Forbidden Zone (1980)
Runtime: 75 minutes
Directed by: Richard Elfman
Starring: Performers calling themselves names such as Ugh-Fudge Bwana, Hyman Diamond & Toshiro Baloney
From: Hercules Films Ltd.
This is a movie I've seen more than once before, both in its original black and white & colorized. My main impression of this always has been, “Lord, what a strange film!” That opinion has not changed after revisiting this last night, what with its performance artist-heavy cast and actors who go by such monikers as Ugh-Fudge Bwana, Hyman Diamond & Toshiro Baloney.
The basic plot is that a family has to rescue their teen girl Frenchy from the Sixth Dimension, led by Herve Villechaize... but it's a lot more than that. It is a lot of juvenile humor, offensive moments such as blackface and insults against a trans character, low-fi paper backdrop sets and as a heavy inspiration were the 1930's era for animator Max Fleischer, that set the tone for the movie in terms of the backdrops and some of the music, which included tunes from the '30s. This includes that Alphabet Song in one scene, which was taken from the Three Stooges short Violent is the Word for Curly... but definitely modified, as the version you hear here includes F-bombs.
I know some who violently rejected this movie and I cannot fault anyone who thought this was intolerable or a bunch of rubbish. Like I said, this is more bizarre and peculiar than anything else with its rough acting (for the most part) and many surreal touches. Its style definitely carries this, along with the presence of more experienced actors like Joe Spinell, Villechaize and Susan Tyrrell, who was once nominated for an Oscar. In addition, it was nice hearing a few songs from Oingo Boingo before the band had some big hits, and it was a gas seeing Danny Elfman as Satan. To me, that stuff has always helped me get through this oddity which is full of puerile, juvenile sexual humor and many moments which will make most go, “huh?”
Friday, August 30, 2019
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
The Crazies (The Original)
Runtime: 103 minutes
Directed by: George A.
Romero
Starring: Lane Carroll,
Will MacMillan, Harold Wayne Jones, Lloyd Hollar, Lynn Lowry
From: Pittsburgh Films
I had to specify that this was the original as sometime in the next two months I'll give the 2010 remake a spin:
Earlier in the month I happened to look at an old review I did for
Night of the Living Dead; I don't usually do this as to be honest when I
look at most of my reviews after the fact I spot errors or things I'd
write differently... but because of a recent release I looked at what I
said about Romero's classic, and... besides the fact that review was
posted on August of 2016, I had also mentioned that I would be seeing
The Crazies “sometime next week”, which definitely did not happen; I
couldn't even tell you why I dun goofed there. This seemed like the
opportune time to rectify my mistake so this was finally viewed last
night.
This does seem like a riff on Living Dead, except that
it's “a biological weapon is unleashed by accident on a rural
Pennsylvania town due to a plane crash” instead of “the dead rise from
their graves after suspected radioactive contamination from a space
probe.” Infected people go absolutely berserk, but not everyone feels
the affects of this virus; thus, they are able to question how the
(typical) incompetent federal government and the military deals with
this situation. It is also like Dead in that a random group of people
have to team up to avoid the threat, but this time they are on the run
and go all over the real life town of Evans City, Pennsylvania. Not only
do they bicker with each other, so do the authorities on how to handle
this situation.
The movie is a low-budget affair and is full of locals from the area, some of whom are not what you'd call “good actors”, to be brutally honest. That said, this was still fine overall. It still managed to be entertaining as the quintet spends most of the movie on the run and there are various shootouts & near-misses. Plus, there are many caustic barbs against the military and government as they are incompetent boobs who can't get organized and even in national emergency are mired in bureaucracy. Not that this could ever happen with the United States government in real life I was surprised at how bleak this was, although perhaps I
shouldn't be considering the director and this being a product of the
70's. The stark opening sets the tone for the entire movie.
As this was a flawed product, I am not mad that this was remade in 2010. Sometime in the next two months I'll view that and talk about it here, and this time that promise will be kept.
