What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Inspector Abberline]

What seems on the surface like your every day run of the mill slasher film, starts out more like a horror version of One flew over the cuckoos nest. Donald Pleasance is Dr. Leo Bain, a new age style psychiatrist, who tries to cure his patients with some far out hippy style doctoring. This is the total opposite to his portrayal of Dr Loomis in the Halloween franchise, here he sits around smoking dope and talking basically new age bollocks..but seeing as its Pleasance he does it very well indeed..Dwight Schultz as Dr. Dan Potter ,was probably more famous at the time for playing Howling Mad Murdock in the A-Team..so here its abit of role reversal as he is the new doctor at the hospital. Leading the cast of villains is Jack Palance as Frank Hawkes and Martin Landau as Byron 'Preacher' Sutcliff, considering there resurgence in popularity towards the end of there careers, I imagine this was done more for the pay check than the art but you never know. Backing these two up is Erland van Lidth as Ronald 'Fatty' Elster, although he was more famous for his part in Stir Crazy and The Wanderers as a child killer and Phillip Clark asTom Smith / Skaggs a man who has to kill whenever he gets a nose bleed, or was it that he gets a nose bleed whenever he kills. Well like any good asylum in a horror movie, all hell breaks loose when there's a power cut, and deadly foursome escape and go after there new psychiatrist Dan Potter (Schultz)..there begins the traditional slasher territory mixed with some home invasion and some Straw Dogs family man fighting back. Anybody holding a grudge because Jack Sholder directed A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985) , you should forgive him his sins as this movie more than makes up for it, plus he went onto direct the brilliant sci-fi actioner The Hidden (1987) so he redeemed himself there also..I've loved Alone In The Dark ever since I saw this on video tape back in the day, and it still holds up today after countless viewings...

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Convoy (1978)

Perhaps Sam Peckinpah's most accessible and commercial film but perhaps also his least interesting. Made when the American CB radio/trucking craze was at its peak, Convoy tries to be the trucking equivalent of Vanishing Point (1971) or 74's Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry. The problem is trucks aren't as exciting as multiple car chases and here lies Convoy's problems.

Kris Kristofferson is fine as the rebellious 'Rubber Duck' who begins the wagon convoy, but Ali MacGraw is sadly wasted.

Writing this some 18 hours later it's clear that there aren't that many memorable sequences to Convoy. I mean, when you've seen some trucks heading in a line down a highway then you've seen them all and the only thing that really sticks in the head is the song song 'Convoy' from C. W. McCall which pretty much plays throughout the film and becomes a proper ear worm.

Having said that, something about the film stays with you. It's a film i saw quite a bit in the 80's on tv but haven't seen since then so last night's viewing felt like a nostalgia trip in a way and despite me saying it's not as exciting as car chase movies there is a certain something that makes it pretty ****ing cool!

[Demoncrat]

Originally Posted by Inspector Abberline

What seems on the surface like your every day run of the mill slasher film, starts out more like a horror version of One flew over the cuckoos nest. Donald Pleasance is Dr. Leo Bain, a new age style psychiatrist, who tries to cure his patients with some far out hippy style doctoring. This is the total opposite to his portrayal of Dr Loomis in the Halloween franchise, here he sits around smoking dope and talking basically new age bollocks..but seeing as its Pleasance he does it very well indeed..Dwight Schultz as Dr. Dan Potter ,was probably more famous at the time for playing Howling Mad Murdock in the A-Team..so here its abit of role reversal as he is the new doctor at the hospital. Leading the cast of villains is Jack Palance as Frank Hawkes and Martin Landau as Byron 'Preacher' Sutcliff, considering there resurgence in popularity towards the end of there careers, I imagine this was done more for the pay check than the art but you never know. Backing these two up is Erland van Lidth as Ronald 'Fatty' Elster, although he was more famous for his part in Stir Crazy and The Wanderers as a child killer and Phillip Clark asTom Smith / Skaggs a man who has to kill whenever he gets a nose bleed, or was it that he gets a nose bleed whenever he kills. Well like any good asylum in a horror movie, all hell breaks loose when there's a power cut, and deadly foursome escape and go after there new psychiatrist Dan Potter (Schultz)..there begins the traditional slasher territory mixed with some home invasion and some Straw Dogs family man fighting back. Anybody holding a grudge because Jack Sholder directed A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985) , you should forgive him his sins as this movie more than makes up for it, plus he went onto direct the brilliant sci-fi actioner The Hidden (1987) so he redeemed himself there also..I've loved Alone In The Dark ever since I saw this on video tape back in the day, and it still holds up today after countless viewings...

