Sh! The Octopus

Sh! The Octopus (1937)

Runtime: Only 54 minutes

Directed by: William C. McGann

Starring: Hugh Herbert, Allen Jenkins, Marcia Ralston, John Eldredge, George Rosener

From: Warner Bros.

A movie as strange as its title. I’ve known of this for years due to the title; that was even before a special effect during the finale went viral. More on that later in the review. This combined two different plays; that might explain how baffling the plot was.

A painter decides to live at an abandoned lighthouse; it is owned by a Captain Hook who does in fact have a hook for a right hand, The leads are a pair of goofball detectives portrayed by Hugh Herbert and Allen Jenkins; to echo the thoughts of others, they were like a low-rent version of Abbott & Costello.

At the lighthouse, there’s a criminal mastermind known as The Octopus, an actual octopus is seen, some horror tropes are older than I suspected (the arms of the villain are about to grab an unknowing victim, drops of blood from above reveal a victim), one of the characters-Marcia Ralston-I can describe as a Temu Joan Crawford-although her performance was fine-an iridium ray, and more.

A little bit of the detectives go a long way; Herbert loves going, “whoo-oooh!” often, to list an example. The humor I can sometimes describe as “humor,” in a sarcastic sense. Yet, this was all so bizarre. It’s a comedic mystery horror picture that has absurdist moments, slapstick, submarines, a tortoise… and this was only 54 minutes in length. Who knows what audiences in ’37 thought of Octopus; could they make heads or tails of it? What would they think of Herbert going “ribbit!” right back at a pair of frogs?

I couldn’t always make heads or tails of this… I’ll still say it was “fine.” Sometimes I did laugh & I was never bored by this insanity. Plus, the special effect used during the finale is a “holy crap” even in 2026. You don’t need CG or AI to have a sudden transformation. There are explanations elsewhere how they achieved it but in short… color theory, makeup, and optical effects were combined to create a transition that caused a stir in ’22 when it briefly went viral online, people GOBSMACKED this was from a late 30’s picture unknown to most youths on the social media.

Props to those that created this effect; for some, that might be the only part of Sh! The Octopus worth watching.

 

Winnetou and the Crossbreed

Winnetou and the Crossbreed (Winnetou Und Das Halbblut Apanatschi) (1966)

Runtime: The version I saw was 85 minutes

Directed by: Harald Philipp

Starring: Lex Barker, Pierre Brice, Gotz George, Uschi Glas, Walter Barnes

From: Rialto Film/Jadran Film

In this special late-night Wednesday posting… my discovery of a streaming channel new to me (and some of the movies they play are also on its YouTube channel) last night determined that I’d see a Winnetou film new to me. Thanks, Grjingo. For the newer followers, a mutual on Letterboxd wrote reviews of these movies long ago-this was how I discovered there was an industry of Westerns made in what was then West Germany. 

For the newer followers, let me explain. Based on novels from Karl May, OLD SHATTERHAND-a name you’d expect from a Jaeger in Pacific Rim-is a white dude who has an Apache friend, the titular Winnetou. They have quite the bromance as they dealt with both dumb white people and other Native Americans.

This installment is devoted to dumb white people. Yes, “crossbreed” is a slightly less offensive term than “half-breed,” although you shouldn’t use either; Uschi Glas portrayed the young Apanatschi (what a name), who has a white father and Native American mother, along w/ a younger brother. Dad informs her that he has a claim on a gold mine; various white people are greedy bastards who can’t contain themselves and kidnap the siblings. Thankfully, there are our two heroes, the white b/f of Apanatschi, the wacky sidekick Sam Hawkens that’s in all those films, and the denizens of a town that wish to rid themselves of the villains.

The bad guys aren’t the most memorable in the series; otherwise, I had a pretty good time. They filmed in what is now Croatia; this provided a different sort of scenery from the American West or the Spanish desert seen in hundreds of Spaghetti Westerns. There’s some dusty areas but the viewer also sees some rocky lands, mountain peaks, and lush green areas; earlier movies included multiple waterfalls. The lead family here lived in a green area right by a river.

There’s fire, explosions, shootouts involving a large group of people, a fair for the time portrayal of Native Americans, actual stunts performed by Gotz George-the other name I imagine some European members would know-and moments you’d expect from Westerns originating from America or other European countries. The Grjingo YouTube channel now have those movies available-sure, they’re the dubbed versions and judging by runtime they don’t appear to be original release length… but I’m glad they’re still available for adventurous Western fans willing to try a different flavor of this genre.

In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994

This is a 2024 documentary from the people that did the very good In Search of Darkness docs concerning 80's horror: 

I had nothing better to do on Labor Day than view all six hours of this documentary. I’ve checked out the three Darkness documentaries covering 80’s horror, and enjoyed them all. The format in that trio & here: a cornucopia of movies covered-whether famous or not-featuring commentary from a wide variety of well-known genre figures, along with breaks between each year concerning major topics related to horror.

After an opening establishing how different the 90's were compared to the preceding decade-and how this impacted the particular films that were released-a wide variety of horror from the first half of the decade were discussed. This ranges from Tremors and Nekromantik 2 to Bram Stoker's Dracula and The Stand. As always, which guests they were able to interview determined what was covered. Charles Band meant that some of his Full Moon features were discussed; the same goes for Jorg Buttgereit.

As 90's horror I am not as well-versed in as its 80's counterpart, it was nice to learn more about pictures I knew little to even nothing about. How many of those movies I'll check out from now until Halloween is undetermined. It's always great hearing from the likes of Clancy Brown, John Carpenter, & Heather Langenkamp, among many others. Between years, the topics discussed include microbudget horror and the rise of CG.