The movie is a low-budget affair and is full of locals from the area, some of whom are not what you'd call “good actors”, to be brutally honest. That said, this was still fine overall. It still managed to be entertaining as the quintet spends most of the movie on the run and there are various shootouts & near-misses. Plus, there are many caustic barbs against the military and government as they are incompetent boobs who can't get organized and even in national emergency are mired in bureaucracy. Not that this could ever happen with the United States government in real life
As this was a flawed product, I am not mad that this was remade in 2010. Sometime in the next two months I'll view that and talk about it here, and this time that promise will be kept.
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
House Of Bamboo
Runtime: 102 minutes
Directed by: Samuel Fuller
Starring: Robert Ryan,
Robert Stack, Shirley Yamaguchi, Cameron Mitchell, Sessue Hayakawa
From: 20th
Century Fox
Thankfully I found this rather easily; however, where I got this from will remain... an unsolved mystery:
I hadn't seen a noir in a few months so I went with this one,
different from the norm yet still managing to fit the loose definition
of what people want and expect from the genre. The fact that it was a
color release from 20th Century Fox set and filmed in Japan & was
lensed in CinemaScope-in the original ratio of 2.55:1-makes the
aesthetic completely different from someone like, say, Double Indemnity,
but this is still about former American soldiers (led by Robert Ryan,
whose henchmen include Cameron Mitchell and... DeForest Kelley) who are
still in Japan at the time-due to occupation after World War II-and
committing a bunch of robberies and also cashing in via... controlling
the pachinko market. Yes, 1950's pachinko machines are seen and it's
great.
Anyhow, as the plot description on Letterboxd gives this away, I'll give away that Robert Stack is a soldier who is assigned by the military police to go undercover to try and stop this gang. The movie does take its time establishing this and setting everything up, but it's never dull and once the pieces are in place, it is fun as Stack tries not to blow his cover and he even romances a Japanese woman. I don't believe Stack ever did a traditional noir and that is unfortunate as you'd think he'd be very good at being “a tough”.
For me, this isn't the best that Samuel Fuller ever did by any means yet for me a big asset was getting to spend all that time looking at Japan, its customs and how life was in the country so soon after World War II. As others have noted, Fuller lightly prodded at how awkward it was for Americans occupying Japan and how it was always awkward for them and it wasn't the best thing for anyone involved; that would explain why none of the copious amounts of Japanese was ever translated for the audience, as that'd make anyone feel uneasy and feel like an outsider. To be frank, this rating was bumped up a little solely due to the spectacular way this ends; it is a unique setpiece in a one of a kind setting, and it comes off so well. That alone made this worth watching.
Anyhow, as the plot description on Letterboxd gives this away, I'll give away that Robert Stack is a soldier who is assigned by the military police to go undercover to try and stop this gang. The movie does take its time establishing this and setting everything up, but it's never dull and once the pieces are in place, it is fun as Stack tries not to blow his cover and he even romances a Japanese woman. I don't believe Stack ever did a traditional noir and that is unfortunate as you'd think he'd be very good at being “a tough”.
For me, this isn't the best that Samuel Fuller ever did by any means yet for me a big asset was getting to spend all that time looking at Japan, its customs and how life was in the country so soon after World War II. As others have noted, Fuller lightly prodded at how awkward it was for Americans occupying Japan and how it was always awkward for them and it wasn't the best thing for anyone involved; that would explain why none of the copious amounts of Japanese was ever translated for the audience, as that'd make anyone feel uneasy and feel like an outsider. To be frank, this rating was bumped up a little solely due to the spectacular way this ends; it is a unique setpiece in a one of a kind setting, and it comes off so well. That alone made this worth watching.
Monday, August 26, 2019
Carry On Constable
Runtime: 86 minutes
Directed by: Gerald Thomas
Starring: The usual crew
From: Anglo-Amalagated
Film Distributors
Late last night I was deciding on what to view, and as the DVD
collection of their early films was right besides me and this was less
than 90 minutes, it seemed like a natural choice to pick this, and I
won't be going through the series in any set order either. In addition,
this was the first time Sid James appeared in the franchise.
