Reviews from the Future

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Thanks for all the interesting reviews have added a few to my to see list
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Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.
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Combat Shock (Buddy Giovinazzo, 1986)

Poverty row Taxi Driver variant about Frankie; a disturbed Vietnam veteran on skid row struggling to provide for his nagging wife and mutant baby. Grim and depressing in every way imaginable this well intentioned, ambitious cheapie is sadly undone by it's budgetary short comings. Whist Combat Shock is reasonably well written and photographed; the acting (particularly from a gang of drug dealers) leaves a lot to be desired, and ultimately undermines the material. Giovinazzo was clearly going for that gritty urban documentary feel that worked so well in films like Frank Henenlotter's Basket Case, but never achieves the same level of authenticity. Plus Frankie's Vietnam flashbacks in which we see real footage interspersed with laughably staged battles, are amateurish at best. Add to that shots of his deformed baby who looks more like something from The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb, and you're left with a tonally uneven mess that's a real chore to sit through. Shame.



Prey (Norman J. Warren, 1978)

A murderous (carnivorous) alien on a scouting mission to earth (Barry Stokes) ends up the guest of a quarreling (vegetarian) lesbian couple in their secluded country retreat; the possessive man-hating Josephine (Sally Faulkner) and suggestible submissive Jessica (Glory Annen). Whilst his odd behavior and food intolerances are initially passed off as male eccentricities, it gradually dawns on Josephine that he's most likely mad, and a rival for Jessica's affections. Offbeat, original take on the familiar alien invasion genre is largely successful thanks to believable well written characters, and three strong performances. Warren makes the most of what must have been a shoestring budget with effective minimal alien makeup, clever choice of location, and bizarre touches like the couple dressing Stokes up in drag for a celebratory dinner. Undeniably exploitative, with the obligatory lesbian sex scene, but arty and intelligent, with a delightful dreamy atmosphere, and some satisfying scare scenes. Having been partly raised by a lesbian couple, I had personal motives for wanting to see this film when I read the plot synopsis, and it didn't disappoint. Two thumbs up.



The Manitou
(William Girdler, 1978)

Hilarious nonsense adapted from Graham Masterton's novel about woman who develops a growth on her back which turns out to be the reincarnation of an ancient Indian medicine man. Saving the day is Tony Curtis (clearly having a ball) as a tarot reading charlatan who resorts to calling in real Indian mystic John Singing Rock (Michael Ansara) for help. Clearly third rate hokum, but with a lively sense of humour from a spirited cast who make what should be bottom of the barrel garbage very watchable indeed. Throw into the mix some surprisingly decent special effects, and a wham bam ending involving Curtis calling on the spirits of the hospital computers for help, and you have a fun little time filler on your hands.



Season of the Witch aka Hungry Wives (George A. Romero, 1972)
+
Not to be confused with the crappy Halloween sequel, this largely unseen early effort from Romero fell victim to bad promotion from distributors who refused to put his name (which was hot on the back of Night of the Living Dead) above the title, and insisted on calling it Hungry Wives. As a result many people assumed it was a porn film, and those who did see it were left sorely disappointed by the lack of exploitative content on offer.

Season of the Witch isn't porn or a horror film, but a feminist drama given Romero's own unique stamp. Jan White plays Joan Mitchell; a sexually repressed housewife with an abusive controlling husband who regularly goes out of town, and a hormonal teenage daughter who gets more sex than her. Her best friend Shirley (Ann Muffly) is menopausal, and feels life has passed her by, whilst the rest of her friends seem content to play bridge and gossip. Craving empowerment and excitement Joan begins practicing witchcraft after a visit to a local tarot reader who inspires her. Believing herself to have new found magical powers she casts a spell to lure the local womanising school teacher Gregg (Raymond Laine), round to her house and begins an affair with him. Gradually her obsession with witchcraft takes over as the lines between reality and fantasy blur eventually leading to murder...

Essentially a character study and social commentary on gender roles, female empowerment, sexual frustration, and aging; Romero gives this low budget outing a very personal (if somewhat claustrophobic) feel with lots of close quarters photography, hints at occult symbolism, and some excellent honest dialogue. Particularly brilliant is the scene in which Gregg (much to the disgust of Joan) fools Shirley into believing she's smoking a joint, just to put some excitement and rebellion back into into her jaded life. To me that scene served as a metaphor for the whole film, as Shirley's feeling of empowerment was based on the magic of deception, much like Joan's. It's also brilliantly acted, not only by Jan White who Romero felt was tailor made for the role, but by Laine as the cocksure lothario, and particularly Mufflly as Joan's middle aged friend. To sum up, this isn't going to appeal to everyone, certainly not strict horror and sexploitation fans looking for blood boobs and beast. But as I was expecting neither, the substance, fine performances, and gritty low budget film making on offer here proved hugely satisfying.



Vigilante (William Lustig, 1983)

Mild mannered factory worker Eddie Marino (Robert Forster) goes all Charlie Bronson after his son is killed (shotgunned in the bathroom) and wife stabbed by yet another vicious street gang. The gang leader is identified and caught, but given a suspended sentence by a lenient judge after plea bargaining. Naturally Eddie loses it and tries to throttle the judge getting thirty days in the slammer for his trouble. On his release he's left with no option but to seek help from Fred Williamson (I mean who wouldn't want The Hammer on their side) and his gang of vigilantes. Bloody retribution follows, involving one scene in which a couple of cops are brutally machine gunned in their car Reservoir Dogs style. Gritty, nasty stuff with plenty of violence, a good cast (which includes Woody Strode as Eddie's aging prison mentor), and macho posturing from Williamson. Sadly it's also incredibly dumb, with one dimensional characters, and a generic, predictable plot. Rolling Thunder it ain't, but as a mindless action film you could do a lot worse, especially if you like the genre. Which leads me onto this turkey...



Exterminator 2 (Mark Buntzman, 1984)

Exterminator star Robert Ginty sadly passed away on the 21st of September this year, and I thought it only right to re-watch the two films he's best known for. I haven't tabbed The Exterminator because, it's been covered recently, but I am a fan of that movie despite the poor editing, and derivative script; in short it's brutal, and kicks ass. I give it a
-.

Exterminator 2
on the other hand is one of the worst sequels I've ever seen. Once again there's a vicious gang of street punks on the loose (are there any other kind?), this time led by X, played by Mario Van Peebles who looks like he's auditioning for a Kid n' Play video. Ginty who's swapped his blow torch for a flame thrower this time round, has a girlfriend in the form of sexy dancer Caroline (Deborah Geffner), but not for long. Naturally she gets crippled, then murdered by Peebles and co, forcing our welding masked hero back into action to make human barbecue out of them. By the numbers isn't the word for this grade Z dreck. Ginty (who's started combing his hair back eighties style) phones it in, and that's only when he's on screen. All the scenes with him hidden behind the welding mask are clearly performed by a stunt double; what a con. Add to that the most inappropriately annoying 80's filler music in every scene, and lunkheaded dialogue from X such as 'where's my dugs', and don't even get me started on the scene in which Ginty goes all A Team on us and turns a garbage truck into a heavily armoured snow plow.

Anyway R.I.P. Robert Ginty, thanks for being so cool in The Exterminator, and I'm only sorry you had to suffer the indignity that is Exterminator 2.



Alice, Sweet Alice aka Communion (Alfred Sole, 1976)

Is this the most bonafide link between the 70's Italian giallo, and 80's American slasher? Of the films I've seen it would certainly appear so. It's also one of the best gialli/mystery thrillers/slashers (take your pick) I've seen. Set in a 1960's New Jersey catholic community, suspicion falls on the mentally disturbed Alice after her younger sister is strangled and immolated at her first Holy Communion. A further murder, and vicious knife attack take place in her apartment block by a figure wearing the same yellow rain slicker and doll mask she likes to play in. The evidence is overwhelming, and Alice is sectioned, but is she really the killer?

Sole (who's oddly done nothing noteworthy since) crafts a labyrinthine psycholigical mystery masterclass that keeps you guessing right up to the final chilling frame. It's wonderfully photographed, with stylistic nods to Nicholas Roeg's Don't Look Now (the rain coat), and murder set pieces that recall early Dario Argento. Paula Sheppard is incredibly convincing as the clearly insane, and very creepy Alice, and the film serves as a damning comment on the closed, superstitious nature of deeply religious communities. The doll mask worn by the killer would signal a trend in the slasher boom that would follow, as this film ranks up there with Bob Clark's earlier Black Christmas, and Dario Argento's Deep Red, as the seminal 70's slashers. It's also much better than what was to follow in my opinion. I'd also like to thank Honeykid for recommending this one. Thanks HK.

Other stuff I watched...



The Dark (John 'Bud' Cardos, 1979)
-
Not even William 'Rolling Thunder' Devane can save this clunker about an alien that fires lasers from it's eyes terrorizing L.A. Originally conceived as a zombie movie, this was radically re-edited and effects spliced in after the success of Alien. What can I say, it shows...badly. The rarely seen closeup alien effects look rather good, but most of the time the monster shambles around in zombie like fashion as does the boring overlong script. There is a cool final showdown in which a group of police get 'lasered', but I was really struggling to stay awake. Good cast though.



