mayamax John Frankenheimer hallucinated sci-fi thriller director I had the pleasure of meeting at Hotel Imperiale Cipriani in Venice in September 1998 where he presented Ronin. Professionally I took care of the transport of his luggage (8 giant trunks) to Los Angeles, while he and his wife would leave for Japan. I have not seen many of his films but after watching this masterpiece I think I will continue with his filmography. I thought of him as a very classic director of action films, detective films, Hollywood and spectacular instead here from all the essence of a very high artistic, visionary, symbolic and introspective ability of which I did not imagine minimally with juxtapositions to German expressionism and tributes to pagan art. Hudson gives the best of himself in a performance of yesteryear, while the whole film is still very topical today compared to the time of creation, especially in the scene of the wine festival. Superlative film of which I recommend the vision to the most experienced. Masterly photography. View version in original audio in blu ray quality 1080p probably a restoration and I believe not cut from the censorship. 9

begob A middle-aged man accepts a creepy offer of a change of identity and a new life, but turns out it ain't that simple.Hmmm. Lots of interesting stuff going on with the camera, but the story is muddled and lacking motivation. I suppose it's about the search for an identity always beyond the individual's grasp, so the distortions and off-kilter close ups play a role.Starts off with Hitchcock mystery menace, switches to Kafka paranoia, followed by stick-it-to-the-Man liberation mixed with free-love silliness, then back to Kafka. The hero's final line is not, "Just like a dog", but a muffled aaarrrggggh! All along the dialogue is never really engaging, and gets daft in the California scenes where the actors seem to be in a panic over the weakness of the material. Hudson is well cast, because you get the uncertainty and lack of direction in his face, and there are some other interesting actors in there too - although the love interest is unconvincing. And I really would not recommend quaffing the wine - earthy with a hint of cum and ... touches of jam and chocolate? Music is good. Pace is OK, but the whole thing feels odd because the second act is so different.Overall - laboured historical oddity, worth a viewing.

tomgillespie2002 The opening scene of John Frankenheimer's massively overlooked thriller Seconds follows everyman Arthur Hamilton (John Randolph) as he ushers along a familiar railway station seemingly heading to another day at work. Through Frankenheimer and Oscar-nominated cinematographer James Wong Howe's eyes, this is our world but not quite as we know it, but how a lot of us will no doubt feel it. Obscure camera angles and extreme close-ups invoke a deep sense of paranoia, like someone is subtly observing from afar while the walls of our world feel like they're closing in. The man looks like the kind of pod-person Mad Men depicted so well, but who is he and where is he going? Eventually the man is handed a note from a stranger baring an address.Seconds is the last and least well-known of John Frankenheimer's so- called 'paranoia trilogy', which began with The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and was followed by Seven Days in May (1964). Paranoid thrillers of the highest quality, Seconds is arguably the best. Dismissed by the majority of critics and unseen by audiences upon its release in 1966, it has been frequently re-evaluated over the years but has never achieved the level of recognition is surely deserves. It tries to answer the questions no doubt pondered by many middle-aged men caught up in the mundaneness of modern life, of what it would be like to be offered a clean slate - to change your appearance, be given the money to conquer your goals, and have your former self completely removed from the world. Will you achieve happiness and live the life you have always desired, free from the constraints of marriage and a 9 to 5 lifestyle? Or will you simply make the same mistakes as before?Arthur Hamilton is contacted by an old friend he believed to be long dead, who tempts his old school buddy into a radical - and highly secretive - procedure that will transform him into a completely different person. Arthur cannot resist and visits the address he was handed by the stranger, and is soon transformed into a handsome and younger man, and is given a new name, Antiochus Wilson (played by a career-best Rock Hudson). Arthur's death is faked and he is whisked off to a warmer climate, where a swanky new pad and the tools to pursue his dream life as an artist await him. Is this life-changing reset merely covering up the underlying cracks deep within in his soul? Antiochus is soon indulging in trendy cocktail parties and the attentions of neighbour Nora (Salome Jens), but as the drinks are consumed his old self starts to bubble over.Although he only appears around the hour mark, Hudson is nothing short of mesmerising here. Retained his handsome features but gaining a world-weariness, the man best known for his screwball comedies seems to perfect fit to play a man hiding his true self, given the double- life he was forced to lead to improve his public image and which eventually damaged his career. Wilson's drunken antics during a long party segment of the film are filled with pity and embarrassment, and it's here that Frankenheimer starts to lose his grip on the story. The narrative sags, but it only adds to the whole disorienting experience. Though technically a thriller, Seconds also works well as a horror, hiding the surgeons ready with their scalpels behind thick walls and shrouding the organisation offering the services in secrecy. Deserving of far more respect in the world of cinema, Seconds is a disturbing and depressing experience, but one that is drenched in irony, featuring one of the most unsettling closing lines I've ever heard.

utgard14 A middle-aged banker (John Randolph), unhappy with his life, is given a complete makeover by a mysterious organization. They fake his death, give him plastic surgery and a new identity. The result is that he becomes a younger, more handsome man (Rock Hudson) with no responsibilities. But he soon finds this new life isn't what he expected it would be.An interesting 'sort of' sci-fi film with a lot of eerie moments and some thought-provoking ideas. I say it's 'sort of' sci-fi because while the non-existent body-changing surgery is in the realm of science fiction, the rest of the film plays out as more of a reality-based fantasy. The actual process to change the man isn't even very defined. For example, though his outside clearly becomes younger, nothing is said of how his insides are changed. Anyway, it's a very good film with terrific performances from Rock Hudson and John Randolph, backed up by a fine supporting cast. Will Geer is sufficiently creepy in his few scenes. Shot by the great James Wong Howe and expertly directed by John Frankenheimer. This is the third of what is considered Frankenheimer's paranoia trilogy from the '60s, with The Manchurian Candidate and Seven Days in May. All classics.