I’ve always loved action cinema. It’s one of
my all-time favorite genres. When I was a teenager in the mid-1980s, I saw a
VHS copy of the action film Bucktown
and I’ve been a huge fan of its star, Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, ever since.
A former pro football defensive back for
(amongst others) the Kansas City Chiefs (1965-1967), Williamson, who holds
black belts in Taekwondo, Kenp? and Shotokan karate, later moved on to acting.
Some of his first appearances was guest starring on TV shows such as Star Trek and Ironside. He quickly graduated to features, appearing in Robert
Altman’s M*A*S*H and Otto Preminger’s
Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon.
In 1970, Williamson starred in the
appropriately titled action movie Hammer (the
nickname was given to him during his football days). The film was a success and
it began his long and entertaining career as an action movie superstar. Standing
at 6ft. 3 inches tall and rarely seen without a prop cigar in his hand, Williamson
would go on to appear in a plethora of action classics (many of which were
distributed by major Hollywood studios) such as Black Caesar, Take a Hard Ride, Black Eye, Three the Hard Way,Mean Johnny Barrows (which he also
produced), and 1978’s Inglorious Bastards.
In 1976, the Hammer created his own company,
Po’ Boy Productions, which would not only see him star in, but also direct, a
ton of action films the likes of Death
Journey, No Way Back, Mr. Mean, Foxtrap, and The Kill Reflex. Williamson is also a veteran of Italian
exploitation cinema. He has appeared in the cult classics The New Barbarians, The New Gladiators, and Black Cobra 1-4. Just to name a few. In later years, he would act
in films such as From Dusk till Dawn
(for cinema titans Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino) and Original Gangstas (directed by the
legendary Larry Cohen and co-produced by Williamson) and he shows no signs of
slowing down.
Recently, the Hammer’s somewhat forgotten,
1973, action-packed, James Bond-like film
That Man Bolt was released on Blu-ray.
Solidly directed by David Lowell Rich and Henry
Levin from an entertaining screenplay by Ranald MacDougall and Charles Eric
Johnson, That Man Bolt tells the tale
of courier and martial arts expert Jefferson Bolt who is hired to transport a
million dollars from Hong Kong to Mexico City. However, Bolt soon realizes that
he’s been set up and now he’s dead set on paying back everyone who double-crossed
him.
Produced by Universal Pictures and released
in December of 1973, That Man Bolt,
aka Operation Hong Kong, is an
exciting adventure flick (sort of a 007/martial arts combo) which not only
contains well-crafted action sequences, but also some memorable characters
played wonderfully by its talented cast.
Leading the way, of course, is the always
charismatic Fred Williamson who convincingly plays the intelligent and capable
Jefferson Bolt. There are also appearances by familiar faces such as Byron
Webster, Miko Mayama, Teresa Graves, John Orchard, Jack Ging and Paul Mantee;
not to mention martial arts champions Mike Stone, Emil Farkas, David Chow and Kenji
Kazama. Enter the Dragon fans will
recognize Geoffrey Weeks who appears in a brief role, as well as the voice of
the great Keye Luke (who not only dubbed Shih Kien in Enter, but also performs the same duty here).
The fun film which was shot in L.A., Las
Vegas, Macau and Hong Kong, also features some terrific cinematography by Emmy
Award winner Gerald Finnerman, and a cool, Lalo Schifrin/John Barry-like musical
score by composer Charles Bernstein.
That Man Bolt has been released on
Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. The region one disc presents the movie in its original
1.85:1 aspect ratio. The 2K transfer looks gorgeous. The disc not only contains
the original theatrical trailer, but also
That Man Hammer, a short, but entertaining interview with Fred Williamson.
Overall, this is a highly enjoyable, early 70s action-adventure that definitely
deserves to be re-discovered. It’s also a very nice addition to your Fred
Williamson collection. And if you’re just beginning to get into the Hammer’s
filmography, That Man Bolt is a great
place to start.
Due to the financial success of the highly
enjoyable 1985 martial arts/actioner American
Ninja, a sequel was quickly put into production which would feature the
return of stars Michael Dudikoff and Steve James as well as director Sam
Firstenberg.
Written by James Booth and Gary Conway (from
a story by Conway), American Ninja 2: The
Confrontation finds our heroes—US Army Rangers Sergeant Joe Armstrong
(Dudikoff) and Sergeant Curtis Jackson (James)—travelling to the Caribbean in
order to search for a group of Marines that have gone missing. Once there, they
find that an evil drug lord known as the Lion (Gary Conway) has been
brainwashing and genetically enhancing soldiers, transforming them into
superhuman Ninja killers. Are the Ninjitsu skills of Armstrong and Jackson
enough to stop the Lion from turning the missing Marines into deadly Super
Ninjas?
Filmed in South Africa and released by Cannon
Films on May 1, 1987, American Ninja 2:
The Confrontation, while not as solid or as successful as its predecessor,
is still a very fun, 80s adventure. It’s no surprise that veteran action
director Firstenberg expertly handles the film’s many exciting action sequences,
and the cast, led by the talented Dudikoff and James, is a joy to watch. The
film clocks in at a brief 90 minutes and features familiar faces such as
Conway, Jeff Weston and karate champion Mike Stone; not to mention legendary
actor/stuntman Kane Hodder (Jason from the Friday
the 13thfranchise) in a brief role as a thug. If, like me,
you’re a fan of super fun 80s action flicks, Dudikoff, James, or all three, you’ll
find plenty to enjoy here.
American Ninja 2: The
Confrontation has
been released on a region one Blu-ray by Kino Lorber and is presented in its
original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. As with the KLedition of the 1985 film, the
sequel looks and sounds fantastic. The special features include two informative
audio commentaries: one by director Firstenberg (moderated by filmmaker/editor
Elijah Drenner) and another by Firstenberg and Stunt Coordinator BJ Davis.
There is also the featurette: An American
Ninja in Cape Town: The Making of American Ninja 2 as well as the original theatrical
trailer. The Blu-ray also comes with an eye-catching slipcover.
The late, great Rutger Hauer was an amazingly
talented actor. Named the Best Dutch Actor of the Century by the Dutch public,
the Saturn Award nominated thespian had an extremely entertaining career where
he memorably played both heroes and villains in classic films such as Nighthawks, The Hitcher, Blade Runner,
Ladyhawke, Wanted: Dead or Alive, and Buffy
the Vampire Slayer. Just to name a few. Recently, Hauer’s wonderful turn as
Nick Parker in 1990’s action-packed film Blind
Fury was released to Blu-ray.
Written by Charles Robert Carner and directed
by Phillip Noyce, Blind Fury deals
with Nick Parker (Hauer), a soldier who was blinded in Vietnam, but developed
his remaining senses and, through intense training, becoming an expert with a
samurai sword before returning to the States. When Parker’s best friend and
fellow soldier, Frank Deveraux (Terry O’Quinn), is kidnapped by ruthless
criminals, Parker decides to take Frank’s young son, Billy, (Brandon Call) to
Nevada in order to find and rescue his dad. However, the deadly thugs want
Billy so that they can use him to convince Frank to make their illegal drugs.
With the help of Frank’s girlfriend, Annie (Lisa Blount), Nick does everything
he can to protect young Billy from the homicidal hoods and save Frank before
it’s too late.
Filmed around the Midwestern United States
and released by Tri-Star Pictures in March of 1990, Blind Fury, which was produced by Daniel Grodnick and actor/director
Tim Matheson, is a highly enjoyable action adventure/martial arts film with
well-drawn characters and just the right amount of comic relief and heart.
Based on the Japanese character Zatoichi—a blind swordsman who was created by
Kan Shimozawa in 1948 and appeared in 26 films—Blind Fury is basically a loving remake of the seventeenth Zatoichi
film Zatoichi Challenged (1967).
Clocking in at a brief 86 minutes, Blind Fury moves along pretty quickly
and not only features excellent direction by Phillip Noyce, but also a
well-known, veteran cast who do a terrific job. Naturally, Rutger Hauer is
excellent in the role of Nick Parker. Trained by blind judo champion and
Paralympic silver medal winner Lynn Manning, Hauer has said that playing a
blind swordsman was one of the most difficult jobs he’s ever had to do.
Besides the super talented Call, O’Quinn and
Blount, the exciting film also features wonderful performances from Noble
Willingham, Nick Cassavetes, former pro boxer Randall “Tex” Cobb, comedian Rick
Overton, the immortal Sho Kosugi, the lovely Meg Foster, former professional
wrestler Tiger Chung Lee and former pro football player Jay Pennison.
Blind Fury has been released on
a region one, two and three Blu-ray, and is presented in its original 1.85:1
aspect ratio. The entertaining film looks excellent and sounds just as great.
Special features include a very informative audio commentary by screenwriter
Charles Robert Carner (moderated by filmmaker Douglas Hosdale)as well as the original theatrical
trailer. The Blu-ray also comes with a slipcover which contains some
fun-looking artwork of Nick Parker in action. If you’re a fan of old school
action/martial arts cinema; Rutger Hauer; samurai films or all of the above,
then definitely check this one out.
The 1980s were chock full of amazing action
franchises and action stars. The stars were legendary: Charles Bronson, Clint
Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chuck Norris, Mel Gibson,
Danny Glover, etc. The franchises were just as legendary: Death Wish, Dirty Harry, Rambo, Terminator, Missing in Action, Lethal Weapon, etc. Not to mention the
beloved James Bond series which produced five blockbuster movies throughout the
80s, three starring Roger Moore and two starring Timothy Dalton. Then, there
were the great one-shot action films of which there are way too many to list
here. Of course, martial arts/action; especially those featuring ninjas, were
just as popular with cinemagoers. Yes, it was an exciting decade.
In 1985, Cannon Films, led by immortal
producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, decided to start a new action movie/martial
arts franchise titled American Ninja.
Cannon, who were responsible for the popular
Missing in Action and Death Wish
series of films as well as several well-loved ninja movies which starred the
fantastic Sho Kosugi and partly started the ninja craze, wanted Chuck Norris to
play the lead role of Private Joe Armstrong. However, Norris declined. Cannon
then went on a worldwide search and, after auditioning over 400 candidates, they
chose up and coming actor Michael Dudikoff. The well-made movie would go on to
spawn four sequels, two of which (parts 2 and 4) would see Dudikoff return as
the silent, but deadly Armstrong. Thanks to our friends at Kino Lorber, the
original film has now been released on Blu-ray.
Written by Paul De Mielche (from a story by
Gideon Amir and Avi Kleinberger) and directed by action veteran Sam
Firstenberg, American Ninja tells the
story of Joe Armstrong (Dudikoff), a US Army private who uses his Ninjitsu
skills when a supply convoy is ambushed by rebels led by a Black Ninja Warrior
(Tadashi Yamashita). Now marked for revenge by the Black Star Ninjas, Joe, with
the help of his friend, Corporal Curtis Jackson (played by the late, great
Steve James), must do everything in his power to rescue the kidnapped Patricia
Hickock (Judie Aronson)—daughter of Joe’s commanding officer—and take down the
Black Star Ninjas for good.
Made for one million dollars, American Ninja (aka American Warrior and American
Fighter) is a solid and entertaining 80s action film with an engrossing
enough story, a terrific cast, and exciting action sequences which are more
than competently handled by director Firstenberg (who already had some Ninja
experience directing the Sho Kosugi martial arts/action classics Return of the Ninja and Ninja III: The Domination for Cannon).
The fun, 95-minute movie also features John Fujioka, Don Stewart and Richard
Norton.
Trained by 10th degree black belt
and martial arts champion Mike Stone, American
Ninja instantly made Michael Dudikoff an action movie star. Over the next
two decades, Dudikoff would appear in a plethora of action films. He would also
reunite with Steve James two more times in American
Ninja 2: The Confrontation and Avenging
Force; both directed by Firstenberg. James, who I believe would have become
a major action star if not for his untimely death, went on to reprise his role
as Curtis Jackson a third time in American
Ninja 3: Blood Hunt.
American Ninja has been released on
a region one Blu-ray. It is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and
the film looks and sounds incredible. The special features include an
informative audio commentary by director Sam Firstenberg (moderated by
filmmaker/editor Elijah Drenner) as well as a second commentary with
Firstenberg and Stunt Coordinator Steven Lambert. We are also treated to Rumble in the Jungle: The Making of
American Ninja, the original theatrical trailer and TV spot, and a very
cool-looking slipcover. This is pure 80s goodness. Don’t miss it.
Horror films featuring either attached, murderous
hands with minds of their own or just a homicidal, disembodied hand on the
loose have been around since the early days of cinema. Classic films like The Hands of Orlac (1924), it’s 1935
remake, Mad Love, as well as The Beast with Five Fingers (1946) and Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors (1965) are
just a few that immediately come to mind.
After the phenomenal success of 1973’s The Exorcist, a plethora of demonic
possession films flooded theater screens, creating a popular cycle of movies
which consisted of, amongst other things, satanic possession and the power of
good (usually in the form of a Catholic priest) to stop it. Titles such as Beyond the Door (1974), Abby (1974) and The Omen (1976) quickly followed, with the first two, although
thoroughly entertaining, aping The
Exorcist quite a bit. Unfortunately, there were also many films that were
merely unenjoyable and stale Exorcist
cash-ins. However, in 1981, a low-budget filmmaker smartly combined the
homicidal hand idea with satanic possession and created a fun, little cult film
called Demonoid.
While in Mexico, Mark Baines (Chinatown’sRoy Jenson) unwittingly unleashes an ancient evil in the form of a
severed hand. The hand immediately possesses Mark and wreaks havoc until the
poor man is killed and the demonic hand is separated from his dead body. Once
free, the hand continues to possess anyone it comes across, leaving a trail of
blood in its wake. With the help of benevolent Irish priest, Father Cunningham
(Stuart Whitman from Eaten Alive), Mark’s
wife, Jennifer (The Brood’ sSamantha Eggar), does everything in her
power to try and stop the evil hand before more innocent blood is spilled.
The fun film features two Academy Award nominees:
Samantha Eggar (for 1965’s The Collector)and Stuart Whitman (for 1961’s The Mark). Needless to say, Eggar and
Whitman are both convincing due to taking their roles and the premise of the film
seriously. This only helps the audience to believe in it as well, therefore
making the film even more enjoyable. Fans of 60s/70s cinema and television will
also be happy to spot highly recognizable character actor (and sometime
stuntman) Roy Jenson from Our Man Flint,The Getaway, The Gauntlet, Kung Fu and
Star Trek, just to name a few. Last, but not least, actor/stuntman Ted
White (Starman), who is best known to
genre fans for playing our favorite hockey-masked slasher-killer, Jason
Voorhees in 1984’s Friday the 13th:
The Final Chapter, shows up as an unfortunate victim of the hand’s deadly
rampage.
Filmmaker Alfredo Zacarias’ idea for Demonoid sprang from a desire to make a
film about the good and evil that dwells within every person. Combining the
disembodied hand idea with demonic possession/Exorcist-like themes, Zacarias fashioned a somewhat original and
enjoyably cheesy drive-in film that grindhouse fans like me find extremely
pleasurable. The movie may be a bit silly in spots (certain scenes of the hand
moving around as well as the actors pretending that their left hands have a
mind of their own are unintentionally hilarious and quite charming; not to
mention the fact that Stuart Whitman goes in and out of an Irish accent
whenever he feels like it), but it’s still an interesting and entertaining
enough horror-thriller with a solid, likeable cast and a fun monster in the
form of the disembodied hand.
Demonoid has been released as
a Blu-ray/DVD combo from the fine folks at Vinegar Syndrome. The film, which
has been restored from the original 35mm camera negative and scanned in 2K, is
presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and, with the exception of a little
grain here and there, the transfer looks beautiful. Special features include
the theatrical trailer, TV spot, an artwork gallery, and an interesting and
informative video interview with writer/director/producer Alfredo Zacarias. The
disc also contains the international version of Demonoid titled Macabra,
which runs ten minutes longer than the US version and features a different
soundtrack (the US version uses music taken from the 1977 sci-fi classic The Incredible Melting Man). We are also
treated to a Macabra trailer and TV
spot. The eye-catching, original poster artwork for Demonoid can be seen on the Blu-ray sleeve and the Blu-ray disc
itself while the striking artwork for Macabra
shows up on the DVD disc as well as on the reversible sleeve. All in all, a
very well put together collection of a not very well-known, but extremely fun
film.
Nick Martin (Joey Travolta, Hollywood Vice Squad, Normal People Scare Me), the leader of
a gang called the Nightcrawlers,dreams
of moving his girlfriend, mother and two brothers out of Sunnyside, Queens, but
becomes involved in a violent war against a rival gang called the Warlocks.
Beautifully directed by Night Gallery’s Timothy Galfas (who also co-wrote the screenplay with
Jeff King from a story by King and Robert Schaffel), and released by American
International Pictures, Sunnyside is
an engaging and entertaining drama/love story that carries an important message.
Although it never reached the popularity of other gang films like Walter Hill’s
The Warriors, Sunnyside is still an extremely well-done movie that I not only
feel is underrated, but that should definitely be seen.
Besides Travolta’s solid and likeable
performance, the movie also features an amazingly talented cast of actors such
as John Lansing (More American Graffiti),
Stacey Pickren (Runaway Train),
Andrew Rubin (Police Academy),
Michael Tucci (Grease), Talia Balsam
(The Kindred), Chris Mulkey (The Hidden), Joan Darling (The Troublemaker), Jonathan Gries (The Monster Squad), Peter Kwong (Big Trouble in Little China), Eric
Laneuville (A Force of One), John
Megna (To Kill a Mockingbird), Thomas
Rosales, Jr. (The Hunter), Mykelti
Williamson (Forrest Gump), John
Alderson (Against All Flags), Grand
Bush (Colors), Billy Jacoby (Bloody Birthday) and Robert Dryer (Savage Streets).
Sunnyside has been released on
a Region 1 Blu-ray and is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The
film looks great and the audio is also superb. Special features include a
terrific interview with actor Chris Mulkey, the original theatrical trailer as
well as trailers for Dirty O’Neil; Checkered Flag or Crash, and Walk Proud.
In 1984, James Cameron’s immortal classic The Terminator—a film about an almost
unstoppable killer cyborg—was unleashed upon an unsuspecting public and it
quickly became a critical and commercial success. Three years later, Paul
Verhoeven’s Robocop—which told the
story of a seriously wounded police officer being put back together with
robotic parts and brought back to active duty—flooded theater screens and, just
like The Terminator, became a
phenomenal success. That same year saw the release of a low budget, sci-fi
actioner titled Programmed to Kill
which not only borrowed heavily from both films, but also pre-dated 1992’s Universal Soldier; a movie with a
similar plot.
Written by Robert Short and directed by Allan
Holzman, Programmed to Kill tells the
tale of ruthless Middle Eastern terrorist Samira (Sandahl Bergman) who, after
completing a horrible mass shooting at a marketplace in Greece, is stopped and
seriously injured by former CIA agent Eric Matthews (Robert Ginty). Samira is
then taken to the United States where she is transformed into an obedient
cyborg killing machine. Programmed to wipe out her elite team, she is then sent
back to the Middle East. However, after completing her mission, Samira regains
her memory and begins violently assassinating her CIA enemies. Is there anyone
who can stop her out-of-control bionic rampage?
Also known as The Retaliator, Programmed
to Kill is a fun, low-budget 80s action film with a gripping, if
derivative, story; a solid cast and exciting action sequences (well-handled by
director Holzman). At a brief 91minutes, the movie never overstays its welcome.
If, like me, you’re a fan of 80s action flicks, Robert Ginty, Sandahl Bergman
or all three, you won’t be disappointed.
Programmed to Kill has been released on
a Region One Blu-ray and is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The
film’s brand new HD master from a 2K scan of the 35MM interpositive looks
fantastic. The special features include an informative audio commentary by
director Allan Holzman (moderated by filmmaker Douglas Hosdale); an interview
with screenwriter Robert Short; an alternate opening credit, and the theatrical
trailer. The Blu-ray also comes with a very cool-looking slipcover, and
reversible artwork featuring the movie’s alternate title The Retaliator. Fun stuff. Check it out.
To hardcore horror fans, the filmmaking team
of Jeffrey Obrow and Stephen Carpenter is well known. The dynamic duo first
appeared on the horror scene in 1982 when they directed the cult slasher film The Dorm That Dripped Blood aka Pranks, a movie that featured the big
screen debut of actress Daphne Zuniga and, thanks to a murder scene involving a
drill, was put on the UK’s infamous “Video Nasty” list. Obrow and Carpenter’s
sophomore effort would be 1984’s The
Power, a supernatural tale about a man who becomes possessed by an evil
Aztec doll. Recently, the creative team’s third film, a creature feature titled The Kindred, was released on Blu-ray.
The Kindred (1987)concerns scientist
John Hollins (David Allen Brooks) who, at the behest of his dying mother—a
molecular scientist played by Kim Hunter—returns to her home with Melissa
Leftridge (Amanda Pays) and several of his friends in order to destroy the
“Anthony Journals”; his mother’s notes detailing her genetic experiments.
However, evil scientist Phillip Lloyd (Rod Steiger) desperately wants the
journals so that he can continue the unholy experiments himself. But there’s
another problem—John’s murderous “brother”, Anthony, a horrible-looking,
tentacled creature born from genetic experimentation, is lurking somewhere in
their mother’s old house and he’s not a happy camper.
Besides once again directing, Obrow and
Carpenter also co-wrote The Kindred
(along with John Penney, Earl Ghaffari and the legendary Joseph Stefano) while
Obrow produced and Carpenter handled the cinematography. Shot in California,
this is a well-made and enjoyable 80s horror flick with lots of amazing, gooey
special effects (one of the main reasons to watch the movie) by Academy Award
winner Matthew Mungle, and a decent-looking creature. The film’s talented cast
also includes Talia Balsam, Peter Frechette and Julia Montgomery, and there’s a
memorable musical score by Oscar nominated composer David Newman.
The Kindred has been released on
a region 1, 2 and 3 Blu-ray by Synapse Films and it is presented in its
original 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The 4K HD remaster of the unrated version is
flawless and it has a new 5.1 English stereo surround remix as well. (The
original 2.0 mono theatrical mix is also included along with optional English
subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.) The disc not only contains an
informative audio commentary by directors Obrow and Carpenter (moderated by
horror journalist Steve Barton), but it also features a terrific, all-new 52
minute documentary titled Inhuman
Experiments-The Making of “The Kindred”; an interesting 18 minute
featurette showing effects artist Michael McCracken Jr.’s never-before-seen
on-set footage, as well as a still gallery, storyboards, trailers and TV spots.
Pure 80s fun. Recommended.
Long before his film The Accused (1988) helped earn Jodie Foster an Academy Award and
even longer before receiving Emmy Nominations for his work on TV’s ER, talented producer/director Jonathan
Kaplan made some very entertaining drive-in/exploitations films. His first, a 1972
sexploitation classic called Night Call
Nurses, was done for the immortal Roger Corman’s legendary New World
Pictures. The last of Corman’s “Nurses Trilogy”, Night Call Nurses, whichwas
made for a measly $75,000 and brought in over a million at the box office,
jumpstarted Kaplan’s filmmaking career as Corman immediately offered Kaplan The Student Teachers; a movie with
basically the same formula as the “Nurse” films (except with schoolteachers).