This installment of Darkness addressed some nitpicks that I-and apparently others-had... several TV films were brought up (including Stephen King's It & Ghostwatch) and a larger percentage of films were foreign. This made the documentary especially informative. Shout-out to CreatorVC Studios and director David A. Weiner for these horror documentaries, plus the 80's sci-fi In Search of Tomorrow. It might not be until next year that I check out In Search of Darkness: 1995-1999.

The Mummy (Unfortunately, The One w/ Tom Cruise)

The Mummy (2017)

Runtime: 110 minutes

Directed by: Alex Kurtzman

Starring: Tom Cruise, Annabelle Wallis, Sofia Boutella, Jake Johnson, Russell Crowe

From: Universal

The Dark Universe is especially funny now, almost a decade later. How badly this movie flopped at the time and it killing off a franchise after just one movie is an incredible failure. So is releasing an IMAX trailer that accidentally only included a vocal track and not any of the other audio tracks (score, sound effects, etc.), resulting in a hysterical video that everyone guffawed at. In 2026, I have long been fed up with shared universes, or the attempts to start a shared universe, needless sequels, etc. The Mummy popping up on Prime was the main reason why I even gave this a shot, almost a decade after the fact.

Not even Tom Cruise could save this; I enjoy him as a movie star… him as a person, not as much. They tried to make this an adventure in exotic Middle Eastern locations with horror elements and end-of-the-world implications… this is a mixed bag at best. Cruise and odious comic relief pal Jake Johnson are military men who are in Iraq and they sell antiquities on the black market. Well, they uncover an Egyptian tomb (actually, a prison) and release the supernatural Sofia Boutella.

The Mummy is forgettable nonsense; a modern blockbuster in the most pejorative sense… mindless, disposable crap. They attempted to add more horror to the adventure than was in the ’99 Mummy (however, they ended up with a mummy version of a Mission: Impossible picture, to mention a frequent complaint) yet this has failed attempts at “humor”, little of the charm, bad ideas, wasn't scary at all, & bombastic spectacle that is tiresome… and I’m someone who’s avoided most of those superhero films.

The fact that they blatantly ripped off an 80’s horror movie (from Universal, as a matter of fact) and probably were inspired by a cult 80’s horror movie didn’t help either, nor did the time wasted establishing a cinematic universe that never occurred. Russell Crowe and Annabelle Wallis were fine, I guess, although the former as Dr. Jekyll (!) was quite wacky. I didn’t hate everything, re: The Mummy. They tried for atmosphere at times, and that wasn’t bad. The plane crash sequence was cool, although it should have been in a Mission: Impossible or a similar Cruise action film.

Instead of what many proclaim is Cruise’s worst film-a movie so lousy that something starring him flopped worldwide-I would have vastly preferred a 70’s Hammer movie involving a mummy, knights from the Crusades, and havoc across London. That at least would have been FAR more memorable than this poppycock.

Fall 2: Deadpoint

Fall 2: Deadpoint (2026)

55% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 31 reviews)

Runtime: 98 minutes

Directed by: Michael & Peter Spierig

Starring: The majority of the film is just Harriet Slater & Arsema Thomas but there’s also the likes of Tom Brittney

From: Lionsgate

For those that thought the first Fall wasn't dumb enough...

I made the climb in '22 & saw Fall theatrically. Despite the plot and characters possessing an intelligence comparable to a pet rock, I didn't hate the movie. At least the effects were solid and you believed they were stuck on top of an extremely tall tower. If you have acrophobia, Fall would be a nightmare for you. Curiosity got the best of me & I checked out the sequel. This is actually my first film from brothers Michael & Peter Spierig; don't worry, eventually I'll see a second from them.

Fall 2 was tackled Friday night before I went & saw the Indian movie Veerana. It was only last night that a Twitter post was viewed—in short, a purported picture from the end credits of Deadpoint reveals that... the movie used AI. I'm sure it's true; one of the producers (Scott Mann) has his own AI company, after all. Indeed, one shot didn't look quite right; it was... of an airplane wheel landing on the ground, which wasn't needed anyway as the viewer saw the plane land on the ground—talk about unnecessary. That will be a deal-breaker for some so do what you wish w/ that information.

Fall 2 is extraordinarily stupid! Virginia Gardner from the first Fall has a sister; I'd say that she looked either like a Temu Sadie Sink or a Temu Emma Stone, but that'd be too harsh. Plus, the character name JAX HUNTER was great. Harriet Slater was fine in the role-she was devastated by the events of the first movie. Hysterically, a random stranger met her one day and... inspired Jax to “honor” her daredevil sister by doing something even stupider than what her sister did... walk the old planks on the side of a Thai mountain (they were built my monks centuries ago, as established in a throwaway line of dialogue) when there's no railing and the only “safety measure” is a chain hanging a few feet above said planks.

Even worse, they did no preparation for this illegal hike, and relied on a sketchy guy in a random Thai bar to guide them. If this wasn't dopey enough, there are many other moments I dare not reveal, because spoilers. At least I was able to laugh AT Deadpoint for its illogic, its attempts to have epic moments that either were heart-wrenching or inspiring... instead they made me AND at least one other person in this sparsely-attended guffaw and scoff at what the movie was trying to do.

While not as successful in presenting the constant danger in someone stuck at such a perilous location, there are still thrills in this particular scenario. Arsema Thomas and Tom Brittney were also fine as the random stranger & sketchy guy Jon, respectively. Fall 2: Deadpoint is OK in a brainless way; I imagine it'll do as well on streaming as the first one did, nevermind the first bombing and this sequel destined to do so. There will be a third one; it is uncertain as of now I'll check out Fall 3: The Droppening (or whatever they'll title it) on the big screen as well.

