Night School

Night School (1981)

Runtime: 90 minutes

Directed by: Ken Hughes

Starring: Rachel Ward, Leonard Mann, Drew Snyder, Joseph R. Sicari, Karen MacDonald

From: Lorimar

So, this was a DVR recording made from a recent Turner Classic Movies showing! I recall them also showing it late at night long ago; this latest screening was during a late night of horror, after The Haunting and the blaxploitation film Sugar Hill-both seen by me & reviewed years ago. Night School I’d heard of but never partaken in until last night. Of interest to me was not just it being the film debut of Rachel Ward, a lovely lady… the film is also a giallo-style slasher set & filmed in Boston complete w/ killer adorned in black (including motorcycle helmet) who rides a dirt bike.

The killings happen via a kukri blade; for those that haven’t seen something like Forged in Fire, it’s a curved knife used for centuries in South Asia. Is that a hint or was it chosen for aesthetic reasons? The targets are those that go to the titular night school, a women’s college. Ward is an exchange student so she speaks w/ her native accent.

The film is largely what I expected… red herrings included. There’s someone who is best described as “Temu Willem Dafoe.” Is that pervert more than a red herring? The film is not for those who want to see those decapitations in graphic detail; only the severed heads are shown. There’s also an anthropology professor who of course is sleazy and has affairs. Speaking of sleaze, this film has it-including nudity and a shower scene.

Leonard Mann portrays a police officer investigating these slayings; some will think he’s an ACAB due to some unethical behavior. The only other name of note in the cast is Drew Snyder; he’s a “that guy” sort of actor who I best known (at least to me) for being gunned down in the opening of Commando while taking out the trash. 

The film is not a true giallo; the denouement is not a convoluted affair that the viewer likely doesn't fully comprehend. The film isn’t the most thrilling nor the most exciting horror effort. Then again, it wasn’t the point to be a dopey teen slasher-rather, it tries to be a more serious thriller, complete with several quality suspense scenes. 

Be that as it may, I was always interested in this tale due to the solid filmmaking, the electronic moments from the soundtrack by Brad Fiedel, and the amusing detail that this was the final movie from the guy that gave us Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, one of the many that set in the director’s chair for the ’67 Casino Royale, and other serious British films (Ken Hughes). The Boston setting was nice, as was the short vehicle chase in the final act. The film’s a good curio that does stand out especially when compared to the cheap slashers of the time.

TRON: Ares

TRON: Ares (2025)

53% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 221 reviews)

Runtime: 119 minutes

Directed by: Joachim Ronning

Starring: Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Jodie Turner-Smith, and Jeff Bridges… for a few minutes

From: Disney

You know, many modern movies just aren't for me... especially the blockbusters. That's why most of them aren't even viewed by me. For years now, I typically rate modern cinema lower than the majority of Letterboxd users. While it does sting that I'm incapable of enjoying the new stuff, at least there's a lot of fun in visiting or revisiting the films of the past—those are typically to my tastes anyhow.

That applies to TRON. I'm an old man in my mid-40's (my profile pic is from long ago) w/ gray hair; a nerdy tale from the 80's featuring a simple yet effective plot, actual computer jargon and amazing period effects would of course be a good time. TRON: Legacy on the other hand... as great as it looked and as neat as the Daft Punk soundtrack was, the story and characters were just rotten so it will never be beloved by me. Ares, the look and soundtrack were even better—shame that the story and characters were even worse!

The whole “Jared Leto” thing doesn't even factor into my rating. Him as a person is rather questionable, at best. Look up the stories about the CULT he apparently has! Him as an actor isn't as much a turn-off as it is for many; at the same time, to echo the thoughts of others, he's never been a box office draw so it's rather curious that they brought back a cult franchise & spent a lot of money for the budget, and somehow he'll make it not flop at the box office?! No one should have been surprised at the returns. I know he was attached to the project for years as a producer, but he wasn't a draw back then either.

I didn't hate him as the title character. What I DID hate: the utterly nonsense plot which pays lip service to the idea of AI & our future yet the story is about an insufferable caricature of a tech CEO who is allowed to cause much havoc and is a massive buffoon as he attempts to bring digital constructs to reality before ENCOM does. Of course there are plenty of buffoon CEO's IRL (none of whom will be named by me; I don't want to stir up that drama) but Julian Dillinger reminds me how awful most villains are written in these modern times-even worse is that he's related to a key character from the OG film & that OG character wasn't a jackass and was an actual credible threat for our heroes to face.

