The Outsider

The Outsider (Le Marginal) (1983)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: Jacques Deray

Starring: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Henry Silva, Carlos Sotto Mayor, Pierre Vernier, Tcheky Karyo

From: Cerito Films/Les Films Ariane

Belmondo playing a Black Knight pinball table: a moment I did not know I needed but am glad I got.

The past several days I was unexpectedly busy but thankfully I had the time late last night to watch something, and I figured it was time to see another later action picture from Jean-Paul Belmondo, who was quite popular in Europe and even while middle-aged did all his own stunts.

The plot to this... I might as well copy and paste from what some dude on IMDb calling themselves nufs68 wrote up, because why not: "Fed-up with the inefficiency of the Marseille police, Paris sends drug-enforcement specialist Philippe Jordan to Marseille. He's supposed to assist the local law enforcement dismantle the drug networks, especially mobster Sauveur Mecacci's network. So far, Mecacci has managed to elude capture or successful prosecution by local authorities. However, Inspector Philippe Jordan's unorthodox law enforcement style may prove efficient against Mecacci if Jordan receives a free-hand green-light from the Marseille police bosses and if he survives the frequent attempts against his life, of course. Once at work, Inspector Philippe Jordan's rough style creates mayhem in the city of Marseille and triggers numerous complaints from the Mayor's Office, from outraged citizens and from the lawyers of a scared Mecacci who wants to see Jordan dead. These things, in turn, tell Jordan he's on the right track. "

Clearly, Jordan is a loose cannon, not a surprise for this sort of Belmondo film. Much to my delight, Mecacci was played by the legendary Henry Silva; hearing him dubbed in French was a hoot. Furthermore, Tcheky Karyo has a small role. While Silva only appears in a few scenes, I still had a real good time with this. In terms of tone and style, I was reminded of a poliziotteschi... the hero is a rebel and a bad-ass, sleaze is ever-present, a funky score is present-in this instance, from Morricone-there is an amusing side mission or two, and the action includes car/foot chases, shootouts, fist-fights, and more.It's the type of trash I enjoy; I mean, Belmondo even hooks up with an attractive young hooker!

I don't want to give too much away but I laughed that Belmondo drives both a crappy old Talbot hatchback and a Renault 18i station wagon... along with the realization that in 1983 France, roller discos were still a thing, and you could even play pinball in those joints.

It Came From Hollywood

It Came from Hollywood (1982)

Runtime: 80 minutes

Directed by: Malcolm Leo/Andrew Solt

Starring: Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Cheech & Chong, Gilda Radner

From: Paramount

MST3K did not do it first.

I understand that many people saw this in the 80's when it was in heavy rotation on HBO; from the brief time I had the HBO channels in the late 90's, I can confirm they still showed this, as this is how I saw the movie back over 20 years ago. It will likely never receive an official release due to all the different film clips they showed but it is rather easy to track down online.

Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Cheech & Chong, & Gilda Radner not only appear in wraparound sketches but they make occasional pithy comments over trailers and footage from bad movies (although it does have clips from The Fly, The War of the Worlds, Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Blob and even The Day the Earth Stood Still for some damn reason), and it's divided into various sections, including animal movies, anti-drug pictures, aliens, rebel teen flicks and a tribute to Ed Wood. The humor was hit or miss to me and it's not as funny as a typical episode of MST3K-Lord knows this goes for broad and obvious humor rather than the esoteric and eccentric of Joel or Mike and the bots- but there were enough laughs and it was nice seeing clips from a bunch of films I had never seen before.

To Hollywood's credit, it never cruelly mocks as it pokes fun at these low-budget extravaganzas, treated Wood fairly and Candy at one point makes the important point that most of what is in here hardly had any budget, explaining the low-fi moments. It was a gas seeing Aykroyd and Candy spoof Glen or Glenda, and Radner sharing a brief scene with Cheech & Chong. Incidentally, I saw on one site that apparently the reason why Wood is focused on was that the books by Harry and Michael Medved were popular... and for some reason, Paramount bought the rights to Glen or Glenda and were going to show it for at least a short run theatrically at a famous theatre in NYC before backing out at the last minute. Really.