Veerana

Veerana (1988)

Runtime: The version I saw was 135 minutes

Directed by: Shyam Ramsey/Tulsi Ramsey

Starring: Jasmin, Hemant Birje, Sahila Chaddha, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Satish Shah

From: Sai Om Productions

I got to see an old Indian horror movie on the big screen last night. The experience (at Orlando's arthouse cinema, the Enzian) wasn't the best-more on that at the end-but I was still happy to view something else from the Ramsay family. For years they made Hindi horror films; in the past, I also had fun w/ their Purana Mandir and their Freddy Krueger ripoff Mahakaal. Getting to view one restored on the big screen was a rare treat.

Veerana concerns a cult that lives in the woods; their leader is a Rasputin type. They have a witch which is basically a Deadite; a dude finds & hangs the witch. Well, the witch's spirit is transferred to that of the dude's 10-year-old daughter, who grows up to be a sexpot that seduces then kills dumb men. Of course, this is cinema from India so there is wacky humor that is rather broad & sometimes alien to a dopey white guy like myself, tonal shifts, and at least a bit of melodrama.

A shame that the crowd for this laughed at everything; of course there's intended & unintended comedy, feel free to chuckle at that. However, laughing at serious moments or just random moments in general where I couldn't comprehend WHAT they were guffawing about... disappointing. Yes, much of the crowd was dumb white people but some South Asians were also present. Lord only know what they thought of that reaction.

The plot is uniquely Hindi yet I was still entertained, and not in an ironic fashion. Jasmin was quite alluring as the possessed girl; there's also chilling moments throughout that coincide w/ the catchy song and dance numbers, the humor (the blatant comedic character was a chubby dude who... wants to be a director. Hopefully no one here sees themselves in him!), the horror scenes that echo Hammer, the action scenes that at first were comparable to Dolemite but later were more competent, a giant of a man that resembled a 1980's version of The Great Khali, footage stolen from two famous Hollywood horror movies, more crash zooms than in any Tarantino film... there are effective horror elements mixed into this tasty stew.

Naturally I could be pedantic and nitpick certain aspects, such as the world's dumbest father & how his naivete was needed for the plot. However, this won't occur; entertainment was had by this horror picture w/ a unique, spicy flavor. I had fun, even with a bad crowd and even at a place that used to have a nice, chill outdoor bar attached to the cinema but last night was blasting horrid deafening modern music... having to eviscerate a local cinema devoted to independent film is not ideal but I am crestfallen the Enzian has fallen off so badly in not that many years.

Blondie Johnson

Blondie Johnson (1933)

Runtime: 67 minutes

Directed by: Ray Enright

Starring: Joan Blondell, Chester Morris, Allen Jenkins, Earle Foxe, Claire Dodd

From: Warner Bros.

Not only was it Pre-Code time for me, but time to clear space off the DVR. I made this recording off of TCM way back in May, you see. The premise of “Joan Blondell is a poor lady during the Great Depression who hustles her way into ruling a crime ring” greatly intrigued.

Indeed, she was a poor lady looking for assistance who was thrown out of housing (along w/ her mother) by an A-hole landlord, she quit her job due to sexual harassment… mom gets sick and dies. Little wonder then she decides to give avarice a try and does whatever to become successful. She runs various con games, all of which entertained me. This is how she meets gangsters, including Danny. In a twist from the norm, she wants their relationship to be strictly professional and despite her having feelings, she rejects his advances… and he actually respects her wishes. She rises in importance although of course she experiences the same sort of problems you get in other genre examples.

In other ways, this felt progressive-heck, Blondie even has lady friends (including Japanese-American actress Toshia Mori) who she doesn’t later feud with. The gangster theatrics aren’t revolutionary but of course the presence of Blondell’s character-strong yet not infallible-was the highlight, Joan’s portrayal a delight. The direction from Ray Enright was solid, the supporting players-studio regulars I’ve seen in other pictures-were all at least fine, including Chester Morris as Danny. As this was a Warner Bros. B-movie, the expectations were meant concerning how competent the production was.

The final scene perhaps wasn’t the best conclusion for the picture; otherwise, this was an enjoyable gangster B-movie from the Pre-Code era that is more than just one with a memorable gimmick.

Necessary Roughness

Necessary Roughness (1991)

Runtime: 108 minutes

Directed by: Stan Dragoti

Starring: Scott Bakula, Harley Jane Kozak, Hector Elizondo, Robert Loggia, Sinbad

From: Paramount

An appropriate movie to view as the college football season is about to start for most teams. Necessary Roughness is another movie watched in the 90’s when I was a kid but not as an adult until last night. College football now is far different than it was 35 years ago-not all the changes have been good, IMO-but I don’t want to be a curmudgeon here.

Texas State (not the school now known as Texas State; back in ’91, they were known as Southwest Texas State) is a successful program but everyone on the team was kicked out due to rampant corruption. That was based on SMU, a successful program that was so dirty, they were banned for a year; that was so devastating they took another year to restart their team. They now are pretty good again. Here the premise was more absurd; the school instead took random students already enrolled without recruiting any high school football stars. They were the ultimate misfits and underdogs, clearly. The QB is 34-year-old Scott Bakula, a high school star turned farmer.

This is not the most realistic depiction of college football by any regards. Be that as it may, there wasn’t as much football action as I recalled. Instead, this is the archetypical outsider movie; the focus is them coming together as a team despite struggles w/ themselves and others. Major League was an obvious inspiration; Rob Schneider’s announcer was no Bob Uecker’s Harry Doyle but he wasn’t terrible either. If you know his Richardmeister character from Saturday Night Live, think that.

A cast full of familiar faces was a quality asset; Scott Bakula as the lead was likable. He stopped playing football as his father died so “taking over the family farm” took over priority. He probably shouldn’t try to date one of his professors, but… there’s also Robert Loggia (perfect for the role) as an assistant coach, Hector Elizondo as the head coach, Sinbad (star of 90’s hit Shazaam lol j/k), Fred Dalton Thompson, Kathy Ireland in a small yet memorable role, Jason Bateman, and Larry Miller as exactly the sort of smarmy college dean you’d expect Larry Miller to portray, a role I know he played in a few other pictures.