Bad Moon (Eric Red, 1996)

Michael Pare goes to visit his sister (Mariel Hemingway) and nephew after being bitten by a werewolf and murdering some people in the woods. His reasoning? Maybe family love can cure the curse, duh. Dumb, by the numbers werewolf flick, hampered by Pare's wooden performance, and some truly awful CGI transformation sequences. Partially redeems itself with an exciting showdown sequence involving the family dog Thor (the biggest star of the movie) fighting the monster, but most likely forgettable unless you saw it as a kid.





Savage Streets (Danny Steinmann, 1984)
+
It's a shame you're not double jointed, because you wont be able to bend over and kiss your ass goodbye before I kill you.

Exorcist star Linda Blair goes postal after her deaf sister (played by scream queen Linnea Quigley) is gang raped, and her best friend murdered by a vicious street gang (who all dress like they just got back from a Billy Idol concert). Cue an incredibly hammy melange of Death Wish and Class of 1984 as Blair camps it up in Razzie award winning style. Slow and cliched; Savage Streets takes an age to get to the revenge fuelled action, but Blair is so gleefully over the top, that it remains highly watchable. I really enjoyed this one and recommend it to anyone who likes vigilante movies and 80's cheese. Plus If you want to see Linda Blair naked in the bath then this is definitely the film for you.



Macabre
(Lamberto Bava, 1980)
+
Bernice Stegers gives a seductively manic performance as a housewife who loses her husband in a car crash and proceeds to keep his rotting severed head in the fridge so she can make love to it. Her blind landlord's suspicions are are soon aroused along with her estranged (and decidedly evil) daughter who begin to hear her 'noises' at night. Underrated film from Lamberto Bava is a complex slow burner which cleverly plays on themes of sexual repression, incest, and necrophilia with often blackly comic results. Some say this is uneventful and boring, but I found Stegers' performance, and the complex relationships on offer ample compensation for the lethargic pacing.



Hard Times (Walter Hill, 1975)

Wonderful period action film from Hill with Charles Bronson perfectly cast as Chaney; a strong silent type who drifts into depression era New Orleans looking to make some fast money on the street fighting circuit. Ready to take advantage is Speed (James Coburn) a fast talking promoter with a gambling habit. This is highly entertaining stuff, with an authentic period feel, perfect pacing and likable three dimensional characters. The fight scenes are fantastic and the story involving. I'll be looking to pick this up on dvd. Highly recommended



Sole Survivor (Thom Eberhardt, 1983)
+
TV producer Denise (Anita Skinner) is the sole survivor of a plane crash but gets stalked by eerie figures who appear to want her dead. Throw into the mix a concerned doctor-come-lover, and a psychic friend who warned her not to take the flight, and you have an intriguing mixture of Carnival of Souls and Final Destination. Despite the interesting premise, Eberhardt's treatment is sadly a little plodding, and the editing (especially at the beginning of the movie) is somewhat confusing. On the plus side it's well acted, with some well crafted suspense sequences and a satisfyingly downbeat ending. Worth a look.



The Witch Who Came from the Sea (Matt Cimber, 1976)

Genuine oddity with Millie Perkins (who reminded me a lot of Miranda July) excellent as an ethereal kook with a murderous vendetta against good looking men. Sporting incredibly eccentric dialogue, dreamlike flashback sequences and an all round air of the strange; this often confusing film ties everything together with a disturbing final revelation, but takes an age to get there, and feels very pretentious. Still, I liked the weird seaside atmosphere, crazy dialogue, and arthouse/exploitation aesthetic. A genuine, if rather unsatisfying original.



All the Colors of the Dark
(Sergio Martino, 1972)

A big improvement on the lackluster Torso; Martino's heady mixture of giallo and horror plays like a cross between Rosemary's Baby and Lucio Fulci's A Lizard in a Woman's Skin. Beautiful giallo regular Edwige Fenech plays a young woman recovering from a car accident (in which she lost her unborn child) who believes she's being inducted into a murderous satanic cult. There's a sinister blue eyed man stalking her with seemingly malicious intent, and she's frequently plagued by psychedelic visions of her mother's murder (or is it her own?). At first everyone (including her love interest played by fellow giallo regular George Hilton) thinks she's losing the plot confusing fantasy with reality. But then people start turning up dead, and elements of her 'episodes' begin to manifest themselves physically. With much better pacing, and a decent central performance from Fenech, I found All the Colors of the Dark to be lots of fun. Especially impressive is Marino's use of colour saturated lighting and dramatic shadows often reminiscent of Mario Bava. The suspense, particularly a sequence involving an elevator, is handled effectively, and there's the usual helping of glamorous female flesh on offer. Good fun.



The Case of the Scorpion's Tail (Sergio Martino, 1971)
+
Lisa Baumer (Ida Galli) stands to inherit one million dollars after her husband is blown up on a plane. Off she goes to Greece to collect her fortune, but is pursued by Peter Lynch (George Hilton again); an investigator for the insurance company who think she may have something to do with her husband's death. Soon however, there's a murderer on the loose with a penchant for knives and fishing gear. Enter into the fray French photojournalist Cleo (Anita Strindberg), and various law enforcement officials, as true to style, things become decidedly convoluted and bloody. I found this to be a derivative, but entertaining giallo, with stylistic nods to Argento's The Bird With the Crystal Plumage (the killer's choice of outfits) and Hitchcock's Psycho (the first of the film's dramatic plot twists). Whist there's nothing really remarkable about the film, it does make sense, the murders are very gruesome, there's an energetic jazzy score from Bruno Nicolai, and Strindberg looks suitably glamorous. I loved it, but this is really only for genre fans.



Bad Ronald (Buzz Kulick, 1974 TV)
+
Scott Jacoby is Ronald; a bullied mommy's boy and loner who lives in his own fantasy world of elves and goblins. After he accidentally kills one of his tormentors (a young girl); he panics and buries the body which is subsequently discovered by the police. Fearful he can no longer claim it was an accident; his mother (the wonderful Kim Hunter) decides to wall up a room in the house and hide him. Their plan works until Ronald's mother dies suddenly, leaving him alone in his hideaway as a new family moves in. Whilst the production values never rise above TV movie trappings, the story is very involving, and Jacoby is excellent as the well meaning Ronald, doomed to insanity. I didn't really find this scary (or credible - why didn't anyone spot that a large room was walled up?); but with such a great story, and at a mere 74 minutes this proved to be an entertaining distraction. It reminded me a lot of shows like The Twilight Zone, and Tales of the Unexpected which is a good thing.



What Have They Done to Your Daughters?
/ Don't Ask the Police for Help (Massimo Dallamano, 1974)

Dallamano's follow up (not sequel) to his celebrated giallo What Have You Done to Solange? is a complete change of pace. Instead of the lethargic stately pacing of Solange; Daughters is more of a fast paced (yet talky) Poliziotteschi with giallo undertones. Police investigate the suicide of a young girl and uncover evidence of a teenage prostitution ring. In the meantime a crash helmet wearing killer proceeds to bump off everyone connected to the case with a meat cleaver. It's just as sleazy as it sounds with police and political corruption all figuring in the subsequent mayhem which badly lacks a sense of humour. Daughters is well made enough with a nice minimalist score from Stelvio Cipriani, and some decent chase sequences involving said biker, but the grim tone grates when compared to similar offerings.



Frightmare (Pete Walker, 1974)

Sheila Keith is wonderfully deranged as a supposedly 'cured' cannibal who, along with her husband (Rupert Davies), has been released from a mental institution after fifteen years. Soon her daughter from a previous marriage Jackie (Deborah Fairfax) suspects she's up to her old tricks again, and enlists the help of her psychiatrist boyfriend (Paul Greenwood) to investigate. Proving a further hindrance is Jackie's unruly sister Debbie (Kim Butcher) who's been involved in a murder, and may know more about their mother than she's letting on. Well written tale, is superbly played by all ensemble, but Keith is sensationally creepy as the cannibalistic mother who just can't help herself. Clearly made on the cheap, Walker does an excellent job of cranking up the tension culminating with the inevitable bloodbath and family revelations. Very much of it's time stylistically, though the plot could have been written yesterday; Frightmare is an excellent horror film that pretty much ticked all my boxes.



Body Double (Brian De Palma, 1984)
-
Giallo American style with De Palma back in Dressed to Kill mode with the usual nods to Hitchcock (Rear Window) and Argento (Tenebre). Here Craig Wasson plays a dim witted struggling actor with claustrophobia who witnesses a murder after using a telescope to spy on an attractive neighbour (Deborah Shelton). Soon he's hooking up with porn star Holly Body (the lovely Melanie Griffith on top form) who may know the identity of the killer. Delightfully trashy and sleazy; this has the usual blend of elaborately staged set pieces, punctuated by one gory killing and a somewhat predictable ending. Very eighties and very watchable, I enjoyed this immensely; though it's not in the same league as Dressed to Kill.

Other stuff I watched...

Return of Sister Street Fighter
(Shigehiro Ozawa, 1974)

A distinct step down; this third installment uses exactly the same plot again, whilst forgoing the gore and excitement of previous entries.