I Was Not A Fan of QT's Latest Movie

And here is why:

Honestly, this only deserves about a one star rating just for having Lena Dunham in a small role.

This is going to be one of those long reviews, I'll state that right away; I know those aren't for all tastes. Before even talking about Hollywood, its director is someone who I need to discuss. As mentioned in some prior reviews, I haven't loved everything that QT has done; I wish that every picture was very good like Jackie Brown or Reservoir Dogs-I am realistic and realize it's impossible to rise to the heights of Pulp Fiction and the impact it had on cinema in general... also mentioned in the past is how with the majority of his pictures, I am pretty sure I'd rate them different each time I give them a spin, and that is not normally how I feel.

In addition, there is the recent controversy surrounding Tarantino and claims by Uma Thurman that he did not behave appropriately on the set of Kill Bill or take the appropriate steps to protect her from harm whilst shooting-amazing then that her daughter Maya Hawke is in this I know this was enough for some to cancel QT forever-I won't go that far although I hope that this current era creates a climate where directors-no matter how great-do not behave so abhorrently or abuse women to get a certain performance, as even some of the all-time-greats have done in the past. Anyhow, I hope no one is offended I went and saw this, although I won't fault anyone who is.

Another point of contention is that Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate has hardly anything to do and that is unfortunately true. People got upset that a talented actress was used this way and QT's indignant reaction to anyone questioning his “genius”... it makes him look like a dinosaur in this day and age, to be blunt. I mean, right or wrong things are different now. I did not mind following washed-up cowboy actor Rick Dalton or his stunt double buddy Cliff Booth... until an important question popped up... what was the point?

Honestly, what was the point of all of this? I was wondering that for a good amount of the movie, and after that ending, it echoed even louder. It seemed the main purpose was to bring 1969 Southern California to life and admittedly it does look like a cool world. Of course, there's also all the TV shows QT remembered as a young kid and various obscure genre movies of the time. In addition, it does have a nice soundtrack... and a surprising amount of Paul Revere & The Raiders; who knew Tarantino was such a fan? Yet I found myself having more of a desire to see The Fourteen Fists of McCluskey or the Spaghetti Westerns that Rick Dalton starred in, or even the Bond riff that he starred in w/ Gordon Mitchell rather than Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Like I said, Sharon Tate ends up being a minor character (her character could completely be cut out and not a thing would be different), and much to my surprise, so is The Manson Family. This is why I was questioning the existence of this motion picture. Even then, this was different from QT's other movies and while it did not work for me overall, at least I can say this was more mature... random moments that seemed like a middle finger to the critics and the constant showing of bare feet aside. At least there were no N-bombs... although I don't remember seeing any black people either. I wondered why Bruce Lee was made to look like a fool but this was not like any of his previous work; then, the ending happened. I had major problems with that cartoony nonsense; all I'll say is, those women who decided to cancel QT after Uma's charges, I really hope they never see the movie as a whole, the denouement especially.

Honestly, there are two reasons why I can even give this an average rating: there are some high-quality scenes here, & Leo and Brad Pitt as the leads. Their talents (not to mention the #looks they served throughout) helped me get through this overlong exercise. I've never believed that Tarantino is going to make only ten feature films, but even then if he got away from the Western genre that would be nice... how about more variety? Oh, and the reason why I bagged on Dunham in the beginning: look up “Lena Dunham sister” on Google and see how she outed her sister without her permission, is casually racist, had a bizarre “body exploration” moment with her sister when they were kids that should have never been made public, and is otherwise far worse than QT to me and is a generally awful, repugnant talentless rich girl who I wish would go away.

Haxan

Haxan (Heksen) (1922)

Runtime: 105 minutes

Directed by: Benjamin Christensen

Starring: Christensen, Clara Pontoppidan, Oscar Stribolt, Astrid Holm, Maren Pedersen

From: Several Swedish and Danish companies

I finally understand why this silent has been infamous for almost a century now: 

Both educational and terrifying.

