MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS (COMBO BLU-RAY + DVD, ELEPHANT FILMS)

In the 16th century,  Mary Stuart and Elizabeth I of England, two queens with different temperaments, are engaged in a remote yet merciless confrontation. Mary, Queen of Scots is an outstanding 1971 historical film, starring Vanessa Redgrave as the title character and Glenda Jackson as Elizabeth.

 

It  is now available in France in a combo Blu-Ray/DVD (All Zone) from Elephant Films.

The story of Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1587) inspired cinema as from 1895 with The Execution of Mary Queen of Scots. Katharine Hepburn played the monarch in John Ford's Mary of Scotland (1936). Alexander Mackendrick, director of The Man in the White Suit (1951) and The Ladykillers (1955), wanted to do a film about Mary Stuart since the 1950s. From 1967 to 1969, he worked on a movie project for Universal due to star Mia Farrow but it was cancelled just before production started (1). At the end of 1969, Universal released Anne of the Thousand Days, an adaptation of the play by Maxwell Anderson on the life of Anne Boleyn (1501-1536) co-written by scriptwriter John Hale and directed by Charles Jarrott. Both mostly worked for television until then.

The second wife of King Henry VIII (and mother of Elizabeth I) was portrayed by Geneviève Bujold, alongside Richard Burton as the king. The film was made in England by Hal B. Wallis, the Hollywood titan behind Casablanca (1942) for Warner Bros and the Elvis Presley movies at Paramount Pictures. Anglophile, he even produced the British historical drama Becket (1964) when at Paramount. After the U.K. box office success of Anne of the Thousand Days, Hal Wallis developed a follow-up centered on Mary Stuart and Elizabeth I (Anne Boleyn's daughter, 1533-1603): Mary, Queen of Scots, written by John Hale and helmed by Charles Jarrott. Like playwrights Friedrich Schiller (Maria Stuart, 1800) and Robert Bolt (Vivat! Vivat Regina!, 1970) before him, John Hale took liberties with history. He imagined a couple of encounters between the two queens though they actually never met. Hal Wallis and Universal wanted Geneviève Bujold to play Mary but she turned down the role, which finally went to Vanessa Redgrave (The Devils, Isadora, Blow-Up).

Glenda Jackson (The Music Lovers, Women in Love) became once again Queen Elizabeth I after the BBC serial Elizabeth R (1971), whose first episode was penned by John Hale. The shooting of Mary, Queen of Scots, took place at Shepperton Studios and on location in France (Château de Chenonceau), Scotland (Hermitage Castle), Northumberland (Alnwick Castle and Bamburgh Castle) and Sussex (Parham House) (2). Mary, Queen of Scotland returns to her country in 1560, after the death of her husband Francis II of France. Scotland is poorer than when Mary left and spilt between Protestantism and Catholicism. She must deal with the ambitions of her half-brother, James Stuart, Earl of Moray. Meanwhile, Elizabeth I fears that her scottish cousin will claim the throne of England and pledges that Mary Stuart will become heir to the English throne if she marries Lord Dudley, Elizabeth's favourite.  She sends him to Scotland with the younger Lord Darnley, knowing well that Mary will fall for the latter.

The two exceptional actresses of Mary, Queen of Scots are surrounded by a solid cast, which includes Patrick McGoohan (The Prisoner) as James and a young Timothy Dalton as Lord Darnley in another period film after The Lion in Winter (1968), Wuthering Heights (1970) and Cromwell (1970). There's also Nigel Davenport, Trevor Howard, Ian Holm, Daniel Massey,  etc. John Barry was chosen by Hal Wallis to compose and conduct the great score of Mary, Queen of Scots and he worked again with the producer on Follow Me/The Public Eye (1972). Vivre Et Mourir is performed by Vanessa Redgrave. The Marie Stuart, reine d'Écosse combo Blu-Ray/DVD from Elephant Films allows to appreciate the superb cinematography by Christopher Challis (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), the costumes designed by Margaret Furse and the competent direction of Charles Jarrott.