Sister Street Fighter: Fifth Level Fist (Shigehiro Ozawa, 1976)

Completely unrelated film has Shihomi playing a different character who also has rotten luck when it come to family members getting bumped off. Pretty forgettable.





Chosen Survivors (Sutton Roley, 1974)

Standard sci-fi shocker about a specially selected group of civilians chosen to survive the nuclear holocaust in a state of the art bunker. There to provide vital information is the complex supercomputer which, much to their horror, shows them the destruction taking place on the surface. They also have Richard Jaeckel from The Green Slime as a naive army major who has a tough job preventing the inevitable group conflict, and Jackie Cooper (who steals it) as an arrogant millionaire with a penchant for getting drunk and shooting his mouth off. Naturally it all goes horribly wrong when a horde of man eating vampire bats invade the complex to chow down on our miserable heroes. There's a sneaky doctor who knows more than he's letting on, and a token black character who was only 'chosen' as a stud service. I found Chosen Survivors a little on the slow side, with merely adequate performances (Cooper aside), and truly horrible bright lighting (or was it just the dvd transfer?) that left me with a headache. Once the bats are introduced however, the film becomes rather exciting, with a couple of surprisingly gory kills, and a genuinely tense penultimate climbing sequence. Sure it's daft, and you can see the intended revelatory twist coming a mile off, but it has it's moments, and delivers some decent suspense.



Across 110th Street (Barry Shear, 1972)
+
Where's this film been all my life? A trio of black hoods dressed as police rob $300,000 from a group of mafioso before gunning them down along with a couple of real cops who give chase. Enter Anthony Franciosa, as bigoted mob heavy Nick D'Salvio charged with tracking them down and wreaking bloody revenge. Also on their trail is corrupt police Captain Mattelli (Anthony Quinn on blistering form) forced to work with a black detective Lt. Pope (Yaphet Kotto) as the case leads them into Harlem, and racial tensions mount.

This film blew me away. The first thing that struck me was Shear's uncompromisingly gritty authentic direction, that borders on documentary style with it's off kilter, fly on the wall camera work, dilapidated tenement locations, and extreme violence. The dialogue positively fizzes, with excellent interplay between D'Salvo and Richard Ward as the husky voiced Harlem crime boss who stands up to the mob; not to mention the relationship between Mattelli and Pope which intelligently tackles issues of departmental racism, police brutality, corruption, public relations, and politics. Very much of it's time, this film is potently charged with the issues of the day; it's angry, menacing, and threatens to explode, but Shears keeps it perfectly paced and coherent despite the somewhat convoluted story. Every character here is completely believable and memorable, with the fugitive robbers fleshed out as sympathetic desperate men, lending extra weight and tension to the inevitable thrilling (and extremely downbeat) climax. Across 110th Street is a bonafide classic that easily ranks up with the best crime films I've seen, and effortlessly rises above the blaxploitation films that followed. Oh and I forget to mention blaxploitation regular Antonio Fargas is great in this doing his usual strung out act, and look out for Burt Young in a small part.



Chained Heat (Paul Nicholas, 1983)

A great b-movie cast distinguishes this otherwise mediocre entry into the women-in-prison exploitation sub-genre. Linda Blair plays Carol; a timid first timer on an eighteen month stretch for manslaughter who gets more than she bargained for after ending up in a prison run by (the always watchable, and perfectly cast) John Vernon. I mean if you can't get Barbara Steele in a wheelchair then a sex crazed Vernon is definitely the next best thing. Naturally he's crooked, video taping regular sex sessions with prisoners in exchange for drugs supplied by his chief of security; the sadistic Captain Taylor (Stella Stevens) and sleazy pimp Lester (Henry Silva). Soon young innocent Carol is attracting the attention of resident queen Bee Erika (prison flick regular Sybil Danning) and making all the wrong moves by buddying up to Erika's black rival, Dutchess (Cleopatra Jones herself Tamara Dobson). Filled with the obligatory cat fights, and sporting the essential nude shower scene; it's not long before rape and murder play a part forcing the girls into direct action by acquiring an incriminating video tape. I thought this was cliche ridden nonsense bouyed by Vernon's sleazy turn as the governor, and Danning's hilarious posturing. Everything about it felt strictly by the numbers to me, and my attention wandered on a couple of occasions. Blair is nowhere near as fun here as she was in Savage Streets, but gets her waps out, and the film has a very nasty vibe about it. I'm also sure this was a cut version though because some of the editing was very abrupt, and the graphic violence looked toned down. Still it passed the time.



The Sect aka The Devil's Daughter (Michele Soavi, 1991)
-
Kelly Curtis (Jamie's younger sister) plays Miriam; a primary school teacher chosen by Herbert Lom's cult of devil worshipers 'The Faceless Ones' to give birth to the anti-Christ. Yup it's another Rosemary's Baby variant, but stamped with a typically whacked out script from Argento, and laced with his protege Michele Soavi's own inimitable visual style. Not a film for casual horror fans; this starts out slow and confusing before hitting it's stride in the second act and never looking back. The story unfolds in a very cryptic dreamlike fashion, beginning with 'the Faceless Ones' loose back story, before picking up with Miriam taking in an old man called Moebius (Lom) after nearly running him over on a country road. All of a sudden he's at deaths door, but his body disappears after Miriam goes for a doctor, prompting her to search the house extensively. Soon she's discovering strange occult looking chambers in her basement, having surreal nightmares, and getting jiggy with a giant stork; all whilst Lom's evil handkerchief proceeds to possess a series of people turning them into psychotic killers!?

I've got to admit I was confused and bored stiff for the first twenty five minutes of The Sect as the script seemed to noodle around with no focus. Once Moebius arrives at Miriam's house however; the fun begins as the story takes on some direction. I've always thought Soavi's atmospheric visual style similar to that of Guillermo Del Toro, complimented by the baroque operatic stylings of Argento and Bava. The Sect didn't disappoint in this respect, as the film transformed into an intriguing occult fairytale come horror mystery, let down only by it's unfathomably (and downright slushy) optimistic ending, and the aforementioned pacing issues. It's also filled with bizarre camera angles, wonderful lighting, and has a nice understated score from Pino Donaggio helping to instill the story with an aura of menace and magic. Overall I really did enjoy this one, and imagine it will reward repeat viewings. Sure the basic plot is as old as the hills, but it's what Argento and Soavi bring to the party that makes The Sect something special. I would recommend this one to patient horror fans looking for a change of pace from the current glut of gory zom-coms and torture porn films.



Amen..

The movie would've did much better yesterday.



Keep on Rockin in the Free World


Rolling Thunder (John Flynn 1977)
+
Do you have a movie you've wanted to see for years? A movie you've built up and put on a pedestal without ever having seen? One of those movies that's supposed to be great but is frustratingly hard to come by and largely forgotten? Well I do, and it's John Flynn's 1977 revenge flick Rolling Thunder. I'm not proud when I confess that I had to use illegal means to finally see this movie. But hey, seen as those idiot studio bosses haven't seen fit to give it a dvd release, then I feel my breach of the law was justified. Short of spending silly money on the Spanish dvd release, or paying way over the odds for a vhs copy, then piracy is the only way to see Rolling Thunder...

The film was written by Paul Schrader who penned Scorsese's Taxi Driver the previous year, and would go on to script further classics such as Blue Collar (1978) and Raging Bull (1980). With Rolling Thunder however, Schrader was clearly still exploring some of the themes he'd covered with Taxi Driver. This film is also about a Vietnam Veteran who can't readjust to, or connect with society. The difference being that Rolling Thunder plays as an action/revenge movie as well as a gripping character study. Though to merely lump it in with the glut of generic seventies revenge movies made in the wake of Michael Winner's Death Wish (1974) would be doing it a huge disservice.

Rolling Thunder is about Major Charles Rane (William Devane) who returns home from Vietnam after spending eight years of torture as a prisoner of war. On his return he's greeted at the airport like a hero and later honored by the town who give him a red Cadillac and a cache of silver dollars. Rane's home life is a different story however, with his young son practically a stranger, and his wife having since agreed to marry his best friend. Clearly scarred by his experience as a POW, Rane appears detached and unconcerned by his wife's infidelity, instead focusing on rebuilding the relationship with his son. This is shattered when armed thugs looking for the silver dollars invade Rane's home severely maiming him and killing his family. Once recovered, the hook handed Rane sets about locating his son's killers with the aide of local beauty queen Linda (Linda Haynes) who worships him, and army buddy Johnny (Tommy Lee Jones), the only one who understands him...



Whilst the plot summary may sound a little unremarkable, Rolling Thunder excels with Paul Schrader's edgy, muted script and William Devane's powerful understated performance. The film seamlessly blends gritty shattering family drama in the first act with an intense story of revenge for the remainder of the film. The dialogue from Rane is sparse, but Devane's body language and pain-filled delivery is so subtle and detached that you almost begin to feel the agony he's going through. What is so fascinating about the character is that whilst you know he's past the point of no return, he's also completely sympathetic and likable; unlike Travis Bickle. Ultimately Rane is frustratingly easy to root for because of his misfortune and the knowledge that whatever happens it's unlikely he'll ever be happy. The result is a riveting character study and highly entertaining thriller, perfectly complemented by the slow burn pacing and Flynn's rough and ready direction. Linda Haynes as Rane's self professed groupie is also excellent (reminiscent of Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver), serving as the perfect foil for Devane's almost otherworldly protagonist. Tommy Lee Jones as Rane's similarly monotone war buddy also makes memorable what was a relatively small part.

The action and violence in Rolling Thunder is pretty raw in places (at least for 1974) particularly the scenes involving Rane's torture, and one in which he impales a man's hand on a table with his hook. The climactic blood soaked shootout has a dark grainy look and loosely choreographed feel making it all the more realistic and satisfying. Overall Rolling Thunder rises head and shoulders above similar genre films thanks to it's multilayered script and performances. It surely deserves a decent dvd release and should be seen by anyone who liked Taxi Driver. This is one movie that lived up to my expectations.

great pick! one of my favourite Revenge Flicks.

I sometimes feel a little bad that my kids grew up in the age of 24-7 capitalism TV.

Its hard for them to grasp that at one time, there were only 13 channels total available, yet because the shopping channel and the info-mercial era hadnt been born yet, it was routine for TV stations to fill the late hours with "B" movies.

They don't apprecciate this was before VCR's were widely available not too mention mega-title super-stores, so often if your theatre chose not to run a movie, or you didnt catch it the week it was there, tough luck noogie for you.

I was 9 when Rolling thunder first appeared in the theatres, so i can recall seeing the trailer and wanting to see it, heck i may have tried to sneak in , but as much as i thought i was a mature enough kid, the Ushers never saw it that way as i recall.lol

I caught it late one summer night in the mid 80's, and it just completely blew me away. Action flicks of that time period were largely fantastical if not outright cartoony ninja flicks and such, while RT had the realistic feel of say First Blood. In other words, it was like you were peeking in on real events, as opposed to obviously watching a movie production.

Thanks !
__________________
"The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." - Michelangelo.



Original posted in Movie Tab II 11-02-2009.




Sisters (Brian De Palma, 1973)
Hugely enjoyable thriller from De Palma (in full on Hitchcock mode) with Margot Kidder terrific as the saner half of recently separated conjoined twins, Danielle and Dominique. Unfortunately her sister is a homicidal maniac, and after a particularly grisly murder in her flat, an inquisitive journalist neighbour Grace Collier (Jennifer Salt) comes-a-knockin' having witnessed the slaying from her window (ala Rear Window). Before the police can get there however, Danielle's ex husband Emil (William Finley who looks the spit of John Waters in this) turns up and cleans up the mess. Naturally the police are inept, leaving Grace to team up with private dick Joseph Larch (Charles Durning in a small but highly amusing role) as things get weirder by the minute. Compelling stuff that loses it's way towards the end slightly, becoming muddled, but complimented by wonderful performances from the entire cast (who look like they're having a lot of fun), and sporting some highly suspenseful sequences. Film also features (if a little too much) early usage of the split screen technique De Palma would later use to such great effect in Carrie. Recommended.



Android
(Aaron Lipstadt, 1982)
This is an old favourite I like to put on every couple of years, and it just keeps getting better with each viewing (so much in fact that I've finally upgraded it to dvd). Don Opper (who also co scripted and is probably best known as Charlie from the Critters films) is pitch perfect as Max; a sensitive, eccentric android, curious about women, sex and love. Unfortunately he's stuck in deep space aboard mad scientist Klaus Kinski's research station as humanoid robots are illegal on Earth. Things are further complicated by a volatile trio of escaped convicts he allows aboard; one of whom turns out to be a woman who falls for his odd ball charms. Naturally she has no idea he's a bucket of bolts, and to cap it all off, Kinski's planning to deactivate him once he's perfected his new female super-android. Another New World Pictures quickie that also reuses sets from Corman's Battle Beyond the Stars (along with Galaxy of Terror, Space Raiders and Forbidden World/Mutant - all of which I also love) Android is engrossing stuff with an intelligent offbeat script, and a truly wonderful performance from Opper. Sadly Kinski only has a couple of scenes, but is as intense as ever, and Brie Howard is eminently tough and tender in equal measure as love interest Maggie. This won't appeal to everyone due to the low rent production values (though I happen to love that late 70's early 80's low budget retro look) but anyone looking for quirky sci-fi with a soul could do worse than to check this overlooked gem out.

other stuff I watched...



Terror (Norman J. Warren, 1978) +
Enjoyable cheapie from Warren who was clearly trying to emulate Dario Argento's Suspiria with this tale of a house cursed by a three hundred year old witch, and the low budget film crew who meet a grisly end after partying there. Lots of psychedelic lighting and some surprisingly gory deaths (including an awesome semi-beheading by a rogue window pane) punctuate this stylish, but otherwise routine time filler.



The Professionals (Richard Brooks, 1966)
There was me thinking I hadn't seen this, but it all came flooding back once that narrow sandstone pass came into view. This is a film my dad sat down and watched with me when I was a kid. I remember him saying something along the lines of 'come on, we're going to watch an excellent western adventure film now, you'll love it'. He wasn't wrong, but somehow the memory has faded over the last twenty five years. Imagine my delight when I realised this was that very film, and I could finally put a name to it. My favourite scene has to be Burt Lancaster holding up Jack Palance's men single handedly, the ensuing cat and mouse shootout, and wonderful exchange of dialogue from their respective cover positions. But that's just one of many in this classic.



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 11-11-2009



Coma (Michael Crichton, 1978) +
This is one of those movies I always happened upon half way through whilst channel hopping. It used to get shown a lot on UK TV in the 90's, but I never really knew what was going on and just assumed it was a run-of-the-mill pot boiler. In reality Coma is a grade-A thriller with a fantastic cast, and the kind of queasy premise that really gets under your skin. Genevieve Bujold is great as a young doctor who thinks she's stumbled on a hospital conspiracy to deliberately render patients brain dead in order to sell their organs on the black market. Naturally no-one believes her, including on-off doctor boyfriend (Michael Douglas), and skeptical boss (Richard Widmark) who puts it down to the trauma of having recently lost her best friend (rendered comatose after a routine operation). Bujold wont let it lie though, and is soon being chased all over the hospital by an assassin (Colonel Decker from the A-Team) out to silence anyone close to the truth.

Coma is a delightfully tense affair that grips like a vice from the outset, and consistently sustains the nail biting suspense throughout. Bujold is pitch perfect as the conscientious doctor out to expose the truth, finding the perfect balance of gritty determination, and feminine vulnerability. This is effectively offset by Widmark's sinister turn as her concerned boss; all thinly veiled threats and mock sympathy. The scenes in which she's chased through the hospital, and later a hi-tech clinic are thrilling to say the least (particularly the morgue freezer sequence), and Jerry Goldsmith's superb score adds a chilling edge to the proceedings. Thumbs up.



House of Whipcord
(Pete Walker, 1974)
Penny Irving plays a gullible French exchange student-come-model (Anne-Marie) who gets a slap on the wrist from the law after exposing herself in public for a photo-shoot. Soon she's being seduced by sinister lothario Mark E. Desade (Geddit) played by Robert Tayman who couldn't look any more evil if he donned plastic horns and took to carrying a trident around. After the obligatory wining and dining Mark's whisking her off up north for the weekend to meet his parents. Unfortunately for Anne-Marie Mark's parents are a couple of crackpots who run an illegal women's prison in which they sadistically readdress the failings of the British justice system...

What could have been a smart satire, and social commentary on the erosion of justice in modern society is sadly given a mundane, and dare I say it, dumb treatment here. Irving (who's French accent is no more convincing than Dick Van Dyke's English patter) is awful, but the rest of the cast are fine; especially Sheila Keith who steals it as the sadistic warden, Barbara Markham as the loony-bin Governor, and Patrick Barr as her well meaning, but senile husband. Unfortunately the film is sluggishly paced, and most unforgivably; rendered completely ridiculous by the fact the young prison inmates never think of overpowering the three middle aged female guards, and casually walking out of the prison. Add to that Irving's unsympathetic lack of brain cells, and a third act that lapses into escape attempt cliche, and you're merely left with Keith, and the interplay between Markham and Barr who provide the film's conversational bright spots. Disappointing considering the intriguing premise.



The Fifth Cord / Giornata nera per l'ariete (Luigi Bazzoni, 1971)
Franco Nero plays Andrea; an alcoholic journalist on the trail of a killer who only strikes on a Tuesday, and leaves a glove behind with a finger cut off for each of his victims. At first Andrea is on good terms with the police, and making progress with his investigation, but each of the victims are people he knows, and his lack of an alibi soon makes him a prime suspect. Matters take a turn for the worse when he deduces the killer's victims are all linked by their zodiac signs; the same sign shared by his estranged wife...

The Fifth Cord is a text book giallo in that it has a meaningless title, poorly drawn supporting characters, the obligatory gloved killer, and a convoluted cliched plot (which isn't helped by one of said supporting characters changing wigs so you don't recognise her). Typically it also sports some excellent set pieces; not least a scene in which an invalid woman (Rossella Falk) is stranded without her wheelchair, and reduced to crawling around her mansion with the killer lurking. The coup de grace however comes with a genuinely frightening climactic sequence in which a young boy at home alone is stalked after laboriously closing a series of automatic window shutters. These sequences (like the whole film) are made all the more atmospheric and satisfying by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro's (of Il Conformista, and Apocalypse Now fame) wonderful compositions and lighting. I'm not exaggerating when I say The Fifth Cord is one of the best looking thrillers you will ever see; all angular shadows, blue gel lighting, silhouetted figures, and stunning architecture. Sadly the substance isn't there to match, but Nero is always watchable, and does good job here as the womanising alcoholic protagonist. Giallo fans on the look out for the obligatory bottles of J&B will also no doubt find the shot of Nero swigging from one at the wheel of his car highly amusing. Good for genre fans only.

other stuff I watched...



Prison (Renny Harlin, 1988) +
Before he went all Michael Bay Hollywood, Renny ''Die Hard 2'' Harlin turned out this decent low budget horror flick for Charles Band's Empire Pictures. Here, pretty boy jail bird, Burke (Viggo Mortensen who looks like he's just stepped out of a Calvin Klein advert) is shipped off to an old recently reopened prison governed by hard case Warden Eaton Sharpe (Lane Smith). Before you can say 'don't pick up the soap' Burke is ordered to knock through a wall to an old Electric chair chamber in the basement, unwittingly releasing the spirit of wrongly executed prisoner Charles Forsythe (also Mortensen). Naturally all hell breaks loose, as the bodies pile up, and a trail of corruption is exposed leading to Warden Sharpe and bloody retribution...

Prison
impressed me with it's moody direction from Harlin that makes excellent use of the bleak setting, and delivers some cool special effects that still hold up today (the razor wire sequence is especially good). The film has an impending air of dread about it, and riffs on, as opposed to lazily exploiting the cliches that come with the prison flick genre. On the downside Mortensen is far too pretty to convince as a tough guy convict, and delivers his lines with all the gusto of a church mouse (the scene in which he grabs the crotch of a man mountain adversary who subsequently turns chicken is painfully unconvincing). The support from the likes of Lane Smith however is great and the film is action packed and generally very entertaining. Much better than Wes Craven's similarly themed Shocker, released the following year. Recommended.



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 11-18-2009



Stone
(Sandy Harbutt, 1974)
I've been wanting to see this since stumbling across the UK dvd (pictured) in Fopp a few months back. Reading up on the film I discovered it to be a cult Australian biker movie which bore some influence on George Miller's 1979 classic Mad Max. As a huge fan of Miller's film this got me more than a little curious, as not only is Stone considered a minor classic of the 'biker movie' sub-genre, but also features two cast members from Mad Max; namely Roger Ward (unrecognisable in a small role) and most notably the wonderful Hugh Keays-Byrne (better known as villainous biker leader Toecutter from Miller's flick).

Stone refers to the title character played by Ken Shorter (pictured below left); an unorthodox looking (but nevertheless whiter than white) cop who goes undercover with a satanic biker gang called The Gravediggers, after an an unknown assassin starts bumping them off. This is the result of one of the gang (Byrne), who witnesses a sniper assassinate a local politician whilst stoned out of his mind on LSD. The rest of the film revolves around Stone's induction into the Gravediggers' culture, his struggle for acceptance, and the mutual respect that gradually develops. A burgeoning respect ultimately tested during the inevitable showdown with the killer/s...



I loved this film. It's as much about idealism as it is about violence and roaring engines, as director Harbutt (who also stars as Gravediggers' leader, Undertaker) focuses heavily on the ethos behind the biker way of life, and the larger than life characters who populate it. Much of the film plays out in a stoned out haze of psychedelic music, gang fights, bike races, marijuana (something Shorter's character continuously refuses), and anti-establishment philosophy. It's very low budget, but Harbutt injects some visual style into proceedings with the aid of Graham Lind's creative photography, and conjures that same weird (all be it much colder) atmosphere that so permeates Miller's later Mad Max. Stone is far from perfect though. The plot for example is very simplistic and predictable; some of the supporting performances are amateurish to say the least (though Byrne is fantastic - especially the scene in which he playfully intimidates a couple of suits drinking in the Gravediggers' local bar), but the film nevertheless remains compelling, charming and oddly effecting. This is cult stuff through and through, and the influences on Miller's film are undeniable. The funeral procession/convoy pictured above was homaged in Mad Max after the death of the Nightrider, and the scenes between Stone and his girlfriend at home feel very familiar indeed. Though you could also make obvious comparisons to earlier biker films like The Wild Angels, and Easy Rider.

Elsewhere there's a generous helping of gritty 70's violence, most of which is confined to the second half of the film, and is relatively tame by today's standards; though the downbeat climax is satisfyingly gruesome. Overall I'd recommend this to anyone into cult cinema willing to look beyond the obvious flaws and see Stone for what it is; a highly watchable film, filled with endearing rough and ready characters, and made with a lot of love. Take the trip.



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 11-20-2009




Zombieland (Reuben Fleischer, 2009)
I was almost disappointed when this got good write-ups because it meant I was going to have to plonk my backside down in front of yet another zombie movie. When I first saw Romero's Dawn of the Dead back in the early nineties I couldn't get enough of them. I wanted to see every gory zombie flick ever made; I was obsessed. How times change. Now it seems there's a new one coming out every week, and most of them are just variations on the same old theme. I've seen so many they're all starting to blur into one, and my eyes are beginning to glaze over like a zom-arrgghh!!! In short folks I'm fed up to the back teeth of zombie films, and can't wait for the current fad to blow over so we can move on to something new like slimy reptilian aliens disguised as humans, what? Oh forget it.

Surprisingly Zombieland is savvy enough to know how I'm (and I'm sure many others) are feeling. It's a smart satirical take on the genre that lets the zombies take a back seat, and instead focuses on it's four protagonists; geeky neurotic Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg who comes off like a cross between Woody Allen and Simon Amstell from Never Mind the Buzzcocks); Trigger happy zombie killer extraordinaire Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson who effortlessly steals the movie), and two conniving sisters, love interest Witchita (Emma Stone) and the deadpan Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). The clue here is in the title; Zombieland suggests a kind of twisted theme park and that's exactly the metaphor for contemporary America that Fleischer effectively (if unsubtly) rams home. It's a witty, engaging take on the genre with a knowing indie feel, and one immensely likable performance from Harrelson. The zombie action is there too, but this is as much about friendships and trust as it is about the blood and guts. I liked it well enough, but was glad of the short (by today's standards) running time. Oh and I loved the worst kept cameo secret in movie history too.




Pontypool
(Bruce McDonald, 2008) +
No it's not a promotional film for the Welsh tourist board, but yet another zombie variant (apologies for making that joke again). Yup if you can't beat the hordes of undead then inevitably you end up joining them, and that's exactly what happened to me last night. I actually enjoyed this Canadian slow burner a lot more that Zombieland, even if it is deeply flawed, and well, pretty ridiculous really.

This one nods John Carpenter's The Fog with Stephen McHattie turning in an excellent performance as a gravelly voiced radio DJ (Grant Mazzy) who unwittingly finds himself reporting on a bizarre series of violent riots from his studio. Accompanying him are his uptight producer Sydney (Lisa Briar - think Helen Hunt with darker hair), and her plucky young assistant Laurel (Georgina Reilly). Soon the BBC are contacting Mazzy for updates as the Canadian military quarantine the town, and it becomes clear a major crisis is taking place...

Set entirely within the confines of the radio station, Pontypool is an incredibly tense affair for the first hour, as events unfold in the form of telephone calls Mazzy receives from his eye witness weather man. It's well written, gripping stuff that sent a shiver down my spine on more than one occasion as the epidemic spread slowly closer to the studio...then the 'infected people' show up. Without giving too much away we gradually learn that symptoms of the plague involve people babbling incoherently and speaking gibberish. Yes these zombies literally spread by word of mouth; the English language to be exact. If it all sounds a bit daft, that's because it is, and things go steadily downhill from there. This being Canadian we get Mazzy and co speaking in French to stave off the inevitable, and an ending ripped directly from another apocalyptic (and far superior Canadian film) Don McKellar's Last Night. This is still well worth checking out though, because to be fair it doesn't play like a traditional zombie film at all, and the first hour really is compelling stuff. Shame, as Tony Burgess' script just seems to write it's self into a corner really.



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 01-07-2010




The Friends of Eddie Coyle
(Peter Yates, 1973)
Robert Mitchum is perfectly cast as the tired looking Eddie of the title; a washed up-down at heel loser peddling used handguns to a gang of bank robbers connected to a Boston crime syndicate. With a court case for a previous offence looming, and unnable to face another spell in prison, Eddie is forced to consider the unthinkable; trading information with the police...

More films like this please. Yates' low key direction gives plenty of room for the story and characters to breath, and effectively captures the autumnal Boston locations - all gloomy parks, back street taverns, and most memorably a crowded Ice Hocky match. Mitchum is superb, as are the entire cast, namely Richard Jordan as the scheming police detective out to exploit him; Steven Keats as a cocksure young arms dealer (interestingly named Jackie Brown); Alex Rocco as head bank robber Scalise, and most noteworthy Peter Boyle as his devious bartender best 'friend' with some very heavy connections. This never feels less than 100% authentic throughout and works as both a riveting character study of the doomed Coyle, and a tense thriller. Superb.



