Yeah I agree, one of my favorites, and best.

next up I saw The Jitters (1989) with the infamous hopping Japanese vampires, what can I say a fun little comedy horror. Bad acting, and silly story, but I liked the hopping vampires.

ROLLER BOOGIE (1979). Adorable Linda Blair, a flautist planning to attend Juilliard decides winning a roller skating contest is more important . She meets Bobby (professional skater Jim Bray in his first and last role) and despite their social differences, future plans and the threat of the local skating rink being torn down by mobsters (Mark Goddard from LOST IN SPACE plays the leader), they practice and naturally fall for one another.

A guilty pleasure of the first degree and not a good movie by any means, but if You go into it with that attitude RB really isn't all that bad, almost like a Frankie/Annette beach movie. Better than expected photography (Dean Cundey) and a cool cast including Beverly Garland (IT CONQUERED HE WORLD, PRETTY POISON), Roger Perry (COUNT YORGA, VAMPIRE, THE THING WITH TWO HEADS) and lovely Kimberly Beck (MASSACRE AT CENTRAL HIGH and FRIDAY ,the 13th PART 4).

Also, You'll just have to love the car Linda drives (Excalibur SSK) and how she
always finds a close parking spot despite big crowds. ***

Die Hard 1988 ★★★★★

Let's get this out of the way first: yes, Die Hard is a Christmas movie. Of course. What else would it be?

It's also one of the last in a legendary series of action blockbusters. When John McClane was the believable everyman blue collar hero before he turned into an Expandables-ish caraicature of himself. When action movies focused on followable entertainment, before The Matrix introduced the era of cookie cutter CGI where your brain automatically tunes out after five minutes.

Filled from start to finish with witty and funny dialogue. From the pizza-line to welcome to welcome the party. And of course the infamous yippikayay-line. Uttered by Bruce Willis as a joke, thinking it would never make it to the final cut. It ended up being the signature phrase of the franchise and milked to death in the sequels. How about that?

And last but not least: the villain. The late great Alan Rickman delivers his first career making performance as the suave and ruthless gentleman robber Hans Gruber. Filling every moment on screen with equal parts charisma and menace. – Hans! Boopee! – *Bang*

Did I mention five star classic?

A Garfield Christmas Special 1987 ★★★★

What better day to watch this one.

It's a lot of fun when you know what to expect. Cheesy? Sometimes, sure. But it's the type of wholesome family that perfectly goes with the occasion.

Black Christmas 1974 ★★★★★

What better way to start than the ultimate Christmas horror. With one of the strongest feats being contrasts between the intense and the innocent. Providing some much needed relief in the process.

Cujo 1983 ★★★★

A King-adaptation to kick off the New Year. Sounds like a plan.

The combination of the main character and the slow burn is a good idea. You really get the time to let it sink in. This Saint Bernard, this sweet old slobberpuss. Under the normal run of things, he would not hurt a fly. But then he turns into this vicious killer, all because of a scenario that's very plausible at the setting of book and film. Horror in its purest form.

That said, it is a slow burn, which is no good news for the more impatient among us. So we got an infidelity subplot that's not really essential to the central storyline. But it is well told and keeps you invested. And it's a bit uncanny as well how pairings with Dee Wallace and Christopher Stone at the time always had a bit of irony to them.

When it does get going, the movie wastes no time in getting scary with the killing of Ed Lauter (aka Colonel Belt) and the type of guy you have seen before but cannot put you finger on … (fuck it, IMDB here we come... Oh, he played a racist on an episode of MASH). And holy shit, it's Deep Throat.

I also enjoyed how the emphasis is not set on the beats, but on the constant threat. Every time they stick their head out of the car, the dog can pounce and pose an ovwerwhelming threat. Which is even more amazing considering the simple trickery they used to set up this shot. Not to mention the terror at the end when the child appears to have from dehydration. I was on the edge of my seat. Who does terrorized better than Dee Wallace?

