A stellar transfer for a terrific movie
Some things are frankly mystifying about this DVD release and the movie itself in terms of its high quality. In 1975, most film stock was pretty poor, especially for budget productions. Casino of Gold looks like an A-list production with great film quality, camera work, lighting, etc. and the DVD release is sharp as a tack. Someone somewhere really applied themselves to this transfer because I've seen Blu-ray releases of 70s films that don't look nearly as good as this. Worth every penny, you would be easily justified in thinking it's high-def if you saw it unawares.
We all know Tamara Dobson owned this role, but Norman Fell is terrific and under-used as her theoretical boss.
The DVD quality is so good I'm tempted to give 5 stars but ultimately this is a guilty pleasure, not high art. Strongly recommended though.
Better than the original!
This sequel is that rare bird... one that is better than the original movie (CLEOPATRA JONES). Largely because of the exotic setting (Hong Kong and Macao are more fun than East L.A., after all), and certainly because of the villainess, Stella Stevens.
Cleopatra Jones tends to find herself up against Evil White Lesbian dope queens, and Stella Stevens is certainly nicer to look at than Shelly Winters (in the original). Her climatic fight scene ... with the foxy black Cleo is OVER THE TOP! The ladies must have been covered with bruises after shooting this (NO stand-ins apparent!).
As for Stella's "wild" outfits, they are conservative compared to the title heroine's!
A "must see" for Blaxploitation fans!
Good, Enjoyable Bubblegum Nonsense Action Sequel
The sequel to "Cleopatra Jones" benefits from the authentic location of Hong Kong and its good production design. The story is almost the same as the original one, showing us Cleo fight against drug syndicate, of which mastermind, this time Stella Stevens, lives in a gorgeous casino.
You might remember Warner Brothers once produced "Enter the Dragon" featuring Bruce Lee, which became a worldwide hit, and probably this fact influenced the studio's judgment to shoot the film in Hong Kong. The film is full of shoot-outs and kung-hu fights, but unfortunately, not as good as Lee's deadly fighting style, but still it is mildly entertaining. The final action sequence, chain of good stunts using motorcycles running in a casino, with its riders shooting machineguns (!), is the showdown of the film, and though the film nearly gets so close to ludicurousness, still remains enjoyable as a whole. And check out Stella Steven's outrageous costume.
Click to Editorial Reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment