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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2018 16:15:12 GMT -5
I just watched Ruthless People and after not seeing it for a decade or so; it's really entertains you of the antics of DeVito, Slater, Reinhold, and Bette Midler as Barbara Stone. I just cracking up every 5-10 minutes and it's one of those rare movies that're comedy gems and its one of the best in the 80's.
Total Madness from Start to Finish!
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Post by Jesse on Jan 8, 2018 2:00:05 GMT -5
Fright Night Part 2 (1988) I grew up a fan of the first film but wasn't even aware this existed until recently. I thought this was more of the same cheesy fun and was glad to see some of the original cast return. This time Charlie is seduced by a sexy vampiress and it's up to his girlfriend and Fright Night TV host Peter Vincent to save him from being turned into a vampire. The practical special effects hold up really well and there are a bunch of creepy visuals and gore. The bowling montage felt a bit odd but otherwise I would definitely recommend this to fans of the original.
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Post by Jesse on Jan 11, 2018 16:30:35 GMT -5
Meet the Feebles (1989) This early Peter Jackson film was not at all what I was expecting. It's basically an R-rated satire of the Muppets complete with variety show musical numbers and in some ways it was ahead of its time. The practical special effects and puppeteer work are actually quite impressive considering how low budget it is and there's a huge cast of puppets. The dark, irreverent and often gross humor works surprisingly well despite how bizarre it is seeing children's puppets working with such adult oriented material. While I wouldn't recommend it to fans of his modern work it certainly fits in with his other splatter era work and it's an interesting look at his early career.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 11, 2018 23:02:21 GMT -5
Meet the Feebles (1989) This early Peter Jackson film was not at all what I was expecting. It's basically an R-rated satire of the Muppets complete with variety show musical numbers and in some ways it was ahead of its time. The practical special effects and puppeteer work are actually quite impressive considering how low budget it is and there's a huge cast of puppets. The dark, irreverent and often gross humor works surprisingly well despite how bizarre it is seeing children's puppets working with such adult oriented material. While I wouldn't recommend it to fans of his modern work it certainly fits in with his other splatter era work and it's an interesting look at his early career. I tried to watch this after hearing about Jackson directing Lord of the rings and tapped out after 10 minutes (which I will never get back. Definitely not my cup of tea. Heavenly Creatures was a bit more up my alley.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2018 10:20:26 GMT -5
Yesterday, on TCM ... I've watched Bringing Up Baby, Gaslight, Hold Back the Dawn, and pretty soon I'll be watching Tales of Manhattan off of my DVR and later on watch The Great Ziegfeld and I've haven't seen that movie for a long time.
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Post by rom on Jan 12, 2018 15:51:43 GMT -5
Great thread. Several comments: The original early '70's The Wicker Man was superb - great horror flick with an element of creepy unease throughout. The final scene when {Spoiler: Click to show} Ed Woodward was led to the burning effigy & started screaming as he realized what is going to happen to him....is definitely one of the best endings in all of horror cinema, and cinema in general.
Needless to say, the original version of TWM is far superior to the Nic Cage version from the 200X's. Haven't seen Meet The Feebles yet, but plan on doing so; I also want to see Jackson's Bad Taste. I may be in the minority here, but I strongly prefer Peter Jackson's lesser-known '90's films to his much more expensive & elaborate LOTR/Hobbit movies (I never liked his visual interpretations of the Ringwraiths, Orcs, etc.), the 2005 re-make of King Kong (the gorilla was way too small), etc. Speaking of which, I would highly recommend Jackson's Heavenly Creatures (1994). This is a disturbing true story about two New Zealand teens in the 1950's who planned & committed a horrific crime. This features an early Kate Winslet role, and IMHO is one of her best performances. I also enjoyed Jackson's '90's flick Braindead, which was a sickening - but funny - low budget horror film. Ruthless People is truly hilarious, and one of my favorite '80's comedies. Danny DeVito was perfect in the role of the guy whose wife got kidnapped - and, instead of being upset/angry, was secretly happy about it - and didn't want her back! LOL Didn't even know there was a Fright Night 2 back in the '80's - Thanks for the post. The original 1985 Fright Night was a classic horror "comedy", and far superior to the 2011 re-make. Speaking of '80's horror, I also really enjoyed The Gate (1987), about a gate to another dimension that ends up infecting a family's home & backyard - very well-done, with good '80's effects:
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 13, 2018 2:13:41 GMT -5
Great thread. Several comments: The original early '70's The Wicker Man was superb - great horror flick with an element of creepy unease throughout. The final scene when {Spoiler: Click to show} Ed Woodward was led to the burning effigy & started screaming as he realized what is going to happen to him....is definitely one of the best endings in all of horror cinema, and cinema in general.
