The Great Escape (1963)
John Sturges big screen telling of a WW2 escape from a German P.O.W. camp based on a true story is […]
Bronson Rising
Like many actors of his era following WW2, Charles Bronson, began his acting career on film in the early 1950’s. […]
The Stone Killer (1973)
Coming on the heels of Chato’s Land and The Mechanic is the third collaboration between star Charles Bronson and director […]
Jill Ireland Joins Charles Bronson On Camera.
There’s little doubt that from 1968 forward, Charles Bronson and Jill Ireland, were a team traveling the world and making […]
Q & A Time with Author, Paul Talbot, on His Favorite Actor and Mine …. Charles Bronson
One thing that the internet has allowed me to do since starting Mike’s Take nearly 8 years ago is to […]
Charles Bronson in the Movies : From A to Z
I guess we all have a favorite when it comes to movie stars and growing up in the 70’s and […]
October 2021 In Review
While I don’t need any excuse to watch me some classic horror films, there’s always an added flavor to them […]
Son of Dracula (1943)
Following his portrayal of The Wolf Man, The Frankenstein Monster and Kharis The Mummy, Lon Chaney, added the role of […]
Charlie Chan At the Wax Museum (1940)
“Knowledge only gained through curiosity” For his 7th of 22 films as the famed Oriental sleuth, Sidney Toler, finds himself […]
Gallery ›
Abraham Van Helsing : Vampire Hunter
When it comes to the King of the Vampires, Count Dracula, the debate will always rage on amongst classic monster […]
Recommendations for TCM’s 2021 Summer Under the Stars in August …. Part 2
On to the balance of the TCM’s Summer Under the Stars with my suggestions for each “star” being celebrated with […]
Singing With the Stars #2
Now that I’m back to wandering through the local antique stores and malls looking for original movie posters and lobby […]
Recommendations for TCM’s 2021 Summer Under the Stars in August …. Part 1
Each year the month of August brings the TCM Summer Under the Stars spotlight where 24 continuous hours are devoted […]
Blogathon ›
The Devil’s Brigade (1968)
With Andrew V. McLaglen in the director’s chair of this male dominated WW2 action adventure we should expect it to […]
The Phantom of the Opera (1962)
Following the revival of Universal Studios’ Frankenstein, Dracula, The Mummy and the Wolfman, Hammer Studios, turned to Gaston Leroux’s Phantom […]
Counterpoint (1968)
Far from the blood and guts battles we are accustomed to seeing in big screen depictions built around WW2 with […]
Farewell Friend (1968)
aka … Adieu l’ami On the subject of movies if you ask me to name something or more specifically someone […]
Brando's Pick of the Month ›
Day of the Animals (1977)
Brando’s Halloween Pick … aka …. Something Is Out There … aka … Future Animals A fine choice from my […]
Kangaroo (1952)
Brando’s Pick of the Month Carrying on with the theme of movies starring or featuring animals in the title leads […]
Francis The Talking Mule (1949)
Brando’s Pick of the Month This Universal International production from house director Arthur Lubin launched the unlikely comedy of duo […]
Devil Dogs of the Air (1935)
Brando’s Pick of the Month Cheating just a bit this month as we look to this James Cagney-Pat O’Brien standard […]
Featured Actor ›
Jill Ireland Joins Charles Bronson On Camera.
There’s little doubt that from 1968 forward, Charles Bronson and Jill Ireland, were a team traveling the world and making […]
The Seventies With Mitchum, Mitchum and Mitchum
One thing movie goers could count on during the decade of the 1970’s was plenty of opportunity to see any […]
Charles Durning : Law Enforcement Officer
Have you ever stopped to wonder just how many times the prolific character actor, Charles Durning, was enlisted as a […]
Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020)
And so I believe ends the final connection that we classic film buffs have to the era of the 1930’s […]
From A to Z ›
James Cagney In the Movies : From A to Z
Earliest memory of James Cagney on screen for me personally? My guess is Each Dawn I Die. Saw the film […]
Frankenstein in the Movies : From A to Z
As any “smart assed” fan of classic horror knows, the name Frankenstein represents the creator while the “Monster” refers to […]
Lon Chaney Jr. In the Movies : From A to Z
Looking back, Lon Chaney Jr, is one of those actors I discovered more through books than I did actual movies […]
Richard Widmark In The Movies : From A to Z
From the moment he stepped on to movie screens in 1947, Richard Widmark, was branded a villain thanks to his […]
Slumming With .... ›
Slumming With Joan Collins …. A Triple Treat?
By the time Joan Collins became one of the biggest television stars in North America on Dynasty she had already […]
Slumming With Teen Sex Comedies of the 1980’s in Triplicate
OK gentlemen. Raise your hands if you’re old enough to recall the days when you’d hit the video stores looking […]
Slumming With George Zucco …. Can Be So Much Fun!