I was relieved that Necessary Roughness was still watchable as a middle-aged adult, still providing laughs and still presenting an inspiring ending. What surprised me: the first game these misfits played was against… Southwest Texas State, who remember is now known as Texas State. True story.

Three New Reviews

Colony (Gunche) (2026) 

Runtime: 123 minutes

Directed by: Yeon Sang-ho

Starring: Gianna Jun, Koo Kyo-hwan, Ji Chang-wook, Kim Shin-rock, Shin Hyun-been

From: Many different South Korean companies

Train to Busan has so much good will w/ me, such cachet, I was happy to see Colony theatrically despite not enjoying either Seoul Station or Peninsula. Busan is great & the good word, re: Colony gave me the impetus for last night’s viewing after not watching any films Saturday night. It’s been too long since experiencing any Korean cinema, let alone one on the big screen.

Instead of a zombie apocalypse film, Yeon Sang-ho created an infected/virus picture. A bio-terror attack is unleashed on a skyscraper, which has both a mall (it does invoke Dawn of the Dead vibes) and a conference room where a CEO is giving a presentation on slime mold and collective intelligence. A genius madman (I do believe that there’s only a thin line between “genius” and “insanity”) is hellbent on revenge and also has a warped opinion on humanity’s future; a group of disparate characters-ranging from “woman in wheelchair” and police officer to dumb youth and a female professor-are quarantined in the building w/ that madman. 

Colony is not focused on delivering a gory bloodbath. Rather, this is an action-horror hybrid like Busan; rather, the viewer should expect our protagonists to run & hide, with occasional fighting. By this point, infected virus movies are… well, they seem to be the rage. Colony does have its flaws, some details I could nitpick, a plot that at times I was ahead of the characters & guessed what was going on.

The criticisms I have did not ruin the experience; a grand old time was still had w/ Colony. There is the drama I expect from South Korean cinema; while there’s only the brief appearance of a little girl crying, adults certainly cry and not every protagonist survives this ordeal. What made this stand out from the rest: the focus on hard science. A professor on the scene & others investigating outside the skyscraper deal with a virus that’s like a fungus. What I meant earlier by “collective intelligence” is that everyone infected has a hive mind; apt comparisons are made to ants. Furthermore, they frequently receive “upgrades” which increases their intelligence & increases the threat.

Colony thankfully worked quite well for me. For my peculiar tastes, I MUCH prefer modern horror to be fun like this rather than those dour, self-serious, pretentious, somber horror pictures that are preoccupied w/trauma & grief.

Tales from the Crypt Presents: Bordello of Blood (1996)

Runtime: 87 minutes

Directed by: Gilbert Adler

Starring: Dennis Miller, Erika Eleniak, Angie Everhart, Chris Sarandon, Corey Feldman

From: Universal

Yeah, everyone who said this was worse than Demon Knight… you were right. Knight was viewed earlier in the month on Shudder, before Spooky Season began for me. That-like Bordello-was viewed on Shudder. Both were only on the platform for August, necessitating me seeing this at the last minute.

Bordello had more an emphasis on comedy; that was hit-or-miss, and that’s not just my opinion of Dennis Miller or his constant quips. Some landed, while others were just irritating. No comment on Miller as a person or his political beliefs. He portrayed a gumshoe detective who was hired by a religious Erika Eleniak to find her missing brother (Corey Feldman! He was a hard-rockin’ rebel who was a jerk, meaning the role was perfect for him). Meanwhile, Chris Sarandon was a televangelist who exhibited all the negative stereotypes-or the truth about them, depending your own opinion-and I can’t even say that the OOT stage show here was unrealistic.

The film is uneven, for sure. That does not mean there wasn’t fun to be had. This is still an OOT tale involving vampires-led by a sexy bisexual Angie Everhart-causing havoc in a city, where the titular brothel is at… a mortuary. There are a few bravura moments, including one during the final act set to one of a few boomer songs that are played throughout. The cast as a whole was fine; most interesting was that one of the villains was a character w/ dwarfism—veteran actor and stuntman Phil Fondacaro-and his stature was not a plot point or even mentioned by the other characters.

Bordello is flawed; even then, a good time was still had by me. There’s enough gory moments and topless female nudity to satisfy some. The biggest surprise wasn’t the cameo from a famous actor still well-known today; it was seeing the script credited to Bob Gale & Robert Zemeckis. Turns out, they wrote this in 1973 after graduating from USC, the idea of their movie debut being sexploitation. They tried to make it w/ John Milius (!) as producer but that didn’t happen. Instead, the story was apparently greatly modified by the time this was filmed.

Sundel Bolong (1981)

Runtime: 106 minutes

Directed by: Sisworo Gautama Putra

Starring: Suzzanna, Rudy Salam, Barry Prima, Ruth Pelupessy, Marlia Hardi

From: Rapi Films

This is Indonesian horror; the presumption is that those who have a number of Letterboxd followers like I do—they also have many members from Indonesia following them. 

Sundel Bolong stars Suzzanna, the Queen of Indonesian Horror. From a reviewer that lives in the country, this tale is based on famous Javanese folklore revolving around a ghost w/ long black hair & sporting a white dress. Suzzanna’s poor Alisa is really put through the wringer. She married sailor Barry Prima-no surprise to me that later on, Barry had a martial arts scene; while he’s gone for 9 months, a particularly gross sexual assault occurred. Because she is a former prostitute, Alisa is also slut-shamed. Most people treat her horribly in the opening act; no wonder after her death, Alisa is looking for sweet, sweet revenge.

The movie had unexpected comic moments, some funnier than others. Full of gore, this was not, yet the deaths were typically satisfying. There is one bravura kill that was rather spectacular. Sundel Bolong was simply a fun time once the title ghost appeared and had fun dishing out her revenge, which usually revolved around her trolling her foe. Suzzanna was the highlight of the picture, indeed. The titular sundel bolong is a distinctive creature… not just because it’s a female ghost that was a former prostitute. The ghost also has a giant hole in its back, which exposes its inside, along w/ maggots. Unique lore, undoubtedly.

This was an interesting folk horror movie; in addition, I was happy to see another picture from a performer that was popular in Southeast Asia at the time.

 

I'll Catch Up Tomorrow

 A few movie reviews will be posted tomorrow evening.

Mutiny

Mutiny (2026)

50% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 111 reviews) 

Runtime: 95 minutes

Directed by: Jean-Francois Richet

Starring: Jason Statham, Annabelle Wallis, Roland Moller, Ramon Tikaram, Arnas Fedaravicius

From: Lionsgate

I went & saw a genre movie last night, “Jason Statham” the specific genre.

Even I can admit that there’s a wish for Statham to have higher aspirations, to appear in motion pictures that used his comedic chops more often, or to not play slightly different variations of the same character constantly. Some may wish that I should view theatrical films more original than this. At the same time, this current stretch of his career must be profitable for him; I guess he doesn’t want to… rock the boat.

The plot is quite predictable & the victims of human trafficking that he and Annabelle Wallis attempt to stop on a cargo ship from Bangkok seem to be forgotten by the movie for long stretches. This does not mean I wasn’t entertained by the familiar plot beats; you won’t see me criticize Hallmark Channel movies when there are occasions that I am OK with checking out standard programming like Mutiny which doesn’t allow itself for a lengthier review from myself. That’s even when Statham’s Cole Reed was framed for the murder of the billionaire he was guarding.

I wasn’t annoyed by Mutiny, thankfully. The bad guys were generic yet still made nice fodder & the worst SOBs were dispatched in satisfying fashion. Dudes got wrecked ™, for sure. Annabelle Wallis also had a better role than expected. Everything is competent.

French director Jean-Francois Richet made better/more interesting films than this (the Mel Gibson Blood Father, the two Mesrine movies from his native country) but if you want a decent action flick that is destined to be shown on TNT-the American cable network-in a few years and/or are a Statham stan, Mutiny could be satisfying for you despite how rote even the movie’s fans might not be able to deny.

Wild Thing

Wild Thing (1987)

Runtime: 92 minutes

Directed by: Max Reid

Starring: Robert Knepper, Kathleen Quinlan, Robert Davi, Maury Chaykin, Betty Buckley

From: Atlantic Releasing Corporation

This is an oddity I’ve seen long ago-years before Letterboxd. There are some recognizable names in the cast plus the script it from John Sayles-I’m a little surprised it’s fallen through the cracks given the writer + its availability on Prime. The fact that most of the film was long-forgotten in my mind is another reason why a viewing then reviewing seemed necessary.

Wild Thing is the name of the lead; he was a young boy of hippie parents in 1969. Both his ‘rents were murdered by lead villain Robert Davi; Wild escaped and meet mentally damaged homeless lady Betty Buckley. He learned how to live on the streets and by modern times, he’s a mythical Tarzan sort of figure attempting to protect a no-mans-land of an unnamed city against Davi and his goons. Also, Maury Chaykin portrayed a corrupt cop-insert your own comments if you wish.

The portrayal of the homeless population and those that live in a house for disadvantaged youths (Kathleen Quinlan started working there; he saved her from a sexual assault and they become pals. Her name is even Jane) borders cliche. At the same time, they weren’t demonized & it was a change of pace to see a movie centered on such individuals. Yes, there are some moments quite silly; the one detail I remembered most before last night’s revisit: Wild had a cat sidekick! He adopted a feral feline from a junkyard, you see. I forgot that at times, he acted like a cat.

The film can be nitpicked to death if you want-many of those complaints are valid. I’m not quite sure how Wild and Davi didn’t cross paths in the past almost 2 decades when they’ve resided in the same area, but… the presumption is that changes were made to the original script. How much of the edges were sanded off of what Sayles originally wrote? Regardless, it’s always nice seeing Davi as a villain and the final act is where most of the action beats are… turns out that Wild can flip around like he’s an AEW wrestler!

Wild Thing is not a must-see by any regards; nothing rises to the level of spectacular, including the few action scenes this has. The film is still watchable & might be a decent rainy-day watch for you, especially if Prison Break fans wish to view a young T-Bag (Robert Knepper) as an Urban Tarzan who engages in selective mutism. In addition, The Troggs version of Wild Thing is used… it’s a re-recording instead of the original but close enough, I guess. I wouldn’t have minded the 80’s version of the song heard in Major League… that was by the band X, NOT Joan Jett like everyone erroneously thinks.

Scooby-Doo! and the Goblin King

Last night I saw this 2008 animated film (75-minutes in length) as it featured two famous names that passed away this month: 

RIP Tim Curry… and Hayden Panettiere

I’ve never watched a Scooby-Doo movie (not even the live-action films from the early 2000’s) but as a little kid did watch the cartoons. That includes the ones w/ the laugh tracks and Scrappy-Doo, regrettably. I’d shudder to think how I’d think of those cartoons as a jaded middle-aged adult. However, this featured the voice talents of two famous faces that just passed away, making it an obvious choice. I’ll say more about the dearly-departed later, but both deaths made me sad, for entirely different reasons. I’ve seen Curry in quite a few movies, but the only Panettiere watched by me period were the 4th and 6th Scream films, where she made her Kirby character memorable.