Needless to say, the original version of TWM is far superior to the Nic Cage version from the 200X's. Haven't seen Meet The Feebles yet, but plan on doing so; I also want to see Jackson's Bad Taste. I may be in the minority here, but I strongly prefer Peter Jackson's lesser-known '90's films to his much more expensive & elaborate LOTR/Hobbit movies (I never liked his visual interpretations of the Ringwraiths, Orcs, etc.), the 2005 re-make of King Kong (the gorilla was way too small), etc. Speaking of which, I would highly recommend Jackson's Heavenly Creatures (1994). This is a disturbing true story about two New Zealand teens in the 1950's who plan & try to commit a horrific crime. This features an early Kate Winslet role, and IMHO is one of her best performances. I also enjoyed Jackson's '90's flick Braindead, which was a sickening - but funny - low budget horror film. Ruthless People is truly hilarious, and one of my favorite '80's comedies. Danny DeVito was perfect in the role of the guy whose wife got kidnapped - and, instead of being upset/angry, was secretly happy about it - and didn't want her back! LOL Didn't even know there was a Fright Night 2 back in the '80's - Thanks for the post. The original 1985 Fright Night was a classic horror "comedy", and far superior to the 2011 re-make. Speaking of '80's horror, I also really enjoyed The Gate (1987), about a gate to another dimension that ends up infecting a family's home & backyard - very well-done, with good '80's effects: Re; heavenly Creatures and basis in fact: Kate Winslet plays Juliet Hulme, who would, later in life, enter the world of mystery fiction and use the pen name Anne Perry. That tidbit made the rounds of the bookselling world, when Heavenly Creatures got its international release. After binge-watching the netflix GLOW series (based on the cheesy tv show), I rewatched All The Marbles..., where promoter and announcer David McLane ripped off the idea (apart from the ladies' matches he used to announce in the Indianapolis-based WWA wrestling promotion). Unlike the original GLOW, this was a serious movie that treated wrestling and women's wrestling respectfully, though also as legitimate competition. It's actually a really good movie, with Peter Falk playing the manager of a female tag-team, the California Dolls. It has a few Rocky elements (including Burt "Pauly" Young, as a sleazy promoter), and some weak comedy (though plenty of good comedy and drama). The matches were designed and staged, and the women trained by Mildred Burke, who was the womens champion for years, in the glory days of pro wrestling on the Dumont Network and have better booking and action than anything the WWE shows these days (not to mention GLOW, in their 4 seasons). Vicki Frederick, who played Iris, was an actress/dancer, who appears in All That Jazz. Laurene Landon, who plays Molly, later appeared on the Dating Game and referenced the movie in one of her questions to the three bachelors. The final match, for the tag titles, is really exciting and well staged.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 13, 2018 4:14:31 GMT -5
After binge-watching the netflix GLOW series (based on the cheesy tv show), I rewatched All The Marbles..., where promoter and announcer David McLane ripped off the idea (apart from the ladies' matches he used to announce in the Indianapolis-based WWA wrestling promotion). Unlike the original GLOW, this was a serious movie that treated wrestling and women's wrestling respectfully, though also as legitimate competition. It's actually a really good movie, with Peter Falk playing the manager of a female tag-team, the California Dolls. It has a few Rocky elements (including Burt "Pauly" Young, as a sleazy promoter), and some weak comedy (though plenty of good comedy and drama). The matches were designed and staged, and the women trained by Mildred Burke, who was the womens champion for years, in the glory days of pro wrestling on the Dumont Network and have better booking and action than anything the WWE shows these days (not to mention GLOW, in their 4 seasons). Vicki Frederick, who played Iris, was an actress/dancer, who appears in All That Jazz. Laurene Landon, who plays Molly, later appeared on the Dating Game and referenced the movie in one of her questions to the three bachelors. The final match, for the tag titles, is really exciting and well staged. I've watched this movie a couple of times and I really was impressed by this movie and it's really done quite realistically and enjoyed the acting of Peter Falk! ... I was reading this review offline and watched the final match of where the California Dolls won the tag-team titles and it's was fun watching it! Loved this movie! The Video is pretty poor shape and it's still watchable.
