Cinema60 Cinema60

Following in the tradition of our episodes on Ukraine and Egypt, where we tried to find our way into national cinemas that are virtually inaccessible in the West (not to mention our other single-nation episodes on Poland, Brazil, Hong Kong, West Germany, Japan, Czechoslovakia and Mexico that focus more narrowly on a single movement or genre), we gathered up as many movies as we could find, read some academic articles, and then watched the six most promising Bulgarian movies from the ‘60s. Our intention, of course, is to give a taste of what the country has to offer, rather than a full overview. Plus, I mean gosh, appease all of those fans who have been lighting up our switchboard asking for Bulgarian ‘60s cinema…

In this episode, the starting point was Binka Zhelyazkova, who was the first Bulgarian female director. She was also one of the very few women from behind the Iron Curtain, pre-Glasnost era, to have her films shown in the West. From there we spread out to other filmmakers whose works seemed to get written about most often and, crucially, can be seen today with decent prints and English subtitles. Though Bart & Jenna generally agree on the most noteworthy film and least noteworthy film of the episode, there’s quite a bit of discussion in the merits of each. Dive in – none of these films require the kind of fortitude you might expect would be required to sit through little-known 60s art cinema from Bulgaria.

The following films are discussed:• We Were Young (1961) А бяхме млади/A byahme mladi Directed by Binka Zhelyazkova Starring Dimitar Buynozov, Rumyana Karabelova, Lyudmila Cheshmedzhieva

• The Inspector and the Night (1963) Инспекторът и нощта/Inspektorat i noshtta Directed by Rangel Vulchanov Starring Stars Georgi Kaloyanchev, Nevena Kokanova, Dimitar Panov

• The Peach Thief (1964) Крадецът на праскови/Kradetzat na praskovi Directed by Vulo Radev Starring Nevena Kokanova, Rade Markovic, Mikhail Mikhaylov

• Armourless Knight (1966) Рицар без броня/Ritzar bez bronya Directed by Borislav Sharaliev Starring Oleg Kovachev, Mariya Rusalieva, Apostol Karamitev

• The Tied-Up Balloon (1967) Привързаният балон/Privarzaniyat balon Directed by Binka Zhelyazkova Starring Georgi Kaloyanchev, Grigor Vachkov, Ivan Bratanov

• The White Room (1968) Бялата стая/Byalata staya Directed by Metodi Andonov Starring Apostol Karamitev, Elena Rainova, Dorotea Toncheva

What-ho, Cinema60 fans! Six seasons we hath returned, recorded, and bearing our newfangled episodes. In this, our triumphant premiere we speaketh, perchance to wax lyrical, about the works of The Bard – on this April 23, his day of birth! Well enow, we'll cease our foolishness. But there were quite a few direct Shakespeare adaptations in the decade, let alone movies inspired by Shakespeare (West Side Story, anyone?). Whether you've read or seen these plays a thousand times, or are a first timer, the ‘60s offer a nice evolution from stage-bound adaptations to fully fledged cinematic delights.

In this episode, Bart and Jenna dive deep into a multitudinous flote of Shakespearean films in one fell swoop. Bart, a once English major, finds these films bedazzling. Jenna, green-eyed monster that she is, complains heartily about the lackluster source material – but the lady doth protest too much, methinks. They has’t a lively debate over how to approach these films, and about what it takes to adapt something as stylized as Shakespeare to a medium that leans so heavily towards realism. Though they each have their personal favorites amongst the episode’s selections, there’s one that they can agree is one of the decade’s greatest successes by any standard.

The following films are discussed:• Hamlet (1964) Гамлет Directed by Grigoriy Kozintsev Starring Innokentiy Smoktunovskiy, Mikhail Nazvanov, Anastasiya Vertinskaya

• Chimes at Midnight (1965) Campanadas a medianoche Directed by Orson Welles Starring Orson Welles, Keith Baxter, John Gielgud

• Othello (1965) Directed by Stuart Burge Starring Laurence Olivier, Frank Finlay, Maggie Smith

• The Taming of The Shrew (1967) Directed by Franco Zeffirelli Starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Michael York

• Romeo and Juliet (1968) Directed by Franco Zeffirelli Starring Leonard Whiting, Olivia Hussey, John McEnery

• A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1968) Directed by Peter Hall Starring Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Ian Holm

When A Hard Days Night exploded onto the scene in 1964, its charm and success was simply ripe for some good ol’ fashioned bootlegging. What followed was a a half-decade of wannabe music movies – specifically, movies in which pop bands play themselves while still following a strictly scripted plot. Mainly these were vehicles for British boy bands, but eventually they started to extend over to the Americas – where they warped from wholesome to hippie.