Released in June of 1973, Teachers
was another huge success for New World, so, impressed with Kaplan’s newest work,
Corman’s brother, Gene, hired him to direct the Jim Brown-starring heist/prison
flick The Slams (also 1973). This led
to Kaplan being approached by legendary production company American
International Pictures to helm the enjoyable 1974 “Blaxploitation” film Truck Turner starring the late, great
Isaac Hayes. Due to the success of this action-oriented film, Kaplan was hired
by Columbia Pictures to direct (and co-write) another actioner which would be
the biggest hit of his career so far: 1975’s White Line Fever, which is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.
War hero Carrol Jo Hummer (Jan-Michael
Vincent, Big Wednesday) returns home
to Tucson, Arizona and marries his sweetheart, Jerri (Kay Lenz, Breezy). He then gets a bank loan and
uses it to buy a rig named “The Blue Mule.” Anxious to start a family, Carrol
Jo begins work at Red River Shipping where his job is to haul produce. CJ soon
discovers that he is also expected to haul illegal cargo such as untaxed
cigarettes and slot machines. He refuses and gets his ribs broken by several
Red River employees. Once healed, CJ attempts to find work at other shipping
companies, but, due to being blackballed by Red River, cannot get hired. An
enraged CJ returns to Red River and holds his superiors, Duane Haller (Slim Pickens,
1972’s The Getaway) and Buck Wessler
(L.Q. Jones, The Wild Bunch) at
gunpoint until Buck agrees to let CJ do things his way. The men do agree, but
once CJ goes back to work, he is attacked by more Red River thugs who he manages
to successfully fight off. CJ eventually discovers that Red River is owned by a
huge corporation called Glass House which is not only run by a man named Cutler
(Don Porter, TV’s Gidget), but also
has ties to organized crime. The more CJ tries to do what’s right, the more
he’s attacked, with devastating consequences to his friends and family. Enraged,
CJ grabs his shotgun, jumps inside the Blue Mule and heads for Glass House. But
can one man stand up to the corrupt corporation and win?
Directed with a sure hand by Kaplan, White Line Fever is not only a modern
western with trucks instead of horses, but, according to the director, a Sam
Peckinpah-influenced western which, beside the fact that they are fabulous
actors, would explain why Peckinpah regulars like Slim Pickens, L.Q. Jones and
R.G. Armstrong (Pat Garrett and Billy the
Kid) are in the film. (Peckinpah would soon direct his own action/trucker
film; 1978’s enjoyable Convoy.) A
well-done addition to the revenge/man against the system formula, White Line Fever, as stated by co-writer
Ken Friedman (Cadillac Man),is similar in story/structure to Phil
Karlson films like Walking Tall or The Phenix City Story except with a
major twist at the end. The well-made film also benefits from some wonderful
cinematography by the Oscar nominated (for Patton)
Fred Koenekamp as well as extremely well-written, multi-dimensional characters
and terrific, believable performances from Jan-Michael Vincent, Kay Lenz, Slim
Pickens, L.Q. Jones, Sam Laws, Don Porter and R.G. Armstrong; not to mention an
early appearance by the always welcome Martin Kove (Steele Justice) as one of the Red River thugs and, last, but
certainly not least, the legendary Dick Miller (A Bucket of Blood, The Howling, Gremlins) as one of CJ’s fellow
truckers.
White Line Fever has also been
released as a Region-Free Blu-ray by the German video label Explosive Media and is
presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The beautiful transfer is sharp,
colorful and has perfect sound. The disc also contains two theatrical trailers
(one in English and one in German); a still gallery which features the film’s
posters and lobby cards; an introduction by director Kaplan and an almost hour-long
featurette with co-writer Ken Friedman who reminisces about many different
aspects of the film including working with screen veterans like Slim Pickens
and Don Porter as well as discussing the film’s darker, more realistic ending. The
Blu-ray can be ordered from Amazon Germany.The film is also streaming for free on YouTube (with advertisements.)
If you’re looking for a well-made,
enthralling and realistic trucker movie, White
Line Fever is definitely the way to go.
Italian writer/director Fernando Di Leo has
had quite a prolific career. Between 1964 and 1985, he directed 17 films
(including 1971’s Slaughter Hotel,
1972’s Caliber 9 and 1973’s The Boss) and wrote/co-wrote many
screenplays (including contributions to Sergio Leone’s A Fistful of Dollars and For
A Few Dollars More). Recently, one of his last directorial efforts, The Violent Breed, was finally released
on Blu-ray.
The Violent Breed aka Razza Violenta follows ‘nam vet Mike
Martin (Harrison Muller, 2020 Texas
Gladiators) who is sent to Southeast Asia by CIA head Kirk Cooper (Henry
Silva, Sharkey’s Machine) in order to
take out a dangerous drug lord named Polo (Woody Strode, Sergeant Rutledge).
Solidly directed by Di Leo (who also co-wrote
with Nino Marino), The Violent Breed,
although not in the same league as similar films by action icons Schwarzenegger,
Stallone and Norris,is an enjoyable
80s action film which is definitely worth checking out. The movie also features
the lovely Carole Andre (The Bloodstained
Butterfly), and a memorable score from Paolo Rustichelli (Urban Warriors).
The Violent Breed has been released on
a region one Blu-ray, comes from a brand new 2K master, and is presented in its
original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The disc boasts clear images (but the audio is a
bit low in a few spots) and also contains English subtitles, the original
theatrical trailer as well as trailers for the films The Last Hunter; The Violent
Professionals; Street Law; Seven Blood-stained Orchids and Blastfighter.
Chuck Norris is an American icon. His resume
is amazingly impressive—undefeated world karate champion, celebrity trainer,
best-selling author, television personality, and action movie superstar. Many
remember him from his eight season stint on the TV favorite Walker, Texas Ranger as well as in action movie classics Missing in Action, Code of Silence,
Invasion U.S.A. and The Delta Force.
However, some forget about Norris’s earlier efforts like Slaughter in San Francisco (1974), Breaker! Breaker! (1977) and Good
Guys Wear Black (1978); films where the talented athlete-turned-actor was
just starting his long, cinematic career. In 1979, Norris headlined A Force of One; a film which,
appropriately enough, cast him as a competitive martial artist.
A Force of One follows karate
champion Matt Logan (Norris) who, while rigorously training to defend his title
in an upcoming match, is contacted by the local police in order to aid them in
their current investigation. It seems that several officers have been murdered
by an assassin who the cops are convinced is a well-trained martial artist.
Matt agrees to help, but doesn’t realize that the killer is someone very close
to him.
Written by Academy Award winner Ernest
Tidyman and 9th degree black belt Pat E. Johnson, A Force of One was directed by Paul
Aaron; filmed in San Diego, California and released on May 18, 1979 by American
Cinema Releasing.
The very entertaining and well-written film,
which functions as an engaging police investigation/murder mystery, boasts solid
direction by Aaron, who more than competently handles the exciting martial arts
and action sequences. We are also given several well-drawn characters that are
brought to life by the talented cast. Naturally, Chuck Norris is totally
believable as the low-key, laid back, but extremely focused karate master Matt
Logan. Norris also brings a bit of humor to this somewhat biographical role.
Next, we have the beautiful Jennifer O’Neill conveying toughness, intelligence,
humor and sensitivity as dedicated undercover cop Amanda Rust. The late, great
Clu Gulager shines as a concerned police captain as does the always welcome Ron
O’Neal, who plays one of the undercover team searching for the killer. Last,
but not least, Eric Laneuville is extremely likeable as Norris’s adopted son,
Charlie.
Adding to the fun and captivating film are a
bunch of incredibly talented character actors/familiar faces such as James
Whitmore, Jr., Ray Vitte, Clint Ritchie, Pepe Serna, Taylor Lacher, Charles
Cyphers, Lisa James, Mel Novak and G.W. Bailey.
Lastly, we have the impressive acting debut
of undefeated middleweight karate champion Bill “Superfoot” Wallace; a brief
appearance by two-time Golden Gloves champion Edwin “Chu Chu” Malave, and Chuck
Norris’s younger brother, Aaron Norris, who does quadruple duty by being stunt
coordinator, performing stunts, choreographing fight scenes (with his brother),
and playing Chuck’s corner man.
In addition to all this goodness is a
wonderful, thriller-type musical score by composer Dick Halligan which, when
combined with everything else, makes A
Force of One a very enjoyable 90 minutes.
A Force of One has been released on
Blu-ray in anamorphic (1.85:1) widescreen from a brand new 2K transfer and the
movie, which I always remember looking a bit washed out, now looks crystal
clear and vibrant. This film has always been a favorite of mine and I’ve never
seen it look this good. The Region 1 disc also contains two audio commentaries;
one with director Paul Aaron, and another with action film historians Brandon
Bentley and Mike Leeder. We are also given the featurette“The Making of A Force of One”
as well as the original theatrical trailer, TV spots, radio spots, a trailer
for The Reincarnation of Peter Proud
(which also stars Jennifer O’Neill) and trailers for five Chuck Norris action
classics: Good Guys Wear Black, The
Octagon, An Eye for an Eye, Code of Silence and Hero and the Terror.
If,
like me, you’re a fan of this Chuck Norris martial arts classic, I highly
recommend picking up a copy of this Blu-ray.
Action film icon Charles Bronson did it all.
He made westerns (The Magnificent Seven,
Once Upon a Time in the West), war films (The Great Escape, The Dirty Dozen), lone cop movies (The Stone Killer, 10 to Midnight) and
vigilante films (Death Wish series).
Just to name a few. Between 1968 and 1972, after mostly being a supporting
actor in Hollywood movies and before become a Hollywood leading man due to
films like Mr. Majestyk and Death Wish (both 1974), Bronson did a
lot of great work in Europe and starred in many different roles; cop (Rider on the Rain aka Le passager de la pluie), thief (Farewell Friend aka Adieu l'ami), gangster (The
Valachi Papers), etc. In 1970, he played a hitman (two years before playing
a similar role in Michael Winner’s fantastic
The Mechanic) in the underrated Italian-French co-production Violent City.
While vacationing with his lover Vanessa
(Jill Ireland, Love and Bullets),
professional hitman Jeff Heston (Bronson) is shot and left for dead. Heston
survives, however, and tracks the killer down. After murdering him, Jeff
decides to retire and live happily with Vanessa. But before the couple can
leave town, Heston is asked by crime boss, Al Weber (Telly Savalas), to come
work for him. Heston refuses, but Weber produces evidence of Heston’s previous
murder. Jeff must now figure out a way to obtain the evidence from the
dangerous crime boss and escape unharmed with the lovely Vanessa. However, Jeff
is unaware that there are much more sinister forces conspiring against him.
Very well-directed by Sergio Sollima (The Big Gundown aka La resa dei conti, Revolver) from a thoroughly enjoyable script
co-written by Lina Wertmüller (Seven
Beauties), Violent City (aka Città violenta), is a well-done,
entertaining piece of action cinema as well as one of the first examples of the
subgenre called Poliziotteschi (Italian crime and action films of the 1960s and
70s which featured car chases, corruption, graphic violence, etc. as well as
lone heroes who stood up to the system). Sergio Sollima does a wonderful job directing
intricate, entertaining action sequences; most notably a Bullitt-like car chase Sollima swears was ripped off from one of
his previous films and not from the 1968 Peter Yates/Steve McQueen action
classic.
The adrenaline-charged script not only gives
us plenty of action, but also a number of unexpected twist and turns;
especially the ending. The well-written characters are made convincing by the estimable
talents of Bronson, Savalas and Ireland. Through another terrific, mostly
low-key performance, steely-eyed Bronson shows us that not only can he take
care of business, but that his character possesses a softer side when necessary.
Telly Savalas infuses his vicious character with quite a bit of humor, and the
beautiful Jill Ireland gives several dimensions to Vanessa.
Violent City features even more
great acting talent such as Michael Constantin (Cold Sweat, 1978’s The
Inglorious Bastards), Umberto Orsini (The
Damned), and Telly’s brother, George Savalas (The Slender Thread, Kelly’s Heroes).
Last, but not least, the engaging film, which
was shot in the United States and distributed (in Italy) by Universal Pictures,
benefits from a great musical score by the immortal Ennio Morricone (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, The Bird
with the Crystal Plumage, Once Upon a Time in America).
Although it’s not one of Bronson’s more
well-known titles, that shouldn’t stop you. I enjoyed Violent City very much. It’s an entertaining action-thriller with a
solid cast and an interesting story. I highly recommend checking it out.
Violent City has been released on
a Region 1 Blu-ray from the always reliable folks at Kino Lorber. The
wonderful-looking transfer is presented in the film’s original 2.35:1 aspect
ratio and the disc also contains a highly informative audio commentary by Paul
Talbot, author of the “Bronson’s Loose!” books; a terrific interview with director
Sergio Sollima and the original theatrical trailer. We are also treated to a
second disc which features Città violenta,
the Italian print of the film as well as the 1973 U.S. cut known as The Family. Lastly, both discs feature
exciting trailers to many different Bronson films.
In 1979, Chuck Norris’ karate classic, A Force of One was released to cinema
screens. The enjoyable and
action-packed film became a box-office success which left the fans screaming
for more. Never one to disappoint, the six-time, undefeated world karate
champion went right to work on his next project; a hard-hitting action
extravaganza called The Octagon (1980).
After her father is killed by terrorists who
have been trained in ancient Ninja techniques, Justine Wentworth (Karen Carlson)
hires retired karate champion Scott James (our man Chuck) and a mercenary named
McCarn (Lee Van Cleef) to take out the organization’s deadly leader, Scott’s
adopted brother Seikura (Tadashi Yamashita).
Directed by Eric Karson and written by Leigh
Chapman (from a story by Chapman and Paul Aaron), The Octagon, which was shot in Los Angeles, California and released
by American Cinema Productions on August 8, 1980, is a very entertaining
action/martial arts film. It contains an engaging story, solid direction,
decently fleshed-out characters and a strong cast.
To begin with, we have the always convincing
Chuck Norris as the caring, mellow, but, when necessary, lethal hero Scott
James. Norris, who also brings a touch of subtle thoughtfulness to his
character, is ably supported by fellow cast members Lee Van Cleef and Karen
Carlson. The great Van Cleef plays mercenary McCarn as a tough, but happy
character who loves what he does, while the beautiful Karen Carlson gives her
mysterious role a bit of quiet fear and desperation.
The Octagon features more impressive
talent such as Art Hindle, Tadashi Yamashita, Richard Norton, Kim Lankford,
Jack Carter, Ernie Hudson, Yuki Shimoda, Larry D. Mann, John Fujioka, Brian
Tochi, Tracey Walter, Brian Libby, Carol Bagdasarian, Kurt Grayson, and Chuck
Norris’s brother Aaron Norris. Fun fact: During flashback scenes, Chuck Norris’s
son, Michael Norris, plays Scott James as a teenager. The fun film also
benefits from a terrific musical score by Blood, Sweat & Tears founder Dick
Halligan, and some wonderful editing by Dann Cahn, known for editing I Love Lucy.
The Octagon has been released on
Blu-ray by Kino Lorber in anamorphic (1.85:1) widescreen from a brand new 2K transfer and the
movie has never looked better. The Region 1 disc also contains two very
informative audio commentaries: one with director Erik Karson and another with
action film historians Brandon Bentley and Mike Leeder. There is also “The
Making of The Octagon” featurette, the
original theatrical trailers, TV spots, radio spots, a trailer for Lee Van
Cleef’s Death Rides a Horse, as well
as trailers for five Chuck Norris movies:
A Force of One, Good Guys Wear Black, An Eye for an Eye, Code of Silence
and Hero and the Terror. Recommended.
"RETRO-ACTIVE: THE BEST FROM THE CINEMA RETRO ARCHIVE"
BY ERNIE MAGNOTTA
There's nothing I like better than getting
hold of a movie that I've been searching over three decades for and adding it
to my collection. At my age, there aren't many vintage films left that I don't
own in one format or another, so when I very pleased when I heard that the 1976 cult
classic Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw was
getting a Blu-ray release. This movie has somehow always managed to elude me.
It never seemed to play on any of my cable stations in the early 80s, we never
had a copy of it at the video store I worked at in the mid-80s and I was still
never able to find a copy of it anywhere throughout the 90s. To be honest, by
the time the 21st century hit, I completely forgot about this movie,
so I was pretty surprised and even more excited to find out that it was not
only being released on Blu-ray, but also with quite a few special features.
Why? To begin with, I'm a tremendous fan of the director; not to mention the
entire cast and, last, but not least, I just love fun, action/crime/drama
exploitation films from the 1970s.
Produced and directed by Mark Lester (Truck Stop Women, Roller Boogie, Class of
1984), written by Vernon Zimmerman (Unholy
Rollers, Fade to Black) and released by American International Pictures,
modern western Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw
tells the tale of quick-draw expert and Billy the Kid enthusiast Lyle Wheeler
(Marjoe Gortner, Earthquake, Food of the
Gods, Viva Knievel!, Starcrash) who, together with waitress and aspiring
country singer Bobbi Jo Baker (TV’s one and only Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter) experiences a dangerous cross country
adventure filled with love, robbery and murder.
So, was the movie worth the wait? I certainly
think so. It may not be in the same league as, say, Bonnie and Clyde (1967), but it's still an extremely enjoyable,
well-directed, written and acted low-budget feature that definitely deserves to
be seen. To begin with, Mark Lester's direction is not only solid, but he is
just at home directing the quiet, more character-driven and dramatic/romantic
scenes as he is directing a sequence involving heavy action and stunts. Next
up, Vernon Zimmerman's wonderful writing not only creates an engaging story,
but interesting and likeable three-dimensional characters as well. Lyle Wheeler
aka the Outlaw, seems to live by his own code and has definite ideas of good
and evil; right and wrong. Marjoe Gortner effortlessly and believably gets all
this across and makes his character quite likeable. (This may be my favorite
Gortner performance.) The stunning Lynda Carter gets to show a bit more range
then she did as Wonder Woman and is extremely convincing as the hopeful and
somewhat naive Bobbi Jo. The rest of the outrageously talented cast not only
add immensely to the film, but clearly came to play. Jesse Vint (Chinatown, Forbidden World) perfectly
plays Slick Callahan; a wild, not too bright cocaine fiend and boyfriend of
Bobbi Jo's sister, Pearl. Gorgeous Merrie Lynn Ross (Class of 1984, TVs General
Hospital), who also co-produced the film, brings a hardened heart quality
to slightly ditzy stripper Pearl, and the always welcome Belinda Balaski (Piranha, The Howling) shines as hippie
waitress Essie Beaumont. Rounding out the top-notch cast is Gene Drew (Truck Stop Women) as a no-nonsense
sheriff, B-movie legend Gerrit Graham (Beware!
The Blob, Phantom of the Paradise, The Annihilators, C.H.U.D. II: Bud the
C.H.U.D.) as a helpful hippie, Virgil Frye (Graduation Day), who replaced Dennis Hopper, as a macho gas station
attendant with something to prove, Peggy Stewart (Alias Billy the Kid, Beyond Evil) as Bobbi Jo's alcoholic mom, and
James Gammon (Major League) as a fast
talking salesman.
The New Mexico-lensed, low-budget feature
also benefits from some nice Albuquerque locations, Grammy winner Barry De
Vorzonâ's (The Young and the Restless,
Dillinger, Rolling Thunder) memorable score, Stanley Wright's lovely cinematography,
and "Those City Lights", a catchy country song by Bobby Bare (Tremors). A lot of people believe that
the only reason to see this film is for Lynda Carter's brief nude scene. While
Lynda looks absolutely beautiful and made both my eyes very happy, the movie
itself has more going for it than just that. All in all, it's an extremely
solid and fun piece of 1970s exploitation cinema that fans of this lost era of
filmmaking are sure to enjoy.
Bobbie Jo and the
Outlaw has
been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. The Region 1 disc presents the movie in
its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Although the gorgeous transfer is slightly
grainy-looking at times (mostly in a few of the nighttime scenes), it never
detracts from the story, and the images are otherwise extremely clear making
the HD movie beautiful to look at. The disc also contains quite a few wonderful
special features including the original trailer, interviews with Mark Lester
(who mentions various aspects of the film such as casting, directing, budget
and the fact that the concept of the film was inspired by the classic Eagles
hit "Desperado"), Merrie Lynn Ross (who goes into detail about being both an
actor and a producer) and Belinda Balaski (who talks about how she got cast,
how she developed her character, and her recollection of working with Lynda
Carter) as well as a very interesting and informative audio commentary by
director Lester. If, like me, you're a fan of 70s action/crime cinema, I
recommend checking out Bobbie Jo and the
Outlaw.
In the late 1970s and up until the mid-80s,
six-time, undefeated world karate champion Chuck Norris was making quite a name
for himself as a martial arts cinema superstar. By 1985, he would begin to tone
down the amount of karate used in his films and he soon became known simply as
an action movie hero. One of the films which helped this transition was the successful
and exciting 1986 action flick with an all-star 70s disaster movie-like cast
called The Delta Force in which he
starred as Scott McCoy. Norris then went on to make three more enjoyable films
before finally returning to the role of McCoy in 1990’s Delta Force 2.
When the brilliant, wealthy and ruthless drug
kingpin Ramon Cota (Billy Drago, Pale
Rider, 1987’s The Untouchables)
captures a group of undercover American DEA agents and makes them prisoners at his
South American drug compound where he eventually plans to execute them, Colonel
Scott McCoy (Norris) and his fearless Delta Force spring into action and attempt
to free the hostages as well as put an end to Cota’s lucrative drug cartel
before any more of its cocaine shipments can reach the United States.
Shot in the Philippines, directed by Chuck’s
brother, Aaron Norris (Braddock: Missing
in Action III), and written by Lee Reynolds (Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold), Delta Force 2, which continued Chuck’s association with now legendary
film studio The Cannon Group, has, over the years, been labelled a bit of a
misstep in Chuck’s filmography. First of all, it has been said that the film
isn’t really a sequel to the original Delta
Force. It just uses the title and Chuck’s character name from the first
movie, but that’s about it. I guess that’s true. Next, the script usually comes
under fire for containing many predictable scenes/action movie clichés. These
include the overly-happy partner with the perfect (and pregnant) wife who we
just know will both meet a bad end early on as well as re-working scenes and
ideas from not only other films, but from other Norris adventures as well (part
of the plot seems to be taken from Chuck’s 1984 hit Missing in Action and there are also slightly re-worked scenes from
1987’s The Untouchables and 1979’s Moonraker). While all of this is also
true, these sequences and ideas are done with just enough variation that we let
them slide and still thoroughly enjoy the film. The man responsible for making
these scenes work is director Aaron Norris who films many well-directed and
exciting action sequences and keeps the movie engaging and fun. The last bit of
criticism this movie gets usually has to do with the acting which has been
labeled sub-par. This is just another critique I disagree with. While no one’s
performance in this film would be considered for an Academy Award (it’s not
that type of film, critics), the amazingly talented cast does very well with
the material given to them.
Of course, the main reason any
self-respecting action aficionado would spend almost two hours watching this
film is due to the presence of the man himself, Chuck Norris. What more can
really be said about Chuck? He’s low-key, likeable, sometimes humorous, yet
believably deadly when necessary. As usual, he’s perfect for this type of film
and his enormous fan base will not be disappointed.
A cinematic action hero is only as good as
his nefarious adversary and when it comes to vile villains; it’s tough to top
Billy Drago. The extremely talented Drago, who also acted alongside Chuck in
both Invasion U.S.A. and Hero and the Terror,plays amoral drug dealer Cota in a totally convincing way and,
throughout the film, exudes ice-cold, creepy evil. Drago really makes you hate
his character which works all the more once Chuck’s Colonel McCoy gets the
upper hand on him.
The impressive acting doesn’t stop there, as
the enjoyable film is loaded with even more top-notch talent. To begin with,
the always welcome John P. Ryan (It’s
Alive, Runaway Train) gives an extremely likeable and humorous performance
as a US General who just loves to kick ass. Fans of 60s and 70s cinema will be
happy to see the great Richard Jaeckel (The
Dirty Dozen, The Devil’s Brigade, Grizzly, Day of the Animals) as a
tough-as-nails DEA agent. Next up, is Paul Perri (Manhunter) as Chuck’s ill-fated partner; not to mention the highly
recognizable Mark Margolis (Scarface,
Breaking Bad) as evil General Olmedo. Last, but not least, legendary
actor/stuntman Dick Warlock (Jaws, 1981’s
Halloween II) shows up briefly (blink
and you’ll miss him) as a DEA agent on stakeout.
During filming, a helicopter crash killed
four crew members and the pilot. The movie is dedicated to their memory.
Delta Force 2 (which is also known
as Delta Force 2: The Colombian
Connection and Delta Force 2:
Operation Stranglehold)has been
released on a region one Blu-ray by Kino Lorber and is presented in its
original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The beautiful HD transfer boasts sharp, crystal
clear images as well as just as clear audio. Other than the original theatrical
trailer along with trailers for Chuck’s extremely entertaining actioners An Eye for an Eye and Hero and the Terror (which are both available
on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber), the disc contains no special features. However, if
you’re in the mood to sit back, relax, not think too hard and just watch our
man Chuck almost singlehandedly mop up the floor with the bad guys, then Delta Force 2 certainly delivers the
goods.
Six-time, undefeated world karate champion
Chuck Norris made his film debut in 1972’s Way
of the Dragon; a marvelous movie in which Norris played a villainous
character who battled the immortal Bruce Lee in a scene that is now considered
to be one ofthe greatest cinematic
fights of all time. In 1974, Norris did another villainous turn in the low-budget
martial arts film Slaughter in San
Francisco by portraying a powerful drug lord. He would then go on to
headline 1977’s Breaker! Breaker!
wherein he played the hero for the first time. When the higher budgeted and
more ambitious Good Guys Wear Black
was released the following year, it scored big and suddenly everyone took
notice of this rising new talent.
Vietnam vet John T. Booker (Norris) is now a
political science professor at UCLA who gets wind of the fact that someone very
powerful is killing off the remaining members of his old Special Forces team,
the Black Tigers. With the help of a young reporter named Margaret (Anne
Archer), Booker attempts to find out who’s responsible for the slaughter while
simultaneously trying to stay alive.
Very well-directed by Ted Post, Good Guys Wear Black was written by
Bruce Cohn and Mark Medoff (from a story by Joseph Fraley),and released by
American Cinema Releasing on June 2, 1978. The entertaining action film, which Norris
considers his breakthrough movie, is a post-Watergate/ post-Vietnam story, but,
in some spots, also feels very much like a James Bond film.
Much has been said about Norris’s performance
in this film. Norris himself doesn’t love his acting in this one. After Good Guys was released, Steve McQueen,
who was one of Norris’s karate students at the time, told the rising star that
it would be better if, from now on, he let some of the character actors handle
the heavy exposition while, much like Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson, Chuck
only uttered the most important lines. Great advice, but still, I don’t think Norris’s
performance in this film is nearly as bad as everyone has said and he has nothing
to be ashamed of. If you watch his movies in order of release, you will see an
actor who worked hard on his craft and improved with each film.
To help support Norris in this early film
effort, the filmmakers cast Good Guys
Wear Black with an amazing array of acting talent the likes of Anne Archer,
James Franciscus, Lloyd Haynes, Dana Andrews, Jim Backus, Lawrence P. Casey and
Soon-Tek Oh (who would later appear in two more Chuck Norris films). The film
also features 9th degree black belt Pat E. Johnson, the first screen
appearance of Chuck’s brother (and fight choreographer) Aaron Norris, and a
cool musical score by composer Craig Safan.
Good Guys Wear Black has been released on
Blu-ray in anamorphic (1.85:1) widescreen from a brand new 2K transfer. The Region
1 disc also contains an interesting audio commentary by action film historians Mike
Leeder and Arne Venema, the featurette “The Making of Good Guys Wear Black”, an interview with director Ted Post, the
original theatrical trailer, reversible sleeve artwork, TV spot and several radio spots. There are also
trailers for five other Chuck Norris films as well as the trailer for Narrow Margin which stars Anne Archer.
After the release of 1982’s excellent
action/drama First Blood which
featured the debut appearance of Vietnam vet (and soon-to-be action movie icon)
John Rambo (brilliantly played by Sylvester Stallone), a slew of action films
featuring war veterans as their heroes soon flooded movies theaters of 1980s
America. Along with many others, entertaining films like Missing in Action (1984), Commando
and Stand Alone (both 1985)—which
starred Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Charles Durning, respectively,
as war vets who faced almost insurmountable odds, yet still saved the day—satisfied
action-starved audiences around the country. Throughout the decade, Norris returned
with two Missing in Action sequels
and so did Stallone with Rambo: First
Blood Part II (1985) and Rambo III (1988).
Although these films (with the exception of the underrated Stand Alone) are probably the most remembered of the 1980s war
vet/action film genre, Steele Justice;
a somewhat forgotten, but very enjoyable war vet/action movie,was released in 1987.
While living in California, Vietnam vet and
former cop John Steele (Martin Kove, The
Karate Kid 1, 2 & 3, Rambo: First Blood Part II), who hasn’t been able
to hold down a job since the war ended, witnesses Lee (Robert Kim, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), his best
friend and fellow vet turned cop, being gunned down by the Vietnamese mafia.
Steele soon learns that this mafia is run by Bon Soong Kwan (Soon-Tek Oh, Missing in Action 2,Death Wish 4), a former Vietnam General
who Steele and Lee tangled with during the war. Steele now wants nothing more
than to bring Kwan to justice, but with resistance from Chief of Police Bennett
(Ronny Cox, Deliverance, 1990’s Total Recall) and not one shred of
proof, the evil Kwan is untouchable. To make matters worse, Kwan has put out a
hit on Steele’s niece, Cami (Jan Gan Boyd, Assassination),
and framed the dead Lee, making it look like he was a crooked cop. Feeling that
the war has moved from Vietnam to the States, one-man-killing-machine John
Steele loads up his deadly arsenal and, with the help of his ex-wife Tracy
(Sela Ward, TV’s Sisters, 1993’s The Fugitive) and good cop Reese (Bernie
Casey, Never Say Never Again, I’m Gonna
Git You Sucka) sets out to take Kwan down.
Written and directed by Robert Boris, who wrote
the script for Electra Glide in Blue,
Steele Justice may not be in the same
league as the films of Stallone, Norris and Schwarzenegger, but if you’re a fan
of movies of that type (and 1980s action cinema in general), the somewhat
predictable, but still mostly fun Steele
Justice won’t disappoint. Boris’s direction is solid. He competently
handles the action sequences and keeps the film moving at a fast enough pace.
He also peppers his screenplay with likeable heroes and despicable villains.
Although many of these characters as well as the situations they find
themselves in, may seem somewhat clichéd, it’s exactly what fans of 80s action
(like me) came to see; a larger-than-life, lone hero singlehandedly taking out
a gang of evil bad guys with a smile on his face. Realistic? No. Entertaining?
Yes. You pretty much know what you’re getting into just from hearing the film’s
memorable tag line: “You don’t recruit
John Steele, you unleash him.”
Over the years, I’ve heard harsh criticism of
Martin Kove’s portrayal of John Steele, but I don’t find a problem with it. Kove
is one of those actors who is always welcome in just about anything as far as
I’m concerned. Whether he is playing hero or villain, he always comes through
with his performance and makes a film that much better. He is especially good
at playing henchman and bully-type villains as well as all-American heroes like
John Steele. If I have a complaint, it’s that the usually charismatic and
humorous Kove is toned down a bit here. It’s a minor complaint, but I would
have liked to have seen a little more enjoyment in his portrayal. Besides
benefitting from a strong lead like Kove, the movie also features a wonderfully
villainous performance from the great Soon-Tek Oh, super-talented veterans
Ronny Cox and Bernie Casey convincingly playing cops, and the lovely Sela Ward
as Steele’s sometimes exasperated ex-wife.
The fun movie also features several highly recognizable
faces such as Joseph Campanella (Defiance),
Sarah Douglas (Superman II), Peter
Kwong (Big Trouble in Little China),
Al Leong (Lethal Weapon), Shannon
Tweed (No Contest) and Irene Tsu (Three the Hard Way) who all add
immensely to the film’s enjoyment.
Although the movie itself may be a bit
derivative, it’s still a well-done and entertaining action film with a solid, extremely
likeable cast. If you’re a fan of this genre, I recommend checking it out.
Steele Justice has been released on
Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect
ratio and, as is usually the case with KL, the HD transfer is terrific. The
disc also contains a very informative audio commentary by Martin Kove, Robert
Boris and moderator Alex Van Dyne (Eddie
Brandt’s Saturday Matinee). It’s fun to listen to them reminisce about the
film and Martin Kove talks about how he would play the role differently today.
We’re also treated to the original theatrical trailer as well as trailers for
five other exciting action films: Code of
Silence; Taffin; Murphy’s Law; The Final Option and Hard
Target.
Although Robert Clouse will always be
remembered for directing the immortal Bruce Lee’s 1973 martial arts classic Enter the Dragon, the talented
filmmaker has quite a few more interesting movies in his filmography. Just
hearing about a small portion of the man’s work is enough to impress any film
buff. For instance, in 1970, Clouse directed the very well-done detective
mystery Darker than Amber. He also
helmed the 1974 cult classic action flick
Black Belt Jones (starring martial arts champion Jim Kelly). In 1978,
Clouse completed Bruce Lee’s fifth and final film (which was never finished due
to Lee’s unfortunate death) by writing and directing Game of Death. He then directed the great Jackie Chan in the
enjoyable 1980 actioner The Big Brawl;
a movie he also penned. While taking a break from action, Clouse took a few
stabs at the horror genre by first directing the enjoyable 1977 movie The Pack (starring the great Joe Don
Baker) as well as the fun, rats-on-the-loose feature Deadly Eyes (1982). He has also directed action film icons Cynthia
Rothrock and Bolo Yeung, and wrote the films Something Evil and Happy
Mother’s Day, Love George which went on to be directed by Steven Spielberg
and Darren McGavin, respectively.If
all this info has gotten you interested in Robert Clouse, then you’ll be happy
to hear that Golden Needles, a film
Clouse directed in 1974, was recently released on Blu-ray.
In Golden
Needles, the race is on asseven
people frantically search for a priceless Chinese statue which contains seven
needles that are guaranteed to grant the owner perfect health and vitality.
Filmed on location in Hong Kong, Golden Needles was distributed by
American International Pictures and released on July 17, 1974. Although the
movie is filled with plenty of action and adventure, it’s a tad more
lighthearted than, say, Enter the Dragon.
This entertaining film benefits from an engaging story, Clouse’s solid
direction, the Hong Kong locations, another funky ‘70s score from the legendary
Lalo Schifrin, and fun performances from the very talented cast. Besides Joe
Don Baker and Elizabeth Ashley, who are both very likeable and seem to have
some nice onscreen chemistry, we are also treated to humorous turns from Ann
Sothern and Burgess Meredith. Super cool Jim Kelly shows up and, as always,
it’s a joy to watch him kick ass. Last, but not least, as a cold-hearted
villain, Roy Chiao (best known as Lao Che from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) is appropriately
intimidating. If you’re looking for a light, enjoyable adventure, this film
really hits the spot.
Golden Needles has been released on
Blu-ray by Kino Lorber in a widescreen (2.35:1) transfer from a brand new 2K
master, and the movie looks and sounds fantastic. The Region 1 disc also
contains the original theatrical trailer, TV spot, radio spots, an image
gallery, newly commissioned art by Vince Evans, reversible sleeve artwork and an informative audio
commentary by film historians Howard S. Berger and Chris Poggiali. Rounding out
the special features are seven terrific action movie trailers: Mr. Majestyk; Newman’s Law; Brannigan; Thunderbolt and Lightfoot; Truck Turner; The Laughing Policeman and
Revenge of the Ninja.
In 1984, The Cannon Group released Missing in Action, a film that dealt
with Colonel James Braddock (Chuck Norris)’s attempt to rescue prisoners of war
from Vietnam. Directed by Joe Zito (The
Prowler, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter), the entertaining
actioner, which was made for only $1.5 million, went on to gross almost $23
million. A sequel, which was actually a prequel and titled Missing in Action 2: The Beginning, was released the following year
(These two movies were originally filmed back to back and were to hit theaters
in reverse order, but because Zito’s film was the better of the two, it was
released first). The film dealt with Colonel Braddock’s time as a POW in Vietnam
and his subsequent escape. Although not nearly as successful as the first film,
MIA2 was still well-done and
entertaining enough for action movie icon Chuck Norris to return to the role of
Colonel Braddock for the third and last time in 1988’s Braddock: Missing in Action III.
After not only discovering that his thought-to-be-dead
wife, Lin (Miki Kim, Primary Target),
is still alive, but also that he has a 12-year-old son named Van (Roland Harrah
III, TV’s Airwolf) who are both
prisoners in present day Vietnam, Colonel James Braddock (Norris) heads back to
to his old war zone, against orders, in hopes of finding them. Once he does,
the Braddock clan, along with a benevolent Reverend (Yehuda Efroni, The Delta Force) and several children
from a nearby mission, are captured by General Quoc (Aki Aleong, TV’s Babylon 5) who kills Lin and makes
prisoners of Braddock, Van, the Reverend and the children. Does Braddock have
what it takes to overpower Quoc and his massive army in order to escape safely
with his son, the Reverend and the rest of the innocent children?
Shot in the Philippines, directed by Chuck’s
brother, Aaron Norris (Delta Force 2),
and written by James Bruner (An Eye for
an Eye) and Chuck Norris (as an outcry against the thousands of Asian-American
children trapped in Vietnam), Braddock:
Missing in Action III, which continued Chuck’s association with now
legendary film studio The Cannon Group, is a very solid (final) sequel to the
original film, making the Missing in
Action trilogy a completely entertaining and worthwhile action series. It
may not be as good as the original (most sequels aren’t), but it’s a very
enjoyable actioner as well as a nice continuation of the James Braddock
character. It also stays true to the series’ roots by having Braddock return to
Vietnam to perform a dangerous one man rescue mission without it seeming like a
lazy retread of the first film. Just as in any action film from this time
period, there are a few over-the-top action sequences, but director Aaron
Norris, who does a very nice job here, doesn’t go overboard with this and keeps
things nicely balanced by making the situations (and characters) believable
enough so that we can get completely caught up in the action and suspense.
It’s no big shock that action movie superstar
Chuck Norris delivers exactly what we want to see from him.Although he’s his usual likeable, low-key and
convincingly deadly self, his humorous quality is mostly absent here perhaps
due to the character’s journey being a personal one (rescuing his wife he
thought dead and his son he never knew he had). To go along with this somber attitude
(as well as with keeping the story and characters a bit more balanced than in a
usual 80s action extravaganza), Chuck is only given one over-the-top, action
hero line. When ordered by his superior not to step on any toes, Chuck utters
the immortal line: “I don’t step on toes;
I step on necks.”
Although Chuck is the main reason we’re all
watching this movie, he is ably supported by a very talented cast. To begin
with, Aki Aleong is terrific as the evil and sadistic General Quoc. Roland
Harrah III gives a very convincing performance as Chuck’s angry and confused
son Van, and Miki Kim and Yehuda Efroni do well in their roles of Chuck’s
ill-fated wife and the good-hearted Reverend, respectively. The film also
features familiar faces such as Jack Rader (1988’s The Blob), Floyd Levine (The
Hangover) and a brief appearance by the always welcome Keith David (1982’s The Thing, There’s Something About Mary).
Braddock: Missing in
Action III is currently streaming free for Amazon Prime
members.
Writer/director/producer Russell Rouse may
not be a household name, but his credits are pretty impressive. For instance,
he co-wrote the 1949 film noir classic
D.O.A. (and the 1988 remake). Russell also co-wrote and directed the 1956
western The Fastest Gun Alive which
starred Glenn Ford. He was nominated for an Academy Award for co-writing the
1951 drama The Well, and in 1959
Rouse finally won the Oscar for co-writing the Pillow Talk screenplay. Recently, the 1967 heist film The Caper of the Golden Bulls, which
was directed by Rouse, has been released on Blu-ray.
The Caper of the
Golden Bulls concerns
former bank robber Peter Churchman (Stephen Boyd) who is blackmailed by an old
flame (Giovanna Ralli) into stealing priceless jewels from a bank in Spain. Along
with his girlfriend (Yvette Mimieux) and his old crew, Churchman attempts to
pull off the dangerous heist during the annual “Running of the Bulls” festival.
Filmed on location in Spain, The Caper of the Golden Bulls is an
entertaining and well-done caper film which features fun performances from
Boyd, Mimieux and Ralli as well as from many other talented and familiar faces
(who all seem to be having a good time) such as Vito Scotti, Walter Slezak,
Clifton James, Jay Novello, Henry Beckman, Leon Askin, J.G. Devlin, Arnold Moss
and Noah Keen.
I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It’s a very
watchable caper flick with a strong cast, an involving story, solid direction
and beautiful locations. The cute film also benefits from a terrific musical
score by the great Vic Mizzy and lovely cinematography by Academy Award nominee
Harold E. Stine. I definitely recommend checking it out.
The Caper of the
Golden Bulls has
been released on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. The film is presented in its
original 1:85:1 aspect ratio, the 4K transfer looks great and the audio is
clear. Special Features include an audio commentary by film historian Phillipa
Berry and trailers for the films Topkapi,
The Brink’s Job, Loophole, The Real McCoy, The Mercenary and The Neptune Factor.
As we all know, Fred Astaire’s
amazing, God-given dancing talent made him a Golden Age movie star. As a matter
of fact, numerous times, he has been called the greatest dancer in film
history. Although Astaire was also an accomplished actor, singer and
choreographer, he will forever be remembered as a top-notch, innovative dancer.
He made 31 musical features; some of his best being Holiday Inn, Easter Parade, The Band Wagon, Funny Face and, of
course, the many films he made with the lovely and equally talented Ginger
Rogers. (The Gay Divorcee, Top Hat, Swing
Time, Shall We Dance, etc.) If
you’re a fan of this legendary Hollywood icon, you will be happy to know that,
although not a musical, Midas Run, a
film Fred Astaire made near the end of his long and illustrious career, has been
released on Blu-ray.
Written by Ronald Austin, James
Buchanan and Berne Giler, and directed by Alf Kjellin, Midas Run tells the entertaining story of a retired secret service
agent named Pedley (Fred Astaire) who hires writer Mike Warden (Richard Crenna)
and Mike’s girlfriend Sylvia Giroux (Anne Heywood) to help him steal
$15,000,000 in gold. However, the clever Pedley may have something even bigger
planned.
Made for only $1.1 million, Midas Run was shot in London, Venice,
Milan, Tuscany and Rome and was released in April of 1969. The lighthearted production
not only contains fun performances from Crenna, Heywood and Astaire, but also
features several highly talented and recognizable faces from classic cinema such
as Sir Ralph Richardson, Cesar Romero, Adolfo Celi, Jacques Sernas and Roddy
McDowall. Midas Run also benefits from
a wonderful musical score by immortal composer Elmer Bernstein and a title song
written by Don Black and sung by Anne Heywood.
It may not ever appear on a “best of” Fred
Astaire film list, but Midas Run is still
an extremely well-made, engaging and fun movie that is sure to make you smile.
Midas
Run has been released on Blu-ray by the fine folks at Kino Lorber. The film,
which looks terrific, is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The
disc contains a very informative audio commentary by film historians Lee Gambin
and Emma Westwood as well as the original theatrical trailer. There are also
trailers for Robbery, The High
Commissioner, Cop-out and Street
People.
I’ve always been a fan of the heist/caper
film; a genre which details the planning, execution and aftermath of a huge
robbery. It’s an extremely fun and involving formula in which we oftentimes
sympathize with the thieves and want them to reach their goal. Some notable
heist/caper films are The Asphalt Jungle,
The Killing, Ocean’s 11, Bonnie and Clyde, The Thomas Crown Affair, The Italian
Job, The Getaway, The Sting, Dog Day Afternoon, Thief, A Fish Called Wanda, Reservoir Dogs, Heat and The Usual Suspects. Just to name a few.
Add to the list the comedy caper film A Man, a Woman, and a Bank available on
Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
Solidly directed by Noel Black from a
humorous screenplay by Raynold Gideon, Bruce A. Evans and actor Stuart Margolin,
A Man, a Woman, and a Bank tells the
tale of friends Reese (Donald Sutherland) and Norman (Paul Mazursky), who
devise an elaborate plan to rob a bank in Vancouver. Things get a bit
complicated, however, when Reese falls in love with a pretty photographer
(Brooke Adams).
Released by Avco Embassy Pictures in
September of 1979, A Man, a Woman, and a
Bank is listed as the first and only film to be made by McNichol, a
production company said to have been created by actress Kristy McNichol and her
mother Carollyne. However, some believe this to be false and state that
McNichol is actually Donald Sutherland’s company. Whatever the case may be, A Man, a Woman, and a Bank is an extremely
enjoyable, well-directed, written and acted feature that definitely deserves to
be seen. The engaging story contains very interesting and likeable three-dimensional
characters. Reese is intelligent, confident, romantic and also a good friend.
The great Donald Sutherland effortlessly gets all this across and makes his
character totally believable. Five-time Academy Award nominee Paul Mazursky is
hilarious and extremely convincing as henpecked hypochondriac Norman, and the
lovely, talented and always welcome Brooke Adams (reuniting here with her Invasion of the Body Snatchers co-star,
Sutherland) shines as adorable photographer Stacey.
The fun feature also benefits from some
wonderful cinematography by the legendary Jack Cardiff and a terrific musical
score by Academy Award winning composer Bill Conti. All in all, it’s an
extremely solid and fun comedic crime film that audiences are sure to enjoy.
