LONE WOLF'S REVIEWS IN ASSOCIATION WITH AMAZON.COM DELIVERS Classics VHS Amazon.com Editor, Sam Sutherland

Word for Word
Bedazzled
"Now, then, what'd you like to be first? Prime minister? Oh, no, I've made that deal already."

--George Spiggott (Peter Cook), a.k.a. Satan, strikes a devil's bargain with Stanley Moon (Dudley Moore) in the original version of Bedazzled (1968).

There's no Everyman hero or social mission in this screen version of the stage hit, leaving director Capra to focus on precise comic timing and the black comedy of two elderly ladies who put older gentlemen out their misery with a fatal vintage of elderberry wine. Grant, as their innocent nephew, and Massey, as his villainous cousin, are also embroiled in this frantic farce.

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Faust
starring Emil Jannings and Gosta Ekman; directed by F.W. Murnau

A visually dazzling silent classic, Faust marks influential director Murnau's final German production before emigrating to Hollywood. Goethe's enduring fable of spiritual conflict is powered by Jannings's sinister Mephisto, while Murnau's epic sense of scale and riveting production design remain stunning.

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The Thin Man
starring William Powell and Myrna Loy; directed by W.S. Van Dyke

Dashiell Hammett may have invented the hard-boiled detective with antiheroes such as The Maltese Falcon's Sam Spade, so perhaps Nick and Nora Charles, the madcap detective and his elegant wife, should be seen as comic relief. This first Powell/Loy hit, a cocktail of crisp mystery and screwball comic interludes, spawned a nifty '30s franchise with its martini-swilling marrieds solving a disappearance while having a ball.

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How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
starring Annette Funicello, Dwayne Hickman, and Mickey Rooney; directed by William Asher

We know, we know: one fan's classic is another's cheeseball, and this 1965 trifle, sixth in the cheerfully lightweight Beach Party oeuvre, won't be enshrined in any cinematheque we've seen. But connoisseurs of camp will find it hard to resist this time capsule of swingin' '60s teen kitsch, especially with a cast that stars TV's Dobie Gillis, drafts Buster Keaton as a tropical medicine man, finds time for the Kingsmen (of "Louie, Louie" legend), and even offers clay-animation opening credits from Gumby creator Art Clokey. Way cool.

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A benchmark for sci-fi laced with cold war paranoia, this creepy thriller visits idyllic Santa Mira, California, as a local doctor (McCarthy) begins fielding complaints from patients whose loved ones are acting strangely. By the time he confirms his fears that the malady is really an alien invasion, the battle itself may well be lost. Remade twice and borrowed from many other times, Siegel's original is still unsurpassed for its efficient terror. Releases August 21.

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Stalag 17
starring William Holden, Don Taylor, and Otto Preminger; directed by Billy Wilder

Black comedy and suspenseful action are the twin engines in this Billy Wilder adaptation of the stage hit set inside a German POW camp during World War II. Apart from providing a blueprint for subsequent serious films (not to mention the boob-tube spoof Hogan's Heroes), Stalag 17 snagged William Holden an Oscar® for Best Actor in 1953. Releases August 28.

The Bridges at Toko-Ri
starring William Holden and Grace Kelly; directed by Mark Robson

James Michener's sobering chronicle of a veteran's return to duty as a naval pilot during the Korean War offers both gripping aerial action and poignant romance between Holden and Grace Kelly as his wife, along with a clear, heartbreaking recognition of the futility underlying the conflict. Releases August 28.

Son of Frankenstein
starring Basil Rathbone, Bela Lugosi, and Boris Karloff; directed by Rowland V. Lee

A textbook lesson in how to revive a seemingly extinct franchise, this solid melodrama brought not just the Monster but Universal's horror franchise back to life by introducing the late doctor's son (Rathbone) as protagonist. While lacking the campy parfait of Gothic splendor and macabre humor that sparked James Whale's prior chapters, Son rose to respectable heights--and provided Mel Brooks with the seed for the delirious Young Frankenstein. Releases August 28.

Bells Are Ringing
starring Judy Holliday and Dean Martin; directed by Vincente Minnelli

Recently revived on Broadway, this '50s Broadway charmer remains rightly identified with original star Judy Holliday, who reprised her role as answering service operator Ella Peterson in this 1960 screen adaptation of the Comden-Green-Styne musical by screen veteran Minnelli. Sadly, the film was Holliday's last. Releases September 11.

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