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Post by rom on Jan 13, 2018 7:54:11 GMT -5
Yes, I'm aware that Juliet Hulme, who was depicted by Kate Winslet in Heavenly Creatures - is actually Anne Perry: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parker%E2%80%93Hulme_murder_caseWhat makes me sick about this case is that these two teens were treated with kid gloves, and did not receive severe sentences for this murder. They should both have gotten life in prison, or worse. As it so happened, each only received five years in prison - which is a joke considering the crime. If these two had been "women of color" - or males - they would definitely both have received much harsher sentences. It just illustrates how white, attractive women get a pass when it comes to crimes like this. Obviously, this type of thing still happens today. And, to add insult to injury Juliet Hulme/Anne Perry is now not only living in freedom, but is a successful writer. Who knows, maybe when it came out that she had committed the murder (due to the HC movie coming out in '94) that may have even made her more popular. Sickening. I did really enjoy the G.L.O.W. Netflix series when I saw it in Summer 2017. It's become one of my all-time favorite TV shows. I'm an '80's kid, so especially appreciated the era. Excellent storyline, acting, writing, and amazing soundtrack. It was especially cool to see so many '80's references - including "The Dead Milkmen" T-shirt that Justine Biagi wore - LOL. Here's a link to an article re: the soundtrack: www.bustle.com/p/the-glow-se...terpiece-66104
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 13, 2018 10:45:14 GMT -5
Some of the songs they use, weren't out yet, for the time frame depicted in the series; but, they are mostly there for emotional impact, rather than accuracy. The Bash character is a heck of a lot better at delivering the comedy announcing than David McLane ever was. I only ever watched the original GLOW once and couldn't stand the cheesy skits and the wrestling was pretty bad, by any standard. That said, it was a pretty big deal for a while and I enjoyed the documentary that came out a few years ago, which provided the inspiration for the Netflix series. You can pretty much pinpoint where and why the chose specific characters and where they got some of the plot points. Ironically, when the producers went looking for a wrestling trainer/consultant, they ended up with Chavo Guerrero Jr, whose uncle Mando was the original trainer for the GLOW performers (Mando worked more as a stuntman, in Hollywood, than as a wrestler, by that point, especially compared to his brothers Hector and Chavo Sr). Kind of surprised they didn't use him on-air for the show. They do a pretty decent job of capturing the 80s, without making it obvious that they are trying for the 80s.
I do get a chuckle out of the graphic they have on the website, with Alison Brie rendered as a Nagel image. That says 80s in a single image.
Part of the rationale behind the lighter sentences for the two girls in the New Zealand case was the belief that there were severe mental issues at the heart of it, because of their unusual attachment to one another (as seen by outsiders). It would be about 3 decades before you'd see juvenile offenders treated as adults and handed severe sentences, which garnered a lot of criticism from child psychologists and social workers. Jackson's film did take a lot of liberties with the actual events depicted in the film, though the reality was pretty bizarre and brutal.