The plot is decidedly not complicated: because of a flu epidemic, a police station needs to hire some temporary help, so in comes some new graduates from the police academy, although they might as well be from the Police Academy and be contemporaries w/ Mahoney, Hightower and Tackleberry as they are bumbling fools. They either stumble around or get into trouble because of foolish misunderstandings. The quartet includes a hypochondriac who is also amazingly superstitious and a faux academic who believes he can use the 1960's version of forensics but actually is a failure at it.
The humor includes pants falling down, going undercover in drag, a bucket of water being thrown on the wrong person and a literal slip on a banana peel; need I say more about how highbrow this is? I can still say this was fine as it wasn't too silly for me and the pratfalls at least were amusing. It also highlighted how different censorship was when it came to movies in the US vs. the UK. The former would have never allowed in 1960 either the bare-assed gag we get in one scene nor the female K9 dog be referred to as “a bitch” and that be used for a joke in another scene. Those moments did catch me by surprise.
The plot is decidedly not complicated: because of a flu epidemic, a police station needs to hire some temporary help, so in comes some new graduates from the police academy, although they might as well be from the Police Academy and be contemporaries w/ Mahoney, Hightower and Tackleberry as they are bumbling fools. They either stumble around or get into trouble because of foolish misunderstandings. The quartet includes a hypochondriac who is also amazingly superstitious and a faux academic who believes he can use the 1960's version of forensics but actually is a failure at it.
The humor includes pants falling down, going undercover in drag, a bucket of water being thrown on the wrong person and a literal slip on a banana peel; need I say more about how highbrow this is? I can still say this was fine as it wasn't too silly for me and the pratfalls at least were amusing. It also highlighted how different censorship was when it came to movies in the US vs. the UK. The former would have never allowed in 1960 either the bare-assed gag we get in one scene nor the female K9 dog be referred to as “a bitch” and that be used for a joke in another scene. Those moments did catch me by surprise.
Sunday, August 25, 2019
Lone Wolf And Cub: Baby Cart In Peril
Runtime: 81 minutes
Directed by: Buichi Saito
Starring: The usual
suspects
From: Toho
Now that is an attention-getter.
Recently I realized it has been way too many months since I had seen the third film in this series (Baby Cart to Hades) so this was the opportune time to rectify this mistake. The first few minutes of this are real striking: a topless tattooed woman who is an assassin mows down several samurai, then our protagonist Ogami Itto is asked to take her out. The opening credits are highlights of the first three movies set to a groovy jazz-rock tune, and it was all great. Later on, a didjeridu is heard a few times, and that was unexpected.
This had a more complex plot than usual as not only was this female assassin targeted, but Itto also deals with some ghosts from the past in the Yagyu clan he used to be part of and backstory was provided which explained why they set him up and enacted that scheme which was seen in Sword of Vengeance, the first movie in this series. Even his son Daigoro gets more to do than usual.
Of course there are the usual themes of honor, pride... and plenty of bloodletting; red claret is flying out of bodies in a variety of interesting settings, including a Buddhist temple. This is exactly what I expected from the franchise and thus this viewing was a grand old time.
Recently I realized it has been way too many months since I had seen the third film in this series (Baby Cart to Hades) so this was the opportune time to rectify this mistake. The first few minutes of this are real striking: a topless tattooed woman who is an assassin mows down several samurai, then our protagonist Ogami Itto is asked to take her out. The opening credits are highlights of the first three movies set to a groovy jazz-rock tune, and it was all great. Later on, a didjeridu is heard a few times, and that was unexpected.
This had a more complex plot than usual as not only was this female assassin targeted, but Itto also deals with some ghosts from the past in the Yagyu clan he used to be part of and backstory was provided which explained why they set him up and enacted that scheme which was seen in Sword of Vengeance, the first movie in this series. Even his son Daigoro gets more to do than usual.