After Mary, Queen of Scots, Jarrott directed Lost Horizon (1973), the now cult Condorman (1981), the excellent The Amateur (1981) or the miniseries Till We Meet Again (1989). From 1992 to 2015, Glenda Jackson took a break from acting to become a Member of the British Parliament (and a junior minister in Tony Blair's government). Amusingly, Vanessa Redgrave played Elizabeth I in Anonymous (2011). The Marie Stuart, reine d'Écosse combo Blu-Ray/DVD from Elephant Films contains Mary, Queen of Scots, in English and in French (with French and English subtitles), a very interesting presentation of the movie by cinema specialist Justin Kwedi, a trailer of the film and the trailers of other titles from Elephant Films in the same collection: Isadora (1968) and the recently released Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) and Follow Me. In 2018, Alexander Mackendrick's Mary, Queen of Scots was adapted as a BBC radio drama narrated by Glenda Jackson.

(1) https://www.theguardian.com/film/2004/jun/04/3
(2) https://www.movie-locations.com/movies/m/Mary-Queen-Of-Scots.php 

  
https://fr.shopping.rakuten.com/mfp/shop/5556785/marie-stuart-reine-d-ecosse?pid=10079840252&sellerLogin=ElephantFilm
http://www.elephantfilms.com/
https://fr.shopping.rakuten.com/boutique/ElephantFilm

See also:

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2023/04/follow-methe-public-eye-combo-blu-ray.html (Follow Me)
https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2023/03/thoroughly-modern-millie-combo-blu-ray.html (Thoroughly Modern Millie)

FOLLOW ME/THE PUBLIC EYE (COMBO BLU-RAY + DVD, ELEPHANT FILMS)

[Favourite of the Month] Follow Me is a delightful British romantic comedy film released in 1972 and led by the brilliant Mia Farrow, Topol and Michael Jayston.

 

This gem, titled Sentimentalement vôtre in French, is now available in France in a combo Blu-Ray/DVD (Region B) from Elephant Films. 

Follow Me is based on a short play by English playwright and screenwriter Peter Shaffer (Equus, Amadeus) called The Public Eye. This one-act comedy about a jealous chartered accountant, his wife and a private detective, had its premiere in London in 1962. It was part of a double bill with The Private  Ear, another play in one act written by Shaffer. Both opened on Broadway the following year and raised the interest of Hollywood mogul Ross Hunter. For Universal, he produced the Douglas Sirk melodramas Magnificent Obsession (1954) and Imitation of Life (1959) and the Rock Hudson-Doris Day comedies Pillow Talk (1959), Lover Come Back (1961) and  Send Me No Flowers (1964). 

Hunter bought the rights of The Public Eye in 1964 but it took years to turn the play into a film. Hired to direct, Mike Nichols was too busy finishing Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966). Julie Andrews was to star but had to withdraw because of the delay, though she worked with Ross Hunter on Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967). Later, the producer made a deal with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton but the couple couldn't agree upon a director. At least he managed to adapt The Private Ear as The Pad (and How to Use It) (1966). In 1970, Ross Hunter announced that American actress Mia Farrow (Rosemary's Baby) would play the young wife in The Public Eye but he left Universal. Hal Wallis, the Hollywood titan behind Casablanca (1942) for Warner Bros and the Elvis Presley movies at Paramount, brought the project to fruition. 

Associated with Universal since 1969, Hal Wallis produced Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) and Mary, Queen of Scots (1971) in England for the company. He stayed in the country, where Mia Farrow lived with her then husband conductor André Previn, to make The Public Eye (titled Follow Me in the United Kingdom) at Shepperton Studios. Peter Shaffer adapted his own play and the producer asked Carol Reed, the director of The Third Man (1949) and Oliver! (1968), to helm. Israeli actor and singer Chaim Topol, known as Topol, was cast as the private detective. Topol became globally famous thanks to the role of Tevye the milkman in the 1967 West End production of the stage musical Fieddler on the Roof and its 1971 film version. English actor Michael Jayston, a familiar face to British TV viewers (The Power Game) who starred as Nicholas II in Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), was chosen to play the husband.

Charles Sidley (Jayston) is an uptight London-based chartered accountant who married Belinda (Mia Farrow), a free-spirited Californian waitress. He thinks Belinda is having an affair because she's never at home during the day. He talks to a private investigation agency, which sends him an eccentric Greek detective named Julian Cristoforou (Topol). Follow Me/The Public Eye is blessed with Peter Shaffer's finely chiselled dialogues and the wonderful performances from its perfect trio of stars. Carol Reed and director of photography Christopher Challis (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) take us on a both comical and sentimental tour of the British capital and various locations, including the Windsor Safari Park and Sutton Place. Belinda spends her afternoons watching some Hammer films in a cinema until Julian shows her Franco Zefirelli's Romeo and Juliet (1968). 

The music by John Barry is sublime. Thelma Keating sings Follow Follow, the beautiful song composed by Barry with lyricist Don Black. Follow Me was edited by Anne V. Coates (Lawrence of Arabia). Mia Farrow continued to shine in The Great Gatsby (1974), Death on the Nile (1978) or The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985). Topol pursued a long career on stage, mostly in his signature role, and played in the films Flash Gordon (1980) and For Your Eyes Only (1981) and in the miniseries The Winds of War (1983). After Follow Me, Michael Jayston went on working on stage, for the cinema (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Internecine Project...) and for television: The Merchant of Venice, Jane Eyre, Thriller, Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy, Doctor Who, etc. Follow Me was Carol Reed's final movie.

The Sentimentalement vôtre combo Blu-Ray/DVD from Elephant Films contains Follow Me in English and in French (with French and English subtitles), an interview with movie critic and American cinema specialist Samuel Blumenfeld, a trailer of the film and the trailers of other titles from Elephant Films in the same collection: Isadora (1968) and the recently released Mary, Queen of Scots and Thoroughly Modern Millie.

https://fr.shopping.rakuten.com/offer/buy/10079839267/sentimentalement-votre-combo-blu-ray-dvd.html
http://www.elephantfilms.com/
https://fr.shopping.rakuten.com/boutique/ElephantFilm
https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2023/mar/09/topol-obituary

See also:

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2023/03/thoroughly-modern-millie-combo-blu-ray.html

THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE (COMBO BLU-RAY + DVD, ELEPHANT FILMS)

[Favourite of the Month] Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) is a joyfully entertaining American musical film directed by George Roy Hill and starring the great Julie Andrews. 

It is now available in France in an indispensable combo Blu-Ray/DVD (All Zone) from Elephant Films. 

Thoroughly Modern Millie was born from an idea of Ross Hunter, a Hollywood mogul associated with Universal. For the studio, he produced the Douglas Sirk melodramas Magnificent Obsession (1954) and Imitation of Life (1959) and the Rock Hudson-Doris Day comedies Pillow Talk (1959), Lover Come Back (1961) and  Send Me No Flowers (1964). Hunter wanted to make a movie based on The Boy Friend, a 1953 West End musical set in the "Roaring Twenties". The Boy Friend opened on Broadway the following year and marked the American debut of English actress and singer Julie Andrews. Andrews starred in Broadway musicals My Fair Lady (1956) and Camelot (1960) before becoming a household name with the film Mary Poppins (1964). She  confirmed her movie star status with The Sound of Music (1965) and Torn Curtain (1966).  

Ross Hunter finally gave up buying the rights of The Boy Friend from MGM (which tried to adapt it in 1956) because too expensive and decided to do his own version, with Julie Andrews in the main role... Thoroughly Modern Millie, a musical comedy whose development was announced as of 1964. Richard Morris (The Unsikable Molly Brown, a 1960 musical) wrote the script and the casting of Julie Andrews was confirmed in 1966. George Roy Hill, who directed Peter Sellers in The World of Henry Orient (1964) and Julie Andrews in Hawaii (1966), was hired to helm the movie. Mary Tyler Moore (The Dick Van Dyke Show), Carol Channing (the musical Hello Dolly), James Fox (The Chase, The Servant), John Gavin (Spartacus, Psycho) and Beatrice Lillie joined the main cast. Elmer Bernstein (The Great Escape, The Magnificent Seven) composed the music and André Previn scored the musical numbers. The original songs were composed by Sammy Cahn and James Van Heusen (who worked for Frank Sinatra) and Jay Thompson. There are standards of the 1910s and 1920s too, such as Jazz Baby. 