The predictability of the plot isn't necessarily a demerit, speaking generally. However, I was never given a reason to care about too many of the characters-whether it was the actual credible antagonist nor even the lead portrayed by Greta Lee. The reader likely won't be surprised that the odious “comic” relief character Seth was one where not even a smile was cracked by me at his idiocy. Another problem with the movies today: unneeded “comedy.” A third issue: on-the-nose dialogue. Ares is full of that as well.

It stinks that the movie was an empty spectacle; the aesthetics were great, especially if you got to see the Dolby Cinema 3D version like I did. The digital worlds were stunning-you can probably surmise which one thrilled me the most. The NIN score was awesome; there are many different genres through the decades that are neat-that includes Nine Inch Nails in general. That helped keep my interest in a lame story. Evidently, in the digital world Ares resides in, Depeche Mode and Mozart are a thing. Mode, I know a few songs besides the radio hits; they're cool.

I also had to entertain myself by chuckling at such moments as spotting a supporting character who looked quite a bit like Lily Collins. As I had no problem with Sarah Desjardnis nor her performance in her small role, no sarcastic comments will be made concerning who she resembles.

As I have to proclaim often now, I'm glad people like something modern more than I did. It even received a passing grade from someone I know on a messageboard... he's a huge TRON fan and loves the first two films. He wanted a third installment so bad-but Jared Leto is one of his least-favorites. It's like he wished on a Monkey's Paw! He liked rather than loved Ares—the character and the film.

Nosferatu in Venice

Nosferatu in Venice (Nosferatu a Venezia) (1988)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: Multiple people, as I explain below

Starring: Real-life villain Klaus Kinski, Donald Pleasence, Christopher Plummer, several attractive European women

From: Scena Film/Reteitalia

A review done by request… made last year. When I reviewed 1979’s Nosferatu the Vampyre, more than one mutual wanted me to see its pseudo-sequel. Once you hear the details of its disastrous production and real-life villain Klaus Kinski’s behavior which included alleged sexual assaults… my hesitancy in viewing such a movie is hopefully palpable for the reader. Note that these assaults bear no impact on my rating.

As there was no good reason to turn down a request made by multiple people, the stake was finally driven into its heart, metaphorically speaking. Nosferatu devastated the city w/ a plague in 1786; a princess (who of course is a spitting image of the title character’s lost-lost love) invites professor Christopher Plummer to the city as she feels his tomb is nearby. It is-the infernal beast is awakened after a séance, carnage happens, etc.

The movie itself is an absolute mess. After reading about the production hell on Wikipedia, it should be a blessing that I found what was on screen to be “bad” instead of “catastrophe.” This had several directors:

Maurizio Lucidi
Pasquale Squitieri
Mario Caiano
The producer of the film, Augusto Caminito
Kinski himself

Furthermore, I was amused to hear that low-budget cult hero Luigi Cozzi was a second-unit director. I was not amused reading about Kinski’s behavior on set. He was relatively well-behaved while filming Nosferatu the Vampyre… not here. He didn’t shave his head or apply the makeup he were in the ’79 film. He didn’t follow the script and just did whatever he wanted to. He convinced the producers to fire the original actress for the Maria character (Amanda Sandrelli) and instead he wanted the girlfriend of supporting actor Yorgos Voyagis in the role-that’s why it was the only time Anne Knecht ever acted. She appears nude and makes out with Ol’ Klaus. I can only imagine how Voyagis felt about that.

Then, there was his assaulting both female lead Barbara De Rossi and supporting actress Elvire Audray; those details are too nauseating to mention-I can bring up that part of these attacks ARE ON CAMERA. Yes, they put it IN THE MOVIE. Whether or not I (or anyone else, for that matter) should automatically rate the film at ½ star or a star for this can be debated. I found the movie to be bad for other reasons.

Due to the production hell, at least part of the script was not filmed. No wonder the movie makes little sense, there’s plenty of Kinski just wandering around (for certain, I’ve heard those were the scenes directed by Klaus himself), the film is both ponderous & boring, and Plummer’s character just comes across as an incompetent blockhead. Even better, the title creature is a “vampire” that among other things can walk around in daylight and can see its reflection in a mirror. If it was just an evil being, that wouldn’t make the picture any better, mind you.

I’m glad others enjoy the film more than me. There is nice cinematography, and sometimes “Gothic dread,” to borrow a phrase from a mutual. Furthermore, the Luigi Ceccarelli is nice-until I learned that it was a rather blatant rip-off of the 1985 Vangelis album Mask, explaining the ending credit that the score was “inspired” by the album. Why not add more chaos into the maelstrom that was the making then release of Nosferatu in Venice? Donald Pleasence is also in the film; he doesn’t actually do much aside from yelling often and… snacking on food. No, really.