Well recommended.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 1989 ★★★★★

What should have been a worthy ending to a very entertaining trilogy.

The chemistry and banter between Ford and Connery are exhilirating and at the same time irresistible. So good I almost forgot to mention to the excellent comic relief provided by Salah and Marcus. Lost in hos own museum, huh?

Connery: I'm only as human as the next man.
Ford: I WAS the next man.

Connery: I didn't know you could fly a plane.
Ford: Fly, yes. Land, no

What keeps the movie interesting are all the little tidbits you find on rewatches. Like how the conselor Friday the 13th: a new beginning ends up bestowing the infamous fedora on our hero. And blimey, is that Alexi Sayle?

Must see, obviously.

Raiders of the Lost Ark 1981 ★★★★½

An amazing introduction to one of the all time greats when it comes to epic heroes. One of the standards for action comedy blockbuster entertainment.

Equal doses of thrills, laughes and occsional scares - I consider the melting Nazi's as my first horror moment - with Harrison Ford on top of his game. Surrounded by a well rounded out cast with great roles by Karen Allen as Marion. Or why not mention Ronald Lacey? Sure, you can say that this portrayal of Gestapo-officers is clichéd by now, but Lacey succeeds in the main thing: making Toth look scary.

Perfect for a night of wholesome entertainment.

We watched this on Christmas Day and You are right...***** all the way, one of the best. I would like to have seen John give Hans a sucker punch to make him let go of Holly, but that's a minor quibble.

TRESPASS (1992). Two Arkansas firefighters are given a homemade map showing the location of gold in East St Louis and decide to get a hold of, not knowing they will end up in a definitely "wrong Place, Wrong Time" scenario; indeed his could almost be a "gangsta" version of THREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE. Some good performances (mostly by the late and still missed Bill Paxton) but a little too long . ***

The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977)

The 4th Moreau movie for me, I must say I am starting to see the patterns and what is being added to the movies from the original story. H.G. Wells was a great writer, and this must be one of my favorite stories of his.

JEREMY (1973)>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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When I was a pre-teen, my Mother and her friends all raved about LOVE STORY and how sad it was. I saw it in the Spring of '74 and thought it was OK, but couldn't really identify with Ryan O'Neil/Ali Magraw and found them more annoying than anything else.

JEREMY is a love story, but is set in a high school and appealed more to Me as the characters were sort of in my age range. Robbie Benson is good as the painfully shy awkward sophomore who meets and falls in love with the new student (Glynnis O'Connor is quite captivating-in fact, She and Robbie became a couple during filming). Things are going good, but , of course, a major SNAFU comes in.....

While I still like this, it's filmed almost as a documentary and many of Jeremy's intimates are truly no help during a time when He could really use it (I got the Paperback of this shortly after seeing the film and not as bad). Also, the bad news is revealed to Us before Jeremy and it's not as powerful as it is in the book. And, it seems everything is wrapped up way too fast ; maybe this was meant to make You feel more empathy for Jeremy, of how his life is being changed drastically and He unable to do anything. A almost haunting last shot.

So, hasn't;t really aged well, but for those who remember first loves, it's worth seeing. **1/2

HOUSE OF SEVEN CORPSES (1973). The big draw here is seeing old vets Faith Domergue (IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA, THIS ISLAND EARTH and still looking good), John Carradine and John Ireland. Unfortunately, You have to plow almost through an hour of a "Film Within A Film" with a group of annoying types before problems from beyond the grave show up and cause havoc. Very much like CHILDREN SHOULDN"T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS, but not as satisfying a finish. **

Congrats on completing the quadfecta! Was The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977)
worthwhile? So, how would you rank them?

COFFY (1973). Pam Grier deservedly became a star with this exploitation classic. She plays "Nurse Coffin" whose younger sister has had devastating life ruining experiences with drugs, so Pam decides to use all the weapons at her disposal to wipe out the whole drug group. mainly using her wits, her cunning, her physicality and her ultra bodaciousness to achieve that. Good cast with Sid Haig, the recently departed Linda Haynes (who learns the hard way not to grab hair during a cat fight), Robert Doqui and Alan Arbus, whose character here is as far removed from Dr Sidney Freeman (TV's MASH) as You could imagine. Lots of outrageous scenes-what an opener-, although one involving the death of a bad guy is quite shocking-even during this time-especially how 15 years after COFFY, it was done for real in Texas, although I couldn't picture the miscreants who did the crime watching a film like COFFY. ***1/2

Midnight Run 1988 ★★★★

A very enjoyable buddy comedy in the line of Beverly Hills Cop.

De Niro can do good comedies – you would tend to forget that after his more recent comedy productions – and he and Charles Grodin have good chemistry.

The action moves along at a solid pace, the jokes work – I like the banter between De Niro and Kotto – and the delivery is very good. The actors make it work

And last but not least plenty of recognizable faces like Dennis Farina and John Ashton.

Good stuff for fans of eighties flicks.

Martin 1977 ★★★½

Martin is a bit of a mean spirited horror from the late George Romero.

At the start, Martin goes to live with his uncle, a god fearing loon who sticks with his delusions, even thugh Martin at two occasions shows him how this is nonsense (It's just a costume). He keeps thinking that Martin is some kind of demon and at one point even has an attempt at an exorcism. An attitude that leads to Martin's sad demise.

Not that he is entirely wrong, mind you. Martin is indeed a deeply disturbed little boy and there are a lot of things wrong with him. Thus providing nature vs nurture material. How much of this insanity came by nature and how much of it was nurture? Because, as we can tell from the flashbacks, the way he was raised did not help either. He is socially inept and nearly incapable of expressing his emotions or having a fluent conversation. Which oddly lands him the attention of a woman who is sick of all the superficial and unwanted opinions floating around in daily life.

This brings me to the oddest things: his views on sex. Sometimes, he comes across as asexual and at others, you're not really sure what he really wants. I'm pretty sure he himself does not even know what he wants or what gets him off. At the start of the film, he murders a woman in a creepy scene, to then feel some disturbing form of intimacy when he cuddles with the naked corpse. Only to then methodically remove all traces from the scene of the crime. While he may be disturbed, Martin is also disturbingly methodical in his method of killing. He is not chaotic crazy and knows what he is doing.

As mentioned before, a mean spirited little horror with (hardly) anyone to root for. The most “fun” comes from seeing a young (and moustacheless) Tom Savini and perhaps from Martin's odd phone calls with a local talk radio host.

For people who like their horror a bit more outside the mainstream lines.

The Running Man 1987 ★★★★★

My personal favorite Schwarzenegger movie.

An interesting concept, certainly when it came out. Nowadays... well, there are no shows that actually kill people, but the level of exploitation might come closer than we all like to admit.

Highly entertaining and excellently paced action. From the first scene, you are tied to the rollercoaster for a great ride.

Cameos by both Mick Fleetwood and Dweezil Zappa. You guys wanna buy a hot stereo?

And last but not least: Arnold at his most Arnold. Amazing fightscenes and oneliners galore.

Great stuff.

TRM is a great little film, certainly an entertaining one. I love all the great one liners..."What a Hothead!" and "He had to split" are favorites and cool seeing Professor Tour Tananka , one of the best Pro wrestling "heels" in here. I would give this ****.

