The Film Masters next release is absolutely criminal! With Door-to-Door Maniac, (originally released in 1961 as “Five Minutes to Live.”), I was curious because of Johnny Cash, who plays Cabot, a hardened crook who thinks taking a hostage in her own home (Cay Forester) is easy. However, anyone who has seen Abigail knows that’s a bad idea!
No, there’s no scary twist ending. These tropes were not as established back then. Also, to see Ron Howard in the credits made me curious! This film was made back when he was better known as Opie from The Andy Griffiths Show.
Here, Johnny is the “Man in Black,” and the two would meet! I’m sure someone wanted to (pardoning the pun) cash in on everything this musician represented but yet has some familiarity. Although this movie wasn’t much of a hit upon release, I can see why it’s become a cult classic in later years. The restoration is quite beautiful. And to watch this lead in a role that’s built on that stage presence, that was a treat in itself! The story isn’t as noir as I had hoped, but it was suitably entertaining all the way through, especially when this musician got to strum the guitar a few times!
As for the accompanying work, “Right Hand of the Devil,” I hoped for something supernatural, even though I knew there wouldn’t. When Aram Katcher tried to destroy all the prints, I was curious why. This filmmaker wanted to become the next Hitchcock and although he didn’t quite nail what made this famous director’s films special, I can see why he didn’t want his work to be available for future viewers to see.
The buildup was too slow for my taste and I think it didn’t have enough polish to make it shine. I checked out these films because I wanted not as established works to compare The Private Eye (review) to. I could’ve gone for other works (like Boorman’s Point Blank) to remind myself on why neo-noir matters, but when this work was suggested, I feel this film restoration group can do no wrong. There’s not a lot of featurettes offered in this release, and that’s okay when the booklet’s mini-essays get the insight perfect!
3 Stars out of 5
Door-To-Door Maniac Original Trailer
Right Hand of the Devil Original Trailer
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