For almost 100 years this Swedish/Danish silent has been a controversial film... one that was originally designed as a documentary and those elements are still present but the bulk of this is re-reactions of purported examples of witchcraft from the past.

This is in seven acts and the first is a serious presentation on the history of witches and demons. After that, it gets wild as vignettes are presented of Satan himself (played by director Benjamin Christensen) and there is a long example of how an old woman is accused of witchcraft, and of course she confesses after being tortured... where she accuses others of the crime. It does present how there was a hysteria back then concerning such things... along with wicked people and spirts engaging in debauchery, including... women literally kissing the ass of the devil! Yep, at times this is darkly humorous. It then gets serious again as a viable hypothesis is formed where mental illness was likely the root of the problem of those accused of that crime back centuries ago.

Even now this is one of a kind; this is surprisingly explicit and shows many macabre and just plain peculiar images, most of which I don't want to spoil here. The images are also tinted various colors, mainly red and blue; it makes for quite the experience and no wonder this got banned in many countries at the time. Even in the middle of 2019, this still has some frightening moments and it still stands out as a product done in an entirely unique style and format.

Quatermass And The Pit

Quatermass and the Pit (1967)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: Roy Ward Baker

Starring: Andrew Keir, James Donald, Barbara Shelley, Julian Glover, Duncan Lamont

From: Hammer

I am finally caught up here. I saw this a few nights ago on TCM, under its American title: 

As sometimes happens, I've heard of a movie and/or a movie character years before making any effort to see it. Last night on TCM they played this film, which was released in the United States as Five Million Years to Earth, as both then and now hardly any Americans have ever heard of Professor Bernard Quatermass.

This is a slow cerebral sci-fi so it's not for all tastes but I now understood why TCM showed the movie right after 2001: A Space Odyssey. Ancient bones are discovered in the London Underground... then a mysterious object is found right along the bones and it certainly looks like a spaceship. I don't want to give away too much else except that this movie goes bold by delving into such topics as mind control, psychokinesis and the origin of humanity... wild stuff.

Most of the main players were middle-aged or old men of academic excellence, and I was never bored seeing them interact with each other and try to piece together what is a bizarre puzzle. There's also Julian Glover as a military man, and it's not a spoiler to say that a military man in this kind of story or someone played by Julian Glover is an antagonist and also a jerk. Perhaps I shouldn't be so harsh on the character: when you hear Quatermass try to explain what those artifacts are and it sounded like he made giant leaps of logic to what sounds like a wild yarn he's spinning... Glover's interpretation does sound more logical. In addition, cult favorite Barbara Shelley does have a key role and she is more than just window dressing or a damsel in distress-the character is a credible scientist type.

I wouldn't be surprised if one day this got a modern remake. While they would be able to go hog-wild with all the wild things that were implied here, I just know the characters wouldn't be as interesting, the ideas would be dumbed down and it'd have a much faster pace at the expense of taking its time to unveil the plot. For me, this film was a pleasant surprise. Those that love Carpenter's Prince of Darkness...

All This And World War II

All This and World War II(1976)

Runtime: 84 minutes

Directed by: Susan Winslow

Starring: This is a documentary, and a really wacky one at that

From: 20^th Century Fox

Even stranger than Yesterday, Across the Universe and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
This is another one of those movies which I've known of for years yet hadn't viewed until last night-a big reason why is that until recently it was incredibly hard to track down, as this is one of those infamous flops, at least at the time. Once I describe what this bizarre documentary is, its lack of success should be readily apparent.

Why exactly someone thought of having a smorgasbord of different popular musical acts doing covers of songs by The Beatles and having this music be the backdrop to... a cursory glance of World War II... I have no damn idea, but this is actually the entirety of All This and World War II. I was baffled before viewing this and it'd be nice to say afterwards that I understood and it all made sense-unfortunately, I am just as perplexed now as I was beforehand. To be clear, the war is covered in chronological order and there's actually plenty of film footage to tie everything together. In a way I was reminded of Myra Breckenridge, and THERE is a movie you really want to be compared to!