Some good observations on MARTIN...I think it's one of Romero's best. Very creepy and intriguing how it's never determined just what is going on with Martin. I'm leaning more toward what You said...He does know what He is doing...watching him prep and clean up reminded me very much of the TV show DEXTER. John Amplas is very good and was ultra cool when my wife and I met him at HORRORFIND. I'd give MARTIN ****1/2


THE CANDY SNATCHERS (1973)>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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Another extremely mean spirited exploitation drive-in flick that is pretty damn good all the same. A Brother/Sister and their friend kidnap a teenager, (Candy) stuff her in a shallow grave with a limited survival potential and drop off blackmail instructions to her wealthy father who does.....nothing. The one thing that struck me in this is what SHITS just about everybody in here is. The other plot device is the kidnappers are seen burying the girl and observed by a little boy, who I got the impression is autistic. His parents are no bargain, especially his mother, who seems to dwell more on what He's doing wrong than anything else. Quite suspenseful in parts with a somewhat grim wrap-up.
I knew of Tiffany Bolloing, who is pretty good in her, but I've heard she HATES TCS, claiming it "ruined" her career. And in the "Life is stranger than fiction" are Susan Sennett (as Candy-she was also in the racy BIG BAD MAMA and on the ultra wholesome TV series OZZIE"s GIRLS with Brenda Sykes) married Graham Nash of The Hollies and CSN while Phyllis Major who is the "assistant" to the father was married to Jackson Browne for a year or so before committing suicide. ****

Here's Sub Zero. Now... plain zero! ::big grin::

Did not know he was a wrestler. Thanks for that little nugget. Did he and Jesse Ventura ever have a match together?

Did not see the parrallel with Dexter, but I can see what you mean.

Martin reminded on something I once read on serial killers either being super organized and methodical or very impulsive and for a lack of a better word, chaotic.

It's certainly a very good horror, but I cannot bring myself to rate it over the original Dead-trilogy.

Skimmed this one (so no spoilers yet ::wink:: ) and it gives me an excuse to head over to plex some time soon. Thanks for the heads up.

Here's more info for You, TJ::smile::
I started getting into Pro Wrestling when I was 9 out in the an Francisco Area and about a year later started reading the magazines (I preferred the Weston Mags, like THE WRESTLER and INSIDE WRESTLING, whose covers always featured some poor slob with a blood drenched face on the cover, usually Bobby Heenan). My first one had an article on the feud between Tananka and Pedro Morales and later on, The Prof held the WWWF tag team title with Mr Fuji. To the best of my knowledge, He and Jesse never locked horns in the ring, although both of them are in TRM.

I would rate the DEAD films higher than MARTIN as well, but it and KNIGHTRIDERS are Romero films I quite like.

You're welcome about THE CANDY SNATCHERS...pretty rough, but kept Me interested for sure.

BLACK MAMA, WHITE MAMA (1972). AIP Women In Prison (WIP) film shot in the Philippines. Two prisoners ; one a Prostitute (Pam Grier) wants to escape with extorted money from her pimp and the other a Revolutionary (Blonde Margaret Markov) cause enough problems at their prison to warrant being sent to a Maximum Security Pen handcuffed together until they manage to escape, but a big problem has them handcuffed together, with different agendas and having complete dislike for one another.

This probably sounds a lot to You as very similar to THE DEFIANT ONES, which it certainly is, but of course, a friendship or at least an understanding builds. Some off the wall moments (How a dog is thrown off their trail, A Prison Matron doing more than just watching Women prisoners in the shower, cheesy dialogue) and another great turn by Sid Haig, who chews the scenery with gusto. Oddly enough, with a big mustache and a Cowboy hat, He looks a lot like Jim Croce! ***

I sent the last review without consulting my notes...I noticed a "X-Rated" Horoscope poster in the Pool Hall scene that I had when I moved into my first apartment. it's a pink color with "interesting" poses for whatever sign is being highlighted.

What a coincidence! Sounds interesting. Probably a collectors item.

Phase IV (1974)
5/10

A sci-fi story about outsmarting evolving ants.

This film's story is a bit slow and plodding with shallow characters. It has a rather surfacy commitment to the sci-fi, in that there's science equipment applied to observing and interacting with the ants, but it's lacking in detail and follow up with any topic presented. There's an implied chess match between the human group and ants; and if the story had dove into that with some detail and suspense, the theme and sets could have provided for a nifty sci-fi thriller, but there was no such devotion.