In this season finale, Bart and Jenna tackle several of these band movies head on – and with Head on . It’s an episode full of high highs (marijuana and LSD) and low lows (Herman’s Hermits and Freddie and the Dreamers), but quite frankly they’re all a treat as its such a decade-specific genre. Get ready for a whole lot of restless youths, square plots, stoner humor, and screaming, adoring fans.

The following films are discussed:• Ferry Cross the Mersey (1964) Directed by Jeremy Summers Starring Gerry & The Pacemakers, Mona Washbourne, Cilla Black

• Having a Wild Weekend (1965) Catch Us If You Can Directed by John Boorman Starring The Dave Clark Five, Barbara Ferris, Yootha Joyce

• Help! (1965) Directed by Richard Lester Starring The Beatles, Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron

• Hold On! (1966) Directed by Arthur Lubin Starring Herman’s Hermits, Shelley Fabares, Sue Ane Langdon

• The Cuckoo Patrol (1967) Directed by Duncan Wood Starring Freddie & The Dreamers, Kenneth Connor, Victor Maddern

• Good Times (1967) Directed by William Friedkin Starring Sonny & Cher, George Sanders, Norman Alden

• Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter (1968) Directed by Saul Swimmer Starring Herman’s Hermits, Sheila White, Sarah Caldwell

• Head (1968) Directed by Bob Rafelson Starring The Monkees, Victor Mature, Annette Funicello

Also mentioned:

• The Ghost Goes Gear (1966) Directed by Hugh Gladwish Starring The Spencer Davis Group, Nicholas Parsons, Sheila White

• Los chicos con las chicas (1967) Directed by Javier Aguirre Starring Los Bravos, Enriqueta Carballeira, Manolo Gómez Bur

• Dame un poco de amooor...! (1968) Directed by José María Forqué Starring Los Bravos, Rosenda Monteros, Luis Peña

In a follow up to the Ukrainian National Cinema episode, Cinema60 finally addresses the beautiful, surreal and unfairly banned films of Sergei Parajanov and Yuri Ilyenko – two figures that are essential to the story of what was getting made in that region while it was under Soviet control. In the case of Parajanov, his films of the ‘60s are amongst the most striking and influential ever made. In the case of Ilyenko, a lesser known but equally astonishing filmmaker, his unique visual sense of rhythm and movement are a sight to behold. Together, they made Shadows of the Forgotten Ancestors, a film that launched both of their careers towards a path of subversive, politically charged cinema that got them in trouble with Soviet authorities for decades to come.

In this episode, Bart & Jenna start with Parjanov’s straightforward Soviet Realist films from the early 60s, and then jump into the more radical work of Parajanov and Ilyenko in the later ‘60s. Hopefully our hosts’ struggles to make sense out of these challenging films will encourage listeners to be less fearful of the unknown – an entirely rewarding journey for those to attempt it.

The following films are discussed:• Ukrainian Rhapsody (1961) Українська рапсодія (Ukrainskaya rapsodiya) Directed by Sergei Parajanov Starring Olga Reus-Petrenko, Eduard Koshman, Yuriy Gulyayev

• Flower on the Stone (1962) Цветок на камне (Tsvetok na kamne) Directed by Sergei Parajanov & Anatoly Slesarenko Starring Inna Burduchenko, Lyudmila Cherepanova, Boris Dmokhovsky

• Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1965) Тіні забутих предків (Tini zabutykh predkiv) Directed by Sergei Parajanov Cinematography by Yuri Ilyenko Starring Ivan Mikolaychuk, Larisa Kadochnikova, Tatyana Bestayeva

• A Spring for the Thirsty (1965) Криниця для спраглих (Krynytsya dlya sprahlykh) Directed by Yuri Ilyenko Starring Dmitri Milyutenko, Larisa Kadochnikova, Feodosiya Litvinenko

