RAZORBACK (1984) movie review

Razorback (1984) d. Mulcahy, Russell (Australia)

During the Ozploitation heyday born of the success of George Miller’s The Road Warrior, music video veteran Mulcahy took the wheel for this surprisingly effective yarn about a giant killer boar menacing Outback locals. In the decade after Jaws scared everyone out of the water, the silver screen played host to all varieties of vicious oversized beasties, with the results ranging from tongue-in-cheek thrills (Alligator, Grizzly) to ludicrous camp classics (The Sea Serpent, Deadly Eyes). No one could have guessed that an carnivorous slab of bacon sporting giant tusks and a bad attitude would turn out to be one of the more successful imitators; Mulcahy’s approach of presenting the cloven-hoofed menace completely straight-faced, while simultaneously introducing the foreignness of the desolate sand-swept environs and its bizarre inhabitants, works like gangbusters.

Fool's Views (7/1 - 7/28)

My head's gonna explode from all the awesomeness!!!

Howdy folks!

Back again with more More MORE. Almost the entirety of July, to be exact. Wasn’t able to watch as much as usual, but then, that gave me time to write more than usual. As for the horror flicks getting short shrift, ABCs of Death is more curiosity than film, Pacific Rim gets more and more sour the further away I get, and Beneath is from a filmmaker I love too much to properly skewer. Pretty much everything else gets the gala treatment – hope you dig the bounty.

As always, feel free to leave your two cents worth – we’ll make sure you get some change back.

Enjoy!

BLOOD FOR IRINA (2012) Blu-ray Review

Blood for Irina (2012) d. Alexander, Chris (USA)

I’ve been a fan of Chris Alexander for a long time. I first became aware of the inglorious bastard during his tenure at Rue-Morgue magazine where – among other achievements – he was one of the few brave journalists to step in the boxing ring with Uwe Boll as part of the “Raging Boll” exhibition match. After he jumped ship to Fangoria, I followed the exploits on his Blood Spattered Blog, which subsequently led to our first collaboration with me serving as copy editor on Midnight Marquee’s Blood Spattered Book. Not long afterwards, he was named the new Editor-in Chief for Fangoria when longtime ghoul Tony Timpone stepped down. No TT disrespect intended, but the magazine took an immediate upswing with this injection of fresh blood – like him or hate him, Alexander brings his distinct personality to whatever he does. I don’t always agree with his opinions or passions, but I respect the fact that he feels them as deeply as he does and staunchly (and articulately) defends them. So it goes without saying that when I heard he was going to be writing, directing, producing, editing and scoring his first feature film, Blood for Irina, I knew the end result would unequivocally be “A Chris Alexander Film.” The real question was, would I like it?

WE ARE WHAT WE ARE (2013) movie review

We Are What We Are (2013) d. Mickle, Jim (USA)

There’s a deep dark secret at the center of writer/director Mickle’s latest feature, his third following the acclaimed Mulberry St. and Stake Land. The irony is that this mystery, which enjoys its big reveal about an hour into the film, is a large part of the high concept pitch and is likely to be known to anyone who settles in to watch, especially if they are in any way familiar with Jorge Michel Grau’s original Mexican shocker. Because Mickle and co-writer Nick Damici have taken such pains to carefully unwrap this plot element, I will endeavor to do the same. But regardless of whether viewers know where the winding road leads, the experience is not diminished; this is powerful, assured filmmaking that overcomes the clunkiness of its predecessor and stands as the fiercely independent artist’s most fully realized effort to date. And – barring an excessively silly climax (thrown in to appease the gorehounds) – it’s also probably one of the finest remakes of the past two decades.

Fool's Views (6/24 – 6/30)

And now a word from our sponsor...

A metaphor for something, I'm sure...

Hey kids,

Yes, it’s true. It’s mid-August and these are films that I saw back in June. You see, what had happened was....

