Carpetbaggers 01/24 Blu-ray (Rental)

Harold Robbins’ (Nevada Smith, Stiletto) bestseller about ’30s Hollywood comes to the screen in a torrent of frank, controversial and (for the times) sensational scenes that helped break the Production Code. George Peppard (Breakfast at Tiffany’s, P.J.) is the ruthless tycoon who (with amazing parallels to Howard Hughes) builds a multimillion-dollar empire. Carroll Baker (Baby Doll, The Big Country), who performs a razzle-dazzle striptease atop a glittering chandelier, is the Jean Harlow-type star. In addition to its depiction of the wild life in Tinseltown’s early days, the film also boasts Alan Ladd’s (Lucky Jordan, Shane) terrific final screen performance as the hero’s sidekick, Nevada Smith (later portrayed in the film’s prequel by a gunslinging Steve McQueen). Featuring Bob Cummings, Martha Hyer, Elizabeth Ashley, Lew Ayres, Martin Balsam, Ralph Taeger, Archie Moore and the daring direction of Edward Dmytryk (The Caine Mutiny, Mirage).