There's some nice closeup, micro photography of ants, and some artful cinematography.

I was totally into it when it was on tv here towards the end of Hulkamania. I remember Heenan and Fuji from that time, both as managers.

By the time the attitude era came around, I had moved on to other things in life, but over the past years, I got into YT channels like Whatculture Wrestling and the OSW review podcast.

Have you seen The Amusement Park?

Pam Grier and Captain Spaulding in the same movie? ::cool::

I loved the Wrestling in the San Francisco era, then Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling in Norfolk Va, then while living in Panama Canal Zone, the TV stations would show WRESTLING FROM THE OLYMPIC (older matches, I believe filmed in Los Angeles CA) and later WWWF matches when Vince MacMahon was a color commentator. When I moved to Chicago IL, would tune in occasionally but sort of lost interest until the mid 80's when the WWF was all over, really enjoying THE BIG EVENT on TV. I sort of lost interest again after WRESTLEMANIA 4 as the story lines were getting too silly.

I never even heard of THE AMUSEMENT PARK and THANK YOU for pointing it out. I glanced on Wiki and saw lots of familiar names in the Romero canon and will have to give it a look.

Yeah, Pam and Captain Spaulding together...two of may favorites.


SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT (1984).>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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I've written less than kind remarks on this infamous slasher about a killer Santa Claus which ruffled all kinds of feathers during release with parents worried how children might react to children seeing a "Killer" Santa Claus on TV commercials, probably not remembering how Santa has portrayed as homicidally minded in other films, namely TALES FROM THE CRYPT. While it's not anything I would show to a child who still believes in SC, it's aged pretty well and a decent back story of how Billy is led down his sad path. Being scared shitless by his Grandfather, then the extremely nasty murder of both his parents (especially Tara Buckman almost raped and then slit) and the draconian corporal punishment dished out by The Mother Superior in the orphanage...the poor kid never had a chance! What is sad is MS (well played by Lily Chauvin-who is also in 1960's BLOODLUST) probably feels she is doing the right thing, despite the helpless disapproval from her assistant (well played by Gilmer McCormick, who was also in GODSPELL). So, not great by any means, but better than I remembered. ***

THE CAT CREATURE (1973). TV movie that tries to be an homage of sorts to the Val Lewton CAT films of the 40's, even with Kent Smith of both of the films appearing briefly. A amulet is taken from a mummy leading to mysterious goings on, mostly around an antique shop. Pretty good cast with David Hedison (VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA), Meredith Baxter Birney (FAMILY TIES) and most impressively Gail Sondergaard (lots of 30's-40's films before being blacklisted), who really takes the honors here. It's very heavily implied She may have Lesbian tendencies, but that couldn't really be focused on in the early 70's. Script could be better-apparently time issues, so there had to be some taking out than adding in and honestly, a silly ending. Ok, but not much more. **1/2

Moon of the Wolf 1972 ★★★

If you want to be mean, you can find ways to scoff at this flick. And it's certainly no gamechanger.

But you can you enjoy it for what it is: 1/3 tv movie melodrama, 1/3 whodunnit and 1/3 werewolf sauce for some added flavor. Nothing special, but a good pace, okay storytelling and a good cast. A lot of faces that look familiar somehow, but you cannot quite put your finger on where you know them from.

For who is this? Honestly, I don't know. This may be a (early) seventies movie, but the overall feel is more sexties, if not fifties. And the werewolf make-up even goes back to Lon Chainey's version of The Wolf Man. Conclusion: Something for an evening when you need something a little more lightweight.

The Thing 1982 ★★★★★

The infamous scenes with Doc and the blood test are so intense I kind of forgot about the first outing of the thing in the kennel. Holy crap.

Madman 1981 ★★

Uninspired slasher. Annoying characters. Mostly weak sauce kills.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 1984 ★★★★★

When you notice all the details, you really understand why this is a five star classic.