The Driver (Walter Hill, 1978) +
Action director Hill's second directorial effort after the excellent Hard Times is not quite as accomplished or entertaining, but satisfying nevertheless, and perhaps more interesting in terms of casting (if not entirely successful).

Ryan O'Neil is the virtuoso getaway driver for hire nicknamed Cowboy by the police who've never managed to catch him. After succesfully evading them yet again in the film's brilliantly staged opening sequence (and arranging an alibi in the form of Isabelle Adjani - a plot device vaguely reminiscent of Melville's Le Samourai); enter Bruce Dern effortlessly stealing the show as the slimy police detective who vows to trap him no matter what the cost. It really is that straight forward, with precious little in the way of supprising plot twists, but lashings of gritty style, and some thrilling car chases. I found O'Neil lacking in charisma despite looking the part, and taking into account the monosyllabic ice cool character he was playing. I think this is partly because Dern is so amusing in the film, but mostly it's because O'Neil just looks a bit vacant. Worse still is Adjani who doesn't convince at all delivering her lines in a stilted fashion whilst looking generally disinterested. Overall though this is a decent watch thanks to Dern, and Hill's assured direction. Most memorable is the scene in which Cowboy trashes an orange Mercedes in an underground car park, after a gang of amateurs question his prowess.



Night Moves (Arthur Penn, 1975)

Ellen [Remarking on the football game Harry's watching]: Who's winning?
Harry: Nobody, one side's just losing slower than the other.

Gene Hackman is brilliant in this as Harry Moseby; a retired football player turned L.A. private eye struggling to find a meaningful purpose in life outside the sport. A case involving a missing girl and some Hollywood stuntmen leads him to the Florida Keys and into the arms of Jennifer Warren's emotionally evasive kook, but not before he's discovered his wife is having an affair. Soon Harry's knee deep in domestic strife, and on the brink of a mid life crisis; all whilst trying to 'solve the mystery' surrounding the sexually provocative Delly (a teenage Melanie Griffith).

The plot might sound a little hackneyed, but Penn's handling and the casting are such that Night Moves proves anything but. This works primarily as a character study of the somewhat reserved, but decidedly complex Harry, who we get see rub up against a variety of oddball characters. There's plenty of wry humour and emotionally charged soul searching with the missing girl almost seeming incidental as Harry bungles his way through the investigation. No. The real mystery lies with Hackman's character, his relationship with his disillusioned wife, and where he wants to be in life. So much so that the final revelation involving Delly (a superb underwater shot) seems like a deliberate anti-climax by comparison. I found it hugely rewarding in an emotionally cathartic sense though. I guess that was Penn's intention. Thumbs up.



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 07-20-2010



The Satan Bug (John Sturges, 1965)
An accident at a top secret biological weapons lab deep in the Mohave desert turns out to be something much worse as it emerges saboteurs have made off with a batch of phials containing deadly germs; one of which could wipe out mankind in weeks if exposed to the air. Is it the Russians? or has someone closer to home got a grudge against...well...everyone?

It's left to razor sharp ex government agent Lee Barrett (George Maharis) to track down the perps and recover the Satan Bug in this no nonsense intelligent, and original (at least for the time) thriller that delivers on all levels. The dialogue is often wonderful, particularly the 'testing to see if he's still one of ours' scene in which we're introduced to Barrett, and Sturges concocts plenty of taut thrills. Most memorably the initial doom laden debriefing just before Station Three exits automatic lockdown; a deadly encounter in an abandoned church; and the crackerjack finale complete with a shot of the deadly phial in question rolling precariously along the seat of a helicopter as it spins out of control. Great yet simplistic stuff that almost feels like a boys own precursor to Robert Wise's 1971 gem The Andromeda Strain. Shame it's not had a US or UK dvd release...heigh ho.



Hardcore aka The Hardcore Life (Paul Schrader, 1979) -
George C. Scott gives a particularly powerful performance as devout Christian businessman Jake VanDorn whose teenage daughter Kristen goes missing whilst on a church funded trip to Los Angeles. A friend recommends he hire sleazy private investigator Jack Mast (an equally convincing Peter Boyle) to locate her, but evidence Mast uncovers turns out to be VanDorn (and every loving father's) worst nightmare; an explicit pornographic 8mm film.

Typically unflinching thriller from Schrader often feels like him expanding on the story behind Jodie Foster's character (Iris) from his name making Taxi Driver script. Hardcore plays like a nightmarish decent into a hell where nobody wants to talk, as VanDorn ditches Mast and goes on his own obsessive search for Kristen amongst the exploited lost souls of the L.A. sex industry. Soon he's mingling icognito amongst the exploiters as a producer of hardcore movies, and it's here that Schrader's film loses much of it's credibility. Despite the unglamorous depiction of the flourishing 70's L.A. porn scene (which is never explicit and far from titilating); it's hard to believe such a straight laced church goer would go to such lengths, and even harder still to imagine any of the streetwise porn sharks taking him seriously. As good as Scott is in the film (and believe me he's fantastic) the sight of him suddenly donning superfly collars (and in one pivotal scene a ridiculous wig and false moustache) whilst casting for a new 'movie' never rings true, and undermines what is an otherwise compelling and challenging piece of cinema. It's still streets ahead of Joel Schumacher's 8MM though.




Parents (Bob Balaban, 1989) -
It's white picket fence 1950's suburbia and quiet young Michael Laemle (Brian Madorsky) has just moved to a new town with his overbearing parents. There's passive aggressive and downright sinister dad Nick (an on form Randy Quaid), and wide eyed mom Lily (Mary Beth Hurt) whose nowhere near as vacant as she'd like you to think she is. Michael's become a vegetarian, but that doesn't stop his leering parents constantly plying him with dubiously sourced meat platters. Then there's the blood soaked nightmares; dad's job at a company called Toxico, and don't forget the school social worker's concern over the youngster's disturbing artwork...

Parents is artfully directed by Balaban with much of the photography composed of off kilter low wide angles, giving the subtle impression of a child's eye view. It's clear he's playing on the dilemma of overactive young imagination and immature misinterpretation (Michael's friendship with a similarly imaginative young girl helps reinforce this); versus the possibility of real inherent evil on his parents part. We think we know the truth, but Balaban and Richard Hawthorne (who wrote the story) keep you guessing as the film plays it's cards frustratingly close to it's chest. That's the biggest problem with Parents; Michael aside it doesn't reward the viewer with enough insight into any of the characters (or intriguing plot turns for that matter) until the final all too predictable reel. Sure we know Michael's an odd kid, and his nightmares are often genuinely creepy, but every time we think the story is about to deliver something interesting; Balaban moves on to the next scene only to repeat the process. With that said the entire cast are great; particularly Hurt and Quaid who play it to the hilt and really get under your skin as the titular Parents. I just think Balaban tried to be a little to subtle for his own good, and as a result Parents is nothing more than a well made, sometimes effective, yet distinctly unsatisfying curio.



Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold (Charles Bail, 1975)
Tamara Dobson returns as lovable narcotics agent with attitude Cleo, in this ramped up superior sequel. Here the budget appears to be slightly bigger, as the action is cleverly shifted to Hong Kong no doubt in a bid to cash in on the success of Enter the Dragon released two years earlier. It's really just a low rent Bond movie with second rate martial arts, claustrophobic direction and diabolical acting. The plot is nothing more than a markedly jazzier rehash of the original, with Clio sent in to bust up a drug ring headed by the Dragon Lady (Stella Stevens doing a good job filling Shelly Winters' boots). She's aided along the way by Asian agent Mi Ling Fong (real martial arts actress Ni Tien) who does a much better job of kicking everyone's ass. Dobson looks like she's been taking makeup tips from Ziggy Stardust, and gives Elizabeth Taylor such a run for her money in the changing outfits department; you'd swear they had velcro backs. That said it really is hugely entertaining in that undemanding way the best B-movies have about them. There's plenty of sassy put downs from Cleo, wonderfully hammy supporting characters, and a wham bam shoot em' punch em' up ending so over the top, you could almost be watching a Toei flick. This aint no Jive Turkey sucka!



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 10-25-2010




Hunter Prey
(Sandy Collora, 2009)
Sandy Collora started out as an assistant creature designer to the likes of Stan Winston, Rick Baker and Rob Bottin, before gaining critical praise for the visually impressive fan short Batman: Dead End back in 2003. It's no surprise then that Collora's debut feature is a low budget, but aesthtically striking piece of science fiction with the emphasis heavily on retro styled costume and creature design that harks back to the pre-CGI era of the 70's.

Hunter Prey is about a trio of prison guards (pictured) who touch down on a barren planet in pursuit of a particularly dangerous escaped alien convict. What follows is a desperate cat and mouse chase accross the desert with the lines between good and evil seriously blurred once the identitly of their quarry is revealed...

