Hot Blood (1955)

Colorful , whimsical , silly gypsy fun . The fine Luther Adler adds the modest amount of heft this production needs in order to rationalize it's very existence . Portraying the older brother to Cornel Wilde's hot blooded , fantastic dancing and responsibility shirking sibling as well as being the "King" of a Serbian gypsy community located in an unnamed urban location , Alder's delivers a pretty swell performance .The film itself is a preposterous fantasy that's not meant to be taken too seriously . It's pleasant but ridiculous and tries to be a number of different films all at once . Interesting curiosity for fans of Mr. Wilde (Edge Of Eternity , The Naked Prey , The Greatest Show On Earth , Road House) and Ms. Russell .

Video quality is quite good and presented in letterbox format. This film is considered of director's Nicholas Ray's least successful ventures and the movie seems haphazardly edited. At a running time of 88 min one can justly assume many scenes were left on the cutting room floor. According to Nicholas Rays biographers, he left the production allowing the studio to supervising the editing -- a true shame). One scene omitted was the arrest of Jane Russell's character, along with the rest of her family in a gas station. Photos of the scene can be found on the web and it looks like it would have been a rowdy fun scene with Jane putting up a fight with the officers including her even spraying one of them down with gasoline hose (would be wonderful to see a restored "director's cut"). That said, all the cast give good performances, despite both Russell and Cornel Wilde were too old for their roles, especially since in the gypsy culture an unwed woman in her 30s might would raise red-flag that she might be a con-artist. Also, the dancing of the two leads is awkwardly edited and obvious professional dancers were used in long-shots.

Nick Ray was one of the pioneers of widescreen and the film was shot in Cinemascope (and it screams it on the package). Why do this? Only film buffs and Nicholas Ray enthusiasts would have an interest in the title. And they would know that this isn't the way to present the film. Shame.

After he is tricked into an unwanted arranged marriage against his will, a gypsy (Cornel Wilde) resists the temptations of his bride (Jane Russell) eventually abandoning her. Directed by the great Nicholas Ray, whose films were often compellingly focused on outsiders in films like THEY LIVE BY NIGHT and REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, you'd think a story on the closed off world of the gypsy subculture would be right up his alley. But this seems to be strictly collect a paycheck movie and even the most ardent auteur would have a hard time defending this lightweight film in Ray canon. There is so much dancing and singing in the film that it's practically a musical (though it's obvious both Russell and Wilde have dance doubles). The film's ads hilariously shrieked, "Jane Russell shakes her tambourines and drives Cornel wild!" which is more memorable than anything in the film. At least, for Hollywood movie stars, Russell and Wilde look like they could be gypsies. Shot in CinemaScope by Ray June (THE GREAT ZIEGFELD) and the score is by Les Baxter. With Luther Adler, Joseph Calleia, Helen Westcott and Richard Deacon.The Sony DVD from England is a vivid Cinemascope (2.35) transfer.

Zigeunerleben a la Hollywood. Romantisch und unrealistisch.Aber Jane Russell und Cornel Wilde waren damals in Amerikasehr beliebt und ein schönes Paar, deshalb ist der Filmein echtes Stück Hollywood!

Love this DVD very good condition.

I confess! Never having seen the film and not necesarilly being a fan of Ray, I got this because of Ms.Russell. She didn't dissapoint, but the film did! I just couldn't get to grips with the plotting and direction. Full on melodrama. Full on musical numbers (shot mostly from a distance to allow for doubles for Jane and Cornel). A script that makes little sense - what happened to the blonde dance partner? Suddenly just not there. Credit where it is due - both Russell and Wilde (and the entire cast) do their best, but, and it hurts me to say - this film just wasn't for me. The DVD transfer is excellent. Filmed in Scope we get bars top and bottom, the widescreen showing off the colours of the costumes and sets. Good sound and very good optional English subtitles. No extras. At the current price here on Amazon (£6) it is worth forgetting any doubts and go for it, particularly if you like Russell who, for me, is on top feisty, sexy, form.

...and drives Cornel wild", as the original tagline for this film went, and they put it on the front of the DVD so you can't ever forget it. It's a very silly line, but it's somehow quite fitting, as this is a very silly film. Its director, Nicholas Ray was turning out some truly great films during this period. His immediately previous film to this one is probably his best remembered of all and one of the most iconic of all 50s films: "Rebel Without a Cause". It is not readily apparent what drew him to follow it up with this bizarre piece, which is essentially rubbish, but he does make it awfully enjoyable and I would kind of defy anyone not to like it. You don't have to look too hard either to see that he is not taking it entirely seriously. Note especially the fortune-telling scene which culminates in a hilarious catfight!The story itself, of gypsy dynasty, passion, arranged marriage, jealousy, etc, etc is so much of another long-gone era (as is a lot of its over-ripe dialogue) that you tend to be rather taken aback when cars appear in it and you realise that it is supposed to be taking place in the contemporary 20th century. Neither of the stars are remotely believable in their roles, but, again, what possible harm could that do to a tale like this anyway?? Cornel Wilde is a bit on the wooden side and makes a very unlikely dancer, especially as the camera quickly switches to a long-shot (or shows just the legs) whenever he starts to dance, so they can put in a double. Jane Russell fares rather better, perhaps because she was more attuned to the absurdity of the thing, and gets to do at least some of her own dancing. Though, of course, when she is dancing with Wilde in the long shots it could well be anyone. Russell's song in the middle of the film, which starts off with her singing out loud and continues in her mind commenting on what she is doing and feeling, is maybe the one really and truly marvellous sequence to be found in this. It's hypnotic, beguiling...wonderful!!The DVD features a couple of black and white stills on the front and back of the case, which seems to have misled some careless person to have put on it that the film is in black and white. Rest assured, however, that it is in its original glorious Technicolor and the earlier extra-wide 2.55:1 CinemaScope too - which is correctly listed. Ray liked to use over-emphatic reds in his films for all kinds of effects, and there are certainly plenty of them here. Absolutely no extras at all, not even a trailer, but the film's well worth it at the low price you can get it for - and it's one that never seems to show up on TV!