Monthly Archives: January 2026

Phantom Ranger (1938, directed by Sam Newfield)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

Treasury agent Pat Doyle (John St. Polis) is sent to investigate a counterfeiting ring in Wyoming but ends up getting kidnapped by gang leader Sharpe (Karl Hackett) instead.  With Doyle’s daughter, Joan (Suzanne Kaaren), demanding that the government rescue her father and generating all sorts of bad publicity for the Secret Service, the decision is made to send in Tim Hayes (Tim McCoy).  Hayes, who will be working undercover, is selected because he’s not a “city boy.”  He’s a cowboy, through and through.  If you want to tame the west, you have to send a cowboy.

Phantom Ranger is a low-budget, 56-minute western from Monogram Pictures.  The plot is nothing special but the film itself still interesting because it’s a western that takes place in the 1930s.  Tim Hayes may ride a horse and wear a cowboy hat but he also works in a Washington D.C. office building and he interacts with a woman dressed like a flapper.  In this movie, the frontier has not caught up with the modern world but the modern world has also forgotten what life is like away from civilization.

The movie has the usual collection of B-western stalwarts.  Karl Hackett, John Merton, Charles King, Frank Ellis, Herman Hack, and Horace B. Carpenter are all present and accounted for.  Tim McCoy, a former rodeo performer and army officer, plays the hero and brings a lot of natural authority to the role.  McCoy was not only one of the first western heroes but he was also one of the best.

There’s no phantoms to be found in Phantom Ranger.  It’s still a good western.

Retro Television Review: Fantasy Island 7.22 “Surrogate Mother/The Ideal Woman”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Tuesdays, I will be reviewing the original Fantasy Island, which ran on ABC from 1977 to 1984.  The show is once again on Tubi!

It’s time for one last trip to Fantasy Island.

Episode 7.22 “Surrogate Mother/The Ideal Woman”

(Dir by Don Weis, originally aired on May 19th, 1984)

All things must come to an end.  For the original Fantasy Island, the final episode of the seventh season was also the final episode of the series.

The show didn’t get a grand finale.  Instead, it was a typical episode with two fantasies.  In one fantasy, Charo — yes, Charo — played a woman who had been hired to be a surrogate mother for a childless couple (John Saxon and Juliet Mills).  In the other one, Ben Saunders (Shea Farrell) tried to win back his ex-fiancee (Mary Kate McGeehan) while judging a Fantasy Island beauty pageant.  (How many pageants did Fantasy Island host?)  Two men (Don Galloway and David Sheiner) demanded that Ben pick their girlfriends as the Ideal Woman.  (Both of the girlfriends materialized on the Island, one from a painting and one from a block of stone.  It was a weird fantasy.)  Ben picked his ex, declaring her to be the “ideal woman.”  Neither fantasy was great, though I will say that Charo gave a surprisingly sincere performance and it was nice that frequent Fantasy Island guests stars John Saxon and Juliet Mills appeared on the last episode.  It was an okay trip to the Island, particularly when compared to some of the other season 7 episodes.  Still, the whole thing felt a bit tired.

I have to admit that it’s hard for me to believe that I just reviewed the final episode of the original Fantasy Island.  I started reviewing Fantasy Island on September 6th, 2022.  It was one of the original shows that I picked for Retro Television Reviews.  Now that I’m finishing the show up in 2026, The Love Boat is the only one of my original picks that I still have episodes left to review.  I’ll be reviewing The Love Boat for a while.

(To be honest, I’m stunned that I’ve stuck with these reviews.  I don’t think anyone was expecting me to get all the way to end of Hang Time, let alone Fantasy Island.)

My thoughts on Fantasy Island?  I loved the first four seasons.  The fifth season, with its introduction of Julie and it’s frequent side-lining of Tattoo, was when the show started to go downhill.  The biggest mistake that the show made was, needless to say, not agreeing to pay whatever was necessary to get Herve Villechaize to come back for season 7.  Season 7, the season without Tattoo, felt odd from the start.  Christopher Hewett and Ricardo Montalban never had the right chemistry and the stories themselves were largely recycled from earlier episodes.  The perfect ending for Fantasy Island would have been the season 6 clip show.  