New York City, 1922. Millie Dillmount (Julie Andrews) is a young independent woman who wants to become a stenographer to a rich boss and then marry him. She befriends a naive aspiring actress named Miss Dorothy Brown (Mary Tyler Moore). Miss Dorothy checks into the hotel where Millie lives, the Priscilla Hotel for single ladies. She tells Mrs Meers, the hotel house mother (Beatrice Lillie), she's an orphan. Millie and Dorothy ignore that Mrs Meers runs a white slavery ring. At a dance, Millie meets Jimmy Smith (James Fox), a carefree paper clip salesman who borrowed his employer's roadster. After a crazy ride in the streets they kiss but Millie is determined to pursue her goal. She finds a job at Sincere Trust Insurance and decides that she'll marry her new boss, Trevor Graydon (John Gavin). Later, Jimmy introduces Millie and Miss Dorothy to the wealthy and eccentric Long Island widow Muzzy Van Hossmere (Carol Channing). Neville Phillips, co-author of a British stage musical called Chrysanthemum (1956), noted some similarities between  the latter and the plot of Thoroughly Modern Millie. 

Julie Andrews shines in this $6.000.000 pastiche of the 1920s. Her tap dance with the charming Mary Tyler Moore's is one of the highlights of the film. From 1970 to 1977, Moore starred in The Mary Tyler Moore Show, a sitcom she produced through her company MTM Enterprises (founded in 1969 with her then husband at the time Grant Tinker). MTM was behind hits like The Bob Newhart Show (1972-1978) or Hill Street Blues (1981-1987). The excellent James Fox doesn't sing in Thoroughly Modern Millie, because it's actually Jimmy Bryant who provided the singing voice of Jimmy Smith (1). Carol Channing is divine and John Gavin, a frequent leading man for Ross Hunter, does self-parody with perfection. Beatrice Lillie, dubbed "the funniest woman in the world", plays a live action Wile E. Coyote. Cavada Humphrey is hilarious as Miss Flannery, the office manager. 

George Roy Hill creatively plays with silent movie intertitles, pays homage to Harold Lloyd and has fun with biplanes. Not only the director studied music at university but he had his pilot license. After the success of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), Hill returned to the 1920s with both The Sting (1973) and the aviation film The Great Waldo Pepper (1975). The running gags of Thoroughly Modern Millie (the laundry basket, the elevator, the taxi...) are irresistible. Choreographer Joe Layton helmed the splendid musical sequences, assisted with Jay Thompson and Buddy Schwab. Though the movie was shot mostly in the Universal backlot, the sets by Alexander Golitzen and George C. Webb (with Howard Bristol) are absolutely superb.  French costume designer Jean Louis designed the gowns. Cinematographer Russell Metty was briefly replaced by Russell Harlan (uncredited). Stuart Gilmore edited the film.   

The depiction of the Chinese community in Thoroughly Modern Millie definitely didn't age well. Mrs Meers's henchmen (credited "Oriental 1" and "Oriental 2") are in fact played by two American actors of Japanese origin, Jack Soo and Noriyuki "Pat" Morita. Soo was a singer and actor later known for his role of Detective Nick Yemana in 101 episodes of Barney Miller (1975-1982). Pat Morita rose to fame as Matsuo "Arnold" Takahashi in several seasons of Happy Days (1974-1984). He became a pop culture icon as Mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid movies. Morita was also Ohara in the eponymous series (1987-1988). Korean-American Philip Ahn plays Tea, Muzzy's head butler. He's remembered for the character of Master Kan in Kung Fu (1972-1975). The gorgeous Technicolor of the enchanting Thoroughly Modern Millie is duly celebrated in the combo Blue Ray/DVD from Elephant Films. This is the "Roadshow" edition (141 minutes), with the overture, intermission and exit music.  