The Kino Lorber Blu-ray presents the movie in its original 1.78:1
aspect ratio. The transfer looks beautiful and the disc also contains quite a
few worthy special features. There’s the original theatrical trailer as well as
two very interesting and informative audio commentaries; one by director Noel
Black and producer Peter Samuelson from 2002, and another by film historians
Dean Brandum and Andrew Nette. The Blu-ray also has trailers for four other
films featuring Donald Sutherland: The
Great Train Robbery, Ordeal by Innocence, The Rosary Murders and The Puppet Masters.
“Way
down in the jungle deep, the lion stepped on the signifyin’ monkey’s feet.” Anyone
who is familiar with that poem’s first line, most likely heard it from
comedian/actor/singer, the late, great Rudy Ray Moore. Influenced by legendary
comedians Red Foxx and Richard Pryor, Moore, who worked nightclubs throughout
the 1960s, became popular through a series of hilarious and racy party albums
he released in the early 70s, some of which featured Rudy Ray as a character
named Dolemite; a sharply-dressed, supercool, humorous and loquacious, rhyming
pimp-poet whose incredible strength and expert martial arts ability are equaled
only by his sexual prowess. The albums and his live stand-up routine were so
popular that, in 1975, the charismatic Moore took all of his earnings and
decided to turn this larger-than-life urban hero into a kick-ass, comedic
movie.
Bad-ass pimp Dolemite (Rudy Ray Moore, Petey Wheatstraw, The Devil's Son-In-Law),
who was framed, incarcerated and had his club, The Total Experience, stolen
from him by his evil rival Willie Green (D’Urville Martin, Black Caesar), is released from prison and, with help from the FBI,
the loyal Queen Bee (Lady Reed, Disco
Godfather) and Dolemite’s all-girl army of Kung Fu killers, sets out to
bring Willie Green to justice and retake his rightful place as king of the
streets.
Co-written (with actor Jerry Jones who
appears in the film as an FBI agent) and produced by Rudy Ray Moore, Dolemite was directed by D’Urville
Martin for the paltry sum of $100,000, but went on to gross $12 million. Rudy
Ray not only capitalized on the popularity of his own adult party albums and
the Dolemite character, but he smartly cashed in on the now legendary “Blaxploitation”
craze started by wonderful films such as Shaft
(1971), Super Fly (1972) and Three the Hard Way (1974) as well as
the Kung Fu phenomenon that was sweeping the country, mostly due to the
immortal Bruce Lee and his iconic 1973 film Enter
the Dragon in particular.
The entertaining Dolemite not only features plenty of comedy and very quotable
dialogue, but also, Kung Fu, adult language and liberal doses of sex and
violence; not to mention a great musical score by Arthur Wright (The Human Tornado, The Crying Game) and
the Filmore Street Soul Rebellion as well as a fun and memorable title song composed
and sung by Ben Taylor. It also contains loads of unintended laughs which,
along with Rudy Ray’s enjoyable ghetto poems, give the extremely low-budget
film much of its charm. Some wonderful examples of Dolemite’s unintentional hilarity are visible boom mics,
character’s talking over one another (“Flo!”),
wooden line deliveries (“Another
frame-up, hmm?”), a cop who attacks Dolemite and falls on his ass (no
second takes), a lip-synching nightclub singer who is way out of synch, Rudy
Ray almost falling asleep during a scene and D’Urville Martin saying to him, “Don’t get excited!”, and a character
named Creeper who is also known as the Hamburger Pimp and is played by a real-life
junkie (Vainus Rackstraw). Naturally, the film is also a fantastic early 70s
time capsule featuring funky fashions (the ginormous, furry hats are my
favorite) as well as wonderfully gaudy décor. For those who may turn their
noses up at the film, Dolemite and
the work of Rudy Ray Moore (who has rightly been dubbed “The Godfather of Rap”)
has gone on to influence many; most notably a plethora of Rap artists including
Snoop Dogg and the 2009 comedy classic Black
Dynamite.
Dolemite has been released on
Blu-ray/DVD by Vinegar Syndrome. The extremely fun film, which has been
restored in 2k from its 35mm negative, is presented in its original 1.85:1
aspect ratio and is extremely sharp and beautiful looking. We are also treated
to a lovingly included full frame version (the VHS version everyone’s used to)
which not only shows the boom mic in frame even more than the 1.85 version, but
sometimes the sound guy too. Special features include a very informative
making-of documentary by Elijah Drenner (That
Guy Dick Miller) which contains remembrances from many of Dolemite’s cast and crew including Rudy
Ray Moore, Jerry Jones and Ben Taylor; an entertaining interview with Lady
Reed; a “Locations: Then & Now” featurette and a very thorough audio
commentary by Rudy Ray’s biographer, Mark Jason Murray. Amongst many other
interesting things, he talks about Rudy’s early days in show business, how the
character of Dolemite came to be, the trials and tribulations that came with
making the film and Rudy Ray’s life after his amazing 1970s reign (interspersed
between Murray’s commentary are a few audio interviews with Rudy Ray, Jerry
Jones and martial arts champion Howard Jackson (who appears in the film).
Although cool and informative, some of these interviews are a bit muffled and
somewhat hard to fully hear). There are also trailers for Dolemite and its hilarious sequel The Human Tornado (also released on Blu-ray by Vinegar Syndrome)as well as a reversible sleeve with the
fun, eye-catching, original poster art. There’s also some cool new artwork,
too. Both images are also featured on the discs themselves. If you’re a fan of Dolemite, Rudy Ray Moore or the 1970s “Blaxploitation”
genre in general, this Blu-ray is a must have. Can you dig it?
What more can be said about the immortal Kirk
Douglas? He was a three-time Academy Award nominee who was finally given the Academy’s
Lifetime Achievement award in 1996; not to mention being a loving family man and
a philanthropist. With a tremendous body of work which showcases his incredible
acting talent, Douglas was truly one of the icons of Hollywood’s Golden Age. A
genuine movie star if ever there was one, Douglas headlined amazing movies such
as Champion (1949), Detective Story (1951), Ace in the Hole (1951), 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), Lust for Life (1956), Spartacus (1960), 1963’s The List of Adrian Messenger (one of
seven films he made with the great Burt Lancaster), and The Fury (1978). Just to name a few. Recently, our good friends at
Kino Lorber have released A Lovely Way to
Die; a crime neo noir film Douglas made for Universal Pictures in 1968.
Solidly directed by David Lowell Rich (The Horror at 37,000 Feet), A Lovely Way to Die tells the tale of
Jim Schuyler (Douglas), a former cop who is hired by lawyer Tennessee
Fredericks (played by the always impressive Eli Wallach) to protect Rena
Westabrook (Sylva Koscina, Hercules
Unchained), a woman who has been accused of murdering her wealthy husband.
Although not in the same league as some of
the Douglas films I mentioned earlier, A
Lovely Way to Die is a very enjoyable moviewhich also features the acting talents of Kenneth Haigh (TV’s The Twilight Zone), Martyn Green (The Iceman Cometh), Sharon Farrell (It’s Alive), Ruth White (Midnight Cowboy), Philip Bosco (The Savages), Ralph Waite (TV’s The Waltons), Meg Myles (The Edge of Night), William Roerick (The Wasp Woman), Dana Elcar (TV’s MacGyver), Dolph Sweet (TV’s Gimme a Break!), Lincoln Kilpatrick (The Omega Man) and famed New York radio
announcer Marty Glickman. There are also uncredited appearances by Ali MacGraw
(Love Story), Richard Castellano (The Godfather), Conrad Bain (TV’s Diff’rent Strokes), Marianne McAndrew (Hello, Dolly!), Doris Roberts (TV’s Everybody Loves Raymond) and John P.
Ryan (It Lives Again). The film also
contains a terrific musical score by composer Kenyon Hopkins (The Hustler).
A Lovely Way to Die has been released on
a Region 1 Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. The transfer looks fantastic and the movie is
presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Special features include the
original U.S. theatrical trailer, the international theatrical trailer, a very
informative audio commentary by Film Historians Howard S. Berger and Steve
Mitchell as well as trailers for Lonely
Are the Brave; The Secret War of Harry Frigg and The Night of the Following Day.
Filmmaker Lewis Teague has some very
impressive credits. In 1964, he directed an episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. In the 70s, Teague worked at Roger
Corman’s New World Pictures as an editor and assistant director before helming
1979’s crime drama The Lady in Red.
He also edited an Oscar-winning short in 1976 titled Number Our Days, worked on classic TV shows like Barnaby Jones and performed second unit
on Sam Fuller’s The Big Red One
(1980). Teague is probably best known for directing cult classics such as the
underrated 1980 monster movie Alligator;
the vigilante film Fighting Back
(1982); the Stephen King adaptations Cujo
(1983) and Cat’s Eye (1985), and the
romantic comedy The Jewel of the Nile
(1985). Recently, Dirty O’Neil, the
first feature film to be directed by Teague, has been made available on
Blu-ray.
Dirty O’Neil concerns police
officer/ladies’ man Jimmy O’Neil (Morgan Paull, Blade Runner) who must do everything he can to stop three
dangerous criminals from terrorizing his small, peaceful town.
The entertaining film, which was co-directed
and written by Howard Freen and distributed by American International Pictures,
is filled with solid direction and features fun performances by wonderful
talent the likes of Art Metrano (Police
Academy series), Pat Anderson (TNT
Jackson), Katie Saylor (TV’s The
Fantastic Journey), Tara Strohmeier (The
Great Texas Dynamite Chase), Anitra Ford (TV’s The Price is Right), Kate Murtagh (The Night Strangler), John Steadman (1977’s The Hills Have Eyes) and Playboy Playmates Jeane Manson (The Young Nurses) and Liv Lindeland (Picasso Trigger). Dirty O’Neil also benefits from a simple and engaging story, a
catchy musical score by Raoul Kraushaar (1953’s Invaders From Mars), and contains enough action and laughs to fill
its brief 89 minute running time.
Dirty O’Neil has been released in
high definition Blu-ray from a brand new 2K master and is presented in its
original anamorphic (1.85:1) widescreen aspect ratio. The great looking and
sounding Region 1 disc also contains English subtitles, the original theatrical
trailer and trailers for Dagmar’s Hot
Pants, inc.; National Lampoon Goes to the Movies; Maria’s Lovers; Checkered
Flag or Crash and Sunnyside.
In the world of exploitation cinema, the name
Jerry Gross is very well known. Gross owned and ran Cinemation Industries, a
film studio/distribution company based in New York. Cinemation produced and/or
distributed many movies like the teenage pregnancy film Teenage Mother (1967), the Swedish made sexploitation films Inga and Fanny Hill (both 1968), the revolutionary “Blaxploitation” classic
Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song
(1971), the horror film I Drink Your
Blood (1971) and the popular animated adult feature 1972’s Fritz the Cat. Just to name a few.
After the company went bankrupt in the mid-70s, Jerry started the Jerry Gross
Organization which continued the tradition, releasing shocking fare such as
1978’s controversial I Spit on Your Grave
and the horror classic Zombie (1979).
Recently, Gross’s first feature film, Girl
on a Chain Gang, was released on Blu-ray.
Written, produced and directed by Gross, Girl on a Chain Gang, which was based on
a story by Don Olsen, concerns three young civil rights activists who drive
through a small Southern town and are wrongly arrested by the hateful and
corrupt local police. Once they are brought to the station, the three young
friends—two men and a woman—are put through the most humiliating and terrifying
night of their lives.
Originally titled Bayou, Girl on a Chain Gang,
which was made for a paltry$31,000
and shot in Long Island, New York, is a surprisingly (considering the budget)
well-made, but, in some spots, disturbing film to watch. Based on actual
events, the film deals with the hate and racism that existed in the mid to late
1960s (and unfortunately still exists today). The film also contains a talented
cast (especially William Watson as the evil sheriff) and a memorable musical
score by Steve Karmen.
Girl on a Chain Gang has been released on
a region free Blu-ray by The Film Detective and is presented in its original
1:37:1 aspect ratio. The beautiful-looking transfer boasts sharp, crystal clear
black and white images (which shows off George Zimmermann’s lovely
cinematography) and the disc not only contains an informative audio commentary
by Jennifer Churchill, author of Movies
are Magic, but also an interesting featurette about writer/producer/director
Jerry Gross, a wonderful booklet which contains an essay on the film by
Something Weird Video’s Lisa Petrucci, and a reproduction of the “Certificate
of Jury Service” which Jerry Gross gave out to audience members in 1966.
Ah, the early 1970s. If you were a monster
movie fan, this was a fun time to be around. After all, creature features,
which became popular with kids of the late 1950s and continued throughout the
60s, were still all the rage. Classic monster movies like Universal’s Son of Frankenstein (1939) starring
horror icons Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, The
Wolf Man (1941) starring the immortal Lon Chaney, Jr. and Hammer Films’ amazing
and highly enjoyable Christopher Lee Dracula
series were constantly playing on television. The late, great Forrest
Ackerman’s Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine
was required reading for all 70s monster-kids, and Aurora plastics put out a
wonderful line of glow-in-the-dark monster model kits which happily kept fans
busy for hours. The local drive-ins and hard top theaters also rode the
creature feature wave as, every week it seemed, movie houses were filled with
outstanding, atmospheric delights starring horror kings Vincent Price, Peter
Cushing and Sir Lee. Monster enthusiasts couldn’t get enough.
Meanwhile, legendary film studio American
International Pictures, who for almost two decades had specialized in producing
fun, low-budget, youth-oriented films such as 1957’s I Was a Teenage Werewolf as well as the Beach Party, Edgar Allan Poeand Biker film cycles of the 1960s,
decided to create a new creature feature. Most likely due to both the huge
popularity of monster films and the Hammer vampire movies of the time, AIP
created their own Dracula-like villain; a modern-day bloodsucker named Count
Yorga. Benefitting from a solid script, above average direction and an amazing
performance by star Robert Quarry (Dr.
Phibes Rises Again) as Yorga, Count
Yorga, Vampire (1970) did very well at the box office. It’s no surprise
that AIP almost immediately started work on a sequel titled, appropriately
enough, The Return of Count Yorga.
After crumbling to dust in Count Yorga, Vampire, the evil Count is resurrected
when the world famous and supposedly supernatural Santa Ana Winds blow across
an old cemetery. In no time, Yorga, his faithful servant, Brudah, and his horde
of vampire brides put the bite on oblivious locals and cast a spell over little
Billy, younger brother of the beautiful Cynthia who Yorga has developed deep
feelings for. The undead fiend then kills Cynthia’s parents, turns her sister,
Ellen, into a vampire bride and brings an unconscious Cynthia to his home where
he plans to romance the lovely, young woman. Cynthia awakens and is told by
Yorga that her parents were in an accident and that he will be caring for her
until they are well. Meanwhile, Cynthia’s maid, Jennifer, who discovered the dead
bodies, informs the police, but when they arrive, they find that the corpses
have mysteriously disappeared. Cynthia’s fiancé, David, suspects that Yorga may
be behind the grisly goings-on and, with the help of Lieutenant Madden, Sargent
O’Connor and a frightened Reverend, he sneaks into Yorga’s lair in an attempt
to rescue his beloved and stop the wicked Count for good.
Originally titled Yorga Returns, but changed to The
Return of Count Yorga at the time of its release, the very entertaining
sequel contains much of the fun, eerie atmosphere of the first movie and also
uses most of the same cast and crew. The film was solidly directed by Bob
Kelljan (Scream, Blacula, Scream) who
helmed the original, and the engaging and creepy story was written by Kelljan
and newcomer (to the Yorga series)
Yvonne Wilder (Seems Like Old Times)
who also shines in the role of mute maid, Jennifer. Kelljan keeps the film
moving while, all along, building tension and dread; most notably in a terrific
scene where Yorga sends his vampire brides to attack Cynthia’s family in their
home one windy night. The talented director also keeps the film current (for
1971) by having the brides resemble zombies from the 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead as well as
giving their terrifying home invasion sequence a definite Charles Manson feel.
Michael Macready (Terror House), who produced and starred in Count Yorga, Vampire, once again takes on producing chores and
makes a cameo appearance as well. His dad, actor George Macready (Gilda), who narrated the first film, also
appears in a brief, but humorous scene. Talented composer Bill Marx (son of
Harpo) returns and contributes another atmospheric and extremely eerie score
while the likeable Roger Perry (Harrigan
and Son), who played the heroic lead in the first Yorga film, returns in a similar role as Cynthia’s concerned
fiancé, David. Edward Walsh (Another 48
Hrs.) is also back as Brudah and he’s just as intimidating as he was the
first time around. Last, but certainly not least, the late, great Robert Quarry
returns to the role for which he will be forever remembered: Count Yorga. Quarry
once again plays the bloodthirsty Count as suave, sophisticated, cultured and
magnetic. For the first time ever, the lonely Yorga falls in love and Quarry
really makes you believe that he is completely taken with Cynthia. In other
scenes, you can sense his pain at feeling this new and powerful emotion. Of
course Yorga is also an evil, undead fiend and Quarry doesn’t disappoint in
that department either as his vampire can be convincingly cold and extremely
ruthless. Also, for a movie that’s over 40 years-old, you wouldn’t expect the
scares to still work. However, the frightening image of a crazed, bloodthirsty Quarry/Yorga
running out of the darkness in slow motion, fangs bared and arms outstretched
while chasing a terrified victim, is still the stuff of nightmares.
We have plenty of newcomers to the series and
they’re all wonderful. The lovely, talented and Emmy-winning Mariette Hartley (Marnie) is perfect as the goodhearted
Cynthia. Both Rudy De Luca (High Anxiety)
and, in an early appearance, Craig T. Nelson (Poltergeist) are believable, likeable and a bit humorous as the
skeptical cops. Philip Frame (The Little
Ark) is extremely creepy as young Tommy; Tom Toner (Splash) is a bit funny as the Reverend; Karen Houston/Ericson (Night of the Demons) does well as Ellen,
Cynthia’s sister (especially in the scene where she vamps out), and David
Lampson (Silence) is solid as Ellen’s
faithful boyfriend, Jason. Helen Baron (Private
Benjamin) and the highly recognizable Walter Brooke (The Graduate) are seen early on as Cynthia’s parents, Corrine
Conley (Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer)
skulks around as an old witch, and beloved character actor Michael Pataki (Grave of the Vampire) shows up briefly
as a concerned boyfriend whose girl (Jesse Wells from Wizards) has been attacked by Yorga. B-movie aficionados of the 60s
and 70s will be interested to know that the multi-talented Gary Kent, who
appeared in many fun drive-in films such as Schoolgirls
in Chains and Dracula vs.
Frankenstein, was stunt coordinator on this film, and musician Marilynn
Lovell, who provided music for Kelljan’s Scream,
Blacula, Scream, Michael Macready’s Terror
House and Quarry’s Deathmaster,
sings the haunting tune “Think It Over.”
As already stated, the film is scary,
atmospheric, well-directed and well-acted, but as much praise as it gets, I
believe that it is still quite underrated. American International Pictures was
all set to have Count Yorga rise from the grave once more, but, for whatever
reason, a third film was, unfortunately, never made.
(Shout Factory’s Blu-ray special edition of
the film is out of print but the movie is available for streaming rental or
purchase on Amazon).
Real-life crime and corruption seemed to grow
in the United States during the late 1960s and victims felt that, in certain
cases, the law couldn’t always protect them. Thus, by the early 70s, American
cinemas saw the rise of the vigilante/revenge film. Amazingly entertaining and
hard-hitting classics such as Tom Laughlin’s Billy Jack (1971) Don Siegel’s Dirty
Harry (1971), Phil Karlson’s Walking
Tall (1973)and Jack Hill’s Coffy (1973) blazed across movie
screens. These films featured lone, individualistic heroes who, after seeing
the innocent people of their communities (and sometimes their loved ones)
either robbed, beaten, raped or killed, and the law either powerless to help or
itself part of the problem, decide that enough is enough and proceed to take
the imperfect law into their own hands. As entertaining as these movies were,
they were also an outcry against the real-life crime and corruption that was
polluting the streets at the time; not to mention the imperfect legal system.
Also, by viewing the tough, but well-meaning heroes of these fantasy films ridding
their communities of this dangerous and undesired element, audiences
experienced a real catharsis.
Although many more vigilante/revenge movies
would hit theater screens throughout the rest of the decade, the genre reached
its height with the release of Michael Winner’s masterful, if controversial, Death Wish (1974) which starred the
legendary Charles Bronson as a passive architect/family man who, after his wife
and daughter are raped by muggers (which also causes his wife’s death), and the
authorities are powerless to help, decides to hunt criminals by night on the
dangerous urban streets of New York. Death
Wish proved to be highly influential and, in the 1980s, the genre showed no
signs of slowing down as urban-based vigilante/revenge films such as 1980’s
underrated The Exterminator, 1982’s Fighting Back and 1983’s Vigilante exploded into theaters along
with, among many others, three entertaining, but inferior Death Wish sequels. Smack dab in the middle of these two decades, a
modest, solid little urban vigilante/revenge film called Defiance was released.
Directed by John Flynn (Rolling Thunder), Defiance,
which was written by Thomas Michael Donnelly (Quicksilver), produced by Jerry Bruckheimer (Beverly Hills Cop, Top Gun) and released by American International
Pictures, concerns a merchant seaman named Tommy (Jan-Michael Vincent, The Mechanic, Big Wednesday, Airwolf)
who, while waiting for his next ship to sail, takes up residence on New York’s
Lower East Side. While there, he romances pretty, young Marsha (Raging Bull’s Theresa Saldana) and
befriends a boy (Fernando Lopez from Frankie
and Johnny) and an old grocery shop owner named Abe (Academy Award winner
(for Harry and Tonto) Art Carney). He
also discovers that a violent street gang called the Souls is terrorizing the
neighborhood and the entire police force’s hands are tied. After a series of
brutal muggings, beatings and murders, Tommy decides to put a stop to the
violence by taking on the gang himself. But does Tommy alone have what it takes
to put an end to the madness?
Although a very well-done addition to the
urban vigilante genre, Defiance differs
somewhat from films like Death Wish and The Exterminator in that the main hero
doesn’t kill any of the villains. He just fights back and, hopefully, brings
them to justice. Director Flynn delivers a well-balanced combo of drama and
suspense-thriller while giving the film a gritty, realistic feel which is
helped along by the stark cinematography of the talented Ric Waite (48 Hrs.).
Jan-Michael Vincent is extremely convincing as
Tommy. He plays the well-written character as quiet, but tough and also isn’t
afraid to show that, at times, Tommy is scared. He also shows traits such as
humor and heart which further humanizes the character. Overall, it’s an understated
and very believable performance. The
extremely likeable Theresa Saldana brings a nice touch of humor to her role and
the late, great Art Carney is wholly convincing as an aging, kind, but fed up
grocery store owner. We also have a terrific performance by Fernando Lopez as
the kid; not to mention Rudy Ramos (The
Enforcer) exuding icy evil as gang leader Angel Cruz who utters the
immortal line, “Now, we’re gonna make the new dude slow bleed.”
The entertaining and engaging film is loaded
with even more top-notch acting talent; mostly made up of familiar East Coast/Italian-American
faces such as Academy Award nominee Danny Aiello (Do the Right Thing), former AWA Tag Team champion wrestler turned
actor Lenny “Luca Brasi” Montana (The
Godfather), legendary film and television actor Joseph Campanella (The St. Valentine's Day Massacre), The Sopranos’ Tony “Paulie Walnuts”
Sirico and the highly recognizable Frank Pesce (Vigilante). What a freakin’ cast! My only question is where the
hell was Joe Spinell? The movie also features well-known faces like Ernie F.
