Raphael Movies
- 2007
This ambience release is designed to transform the atmosphere of any room, with footage shot on the exotic island of Bali, Indonesia. It offers viewers several options, including a segment that focuses on Bali dances, another that explores Bali water temples, a third that watches wildlife on the island of Bali, and a fourth that visits the sacred locales of Bali. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 2007
This ambience release is designed to transform any room, with atmospheric footage of natural environments. The program actually offers several options: the first transports viewers to rainy forests in Middle America, with glimpses of ferns and waterfalls; the second contains footage of spawning salmon filmed in the Queets Valley of Olympic National Park in Washington State; the third glimpses flowing waters, squirrels, birds and other natural wonders in the Olympic National Park's Hoh Valley; and the fourth offers a compilation of footage shot in "enchanted forests," with the light streaming through the trees and creating a magical atmosphere. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 2007
The Pacific coastline provides some of the most beautiful natural vistas in the United States, and this video captures many of them in a soothing display of untouched beauty. Among the locations on display are Big Sur in California, as well as both the Washington and Oregon shorelines. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 1968
When a man goes to Buenos Aires to see his brother, he is met at the airport by a woman claiming to be his secretary. His piano-playing brother is on tour, so the two go sightseeing. The man falls for the girl before he realizes his brother is madly in love with the same woman. This touching love story provides popular Spanish singer Raphael the chance to deliver some songs in between the action. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Raphael, Serena Vergano, (more)
- 1967
This Spanish-speaking film depicts gals trying out for a stage show and how they get involved with the fellows picking the parts. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1938
Just before going on a brief one-man strike for better wages, Gene Autry starred in the Republic musical western Prairie Moon. In this one, a trio of tough Chicago orphans are relocated to the Wild West and ensconsed in their late uncle's ranch. The three street punks-Brains (Tommy Ryan), Nails (Walter Tetley) and Slick (David Gorcey)-are the sons of Chicago gangster who was put "on the spot" while hiding out at the ranch. With Autry's help, the kids learn to assimilate themselves to the Wide Open Spaces, and even manage to break up a gang of cowboy racketeers. Shirley Deane, late of 20th Century-Fox's "Jones Family" series, is an appealing heroine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, (more)
Frequently cited as both one of the greatest films about war and one of the greatest films ever made, Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion is an often witty, sometimes poignant, frequently moving examination of the futility of war. During World War I, twoFrench airmen are shot down while taking surveillance photographs in German territory: Capt. de Boeldieu (Pierre Fresnay), a wealthy and aristocratic officer; Lt. Maréchal (Jean Gabin), a burly but intelligent working-class mechanic. The three are brought to a P.O.W. camp, where they encounter and befriend Rosenthal (Marcel Dalio), a prosperous Jewish banker, and the commander, Von Rauffenstein (Erich von Stroheim), takes an immediate liking to de Boeldieu.They are members of the same social class and believe that the political and intellectual ideals of the Europe they once knew will soon be a thing of the past with the rise to power of the proletariat. The three Frenchmen discover that their fellow prisoners have been digging an escape tunnel, and all of them agree to help -- Maréchal and Rosenthal with enthusiasm, de Boeldieu out of a sense of duty. As he puts it, when on a golf course, one plays golf, and while in a prison camp, one tries to escape -- it's the accepted thing to do. As Von Rauffenstein and de Boeldieu become friends, and the rank-and-file soldiers banter as much with the German guards as with each other, the characters seem involved less in a war than in some vast, petty game, albeit one with deadly consequences; they often talk about women and food, while never mentioning political ideology. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Gabin, Pierre Fresnay, (more)
Boudu (played by Michel Simon, who also produced the film) is a shaggy, foul-smelling tramp who is rescued from drowning by bourgeois Frenchman Charles Granval. Deciding to "reform" Boudu, Granval invites the hobo into his home. Boudu returns the favor by turning the household upside down and by conducting an affair with Granval's wife Marcella Hainia. All ends happily--for Boudu at least--when the tramp wins the national lottery and marries maid Severine Lerczynska, who is so delighted that she ends her own affair with the hypocritical Granval. Boudu decides to forego his new-found wealth for his previous carefree existence, leaving the greedy Lerczynska in the lurch. Filmed in 1932, Boudu Saved From Drowning was not released in the US until 1967, at which time it was universally praised by the wine-and-cheese critics. A less subtle but not less hilarious American remake, 1986's Down and Out in Beverly Hills, starred Nick Nolte, Richard Dreyfuss and Bette Midler (this film spawned a brief, heavily laundered 1987 TV sitcom). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Simon, Charles Granval, (more)