Dracula 1974 ★★★

Time for a take on one of the classics to wrap up this extra long month. February XL, lol.

In this one, Jack Palance takes on the role of Dracula. Let's get the obvious out of the way first. No, he does not have Lugosi's charisma and he does not have to. He does however bring something new to the table.

In what seems like the spirit of seventies action, this Dracula is less a classic aristocrat vampire and more like a general Bond villain, henchmen and all. In the process also turning Dracula into a bit of a bully as well. What with the way he treats Renfield at the start.

But Palance is okay as Dracula and Von Helsing and Arthur were okay as well. And at least, they filled the one gap left by the original masterpiece. Here, Dracula gets the epic death scene a character of his status deserves.

HONKY (1971). With this kind of title, You would consider this to be more of a "Blaxploitation" film, but it's more of a love story/ character analysis/road trip/ unforseen events. Lower middle Class White Boy (John nelson, later in SHARKS TREASURE) spots lovely affluent Soil Sister Brenda Sykes getting high at a Pep rally and a romance develops. Other than the usual problems of a romance during that time are their respective backgrounds; Brenda's family comes from wealth (Her Dad is William Marshall, BLACULA himself!), but she seems to want to deal drugs and rebel from that. John's family are pure Archie Bunker types and it's almost beyond surreal to hear Marion Ross (as his mother) use an ethnic slur. All kinds of events happen and it gets quite gritty towards the end, but not much of a wrap-up. I was interested, but felt it could have finished with more style. **1/2

YOUNG DOCTORS IN LOVE (1982). Screwball comedy that is a parody of TV Soap Operas dealing with medicine like GENERAL HOSPITAL; in fact, quite a few cast members of GH make cameos like Jackie Zeman, Kin Shriner (A girl I dated before Mrs FD told Me I looked like his character::confused::) and I believe Demi Moore's first film. Good cast with Dabney Coleman, Michael McKean, Sean Young and others. It has the aura of just throwing every gag at the wall to see what will stick. A lot of duds, but a lot more that hit the mark and I must say I found this quite entertaining. ***1/2

THE SHINING 1980 - It's a reinterpretation of the "Dies Irae" from Hector Berlioz's "Symphonie fantastique". The story that the symphony tells is one of unrequited love and its emotional extremes. By this point, the protagonist has accepted that his feelings for the object of his affection will never be reciprocated. He's attempted to commit suicide via opium overdose, but the amount he took wasn't strong enough to kill him. While under the effects of opium, he experiences a manic fever dream where he has killed his beloved, has been executed, and is now in Hell witnessing a witches' sabbath.

DAY OF THE ANIMALS (1977)>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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Another "Nature Strikes Back" film that the 70's were so full of, DOTA concerns a group of people being heliported to a high area in the mountains to hike down and live off the land. Right from the start, the local animal population is acting strangely aggressive and turns the trip into one of terror.

Lots of stock characters (The stoic Guide, the newscaster, young lovers, squabbling spouses, divorced mom with kid etc) and the explanation of why it's happening is sort of pat, but lots of cool actors, very good cinema photography, better than expected animal footage and an absolutely wild turn by Leslie Nielsen whose character is SUCH an asshole; You'll be astounded by his final scene. Also for trivia types, the squabbling wife is played by Susan Backline, a stuntwomen who was the first victim in JAWS and the same pattern happens here as well. ***

MANIAC COP (1988). New York City is on edge by a string of gruesome slaying and it seems the perpetrator is a Policeman, causing all sorts of misunderstangs and lack of trust. A group of disparate characters try to find out what's going on. While I wasn't expecting a top notch flick, MC really isn't bad at all and some humor that for once, doesn't impede the story. Some good performances by Tom Atkins, Bruce Campbell and a standout turn by Sheree North as a handicapped embittered policewoman. ***