Orsatti (The Car), Chino “Fats”
Williams (Weird Science) and Santos
Morales (Scarface) as well asvery brief appearances by Fred Lincoln
(The Last House on the Left) and Tony
DiBenedetto (The Exterminator), and
quite a few others whose faces are more familiar than their names.
Defiance has been released on
a region one Blu-ray by Kino Lorber and is presented in its original 1.85:1
aspect ratio. As is usually the case with KL, the beautiful HD transfer boasts
sharp, crystal clear and colorful images as well as perfect sound. The disc
also contains the original theatrical trailer along with the trailer for the
1976, Jan-Michael Vincent actioner Vigilante
Force which is also available on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. If you’re looking
for a solid entry from the vigilante film heyday, the extremely underrated Defiance won’t disappoint.
"If a movie makes you
happy, for whatever reason, then it's a good movie."
Big E
*******WARNING:
REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*******
Giant bug movies have always been a favorite
of mine; Tarantula, Black Scorpion, The
Deadly Mantis, Earth vs. The Spider, etc. The best of them all has to be Them!, the 1954 classic about atomic
testing causing ants to mutate to gigantic proportions. It was the first and
best of the 1950s cycle of big bug movies.
In the 1970s, bugs and just about every other
form of nature, struck back against irresponsible humans who were poisoning the
planet in a plethora of nature-runs-amok films such as Frogs, Kingdom of the Spiders, Squirm, etc. They may not have been
gigantic like they were in the 50s, but they were just as deadly. However, Mr.
B.I.G. himself, Bert I. Gordon, the man responsible for entertaining, 1950s
giant creature classics like The Amazing
Colossal Man, Beginning of the End, Village of the Giants and the
aforementioned Earth vs. The Spider, had
already brought back giant wasps and worms in 1976's Food of the Gods,and felt
that 1977 was the time to bring back the best giant insects of them all: the
ants. Using the great H.G. Wells's popular short story as his inspiration, Empire of the Ants was born.
The movie begins when a canister of toxic
waste, which was dumped and supposed to sink into the ocean, washes up on shore
and leaks its toxic sludge into a neighboring ant hole.
Nearby, con woman Marilyn Fryser (Joan
Collins) and her lover/partner Charlie (Edward Power) attempt to sell some
worthless land called Dreamland Shores to a large group of potential buyers
including nice guy Joe (John David Carson), middle-aged Margaret (Jacqueline
Scott), beautiful Coreen (Pamela Susan Shoop), two-timing Larry (Robert Pine)
and his poor wife Christine (Brooke Palance).
As the group surveys the land, a few members
break off on their own. Cautious Margaret, while flirting with boat driver Dan
(Robert Lansing), asks him if he thinks the land is a good investment; Larry
gets Coreen alone, puts the moves on her and gets a knee to the groin for his
trouble, and Coreen eventually hits it off with Joe. All the while, the ants
silently watch them.
The entire group is gathered and taken on a
leisurely tour of the area. The tour doesn't last long though as the dead body
of one of Marilyn's crew (Tom Ford) is found. Joe and Coreen volunteer to check
things out and find the remains of a married couple (Jack Kosslyn and Ilse
Earl) that were originally part of the group. To their horror, they also find a
horde of giant ants and all hell breaks loose as the intelligent insects attack
and destroy Dan's boat. With no way off the island, the terrified group starts
a campfire in order to keep the ants away.
The next morning, a storm begins and the rain
puts out the fire. The group frantically decides to make a run for it with the
ants hot on their tail. An elderly couple (Harry Holcombe and Irene Tedrow),
who can't keep up, hides out in an old shack. Christine falls, sprains her
ankle and is killed by the ants, and, while helping a tangled Marilyn escape
from a tree branch, Charlie also meets his demise. As the rain stops, the
elderly couple, thinking that i's safe, emerges from the shack only to find an
army of ants waiting for them. The remaining group members stumble upon a
rowboat and slowly take off down the river. The ants attack again, turning the
boat over and killing Larry.
The group realizes that the ants are leading
them toward a specific destination upstream and, as they continue to move
along, they come across an old couple (Tom Fadden and Florence McGee) who
contact the sheriff (Albert Salmi) for them. The sheriff drives them into town,
but the relieved survivors soon realize that something still isn't right. They
can't seem to find a working phone and everyone in the small town acts very suspiciously.
The group decides to hotwire a car, but while
trying to escape, they're captured by the authorities and taken to the local
sugar refinery. While there, they discover that the queen ant is using her
pheromones to control every human being in the town and forcing them to feed
the giant ants. Marilyn is the first to come under the queen's control, but
when they try to control Dan, the clever boat captain burns the queen with a
road flare he took from the abandoned car. Dan escapes with Margaret, Joe and
Coreen, but Marilyn, who snaps out of her trance too late, is killed by the out
of control queen.
Knowing that if the gigantic ants aren't
stopped they will multiply and eventually take over the world, Joe drives a
leaking fuel truck into the refinery and blows the insects to kingdom come. As
the entire place goes up in flames, Joe, Coreen, Dan and Margaret reach a
speedboat and drive off to safety.
I love European genre cinema. For example,
the Spanish horror films of Paul Naschy and Amando de Ossorio, the British
Hammer and Amicus films; not mention the many British, French and Italian
Eurospy films, and, of course, the Italian giallos and spaghetti westerns, just
to name a few. In Italy, directors such ase Sergio Leone, Dario Argento and
Mario Bava are legends. However, there were several Italian directors who may
not have been as well-known as these three artists, but who still created many
entertaining and worthwhile films. One of these directors was Antonio
Margheriti, who dabbled in various genres including spaghetti western, peplum,
Eurospy and horror. Some of his well-known horror films are The Long Hair of Death, Seven Death’s in the Cat’s Eye and the
beloved Cannibal Apocalypse. But in
1971, Margheriti directed a film that some horror fans may not be familiar
with. Others may have heard of it, but may not have ever seen it. That film is Web of the Spider.
Directed with style by Margheriti, here using
his American-sounding pseudonym Anthony M. Dawson, Web of the Spider revolves around journalist Alan Foster who
accepts a bet from legendary author Edgar Allan Poe to spend one night in
Blackwood Castle; a structure that Poe believes to be haunted, but Foster does
not. Moments after arriving at the dusty, cobweb-covered Victorian castle, Foster
begins hearing and seeing strange and frightening things. Is it a hoax
perpetrated by Poe or is Blackwood Castle really the home of something
supernatural?
Written by Bruno Corbucci (James Tont operazione U.N.O. aka James Tont-Operation Goldsinger), Web of the Spider is a color remake of
Margheriti’s and Corbucci’s 1964 black and white, gothic horror film Castle of Blood which starred the
legendary Barbara Steele (Black Sunday,
The Pit and the Pendulum). Due to Castle
performing poorly at the box office, Margheriti decided to remake it six
years later; this time in color. The director would later say that this was a
mistake as he felt that the color robbed Web
of the Spider of its atmosphere. Although I somewhat agree with him, I
still think it’s an interesting film and I’m glad that it was made. Clocking in
at 93 minutes, Web moves along at a
fast enough pace (for me, anyway), and, although it would have been more
atmospheric in glorious black and white, conjures up quite a bit of gothic
mood. The sets are wonderful and are dressed beautifully and the look of the
movie reminds me very much of a Night
Gallery episode crossed with a Roger Corman Poe film. The period costumes
are also quite lovely looking and the eerie musical score, by prolific Italian
composer Riziero Ortolani (The Valachi
Papers, The House on the Edge of the Park), adds immeasurably to the film.
The movie also features two very well-known
actors. The first is Anthony Franciosa (A
Hatful of Rain, Tenebrae) who stars as Alan Foster and convincingly shows
us a man who goes from happy confidence to frightened madness. The second is
Klaus Kinski (For a Few Dollars More,
Slaughter Hotel, Nosferatu the Vampyre). Although Kinski’s role as Edgar
Allan Poe is brief, it is also extremely memorable and one of the highlights of
the film.
Web of the Spider has been released on
Blu-ray in region 1, 2 and 3 from the fine folks at Garagehouse Pictures. The
film, which is presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio, looks gorgeous. The
audio is also superb and the disc is overflowing with special features such as
the German theatrical trailer, a deleted scene, an art gallery, the German
Super 8 movie digest, and the uncut Italian version in standard definition
which is also presented in its 2.35:1 aspect ratio and runs over seventeen
minutes longer than the American version. We are also treated to not one, but
two audio commentaries. The first is by George Reis, the editor of DVD Drive-in and writer/director Keith
Crocker. These knowledgeable guys tell you everything you ever wanted to know
about Web of the Spider while, in the
second commentary, screenwriter Stephen Romano, who is also a crazy talented
artist and contributed the beautiful, eye-catching artwork featured on the
Blu-ray sleeve, provides much info about the film, as well as about extremely
interesting subjects such as filmmaking and pre-home video film distribution.
Rounding out these excellent special features are fifteen minutes of Antonio
Margheriti trailers. If you’re a fan of 1970s Euro horror films, Klaus Kinski
or Antonio Margheriti, this disc is an absolute joy.
Plan 9 from Outer
Space. Bride of the Monster. Glen or Glenda. You know the movie titles. And you
know the man responsible for them: the legendary Ed Wood, who has been severely
ridiculed by some, but revered by many others. I’m certainly not going to say
that his films are masterpieces, but I do like and respect them. I also think
that they have their own point of view, are far from being bad and that they
deserve to be remembered. That’s why I’m thrilled to be reviewing the Blu-ray
release of the Ed Wood-scripted, juvenile delinquent classic The Violent Years.
Directed by William Morgan and originally
titled Teenage Girl Gang, The Violent Years follows spoiled rich
kid Paula Parkins and her all-girl gang as they run wild through their city
vandalizing high schools, ripping off gas stations, sexually assaulting young
men, and eventually murdering a few people. Can they keep up this reign of
terror or will the authorities find a way to stop their rampage once and for
all?
I wouldn’t say that The Violent Years is as good as the Ed Wood films I mentioned
earlier (probably because Ed didn’t direct this one), but it’s certainly
entertaining and definitely worth a look. However, the idea that, due to her
loving parents working a bit more than they should, Paula would become
completely unfeeling and go on a bunch of crime sprees which culminate in
several cold-blooded murders is pretty far-fetched. But what we mainly have
here is a wonderful combination of 1950s time capsule and plenty of
unintentional hilarity. For example, we are treated to pajama-clad teenage guys
who are clearly 35-year-old actors; not to mention priceless Ed Wood dialogue
such as, while attempting to figure out where they went wrong with Paula, her
mother saying to her husband, “We gave her a new dress instead of a caress.†We
also have a court judge who gives a moralistic speech thath seems to never end.
Still, even without the unintended humor, the movie keeps you somewhat
interested, has a semi-engaging lead (1955 Playboy Playmate Jean Moorhead as
Paula), a catchy musical score and, being that it clocks in at only 57 minutes,
moves along pretty quickly.
The Violent Years has been released on
Blu-ray by two of my favorite companies: Something Weird Video and AGFA
(American Genre Film Archive). The disc is region free and the movie is
presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The images are extremely clear
making the film, which has been scanned in 4K from the original 35mm camera
negative, look better than you’ve ever seen it before. The disc is also jammed
with special features which makes this a terrific Blu-ray collection. Besides
the original theatrical trailer, we have fifteen minutes of Gutter-Noir
trailers. We are also treated to ten minutes of previously unseen footage from
a juvenile delinquent flick which Ed never completed as well as a very humorous
and informative audio commentary by legendary exploitation filmmaker Frank
Henenlotter (Basket Case, Brain Damage,
Frankenhooker) and Ed Wood biographer Rudolph Grey. And that’s not all. Not
only does this Blu-ray come with a memorabilia scrapbook containing wonderful
gems such as rare photos and the theatrical trailer’s shooting script, but it
also comes with a 2nd feature! It’s another Ed Wood (co-)scripted
film from 1961 called Anatomy of a Psycho
which was scanned in 2K from an original 35mm theatrical print and is presented
in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Recommended.
Between 1972 and 1985, six-time world karate
champion Chuck Norris made a total of twelve films—ten
of which he had the lead role—which established him
as a martial arts movie hero. Along the way, some of these films, such as Missing in Action,helped to soften his karate hero image and strengthen his action
hero one. For his next film, Norris would tackle a project which further helped
to tone down his martial arts image and move him more into the realm of pure
action movie star. That project was 1985’s Code
of Silence.
Solidly directed by Andrew Davis (1993’s The Fugitive), Code of Silence deals with Eddie Cusack, a Chicago detective who
becomes an outcast from the force when he refuses to remain silent about one of
his fellow officers, the alcoholic Cragie, who, among other things, is
responsible for shooting an innocent teenage boy and planting a weapon on the
corpse. Now, Cusack must act alone as he attempts to rescue Diana, a greedy
mafia man’s innocent daughter, from ruthless drug gang leader Luis Comacho.
Code of Silence was originally
written for Clint Eastwood in 1979. It was to be the fourth film in the iconic Dirty Harry series. When Clint passed on
the project, the script languished until 1984 when Orion Pictures decided to
make the movie with Chuck and Andrew Davis. San Francisco became Chicago and
Harry Callahan became Eddie Cusack. Code
of Silence is a pretty engaging action film/crime drama. Solid
characterizations as well as a nice, dramatic subplot help to suck the audience
in which makes the action hero heroics even more exciting to watch. Director
Davis films several heart-pumping, adrenaline rush sequences such as Chuck
pursuing a villain atop a fast-moving train; not to mention the very
well-directed (and well-edited) opening sting operation. A Chicago native,
Davis also shoots the film in such a way that he really gives his audience a
feel of the city itself.
The movie is also greatly helped along by its
incredible assortment of talented actors. Naturally, we have the always
reliable Chuck Norris who very believably plays Eddie Cusack as a man dedicated
to his job. It goes without saying that Chuck is totally convincing as a tough
guy who can more than handle himself. As usual, his low key performance and
soft voice (I don’t think he ever raises his voice in this film) nicely balances
his flying fists and feet.
Next, we have the great Henry Silva (1960’s Oceans 11, 1962’s The Manchurian Candidate) who oozes evil as the no-nonsense, icy
drug lord Luis Comacho. Film buffs will easily recognize talented actor (and
talented casting director) Bert Remsen (McCabe
& Mrs. Miller, Fuzz) who plays gruff Commander Kates. Next up is Molly
Hagan (Some Kind of Wonderful, TV’s Herman’s Head) who shines as the tough,
but vulnerable Diana. The late, great and Chicago born Dennis Farina (TV’s Crime Story, Midnight Run) was a Chicago
cop before becoming a professional actor. Farina brings a lot of humor to his
role of Detective Dorato which helps to balance out all the action and drama.
Also, Mike Genovese (Harlem Knights, TV’s
ER) is well cast as greedy mafia man
Tony Luna; Nathan Davis (Dunston Checks
In, Poltergeist III), who also happens to be the director’s father, does well
as mafia head Felix Scalese; Ralph Foody (The
Blues Brothers, Home Alone) is spot on as burnt out, alcoholic Detective
Cragie; Joe Guzaldo (Chuck’s Hero and the
Terror) is memorable as Chuck’s conflicted partner, and Ron Dean, who went
on to appear in several films for director Davis such as Above the Law and The
Fugitive, is wholly convincing as tough cop Detective Brennan. Joseph
Kosala, who effectively portrays Lieutenant Kobas, was actually a retired
sergeant of the Chicago Police Department and, while on the set, helped out
immensely by acting as the film’s technical advisor. Kosala would go on to
appear in five more films for Davis. Lastly, fans of Frasier will enjoy a humorous cameo by the late John Mahoney.
Code of Silence has been released on
a Region 1 Blu-ray by Kino Lorber, It is presented in its original 1.85:1
aspect ratio and the beautiful HD transfer boasts sharp, crystal clear images
(I’ve never seen this film look this good) and terrific sound. The disc is also
loaded with special features. We are treated to brand new interviews with co-screenwriter
Michael Butler, actors Ron Dean and Molly Hagen, and composer David Michael
Frank. There is also an informative and entertaining audio commentary by
director Andrew Davis. Last, but not least, the disc not only contains the
original theatrical trailer, but trailers for other Norris classics An Eye for an Eye (1981), Hero and the Terror (1988) and Delta Force 2 (1990)as well as the trailer for Andrew Davis’ 1989 thriller The Package. If you’re looking for a 1980s
action film with more going for it than just exciting car chases and shootouts,
I highly recommend Code of Silence.
(This is the second and final part of Ernie Magnotta's exclusive interview with Kenneth Johnson, creator of the classic 1970s TV series "The Incredible Hulk", which debuted 40 years ago today.)
BY ERNIE MAGNOTTA
EM: Nice…I’d like to talk
about Jack Colvin for a sec.
KJ: Sure.
EM: I really loved him as
McGee. I thought he was terrific. Did he enjoy playing the role?
KJ: Yeah, he did. But he was frustrated sometimes
and he would say to me, “How many times can I say that I’m looking for a
hulking, green creature?†So, we tried to really write episodes where he had
meaningful stuff to do.
EM: Yeah, that was
actually my next question because the character changed a bit. He was a little
unlikeable in the first season; like a weasel.
KJ: Yeah, that’s it. I love those yellow rag
journalists. The tabloid type people are just very colorful folks, so I thought
it would be fun. But Jack was so substantive and such a fine actor and a
brilliant acting teacher that we just realized that we had an asset we needed
to develop more and we needed to write more for him. And there are some
episodes, as you know, where he really takes center stage for a good portion of
them.
EM: Yeah, there’s one
that’s just completely about him. I think Bill Bixby only shows up in
flashbacks.
KJ: I think you’re right. I think that was near
the time of the death of Bill’s son, although Bill really just wanted to keep on
working through that.
EM: That’s totally
understandable.
KJ: It was a terrible time and that was Bill’s
way of dealing with it; just getting on the set and doing it. He was terrific
and I still miss him to this day. He was a force of nature. (Laughs) We had
many, many, many knock-down, drag out arguments, but, Ernie, there was never
one that was about bullshit. There was never one that was about nonsense or
“star†stuff. It was always about character and he would come to me and say,
“Dr. David Banner would never say this line!â€
EM: That’s so great and
it answers part of my next question which is about how much input he had and
how much he got into the character.
KJ: I would be in bed at night and he would have
finished a day of shooting and gone to the looping stage late at night because
we had added a wild line or two to help clarify something and he would call me
at home, “Dr. David Banner wouldn’t say this line!†And I’d tell him, “Yes, he
would. I wrote it.â€
EM: (Laughs)
KJ: And we’d go back and forth and our agreement
was whoever was right got to win. And sometimes it would end up with Bill
saying, “All right. I’ll say it, but I don’t think Dr. David Banner would say
it.†(Laughs) But we had a good working relationship and he was a total pro all
the way.
EM: I know that, at the
time of the pilot, Lou Ferrigno didn’t have any acting experience, but I
thought he did a fantastic job; especially his final scene with Susan Sullivan.
KJ: Louie grew into the role very quickly and I
gave him time on the set to get there and to find it. I also helped him by
giving him like acting 101, but he picked up on everything very quickly and it
got so we really enjoyed writing those scenes when the Hulk was coming down
from the anger and was a simplistic child in many ways.
EM: Like when he was
confused by something.
VP: Yeah, exactly. I remember Mickey Jones
teaching him how to open a pop top soda can; that kind of thing. Or he’d be
resting under a tree, petting a deer. And Louie really got into those and began
to enjoy it and he did a really fine job. He just progressed so well and so
far. These days, Lou is an inspirational speaker and he’s working for the
Sheriff’s Department as well, so he’s an asset to the community.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the classic TV series "The Incredible Hulk", Cinema Retro's Ernie Magnotta sat down for an extensive discussion with the show's creator Kenneth Johnson.
BY ERNIE MAGNOTTA
Dr. David
Banner—physician, scientist…searching for a way to tap into the hidden strengths that all humans
have. Then, an accidental overdose of gamma radiation alters his body chemistry.
And now, when David Banner grows angry or outraged, a startling metamorphosis
occurs.
The creature is
driven by rage and is pursued by an investigative reporter. The creature is
wanted for a murder he didn’t commit. David Banner is believed to be dead. And
he must let the world think that he is dead until he can find a way to control
the raging spirit that dwells within him.
Kids who grew up in the 1970s remember that
narration well. Every Friday night at 9pm (until it was later moved to 8pm) we’d
sit in front of our television sets, switch on CBS channel 2 and listen to the
late, great Ted Cassidy (Lurch from The
Addams Family) recite those very words before another exciting, hour-long
episode of The Incredible Hulk TV
series would begin. However, before there was a series, there were two very
successful made-for-TV movies, and before that, a very popular comic book.
The character of the Hulk was created in 1962
by legendary Marvel Comics masterminds Stan Lee (writer) and Jack Kirby
(artist). In the comic book, Dr. Bruce Banner was a nuclear scientist for the
United States Army who, while trying to save a teenager who wandered onto a
test site, was accidently bathed in gamma rays when a bomb he created was
detonated. This forever caused the mild-mannered scientist to change into a
hulking green-skinned creature whenever he became enraged. (The first few
stories had him change whenever the moon was full just like a werewolf. Also,
his skin was originally grey.) Most of the exciting comic book tales revolved
around Army General Thunderbolt Ross’s obsessive need to find and capture the
destructive, but good-hearted Hulk who he felt was a danger to the country he
had sworn to protect.
Flash forward 15 years. After achieving great
success writing and directing episodes of the super-popular cyborg television
series The Six Million Dollar Man as
well as creating and producing its sister show The Bionic Woman, Kenneth Johnson received a call from Universal
Television head Frank Price. Price, who had just acquired the rights to five
Marvel Comics superhero titles, asked Johnson to pick one that he’d like to
develop for TV, but Johnson, who was not a comic book follower, declined.
However, while reading Victor Hugo’s Les
Miserables, Johnson thought about how he could combine the structure of
that book with the characters of Bruce Banner and the Hulk while, at the same
time, going for a more realistic approach than the comic book.
First of all, Johnson knew that he didn’t
want any connection to comic book styles and, so, he immediately eliminated
everything from the comics except for the main character of Banner (which he
renamed David in order to avoid comic book alliteration) and the fact that, due
to radiation poisoning, he metamorphoses into a hulking green creature whenever
he becomes angry or endures great pain. (Johnson originally wanted to change
the Hulk’s skin color to red, but Marvel vetoed the idea due to the already
well-known look of their popular comic book character.) He then eliminated
scientist Banner’s ties to the military and, instead, made him a California
physician who was desperately trying to uncover the secret as to why, while
trying to save another human life, certain people acquired almost superhuman
strength while others did not (like himself when, after a car accident, he
failed to turn over the flaming automobile and save his beloved wife). Also,
Johnson not only eliminated the Hulk’s Tarzan-like
speech and, except for growls, kept the creature mute, but, in order to
maintain as much realism as possible, he made the Hulk less powerful than the
indestructible creature in the comics.