No hate on those that do rate Venice higher (or quite a bit higher) than me. Those that would want to view this in the future, it’s a personal decision if the star and their abhorrent behavior on set is a deal-breaker for you. It wasn’t a deal-breaker for producer Augusto Caminito; he worked with Kinski on the last two movies of his life before passing away in ’91, if you can believe it.

Manhattan Murder Mystery

Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)

Runtime: 107 minutes

Directed by: Woody Allen

Starring: Allen, Diane Keaton (RIP), Alan Alda, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Adler

From: TriStar

RIP Diane Keaton

The announcement of her death yesterday and the subsequent outpouring of love online made me realize that it’d be a mistake to not tip my hat to her as soon as possible. Others have seen her in more films than I—that said, there is regret that in my reviews of the first two Godfather films, I didn’t spotlight her and how she made the Kay character important to the story told in those two all-timers, especially when I always thought she did a swell job. Even with what relatively little I’ve peeped, she was adept at both drama and comedy.

Manhattan Murder Mystery was selected as it was new to me & is popular. I always feel obliged to do w/ the director when reviewing his films the past several years… the allegations against Woody Allen are quite serious & nauseating. However, there have been plenty of bad people in this particular field of entertainment and I can separate the art from the artist. It’s a shame he’s an alleged predator who allegedly has harmed people but I’ll say no more about it in this review.

In terms of making movies, Allen is great at it. Get this, he and Keaton are a married couple living in an NYC apartment. One night they meet neighbors Paul and Lillian, an older pair like them; the next day Lillian is dead via heart attack. Keaton and their pal Alan Alda think that Paul murdered his wife. They become obsessed over Paul & his behavior, while Woody is maddened over her behavior.

I viewed this film as prescient concerning the topic of true crime. I listen to a podcast or two about it but am not obsessed about it like some are. Unfortunately, there’s a percentage that have a dangerous obsession where they attempt to connect clues together and accuse innocent people (including spouses) of murder and other heinous crimes. Of course Larry the book editor at HarperCollins would be upset that his wife Carol would break into Paul’s apartment, among other questionable behavior, nevermind that he’s the typical nebbish Woody character.

Manhattan Murder Mystery was quite delightful. There are clues along the way that suggest Paul did kill his wife Lillian; whether Larry or Carol is right in this scenario is in doubt for awhile. There are hysterical moments and lines of dialogue from beginning to end, buttressed by solid filmmaking and (naturally for Allen) a soundtrack full of 30’s music. This was the last time Allen and Keaton worked together; her part was originally written for Mia Farrow but they broke up and well, that turned ugly and it was the start of various allegations coming out against Woody.

The cast all did a nice job; I have to note Anjelica Huston in her small but critical role and for one scene, a teenage Zach Braff appears as the college-age son of our leads. Yes, I’ve heard rumors about his behavior on the set of Garden State… I wasn’t familiar w/ Jerry Adler (who just passed away in late August) but he was swell as Paul.

Manhattan Murder Mystery was a nice way to pay tribute to the late Diane Keaton-she was quite amusing in her role. The film also is a nice tribute to the film noir genre; among other things, a clip from Double Indemnity is shown and another famous noir is gently spoofed during the climax.

Hour of the Wolf

Hour of the Wolf (Vargtimmen) (1968)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Ingmar Bergman

Starring: Max von Sydow, Liv Ullmann, Gertrud Fridh, Georg Rydeberg, Ingrid Thulin

From: A few different Swedish companies

This should be the most artsy-fartsy movie on my Spooky Season list this year. In this context, I don’t use that term in a derogatory fashion. The average rating for the Ingmar Bergman movies I’ve seen is quite high; there was fascination w/ the idea of him doing one horror film. Naturally, it was of the psychological variety. Note that the film’s title is explained as the hour before dawn.

Max von Sydow is famed painter Johan, Liv Ullmann his younger wife Alma. They are on a Swedish island so he can work. Unfortunately for the both of him, he is plagued by both frightening visions and insomnia. There have been times where my mind has raced and it’s taken time for me to doze off; however, I’ve never been an insomniac. My best to those afflicted with that sleep disorder. He can’t work and it’s damaged their relationship.

The film is not solely a two-hander; weird people live in a castle on the other side of the island and well, I wouldn’t want to be invited to one of their dinner parties. It’d be a crime for me to provide specific details of what happens in the second half—except that it does pay off the story presented in the first half…. & there’s what I’ll call “a Tarantino moment.” Genre scares eventually do arrive for those that enjoy the arthouse horror movies of the past. WTF imagery appears.

