Daniel Beretta, Monica Nickel
• Director: Robert Fuest
• Distributor: Prodis
• Trivia: Inspired by the novel Aphrodite: mœurs antiques by Pierre Louÿs. The final theatrical film by Robert Fuest. There is allegedly a hardcore version of the film in addition to the theatrically released R-rated version.

July 7 – White Dog (France)

• Cast: Kristy McNichol, Paul Winfield, Burl Ives, Jameson Parker, Parley Baer
• Director: Samuel Fuller
• Production Company: Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film was also released in Brazil on July 7, 1982. It opened in the US on November 12. Based on Romain Gary’s 1970 novel of the same name. The film’s release was delayed by a week after negative press suggested the film was racist. Critics ultimately praised the film’s hard look at racism, but criticism from the NAACP eventually caused Paramount to shelve the film for nearly 25 years. Because of the distribution issues, this was Samuel Fuller’s last film to be made in the US. The film was intended to be Tony Scott’s directorial debut but the project was put into turnaround. One of the final film roles of veteran Hollywood actor Burl Ives.

July 9 – Tron (USA)

• Cast: Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner, Cindy Morgan, Barnard Hughes, Dan Shor, Peter Jurasik, Tony Stephano
• Director: Steven Lisberger
• Production Company: Walt Disney Productions, Lisberger-Kushner Productions, distributed by Buena Vista Distribution
• Trivia: The film was also released in Canada on July 9. It opened in the UK on October 21. One of cinema’s earliest films to use extensive computer-generated imagery (CGI). Writer/Director Steven Lisberger and producer Donald Kushner originally intended this to be an animated film. Tron received nominations for Best Costume Design and Best Sound at the 55th Academy Awards, but was not nominated in the Best Visual Effects category because at the time the Academy felt using computers was ‘cheating’. The film’s concept of entering a parallel game world was also inspired by the classic tale Alice in Wonderland. The original hero color was meant to be yellow but was changed to blue for the film. The original concept for Tron had a beard and looked like a Cylon Centurion from the original Battlestar Galactica. The original story was to have been more comedic, with Robin Williams suggested for the lead. Disney was unsure about giving $10-$12 million to a first-time director working on a film involving new technology, but they paid for a test reel that incorporated live-action, animation and CGI and were impressed with the outcome. Disney rarely hired outsiders to tackle animation, and none of the in-house animators would work on the project so Wang Film Productions was hired. Because of the special effects, Disney decided the film would be shot in 65mm Super Panavision. Some computer -generated layers were shot in VistaVision and anamorphic 35mm and Super35 for some ‘real world’ scenes which were blown up to 65mm. While celebrated for its use of CGI, the film only contains about 20 minutes of footage which was interspersed with the live characters because there was no technology at the time to combine them. One of the computers used only had 2 MB of memory and 330 MB of storage which limited the amount of detail in a scene, leading to the use of black to fade things out, aka ‘depth cueing’. ‘When in doubt, black it out’ became the motto of the CGI artists. Ironically, the original intention was to make all of the backgrounds white as in THX-1138, but that would have required a huge amount of lights so they went with black instead. The computers at the time could not do animation, so the frames had to be produced one by one. In some of the more complex sequences, like the Solar Sailer moving through metal canyons, each frame could take up to six hours to produce. There was no way to digitally print them on film, either; rather, a motion picture camera was placed in front of a computer screen to capture each individual frame. The time, effort and cost of producing the backlit animation of the characters was so overwhelming that it was never repeated for another film. There is almost no camera movement for any shot within the computer world that included the actors. The actors threw actual Frisbees within the game grid. The film includes Pac-Man, Invaders and Asteroids Easter Eggs, and a ‘Hidden Mickey’ can be found at the 01:12:29 point on the Blu-ray. The film was scheduled to be released for the holiday season on 1982, but when Disney learned Don Bluth’s The Secret of NIMH would be released in July, Tron was rushed into a Summer release and ended up competing with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrail, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Blade Runner and Poltergeist.