Ok so it looks promisingly like Star Wars and has a plot like a cross between Enemy Mine (one alien race are even refered to as Draks) and any number of westerns - I'm thinking Sollima's The Big Gundown, but others have also compared it to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Sadly though Hunter Prey fails becasue Collora's script just isn't eventful enough to sustain a feature. The story is adequate but stretched over ninety minutes it quickly becomes tedious; bogged down with pretty, yet endless filler shots of sunbleached vistas and dusty trudging boots. The action scenes are way too sparse (and dull) for the film to create any sense of urgency, and I was left feeling Collora and co had just put all their effort into creating cool costumes, and forgotten to deliver an imaginative funpacked narrative. Where are all the deadly indigenous creatues in this movie? Where's the sense of adventure? Forget about it, all you get in Hunter Prey are some guys who can't act and dress like Boba Fett carrying big guns that (occassionally) fire like pea-shooters. I'm all for what they tried to do here (create a story driven movie with cheap but solid old school effects). Unfortunately without decent actors and pacing to back it up Hunter Prey falls rather flat. It's by no means terrible; just forgettable. I really wish Collora had taken a leaf out of Roger Corman's book and delivered a bit more fun.



Blue Sunshine (Jeff Lieberman, 1976)
This is the film Lieberman made before his underrated (and probably better known) nature-runs-amok flick Squirm. The plot concerns a group of ex hippy students who lose all their hair and turn homicidal, 10 years after taking a brand of LSD called Blue Sunshine. A friend of one of the victims Jerry Zipkin (Zalman King doing his usual moody brooding routine) is present when his buddy inexplicably barbecues three girlfriends in the fireplace on a weekend trip to the country. After a chase his friend is killed leaving Jerry as a prime suspect for the killings, and a mystery that leads to politics...

Hokey as it may sound this is finely acted, and Leiberman injects a healthy dose of black comedy and social satire into the proceedings (murderous bald ex hippies sold killer acid by a guy now running for state senate anyone?). The anti-drug references would seem a little obvious, but the film never wallows in self righteousness; content at being an amusing and effective B-movie thriller. It's suitably suspensful, particulary a sequence in which a strung out mother chases her young children round their flat with a kitchen knife; not to mention Zipkin's sleazy surgeon friend who threatens to lose it at the operating table. Best of all however is the climactic scuffle inside a disco, almost as if Lieberman was trying to comment on the entire scene. To sum up Blue Sunshine often feels like a Larry Cohen film with better editing which can only be a good thing. I enjoyed this immensely and highly recommended it to fans of cult cinema.



The Dark Lurking (Gregory Connors, 2010) +++
This Australian made poverty row sci-fi outing looks considerably less inspiring than Hunter Prey, and is markedly less original; not to mention technically competent. The Dark Lurking (talk about a duff title) shamelessly rips off/homages the first two Alien films, whilst unfathomably stealing much of the story from the godawful 2005 Doom adaptation. It's no secret that I've got a real soft spot for space bound creature features though, and whilst almost all the blurb surrounding The Dark Lurking was screaming at me to steer clear; I just couldn't help myself...

The film begins with a small band of mercenary soldiers receiving a distress call from an underground research facitlity whilst orbiting a mysterious planet. Some sloppy editing later and they're trapped deep in the complex fighting off flesh eating demons with a hanful of scientists, and a couple of test subjects - one of whom has something nasty inside her. With everything in lockdown to contain the monsters, our hammy heroes head for operations, and a way back to the surface...

Scientist - at Mexican soldier Kirkland: Shut up moron! you haven't got the IQ to throw consecutive punches.

Blimey!
I've seen some audacious crap in my time, but nothing quite as bare faced as The Dark Lurking. Originality asside it's laughably incompetent on so many levels, but worst of all are the performances. Bret Kennedy as OTT tough guy Michaels, and Tonia Renne as doomed test subject Lena come off best, but the supporting cast are painfully amature. It would almost be forgivable if this was dubbed, but it's not, and the cast members in question survive way too long for me to let it go. Second up is the woefully poor coverage many of the (suprisingly effective and abundent) gore and creature effects get. There seems to be a complete lack of mid and wide shots during action sequences here, meaning we experience every squib, slashing, decapitation and explosion, in claustrophobic close up. It's extremely frustrating because this movie has action, creatues, slime and gore on tap; not to mention beakneck pacing to make your head spin. One minute they're blasting away at demons, the next, huge tentacles, and don't forget the mock alien/pumpkinhead thingly Michaels runs into on the surface. It's well lit, CGI free (barring the initial orbital shot) and there's a hell of a lot up on screen for the money spent. Despite everything I ended up enjoying this a great deal, but I just can't give it a decent score.



Bucktown (Arthur Marks, 1975)
I've wanted to see this one for a while considering it teams two of the biggest (and most enduring) stars from from the blaxploitation era in Williamson and Grier. Bucktown also features on many best of lists, but resounding critical praise is thin on the ground. I knew nothing about the director Arthur Marks, only that he made a handful of similar genre films; the only other one I've heard of being Detroit 9000.

Anyway Bucktown is about Duke (Williamson) who rocks up your stereotypical southern town to bury his brother who was murdered by the corrupt local sheriffs, after refusing to pay protection money for his bar. Naturally they don't take too kindly to Duke taking over, and after the usual series of racial slurs, a bar room brawl, love interest from Grier, and drive by shooting; he's forced to call in some heavy duty friends from back up north (Blacula star Thalmus Rasulala, Tony King, and a very young Carl Weathers)...

Bucktown is a hoot to begin with, subversively riffing off In the Heat of the Night with Williamson's rough hewn tough guy an amusing substitute for Poitiers clean cut Mr. Tibbs. The sight of him stepping off the train knowing full well what awaits is hugely satisfying as is the ensuing tit for tat with the police. In fact the first twenty or so minutes of this flick are a blast, but once Rasulala (wonderfully intense here) and his cronies show up, things nosedive. The tense standoff with the law is smashed as Duke's buddies steamroll all opposition, then begin to prey on the town in the same corrupt manner the sheriffs did. Naturally they kidnap Grier's character, and Duke springs into action to bring them all down. You could argue there's a statement about black on black violence somewhere in here, but if that's true then it's a muddled unsavoury message within the context of this movie. Unltimately I found the second half way too predictable and was staring at the clock well before the end credits.



The Car (Elliot Silverstein, 1977)
Meh. Not much to say about this one. It's a third rate cash-in on Duel, Jaws and even The Exorcist that also draws some comparison to the later (and far superior Christine).

James Brolin looks bored out of mind whilst attempting to put a stop to the titular car as it mows down all comers in a nameless desert town. Set phasers for snooze as teenagers are knocked off bikes, a woman ker-splatted in her sitting room, and school children terrorised whilst rehearsing for the town parade. Completely bloodless, with stock characters, and ridiculously speeded up vehicle sequences. Mostly we just get daft shots of said car doing doughnuts in the desert?. There's a half decent finale involving a quarry, lots of dynamite, and one hell (literally) of an explosion, but it's harldly enough. Skip it.

I also watched...



The Horde (Yannik Dahan & Benjamin Rocher, 2009)
It's zombie time again, but the protagonists are so dumb in this movie they never cotton on that you'e just got to shoot them in the head. Where are Ken Foree, Hugo Stiglitz, Joe Pilato, and Ian McCulloch when you need them? No really, this is actually a contrived but entertaining French zombie flick, made more fun by the fact the protagonists would rather beat, slash and blow the gouls to bits than pop them in the head. It's very well made for this sort of thing as a covert team of undercover cops try to bust some extremely nasty Nigerian hoods holed up on the top floor of an inner city high rise. Things go awry on the bust, and before the two factions can wipe each other out; a zombie epidemic is trying to beat them to it. The rest of this well acted flick has the surving cast battling their way out, helped by a very funny shell shocked old man who leads them to a handy cache of world war 2 firearms. Highly recomended slick splattery fun for zombie fans, and the ending is great.



Originally posted in Movie Tab II 01-18-2011




Invasion of the Bee Girls
aka Graveyard Tramps (Denis Sanders, 1973) +
Mildly titillating blend of science fiction and sexploitation has William Smith's goverment troubleshooter investigating a series of mysterious deaths in a small California town, that may or may not be linked to the local scientific research centre. With all the victims seemingly healthy men who've suffered heart attacks as a result of vigourous sexual activity; it's not long before the authorities are advising the bored townsfolk to refrain from intercourse with their partners. Naturally this goes down like a cup of cold sick with the men, and with many of the usually reserved housewives and female scientists suddenly displaying an almost uncontrolable manipulative lust for sex; the weak minded blokes have little to no chance of making out of this movie alive...still there's worse ways to go eh.

Invasion of the Bee Girls is most noteworthy for the starring role of Anitra Ford (best known for her part in Jack Hill's chicks-in-chains classic The Big Birdcage - and no doubt with Americans for her appearances on the Price is Right). She's delightfully sultry here as scientist Dr. Susan Harris, and provides nearly all the film's most memorable moments - the protracted seduction of an older colleague being a particular highlight.Also on hand to smoulder is Victoria Vetri who's no less beautiful as Smith's love interest Julie Zorn. This is indeed a film preocupied with light hearted sleaze, as the science on offer (linked to experiments on the mating habits of bees) is nothing short of ludicrous; a moot sub-theme for the excuse of a cool 1950's styled title. In fact there's nothing especially remarkable about this flick other than the campy story, a few amusing dialogue exchanges, and lots of bare breasted women. It is what it is, i.e. retro 70's Corman-esque schlock that fizzes along nicley providing a few laughs and some cool imagery. Naturally I adored it.