• Kyiv Frescoes (1966) Киевские фрески (Kiyevskiye freski) Directed by Sergei Parajanov Starring Tengiz Archvadze, Vladimir Artman, Alexandr Kotchekov

• Hakob Hovnatanyan (1967) Հակոբ Հովնաթանյան Directed by Sergei Parajanov

• The Eve of Ivan Kupalo (1968) Вечір на Івана Купала (Vechir na Ivana Kupala) Directed by Yuri Ilyenko Starring Boris Khmelnitskiy, Larisa Kadochnikova, Yefim Fridman

• The Color of Pomegranates (1969) Նռան գույնը (Sayat Nova) Directed by Sergei Parajanov Starring Sofiko Chiaureli, Melkon Alekyan, Vilen Galstyan

In 1966, somewhere along the United States-Mexico border, a man wearing a tattered Union uniform drags a coffin across the desert… and into the hearts of the Italian moviegoing public. What was it about this mix of blood, violence, sweaty masculine tusslin’, and steely blue eyes? With just one film, Sergio Corbucci inspired over thirty five remakes, sequels, and rip-offs – the first two even in the same year the original film came out.

In this episode, as part of their once Bootleg Bond series, now expanded Genre series, Bart and Jenna make it their business to map out Django from the beginning. They start with the widely seen original and slowly make their way through a mix of western wannabes, surrealist desert violence and pure cowboy schlock. They also discuss what makes Django so appealing: is it the cathartic, unflinchingly bloody violence, or is it the leftist beating heart that many spaghetti westerns share? Why not both?

The following films are discussed:• Django (1966) Directed by Sergio Corbucci Starring Franco Nero, Loredana Nusciak, Eduardo Fajardo

• A Few Dollars for Django (1966) Pochi dollari per Django Directed by León Klimovsky & Enzo G. Castellari Starring Anthony Steffen, Gloria Osuna, Ennio Girolami

• Django Shoots First (1966) Django spara per primo Directed by Alberto De Martino Starring Glenn Saxson, Ida Galli, Fernando Sancho

• Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot! (1967) Se sei vivo spara Directed by Giulio Questi Starring Tomas Milian, Marilù Tolo, Piero Lulli

• Django, Prepare a Coffin (1968) Preparati la bara! Directed by Ferdinando Baldi Starring Terence Hill, Horst Frank, George Eastman

• Django the Bastard (1968) Django il bastardo Directed by Sergio Garrone Starring Anthony Steffen, Paolo Gozlino, Luciano Rossi

Bart and Jenna want to tell you what their favorites films from 1961 are, but the catch is that the films can only be selected from films covered on Cinema60 so far! But first, they’re going to talk about six films from 1961 that they’ve chosen to watch in hopes that they can snazz up their Top Tens with some bonus bangers. (Aka, basically it’s just Kiss Marry Kill by a different name.)

Coincidentally, some specific topics end up popping up frequently in the episode. First and foremost, we get a lot of talk about commedia all'italiana – a ‘60s genre near and dear to our hosts’ hearts. Also broached are such subjects as ”Artists In Paris,” or “Guns Are Bad,” and “Legacies of WWII,” “Statutory Kissing,” “Staying True To Your Ideals,” and “Why Satire Rules.” It’s the trends and treasures of 1961 cinema served up for your delectation.

The following films are discussed:• A Difficult Life (1961) Una vita difficile Directed by Dino Risi Starring Alberto Sordi, Lea Massari, Franco Fabrizi

• The Guns of Navarone (1961) Directed by J. Lee Thompson Starring Gregory Peck, Anthony Quinn, David Niven

• Paris Belongs to Us (1961) Paris nous appartient Directed by Jacques Rivette Starring Betty Schneider, Giani Esposito, Françoise Prévost

• Divorce Italian Style (1961) Divorzio all'italiana Directed by Pietro Germi Starring Marcello Mastroianni, Daniela Rocca, Stefania Sandrelli

• My Son, the Hero (1961) Los hermanos Del Hierro Directed by Ismael Rodríguez Starring Antonio Aguilar, Julio Alemán, Patricia Conde

• Call Me Genius (1961) The Rebel Directed by Robert Day Starring Tony Hancock, George Sanders, Paul Massie