The film is in English and in French (with French and English subtitles). Bonus material consists of an interview with movie critic and American cinema specialist Samuel Blumenfeld, an interview with cinema specialist Gilles Gressard, a trailer of Thoroughly Modern Millie and the trailers of some other titles of Elephant Films in the same collection: Isadora (1968) and the recently released Mary, Queen of Scots (1971) and Follow Me! (1972). The long time collaboration between Ross Hunter and Universal ended in 1970. The Boy Friend became a MGM film in 1971 and Thoroughly Modern Millie was turned into a musical in 2002. 

(1) Jimmy Bryant was also the singing voice of Richard Beymer in West Side Story (1961).

https://fr.shopping.rakuten.com/mfp/shop/9231629/millie?pid=10079840263&sellerLogin=ElephantFilm&fbclid=IwAR19rVF2GmO_hgl95sandlBzBtA9gYN2FszmADMbWGe99lIXHiVxFAY2CcY
http://www.elephantfilms.com/
https://fr.shopping.rakuten.com/boutique/ElephantFilm
 
See also:
 
https://maxmcmanus.com/2018/09/13/the-maker-of-the-most-glamorous-films-of-the-fifties-and-sixties-a-ross-hunter-production/
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/carol-channing-dead-hello-dolly-broadway-age-died-thoroughly-modern-millie-gentlemen-prefer-blondes-a8730691.html

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS BLOG

So...

REVIEWS 

- Midsomer Murders - Series 20:

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/08/midsomer-murders-series-20-episodes-3.html (Episodes 3 to 6)

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/06/midsomer-murders-series-20-episode-2.html (Episode 2)

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/06/midsomer-murders-series-20-episode-1.html (Episode 1)

- Mission: Impossible - Fallout:

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/08/mission-impossible-fallout-2018.html 
 
- Darkman - Édition Ultime (L'Atelier d'images):

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/06/darkman-edition-ultime-latelier-dimages.html 

- Crimes parfaits - Episodes 5 & 6 (Not yet shown on France 3):

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/05/crimes-parfaits-episodes-5-6-france-3.html

- Les petits meurtres d'Agatha Christie (Returned yesterday on France 2):

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/04/les-petits-meurtres-dagatha-christie.html (Meurtres en solde - April 2018 review, next week on France 2)

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2017/11/les-petits-meurtres-dagatha-christie.html (Drame en trois actes - November 2017 review)

LAST MONTH ON THIS BLOG

So... 

 

REVIEWS 

- Midsomer Murders - Series 20:

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/06/midsomer-murders-series-20-episode-2.html (Episode 2)

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/06/midsomer-murders-series-20-episode-1.html (Episode 1)

- Darkman - Édition Ultime (L'Atelier d'images):

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2018/06/darkman-edition-ultime-latelier-dimages.html

DARKMAN - ÉDITION ULTIME (L'ATELIER D'IMAGES)

Before American filmmaker Sam Raimi adapted Spider-Man in a big screen trilogy (2002-2007), he made his first major studio picture with a superhero of his own: Darkman (1990). This amazing movie spawned two direct-to-video sequels, Darkman II: The Return of Durant (1995) and  Darkman III: Die Darkman Die (1996). They were preceded by an attempt to launch a TV series in 1992.