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Post by rom on Jan 13, 2018 11:53:46 GMT -5
Some of the songs they use, weren't out yet, for the time frame depicted in the series; but, they are mostly there for emotional impact, rather than accuracy. The Bash character is a heck of a lot better at delivering the comedy announcing than David McLane ever was. I only ever watched the original GLOW once and couldn't stand the cheesy skits and the wrestling was pretty bad, by any standard. That said, it was a pretty big deal for a while and I enjoyed the documentary that came out a few years ago, which provided the inspiration for the Netflix series. You can pretty much pinpoint where and why the chose specific characters and where they got some of the plot points. Ironically, when the producers went looking for a wrestling trainer/consultant, they ended up with Chavo Guerrero Jr, whose uncle Mando was the original trainer for the GLOW performers (Mando worked more as a stuntman, in Hollywood, than as a wrestler, by that point, especially compared to his brothers Hector and Chavo Sr). Kind of surprised they didn't use him on-air for the show. They do a pretty decent job of capturing the 80s, without making it obvious that they are trying for the 80s. I do get a chuckle out of the graphic they have on the website, with Alison Brie rendered as a Nagel image. That says 80s in a single image. Part of the rationale behind the lighter sentences for the two girls in the New Zealand case was the belief that there were severe mental issues at the heart of it, because of their unusual attachment to one another (as seen by outsiders). It would be about 3 decades before you'd see juvenile offenders treated as adults and handed severe sentences, which garnered a lot of criticism from child psychologists and social workers. Jackson's film did take a lot of liberties with the actual events depicted in the film, though the reality was pretty bizarre and brutal. Yes, the music in G.L.O.W. didn't necessarily come out when the show was supposed to take place, but that doesn't affect my enjoyment of the series at all - I don't see this as as strict depiction of a specific year in the '80's, just the '80's in general. To make an analogy, I'm also a huge fan of the current '80's-era show The Goldbergs. In the case of that series, there are numerous '80's references made "out of order". However, the series - like G.L.O.W. - still really captures the whole '80's vibe/tone/era, which is the whole intent. I disagree with the light sentence re: the two teens who killed the mother of one of them, re: the events depicted in HC. I don't care about mental illness - even if that were true here (and I'm not saying it was), these entitled scum-bags should have never seen the light of day again. The crime was heinous, and as far as I'm concerned both of them should have gotten a very serious sentence. Also, I still stand by my assertion that the two teens being female, white & attractive had a lot to do with the leniency of sentence - this occurred in the 1950's & still continues today. In fact, in most cases women that commit crimes still get lighter sentences than men - who commit the same crimes. Check out this video - and this is a woman's take on the subject, so there is no bias against women here: For what it's worth, I'm a white middle-aged guy - and this gender bias against men makes me sick.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jan 13, 2018 12:04:48 GMT -5
Fathom Events in association with TCM does retro movies a couple days a month. Tomorrow Treasure of the Sierra Madre is going to be playing at one of the theaters in Twin Falls (and in a lot of other places). I think I'll take the youngest child to the 2:00 showing. There's not a lot of opportunities to see old movies on the big screen here. I'm pretty excited because it's a movie that would definitely make my top 50 list. If you want to check for a theater near you.
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shaxper
CCF Site Custodian
Posts: 22,727
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Post by shaxper on Jan 13, 2018 12:17:40 GMT -5
18. Artificial Intelligence (2001) - A very good idea smothered by a lot of deeply stupid ideas. Jude Law is very good. Teddy is great. And I almost cried during the scene where the robot boy was abandoned in the woods. But when this movie is bad, it practically re-writes the book on bad filmmaking. I was never bored though! This is in my Top 20 of all time. I don't know that I'd call any part of it bad, but I would call certain parts "shamefully Hollywood". Both the strengths and the pitfalls of this film stem from Spielberg trying to channel Kubric. At it's best, it surpasses anything Kubric would have done with the property, and (at it's worst), it's Spielberg doing sci-fi.
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Post by Prince Hal on Jan 13, 2018 12:32:17 GMT -5
Fathom Events in association with TCM does retro movies a couple days a month. Tomorrow Treasure of the Sierra Madre is going to be playing at one of the theaters in Twin Falls (and in a lot of other places). I think I'll take the youngest child to the 2:00 showing. There's not a lot of opportunities to see old movies on the big screen here. I'm pretty excited because it's a movie that would definitely make my top 50 list. If you want to check for a theater near you. It's such a great movie. Superb acting (Bogart was never better) and screenplay (If you told me that Camus had sat in on the scriptwriting sessions, I'd believe you), top-notch camera work (you feel grains of sand in your shoes throughout the movie). Can't really think of a moment that isn't nigh perfect. Enjoy!
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jan 13, 2018 12:42:46 GMT -5
Fathom Events in association with TCM does retro movies a couple days a month. Tomorrow Treasure of the Sierra Madre is going to be playing at one of the theaters in Twin Falls (and in a lot of other places). I think I'll take the youngest child to the 2:00 showing. There's not a lot of opportunities to see old movies on the big screen here. I'm pretty excited because it's a movie that would definitely make my top 50 list. If you want to check for a theater near you. It's such a great movie. Superb acting (Bogart was never better) and screenplay (If you told me that Camus had sat in on the scriptwriting sessions, I'd believe you), top-notch camera work (you feel grains of sand in your shoes throughout the movie). Can't really think of a moment that isn't nigh perfect. Enjoy! I love it. It really is an almost perfect movie in every aspect. It seemed like it used to play a lot on the late-night movies back in the day. I'm excited to see it on the big screen.
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