Naturally, Curry voiced the titular Goblin King, a perfect voice for that role as Shaggy & Scooby visit the underworld to stop The Amazing Krudsky (voiced by Wayne Knight), a mortal mediocre magician who stole the powers of a fairy princess, voiced by Hayden. This animated picture-set on Halloween-is full of iconography from the holiday, and Spooktober in general: ghosts, werewolves, skeletons, a graveyard, dark woods, pumpkins, witches, many different creatures, The Headless Horseman, etc. It’s a wacky story where the monsters are real, songs are sung-including Jim Belushi belting out what sounded like a rip-off of Zoot Suit Riot-and Curry was exactly what you’d want/expect as a Goblin King. I wouldn’t have minded more of him, but you can’t ever have enough of Mr. Curry.

If I saw this as a kid, I’d probably think of this as the cat’s pajamas. All those spooky elements hopefully would have delighted me to no end. As a jaded adult, of course I could nitpick how silly the movie is, or how the majority of the film is Scooby & Shaggy separated from the rest of the gang. However, this would be fine viewing for late October, especially if you’re a kid. I don’t know if this was a gateway to horror (or Spooktober or made them appreciate that time of year) for many youths but hopefully it was. 

Concerning Hayden Panettiere, the news concerning her personal struggles made me sympathetic; the role that her ex might have played in her untimely passing… that is upsetting. I’d rather think about the good stories I’ve heard about her as a human being and her on screen. Concerning Tim Curry, he’s someone who I saw in films since childhood; Clue and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York are as entertaining now as back then, due in part to Curry’s performances, whether bold or more subdued. It was nice to see him in films for the first time as an adult-including It & Congo-and in the past I’ve been happy to praise him on Letterboxd. While I don’t love Rocky Horror as much as most people, it wasn’t due to Curry or his performance.

He was a beloved figure for good reason; he was a star of stage & screen and even released a few albums. I’ll miss Tim Curry, that is for sure.

 

Rhinestone

Rhinestone (1984)

Runtime: An overlong 111 minutes

Directed by: Bob Clark

Starring: Sly Stallone, Dolly Parton (RIP), Richard Farnsworth, Tim Thomerson, Ron Leibman

From: 20^th Century Fox

RIP Dolly Parton

She is such an iconic figure-beloved by everyone-whose philanthropy should be what she’s remembered for (even more so than her legendary country music career), one of her films had to be seen ASAP. What a life she had… growing up in abject poverty in rural Tennessee, becoming a huge star, using her wealth & clout to help many that were in need like she was as a child. What a legacy she’ll leave behind.

Now, Nine to Five was viewed then reviewed May of ’24 after Dabney Coleman passed away. Rhinestone I have viewed before, albeit long before joining Letterboxd. I really didn’t like it at the time, yet it wasn’t due to Parton, her performance, or the soundtrack that she created alongside Mike Post. BTW, this required visiting the Bowels of the Internet to even find a copy.

The entire conceit doesn’t make a whole lotta sense. Ron Leibman is a truly insufferable club owner who owns Parton’s music contract; she performs there to much success yet he doesn’t try to make her a bigger success despite her obvious talent (and appearance!), instead attempting to make goofballs a star. Why?! Just because he’s like Harvey Weinstein and is mad that she won’t sleep with him? Is he mentally handicapped? This detail is irrelevant, but he has an apartment at… Trump Tower.

Sly Stallone’s NYC cab driver Nick Martinelli-on the other hand-certainly is mentally handicapped! His behavior was also insufferable; what he thought was “good” singing was “yelling at the top of his lungs & singing gibberish.” You see, if Dolly can have Sly sing a song at the Rhinestone club without the crowd booing it off the stage, she’ll be released from her onerous contract. 

The film has some moments, a few laughs, and the sight of Stallone as the Rhinestone Cowboy type… believe it or not, the plot is rather loosely based on the song. Dolly was charming despite how lousy the movie is; as intolerable as some of the main characters were, at least Tim Thomerson was amusing as a low-rent country singer in Tennessee, as was Richard Farnsworth (of The Straight Story fame) as Dolly’s father. 

I still enjoyed the country soundtrack; that genre I’m not as well-versed in but Lord is it much better than most of what passes for “country music” these days! Sly never improves at the “singing” aspect, at least in terms of voice. He at least now sings to the beat and doesn’t scream like he’s a resident at a mental health facility. However, it was absurd that the guy who sang a song called Drinkin’stein (concerning how “Budweiser created a monster”) won that crowd over. Is everyone insane, or is it I that has lost their marbles? Drinkin’stein can be found in full on YouTube, for those that enjoy novelty tunes.

Regardless, what a miserable week this has turned into, now that two beloved figures have passed away. You know which actor I’ll be viewing for tomorrow’s review. Now, I’ll close this out by sharing an anecdote made in my Urban Cowboy review. It concerns how my father saw Dolly Parton perform at a rodeo in the early 70’s, and what he noticed about her first. As she flaunted her appearance, I imagine she wouldn’t have been offended by my dad’s reaction: 

“One scene early in the movie introduced (Scott) Glenn's character; he is a convict in the Huntsville, Texas prison and he is riding a rodeo bull in the Texas Prison Rodeo. It may seem like poppycock but from the 30's until 1986, prisoners all over Texas who behaved could go to Huntsville and compete in a rodeo, held each Saturday in October. Various events were had and it was held to raise money for the prison system. My dad explained that in 1974 he and his buddies went to it one Saturday; he had already graduated from college in Illinois but he went to Houston to earn another degree. 

He had a good time; the halftime entertainment was... Dolly Parton. They always had big country stars perform there. It wasn't 1980 when she was mainstream and this movie had a scene where there was a Dolly impersonation contest; my dad doesn't listen to “country & western” so that was the first he had heard of her, let alone seen her. As she always joked about her “assets”, it's not entirely gross for me to mention that the biggest impression Parton left on dad & friends was not her music!”

