San Francisco - 1968 - UK

San Francisco - 1968 - 6/10

 
Experimental film by Anthony Stern dashes through every nuance of the Bay city.
Police, hippies, military, office workers, day time, night time, everyday activities, orgiastic happenings.
Flits through neighborhoods like a dragonfly on amphetamines.
The pace is frantic, fueled by an early version of Pink Floyd’s “Interstellar Overdrive”.
Cuts are so dizzying and blurry, you might wish you had dropped Owsley’s acid.

Barbarella - 1968 - France

Barbarella - 1968 - 6/10

 
Our heroine is after a rogue scientist with a life-destroying death ray.
She crash lands, is captured, rescued, and has her first experience of physical sex.
Barbarella proceeds to share the love, continuing with her mission.
Genuine 1960’s artifact has a Euro-design and sensibility.
Less campy, less rollicking than Danger: Diabolik (1968), this tries too hard.
Fonda never looks comfortable onscreen here.

Summer - 1968 - France

Summer - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - L'été

 
Experimental film, following Graziella as she isolates herself in the countryside.
Earlier, she had been part of Paris riots of the previous month.
She reflects without explanation.  One senses she may have been traumatized.
More of a mood piece, with little narrative.
Knowledge of May 1968 would be helpful for outsiders.

Les Biches - 1968 - France

Les Biches - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - Bad Girls

 
Frédérique spies a poor street artist, drops a large banknote in her pot.
Later, talking and navigating barriers, she invites the girl home where she seduces her.
Next, they leave for Frédérique’s chateau in Saint Tropez.
Frédérique has money, does not need to work, idles away ennui with parties and games.
So that when the girl, named Why, meets an architect, Frédérique casually steals him.
Slow thriller of observing and coveting.  Tastes, possessions, identities.
Borrows from Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley.

Outlaw Gangster VIP - 1968 - Japan

Outlaw Gangster VIP - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - Burai Yori Daikanbu

 
After three years in prison, Goro returns to his yakuza family.
The family is weaker than before, an upstart clan with less honor is carving territory.
Goro is inclined to quietly exit, but there are obligations.
Plus, there is a dewy-eyed female who has attached herself to him.
Overly familiar gangster story benefits from solid performances and expert cinematography.

Once Upon A Time In The West - 1968 - Italy

Once Upon A Time In The West - 1968 - 8/10
AKA - C'era Una Volta il West

 
Magnificent Western of greed and vengeance, stunningly shot and composed.
Bronson, taking over after another actor declined, excellent as the gunman of few words, few explanations.
The railroad is coming through; land is needed, by any means necessary.
The magnate has a team of cutthroats, led by colder-than-ice Frank.
Tremendous film, operatic in structure and intensity, likely too long for American audiences.
I first saw this in a revival theater in the mid-1970’s, and it was unforgettable.
Realize, going in, the three hour length.

Bakeneko: A Vengeful Spirit - 1968 - Japan

Bakeneko: A Vengeful Spirit - 1968 - 7/10
AKA - Kaibyô Noroi no Numa // 怪猫呪いの沼

 
The pool is haunted.  The curse warns men about coveting females on certain anniversaries.
Heedless, the lord sees a minister’s lovely daughter and demands her as another concubine.
Yukiji, engaged and in love, refuses to her peril.
First half of brooding film is droit du seigneur, the right of the lord, and those powerless to oppose.
Second half, however, is the bakeneko, the shape-shifting cat, exacting revenge.
Dark film, spliced with ferocious swordplay, featuring imaginative photography.

Vixen! - 1968 - USA

Vixen! - 1968 - 6/10

 
Russ runs a small lodge in the Canadian woodlands.
As a pilot, he flies guests into the area.
Oh yes, he also has a steamy wife, Vixen, a female with hearty appetites.
Russ, guests male and female, relatives … close relatives.
Faithless, sharp-tongued, racist, Vixen is a piece of work.
Russ Meyer gave Erica Gavin a long leash in this, then let her loose.
She overpowers the entire film, and it is mystifying why she never had a better career.
For a satirical comedy, this wields a mean and ugly edge.