The Sender (Roger Christian, 1982) -
Interesting if derivitive debut feature from Christian who'd already won an oscar for his set decoration on George Lucas' Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, and been nominated for his art direction on Ridley Scott's Alien. Both impressive achievements on his resume, lest we forget Mr. Christian also went on to direct complete tosh like Battlefield Earth and the first in the Underworld series.

The Sender
refers to a young man (ably played by Zeljko Ivanek) named Jon Doe 83 by the doctors at a mental institution who end up treating him after a failed suicide attempt. Determined to make a connection with the introverted new comer is the sensitive Dr. Farmer (Kathryn Harrold) who soon gets more than she bargained for when Jon inexplicably begins appearing in realistic hallucinations at her home, and whilst she's driving. Next thing we know the boy's insane mother (Shirley Knight) turns up claiming he's a cursed messiah and that they have some kind of psychic link. Whilst Dr. Farmer searches for the truth behind Jon's mysterious ability, all manner of strange visions begin to affect everyone in the hospital, and her unconvinced superior Dr. Denman (Paul Freeman) decides he's going to preform electro-shock therapy on Jon effectively lobotomising him...

Ok so it's The Exorcist; it's Carrie; it's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; it's The Fury; it's Patrick, hell even Scanners deserves something of a mention now that were talking psychological horror. Despite the obvious influences however, director Christian delivers a classy affair all his own, with enough chilling sequences to fire up the little grey cells, and most importantly; enduce plenty of goose flesh. There's a tenderness at the heart of The Sender that injects it with real soul, as does Sean Hewitt in a memorably humourous supporting role as 'the real messiah'. By no means the best of it's type, but still worth watching.



Sexykiller: Morirás Por Ella/You'll Die For Her (Miguel Marti, 2008)
Ultra flamboyant, coloufully campy, instant cult fave (the type of thing the Spanish seem to do so well) about the murderous comic exploits of college femme fatale Bárbara (Macarena Gómez who certainly lives up to the film's title - and who Stuart Gordon fans may remember from Dagon). This comes off like a violent girly cross between something Álex de la Iglesia and Robert Roderiguez might have dreamed up together after eating psychadelic cotton candy at an Aqua concert.

There's an audacious murder spree in full progress on a posh college campus somewhere in Spain that has both the media and police in a baffled incompetent frenzy. As speculation mounts regarding the identitly of the killer, so does the pile of bodies, killed by such extravagant means as to make the likes of Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees soil their undergarments. Naturally no-one suspects Bárbara who seems far too concerned as to the prospect that iconic toy Barbie's (named Sindy here for the purposes of copyright) boyfriend Ken (Glenn) is gay or not. Throw in a couple of egg headed Coroners who plan to trap the killer with a machine that can project dead people's final thoughts onto a TV screen; not to mention Bárbara's misconception that one of them is a fellow serial killer, and therefore a prospective soul mate, and you have the mere tip of the sugar coated, yet decidely blood centered iceberg...

Essentially Sexykiller is a farcial swipe come homage (if that's possible) at similarly themed, but one dimensional slasher flicks. The fact that Bárbara breaks the fourth wall and begins talking directly to the camera early on in the movie more than idicates that this is intended as spoof - all be it a gleefully bloody, and titillating one. Whilst the humour is somewhat hit and miss, Marti injects more than enough original touches to keep Sexykiller fresh and consistently entertaining throughout. Consider Bárbara's home shopping channel presentation of murder with handy household products, or her bizarre dance sequence with an orange faced Sindy and Glenn. Macarena Gómez is a revelation in the lead and the film has a super electro-pop/house soundtrack. This wont appeal to all tastes (the film has been misleadingly packaged to look like a straight up zombie flick in the UK - whereas said ghouls only pop up at the end) though I imagine the likes of Sexy Celebrity might find this to be their particular cup of tea. Great fun.



Cotton Comes to Harlem
(Ossie Davis, 1970)
Here's an oldie but goodie. Adapted by director Ossie Davis (Bruce Campbell's mate in BubbaHo-Tep) from Chester Himes' novel. Cotton Comes to Harlem is an early blaxploitation entry (though you could argue it trancends the genre) which pre-dates Melvin Van Peebles' seminal Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song realeased the following year.

Godfrey Cambridge, and Raymond St. Jaques are Gravedigger Jones, and Coffin Ed Johnson respectively. Two laconic cops working Harlem who smell something's rotten in Denmark with Reverand Deke O'Malley's (Calvin Lockhart) back to Africa scheme. The charismatic yet decidedly crooked O'Malley turns up to preach at a local rally and collect $83,000 in payments to return his opressed brothers and sisters to a racism free Africa, but Gravedigger and Coffin Ed aren't convinced. Before they can bring him in however, a masked armed gang turn up and steal the loot sparking a car chase in which both O'Malley and the cash go walkies. The only clue as to the whereabouts of the money? A bail of genuine Louisiana cotton which flys off the back of the getaway truck and is subsequently salvaged by a local vagrant (Red Foxx)...

Cotton Comes to Harlem
is a wonderfully playful blend of action and comedy that had me smiling throughout, and even belly laughing on a couple of occasions. The first of these came in the afore mentioned car chase which Davis clevery interweaves with a series of low-brow yet hilarious comic vignettes involving a dope fiend and a purse snatcher. Then there's Judy Pace's knockout turn as O'Malley's girlfriend, and in particular a scene in which she seduces the dim witted white police officer assigned to stop her leaving her apartment. Davis keeps things lively with lots of interesting characters and shootouts, and the interplay between our two heroes and their police chief bosses is pure gold. Sadly the film does lose some if it's momentum towards the final act when the humour takes more of a back seat, but this one still wraps it'self up nicely, and would be amongst the first movies of this type I'd recommend to anyone looking to explore the genre.



Black Water
(David Nerlich & Andrew Traucki, 2007)
First rate horror about a day trip gone horribly wrong in northern Australia draws some parallels with the tragedy currently taking place in Queensland - which incidently did give me second thoughts about even tabbing this one. The fact remains this is such a good horror film I felt duty bound (even though many of you may have already seen it).

Directed in a TV movie style and based on true events (so often an indication of a crap movie) this revolves around a trio of holiday makers; average married thirtysomethings Grace and Adam (Diana Glenn and Andy Rodereda), and Grace's twitchy sister Lee (Maeve Dermody) who are led by their guide Jim (Ben Oxenbould) into a mangrove swamp for some fishing. Ben's pistol initially alerts Lee to possible dangers that may lurk there, but just to ominously ram home the impending horror that awaits; he proceeds to warn them about the perils of salt water crocodiles that have been known to attack small boats. Before you know it a particualry nasty croc has flipped their boat and had Ben and his gun for dinner, leaving our trio of city slickers stuck up a tree in the middle of nowhere, and unable to see what lurks below the muddy swamp water...

I guess you would pitch this halfway between Greg Mclean's similarly themed croc horror Rogue (released the same year) and Chris Kentis' Open Water from 2003. Whilst both those films left me somewhat underwhelmed; Black Water is a distinct cut above. Right from the opening titles in which we're introduced to the family through a series of holiday snaps quickly establishing them as happy go lucky unsuspecting down to earth types. Directors Nerlich and Traucki delivery a master class in taut suspenseful horror movie making. The genius here is that the characters are left in a hopeless situation with a monster they cannot see, prompting the viewer to ask themselves what they would do under similar circumstances. Not only that but with such a harrowing attack early on in the film, the protagonists are repeatedly put in a posistion where they have no choice but to re-enter the swamp water knowing full well the crocodile might attack again. It's this sustained suspense, complimented by authentic performances from the cast, one agonising dilema, and the way the characters try to overcome their predicament that make Black Water a real winner. This is one you need to see.



Invader
aka Lifeform (Mark H. Baker, 1996) +
Yup it's another one of those made for cable/direct to video monster from outer space flicks that invites the usual comaprisons to you know what. I'm forever looking for obscure variations of this theme, lord knows why as most of them turn out to be complete junk. This one is a minor exception however thanks to an intelligent script from Baker who takes the well worn formula in some interesting directions.

The story involves a brighter than usual group of scientists investigating an old Mars landing probe called Viking that has mysteriously returned to earth. Once in their lab it begins to interact with the computer systems downloading top secret information much to the disgruntlement of the military stationed there. On investigating the vehicle further they discover a new section has been added to the structure from which hatches an insectoid like alien. Far from being malevolent in intent however, the creature instead takes a more inquisitive approach; only to be exterminated by the soldiers. Unfortunately the creature has already laid an egg and in true insect fashion the offspring retains the knowledge of it's parent...

Well thought out creature design, not to mention some intelligent dialogue, and competent makeups are ultimately undermined by uninspired direction, and wooden acting. Still the story is engaging with enough red herrings and moral dliema's to keep things interesting to the prophetic final shot - which I really dug. Worth a look, but only for die hard monster fans.



A system of cells interlinked
I watched both Coma and Crichton's Looker, as well. Coma was certainly better, but I still enjoyed Looker for the nostalgia.
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“It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.” ― Thomas Sowell