Of course there are the usual themes of honor, pride... and plenty of bloodletting; red claret is flying out of bodies in a variety of interesting settings, including a Buddhist temple. This is exactly what I expected from the franchise and thus this viewing was a grand old time.
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Ready Or Not
Runtime: 95 minutes
Directed by: Radio Silence
Starring: Samara Weaving,
Adam Brody, Mark O'Brien, Henry Czerny, Andie McDowall
From: Fox Searchlight
Thankfully Trump has never heard of this movie.
I don't mean to get political here but multiple people have noted how this got a release while the other “people hunting another human being” picture in The Hunt got its release cancelled. That cancellation was pretty asinine and overly sensitive... and The Hunt wasn't even something I was really looking forward to. As for Ready or Not, I did not even know this was a thing until redband trailers played before a pair of movies I saw earlier in the summer; later on I saw the regular version of the trailer and it was not the same. I thought the premise was ludicrous, although at least I did laugh. Then I realized it was from Radio Silence, a collective of guys (or perhaps I should say dominion) who created one of the few segments in any of the V/H/S movies I actually liked. That and hearing strong reviews for this means that I might as well give this a shot, right?
I imagine most are familiar with the plot about how an uber-rich family introduces a common girl to their ranks after marriage by playing a lethal game of hide and seek. Well, there is a reason why and the family earned their money from making board games and being involved in other gaming situations, even owning sports teams... to cut to the chase, this was meant to be satirical in making fun of how pompous and silly such wealthy people are. It isn't as stinging a look at how terrible some (or maybe many) of those ranks are... yet there were still enough laughs and suspenseful moments in a great-looking setting where I can say this was good overall.
Unfortunately, I was hoping for more due to all the high praise I heard. I had some issues with the story, especially in the final act, character motivations and the resolution to this story. Plus, one key moment was shot incoherently so I still don't quite know what in the hell happened. Plus, Samara Weaving's Grace could have been much more of a kick-ass heroine than she was portrayed here-Sharni Vinson's Erin in You're Next is the most obvious example that comes to mind. Shame, as she was still great in the role w/ what she was given. Then again, given how dire and rotten 2019 has been for movies (at least for me, it has been far worse than in the preceding several years) I can't bemoan this too hard as while there are some stupid moments, at least this rises to a level of being fine, which I can't even say about far too many theatrical pictures I've viewed in 2019.
I don't mean to get political here but multiple people have noted how this got a release while the other “people hunting another human being” picture in The Hunt got its release cancelled. That cancellation was pretty asinine and overly sensitive... and The Hunt wasn't even something I was really looking forward to. As for Ready or Not, I did not even know this was a thing until redband trailers played before a pair of movies I saw earlier in the summer; later on I saw the regular version of the trailer and it was not the same. I thought the premise was ludicrous, although at least I did laugh. Then I realized it was from Radio Silence, a collective of guys (or perhaps I should say dominion) who created one of the few segments in any of the V/H/S movies I actually liked. That and hearing strong reviews for this means that I might as well give this a shot, right?
I imagine most are familiar with the plot about how an uber-rich family introduces a common girl to their ranks after marriage by playing a lethal game of hide and seek. Well, there is a reason why and the family earned their money from making board games and being involved in other gaming situations, even owning sports teams... to cut to the chase, this was meant to be satirical in making fun of how pompous and silly such wealthy people are. It isn't as stinging a look at how terrible some (or maybe many) of those ranks are... yet there were still enough laughs and suspenseful moments in a great-looking setting where I can say this was good overall.
