secondtake All Night Long (1962)If you love jazz, you might want to check out this low budget, offbeat film about the fringes of the jazz scene as the Bob era was devolving into smaller commercial and (frankly) white audiences. It's set in Mod England, but the idea is quite American—the music, above all, but also the script and production.If you liked the television series "The Prisoner" you might also like checking out that show's star, Patrick McGoohan, who stars here. And then, if you appreciate very loose adaptations of Shakespeare (like the nearly concurrent "West Side Story") you might see the strains of Othello at work here.I liked it, but I know that it's largely just a curiosity, as a movie. Well, it's been deemed an "important" film by Criterion, which has released one of their spiffy (gorgeous) versions on DVD, and I think that's accurate, even if the dramatics (and a couple of plot tricks using a tape recorder) are sometimes strained. The whole enterprise feels like an art film, with a weird layer of pretension that I suppose comes from the Shakespearean overlay.As for the jazz? Well, Charles Mingus and Dave Brubeck should be enough for you. Great stuff that you just wish lasted longer. What else? There is a liberal acceptance of the mixing of cultures and races that's great (and you have to remember how weird this was in movies back then)—the two leads beyond McGoohan are a mixed-race couple. And then there is the set itself, a single spacious club with a stairway at one end, where the camera moves with crisp authority. Like lots of director Basil Dearden's movies, this one is different and fascinating and not quite as brilliant or insightful as it needs to be. But yeah, watch it. It's a subculture classic, for sure. With great music.

tavm Continuing my reviews of people of color in films in chronological order for Black History Month, we're now at 1962 when in England, a jazz-flavored version of Othello in modern times is made with Paul Harris playing musician Aurelius Rex who's married to retired singer Delia Lane (Marti Stevens). Maria Velasco, as Benny, is another person of such race who's also in an interracial relationship with recovering drug musician/band manager Cass Michaels (Keith Michell). Others of the non-white variety include jazz players Charles Mingus on bass and Barry Morgan on bongos and Geoffrey Holder is somewhere there too. Anyway, Rod Hamilton (Richard Attenborough) has thrown a party to celebrate the marriage of Rex and Delia on their first anniversary. The party atmosphere is celebratory with the music playing throughout but a drummer named Johnny Cousin (Patrick McGoohan) who's in the audience is so hell bent on getting Delia for his new band that he does various forms of blackmail to get his way. It's not until his wife Emily (Betsy Blair) reveals something that Johnny gets caught. All I'll say now is All Night Long is highly recommended for both the drama and the music that dominates throughout. P.S. It was a treat to also see Dave Brubeck on the piano.

prisamata Just imagine: That Shakespearian bigger-than-life plot line, a sixties touch of psychoanalysis, a movie set entirely inside a party of swingers, great interludes featuring amazing jazz performances from some great artists such as Charlie Mingus(music scenes that also explain story line and characters), a slight bit of over-acting in colorful black and white, good filmmaking, interracial couples and drug taking in a 1961 movie, love, hate and, of course, jealousy. Who could possible miss out on these ingredients?Just beautiful.

Roger-39 This is an interesting period piece, especially for jazz lovers and those who remember the early sixties. The plot is fairly silly, but entertaining enough to hold the attention. It tells the story of jealousy and scheming amongst a number of jazz musicians at a party held in a London warehouse.The acting is fairly good, but what makes it especially interesting is the fact that the action takes place against the back drop of a continuous jam session featuring solos by musicians such as Dave Brubeck and Tubby Hayes.