The Signalman

This is an interesting 1976 TV special that was on the BBC, 37 minutes in length.

I had seen one of the BBC’s A Ghost Story for Christmas specials before, but it was before Christmas in ’24, I watched 1974’s The Treasure of Abbot Thomas. Then and now, Shudder has some. The BBC made some in the 70’s and there have been sporadic effects since 2005. An old oral tradition was to tell supernatural tales around Christmas. They started off adapting stories from English writer M.R. James but this came from none other than Charles Dickins.

IMO, ghost stories like this are as fitting for Spooky Season as they are for Christmas. Bernard Lloyd stumbles across Denholm Elliott, the titular signalman for the railway. This is back in the day of locomotives. His dwelling is in a dark valley, right in front of a spooky tunnel in the woods. The setting itself is great, augmented by the two talented actors engaged in discussion w/ each other, including Elliott’s love of the job despite the isolation & loneliness.

There is some great imagery shown in this cold, foggy setting, each breath visible in the night. The supernatural element is a spectre that Elliott has seen; each appearance foretells doom & disaster. The Signalman isn’t action-packed, full of spooks and calamity. Rather, the mood & atmosphere slowly envelops the viewer. This spectre doesn’t tell the signalman how to prevent those accidents, after all, and even Lloyd becomes haunted by those moments.

As the sound design is aces throughout & the finale is chilling to the bone, The Signalman can be viewed during any month of the year.

 

The Mummy's Tomb

The Mummy’s Tomb (1942)

Runtime: 61 minutes

Directed by: Harold Young

Starring: Lon Chaney, Jr., Turhan Bey, Dick Foran, John Hubbard, Elyse Knox

From: Universal

There’s no need for me to ever see The Mummy’s Hand…

This played last night on the Universal Monsters streaming channel found on platforms such as Pluto TV. I would have watched The Mummy’s Hand (the second in the franchise-Tomb is the third) except that the channel wasn’t playing it last night. That was irrelevant anyhow as the first 1/5th (!) of this film is a CliffsNotes version of Hand, told 30 years later by the lead in Hand-a character w/ the surname Banning- to his family in the living room.

The villains (both human & mummy) seek revenge 30 years later; at least this being a direct sequel explains why… this time the mummy is shipped to New England to gain revenge on the Banning family. The “tomb” in question is at a cemetery in New England. The mummy is guided by Turhan Bey. Now, this isn’t the best Universal Horror by any regards and has its silly moments; one example is that a guy phones the sheriff after hearing a wolf howl!

Yet, the movie is still enjoyable, a fine hour spent with a decent score and some atmospheric moments. Wallace Ford had a supporting role as the typical wisecracking Wallace Ford character. Plus, Lon Chaney, Jr. was the titular mummy, Kharis. It does plenty of killing even as it shuffles about and only has one working arm. Bey had a Turkish father; no surprise that he portrayed many “ethnic” roles during his career, including Egyptian in The Mummy’s Tomb.

Tomb is not a must-see film, not the best of the Universal Horror sequels of the 30’s through the 50’s. This does not mean there isn’t fun to be had viewing a mummy stalk then strangle people to death as if it was a slasher movie villain. If you’re familiar with The Mummy’s Hand, the first 12 of the 60 minutes being devoted to recapping that will be irksome but otherwise the film is competent, w/ several memorable moments.

 

Species

Species (1995)

Runtime: 108 minutes

Directed by: Ronald Donaldson

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Forest Whitaker, Alfred Molina, Michael Madsen, Marg Helgenberger, Natasha Henstridge

From: MGM 

Somehow, a movie I’d never seen before last night. Recently, I was to cancel the MGM+ subscription I had on Amazon but they gave me a sweetheart deal to stay on for a few more months. Plus, they have a few 24/7 streaming channels, this playing on their Marquee channel late last night.

I was happy to view lurid sci-fi/horror trash which had an overqualified cast & crew in a fun milieu. Creating a human/alien hybrid via instructions sent to you via alien signal was a poor idea, especially when she becomes Natasha Henstridge and wishes to mate; yes, end-of-the-world potential. In my opinion, nothing wrong w/ trash where the film was sexual & was happy to present nudity. Henstridge is a lovely lady, swell for this sort of motion picture.

The movie is silly yet full, full of campy dialogue… at least I hope it was meant to be campy! If not, then it accidentally was a win. The team tasked w/ hunting down the villain was Ben Kingsley, Michael Madsen, Marg Helgenberger, Alfred Molina, and Forest Whittaker, the latter having telepathic abilities; that’s a quality crew. Having an established director like Roger Donaldson was also a nice asset.

Species does not have high, arty aspirations; apparently, the script was originally more high-brow but instead we received an exciting film with fun protagonists (late in the movie, they bond over… Long
Island Ice Teas), & formidable villain in a world with nice bloody practical effects, a creature created by H.R. Gigler, early CG which wasn’t offensively bad, and a few chuckles. Who knows if the sequels will ever be viewed but this was an engaging 90’s creature feature.

Hot Spot

Hot Spot (2026)

Runtime: 101 minutes

Directed by: Agnieszka Smoczynska

Starring: Andrzej Konopka, Reika Kirishima, Noomi Rapace, George Aurimas Cris, Filippa Kaye

From: Many different European companies

Going into a theatrical movie almost blind doesn’t always work out. It wasn’t until Tuesday that I had even heard of Hot Spot; one location in Orlando has it. The movie is from the lady Polish director w/ the long name that did The Lure. Some will be offended that none of her movies had been seen by me before, not even The Lure. I knew that it featured Noomi Rapace & a lady who was in Drive My Car—yet another picture unseen by me as of now. Otherwise, the setting was the only other detail known.

