Reviews
The Bermuda Depths (1978)
A Stunning Childhood Memory - DVD Petition!!
Ever since I saw this hypnotic fantasy film in 1978 at the extremely impressionable age of nine it has haunted my dreams every seven or ten years. While the film certainly does look extremely corny to an adult's eyes today, the eerie day-for-night photography, Maury Laws's soothing title tune "Jenny", the use of Antonio Vivaldi's elegiac "Largo" from his "Concerto For Lute (Guitar), Two Violins And Basso continuo In D Major", and Connie Sellecca's astonishing beauty make this a film that deserves a new generation of admirers. The obvious JAWS rip-off denouement, which is what might have green-lighted the film in the first place, almost ruins the intriguing supernatural and romantic mystery that precedes it. This is a case where the film's style almost outweighs its substance. Still, the film holds a special place in the minds of those who saw it when they were very young.
Many other writers on this board have recapitulated the film's light plot. There is a DVD petition online that has been created in the hopes of expediting the film's release on that format. I encourage you all to visit Google and enter the words `THE BERMUDA DEPTHS Petition' to go to the link and sign it.
Me, Natalie (1969)
Sweet, But Dated...
I finally managed to secure a 16mm transfer of ME, NATALIE on NTSC VHS cassette after searching for this film for nearly nine years. I originally found it on Japanese laserdisc in a video store in Manhattan in 1994 but the price was $75.00 and I was hardly about to spend that kind of money!
Al Pacino has a less-than 60-second role in this 1969 "people will love you for the person you are inside" drama starring Patty Duke and Martin Balsam. I always liked Balsam, and he had me giggling after he discourses on the virtues of being homely, then announces his decision to marry a stripper! He's a true male chauvanist pig. LOL
Nancy Marchand is very good as Duke's mother, but the screenplay suffers from a preachy tone that gets to be a real turn-off by the end of the film. A running time of 90 minutes would have been plenty rather than the nearly 107 minutes that it does run.
I love movies shot in New York City, and this film does an ample job of capturing the aura of city life at that time.
Worth seeing for the performances, plus seeing Livia Soprano 30 years younger is a treat...