Customer Reviews

G-Men Vs Black Dragon [VHS]

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

G-MEN VS. THE BLACK DRAGON (1943) was one of the Republic serials of the 40s. These chapter plays had some of the best fight scenes and cliffhanger endings compared to any of the other studios that made them.

Ok, big 15 chapter serial. Rightly spread out over 2 platters.

The problem is the transfer. It looks like it has been transferred from VHS over to DVD. Contrast is weak, there is a lot of flicker, etc.

Having this Cheezy edition is better than nothing. The sad fact is that Paramount/Viacom owns these great serials and used beautiful source prints for their laserdisk releases several years ago. I collected all of these Republic serials on laserdisc, including G-MEN VS. BLACK DRAGON--which looked pristine on laser.

So far, Lionsgate has thrown us only one bone, with the DVD release of THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN MARVEL. Lionsgate still has a distribution deal with Paramount for release of Republic catalogue titles.

There are still many great titles from the Republic catalogue that these guys are just sitting on! Wish they would license them out to someone who cares! Legend films??

One of the best of the genre of cliffhanger serials. Features plenty of action, a delicious "oriental" villain (played by an Italian (:-)) with all sorts of fiendish torture devices and a plan to take over America. A young Rod Cameron stars as the hero G-Man and there are some great car chases featuring all the marvelous period automobiles.

Of all my collection of Republic's "Golden-Age" Serials, this is the one I can watch again and again and enjoy it better with each viewing. This serial surely equals the "ultimate" cliff-hanger, "Spy Smasher." For one thing, everything in this stunningly directed, edited, acted, photographed chapter-play is so darn fresh. Only a few stock shots are used. Another great plus is the fantastic cast: Rod Cameron,probably the greatest of all action heroes, and the cool, voluptuous and feisty Constance Worth who isn't afraid to get her hair mussed as she jumps right in with machine guns, revolvers and pluck to help out Cameron. You wonder whatever happened to her? By far the most chilling and inventive cliff-hanger ending comes at the end of Chapter 8 and it features our gal, Constance. I won't tell you what happens but it involves a spear. William Witney proves himself to be a master craftsman, an over-looked genius who was the major force that elevated Republic Studio Serials to great art--and fantastic entertainment that can be seen and enjoyed by modern audiences. Bravo to Rod, Constance and Witney!

Rod Cameron was probably the greatest of all action heroes of the 40s and thanks to the magic of film, we can see him here at his prime. Incredibly handsome, dashing, suave in his tailored suits, with a face that looks like it inspired the cartoon strip of Dick Tracy, he makes his fight scenes look like energetic ballets. This serial also sparkles because of its feisty, voluptuous female sidekick, Constance Moore. She handles that machine gun with aplomb, wears wonderful hats, isn't afraid to jump right in and help protect Rod when he needs it. A great scene is when Constance is locked up in a metal container and she's nearly burned alive. The villain is wonderfully cartoonish--an Italian actor performing an execrable Oriental accent (paging Saturday Night Live). Incredibly edited, choreographed in its fights, great participation of Constance, this serial deserves five stars. An award should be presented to Republic studios who have produced these glossy, wonderfully preserved films found in these videos.

This wartime serial has G-man Rod Cameron beating the daylights out of the treacherous Axis powers for fifteen action-packed episodes. Constance Worth is his assistant, and Nino Pipitone is memorable as the evil Haruchi. This has great stunt work and some of Republic's all-time best cliffhanger endings, especially a breathtaking finale in Chapter 8. Picture and sound quality are excellent.

This is one of the best serials issued during WWII. Well-directed by William Witney with plenty of action, decent acting, a Japanese bad guy played by Nino Pipitone who doesn't make you wince too often, a believable plot by serial standards and good special effects, all enhanced by a fine musical score from Mort Glickman.

The problems with the DVD edition from Cheezy Flicks are mostly with the original video source. When Republic Home Video released this serial on Laserdisc in the early 1990's, they ran the film something over 4% fast (doubtless 25 frames/second instead of 24) so they could cram all 15 chapters plus the trailer onto four 60-minute sides. This was fast enough that voices sounded odd, especially the already squeaky one of Constance Worth. Even George Lewis sounded like he'd inhaled a little helium. Republic's VHS edition was released at the same time and had the same problem.

Unfortunately the DVD from Cheezy Flicks also runs fast, and the timings are exactly the same as the Laserdisc, including the rather short times between the chapters. There is a pause, the video having a repeat of some of the credits, where the first side break was in the Laserdisc. The image quality isn't as good, being slightly unsharp, about like the VHS release, but with less video noise. The contrast is a little low, but the gray scale is adequate, so compensation can be made by adjusting the controls of the TV. The other problems I saw were also present on the Laserdisc. There is quite a bit of flicker in the first reel of Chapter 1, and lesser amounts elsewhere, mostly in the titles. The image also has a slight vertical bounce, about 100 times per minute, possibly from the film speed change. These defects are not especially annoying once the contrast has been corrected.

The price asked for the DVD is reasonable, given that it is on two discs, and the menu makes finding the chapters almost as easy as with the Laserdisc. The trailer is included, apparently at the correct speed, along with trailers for some non-serial films available from Cheezy Flicks. But the main virtue of the DVD edition is that it is available to those who don't have it in another format; it is unfortunate that the same corrupted source was used when the DVD does not have the Laserdisc time-constraint problem. I rate it down to three stars primarily for the speed problem; it is still an enjoyable serial.

This serial finds the Republic cliffhanger machine in top gear with top special effects by the Lydeckers, a pounding musical score by Mort Glickman and the usual knowing direction from ace serial director Witney. It is the better of the two serials with Rod Cameron and while it doesn't have as many slugfests as Secret Service in Darkest Africa (aka Manhunt in the African Jungle) it has much less of the juvenile dialogue of that serial and a much more convincing millieu (Republic's North African settings are not that realistic). Although Nino Pippitone as the Japanese mastermind Haruchi has a very fragile looking frame; he exudes considerable reptilian venom. The Republic Golden Age of Serials had one or two more years to go but after viewing this very entertaining and well-made entry you will wish it never ended.

This is one of two World War II serials in which Rod Cameron played federal agent Rex Bennett (the other being "Manhunt in the African Jungle," aka "Secret Service in Darkest Africa"). In both, he links up with a heroine (an English agent played by Constance Worth this time) and a national from another ally (a Chinese, here), and his natural stunting ability sparks some of the best fight scenes in serial cinema. Watch for an explosion which seems to go on forever at the end of chapter one, and an appearance by director William Witney's wife impersonating a maid on the phone for the good guys. And try to suppress a cheer in the last chapter with Cameron's precisely-underplayed remark to his captors who are boasting of Axis victories in the Pacific: "Tell it to the Marines."

The best WWII-themed serial, with directors William Witney and Spencer Gordon Bennett teamed up for the first and last time. Witney was a storyteller and Bennett an action man. Together they mixed up a heady brew. The unique ending of Chapter 8 is often mentioned, but it's the end of Chapter One that stands out, with a strong feel of chaos unleashed upon the earth. From then on Rex Bennett has not one but three bad guys to contend with, and they keep him busy right up to the moment civilization is saved in the rather perfunctory ending. One of the few serials that you wish could have been longer.

This would have been at five star but, the sound failed on episodes 14 and 15. That's like the last chapter of a mystery book being torn out. Skip this one until they solve the problem.