What’s next?  On television, Fantasy Island was revived twice.  In the 90s, Malcolm McDowell played a version of Mr. Rourke.  And then, more recently, there was an attempt to revive it on Fox but, after an enjoyable first season, that show became a self-parody.  I may review both of them in the future.  For now, though, I’m still considering several shows to start reviewing next week.  I’ll reveal my pick next Tuesday!

For now, let us say goodbye to Fantasy Island.  Thanks for the laughs, the tears, and the fantasies!

Scenes That I Love: Gregory Walcott Defends Earth In Plan 9 From Outer Space

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Gregory Walcott, who was born 100 years today, appeared in a lot of good films over the course of his long career.  He had supporting roles in major blockbusters.  He was a friend and frequent collaborator of Clint Eastwood’s.  In 1979, he played the sheriff in the Oscar-nominated Norma Rae.

That said, he will probably always be most remembered for playing Jeff, the patriotic pilot, in Ed Wood’s 1957 masterpiece, Plan Nine From Outer Space.  Walcott gave probably as good a performance as anyone could in Plan 9, though that didn’t prevent the film from wrong being declared one of the worst ever made.  Walcott, for most of his career, was not a fan of Plan 9 but, in the years before he passed away in 2015, Walcott’s attitude towards the film mellowed considerably.  He even appeared in Tim Burton’s Ed Wood.

In this scene from Plan 9, Walcott shows how to deal with a snooty extra-terrestrial invader.  Never has Earth had been a better defender!

4 Shots From 4 Film: Special John McNaughton Edition

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films is all about letting the visuals do the talking.

Today is the birthday of director John McNaughton!  It’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 John McNaughton Films

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986, dir by John McNaughton, DP: Charles Lieberman)

The Borrower (1991, dir by John McNaughton, DP: Julio Mucat and Robert C. New)

Normal Life (1996, dir by John McNaughton, DP: Jean de Segonzac)

Wild Things (1998, dir by John McNaughton, DP: Jeffrey L. Kimball)

Music Video of the Day: The Golden Path by The Chemical Brothers, featuring Wayne Coyne (2003, dir by Chris Milk)

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to the Flaming Lips’s Wayne Coyne!  Our music video of the day is for The Golden Path, his classic collaboration with The Chemical Brothers.

That is Fran Kranz, who acted in The Cabin In The Woods and who directed the brilliant Mass, playing the lead character.

Enjoy!

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.4 “The Killer Indy”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Mondays, I will be reviewing CHiPs, which ran on NBC from 1977 to 1983.  The entire show is currently streaming on Prime!

This week, Baker has a new partner!

Episode 5.4 “The Killer Indy”

(Dir by Leslie H. Martinson, originally aired on October 25th, 1981)

When a group of bikers start holding illegal street races, Getraer wants it stopped before someone is seriously hurt!  Jon Baker and his partner Steve McLeish decide to end the races by any means necessary, especially since Steve’s brothers are involved….

Wait, who?

Played by a pre-transition Caitlyn Jenner, Steve McLeish serves as Baker’s partner in this episode.  We don’t really get much of an introduction as to who Steve is or why he’s even riding with Baker.  Everyone just acts as if Steve has always been there.  Ponch is not even mentioned and it’s difficult not to notice that Larry Wilcox seems a bit more cheerful than usual in this episode.  For once, he’s the one who gets to do all of the cool stuff while everyone else watches.

This was the first of several episodes that Erik Estrada missed during the fifth season, the result of being injured during a stunt gone wrong.  Jenner, who was then best-known as an Olympian, was brought in to play Steve McLeish.  Judging from this episode, Jenner was a remarkably bad actor.  Compared to everyone else in the episode, Jenner comes across as being awkward and stiff.  Like many nonprofessional actors, it’s obvious that Jenner was not sure what do when not delivering dialogue.  Jenner stands there, hands awkwardly positioned and occasionally trying to react to the other actors.  It’s really almost painful to watch.

It’s obvious that this episode was written with Ponch in mind.  Like Ponch, Steve has two brothers and used to be a motorcycle-racing delinquent when he was younger.  His older brother (who is played by the legendary character actor Robert F. Lyons) is named Toro, which might make sense if he was Ponch’s brother but, as it is, you really do have to wonder about the parents who would name one son Toro and the other sons Steve and Ted.  Ted, incidentally, is played by Kevyn Major Howard.  Howard, Lyons and Jenner have next to no features in common, leading one to wonder how they could possibly all be members of the same family?