1992

July 10 – Cool World (USA)

• Cast: Kim Basinger, Gabriel Byrne, Brad Pitt, Deirdre O’Connell, Michele Abrams, Janni Brenn-Lowen, Frank Sinatra Jr.
• Voice Cast: Charlie Adler, Joey Camen, Michael Lally, Maurice LaMarche, Candi Milo, Gregory Snegoff, Patrick Pinney, Jenine Jennings
• Director: Ralph Bakshi
• Production Company: Paramount Pictures, Bakshi Animation, distributed by Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film also opened in Canada on July 10. It was released in the UK on December 18. Ralph Bakshi originally conceived of the film as a live-action/animated horror film, but Paramount head Frank Mancuso Jr. ordered an uncredited rewrite from Larry Gross that changed the story into an adolescent comedy-fantasy to obtain a more financially viable PG-13 rating, which led to a rift between Bakshi and the studio. Bakshi wanted Brad Pitt and Drew Barrymore to star but the studio wanted ‘bigger’ names and cast Kim Basinger and Gabriel Byrne, but the role of Frank was created for Pitt. Basinger wanted to rewrite the film so it could be shown to children in hospitals, and Bakshi said he was not the guy for that job. Ralph Bakshi has not directed another feature film since.

July 10 – Prelude to a Kiss (USA)

• Cast: Alec Baldwin, Meg Ryan, Sydney Walker, Kathy Bates, Ned Beatty, Patty Duke, Stanley Tucci, Debra Monk, Rocky Carroll, Fern Persons, Annie Golden, Mary Spaeth
• Director: Norman René
• Production Company: 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film opened in the UK on November 13, 1992. Based on the 1988 play of the same title that was also directed by Norman René and written by playwright Craig Lucas, who adapted the film’s screenplay. Debra Monk appeared with Alec Baldwin in the play, but while he reprised his role on film, she was given a different role in her film debut. Mary-Louise Parker was set to reprise the role of Rita Boyle that she originated in the original stage show but was replaced by Meg Ryan at the insistence of the studio due to Ryan being a bigger star at the time. The film’s title is derived from the Duke Ellington/Irving Gordon/Irving Mills tune of the same name, which is heard performed by Deborah Harry during the opening credits.

July 10 – Universal Soldier (USA)

• Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Ally Walker, Ed O’Ross, Eric Norris, Leon Rippy, Michael Jai White, Tommy ‘Tiny’ Lister, Jerry Orbach, Tico Wells, Robert Trebor, Gene Davis, Drew Snyder, Joanne Baron, Allan Graf, Joseph Malone, Ralf Möller, Kris van Varenberg, Rance Howard, Lilyan Chauvin, Ned Bellamy, Thomas Rosales Jr.
• Director: Roland Emmerich
• Production Company: Carolco Pictures, Centropolis Entertainment, IndieProd Company Productions, distributed by TriStar Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s Los Angeles premiere was held on July 7, 1992. The film was also released in Canada on July 10, and in the UK on July 24. Features the first on-screen pairing of Van Damme and Lundgren. Andrew Davis was originally hired to direct and write the screenplay, but he was replaced by Roland Emmerich, who brought in his partner Dean Devlin to rewrite aspects of the script. The original screenplay was titled Crystal Knights. This was Emmerich’s first American film. The Vietnam scenes were filmed at the Kingman, Arizona golf course with set dressings and fake foliage. Nearly all of the ice required for filming came from a local 7-Eleven in Arizona.

2002

July 12 – Reign of Fire (USA)

Touchstone Pictures

• Cast: Christian Bale, Ben Thornton, Matthew McConaughey, Izabella Scorupco, Gerard Butler, Scott Moutter, David Kennedy, Alexander Siddig, Ned Dennehy, Rory Keenan, Terence Maynard, Doug Cockle, Randall Carlton, Chris Kelly, Alice Krige
• Director: Rob Bowman
• Production Company: Touchstone Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment, The Zanuck Company, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held on July 9. It was also released in Canada on July 12, and in the UK on August 23. Jack Gleeson appears in an uncredited role. The film is set in 2020.

July 12 – Sunshine State (USA)

• Cast: Alex Lewis, Alan King, Cullen Douglas, Clifton James, Eliot Asinof, James McDaniel, Angela Bassett, Edie Falco, Timothy Hutton, Perry Lang, Miguel Ferrer, Gordon Clapp, Mary Steenburgen, Bill Cobbs, Mary Alice, Michael Greyeyes, Sam McMurray, Tim Powell, Brett Rice, Marc Blucas, Charlayne Woodard, Tom Wright, Ralph Waite, Richard Edson, Jane Alexander, Ashley Brumby
• Director: John Sayles
• Production Company: Anarchist’s Convention Films, distributed by Sony Pictures Classics
• Trivia: The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 19, 2002. It received a limited US release on June 21 ahead of its general release. It opened in the UK on July 26, and in Canada on August 9. It was also screened at Canada’s Atlantic Film Festival on September 14, the Athens Film Festival on September 14, and the Gent International Film Festival on October 9. The restaurant that Reggie Perry and Desiree Stokes Perry stop at to get directions at is at an actual motel in Yulee, Florida. The beach store that is supposedly across the street is actually several miles away on Ameila Island. Director John Sayles has a cameo as a man who almost gets hit by a golf ball in the closing scene.