No, no excuses. Just changes and life and adjustments and distractions and priorities and so on. As some of you might have noticed, I’ve also gotten quite a bit gabbier over the past year, at least about certain films. Once the master of the capsule review, now it seems I can’t stop yakking once I get started. And having spilled that much virtual ink, I then feel obliged to track down a few images to break up the wordy beast. Final result? It takes longer to write a review, and consequently, I don’t have as much time to watch movies (which was half the reason why I was writing capsule reviews in the first place!). Add in the ongoing time-management issues of rehearsals and performances and other artistic endeavors (such as a certain booky wook that will soon be seeing the light of day – stay tuned) and what you get is what you see.

The happy/sad news is people keep telling me that they really enjoy reading these longer reviews with all the pretty pictures, especially since most aren’t reading them until after they see the films in question anyway. (I can relate to this, being the spoiler-shy purist ninny that I am.) So, if it’s a post-show chat we’re looking for, might as well ramble on and that’s probably the direction we’re going to continue to head. As a result, there are going to be some films that get the “star treatment” and some for whom the time-honored Fool’s Views Haikus™ are going to have to suffice. Obviously, if you want to hear more about a certain flick, drop me a line and I’ll be happy to jaw on a bit about it.

What I don’t want is this nasty ongoing habit of finding myself weeks and months behind schedule in terms of a weekly Fool’s Views report. So, we’re going to get a little more rigorous about posting in a timely fashion, and then expanding our coverage as time and enthusiasm allows. How’s that sound, true believers?

As always, feel free to leave your two cents worth – we’ll make sure you get some change back.

Enjoy!

SCHIZOID (1980) Blu-ray Review

Schizoid (1980) d. Paulsen, David (USA)

Written/directed by Savage Weekend’s Paulsen, who later enjoyed massive success as a producer of nighttime soaps like Dallas, Dynasty and Knots Landing, Schizoid exhibits hints of being a far more interesting film than the final result. Right around the same time advice columnist Marianna Hill begins receiving anonymous cut n’ paste letters threatening her safety, members of her therapy support group begin falling victim to a mysterious scissor-wielding maniac.

X-RAY (aka HOSPITAL MASSACRE) (1982) Blu-ray Review

X-Ray (aka Hospital Massacre) (1982) d. Davidson, Boaz (USA)

Cannon! Golan-Globus! Barbi Benton! Boaz Davidson! (Always a good sign when one finds oneself shouting the opening credits aloud.)

X-Ray, or Hospital Massacre as it was often known during its initial release, kicks off with little blonde Susan, excitedly playing with trains with her brother, spurning young admirer Harold’s ding dong ditch approach to Valentine’s romance. Payback comes instantly in the form of her sibling finding himself impaled through the neck and left hanging from the hat rack. (Okay, this little guy Harold is already terrifying on a superhuman level in in terms of lethal swiftness and strength. Give him a wide berth.)

DARK ANGEL (aka I COME IN PEACE) (1990) Blu-ray Review

Dark Angel (aka I Come In Peace) (1990) d. Baxley, Craig R. (USA)

While I distinctly remember the trailer for the bombastic '80s sci-fi actioneer I Come in Peace (released in 1990, but like that year’s other big-bam-boom-blammo alien assassin flick, Predator 2, this one screams the prior decade), I elected to pass on it both during its brief theatrical run nor did it ever make the final cut when dragging armloads of video rentals to the checkout counter. While I enjoyed the concept of an unfriendly E.T. having learned just enough English to catch his quarry off guard, it wasn’t enough to push me over the cliff. Chalk it up to the fact that I was still waist-deep in catching-up mode during the VHS boom, and well, headliner Dolph Lundgren wasn’t exactly someone whose filmography piqued much interest. Time passed, and in all that time, no one had ever come along to insist I had missed out on some kind of overlooked gem, so I continued to ignore it.

G-FEST 2013 - The Whole Magilla

Click on the links below to be taken to each day's recap!