Kenneth Johnson (center) with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno.
Banner (played brilliantly by two-time Emmy
Award nominee Bill Bixby who was Johnson’s first and only choice for the role)
soon discovers that the answer is due to having a low Gamma count, so he
immediately takes a higher dose. Unbeknownst to him, the equipment he used was
calibrated incorrectly and he wound up taking a much higher dose than
originally planned. This causes the change into an incredibly powerful, almost
Cro-Magnon-like, green-skinned creature that, although destructive, retains
Banner’s benevolence and does not kill (although, one day, it could
inadvertently kill someone which is Banner’s biggest fear). Johnson added an
Inspector Javert-like character in the form of tabloid reporter Jack McGee
(played by talented character actor and acting teacher Jack Colvin) who becomes
obsessed with learning about and capturing the Hulk (portrayed by legendary
bodybuilding champion Lou Ferrigno). Due to McGee’s zeal as well as Banner’s
burning desire for a cure, the good doctor’s colleague and unrequited love, Dr.
Elaina Marks (played beautifully by Susan Sullivan), is accidentally killed in
a lab explosion. However, McGee believes that Elaina (and Banner) was murdered
by the creature and, after informing the authorities, a warrant for murder is
put out for the Hulk. David Banner (a character with similarities to Jean
Valjean), now believed to be dead, begins to travel the country in search of a
cure while, at the same time, doing his best to avoid transforming into the
green-skinned goliath; for the transformations bring the intrepid Mr. McGee who
is always just one step behind him.
An intriguing, solid and perfect set-up for a
television series (and one that was used several times before in shows like
Quinn Martin’s classic series The
Fugitive starring David Janssen and The
Immortal starring Christopher George; both of which contain the Les Miserables structure of a benevolent
man on the run being pursued by a relentless authority figure). However, before
going to series, there would be a second TV-Movie of the week titled The Return of the Incredible Hulk (aka Death in the Family) which aired on
November 27th, 1977 (just weeks after the amazing (and just discussed)
original pilot, The Incredible Hulk,
which aired on Friday, November 4th, 1977). This entertaining movie
showed exactly how the future series episodes would play out. Banner, under an
assumed surname always beginning with the letter ‘B’, arrives in town looking
for work while simultaneously searching for a cure. He gets involved with other
people’s dilemmas, honestly tries to help them and, before long, is made to
change into his hulking alter ego who ultimately winds up saving the day (and,
many times, Banner’s life). More often than not, Mr. Magee shows up after the
first transformation (in the hour-long episodes, Banner always transforms
twice, but here (in a two-hour movie) he metamorphoses four times) and Banner
has the added headache of staying out of sight while the reporter is around.
After saying his goodbyes to those he’s helped, a usually penniless Banner
takes off alone, hitchhiking his way to a new town where he will continue to
search of a cure, help those in need and avoid contact with McGee and the
authorities.
The world of horror films lost two of its
most important and influential figures recently with the passing of filmmaking
geniuses George Romero and Tobe Hooper. Although the careers of these two great
artists can fill (and have filled) entire books, I’d like to briefly mention
their most important works and pay my respects to them both.
When I was around ten or eleven-years-old, I
had snuck out of bed late one night to watch some old movie on TV; a Tarzan
flick I think it was. In order to avoid waking my parents, I had to keep the
volume on the television set very low, but sit close to the set so that I could
hear. As I sat alone in my parents’ dark living room waiting patiently for the
commercials to end, a bunch of zombies appeared on the screen and quickly
lurched forward with their arms outstretched! I jumped back while
simultaneously screaming which, of course, woke my mom. Needless to say, I
never got to finish the Tarzan movie, but I made up for it by having my first
taste of the cinema of writer/director (and sometimes editor and actor) George
A. Romero; even if it was only a TV spot for his 1979 zombie masterpiece Dawn of the Dead.
Romero’s feature film debut, 1968’s immortal Night of the Living Dead, which was made
independently for the paltry sum of $114, 000, not only began his immensely
popular zombie series (six films which
lasted until 2009), but also singlehandedly created the entire zombie mythology
which is still being used today. As a matter of fact, anyone who has made a
zombie film after 1968 not only owes a debt to Romero, but a royalty check as
well. Night, which deals with the
dead returning to life as flesh-eating ghouls and surrounding an old farmhouse
filled with seven frightened and bickering humans who cannot get along, was
filmed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (where Romero lived for much of his adult
life) and combines scares/graphic violence with social commentary; a formula
the master filmmaker would return to many times. The creepy, atmospheric and
nihilistic film reflects the turbulent time in which it was made and its
graphic tone was mainly inspired by the Vietnam War.
If I had to pick one film in the Romero canon
that I feel is an underrated masterwork, it would have to be his amazing, 1976,
modern-day vampire film Martin. This
enthralling piece of cinema, which Romero himself has said to be his favorite
of all the films he’s directed, concerns a shy and confused young man (excellently
portrayed by John Amplas) who may or may not be a vampire. Romero leaves this
up to the audience to decide. The master filmmaker also touches upon subjects
such as religious beliefs (both too strict and too casual), mental illness
(perhaps caused by a strict, religious upbringing), the healing/saving power of
love and understanding, disbelief in things that have yet to be proven, and how
such disbelief can allow someone/something dangerous to move about freely in
the world, just to name a few.
Although he is known for a plethora of
thoughtful and entertaining films (The
Crazies (1973), Creepshow,
Knightriders, Two Evil Eyes, The Dark Half, Bruiser, etc.), many of which
he made alongside special makeup effects master and longtime friend Tom Savini,
the pioneering Romero will forever be remembered for his series of scary,
gore-filled and thought-provoking zombie films.
If the word zombie has become synonymous with
George Romero, then there’s only one phrase that springs to mind whenever
someone mentions writer/director Tobe Hooper: “chain sawâ€. A native of Austin
Texas and a former college professor, Hooper’s name was put on the horror map
after the 1974 release of his now legendary, low-budget, living hell of a horror
movie The Texas Chain Saw Massacre; a
film about a crazed family who hunt, kill and eat humans (in this film, it’s a
group of hippie friends) in order to survive after “progress†has made them
obsolete. Chain Saw’s savagery was
inspired by violent Vietnam War news reports which Hooper would view nightly on
television. Few who saw this indie masterwork back in the day have ever
forgotten the absolutely shocking first appearance of the film’s central
villain, Leatherface (the late Gunnar Hansen); a cannibalistic, chain saw-wielding
killer who wore a mask made of human flesh. The terrifying film, which shows very
little onscreen gore, not only became an enormous hit which, to date, has
spawned four sequels, a remake and two prequels, but its influence on horror
cinema is immeasurable. A true artistic work, Chain Saw, which also stars the late Marilyn Burns and features
narration from John Larroquette, now has a permanent place at the Museum of
Modern Art in New York.
There’s nothing I like better than getting
hold of a movie that I’ve been searching over three decades for and adding it
to my collection. At my age, there aren’t many vintage films left that I don’t
own in one format or another, so when I heard that the 1976 cult classic Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw was getting a
Blu-ray release, I was quite enthused. This movie has somehow always managed to
elude me. It never seemed to play on any of my cable stations in the early 80s,
we never had a copy of it at the video store I worked at in the mid-80s and I
was still never able to find a copy of it anywhere throughout the 90s. To be
honest, by the time the 21st century hit, I completely forgotten
about this movie, so I was pretty surprised and even more excited to find out
that it was not only being released on Blu-ray, but also with quite a few
special features. Why? To begin with, I’m a tremendous fan of the director; not
to mention the entire cast and, last, but not least, I just love fun,
action/crime/drama exploitation films from the 1970s.
Produced and directed by Mark Lester (Truck Stop Women, Roller Boogie, Class of
1984), written by Vernon Zimmerman (Unholy
Rollers, Fade to Black) and released by American International Pictures,
modern western Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw
tells the tale of quick-draw expert and Billy the Kid enthusiast Lyle Wheeler
(Marjoe Gortner, Earthquake, Food of the
Gods, Viva Knievel!, Starcrash) who, together with waitress and aspiring
country singer Bobbi Jo Baker (TV’s one and only Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter) experiences a dangerous cross country
adventure filled with love, robbery and murder.
So, was the movie worth the wait? I certainly
think so. It may not be in the same league as Bonnie and Clyde (1967), but it’s still an extremely enjoyable,
well-directed, written and acted low-budget feature that definitely deserves to
be seen. To begin with, Mark Lester’s direction is not only solid, but he is
just at home directing the quiet, more character-driven and dramatic/romantic
scenes as he is directing a sequence involving heavy action and stunts. Next
up, Vernon Zimmerman’s wonderful writing not only creates an engaging story,
but interesting and likeable three-dimensional characters as well. Lyle Wheeler
aka the Outlaw, seems to live by his own code and has definite ideas of good
and evil; right and wrong. Marjoe Gortner effortlessly and believably gets all
this across and makes his character quite likeable. (This may be my favorite
Gortner performance.) The stunning Lynda Carter gets to show a bit more range
then she did as Wonder Woman and is extremely convincing as the hopeful and
somewhat naïve Bobbi Jo. The rest of the outrageously talented cast not only
add immensely to the film, but clearly came to play. Jesse Vint (Chinatown, Forbidden World) perfectly
plays Slick Callahan; a wild, not too bright cocaine fiend and boyfriend of
Bobbi Jo’s sister, Pearl. Gorgeous Merrie Lynn Ross (Class of 1984, TVs General
Hospital), who also co-produced the film, brings a hardened heart quality
to slightly ditzy stripper Pearl, and the always welcome Belinda Balaski (Piranha, The Howling) shines as hippie
waitress Essie Beaumont. Rounding out the top-notch cast is Gene Drew (Truck Stop Women) as a no-nonsense
sheriff, B-movie legend Gerrit Graham (Beware!
The Blob, Phantom of the Paradise, The Annihilators, C.H.U.D. II: Bud the
C.H.U.D.) as a helpful hippie, Virgil Frye (Graduation Day), who replaced Dennis Hopper, as a macho gas station
attendant with something to prove, Peggy Stewart (Alias Billy the Kid, Beyond Evil) as Bobbi Jo’s alcoholic mom, and
James Gammon (Major League) as a fast
talking salesman.
Remember the days when you would wear a baggy
raincoat, visit your local independent theater and abuse your genital region
while watching “naughty†films? Maybe the younger “internet porn†readers don’t
(I actually don’t either. I just remember hearing about it while OD’ing on VHS
porn in the 80s), but I know some of you older perverts know what I’m talking
about. You see, during the 1960s and early 70s, you could hit your local
grindhouse theater and see films that are now classified as sexploitation.
These low-budget independent features contained plenty of nudity, but showed
very little in the way of actual onscreen sex, giving them the nickname
“soft-core.†Until hardcore classics like 1972’s Deep Throat and Behind the
Green Door as well as 1973’s The
Devil in Miss Jones arrived on the scene rendering the tamer stuff almost
obsolete, these soft-core flicks (which were also frequently viewed by couples)
were all the rage. And now, the nice folks at Vinegar Syndrome have unearthed
three of them for you to relive or to discover for the very first time.
In the first feature, Marsha, The Erotic Housewife, a young woman (soft-core queen Marsha
Jordan also from Count Yorga, Vampire)
whose businessman husband (Mark Edwards) is cheating on her, decides to teach
him a lesson by fulfilling her sexual fantasies with other men. The second
feature, titled For Single Swingers Only,
tells the tale of Gracie (Ann Myers) who moves into an apartment complex for
swingers, but gets much more than she bargained for. Last, but not least, Her Odd Tastes once again stars Marsha
Jordan, this time as a woman who goes from having an incestuous relationship
with her sister to becoming a door-to-door vibrator saleswoman. She eventually
kills a man in self-defense before being hired by a book publisher to research
sexual pleasure and pain. The insatiable woman travels the world, visiting Hong
Kong, Africa and the Middle East in order to satisfy her strange sexual
cravings.
All three films (which were directed by Don
Davis) may contain washed-out colors and plenty of pops, scratches, jump cuts
and lines; not to mention drab-looking locations, but hey, no one buying a
ticket to see these movies was interested in things like cinematography or
production value. They paid to see some skin and there’s plenty of nudity on
display here. There’s also a lot of kissing and groping (in lieu of everything
else) as well as a bunch of unintentional laughs thanks to silly dialogue, stiff
acting and quite a few so-bad-it’s-good moments. Highlights include a hilarious
“Marsha†theme song, a woman with a very thick Swedish accent, a satanic orgy
where one guy wears a silly-looking goat head mask and, finally, death while
boinking on an electrified chair.
On the downside, the three movies, although
each one only running a little over an hour, all move along at a somewhat slow
pace. Still, I enjoyed them allfor
what they are. (I found Her Odd Tastes to
be the better paced and most entertaining of the three).
The three filmshave all been released on one dual layer DVD by Vinegar Syndrome.
The disc is region free and the movies are presented in their original 1.33:1
aspect ratio. The aforementioned pops, scratches, jump cuts and lines (which us
grindhouse cinema junkies adore) never detract from the story, and the images,
although far from Blu-ray quality, are more than watchable and pretty much what
you would expect something from this genre to look like. There are no special
features, but the DVD sleeve and disc both contain the original poster art for
all three films; my favorite tag line being “In Throbbing Color.†If you’re a
fan of soft-core sex flicks or are just curious to see what they were all about,
I recommend giving this retro drive-in collectiona look.
Who doesn’t love watching giant monster
movies from the 1950s? The Beast from 20,
000 Fathoms (1953), Them! (1954),
Tarantula (1955), Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956), 20 Million Miles to Earth (1957) and Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957) are
just a few of my favorites. Some of those titles are better than others and
there are many more that are worse such as 1957’s unintentionally hilarious The Giant Claw, but the decade that gave
us rock 'n' roll also created a giant monster flick that never seemed to get
the respect it deserved, which is ironic being that it’s a top-notch production
with a pretty convincing and scary monster. Of course, I’m talking about the
often overlooked 1957 classic, The
Monster That Challenged the World.
Directed by Arnold Laven (The Rifleman), The Monster That Challenged the World, which was solidly written by
Pat Fielder (The Vampire, The Return of
Dracula) and based on a story by David Duncan (The Time Machine, Fantastic Voyage), begins when an underwater
earthquake releases a horde of enormous, prehistoric creatures from
California’s Salton Sea. After one of these creatures kills a sailor,
Lieutenant John Twillinger (Tim Holt from The
Treasure of the Sierra Madre and The
Magnificent Ambersons) discovers an unknown, slimy substance which he
brings to Dr. Jess Rogers (Hans Conried, The
5,000 Fingers of Dr. T). Rogers analyzes it and not only deduces that it comes
from a giant mollusk, but also figures out that, if the creatures aren’t
stopped soon, they’ll multiply by the thousands and destroy every human being
on the planet. With the help of Dr. Rogers’ beautiful secretary (Audrey Dalton,
Mr. Sardonicus), the lieutenant and
the good doctor do everything in their power to stop the creeping terror before
it’s too late.
Made for only $254,000, The Monster That Challenged the World, which was originally titled The Kraken,is an entertaining monster movie that always seems to be
overshadowed by many of the titles I listed earlier. This is strange because
the fun movie is filled with tight, solid direction, plenty of atmosphere and a
great-looking, mechanical creature created by August Lohman (Moby Dick). The well-made film also
benefits from an interesting story as well as some pretty pleasing performances.
To begin with, Tim Holt is appropriately calm, rational and, at times, a bit
stiff as Lieutenant Twilliger, but he also gives his character much-needed doses
of humanity and likeability. Up next, the great Hans Conried is totally
convincing as the knowledgeable Dr. Rogers. He delivers his dialogue about the
giant creatures completely straight and because he seems to believe everything
that he’s saying, we believe it too. Last, but not least, the beautiful Audrey
Dalton is wonderful as secretary, single mom and love interest, Gail. Dalton
brings an inner strength and intelligence to her role, making her character
more than just a screaming, helpless woman who needs saving. All in all, The Monster That Challenged the World is
a well-done creature feature and a bit more than you would expect from a late
50s, sci-fi monster mash.
The Monster That
Challenged the World has
been released on a region one Blu-ray by Kino Lorber and is presented in its
original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The beautiful HD transfer boasts sharp, crystal
clear images and the disc not only contains the original theatrical trailer,
but also an extremely informative and enjoyable audio commentary by film
historian Tom Weaver who tells us just about everything we ever wanted to know
about this entertaining film; great stuff. (Weaver leaves briefly to allow 50s
monster music expert David Schecter of Monstrous Movie Music to discuss the
film’s effective score by Heinz Roemheld). If you’re a lover of 1950s giant
monster movies, this one is definitely above average and I highly recommended
the excellent Blu-ray.
Throughout most of the 1980s, prolific
filmmaker Charles Band ran the (sadly) now defunct distribution company Empire
Pictures. Empire, whose fun movies had their own unique style and humor, released
a plethora of enjoyable, low-budget action/sci-fi/horror/fantasy titles the
likes of Walking the Edge (1985), Crawlspace (1986), From Beyond (1986), Troll (1986), Dolls (1987) andCellar Dweller (1988).
The company, however, is probably best known for the amazing cult classic Re-Animator (1985) as well as the
popular Ghoulies and Trancers series. If, like me, you’re a
fan of Empire Pictures’ entertaining output (as well as a fan of Band’s later
company, Full Moon Pictures, which is best known for the iconic Puppet Master series), you can rejoice
as their much-sought-after cult favorite, Zone
Troopers, has finally been released on Blu-ray.
Solidly directed by Danny Bilson (The Rocketeer) who also co-wrote with
his long-time friend Paul De Meo (Arena),
Zone Troopers tells the enthralling
tale of a small group of American soldiers who, while battling the Nazis in
Italy in 1944, stumble across a crashed spaceship from another galaxy. Led by
tough-as-nails Sergeant Stone (Tim Thomerson from Trancers), the soldiers not only do everything in their power to
stay alive, but also to ensure that the aliens and their advanced technology do
not find its way into the hands of the evil Nazi horde.
Zone Troopers has been released
on a region one Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. The high definition transfer looks
fantastic and the movie is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio.
Special features include the original theatrical trailer, an interesting
onscreen interview with the great Tim Thomerson, and an amusing and informative
audio commentary by director Danny Bilson and writer Paul De Meo who both seem
to enjoy revisiting their cult film (and rightly so). Whether you’re a lover of
war movies, retro science fiction, or you’re just looking for something fun and
different, Zone Troopers is
definitely the Blu-ray for you.
Although I was barely ten years-old, I
remember feeling terrified while watching horror master Wes Craven’s 1978 made-for-TV
thriller Summer of Fear (under its
alternate title Stranger in Our House)
as well as thoroughly enjoying his adaptation of the comic book Swamp Thing four years later, but it
wasn’t until November of 1984, while viewing the trailer for some new horror
flick called A Nightmare on Elm Street,
that I recall hearing and remembering the name Wes Craven. After being thrilled
by this masterpiece which, in my opinion, is Craven’s greatest work, I certainly
wanted to learn more about this extremely talented filmmaker. After doing a bit
of research, I quickly discovered that I had already seen Craven’s original and
very interesting Deadly Blessing (1981)
and, also, his other masterpiece (in my opinion): 1977’s The Hills Have Eyes. Whenever someone mentions Wes Craven, I
immediately think of Nightmare and Hills, so, due to hearing the very sad
news of his passing, I’d like to focus this article on those two masterworks
because if any movies from his amazing filmography show Wes as a
writer/director to be reckoned with, they are, without a doubt, The Hills Have Eyes and A Nightmare on Elm Street.
Craven’s first movie as writer/director
(and editor) was 1972’s controversial, but important The Last House on the Left. The disturbing film, which was inspired
by Ingmar Bergman’s The Virgin Spring (1960)
and produced by Sean Cunningham (Friday
the 13th), was made during the height of the Vietnam War and
seemed to be Craven’s outcry against the rise of violence in the United States
at the time. It also rightly depicted that violence as brutal and horrific
instead of glamorizing or sanitizing it. Lensed in New York and Connecticut for
only $87,000, the film’s poster featured the immortal tagline ‘To avoid
fainting, keep repeating, it’s only a movie…only a movie…only a movie…’, dealt
with revenge, booby traps and a civilized family vs. an uncivilized one. The
last two would show up again in Craven’s next film.
Five long years later, Craven would write
and direct again and it was definitely worth the wait. On July, 22nd,
1977, The Hills Have Eyes was
released upon an unsuspecting public. The $230,000 budgeted film dealt with the
Carters; an average, middle-class family whose car breaks down near a deserted
bomb range in the Nevada desert while driving cross-country. Once stranded,
night falls and the Carters are repeatedly attacked by an uncivilized,
cannibalistic, mutant family who live in the hills and have been surviving in
the desert for years by feeding off of anyone foolish enough to cross their
path. The cannibals, who go by names such as Mars, Mercury, Pluto and Papa
Jupiter, brutally murder Mr. and Mrs. Carter, their oldest daughter Lynne, and
Beauty, one of their two dogs. The deranged mutants also kidnap Lynne’s infant
daughter, Katie, leaving only Lynne’s younger siblings, Bobby and Brenda, along
with Lynne’s husband, Doug, and their second dog, Beast, to face the crazed
family, hopefully rescue little Katie and survive.
Although still a hardcore piece of horror
cinema, The Hills Have Eyes is a more
enjoyable experience than The Last House
on the Left. Where Last House went
for and achieved stark realism, Hills
deftly balances realistic, identifiable, likeable characters with somewhat
over-the-top/comic bookish, but still terrifying, villains (who Craven based on
the supposedly real-life, 16th century, cannibalistic Sawney Bean
family). The film chillingly shows that in a life and death situation, an
intelligent, passive, civilized person may have to become just as uncivilized
as his or her attackers. The film’s memorable tagline, “A nice American family.
They didn’t want to kill. But they didn’t want to die.â€, pretty much sums up
the entire movie.
The cutting edge, low-budget film, which
introduced the world to future horror movie icons Dee Wallace (The Howling, Cujo) and Michael Berryman
(Deadly Blessing, The Devil’s Rejects),
went on to gross $25 million and quickly became a cult classic, further
solidifying Craven’s name as a major and original talent in the world of horror
cinema.
Over the next seven years, Craven would
work in both film and television and, with the exception of the aforementioned Swamp Thing, would always direct films
in the horror genre. Immediately following Swamp
Thing, Craven completed an original horror screenplay which he
shopped all over Hollywood. Every studio
felt that the script didn’t have potential and passed on it. With almost no
money to his name and just about ready to give up on the project, Craven
finally saw a glimmer of hope as a tiny, independent company called New Line
Cinema gave the film a green light. New Line head Robert Shaye, whose company
dealt mostly in distribution, but had recently moved into production by making
a few low-budget films including an underrated 1982 horror called Alone in the Dark, believed in Craven’s
script and production immediately began with Wes once again in the director’s
chair. The screenplay’s title was A
Nightmare on Elm Street.