In November 2017, the French home video company L'Atelier d'images released Darkman - Édition Ultime, a limited edition (2 Blu-Ray discs + 1 DVD) containing Darkman, Darkman II, Darkman III, the comic book Darkman Vs. Army of Darkness (for the first time in French) and more than 3½ hours of bonus material. On June 5, 2018, L'Atelier d'images released Darkman on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Dr. Peyton Westlake experiments a synthethic skin for burn victims but it disaggregates after 99 minutes. He's about to find a solution when his assistant and him are attacked by sadistic mobster Robert G. Durant and his thugs. Durant wants a memorandum forgotten by Peyton's girlfriend Julie Hastings, an attorney. This document proves that real estate developer Louis Strack Jr. used corruption for his "City of the Future". Severely burnt and disfigured, Westlake is brought (as a John Doe) to a hospital where he undergoes radical surgery. Now he no longer feels pain because of his severed nerve endings and his strength is considerably enhanced by adrenaline flows, at the price of his mental stability. Presumed dead, Peyton Westlake plots his revenge in a condemned factory. With the artificial skin he can take any face he wants, including his own, but only for 99 minutes.  

Darkman originated from the desire of Sam Raimi, then a young independent director behind cult films The Evil Dead (1981) and Evil Dead II (1987), to adapt Batman or The Shadow. Unable to secure their rights, Raimi decided to create a superhero. Inspired by those classic characters and films like The Phantom of the Opera and The Elephant Man, he got the idea of a man who could change his face for a short story which became a 40-page film treatment. Raimi also paid homage to the Universal monsters of the 1930s and 1940s. Universal Pictures liked the pitch, the budget was set in the $8-12 million range and Darkman went into pre-production (1). Chuck Pfarrer (Navy Seals), Sam Raimi and his brother Ivan Raimi (2), Daniel Goldin and Joshua Goldin worked on the screenplay.

The director wanted his longtime friend Bruce Campbell (Ash in the Evil Dead films) to play Peyton  but the studio vetoed. Irish actor Liam Neeson, not yet a household name, was cast and Raimi gave Bruce Campbell a superb cameo at the end. Gary Oldman and Bill Paxton were considered. Julia Roberts almost played Julie before reaching stardom with Pretty Woman (1990). Frances McDormand, Oscar nominee for Mississipi Burning (1988) and friend of Raimi, got the part. For the villains, Sam Raimi chose Australian actor Colin Friels as Strack and Larry Drake as the sinister Robert G. Durant. He thought Drake looked like Edward G. Robinson and he actually didn't watch L.A. Law (1986-1994), where the actor caught attention as Benny Stulwicz. Danny Elfman, who scored  comic book movies Batman (1989) and Dick Tracy (1990), composed a  soundtrack both mysterious and tragic.

Produced by Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert's Renaissance Pictures for Universal,  the action-packed thriller came as an unique take on the superhero genre thanks to the director's style and inventivity, his dark humour and a perfect cast. Liam Neeson's performance as a humanist turned into a monstruously scarred antihero reaches shakespearean heights. The helicopter scene and the final showdown are memorable. Darkman performed very well at the box office and even more on home video. In 1992, Universal Television produced an unaired 22-minute pilot/demo for a potential TV series but the Fox channel didn't pick it up. Written by Robert Eisele (The Equalizer) and directed by Brian Grant, Darkman retold the origins of the character with some changes. English actor Christopher Bowen (Le Roi Mystère) (3) starred as Peyton Westlake. Larry Drake reprised his role of Robert G. Durant.

Universal wasn't interested in funding a sequel to the film until they decided to follow the example of Disney's The Return of Jafar (1994), the hit direct-to-video sequel of Aladdin (1992), and bypass theaters. The studio financed, partly through its television division, a home video "double bill" of the dark vigilante. Helmed by experimented TV director/cinematographer Bradford May, Darkman II: The Return of Durant and Darkman III: Die Darkman Die were filmed back-to-back in Toronto in winter 1993-1994 for almost $5 million (4). They were released in 1995 and 1996 respectively. Larry Drake came back as Durant but he wasn't available immediately so Darkman III was shot first. South African born actor Arnold Vosloo was asked to play Peyton Westlake while he was filming John Woo's Hard Target (1993), co-produced by Renaissance Pictures.