There was some good motorcycle chase action in this episode.  There was also so much dialogue about the importance of wearing a helmet that, as soon as the gang’s leader announced he didn’t need a helmet, the most viewers had to know that he was doomed to ultimately be thrown from his motorcycle and crash headfirst into the pavement.  “He hit his head,” Getraer says and that’s the last we hear about the guy.

As for this episodes comedic subplot, Grossman begged his fellow patrol people to join him and his nieces at the waterpark.  While Baker, Steve, and everyone else took care of his nieces, Grossman hung out with his two bikini-clad neighbors.  Grossman winked at the camera as the CHiPs theme music started to play.

And so, it’s another day in L.A….

Sinners Wins In Nashville

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Music City Film Critics Association has announced its picks for the best of 2025!  The winners are in bold!

Best Picture
Bugonia
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners
The Testament of Ann Lee
Train Dreams
Weapons

Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson – One Battle After Another
Ryan Coogler – Sinners
Guillermo Del Toro – Frankenstein
Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme
Chloé Zhao – Hamnet

Best Actress
Jessie Buckley – Hamnet
Rose Byrne – If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Chase Infiniti – One Battle After Another
Amanda Seyfried – The Testament of Ann Lee
Emma Stone – Bugonia

Best Actor
Timothée Chalamet – Marty Supreme
Leonardo DiCaprio – One Battle After Another
Joel Edgerton – Train Dreams
Ethan Hawke – Blue Moon
Michael B. Jordan – Sinners

Best Supporting Actress
Odessa A’zion – Marty Supreme
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas – Sentimental Value
Amy Madigan – Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku – Sinners
Teyana Taylor – One Battle After Another

Best Supporting Actor
Benicio Del Toro – One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi – Frankenstein
Delroy Lindo – Sinners
Sean Penn – One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård – Sentimental Value

Best Young Actress
Shannon Mahina Gorman – Rental Family
Olivia Lynes – Hamnet
Madeleine McGraw – The Black Phone 2
Sora Wong – Bring Her Back
Nina Ye – Left-Handed Girl

Best Young Actor
Everett Blunck – The Plague
Miles Caton – Sinners
Cary Christopher – Weapons
Jacobi Jupe – Hamnet
Alfie Williams – 28 Years Later

Best Acting Ensemble
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Wake Up Dead Man

Best Music Film
The Ballad of Wallis Island
KPop Demon Hunters
Sinners
The Testament of Ann Lee
Wicked: For Good

Best Animated Film
The Day the Earth Blew Up
KPop Demon Hunters
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
Predator: Killer of Killers
Zootopia 2

Best Documentary
The Alabama Solution
Cover-Up
John Candy: I Like Me
The Perfect Neighbor
Predators

Best International Film
It Was Just an Accident
No Other Choice
The Secret Agent
Sentimental Value
Sirāt

Best Screenplay
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Sorry, Baby
Weapons

Best Cinematography
Frankenstein
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Train Dreams

Best Editing
F1: The Movie
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
The Perfect Neighbor
Sinners

Best Production Design
Frankenstein
Marty Supreme
Sinners
The Testament of Ann Lee
Wicked: For Good

Best Original Song
“As Alive As You Need Me to Be” – Nine Inch Nails, Tron: Ares
“The Girl in the Bubble” – Ariana Grande, Wicked: For Good
“Golden” – EJAE, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami, KPop Demon Hunters
“I Lied to You” – Miles Caton, Sinners
“Train Dreams” – Nick Cave, Train Dreams

Best Score
Frankenstein
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Train Dreams

Best Sound
F1: The Movie
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Warfare
Wicked: For Good

Best Stunt Work
Ballerina
F1: The Movie
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
Sinners
Superman

Best Action Film
F1: The Movie
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
One Battle After Another
Predator: Badlands
Superman

Best Comedy Film
The Ballad of Wallis Island
Friendship
The Naked Gun
Splitsville
Wake Up Dead Man

Best Horror Film
28 Years Later
Frankenstein
Sinners
The Ugly Stepsister
Weapons

The Jim Ridley Award
The Day the Earth Blew Up
Dracula
A Little Prayer
Resurrection
Sirāt

One Battle After Another Wins In Hawaii

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Hawaii Film Critics Society has announced its picks for the best of 2025!  The winners are in bold.