OF MICE AND MEN (1981).>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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TV version of the Steinbeck book with Robert Blake as George and Randy Quaid as Lennie. While it's hard to picture "Baretta" as George, Blake does a decent job, only getting cross with Lenny a couple of times, as compared to the book with him losing patience frequently. One thing I did like about this version is more scenes involving the men at work, showing how big the area is and how much hustling would be involved. Good casting with Mitchell Ryan as "Slim", Cassie Yates (very affecting as Mae, Curley's wife), Pat Hingle as the Boss, Whitman Mayo-Grady himself from SANFORD AND SON-as Crooks) and Lew Ayres as Candy. And although it seems an odd choice, casting Ted Neely (JC himself from Jesus Christ SUPERSTAR) is not the dud You might think. Neely is good, but his Curley is just a horrible bullying asshole, even more than in the book.

While there are good things here, there are scenes included that were not in the book and serve no purpose. Right at the beginning as our two guys are fleeing from the Lynch mob, they go visit Lennie's Aunt Clara (dead in the book). George leaves Lenny there, but comes back for him-no purpose for this scene as well as George beginning to tell Slim how Lenny got them in trouble at a crowded dinner table, no less.. Some parts seem to be rushed over, such as in Crook's cabin and some that really aren't needed.

A lot to commend, but a missed opportunity. **1/2

SUMMER RENTAL (1985). A burned out Air Traffic controller takes his family to Florida for some summer long R&R and the usual SNAFUS occur. John Candy is as engaging as He usually was and good support from Rip Torn and Richard Crenna as the rich snob. SR tries hard, but feels forced throughout and I hate the scene where in an attempt to lighten the load in a boating event, a lot of garbage is tossed overboard. In an odd aside, it seems the following years much funnier ONE CRAZY SUMMER took quite a bit from this. **

Escape from New York 1981 ★★★★½

The master Carpenter at work in this dystopian sci-fi action romp. With a bit of imagery that will probably have some audiences squirmish in the 2000s. Also, Doctor Loomis is now president of the United States. Carpenter went there.

So the story is the template for a lot of dystopian sci-fi action flicks. Anything from Mad Max to Army of the dead if somehow indebted to Escape from NY. So in the near future, Manhattan becomes a giant prison where they somehow manage to capture the president (don't ask) and his only hope is Snake Plisskin, a convicted felon played by Kurt Russell. Russel oozes so much machismo and badassery here that it made me wonder why he was never considered for the Expandables-franchise.

Carpenter turns this into a super entertaining rollercoaster ride with plenty of because of course he does-moments

Plisskin landing on the roof of the World Trade Centre tower (the one where they put all the jerks)
Plisskin stopping just at the edge of the roof
a ring fight where Plisskin kills a huge bald fella with a beard
Plisskin being coerced into the plot with a bomb in his body

Needless to say, the entire cast is on point. Ernest Borgnine as Cabbie, Carpenter regular Adrienne Barbeau, Harry Dean Stanton, Lee Van Cleef, Isaac Hayes, Harry Dean Stanton, Tom Adkins,... And of course Kurt Russell as the shining star. They all know what their job is and they do it excellently.

If you are a fan of action and sci-fi and you have not seen this one yet, look out for it.

A Clockwork Orange 1971 ★★★★

I love this one.

A surreal, dystopian take on society in a near future. Looks like something Black Mirror would take a cue from.

I always enjoy hearing the language and the inflections in this one. Always manages to give it an extra cachet. The visual style makes it all the more thrilling, thus providing inspiration for thrill rides like Trainspotting and Natural Born Killers.

Also interesting how Alex at first is not deterred by the violence, but it's more the presence of Beethoven getting to him.

From reading other reviews, it would appear that the movie in fact has a bleaker ending than the novel. Making me want to read the latter.

A clockwork orange. Timeless masterpiece.

Day of the Dead 1985 ★★★★★

Is Bub the most layered zombie performance in movie history?