In Darkman II, Peyton befriends David Brinkman, a scientist who found a solution to disintegration of the synthetic skin. His old enemy Robert G. Durant awakes from coma and projects to rule the criminal underworld with the help of Dr. Hathaway, the mad inventor of a particle-beam gun. Durant wants Brinkman's building but David doesn't wish to sell and the gangster gets him killed. Peyton must protect Brinkman's sister Laurie. Written by Steven McKay (Hard to Kill), Robert Eisele and Lawrence Hertzog (creator of the 1995-1996 series Nowhere Man), The Return of Durant is carried by the top billing Larry Drake and tries to emulate Raimi's style with some cartoonish moments. Arnold Vosloo is a honourable successor to Liam Neeson. Except for Hathaway (the great Canadian actor Lawrence Dane), the secondary characters are quite insignificant. Like the reporter played by Kim Delaney, who quickly disappears. Renee O'Connor (Laurie Brinkman) later co-starred in Xena: Warrior Princess (1995-2001) as Gabrielle.

Penned by screenwriting duo Michael Colleary and Mike Werb, Darkman III would definitely have made a better TV pilot than the 1992 demo. Dr. Bridget Thorne, one of the physicians who saved Westlake's life after the attack by Durant and his men, offers Peyton to repair his nervous system but corrupt businessman Peter Rooker wants Darkman's strength for his profit. Jeff Fahey (The Lawnmower man) makes an excellent new villain and the late Darlanne Fluegel (Crime Story, To Live and Die in L.A.) is brilliant as Thorne. Roxann Dawson (Angela Rooker) played B'Elanna Torres in Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001). The supporting cast is filled with familiar faces like Nigel Bennett (Forever Knight) or Von Flores. The music of the two direct-to-video sequels was composed by Randy Miller.

Blu-Ray Disc 1 of Darkman - Édition ultime is comprised of Darkman (French dubbing + Original dialogue track), a conversation between journalists Julien Dupuy et Stéphane Moïssakis, interviews of production designer Randy Ser and art director Philip Dagort, interviews of Liam Neeson and Frances McDormand, interviews of Dan Bell and Danny Hicks (Durant's henchmen Paulie and Skip), and an interview of makeup designer Tony Gardner. The Larry Drake interview is refreshing (Durant's crush, the "pilot") and even moving as the talented actor died in 2016. There are interviews of Sam Raimi, Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand and Colin Friels for the film's release, a "Making Of", trailers and TV spots, storyboards and photo galleries. Blu-Ray Disc 2 is comprised of Darkman II & III (French dubbing + Original dialogue track) with their trailers. The DVD of the Édition Ultime has Darkman and the trailers of the three films. All the bonus material is subbed in French.

(1) Fangoria #96 (Sept 1990). It ended up at an estimated $16 million.
(2) In Darkman, their brother Ted Raimi plays Rick.
(3) Christopher Bowen played the eponymous 19th century vigilante in this 1991 four-part French drama based on a novel by Gaston Leroux (author of The Phantom of the Opera). His very good performance looks like an audition for the role of Darkman.
(4) Cinefantastique v25n06-v26n01 (Dec 1994).

http://www.latelierdimages.fr/darkman-edition-ultime/
https://www.dvdfr.com/dvd/f163751-darkman.html  (Darkman - June 2018 French Blu-Ray, with details about the bonus material)

See also:

http://www.indiewire.com/2013/03/classical-filmmaking-the-theme-that-drives-all-of-sam-raimis-movies-128305/

DARKMAN – ÉDITION ULTIME (L'ATELIER D'IMAGES)

French fans of Darkman (1990), Sam Raimi's cult superhero film, are spoiled today with the release of Darkman - Édition Ultime ("Darkman - Ultimate Edition"), thanks to L'Atelier d'images.

This limited edition (2 Blu-Ray discs + 1 DVD) contains Darkman and its two direct-to-video sequels, Darkman II: The Return of Durant (1995) and Darkman III: Die Darkman Die (1996). But also the comic book Darkman Vs. Army of Darkness (for the first time in French) and more than 3 ½ hours of bonus material.

Darkman - Édition Ultime was born with the support of a crowdfunding campaign.

http://www.latelierdimages.fr/darkman-edition-ultime/

Review ASAP.