Best Picture
Jay Kelly
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners

Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Ryan Coogler, Sinners
Guillermo del Toro, Frankenstein
Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
Chloé Zhao, Hamnet

Best Actor
Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme
Leonardo DiCaprio, One Battle After Another
Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon
Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Wagner Moura, The Secret Agent

Best Actress
Jessie Buckley, Hamnet
Chase Infiniti, One Battle After Another
Sally Hawkins, Bring Her Back
Renate Reinsve, Sentimental Value
Sophie Thatcher, Companion

Best Supporting Actor
Benicio del Toro, One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein
Adam Sandler, Jay Kelly
Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård, Sentimental Value

Best Supporting Actress
Elle Fanning, Sentimental Value
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Sentimental Value
Amy Madigan, Weapons
Amanda Seyfried, The Housemaid
Teyana Taylor, One Battle After Another

Best Original Screenplay
Eddington
Marty Supreme
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Weapons

Best Adapted Screenplay
Frankenstein
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
The Housemaid
Train Dreams

Best Editing
F1: The Movie
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Together

Best Cinematography
F1: The Movie
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Train Dreams

Best Art Direction
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
Sinners
The Phoenician Scheme

Best Costume Design
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Sinners
The Phoenician Scheme
Wicked: For Good

Best Animated Film
Arco
Dog Man
KPop Demon Hunters
The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie
Zootopia 2

Best Documentary
George A. Romero’s Resident Evil
Orwell: 2+2=5
Pee-wee as Himself
Predators
The Perfect Neighbor

Best Make-Up
28 Years Later
Frankenstein
Sinners
Weapons
Wicked: For Good

Best Sound
F1: The Movie
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
The Testament of Ann Lee

Best Score
F1: The Movie
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Tron: Ares

Best Song
“As Alive as You Need Me to Be,” Tron: Ares
“Highest 2 Lowest,” Highest 2 Lowest
“Hurry Up Tomorrow,” Hurry Up Tomorrow
“I Lied to You,” Sinners
“Train Dreams,” Train Dreams

Best Visual Effects
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Frankenstein
Jurassic World: Rebirth
Predator: Badlands
Sinners

Best Action Movie
Ballerina
F1: The Movie
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
One Battle After Another
Predator: Badlands

Best Stunt Work
Ballerina
F1: The Movie
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
One Battle After Another
Sinners

Best New Filmmaker
Ugo Bienvenu, Arco
Ben Leonberg, Good Boy
Charlie Polinger, The Plague
Michael Shanks, Together
Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

Best First Film
Arco
Good Boy
Sorry, Baby
The Plague
Together

Best Overlooked Film
Clown in a Cornfield
Eddington
Nouvelle Vague
Rental Family
The Life of Chuck

Best Vocal / Motion Capture Performance
Eric Bauza, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie
Oona Chaplin, Avatar: Fire and Ash (TIE)
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Sam Rockwell, The Bad Guys 2 (TIE)
Alison Wright, Predator: Badlands

Best Animal Performance
Bing the dog, The Friend
Indy the dog, Good Boy
Jolene the dog, Superman
Olga the cat, Sorry, Baby
Tico the cat, Caught Stealing

Best Horror Film
Bring Her Back
Keeper
Shelby Oaks
Together
Weapons

Best Comic Book Movie
100 Nights of Hero
Captain America: Brave New World
Superman
The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Thunderbolts*

Best Foreign Language Film
It Was Just an Accident
Left-Handed Girl
No Other Choice
Sentimental Value
The Secret Agent

Best Underrated Film
Companion
Heart Eyes
Rental Family
The Life of Chuck
The Long Walk

Best Hawaiian Film
A Paradise Lost, dir. Laurie Sumiye (Hawaii)
Lahaina Rising, dir. Matty Schweitzer (Maui)
MĀHŪ: A Trans-Pacific Love Letter, dir. Lisette Marie Flanary (Oahu)
Reeling, dir. Yana Alliata (Oahu)
Sharing Aloha, dir. Blair Treu (Hawaii)

The Ha’aheo Award (Pride in Achievement for Film, TV, or Theater)
Chief of War

The Jason “Phormat” David Award celebrating originality and artistic playfulness in cinema
The Phoenician Scheme (dir. Wes Anderson)

Worst Film of 2025
Death of a Unicorn
Eddington
Hurry Up Tomorrow
Karate Kid: Legends
The Strangers: Chapter 2