This should have been to my tastes, and as first I thought it would be. The world is a dystopian hellscape-water a precious resource-where everyone is plugged into AI to survive. There are those that oppose this of course-they resemble the Fremen from Dune. Our detective lead is an 80’s-looking dude w/ an amazing head of blonde curly head (the director’s husband, it turns out) who not only had the appearance of a JOE EXOTIC cosplayer, but listens to 1980’s songs and has incredible fits. He rides in a driverless car which is a 90’s Citroen sedan. As a synthwave 80’s-sounding tune is heard, I was hoping this would be an oddity right up my alley.

Now, I never saw a trailer for the film; from reading other reviews, that was incredibly misleading anyhow. From the opening, I thought the story would concern a murder and that Rapace would be involved. Well, her role wasn’t too large anyhow; what the movie was about instead… unfortunately this is one of those where the director has literally told viewers this is more about “vibes” than “plot” or “story.” That is typically an “uh oh” for me.

Sadly, this is one of those obtuse, irritating European arthouse flicks I’m happy to normally avoid… only it seems that even some who enjoy such things found Hot Spot to have a muddled plot. This being shot in English (I know done mostly to earn financing) wasn’t the best idea when the accents and pronunciations were sometimes incomprehensible to my ears, and I usually don’t have a problem with such things. That didn’t help with my confusion, but I’d have been baffled anyhow even w/o this issue. A major plot point could either be literal or figurative… it’d be WTF if literal but then again this is a world that now has hairy small sandworm creatures and a supporting lady has elf ears, except that it appeared they were a fashion accessory as it looked as she took them off before a major event occurred.

I know some will enjoy this weird & HORNY film and that’s great. I at least was more puzzled than angry about the experience. The cinematography was nice, as was the desert setting which featured Brutalist architecture. It is a shame that an original property like this from Europe that has details I enjoyed featured a nothingburger of a story which missed the mark this badly. Perhaps it’d be better for everyone (me included) if a streaming rental at home w/ subtitles occurred as that’d eliminate a major problem but I would still not care about the characters, feeling totally detached from the experience.

Doctor Who: Pyramids of Mars

This is my second-ever Who, and the 1975 serial is the first w/ Tom Baker: 

I know Whovians will be delighted I finally saw Tom Baker in the role. This serial was one of a few recommended by a mutual on Letterboxd who is a diehard fan; I also see that the general consensus on the site is rather high. I won’t compare Jon Pertwee and Baker, given that I’ve only seen one serial of each. Baker had a few conceited moments… but he is a Time Lord and not human, which companion Sarah Jane needs reminding of. Plus, there are also a few angry moments-considering this tale has end-of-the-universe stakes, it’s understandable.

It was nice to see the inside of the TARDIS for the first time-not to mention the usage of the Sonic Screwdriver, another device from Who that was known beforehand due to cultural osmosis. This tale had quite the plot: the Doctor and his companion Sarah Jane (Elisabeth Sladen was a familiar face from the Pertwee serial I saw… Invasion of the Dinosaurs) are in 1911 England. A professor visits Egypt and discovers a tomb, which unbeknownst to him gives a long-entombed alien named Sutekh a conduit to not only escape, but destroy all life in the universe. “Sutekh the Destroyer” is an apt name.

The effects are low-budget yet were all charming-even w/ the TARDIS “flying in space” on a string-and I was greatly entertained by this tale which was engrossing whether indoor (on decent sets) or outdoors in the woods, which I’ll presume is a common shooting location for Who episodes. The budget and effects were irrelevant when I enjoyed Baker as the Doctor, Sarah Jane & her interplay w/ him (including humorous moments), Sutekh was quite the intimidating villain-a masked villain marvelously voice-acted by Gabriel Woolf-and the story was a fun yarn which involved “mummies” and while not horror, still had some frightful moments.

This won’t be on my Spooky Season list for this year, BUT I do plan on seeing at least one Who serial horror-related by the time Halloween arrives. I’ve done Google searches so the possible candidates are already known by me.

 

A Chinese Ghost Story

A Chinese Ghost Story (Sien Lui Yau Wan) (1987)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Tony Ching Siu-Tung

Starring: Leslie Cheung, Joey Wong, Wu Ma, Lau Siu-Ming, David Lam Wai

From: Cinema City/Film Workshop/Golden Princess Film Productions

Now here’s a movie that could have only come from 80’s Hong Kong-compliment. This is in fact a tale which involves ghosts (a family of them, in fact), the undead, horror, comedy-usually at least worthy of a chuckle-romance, and action. Heck, a key character even sings a song midway through the picture. To quote a Letterboxd mutual, this might have been inspired-at least partially-by the Greek myth of Orpheus & Eurydice & definitely was inspired by old Chinese lore.

A dim-witted tax collector stays at a haunted temple-after encountering red-eyed wolves-meets a bearded Taoist priest, and encounters a lovely lady; despite the context clues and her telling him she’s a ghost, he just won’t believe. Sure, the ghosts in this universe have a physical corporeal form, but our lead is still amusingly dopey—which is much better than an infuriating sort of dopey.

The film is a singular journey, one that’s greatly compelling as the viewer doesn’t know what will happen from scene to scene. They were obviously inspired by The Evil Dead; however, the most bizarre plot points, I have no idea how they came up with such loony ideas, especially involving a tongue! It’s not as bonkers as The Boxer’s Omen-but only a miniscule number are to that level anyhow. I was always interested in the trek our lead experiences while experiencing this creative lore, whether it’s sweet love, his unknowing close encounters w/ the undead, stop-motion animation or the wild climax.

Ghost Story has two sequels; it may be years before those are viewed but undoubtedly I’ll view at least one other movie from this part of the world for Spooky Season 2026.