G-FEST 2013 Convention Report (Part 3)

Even with not staying up to see the late night Pickwick Theatre screenings on Friday (Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla) and Saturday (Godzilla vs. Megaguirus), by the time Sunday morning came around, I was pretty G’d out. But I rallied myself to make the trek one last time, even getting there in time to catch the latter half of Robert Scott Field’s “Japan Update” panel.

G-FEST 2013 Convention Report (Part 2)

Looking back at my recollections of Friday, I mused aloud that “it looks like a bunch of people sitting behind tables.” While the panels are in fact an integral part of G-FEST and where my particular proclivities lie, there’s a lot more going on than just idle/idol chit-chat. The dealer rooms are chock full of multicolored G-Fans and G-Fare, videogame tournaments are in full flower alongside how-to modeling threads and filmmaking sessions.

LEGENDARY GIANT BEAST WOLFMAN VS. GODZILLA production photos

Recapping from 2012's G-FEST report:

Back in the early ’80s, there was a group of independent Japanese filmmakers, headed up by director Shizuo Nakajima, who wanted to make their own kaiju movie. The difference is that these folks either worked at or had friends who worked at (wait for it) Toho Studios. As a result, they were able to gain access to materials and designs not usually made available to the general public. Case in point, they were able to make an incredibly detailed reproduction of the 1962 Godzilla suit (as used in KKvG) as well as an impressive giant werewolf costume who would serve as the big G’s opponent. The rumored film is known by several names, Godzilla vs. the Wolfman, Legend of the Superbeast, Godzilla vs. the Giant Wolf Beast, Legendary Giant Beast Wolfman vs. Godzilla, etc., but no real evidence of it has ever surfaced. Only some poster art and one production shot have kept the mystery alive...

Until now.

G-FEST 2013 Convention Report (Part 1)

Following my grand adventure in 2012, I had been looking forward to G-FEST XX with more excitement and anticipation than any other convention I can recall. Last year’s introductory (for me) experience was a bit of a revelation: G-FEST is much more than an autograph show (which many horror cons have regrettably turned into), but rather a genuine assembly of like-minded aficionados eager to commune with their brethren in the immersive kaiju-lovin’ atmosphere conjured by G-FAN editor J.D. Lees & Co. I had been unable to stick around for the entire weekend’s offerings due to pre-existing obligations, but I made a point of clearing the calendar this time around and was primed to soak up all the radioactive gigantism-related Japanese escapism to be had.

HANDS OF THE RIPPER (1971) Blu-ray Review

Hands of the Ripper (1971) d. Sasdy, Peter (UK)

In the waning days of the Hammer heyday, the studio cranked up the flesh and the blood in an attempt to hold the attention of their horror fanbase. Even their Dracula and Frankenstein flagship franchises were losing their allure for audiences to a bevy of scrappy independent efforts who were willing to shed more blood and show more flesh. After enjoying success with their trio of sassy Karnstein bloodsuckfests (The Vampire Lovers, Lust for a Vampire, and Twins of Evil), they danced out a pair of Jack the Ripper-themed costume dramas in 1971: the gender-bending Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde and the (slightly) more grounded Hands of the Ripper, which posits that the offspring of Springheel Jack, traumatized by the sight of her mother skewered in front of her, will grow up to be a ticking time bomb primed to plunge sharp implements into tender flesh.

Q: THE WINGED SERPENT (1982) Blu-ray Review

Q (aka Q: The Winged Serpent) (1982) d. Cohen, Larry (USA)



Small time crook Jimmy Quinn (Michael Moriarty) is having a very bad day. Having not worked in months, he is bullied into handling getaway car driving duties for a low-level jewelry heist, a caper that goes awry leaving Quinn with a banged up leg and minus the loot. Escaping from the law, he seeks out legal assistance from an old friend in the Chrysler Building, but upon finding the office locked, he hightails it upstairs to the observation decks where he encounters an enormous bird’s nest with a correspondingly gigantic egg sitting smack in the middle. This discovery provides him with a very unique opportunity, luring his understandably peeved criminal cohorts to their crunchy doom and demanding that Gotham city officials pay him for his exclusive knowledge about a certain winged menace that’s been getting a lot of press lately.