Review Ron!!

[MrBarlow]

New Jack City 1991

Crime Boss Nino Brown accends to power but a streetwise detective intends to bring him down.

First time seeing this film and thoroughly enjoyed it, Wesley Snipes played Nino to a tea, his character seemed to be influenced by Scarface and some comments made in the film. Mario Van Peebles directs his first film feature brilliantly and takes on the role as Detective Stone. Rapper Ice-T stars beside him and Judd Nelson as partners in fighting the drug trade. From start to finish this was fast paced action thriller and worth watching.

[Demoncrat]

Absurd 1981, Peter Newton )

A priest pursues a beardy bugger. That these are played by Edward Purdom and George Eastman respectively should tell you all you need to know. No? Fair dos. A real hotchpotch this. But the deaths make up for the interminable scenes of Italians eating pasta whilst watching the Superbowl
Ahem. And that riff. . I will never tire of watching this absolute dreck

[bleakshaun]

Waterloo
After being exiled to Elba, Napoleon returns to France and begins his 9th campaign. Ultimately leading to his defeat at the hands of Wellington.
One that I've been meaning to see for a while and I wasn't disappointed. If anything I'm curious about how many extras were involved. Also Orson Wells appears.

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[Inspector Abberline]

There are times when Scott Spiegel's Intruder feels more like a parody rather than a straight-up slasher flick, all that's missing is the Wayans Bros and you would have another entry in the Scary Movie franchise, maybe it's all those ridiculous camera angles looking up through the telephone dials, or shopping trolleys or cling film when someones wrapping something or maybe its the goofy characters and stoner dude dialogue...And while those gimmicky shots are pretty jarring and unnecessary what brings you back into the film with a jolt is the gore scenes, and while the effects don't always stand close scrutiny, especially on blu ray, there still pretty grim, compared to the tone of the rest of the film, I mean how many times have we seen the bumbling comedy cops in horror film, something which I blame Wes Cravens original Last House on the Left for..Anyhow this was a big flick to get on bootleg videotape back in the day, mostly prompted by some rather colorful if gruesome pics appearing in Gorezone magazine the offshoot from Fangoria magazine..Dan Hicks as Bill Roberts is if nothing else entertaining and probably his portrayal in Evil Dead 2 is only slightly better, but boy he sure knows how to portray goofy characters. It's still an enjoyable slasher movie for all its shortcomings, and the blu ray is a damn sight better than my old bootleg VHS, so I shouldn't complain too much, and besides Raimi deserved what he got in that film for directing SpiderMan...

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Howling (1981)

A film that improves with each viewing, although it's tongue in cheek feel still lets it down somewhat. Kudos that director Joe Dante gives so many nods to horror classics from the past and Rob Bottin's make up effects including THAT werewolf transformation scene are simply superb.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Wicker Man (1973)

The first time i watched this classic British horror film it scared me in a way no other film had previously, or indeed since, and even today, some however many viewings later, it's still a very unnerving watch.

There is no killer stalking our hero, no houses are haunted, there is no actual threat to Howie the investigating policeman, he is offered several ways out of the scenario yet fails to take them. (You only realise this after the film ends though). The horror stems from beliefs and old customs the modern world has largely forgotten.

[Paul Zombie]

Zombie 5 killing Birds(1987)

A vietnam vet comes home and finds his slutty wife in bed with another man, and goes on a killing rampage. but ends up getting blinded afterwards by birds in cages on the porch.

Fast forward later. and a bunch of college students, including lara wendel from tenebrae, are off looking for rare woodpeckers, and end up at the scene of the crimes. and find themselves under siege from the living dead.

I usually love any type of Italian horror even the ones that are considered absolute rubbish. but this one was a serious chore to sit through.
not even that chap Robert Vaughn from that Man From Uncle series could save this turkey, where he plays a blind bird specialist.
the cast is seriously irritating, with even Lara Wendel looking a lot less charming in one of her later efforts.
And the zombies when they do turn up eventually are rather pathetic and rubbish gore effects as well.

quite a poor effort overall, and with terrible sound issues . and apparently Joe D'amato worked on this as well which is surprising as i always like his efforts usually. 40 out of 100.