Independent Exhibitors Film Bulletin (1962)

"Boys' Night Out" IRaa*? O O O Lots of fun about some married boys on the make. Sexy but really inoffensive. Kim Novak, Tony Randall head cast. Handsome color production. Suburbia gets a lively comic going over in this handsome Metrocolor-CinemaScope Joseph E. Levine presentation being released by M-G-M. It's all about 4 suburban males (1 bachelor, 3 bored married men) who decide to share a seductive apartment in Manhattan and a blonde who volunteers to go along with it. With Kim Kovak as the student gathering information for a thesis on the sexual patterns of the suburban male, James Garner (as the bachelor) and Tony Randall, Howard Duff and Howard Morris (as the "boys"), audiences are in for a frothy, generally funny, suggestive, but inoffensive sex comedy. Business prospects look bright in both the metropolitan markets and the hinterlands, since infidelity never materializes. A luxurious apartment is accidentally found, Miss Novak shows up and agrees to be their "mistress" but she manages to hold them all in line, and the boys start lying to one another about their "torrid nights" in town. Ira Wallach's screenplay contains plenty of chuckles, director Michael Gordon keeps the deceit moving at jaunty clip, and the apartment set is a true eye-pleaser. A promotion plus is contained in the fact that the title song could become a jukebox favorite. The performances are good: Miss Novak, having her hands full four nights a week; Randall, allowing her to trick him into talking endlessly about himself; Duff, wowing her with his do-it-yourself talents; Morris, happily stuffing himself with her delicious cooking since he's been forced to share his wife's starvation diet; Garner, growing jealous over the others' lies and deciding to marry Miss Novak and take her away from all of this. The wives are colorfully portrayed by Janet Blair (Randall's), Patti Page (Morris') and Anne Jeffreys (Duff's). Jessie Royce Landis is Garner's mother, Oscar Homolka is Miss Novak's psychology professor, and there are guest appearances by rich man's girl friend Zsa Zsa Gabor, private eye Fred Clark, bartender William Bendix and apartment owner Jim Backus. The wives grow suspicious over their husband's attentiveness and hire Clark. The climax finds husbands and wives confronting each other in the apartment. All ends happily. M-G-M. 115 minutes. Kim Novak, James Garner, Tony Randall. Produced by Martin Ransohoff. Directed by Michael Gordon. "Zotz!" "Rati*? O O Plus Mildly amusing gimmick comedy should satisfy mass audiences. Tom Poston in lead. Exploitable entry. Producer-director William Castle turns to fantasy-comedy in this Columbia release, with something less than the success he has enjoyed in the horror-gimmick field. The plot, scripted by Ray Russell, concerns a professor of ancient Eastern lanuages who comes into possession of a magic coin: by pointing a finger, he can cause sudden pain; by uttering the word "Zotz!," an object will move in slow motion; by pointing a finger and uttering the word at the same time, death! The comic potential fails to come into full bloom, but there are enough amusing moments to keep the masses lightly entertained. Backed by a Castle gimmick (patrons will receive "Zotz" coins), this should serve as a sound dual bill attraction in the general market. TV's Tom Poston is quite amusing as the coin possesser who finds himself unable to convince his college head, or Washington, of his magic power. He's adequately supported by Julia Meade, another professor; Jim Backus, a rival of Poston's for the Dean of Language post BUSINESS RATING $$$$ — Tops $$$ Good $$ — Average $ — Poor and Miss Meade's hand; Fred Clark, a blustery Pentagon ge eral, and Cecil Kellaway, the language dean. Marx Brother fans will be happy to know that Margaret Dumont is presen' land she gets another pie in the face. Two of the funnit sequences concern Poston releasing a cage of white micjl during a party, shouting "Zotz!," then discovering he doesn have the coin; and Poston causing an airplane to stop flyin while Clark plays with his office putting course. The clima finds Communist agents kidnapping Poston, Miss Meade an Poston's teen-age niece (Zeme North). Poston manages tl escape, jumps off a roof, shouts "Zotz!" and falls in slo' motion, landing unhurt. However, the coin rolls into a sewef" Police arrest the Red agents, Poston becomes a national her and the new dean, and Miss Meade becomes Mrs. Poston. Columbia. 87 minutes. Tom Poston, Julia Meade, Jim Backus. Fred Clark. Pr duced and Directed by William Castle. "The Intruder" Hard-hitting melodrama about racial violence in Soutl ern town, but done in sketchy, contrived manner. B.C problem, but saleable in special situations. A malevolent young rabble-rouser comes to a Southern tow and set about blocking integration in the schools, even thou^ the townspeople are resigned to the fact that integration is no | a law. It poses a boxoffice problem, although it might surpris Because this PatheAmerica release is outspoken and contri, versial, and made up of brutal and unpleasant events, the should be sufficient word-of-mouth to attract certain segmen of the public, but some are bound to find its very boldne offensive. Producer-director Roger Corman is to be congrat lated for venturing into an important and neglected scret area, and for capturing the realistic settings (locales, white ar Negro citizens) and mob hysteria a story of this nature d mands. Hoodlums terrorizing a Negro family in their car, KKK cross-burning march through the Negro section of tow. the bombing of a Negro church and the brutal beating of tlj) white newspaper editor who believes in obeying the law pr i vide grim reminders of the horror of race prejudice. But oi; wishes that Charles Beaumont's screenplay, from his novel, w not so sketchy and did not plunge so often into contrived mel drama. Nevertheless, "The Intruder" emerges as a strong ai engrossing piece of entertainment. The performances are goo especially William Shatner as the ruthless emissary of t| "Patrick Henry Society", who indiscriminately uses people bring about his vicious scheme. Frank Maxwell is the bra; newspaper editor; Beverly Lunsford, his teen-age daughter w): falls in love with Shatner; Robert Emhardt, the town's cotf , lent leading citizen; Leo Gordon, a boisterous pitchman, ait Jeanne Cooper, the Iatter's morally weak wife whom Shatr seduces. The plot finds Shatner arousing sentiment for a she of force to terrorize (but not harm) the towns Negroes to ke1 the Negro youngsters out of the white high school. A mo of violence grows, and when Maxwell urges Charles Bart and the other Negro students to keep going to school, hi beaten, and loses an eye. Shatner gets Miss Lunsford to frai Barnes on a rape charge, but Gordon saves the boy's life showing the crowd how Shatner has deceived them. Pathe-America. 83 minutes. William Shatner, Frank Maxwell, Beverly Lunsfc Produced and Directed by Roger Corman. Page 28 Film BULLETIN June II, 1962