At best the music was only tangentially connected to what was on screen so the entire experience was just odd. I can't say it was awful or difficult to get through as the footage was nice and the music was fine... it was just odd. At least the musicians were of high caliber overall and all the covers were OK at worst. The acts include Elton John, Keith Moon, Tina Turner, Leo Sayer, Rod Stewart, Jeff Lynne and The Bee Gees. Peter Gabriel sounding like a Muppet as he sang Strawberry Fields Forever was unexpected (as he usually doesn't sound like a Muppet!) but in a surprise, soft rockers Ambrosia did a surprisingly cool rendition of Magical Mystery Tour.

Astoundingly, 20th Century Fox (!) released this movie; apparently, it was pulled after only two weeks due to both a public and critical lambasting. Due to all the songs I imagine this won't ever be put on disc by a niche label; that is a shame if only because many of those labels would have interviews with at least some of the surviving participants, and I'd love to know just WHY this was created and WHY they thought such a peculiar idea would be something the general public would like. There are plenty of World War II documentaries out there and I imagine most of the songs are on YouTube (heck, the entire movie is on the platform, at least at this time) and many of the film clips used are probably from movies that aren't too difficult to track down; honestly, most people probably won't bother but if you do, it likely only will be viewed once for curiosity's sake and to prove for yourself if this is as puzzling as it sounds.

I Discuss Stranger Things Season 3 & More

A few days ago I viewed a half hour thing on Netflix known as Frankenstein's Monster's Monster, Frankenstein. That was as "good" as you'd expect for something with such a title, even if it stars David Harbour.

To be Frank... this was only watched as a backdoor way to discuss Stranger Things Season 3.

I would have never heard of this if it hadn't been for Letterboxd, as Christ it sure as heck is not being promoted on Netflix. That service wonders why they are bleeding subscribers... if it wasn't for “losing a lot of interesting if obscure films because they'd rather make a bunch of lousy at best movies and only occasionally worthwhile TV shows”, I would say the explanation would be “their interface gets worse and worse each time I on rare occasions subscribe to it”, which is a big reason why I only subscribe on rare occasions. Wait, where was I...

Oh yeah, me sharing another unpopular opinion when it comes to something related to modern pop culture. The first two seasons of Stranger Things I did not love-The Duffer Brothers did not have to have terrible plot points straight out of the 80's too-but it was still enjoyable and not something I regretted spending hours with as it was well-cast and there were bitchin' moments. Season 3, though... at the risk of sounding like a mouth breather to most, I thought it was absolutely terrible! The main story was laughably lame in all the worst ways so I hated it, and I did not like any of the sideplots either. It was just miserable to me and tough to get through; it seemed like the magic was gone and it honestly took me longer than expected to view all the episodes. The Starcourt Mall looked cool and there were some other nice moments, but otherwise Season 3 sucked, to state it bluntly.

By far the worst aspect was how Jim Hopper was absolutely ruined; as several thinkpiece articles have stated, that character suddenly became an abusive A-hole who was constantly angry and at 11 and was a dick to everyone... and the show treated his behavior as a GOOD thing?! What a great message to send, it was OK for Joyce and Eleven to be emotionally and verbally abused for the entire season-honestly, I am baffled as to why everyone else loves 3 as it was far worse than the first two. Of course, it'd be nice if this bizarre 30 minute thing with the unwieldy title would make me think better of David Harbour but instead it reminded me of something else I hate: Adult Swim! None of their original shows have any actual humor and instead it's just weird crap that is supposed to be funny because it is weird and awkward.

The only purpose for Frankenstein seemed to be “wouldn't it be funny if we created an alternate universe where David Harbour had a famous father that was a copy of Orson Welles late in his life?” and “it'd be hilarious if we created a terrible on purpose play that was filmed for TV & was filled with mistakes and poor acting, right?” My response for both queries would be “no.” I've mentioned before how the vast majority of modern comedy is just lost on me and this is yet another example of that. Not even Alfred Molina and Mary Woronov could make this any better than intolerable.
In hindsight, there may be a reason Netflix has buried this release...