Yellow Submarine - 1968 - UK

Yellow Submarine - 1968 - 7/10

 
Pepperland had been overrun and enslaved by the Blue Meanies.
Are you bluish?  You don’t look bluish?
Young Fred barely escapes in the above vessel, then implores the Fab Four to rescue the inhabitants.
Enroute, they navigate various, ofttimes perilous, seas.
Eye-popping animation, memorable songs, imaginative story.
Surprise hit with kids, acidheads, critics, Beatles fans.
This generated much good will toward the band, and remains a great watch.

Black Lizard - 1968 - Japan

Black Lizard - 1968 - 7/10
AKA - Kuro Tokage // 黒蜥蝪

 
The female criminal mastermind wants that stone, the Star Of Egypt.
Moreover, she even warns the wealthy jeweler of the upcoming theft.
Who swiftly obtains the resources of Detective Akechi.
From there, move / countermove, each relishing the competitive match.
Overly talky at times, but the dialogue is florid and heady.
Gorgeous to watch.  Story by Edogawa Rampo, script by Yukio Mishima, directed by Kinji Fukasaku.
Perverse film, highly entertaining, depending on your tastes.

La Belle Cérébrale - 1968 - France

La Belle Cérébrale - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - The Beautiful Intellectual

 
Martine, model for a painter is on her break.
While he babbles on the phone, she listens, eats a pear, lets her mind wander.
Nice juxtaposition of the banal conversation with her vivid imagination.
I used TurboScribe to capture the phone talk, then tidied up.
Not ideal, but serviceable.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3364066

The Secret War Of Harry Frigg - 1968 - USA

The Secret War Of Harry Frigg - 1968 - 5/10

 
Spotty comedy of lowly private assigned to impersonate a general, and get himself captured by Italian forces.
Objective?  Free several real generals held prisoner in a posh villa.
Once there, he relishes the luxury, as well as the lovely countess.
Why Paul Newman chose this turkey is beyond me.
He seems stiff and ill at ease throughout.
One would find better comedy watching Hogan’s Heroes reruns.

Succubus - 1968 - Germany

Succubus - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - Necronomicon Geträumte Sünden

 
Male and female are chained to crosses, while a knife wielding woman carves their flesh.
Hold on, it’s only a decadent cabaret show for jaded sophisticates.
“Tormentor” Lorna is a creature of the borderlands, however.
Apparently slipstreaming various incarnations of herself.
Much of this might resemble six scenes in search of a narrative.
Nevertheless, this is one of Jess Franco’s earliest dream fugues.
(The Acid Party surely inspired David Lynch.)
Perhaps better viewed after seeing a dozen other Franco films beforehand.
The US dub (Terry Vantell) smooths some elements, obscures others.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subscene/71969   (US Dub)

Yokai Monsters 100 Monsters - 1968 - Japan

Yokai Monsters 100 Monsters - 1968 - 6/10  
AKA - Yōkai Hyaku Monogatari // 妖怪百物語

 
Yes, the woods are dangerous, dark and deep, with forces lurking everywhere.
Yet, the perfidious and treacherous souls of men are much worse.
The wealthy landowner (property developer) plans to tear down the shrine and houses for a  brothel.
In cahoots, the crooked, corrupt local magistrate.  Well, profits outweigh public needs.
An evening of sake and ghost stories culminates with a purification –
Which the men of power forego, scoffing at superstition.
There are about five narratives in this, but everything stitches well and moves briskly.
Monsters are old school puppets, costumes, acrobatics, pasteboard. 

The General’s Mustache - 1968 - S Korea

The General’s Mustache - 1968 - 6/10  
AKA - Janggun-ui Suyeom  //   장군의 수염

Cheol-hun is dead, police have to decide between suicide and murder.
Painter, photographer, lately novelist, although he hasn’t got beyond the title (see above).
Describing the plot to others, they decide his story is akin to a comic.