The frightening film tells the tale of a
group of four teens who all begin having nightmares about the same creepy,
burnt-faced man who skulks in the bowels of an old boiler room and wears a
dirty red and green sweater, a beat-up, old fedora and a self-made glove of
sharp “finger-knives.†When her friends begin dying one by one, intelligent
teen Nancy deduces that if this mysterious figure kills you in your sleep, then
you die for real. After getting almost no help from the adults around her,
Nancy does some digging and finds out that the murderer’s name is Fred Krueger
and that his motive is to kill the Elm Street kids as an act of revenge in
order to punish their parents who burned him alive ten years earlier due to him
being a filthy child murderer. Armed with only her wits and a few self-made
booby traps, Nancy prepares to face Krueger in a desperate battle for survival.
Made for under $2 million dollars, the
expertly crafted film was released on November 9, 1984 and, little by little,
gained momentum as horror fans slowly began to discover what an unexpected gem
it was. After all, the trailer made it seem as if it was just another in a
seemingly endless cycle of formulaic dead teenager flicks still being released
due to the massive success of both Halloween
(1978) and Friday the 13th (1980).
But A
Nightmare on Elm Street was different. It was something special. More of a
psychological thriller than a by-the-numbers slasher film, Elm Street’s extremely original story, much like The Hills Have Eyes, was partly
influenced by real-life events. Wes Craven read a series of articles in the L.A. Times which detailed several young
men who were afraid to go to sleep and tried everything in their power to stay
awake. When they inevitably nodded off, they died. Craven immediately thought
“What if a person, like a boogeyman, was killing them in their dreams?†With
the story now in place, Wes then began to construct his soon-to-be iconic
villain. Craven based him on a scary childhood incident where, one night, while
little Wes was looking out his bedroom window into the alley below, a creepy
man wearing an old hat continued to stare up at him with a look of evil. Craven
then took the name Fred Krueger from a school bully who constantly tormented
him (he did the same thing twelve years earlier with The Last House on the Left; naming one character Fred and the other
Krug) and decided on Elm Street because it was a street close to the school
where he used to work as an English teacher as well as being the name of the
street where JFK was, unfortunately, assassinated on. Wes said that he wanted a
name/place that evoked pure Americana. Craven then chose the razor-sharp glove
because he was thinking of what early man may have feared and thought of the
claws of a bear. He also wanted Freddy to be a painful, optical effect, so he
decided on red and green for Freddy’s sweater after learning that they were the
two colors which were the most difficult for the eye to see side by side.
Lastly, Craven decided that Freddy would be very different from the plethora of
mute, masked, cinematic psycho killers which were inundating theaters at the
time. Freddy would talk (including a few darkly humorous lines of dialogue)
and, although covered in burnt scar tissue, remain unmasked. The chilling
monster would also take great pleasure in terrifying his victims-to-be.
The notorious exploits of real-life,
Wisconsin serial killer Ed Gein have inspired several horror films over the
years; three of the most well-known being Alfred Hitchcock’s immortal Psycho (1960), Tobe Hooper’s legendary The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and
Jonathon Demme’s Academy Award-winning The
Silence of the Lambs (1991). These three masterpieces took bits and pieces
of Ed Gein’s horrific methods and personality in order to help build their own
iconic cinematic villains. For instance, instead of wearing a female victim’s
skin like Ed did, Psycho’s Norman
Bates dressed as his own mother who the disturbed boy had an unhealthy
attachment to (Gein also had an unhealthy attachment to his mom). The Silence of the Lambs’ Buffalo Bill
planned to dress in the skin of his victims, but was not obsessed with his own
mother and, also, desired a sex change which Gein did not. (That film’s
Hannibal Lecter actually did dress in the skin of one of his victims, although
it seemed to be just a one-time thing for him.) Lastly, Chainsaw’s Leatherface also wore his unfortunate victim’s skin and,
much like Ed, decorated his home with human body parts. However, unlike Gein, Leatherface
used a chain saw, had a demented brother and father and could not function
within normal society. Right now, most of you are thinking that a more accurate
depiction of Gein’s atrocities has never been filmed. Not true. All you need to
do is to take a look at a lesser-known, but very well-made, low-budget thriller
called Deranged.
Written by Alan Ormsby (Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things, My
Bodyguard) and co-directed by Ormsby and Jeff Gillen, Deranged aka Deranged: The
Confessions of a Necrophile tells the gruesome story of middle-aged,
Midwest resident Ezra Cobb (Roberts Blossom from Escape from Alcatraz, Christine and Home Alone) who has lived with his religious and woman-hating
mother, Amanda (The First Time‘s
Cosette Lee), his entire life. When his mother finally passes away, Ezra begins
to slowly lose his mind. One night, he digs up her corpse and convinces himself
that she is still alive. The lonely and disturbed man eventually begins
exhuming more corpses which he uses to decorate his home. It isn’t long before
Ezra completely descends into madness and stalks fresh, young female victims. He
brings them back to his farm, dresses up in his mother’s skin and performs
unspeakable acts upon them.
Horror fans (and cinema buffs in general)
will be delighted to know that, although uncredited, the late, great filmmaker
Bob Clark (Black Christmas, Deathdream,
Murder by Decree, Porky’s, A Christmas Story) helped out quite a bit on
this film. Made for only $200,000.00, Deranged
was released in early 1974 by American International Pictures and grossed
$6 million at the box office. The powerful and disturbing Canadian-American production,
also features several highly recognizable faces from 1970s &80s Canadian
cinema such as Leslie Carlson (Videodrome,
A Christmas Story) and Marian Waldman (Black
Christmas, Phobia). Deranged also
benefits from a wonderful musical score (partly made up of Gospel hymns) by
talented composer Carl Zittrer (Children
Shouldn't Play with Dead Things, Deathdream)
as well as amazingly realistic-looking effects by legendary makeup artist/director/stuntman
Tom Savini (Dawn of the Dead, Friday the
13th, Creepshow) in one of his very first cinematic efforts.
So, how does Deranged stack up against the Ed Gein-inspired movies mentioned
earlier? It may not have the amazing structuring and nail-biting suspense of Psycho, the well-defined
characterizations of The Silence of the
Lambs or the relentless terror of Texas
Chainsaw, but it does contain solid-enough characters (especially Ezra) and
the film builds quite nicely, culminating in an orgy of violent madness. Like
the three aforementioned classics, Deranged
isalso filled with quite a bit
of black humor which helps immensely by giving audiences some much-needed
relief from the gruesome subject matter. Speaking of humor, the movie is mostly
carried by Roberts Blossom who gives a wonderfully balanced performance as
Ezra, making the dangerous and scary killer extremely funny in spots as well as
relatable and even likeable. No, the film is not in the same league as the
others, but it’s still an extremely well-made, engaging and creepy little movie
which is not only a much more (although, not completely) accurate depiction of
the life of Ed Gein, but also a film that deserves to be seen.
Deranged has been released
as a special edition Blu-ray by the fine folks at Kino Lorber. The film is
presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and the high definition transfer
looks absolutely amazing (I’ve owned a copy of this film for 25 years and it
doesn’t look anywhere near as beautiful as this transfer does). The audio is
also excellent and the disc contains the original theatrical trailer as well as
an onscreen interview with Producer Tom Karr who candidly talks about many
interesting subjects such as not being allowed to film in Wisconsin, Christopher
Walken and Harvey Keitel both almost being cast as Ezra, and the possibility of
a Deranged remake. We are also
treated to not one, but two audio commentaries. The first, which is wonderfully
moderated by director Elijah Drenner (American
Grindhouse), features personable writer and co-director Alan Ormsby who
gives us a ton of terrific behind-the-scenes info as well as his recollections
of working alongside Bob Clark, Tom Savini and co-director Jeff Gillen. The
second commentary is by film historian Richard Harland Smith from Turner
Classic Movies. Smith gives a highly absorbing and exhaustive commentary which
not only covers Ed Gein and Deranged,
but every conceivable piece of cinema even remotely related to this subject
matter including Caddyshack! The
poster’s original, effective images and highly memorable tagline, “Pretty Sally
Mae died a very unnatural death!...but the worst hasn’t happened to her yet!â€, are
featured on both the Blu-ray’s sleeve and menu. The often overlooked film is a
real find for retro horror fans/lovers of early 70s cult cinema, and this
impressive Blu-ray collection is an absolute must.
By 1988 Chuck Norris was firmly established
as an international action movie star who was spoken about in the same breath
as Charles Bronson, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The six-time
world karate champion had shown us his stuff in more than a half dozen
entertaining martial arts/action flicks such as Silent Rage (1982), Forced
Vengeance (1982) and Lone Wolf
McQuade (1983) before somewhat breaking away from his karate roots and
moving into almost pure action films the likes of Missing in Action (1984), Code
of Silence (1985) and Invasion U.S.A.
(1985). Although Chuck eventually tried his hand at comedy (1986’s Firewalker), his fans (including me) were
happiest at seeing him play the lone hero who kicks ass, takes names and makes
the world a better place. In 1988, we got our wish as Chuck continued his
successful association with now legendary film studio The Cannon Group and
starred in a brand new action film entitled Hero
and the Terror.
Directed by William Tannen (Flashpoint), Hero and the Terror, which was based on a novel by actor/writer Michael
Blodgett (Beyond the Valley of the Dolls,
Turner & Hooch), concerns Homicide detective Dan O’Brien (Norris) who,
a few years earlier, had been given the nickname “Hero†due to “capturingâ€
notorious Los Angeles serial killer Simon Moon (Superman II’s Jack O’Halloran). Since then, O’Brien has been
mentally torturing himself because he believes that the praise he has received
is undeserved. He also suffers from nightmares that stem from almost being murdered
by the monstrous psychopath. While Dan and his girlfriend (Brynn Thayer from
TVs One Life to Live) are busy
preparing for the birth of their first child, Moon, who the media has dubbed
“The Terrorâ€, busts out of prison and picks up exactly where he left off,
leaving a string of bloody corpses in his wake. Can detective O’Brien not only
summon the courage needed to face this horrific madman once again, but, also,
prove to himself that he has the right to be called “Hero�
Hero and the Terror
is
a bit of a unique Chuck Norris movie in that it isn’t just the usual guy flick.
Besides being a well-balanced combo of action film and suspense thriller, it
also contains a mature, romantic subplot; not to mention the fact that Chuck (believably)
plays a more realistic and human character as opposed to the almost
indestructible supermen he’s portrayed in the past, making this film appealing
to women as well as men. Brynn Thayer, as Chuck’s girlfriend, helps this along
by giving a very likeable and sometimes humorous performance.
The entertaining film is loaded with even
more top-notch acting talent. To begin with, professional boxer turned actor
Jack O’Halloran is appropriately creepy as Simon Moon. O’Halloran never utters
a word and, instead, gets his character across through expressions and body
language alone. Next up, is the late, great Steve James (American Ninja, I’m Gonna Git You Sucka, Weekend at Bernie’s II and
Norris’s Delta Force) as Chuck’s
cool, funny and fearless partner. Also, the legendary and sorely missed Ron (Super Fly) O’Neal (who also co-stars in
Chuck’s A Force of One) makes a brief
appearance as the mayor; the always welcome Billy Drago (Pale Rider, The Untouchables as well as Chuck’s Invasion U.S.A. and Delta Force 2) appears in a rare, normal role as a psychiatrist; talented
musician Murphy Dunne (The Blues Brothers)
gives an amusing performance as a hotel manager, and likable Jeffrey Kramer (Jaws, Hollywood Boulevard, Jaws 2) as
well as highly recognizable character actor Tony DiBenedetto (The Exterminator, Raw Deal) show up as
cops. The movie also features Joe Guzaldo (Chuck’s Code of Silence) as the mayor’s right hand man; not to mention
cameos by 9th degree black belt Bob Wall (Enter the Dragon and Way of
the Dragon which also featured Chuck), the beautiful Karen Witter (Out of the Dark, Buried Alive, TV’s One Life to Live) and Renegade’s Branscombe Richmond as a
thug. The fun movie boasts solid direction, decent characterizations and, with
the exception of the well-done and refreshing romantic subplot, is exactly what
you would expect from a late 80s action film.
Hero and the Terror
has
been released on a region one Blu-ray by Kino Lorber and is presented in its
original 1:85:1 aspect ratio. The beautiful HD transfer boasts sharp, crystal
clear images and the disc not only contains the original theatrical trailer,
but the trailer for Chuck’s enjoyable 1981 actioner An Eye for an Eye as well. If you’re yearning for an entertaining,
yet more mature Chuck Norris action-thriller, Hero and the Terror won’t disappoint.
After his iconic battle against the
legendary Bruce Lee in 1972’s Way of the
Dragon (and with the encouragement of cinematic superstar and karate
student Steve McQueen), six-time, undefeated world karate champion Chuck Norris
felt it was time to move permanently into the world of cinema. In just a few
short years, he was already headlining low budget martial arts/action films
such as 1974’s Slaughter in San Francisco
(as a villain), 1977’s Breaker!
Breaker! and 1978’s Good Guys Wear
Black (his first box office hit). This success led to Chuck’s 1979 karate
classic, A Force of One. The cool and
entertaining film really started to get him noticed by action movie fans and
was quickly followed by The Octagon (1980),
an exciting and suspenseful ninja thriller. With Norris and karate/action movie
audiences now hungry for more, Chuck immediately started work on his next
feature, 1981’s highly enjoyable An Eye
for an Eye.
After his partner is murdered by powerful
international drug lord Morgan Canfield (played by the late, great Christopher
Lee), detective Sean Kane (Norris) is berated by his captain (Richard Shaft Roundtree) for using excessive force
in his quest for answers. Fed up with how the law works, Sean willingly
relinquishes his gun and his badge. However, Sean Kane doesn’t need a weapon.
Sean Kane is a weapon!Seething with rage and hell-bent on revenge,
Sean, along with a grief-stricken father (the sorely missed Mako from Conan the Barbarian and Chuck’s Sidekicks) of one of Canfield’s recent
victims, sets out on a quest to find the mysterious drug kingpin and bring him
to his knees.
Directed by Steve Carver (Big Bad Mama and Chuck’s Lone Wolf McQuade), An Eye for an Eye, which was the last film to be made by famed
independent film studio Avco Embassy Pictures (The Fog, Phantasm, The Exterminator, The Howling), was written by
William Gray (Prom Night, Humongous)
and James Bruner (Chuck’s Invasion U.S.A.
and The Delta Force), and shot
entirely on location in San Francisco, California.
The nicely paced, entertaining and well-structured
film is filled with solid direction as well as memorable and diverse
characters; not to mention wonderful performances. As is usually the case with
his engaging action films, Chuck Norris is cool, a bit humorous and totally
believable as a courageous, but dangerous hero. It’s also no surprise that the
legendary Christopher Lee brings a touch of diabolical class to his villainous role
while the great and always reliable Richard Roundtree delivers another solid
performance. The rest of the top-notch cast shines as well. Academy Award
nominee (for The Sand Pebbles) Mako
is extremely lively and witty, making his character the perfect sidekick for
the low-key and semi-serious Chuck; Matt Clark (The Outlaw Josey Wales and Chuck’s Walker, Texas Ranger) delivers a wonderfully balanced and subtle performance
as fellow cop McCoy; beautiful Maggie Cooper (TV actress turned news
commentator) does well with her role as Chuck’s love interest; three time WWWF
(now WWE) Tag Team Champion Professor Toru Tanaka (The Running Man and Chuck’s Missing
in Action 2: The Beginning) is completely convincing as a deadly and
intimidating Bond-like henchman; the lovely Rosalind Chao (TV’s Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) gives a
powerful, but, unfortunately, brief performance as a news reporter; Stuart
Pankin (Arachnophobia) is quite comical
as an effeminate pimp and, in their brief roles, Terry Kiser (Weekend at Bernie’s, Walker, Texas Ranger) is warm and
likeable as a cop while action movie regular Mel Novak (Chuck’s A Force of One) exudes slimy evil as a
street snitch. The simple, yet intriguing story moves along at a fast clip and
the skillfully directed action sequences (especially the very suspenseful chase
scene between Rosalind Chao and Professor Tanaka as well as an exciting
helicopter attack that could rival a Bond film) will no doubt keep you
watching. Add to all of this a kick-ass musical theme by talented composer
William Goldstein (Chuck’s Forced
Vengeance) and you have an early 80s action/adventure that is a real joy to
watch.
An Eye for an Eye has been released
on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber in a brand new, HD, anamorphic (1.85:1) widescreen
transfer and although the film shows some slight grain in the darker scenes,
the movie is otherwise crystal clear and the colors are vibrant. I love this film
and this is the absolute best I’ve ever seen it look. Needless to say, it’s a
tremendous improvement over the previous DVD release. The region 1 disc also
contains a very informative audio commentary with director Steve Carver who not
only discusses numerous aspects of the film’s production, but also talks about
many interesting things such as working for Avco Embassy and how the late
Professor Tanaka was really taking those hits and kicks Chuck was dishing out
in the big finale. Carver also has some wonderful and fascinating things to say
about Chuck Norris, Christopher Lee, Richard Roundtree, Mako, Toru Tanaka and
the rest of the talented cast. The disc features the original theatrical
trailer (“White Lightning is back!â€) along with a trailer for Chuck’s enjoyable
1988 action-thriller Hero and the Terror (also
on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber).
If,
like me, you’re a fan of Chuck Norris’s early 80s martial arts/action films, I
highly recommend this Blu-ray release of An
Eye for an Eye.
Biker films have been around for decades.
Although most cinephiles cite Marlon Brando’s The Wild One (1953) as the first great biker movie, it wasn’t until
the mid-1960s and the release of the 1966 Roger Corman-directed classic The Wild Angels that biker films really
exploded onto the scene. Made for $360,000 and grossing close to $16 million, The Wild Angels started a cinematic
cycle trend that lasted well into the 1970s.
Noticing that other enterprising filmmakers
were cashing in on their film’s success, legendary studio American
International Pictures quickly decided that another biker flick was in order.
They gathered Corman (to produce); Wild Angels
scribe Charles B. Griffith (Rock All
Night, A Bucket of Blood, The Little Shop of Horrors, Death Race 2000) to
write and, together, came up with the next biker extravaganza, 1967’s Devil’s Angels aka The Checkered Flag.
Directed by Daniel Haller (Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, The
Wild Racers, Dunwich Horror), Devil’s
Angels concerns a group of rebellious, anti-establishment bikers called the
Skulls who are searching for a police-free place they’ve dubbed Hole-in-the-Wall.
They roll into the small town of Brookville and are immediately ordered to
leave by the intimidated mayor (Paul Myer). The Skulls’ leader, Cody (played by
independent filmmaking icon; the late, great John Cassavetes), informs the
sheriff (Tobruk’s Leo Gordon) that
they’re not looking for trouble and that he, his girl Lynn (the beautiful Beverly
Adams from How to Stuff a Wild Bikini)
and the rest of the posse just need a place to crash for the night. The sheriff
decides to give Cody a chance and agrees to let the group spend the night on
the beach if they promise to remain there and then leave first thing in the
morning. Cody gives his word and the bikers take off along with a local beauty
contestant (Mimsy Farmer from Four Flies
on Grey Velvet) who’s infatuated with the group. The mayor berates the
sheriff for letting them stay in town, but the lawman doesn’t budge. While at
the beach, the group gets the girl high, teases her a bit and sends her running
back to town in fright. The mayor lies by telling the sheriff that the Skulls
raped the unharmed girl and Cody is arrested. When the sheriff learns the
truth, he immediately lets Cody go, but orders him and his friends to leave
town. Meanwhile, the Skulls, who don’t like being accused of rape, decide that
the town needs to be taught a lesson. With the help of a larger group of bikers
called the Stompers, they ride back into town (against Cody’s wishes),
completely take it over and put the authorities on trial. The mayor’s lie is
revealed and he is sentenced to a public beating which Cody goes along with.
The Skulls also feel that, because they were accused of rape, they are owed a
rape. Cody is totally against this. He tries his best to stop it, but all hell
winds up breaking loose. As the Stompers and the Skulls (including Lynn) tear
Brookville apart, Cody, realizing that his Hole-in-the-Wall doesn’t exist,
quits the group and rides off alone before the state police arrive.
With only a $4 million gross, Devil’s Angels may not have been a major
hit for AIP, but it’s still an
interesting and well-done biker film which features several highly recognizable
faces from 1960s/70s cinema and television such as Marc Cavell (Cool Hand Luke), Russ Bender (Bonanza), Buck Taylor (Gunsmoke), Bruce Kartalian (The Outlaw Josey Wales) and Mitzi Hoag (Deadly Game).
Although not nearly as well-remembered as the
Dennis Hopper/Peter Fonda 1969 classic Easy Rider nor as hard-hitting as Al
Adamson’s Satan’s Sadists from the
same year, Devil’s Angels is a solidly-made,
quirky and enjoyable exploitation film that benefits most from a wonderfully
complex performance by the legendary John Cassavetes as well as an entertaining
and thoughtful screenplay by the extremely underrated Charles Griffith. There’s
also a terrific musical score written by Mike Curb and performed by Sidewalk
Productions. Not to mention a catchy theme song by Jerry and the Portraits with
additional music courtesy of Dave Allen and the Arrows.
As far as the Skulls go, they’re mainly
benign (but not as cool as the goodhearted bikers from 1976’s Northville Cemetery Massacre) andjust looking for a place to be free.
The havoc they cause (with the exception of an accidental death) is mostly
light (and presented humorously) and they’re never really violent until the
very end, so if you’re looking for an intimidating band of evil hell raisers,
look elsewhere. As for me, I thoroughly enjoy this film; always have. It’s a
fun biker flick with a strong cast and a thought-provoking story. If you’re a
biker film fanatic or just a fan of AIP/Roger Corman in general, I definitely
recommend checking it out.
Devil’s Angels has been released
as a DVD-R from the MGM Limited Edition Collection. The film is presented in
its original 2:35:1 aspect ratio and, although it’s far from Blu-ray quality,
the movie is more than watchable. Also, the audio is clear, and the DVD’s
sleeve and menu feature the original and very cool-looking poster artwork.
Most cinema scholars not only cite Alfred
Hitchcock’s 1960 masterwork Psycho as
the start of the modern horror film, but also its iconic shower scene as the
beginning of a new level of acceptability of violent content in cinema. Over
the next few years, violence (and gore) would escalate in genre films such as
the Herschell Gordon Lewis splatter-fests Blood
Feast (1963) and Color Me Blood Red (1965).
By the end of the decade, George Romero’s excellent zombie-munching classic, Night of the Living Dead (1968), as well
as non-horror masterpieces like Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch (1969), left no doubt in the minds of cinemagoers
that they were in a new era of in-your-face, cinematic violence and gore. As
far as horror movies go, the trend continued throughout the 1970s with now
legendary films such as Wes Craven’s The Last
House on the Left (1972), William Friedkin’s The Exorcist (1973), Dario Argento’s Suspiria (1977) and Romero’s Night
of the Living Dead sequel, the ultra-gory, semi-satirical zombie masterpiece
Dawn of the Dead (1978). As the 1980s began, most horror films
were copying the structure of John Carpenter’s phenomenal 1978 classic, Halloween, but, due to being incapable
of duplicating that film’s expertly- mounted suspense, they instead added Dawn’s grisly effects. By 1981, horror
fans expected to see plenty of blood and guts on the big screen, so almost
every genre film released during that time happily obliged. Not all horror
movies took this approach, however. For instance, there was an Australian-made
film that deviated from the current violent trend and, instead, went for more
cerebral scares. That film was called The
Survivor.