Unfortunately, I was hoping for more due to all the high praise I heard. I had some issues with the story, especially in the final act, character motivations and the resolution to this story. Plus, one key moment was shot incoherently so I still don't quite know what in the hell happened. Plus, Samara Weaving's Grace could have been much more of a kick-ass heroine than she was portrayed here-Sharni Vinson's Erin in You're Next is the most obvious example that comes to mind. Shame, as she was still great in the role w/ what she was given. Then again, given how dire and rotten 2019 has been for movies (at least for me, it has been far worse than in the preceding several years) I can't bemoan this too hard as while there are some stupid moments, at least this rises to a level of being fine, which I can't even say about far too many theatrical pictures I've viewed in 2019.
Thursday, August 22, 2019
Vice Squad
Runtime: 97 minutes
Directed by: Gary Sherman
Starring: Season Hubley,
Gary Swanson, Wings Hauser, Pepe Serna, Beverly Todd
From: Embassy Pictures
I was baptized in the river of the Neon Slime.
Tuesday night I picked up this film, newly on Blu-ray from Shout Factory. Last night I gave it a spin as I hadn't seen this in many years. It is still as sleazy as I had remembered; sure there are some darkly comic moments but this is a rather dark tale where the villain is a psychopath who brutalizes women... and you see the women after they get brutalized.
The setting is Los Angeles and many seedy characters are seen; the opening credits even have a brief transaction where a LITTLE BOY is sold off to some pervert... the movie does not mess around. The titular vice squad (led by Gary Swanson) is after RAMROD, the pimp that brutalizes women. Swanson leans on Season Hubley-a prostitute-to help them nab Ramrod, as he just killed a woman after a savage attack.
This is a film which has increasingly bizarre and outlandish situations & cops who sometimes do questionable things; naturally it is not for all tastes but for me, it is an effective movie as it is an unflinching look at the seedier side of life, where various sundry characters are seen and is quite the ride. The acting as a whole is fine but it is Wings Hauser as Ramrod who is the true highlight. That is an outrageous and bold role which Hauser sinks his teeth into, a lunatic pimp who drives around in an awesome period Ford Bronco w/ loud paint graphics on the side and dresses like a stereotypical modern Texan cowboy. He even sings the unforgettable opening and closing credits song, Neon Slime. Somehow, the soundtrack (when it isn't dark synthesizer) includes both Johnny Winter and... Ann-Margaret!
Shout Factory wasn't able to get Wings for an interview, but the special features are probably still nice-one day I'll view those-and it does both look & sound better than I had seen it before; it helps make the John Alcott cinematography especially shine.
Tuesday night I picked up this film, newly on Blu-ray from Shout Factory. Last night I gave it a spin as I hadn't seen this in many years. It is still as sleazy as I had remembered; sure there are some darkly comic moments but this is a rather dark tale where the villain is a psychopath who brutalizes women... and you see the women after they get brutalized.
The setting is Los Angeles and many seedy characters are seen; the opening credits even have a brief transaction where a LITTLE BOY is sold off to some pervert... the movie does not mess around. The titular vice squad (led by Gary Swanson) is after RAMROD, the pimp that brutalizes women. Swanson leans on Season Hubley-a prostitute-to help them nab Ramrod, as he just killed a woman after a savage attack.
This is a film which has increasingly bizarre and outlandish situations & cops who sometimes do questionable things; naturally it is not for all tastes but for me, it is an effective movie as it is an unflinching look at the seedier side of life, where various sundry characters are seen and is quite the ride. The acting as a whole is fine but it is Wings Hauser as Ramrod who is the true highlight. That is an outrageous and bold role which Hauser sinks his teeth into, a lunatic pimp who drives around in an awesome period Ford Bronco w/ loud paint graphics on the side and dresses like a stereotypical modern Texan cowboy. He even sings the unforgettable opening and closing credits song, Neon Slime. Somehow, the soundtrack (when it isn't dark synthesizer) includes both Johnny Winter and... Ann-Margaret!
Shout Factory wasn't able to get Wings for an interview, but the special features are probably still nice-one day I'll view those-and it does both look & sound better than I had seen it before; it helps make the John Alcott cinematography especially shine.
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