Of course, w/ the talent involved (the director, the leads, the cinematography from Sven Nykvist) the expectations were high; those were met. Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann were both excellent. There are several tremendous sequences made by lighting and editing… Ulla Ryghe deserves credit herself as the editor. What a descent into madness… but am I referring to just Johan but also Alma? How self-reflective was this to Bergman’s own self-doubts as an artist? I was reminded of The Shining; like Jack Torrance, Johan Borg was troubled before he went to an isolated location w/ loved ones and a mental decline occurred.

My saying that this isn’t an all-timer like a Seventh Seal or Autumn Sonata is my acknowledgement that Bergman is one of the best to ever do it rather than insulting a very good film like Hour of the Wolf. Don’t think this is an incomprehensible, obtuse film that is inaccessible to horror fans.

One Battle After Another

One Battle After Another (2025)

95% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 376 reviews)

Runtime: This was way too darn long

Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson

Starring: Many famous faces that I wish were in something better

From: Warner Bros.

An unwelcome return of Contrarian Blair. It doesn’t happen that often but on occasion, I do have the unwelcome task of explaining why I did not like a motion picture that everyone else loves. As many eyes will be on this review, might as well mention the non sequitor that currently, there are more than 5,000 (!) accounts that follow me on Letterboxd. I’ll forever be amazed and flattered. Hopefully none are lost after this hot take…

Previous examples of outlier opinions include Mad Max: Fury Road, Mickey 17, that atrocious Suspiria remake from Luca Guadalcanal and Everything Everywhere All at Once. Battle isn’t as abominable as the new Suspiria or All at Once yet I was still floored it wasn’t even something I liked. For transparency’s sake and only mentioning some of his films I’ve checked out, Boogie Nights and There Will be Blood are masterpieces while Licorice Pizza is very good, questionable last 30 seconds aside.

Battle, though, totally missed the mark for me. I knew there was trouble right away; already, longtime readers should know what a major complaint was: vulgarity, especially the constant F-bombs. Not surprisingly, almost immediately I loathed the character w/ the preposterous name PERFIDIA BEVERLY HILLS; let me call her Perfidia Hills, because c’mon now. It’s horrible optics for a white man like me to say that I hated a Black woman character… then again, Ms. Hills was SUCH a garish stereotype that white nationalists (yes, some characters in the film fit that label) have of Black women, you might as well have had a white woman portraying the part as a blackface character!

I apologize for that comment sounding grossly offensive; I can explain why the comment is unfortunately accurate. In an early scene, she holds Sean Penn’s evil character at gunpoint and… wants him to HAVE A BONER for reasons unknown. I’m not exaggerating by saying that she was constantly uncouth and hyper-sexualized. The biggest bugaboo for me and this film: hating EVERY character. I only had slightly less disdain for Leo DiCaprio’s druggie alcoholic loser father. Benicio del Toro’s character was cool… until he I saw him slam down cans of Modelo beer while driving! Was that supposed to be an example of “humor?” I rarely laughed through the film.

By the way, I knew beforehand a character was bestowed the moniker Perfidia Beverly Hills; as goofy as that is, it doesn’t compare to Penn’s military Colonel character. He has the name STEVEN J. LOCKJAW; no lie. It’s as if he’s a Colonel in an MCU movie, that surname so preposterous & on the nose.

Was the message of the film “both the far-left and far-right are buffoons that deserved to be mocked?” I dunno, but I did not want to root for far-left terrorists, no matter the targets of their bombs or their ideology. As the focus is on Leo and his teen daughter, I don’t know what the point of it was; I do know that for the most part, I wasn’t entertained in the slightest. Penn’s character had a funny haircut and even funnier walk; otherwise… what a heavy-handed, dunderheaded look at serious topics such as immigration, “illegal aliens” and the response to protests, a movie about people of color where the lead is a dumb white guy.

All that said, a few compliments can still be given. The movie was shot in VistaVision-it does look nice & they filmed in some scenic locations. Even if may not always fit what’s on screen, I liked Jonny Greenwood’s score. It was nice seeing an actor from Road House for one scene. The reference to Gil Scott-Heron was a pleasant surprise; who knows how many of “the youth” understood it… allegedly that song played during the end credits after American Girl. I left as soon as I could after that overlong movie finally concluded!

Unlike those “popular pictures” that I loathe, at least I can comprehend why people like Battle… its politics and the director. I’m glad most people love the film (and even the crowd at the screening yesterday seemed far more into it than myself)—if only I could share in the love for One Battle After Another.