 
There are conflicting testimonies from neighbors and coworkers.
Police also speculate, and toss up various theories.
Gradually, however, they zero in on his live-in girlfriend, Sin-hye.

 
Cheol lived in a fantasy world, she said, and was a thirty-year-old child.
The plot, like the dead man, is an enigma.  There is a back history of the Korean War.
Slow, talky, a puzzle that reorganizes itself throughout.

Hang ‘Em High - 1968 - USA

Hang ‘Em High - 1968 - 6/10

 
A posse decides Jed is a thieving, lying rustler, stings him up, then trots off.
Dead?  Not yet.  Rescued, he catches the eye of the territorial judge who appoints him marshal.
Jed is warned not to seek revenge – but – should suspects resist …
Being a Clint Eastwood Western, viewers ought to expect resistance and shootings.
Thing is, this does not move as well as the Leone predecessors.
Despite a fantastic cast, the pace dawdles without visual compensation.
(Inger Stevens and Arlene Golonka notwithstanding.)
The judge, morally complicated and forward thinking, makes an extremely interesting character.

Danger Island - 1968 - USA

Danger Island - 1968 - 6/10

 
“Uh oh, Chongo!”
Professor Hayden and his young crew find sunken treasure in the waters near Tobanya.
They are soon overrun by pirates with Link (Jan Michel Vincent) kicked overboard for shark bait.
Although the boat is blown up, Link survives, is washed ashore, and is befriended by two other castaways.
Who inform him the island is replete with cannibals and headhunters.  Not to mention predatory animals.
Pirates, cannibals, snakes, sharks, lions!
Fast moving serial, aimed at children, originally aired on the old Banana Splits show.
20-30 episodes, but only 5 minutes each. Easy to dip in and out.
Mindless, yet the stunts, action, settings, indicate a quality budget and good faith effort by Hanna-Barbera.

Targets - 1968 - USA

Targets - 1968 - 7/10

 
Horror film icon, Byron Orlok, is tired of it all.  He is old-hat, old-fashioned, and wants to retire.
The everyday world is a more horrifying place than any of his creature features.
Even though the young scriptwriter has the perfect role for him, which will reinvigorate his career.
Meanwhile, a disturbed young husband tells his wife he suffers strange thoughts.
She does not listen.  Actually, she cannot listen; she is shallow and empty.
Guns and ammunition stockpiled, and his fuse burns shorter.
While loosely based on Charles Whitman, this thriller eerily foretells weekly events in the USA.
For Boris Karloff, a superb role late in his career.

The Bride Wore Black - 1968 - France

The Bride Wore Black - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - La Mariée était en Noir

 
Wedding day, Julie’s husband is killed.
Grief and temporary madness are soon swept aside by thoughts of vengeance.
Narrative now becomes “track n whack”, with ingenious demises.
While the template may seem Noir, the color photography is not.
Jeanne Moreau excels as the remorseless, yet aloof, huntress.
Probably inspired Franco’s She Killed In Ecstasy, Tarentino’s Kill Bill, among others.

You Only Live Twice - 1968 - UK

You Only Live Twice - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - 007は二度死ぬ

 
Fleming’s novel is one of self-pity, vengeance, amnesia, resurrection.
The film is high style Japanese action, with 007 as a pinball in the Shinjuja arcade.
USA and CCCP space capsules disappear in orbit.  Each nation blames the other.  War seem likely.
The actual culprit?  SPECTRE, lurking, according to MI5, somewhere in Japan.
More action and gadgetry in this, less style and panache.
Japanese locations are exotic, and the cast has plenty of headliners for those into Japanese cinema.
Bond does get rescued a lot, or relies much on Q‘s gizmos.
Earlier films are superior, although this remains a guilty pleasure.