After miraculously walking away unscathed
from a plane crash that killed almost 300 innocent passengers, 747 pilot Captain
Keller (Jesus of Nazareth’sRobert Powell), in an attempt to
discover exactly what caused the crash and why he was the only one to survive, joins
forces with a psychic named Hobbs (Jenny Agutter from Logan’s Run and An American
Werewolf in London) who strongly feels the restless spirits of the newly
dead.
Directed by accomplished British actor
David Hemmings (Blow-Up, Barbarella, Deep
Red), The Survivor is an
adaptation of a story of the same name by famed horror novelist James Herbert (whose
first novel, The Rats,was also adapted into a movie; 1983’s Deadly Eyes). The supernatural chiller,
which co-stars Australian actress Angela Punch-McGregor (The Island) and, in his final role, Hollywood legend Joseph Cotton
(Citizen Kane, The Third Man, Shadow of a
Doubt), was produced by Antony I. Ginnane (Snapshot, Dead Kids and Harlequin,
which also stars Robert Powell as well as David Hemmings). The $1, 200, 000
budgeted film also features a wonderful, but unusual soundtrack by talented
composer Brian May (Mad Max, Road Games and
the Ginnane-produced Patrick) and contains
an interesting story, powerful acting, beautiful daytime cinematography by
Academy Award-winning director of photography John Seale (The English Patient),as
well as impressive and somewhat frightening imagery (although, it would have
benefitted from a few more creepy images, atmospheric sequences and a clearer
narrative; not to mention slightly speeding up the pace).
So, was the idea to do a more psychological
horror film the way to go or should the filmmakers have gone ahead and added
the excessive gore that was demanded by horror audiences at the time? I have to
say that, artistically, the filmmakers, without a doubt, made the right
decision. It’s difficult to imagine this very suggestive movie soaked in bloody
effects as the gore would seem out of place and make the film feel extremely
unbalanced. However, The Survivor’s failure
at the box office was mostly due to it not packing enough of a bloody punch
that 1981 audiences demanded, so, in a business sense, I suppose the no-gore
decision was a bad one. Still, I’m glad the decision was made. Although by no
means a horror classic, The Survivor is
a well-made and evocative thriller that, almost 35 years after its release, can
finally be appreciated for what it is and not panned for refusing to meet
audience demands of its time.
The Survivor has been released
on DVD by the fine folks at Scorpion Releasing. The film is presented in its
original 2:35:1 aspect ratio and, although the night scenes are a tad too dark
and the film contains very minor scratching, the movie is otherwise extremely
sharp and more than watchable. Special features include a humorous and
informative introduction by Scorpion DVD hostess (and former WWE diva/TNA
knockout) Katarina Leigh Waters as well as an interesting and eye-opening audio
commentary by producer Antony I. Ginnane (moderated by Katarina) who talks
about, among many other subjects, David Hemmings’ visual style and the reasons
as to why the film was originally cut down prior to its release (the version
here is the full 98 minute cut). The disc also contains the original theatrical
trailer as well as trailers for a plethora of other great Scorpion releases
such as Mortuary, The Devil Within Her,
Don’t Answer the Phone and Final Exam.
If you’re looking for a moody, adult and more cerebral horror film, give The Survivor a whirl.
While working at the Tromaville Health Club
in 1984, goodhearted, 98lb. weakling Melvin “The Mop Boy†was tricked into
wearing a pink tutu and teased unmercifully until he fell from a two-story
window and landed in a vat of nuclear waste. The toxic chemicals changed little
Melvin, transforming him into a hideously deformed creature of superhuman size
and strength. Melvin became The Toxic Avenger, the first superhero from New Jersey!
Written and Directed by the great Lloyd
Kaufman (and co-directed by his partner-in-slime, Michael Herz), The Toxic Avenger, which is a thoroughly
entertaining and unique combination of the superhero genre, raunchy and over-the-top
comedy, as well as full-on horror movie-type gore,not only became an instant hit, but singlehandedly built Troma
films (Toxie is the company’s mascot much like Spider-man is to Marvel Comics).
The Toxic Avenger character became so popular that, over the years, fans were
treated to Tromatic goodies such as Toxie comic books, action figures, a
children’s cartoon series (Toxic
Crusaders) and even a musical; not to mention three hilarious sequels (with
a fourth on the way). The first sequel, also written by Kaufman, and, again,
directed by Lloyd and Herz, appeared in 1989.
Thanks to Toxie’s past heroics, The Toxic Avenger Part II begins with
the little people of Tromaville living in peace and harmony. That is, until the
evil chemical corporation Apocalypse Inc. comes to town and blows up the local
home for the blind which, incidentally, happens to be where Toxie (played by Ron
Fazio and John Altamura) is working, along with his blind girlfriend, Claire (singer/musician/artist/poet/filmmaker
Phoebe Legere). After Toxie mops up the floor with the corporation’s top
henchman, the evil Chairman (Rick Collins from Sgt. Kabukiman, N.Y.P.D.) and his partner Miss Malfaire (Class of Nuke ‘Em High 2’sLisa Gaye) devise a diabolical plan to
rid Tromaville of the Toxic Avenger once and for all. They convince Toxie to
travel to Tokyo in order to locate his long-lost father, Big Mac (Rikiya
Yasuoka from Black Rain). Not only
will Toxie’s absence allow Apocalypse Inc. to take over Tromaville hassle-free,
but, while he’s in Japan, Miss Malfaire and the evil Chairman will order their
Tokyo contacts to use state-of-the-art Japanese technology in order to rid
Toxie of the Troma-tons within his body which not only give him his superhuman
size and strength, but also act up whenever he’s in the presence of evil. Will
the oblivious monster-hero figure stop the evil corporation from taking over
both Tromaville and Japan or will Apocalypse Inc. reign supreme?
I first saw this film in 1989 at a (sadly)
now defunct grindhouse theater on New York’s famed 42nd street. I
was a bit disappointed as I felt that the sequel didn’t live up to the
greatness of the original. Over 25 years later, I still feel that it doesn’t
come close to the original film, but I do find it a lot more entertaining than
I did back then (probably because this is the Director’s Cut and not the
chopped up, R-rated version I saw on its original release). Like the first
film, it’s still a wild combo of super heroics, raunchy, over-the-top comedy
and excessive gore, and the movie barely stops to catch its breath during the
109-minute running time. The larger-than-life acting is a real joy to watch too.
In particular, Lisa Gaye (who studied under Strasberg) and Phoebe Legere both
shine in their insane roles and these two lovely ladies prove to be extremely
gifted comic actors. Also, for those who enjoy seeing stars before they hit the
big time, the incredibly talented Michael Jai White (Tyson, Spawn, Black Dynamite) makes his film debut as an evil, yet
humorous henchman.
Although, the film runs a bit too long and
isn’t as focused as the original, The
Toxic Avenger Part II is loaded with enjoyably campy humor and wonderfully
comic bookish situations, characters & performances as well as insane (in a
good way) direction. It also contains a fun, Heavy Metal Toxie song and the
classic theme of good vs. evil.
If you’re a true-blue Tromaniac, you’ll be
happy to know that Lloyd Kaufman and the terrific Troma team have put together
a lovely remastered, Troma-rrific HD transfer presented in its original 1:85:1
aspect ratio. The region free Blu-ray/DVD is also packed with a ton of special
features (most of which have been carried over from previous releases). Along
with the original theatrical trailer, we also get trailers for the remaining
three Toxic Avenger films as well as
several other Troma classics like Troma’s
War and Return to Nuke ‘Em High:
Volumes 1 & 2; not to mention the featurette: The American Cinematheque Honors 40 Years of Troma, two humorous,
retro features: At Home with Toxie and
Toxie on Japanese T.V., a brief interview
with Lisa Gaye who happily discusses her association with the fiercely
independent company, a brand new introduction by the King of Troma himself,
Lloyd Kaufman, as well as a retro DVD intro and, last, but certainly not least,
a full-length, hilarious and informative audio commentary from writer/director Kaufman,
who discusses a plethora of interesting subjects such as filming in New York,
New Jersey and Tokyo as well as his many battles with the MPAA. My only
complaint here is that the commentary is out of sync, as Lloyd seems to be six
minutes ahead of the visuals. Other than
that, it’s over four hours of toxic goodness, so if you’re a Troma fanatic, a
lover of Toxie or just enjoy off-the-wall insanity, this Blu-ray is an absolute
must.
Remember the days when it seemed as if
every week a new slasher film with a holiday in the title would hit movie
theaters and you couldn’t wait to see it? How about waiting with baited breath
to see if Eddie Murphy would appear as Buckwheat on Saturday Night Live? Or walking around the neighborhood with your
boom box blasting awesome tunes from legendary groups like Blondieor The Police? Well, if you were a
teenager in the 1980s, you remember these things well. You probably also
remember trying to sneak into the local movie theater in order to see R-rated
sex comedies like Porky’s (1982)or hanging out with your friends at the
corner pizza shop and playing now classic video games such as Donkey Kong, Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga. If all this talk (especially the
sex comedy/video game part) is making you nostalgic for those unforgettable
days of fun, then you’re gonna love 1983’s Joysticks.
With the help of his idiotic nephews Arnie
(John Diehl from Stripes) and Max (Newhart’s John Voldstad), uptight
businessman Joseph Rutter (the great Joe Don Baker from Walking Tall, GoldenEye and Mars
Attacks!) does everything in his power to get the local video arcade shut
down. However, arcade owner Jefferson Bailey (Secret Admirer’sScott
McGinnis) doesn’t plan on going out without a fight. Jefferson enlists his
co-worker Eugene (Leif Green from Grease
2), his best friend McDorfus (Night
Shift’s Jim Greenleaf) as well as Rutter’s rebellious daughter Patsy (Corinne
Bohrer from Vice Versa) to help him
thwart the reactionary businessman’s misguided plan. The battle for the
arcade’s future culminates in a Super Pac-Man duel between the video
game-phobic Jefferson and Rutter’s Super Pac-Man champion, King Vidiot (Napoleon Dynamite’s Jon Gries).
If you don’t remember seeing this mindless,
but deliriously fun film way back when, then you probably at least recall
catching the trailer on TV. Joysticks was
the brainchild of independent filmmaking legend Greydon Clark (Satan’s Cheerleaders, Angel’s Brigade,
Without Warning) who, while at a screening of his 1982 slasher film parody Wacko, noticed a line of kids standing
in front of a video game in the lobby of the theater. Seeing how excited these
kids were over playing this game, Greydon immediately thought that a video
arcade would be the perfect location for a hot, new teenage sex comedy. The
creative director developed his timely idea further, began filming in the fall
of ’82, and by the following spring, Joysticks
was the #1 movie in the country.
The humorous film is filled with solid
direction, extremely loveable characters and fun performances (you may not
recognize most of that incredibly talented cast by name, but trust me when I
tell you that you’ll immediately recognize their faces as they’ve all gone on
to do a plethora of work over the years). Joysticks
also benefits from a simple and engaging story as well as contains enough laughs
to fill its brief 87 minute running time. The lighthearted comedy may not be in
the same league as, say, Animal House (1978)or Caddyshack
(1980), and it’s far from being an accurate depiction of teenage life in
the ‘80s à la Fast Times at Ridgemont High
(1982), but it’s a harmless and highly enjoyable film. If you were around
during the early ‘80s video game craze, will have you happily strolling down
memory lane.
Joysticks has been released
on DVD by Scorpion Releasing in a brand new 16x9 anamorphic (1.78:1) widescreen
transfer and, although the film shows some scratches and the colors aren’t as
vibrant as, say, Blu-ray, the movie is more than watchable and a huge
improvement over the previous DVD release. The disc also contains the original
theatrical trailer, a very interesting and informative audio commentary with
producer/director Clark who discusses many aspects of the film’s production
and, also, an onscreen interview with Clark who not only talks about several
films from his impressive filmography, but also details directing seasoned
veterans Joe Don Baker (who also starred in Wacko
and Final Justice for Clark),
George Kennedy (Wacko and Clark’s The Uninvited), Jack Palance (Angel’s Brigade, Without Warning),
Martin Landau (Without Warning and
Clark’s second sci-fi film The Return)
and Robert Englund (Clark’s Dance Macabre).
Rounding out the special features are several fun 70s/80s exploitation trailers
(the awesome trailer for 1981’s Kill and
Kill Again is priceless) which are guaranteed to bring back memories.
Whether you’re a fan of Greydon Clark, Joe
Don Baker, retro video games, ‘80s teen sex comedies or just like to sit back,
veg out and feel good, Joysticks is
the DVD for you.
(NOTE: Scorpion Releasing advises that this title has sold out. However, the company may do a re-pressing in the future. For now, it is available on Amazon through third party sources. Click here to order.)
Shaft! Superfly! Supersoul Brother? That’s right, boys and girls. There’s a new hero
in town and his name is Steve. Once a down-on-his-luck, homeless wino, Steve,
thanks to a freaky scientific experiment, has been transformed into an
incredible being who is faster than a…well, he’s actually not faster than much
of anything , but he is more powerful than your local wino and able to bag
chicks who are way out of his league!If
you’re a fan of the funky ‘70s Blaxploitation genre, you can rejoice as a real
rarity has been dug up for your viewing pleasure.
When speaking about Blaxploitation cinema,
most film buffs immediately think of classic action flicks such as Foxy Brown or Three the Hard Way (and rightly so), but there were plenty of other
wonderful genres covered. For instance, horror quickly comes to mind. Blacula and The Zombies of Sugar Hill are not only two solid entries in
Blaxploitation cinema, but in horror cinema as well. And then there’s comedy. Who
can forget Rudy Ray Moore’s uproarious classics like Dolemite or Disco Godfather?
Supersoul Brother sort of fits into
this last category as, like Dolemite,
it’s a spoof of crime/action movies; not to mention comic book superheroes (it
was originally going to be titled The
Black Superman) and the then enormously popular Six Million Dollar Man television show.
Directed by Rene Martinez who also co-wrote
with Laura S. Diaz, Supersoul Brother aka
The Six Thousand Dollar Nigger (I kid
you not) concerns small time hoods Bob (Benny Latimore) and Jim (Lee Cross) who
pay evil Dr. Dippy (Peter Conrad) six thousand dollars to create a super
strength serum that will enable them to easily rob a safe filled with diamonds.
There’s only one small problem: whoever takes the serum dies in six days. Enter
Steve (played by comedian Wildman Steve Gallon), a wino who has hit rock bottom.
The hoods inject the unwary Steve with the serum, convince him to carry out the
robbery (which Steve thinks is just a practical joke) and plan on keeping all
the diamonds for themselves once Steve croaks. However, Super-Steve catches
wind of their nefarious plan, hides the diamonds and, with the help of Nurse
Peggy (the gorgeous Joycelyn Norris), tries to elude the hoods and find an
antidote before it’s too late.
These days, cinema buffs searching high and
low for a lost, early work of a modern filmmaker is almost unheard of , as most
everything is readily available on DVD or Blu-ray. However, back in the day,
this was far from the case. Way back when, many early efforts from then current
directorial masters were extremely hard to find. For example, throughout the 1980s,
I can remember looking everywhere for a copy of George A. Romero’s third film Season of the Witch aka Hungry Wives (1972)as well as Martin Scorsese’s debut feature Who’s That Knocking at My Door? (1967)just to name a few. Another movie I always longed to see was a
strange, little action film called Fast
Company. The reason I use the word strange is because the movie was
directed by the enormously talented, Canadian born David Cronenberg. Although
he is now known for masterpieces such as A
History of Violence (2005) and Eastern
Promises (2007) , Cronenberg once carried the moniker “The King of Canadian
Horror†(due to his unique series of “Body Horror†films such as Shivers aka They Came from Within (1975), Rabid
(1977) and 1979’s The Brood), so,
in the mid-80s, it was quite a surprise for me to learn that not only was there
a lost Cronenberg film out there which was made in between all these
underground genre classics, but also that the movie was a mainstream action
flick!
Sort of a slick combination of drag racing
docudrama and exploitation action film, Fast
Company, which was co-written by Cronenberg, is an extremely interesting
and entertaining (not to mention accurate) look at life in the fast paced,
blue-collar world of professional drag racing. By mounting his camera on and
inside the race cars, Cronenberg tells a great visual story while, at the same
time, placing the viewer right into the center of the action. There’s also
solid performances from the top notch cast (it’s great to see Saxon in another
villainous role after watching him play countless cops over the years, while
the usually intimidating William Smith shines as good guy Lonnie), and the film
itself, with its fitting, hard rock soundtrack by musician Fred Mollin (Friday’s Curse aka Friday the 13th: The Series), has a light, fun and
enjoyable feel to it.
If you’re like me and you’ve been waiting
years to see this lost film, you’ll be happy to know that the wait was well
worth it as Blue Underground has pulled out all the stops to bring us an
absolutely beautiful transfer presented in its original 1:85:1 aspect ratio.
The Blu-ray is also jam packed with special features (all of which are ported
over from the 2004 Blue Underground DVD with the exceptions of a poster and still
gallery, and bios of both Cronenberg and Claudia Jennings). Along with the
original theatrical trailer, we have a fantastic twelve minute documentary
titled Inside the Character Actor’s
Studio which features interviews with acting heavyweights William Smith and
John Saxon (appearing here together) who not only recall their roles in the
film, but also talk about what it means to be a character actor as opposed to
being a leading man. It’s a real treat to see these two B-movie icons
reminiscing and joking about their amazing careers and my only complaint is
that the documentary isn’t longer, as I could listen to these guys talk for
hours. Next, we have a second documentary about famed cinematographer Mark
Irwin (There’s Something About Mary).
Here, Irwin fills us in on, amongst other fascinating things, how some of the
more complicated night shots were achieved, and he also talks about the five
“Body Horror†classics he went on to shoot for Cronenberg.
For most viewers familiar with the director’s
work, Fast Company may seem out of
place in his filmography, but to David Cronenberg, it’s simply another one of
his many cinematic children. On the audio commentary track of this Blu-ray, the
director tells us how he himself is a huge sports car enthusiast as well as a
former road racer and, therefore, this film fits right in with the rest of his
works as it has to do with just another one of his many interests. He also
affectionately goes into detail about a plethora of subjects such as how Fast Company is really a modern western
(another thing that attracted him to the project), how this is the first time
he ever shot a scene on a film set as opposed to shooting entirely on location,
and the importance of this film due to the fact that he met many members of his
future filmmaking crew (and cast) here. Cronenberg also explains the state of
the Canadian film industry in 1979, recounts a great story about how John Saxon
praised his direction, and talks briefly about the lovely and talented drive-in
movie queen; the late, great Claudia Jennings who, sadly, died in an auto
accident shortly after completing this film. It’s a very interesting and
informative commentary that, just like the film itself, will appeal to Cronenberg
fans, race car aficionados, budding filmmakers and B-movie buffs alike.
As if all this wasn't enough, the disc
also features Cronenberg’s first two, seldom seen features, Stereo (1969) and Crimes of the Future (1970), making this Blu-ray an absolute must
for Cronenberg completists; highly recommended.
Fans of legendary director Brian De Palma
lovingly recall how the auteur’s early thrillers contained at least one sequence
which employed the split-screen technique (a device by which two moving images
are projected simultaneously onto separate parts of the screen). This
technique, when used properly, is capable of generating extreme suspense and
involvement in an already enthralled audience. De Palma masterfully used the
split-screen in his still-underrated, 1973 debut thriller, Sisters (as well as in many of his later cinematic masterpieces
such as Carrie and Dressed to Kill), milking certain scenes
for every bit of tension and suspense possible. Now, if the split-screen was
that effective in just a few sequences, wouldn’t using it throughout an entire
film cause maximum suspense and entertainment? That’s the question the
filmmakers of Wicked, Wicked not only
asked, but bravely attempted to answer.
Writer-director Richard L. Bare came up
with the idea of filming an entire movie in split-screen (here dubbed
Duo-Vision) while simply driving home one day. Bare, who is best known for
directing most episodes of the 1960s sitcom Green
Acres, saw the line that divided the road and realized that he was viewing
one side of the freeway and the other simultaneously. He immediately decided to
shoot an entire movie this way. The idea proved to be quite a Herculean
undertaking as Bare had to first write a script which constantly contained two
separate scenes side by side where, normally, there would be only one. More
than up for the challenge, Bare came up with a story involving a disturbed,
young man (Randolph Roberts from Happy Days)
with a mommy fixation who murders any blonde-haired women that happen to be
staying at the old hotel where he’s currently employed. (The young madman also
lives inside the walls of the hotel where he can easily spy on all the guests,
making the plot a fun combination of The
Phantom of the Opera and Psycho.)
The hotel detective (Another World’sDavid Bailey) races against time while
desperately trying to find and stop the masked lunatic before he can reach his
next target: the beautiful hotel lounge singer (played by the always welcome
Tiffany Bolling from Kingdom of the
Spiders who belts out all of this film’s many tunes herself). The unique
movie also features several highly recognizable faces from 1960s/70s cinema and
television such as Scott Brady (The Night
Strangler), Edd Byrnes (Grease),
Madeleine Sherwood (The Flying Nun),
Diane McBain (Spinout), Roger Bowen (M.A.S.H.,1970) and Arthur O’Connell (Fantastic
Voyage). Due to the split-screen
process, the actual filming took double the time it normally would have and the
film’s budget doubled as well. It also took a whopping 32 weeks to edit Wicked, Wicked which is about five times
the amount it would have taken to edit a standard film.
So, was Duo-Vision worth it? Overall, I
have to say no. I think the film would have worked just fine without it (as
well as saved a lot of time and money) because the split-screen really doesn’t
accomplish all it should in terms of suspense here. Also, seeing two actions
simultaneously may be interesting at first, but, after about ten minutes, you
get used to it and it feels just like any other movie. This process really only
works when it heightens the suspense, a la De Palma, and, unfortunately,
Richard Bare, although more than competent, is not in the same league as the
master filmmaker. That being said, I enjoyed the film itself. Sure, the story
is derivative and a bit (intentionally) silly in spots, but it’s still an
entertaining enough psychofilm with a solid, likeable cast and a fun hotel
setting. I also recommend checking it out in order to see the results of the
time and effort the filmmakers put into this extremely ambitious project.
Wicked, Wicked has been released
as a DVD-R from Warner Archive. The film is presented in its original 2:35:1
aspect ratio and, although the colors seem a bit washed out, the movie is more
than watchable. It’s also the only way you may be able to see this film at the
moment due to the fact that Warner most likely has no plans to release it in a
re-mastered version. (Most titles released in the DVD-R format aren’t really in
high enough demand, so money won’t be spent to re-master them properly.) The
audio is terrific and the disc also contains the original theatrical trailer
(which isn’t in Duo-Vision, but, color-wise, is actually much more vibrant than
the film itself) as well as the eye-catching, original poster artwork which is
featured on the DVD’s sleeve, menu and disc itself.