Good overview of ACO-while the violence seems to be the main point of contention, at this point of time, it appears more staged (particularly the "Surprise Visit") and nothing like the bloodbaths that followed in its wake.

One thing not really mentioned is the humor, particularly Alex's treatment of Dim, Alex's whining at his parents and particularly, his "rescue" from the Police-His reaction is priceless as is the use of the word "Well"


WELCOME TO ARROW BEACH (1974). A Hippie girl (Meg Foster-those lovely eyes) becomes acquainted with a guy who lives nearby with his sister and at first, it seems to be nothing more than hospitality. Of course, things are not always as they appear..
This was Laurence Harvey's last film acting and directing, while being ill with cancer. It's more disturbing than anything else-one wonders what exactly is going on between Laurence and his lovely sister, JoAnna Pettit and not much goo, although there is a pretty nasty sendoff, filmed in a different fashion than You would expect. Some name performers help out and WTAB is worth a watch. ***

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers 1988 ★★½

Perhaps the first of the "diminishing returns" but still a fun watch with a young Danielle Harris, a few fun kills and rescue coming from drunk rednecks. Whou woulda thunk it?

Magnificent Warriors 1987 ★★★½

A very entertaining 80s action flick. Looks pretty Hollywood with captivating, fast paced fight scenes and humour reminiscent of Hollywood action flicks.

Last but not least: Michelle Yeoh makes for a great action lead and the comic relief is at least better than Joe Pesci in the Lethal Weapon-sequels.

The Horror at 37,000 Feet 1973 ★★★★

Maybe it's the special effects, or the setting or the fact that it was made as a TV movie, but this felt like a precursor to The Langoliers.

That said, it was quite well made and I liked the pace and the cast. Chuck Connors stars as the gruff pilot who for some reason does not slap anyone over the course of this film.

Funnily enough, for later generations the bigger star in this movie would be William Shatner. Even though... his... delivery here... is very... un... Shatner. Also drunk bitter priest William Shatner is a-ma(!)zing. That alone is worth the price of admission, not to mention his bickering with his wife Rosemary (yeah, she has a different name, but I'm calling her Rosemary; you'll see why). Also fun to see Paul Winfield as posh doctor. Or the man who went on to play Jeremiah Smith as one of the leads.

Very entertaining and well made for tv movie means. And it's on Youtube.

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Good call on the humor. I kind of like the more darkish humor that Kubrick shows here.

For me, the visual presentation (the sets, the costumes, the language register,...) is key here. It makes everything else (the violence, the brutality, the whininess,...) look more cool than it actually is. We are supposed to feel sorry for Alex because of his screams during the treatment, but once you look past the surface level, you immediately realise he is not learning anything.

If anything, it's as effective as the anti swearing chip from the South Park movie.

But, He's "...cured, all right". You are right about the visuals-so stunning and the first shot of Alex would make a great poster.

THE SEDUCTION (1982). Pretty good (and somewhat frightening) look of celebrity fandom that can turn quickly into stalking, although not as much attention paid to it back then. Lovely Morgan Fairchild seems to have it all...a plum job as a News Anchor, a smoking house with a swimming pool (where You are treated to nude swims::love::) and a devoted boyfriend (Michael Sarrazin). However, She also has an admirer (Andrew Stevens looking smarmy) who doesn't seem to know about too much attention can backfire, and it seems there's nothing g the police can do. TS remains a compelling view, although the wrap-up is somewhat preposterous. ***

D.A.R.Y.L (1985). A Young boy is adopted by a young couple while awaiting to see if his real parents show up. It turns out there is more to him then being exceptionally gifted. While this is a little too cutesy in the first half, it gets pretty good after that with some good FX and funny moments. It didn't deserve its fate of being all but unknown, although being released in the middle of FIRST BLOOD 2:RAMBO and B. certainly didn't help it. BACK TO THE FUTURE **1/2