On any given day during the 1940’s if you walked about the movie sets in Hollywood you might see George […]
Slumming With Samantha Eggar … A Triple Feature
The more I looked for someone to feature in my third go around of ‘Slumming With”, it became painfully obvious […]
Video Store Action Heroes ›
Firefox (1982)
We’re back. Yes the Four Horseman of the Video Store Apocalypse, better known to our followers as the Video Store […]
… All The Marbles (1981)
For this edition of the Video Store Action Heroes that sees yours truly costarring right alongside The Cinema Monolith, The […]
Hangar 18 (1980)
We’re Back! The Video Store Action Heroes have once again turned the clock back to simpler times when we’d all […]
The Evil That Men Do (1984)
Was there any doubt that for this edition of the Video Store Action Heroes where I got to choose the […]
Articles ›
The Breaking Point (1950)
Here’s an article I was fortunate enough to have published in the 2016 year end edition of the Noir Magazine, […]
The Badlanders (1958)
This article on The Badlanders was published in The Dark Pages celebration on the film The Asphalt Jungle. Read on […]
Lizabeth Scott Stands Up To Robert Ryan and Robert Mitchum in The Racket (1951)
Previously this piece was kindly published by Karen of Shadows and Satin in her Noir newsletter The Dark Pages. Lizabeth […]
Anthony Caruso : More Than The Henchman
This article on Mr. Caruso was kindly featured in the September 2014 issue of The Dark Pages put forth by […]
Now Playing ›
Now Playing at a Theater Near You …. The Silent Era
Let’s journey back to simpler times via a book I have in my library here in the vault at Mike’s […]
Now Playing …. July 14th, 1970.
Yes indeed, it’s time to once again climb aboard my custom designed time machine with this latest trip scheduled to […]
Now Playing August 9th, 1974
All aboard the time machine to 1974! Find a seat please! Strap on that seat belt and remember when we […]
Now Playing December 14th, 1980.
Combing through a new to me road side antique shop netted me a couple of DVD’s for the movie room […]
Book Takes ›
The Cannon Film Guide Volume 1: 1980-1984
Author, Austin Trunick. If you’re an action film fan who just happened to grow up in the VHS era then […]
10 Questions with Victoria Riskin Plus Her New Book – Fay Wray and Robert Riskin : A Hollywood Memoir
Thanks to a new book from Victoria Riskin on her parents, Fay Wray and Robert Riskin, a whole new chapter […]
A Reading Break with Olivia, The Immortal Count and Lou’s on First
I often lament that I can’t read fast enough despite enjoying a good book be it non-fiction or a good […]
Recalling “The 50 Worst Films of all Time”
By Harry Medved and Randy Dreyfuss. Somewhere in the piles or boxes of books around here I have a dog […]
Monthly Reviews ›
October 2021 In Review
While I don’t need any excuse to watch me some classic horror films, there’s always an added flavor to them […]
September 2021 In Review
Plenty of good titles this month and some best forgotten. Either way my watching count dropped after finally hitting the […]
August 2021 In Review
What can I say, it looks like our beloved Toronto Blue Jays are going to come up short in the […]
July 2021 In Review
Picking up where I left off last month, I was mired in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and my beloved Habs […]
Posts I Like
Mike's Take On the Movies .......... Rediscovering Cinema's Past 
Q & A Time with Author, Paul Talbot, on His Favorite Actor and Mine …. Charles Bronson
One thing that the internet has allowed me to do since starting Mike’s Take nearly 8 years ago is to […]
Charles Bronson in the Movies : From A to Z
I guess we all have a favorite when it comes to movie stars and growing up in the 70’s and […]
Abraham Van Helsing : Vampire Hunter
When it comes to the King of the Vampires, Count Dracula, the debate will always rage on amongst classic monster […]
Charlie Chan At the Wax Museum (1940)
“Knowledge only gained through curiosity” For his 7th of 22 films as the famed Oriental sleuth, Sidney Toler, finds himself […]
Slaughter Hotel (1971)
aka La Besta Uccide a Sangue Freddo …. according to the google translator that turns into The Beast Kills In […]
September 2021 In Review
Plenty of good titles this month and some best forgotten. Either way my watching count dropped after finally hitting the […]
October 2021 In Review
While I don’t need any excuse to watch me some classic horror films, there’s always an added flavor to them […]
The Stone Killer (1973)
Coming on the heels of Chato’s Land and The Mechanic is the third collaboration between star Charles Bronson and director […]
November 2021 In Review
Aside from a few hockey games there hasn’t been too much to interfere with my movie watching this month. A […]