Friday 29 June 2018

More On Movies Part IV

RECENTLY RE/WATCHED


White Lightning (1973)
Classic 70s down south crime film. Possibly Burt Reynolds best film, he is unbelievably charismatic here. Running Moonshine, dodgy sheriffs, skinny dipping, the ATF, lunch cutting and car chases. What more do you need? Well how about characters called Gator, Dude, Pa, Skeeter and Big Bear. Cool symphonic country funk soundtrack too.  


Tightrope (1984)
Clint Eastwood as, shock horror, a not one dimensional character. Wes Block is torn between being a good dad/cop and living a life of seedy debauchery. Serial killer thriller set in New Orleans where the hunter becomes the hunted. Really cool decadent vibe. Tightrope's not that highly rated for some reason but it's exceptionally put together. It's actually written and directed by mysterious figure Richard Tuggle who only directed two films. 


Grease 2 (1982) 
This story is actually coherent and pretty good. They flip the dodgy sexual politics of the first film on its head and let's face it the songs are way better in this one. Michelle Pfeiffer becomes an icon for girls all over the planet.  

Grease (1978)
Mainly bad and incoherent movie. Worth watching however for the brilliant hand jive/tv telecast scene. When I was little I always thought "Why is Rizzo still in high school at age 40?" Still do. 


Hustle (1975)
This 70s neo-noir was a hit at the time but seems to be forgotten now. Cathy Deneuve and Burt Reynolds star in this unusual but very 'New Hollywood' flick ie. Euro vibes in an American setting, nihilism and a downbeat ending. Why this isn't a huge cult movie, I don't understand because it's really good.  


Home For The Holidays (1972)
A made for telly proto-slasher horror. Stars Sally Field, Jessica Walter, Julie Harris, Jill Haworth etc. Stormy weather, spooky mansion, suspected poisoning, bathtub drowning and a killer in a yellow raincoat with a pitchfork. 70s tv movie of the week classic....er if you're into that kind of thing of course. 

Detroit Rock City (1999)
Not a bad little teenage rights of passage movie about four boys going to a Kiss concert in the late 70s. It's for kids.


Night Of The Juggler (1980)
This is an intensely chaotic fly by the seat of your pants crime thriller. One man's crusade to reclaim his kidnapped daughter from a maniac in the grim New York cesspool of 1980. This is no easy task as cops, strip club bouncers and crazy NYC gangs hinder his campaign. Night of the Juggler is rough, in your face and gripping filmmaking.


Killing Of America (1981)
Sensational documentary on murder and violence in America beginning with the 1963 assassination of JFK in Texas through to the shooting of John Lennon in New York at the end of 1980. It covers old fashioned regular murder, riots, spree killings, domestic terrorists and serial killers. This doc is not for the faint of heart as it contains explicit real life violence.


Vice Squad (1982)
Quite a brutal sleazy 80s crime thriller. Cops, pimps, hookers & murderers. Shot at night time in LA's seedy streets. Look out for Wings Hauser's OTT performance as Ramrod, a psychotic pimp. Vice Squad could have been great if the direction had been more visceral but there's something staid about the production values. Well worth a look though.


The Autopsy Of Jane Doe (2016)
This modern horror started out really original and compelling, then two thirds of the way in it just started to fizzle out which was disappointing.



Death Weekend aka The House By The Lake (1976)
A fucking terrifying Canuxploitation flick. Four mental yobbos ruin an attempted romantic country getaway for Harry. To begin with Harry turns out to be a predatory cunt as he has lured the beautiful Diane out to his country estate under false pretences and all hell breaks loose from there. This home invasion ends up being a female revenge movie of the highest order. Not for the people with the delicate sensibilities.


Aileen: Life & Death Of A Serial Killer (2003) 
Fascinating portrait of America's most notorious female serial killer. Monster (2003) starring Charlize Theron was based on the life of Aileen Wuornos. I thought I wouldn't be able to sit through this documentary due to the subject matter and the film maker namely the absurd twit Nick Broomfield. However I ended up feeling sorry for Aileen and thought Broomfield approached his subject with unusual sensitivity. Worth watching.


Annabelle Creation (2017)
From the people that brought us Saw (2004) and The Conjuring (2013). Good fun scary film with creepy dolls, dead children, haunted houses and shit.

DIDN'T GET THROUGH


The Last Movie (1971)
I love Dennis Hopper directed films like Out Of The Blue, Colors and The Hot Spot. When I came across this on the interweb I was very excited but hey I must have been tired and irritable because I only got five minutes in before wanting to smash the telly screen in. So maybe next time I'll let you know what the next one hour and forty three minutes are like.

Used Cars (1980)
OMFG why do I listen to the VHS nerds. I watched about fifty minutes of this and then realised 'This is some of the worst shit I've ever seen!' Don't get me wrong I enjoy me some Kurt Russell - Escape From New York, The Thing, Overboard, Death Proof etc. Used Cars however is everything I fucking hate about movies ie. Hollywood, not funny comedy, daft story, cheesy premise etc. Hey it was directed by the dude who did Forrest Gump so what did I expect? Serves me right eh?

2 comments:

  1. Quite a few unknowns here for me. Tightrope was great back when it came out. Been a while though. Needs a rewatch to see how it stand up to time.
    Detroit Rock City. No that's a blast from the past. Very vague on it, might need a rewatch too.
    Think I'll just take your word for it about grease 1 and 2. Not putting myself though them. ��

    ReplyDelete
  2. Check out 'Night Of The Juggler' & 'Death Weekend'.

    They're probably on the youtubes.

    ReplyDelete