WORLD WAR Z (2013) movie review

World War Z (2013) d. Forster, Marc (USA)

Ostensibly based on Max Brooks' bestseller, one has to wonder why producer/star Brad Pitt even bothered to option the rights considering how far the final product strays from its source material's tone and structure. That said, as far as epic Hollywood undead extravaganzas go, this one gets far more right than wrong in doing what it sets out to do.

THE CONJURING (2013) movie review

Conjuring, The (2013) d. Wan, James (USA)

Celebrated real-life paranormalists Ed and Lorraine Warren, central to the investigation of the Amityville Horror case, are the focus of this atmospheric if slightly generic haunted house/possession thriller. The two are presented as level-headed researchers, keen to find the natural causes of strange noises and/or unusual happenings but with a firm belief in the supernatural and prepared to use whatever tools necessary to suit the situation. Their latest case comes to them in the form of a Massachusetts residence recently inhabited by a struggling young family, the Perrons, with numerous bizarre and increasingly violent events taking place within after they uncover a hidden stairwell leading to an abandoned cellar filled with the former owners' possessions (pun intended).

STREET TRASH (1987) Blu-ray Review

Street Trash (1987) d. Muro, Jim (USA)

In spite of its status as one of the great "melt movies" of our time, it's important to remember the title is not "Tenafly Viper" - the noxious brew that leads several unfortunate souls to their oozy doom - but Street Trash. It's at its heart a character piece, one that in no small way resembles Elmer Rice's Street Scene in its presentation of a memorable motley band within a subculture that usually occupies the periphery rather than center stage. That such shocking and reprehensible incidents of necrophilia, murder, rape, theft, assault, shoplifting, racial slurs and blatant misogyny are handled with such buoyancy and glee is the film's secret weapon, especially when presented with such artistic flair.

MEN IN SUITS (2012) movie review

Men in Suits (2012) d. Woodward, Frank H. (USA)

As any discerning horror fan knows, practical effects will always rule the day over those plinked out on a keyboard. There’s something about the physical impact of a space-occupying element that cannot be denied, and one of the best examples comes in the form of a genuine monster on set. Be it a Predator, the xenomorphs from Alien, or even Robot Monster’s awesome diving-helmeted lovelorn extraterrestrial, there is nothing quite like a guy-in-a-suit flick.  Now, at long last, filmmaker Woodward, who cut his documentary teeth on Anchor Bay’s Masters of Horror behind-the-scenes featurettes, has created a fascinating and compelling 90-minute lovefest for the unsung heroes beneath the fur, flippers, fangs and zippers of some of the genre’s most memorable creations.

THE MANSON FAMILY (2003) Blu-ray Review

Manson Family, The (2003) d. VanBebber, Jim (USA)

I first heard about The Manson Family, and its uncompromising creator Jim VanBebber, in 2005 when it made its DVD debut courtesy of DarkSky Films.  Through the various press articles that surrounded the completion of this legendarily extended gestation process (principal photography began in 1989), as well as a terrific article in FAB Press’ Flesh and Blood Compendium, I slowly formed an image of VanBebber as a mad genius who either couldn’t or wouldn’t allow his passion project to leave the nest.  Upon finally catching up with the film proper, I was impressed with the man’s attention to detail and his vision, although a little put off by the somewhat ham-handed modern-day bookending device.  The final evaluation: This was a worthy effort, certainly a suitable companion piece for 1976’s celebrated TV-movie Helter Skelter, which was promptly filed away in the DVD library under “M” and thought little more about.  Until now.