2012

July 6 – Collaborator (USA, limited)

• Cast: Martin Donovan, David Morse, Olivia Williams, Melissa Auf der Maur, Katherine Helmond, Eileen Ryan, Julian Richings
• Director: Martin Donovan
• Production Company: DViant Films, This is that, distributed by Tribeca Film (United States), Entertainment One (International)
• Trivia: The film screened at several international film festivals in 2011 and 2012 including the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (July 4, 2011), the Hamptons International Film Festival (October 15, 2011), the Philadelphia International Film Festival (October 22, 2011), and the Shanghai International Film Festival (June 16, 2012). It was released in New York City on June 18 ahead of the limited US release, and in Canada on July 13. Martin Donovan, who portrays Robert Longfellow, and Vivian Lanko, who portrays Janey Hewlit, Robert’s mother’s friend, are married in real life.

July 6 – Savages (USA)

• Cast: Taylor Kitsch, Blake Lively, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Benicio del Toro, John Travolta, Salma Hayek, Demián Bichir, Sandra Echeverría, Emile Hirsch, Joaquín Cosío, Mía Maestro, Shea Whigham, Joel David Moore
• Director: Oliver Stone
• Production Company: Relativity Media, Ixtlan Productions, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film premiered in Westwood, CA on June 25, 2012. It was also released in Canada on July 6, and in the UK on September 21. Based on Don Winslow’s novel of the same name. Jennifer Lawrence was originally cast as Ophelia but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. Oliver Stone cast Taylor Kitsch based on footage Peter Berg showed him from Battleship. Kitsch performed his own stunts. Uma Thurman played Ophelia’s mother, Paqu, but her scenes were cut due to time constraints. Ali Wong’s film debut.

July 6 – To Rome with Love (USA)

• Cast: Alison Pill, Flavio Parenti, Woody Allen, Judy Davis, Fabio Armiliato, Roberto Benigni, Alessandra Mastronardi, Penélope Cruz, Simona Caparrini, Ornella Muti, Antonio Albanese, Riccardo Scamarcio, Roberto Della Casa, Giuliano Gemma, Alec Baldwin, Jesse Eisenberg, Greta Gerwig, Elliot Page, Lino Guanciale
• Director: Woody Allen
• Production Company: Medusa Film, Gravier Productions, Perdido Production, distributed by Medusa Distribuzione (Italy), Sony Pictures Classics (United States)
• Trivia: The film opened in Italy on April 20, 2012, followed by a limited US release on June 22 ahead of the general release. It also received a limited release in Canada on July 6, and opened in the UK on September 14. Woody Allen’s first acting role since 2006. Allen’s original title for the film was Bop Decameron, but many did not understand the reference to the 14th century books by Giovanni Boccaccio. Allen then suggested Nero Fiddles but that was also met with confusion so he settled on To Rome With Love, a title he dislikes.

July 12 – Not Suitable for Children (Australia)

• Cast: Ryan Kwanten, Sarah Snook, Ryan Corr, Bojana Novakovic, Alice Parkinson, Daniel Henshall, Clare Bowen, Kathryn Beck, Susan Prior, Tasneem Roc
• Director: Peter Templeman
• Production Company: Wild Eddie, Exit Films, Frame, Set & Match, distributed by Icon Film Distribution
• Trivia: The film was screened at the Sydney Film Festival on June 6, 2012. It premiere on DVD in the UK on January 7, 2013.

July 12 – The King is Dead (Australia)

• Cast: Dan Wyllie, Bojana Novakovic, Gary Waddell, Luke Ford, Anthony Hayes
• Director: Rolf de Heer
• Production Company: Vertigo Productions Pty. Ltd., distributed by Fandango Portobello Sales, Pinnacle Films
• Trivia: The film was screened in the US at the St. Louis International Film Festival on November 16, 2012. Final film to be filmed at the South Australian Film Corporation’s Hendon Studios.