Chuck Steel: Raging Balls of Steel Justice
 

The Welsh animated short film Chuck Steel: Raging Balls of Steel Justice played before Kite at Fantasia this year and, in my humble opinion, pissed all over the feature it was supporting. This 15 minutes of 1980's fun premiered last night on U.K. television (Film4) and is now available as a download from the makers for 99p. I couldn't resist the opportunity to see it again and found it just as enjoyable second time round. Highly recommended (and only 99p).

Hired to Kill (1990)

Eighties C-list action star Brian Thompson plays a mercenary hired by George Kennedy to rescue rebel leader Jose Ferrer and kill revolutionary upstart Oliver Reed. To do this Thompson's team is made up of seven beautiful female killers in the guise of a modelling agency.

After a rather sedate opening hour (for a Nico Mastorakis film) things really hot up in the final third and we get an action packed, explosive, helicopter blowing up, finale.

The initial hour is never dull as we get to ogle the eye candy on their modelling assignments but this is the least of the Greek director's four thrillers released by budget label Hollywood Dvd, and is essentially just another eighties action movie. As with the other three films, Hired to Kill has a beautiful pin sharp widescreen print and is well worth picking up.

I watched Hired to Kill a couple of nights ago and found it to be thoroughly enjoyable as a film which is best watched with your brain on standby! Oliver Reed's moustache should have had a credit all to itself as it's a monster of a soup strainer.

The film has everything you'd see on something late at night on Channel 5, with training montages, a backlit sex scene (replete with sweat dripping off our hero's nose end!), a fashion show and outlandish action scenes.

I haven't had time to spend around here much recently so this is a week late.

DAWN OF THE DEAD (ARGENTO CUT)

Saw this in London with Goblin performing the live soundtrack. Awesome! Pounding score in the venue of the Union Chapel. For those who have never been in the venue, it is a tiered pew church that is on two floors. Great venue for a great film and band.

SOLD! er, hold on I've got this....:doh:

Watched The Intruders on Film4 last night. After an intially exciting setup the film dissolves into plop plop territory imo. Nice to see Carver fae The Bill though....;)

Blood Shack (AKA: The Chooper) is a dull as dishwater slasher revolving around a cursed ranch, which is haunted by the ghost of a Native American Indian known locally as 'The Chooper' ...apparently.

I say "apparently", as if that fact hadn't been spelled out to me, I would have been extremely confused as to why a ninja with a sword was over-dramatically leaping about and running around impaling people in the American mid-west... actually, I was still a little confused by this.

Not only is Blood Shack silly beyond all fathomable reasoning, but it is predictable and very poorly acted. The short running time is also filled with long camera pans of scenery, an overlong rodeo sequence, and lots of bland over-narration by the protagonist, Carol, which makes a relatively short film seem very overlong and overly padded.

In summary, I would only recommend Blood Shack to die-hard slasher fans who have a high tolerance for the dull and idiotic.

Originally posted here: https://www.cult-labs.com/forums/415417-post170.html

Oh this sounds right up my back street,Im a lazy sod so sorry for not checking but is this the Ray dennis steckler film?

Indeed it is... he seems to be on par with the late great Al Adamson in terms of making quality films, too ;)

That bad? :shocked:

It was truly terrible - Al would have been proud.

The Fault in Our Stars

Not as bad as i had feared, my Daughter has been going on and on about this so sat with her to watch it, its a film made for Teenage girls that's for sure, but the subject matter still hits older people too, daughter was balling her eyes out at the end, i can say happily i was unaffected.

He turn in his grave,or beneath his bathroom if he could hear you lot diss him.

Got a big list of films I have watched which I will post later, but watching the werewolf vs the yeti now and boy I'm really enjoying this one. Not far into it but I really can't see yet why it was banned.

B_E, Steckler is a genius! Time to change your name to Blind Eye.:tongue1: I really enjoyed "Blood Shack".

Tsk, tsk, Make Them Film Slowly, I really can't see how you could of... the whole debacle just dragged from start to finish. I guess it is a film that could adhere to your aforementioned occult model to some extent.

Admittedly the 'Native American Spirit Ninja' was quite amusing in a bewildering sort of way, but even his presence was sparse and lacklustre.

Nothing occult about it, there is just some undefinable quality about Steckler's work that I like.

Have you tried the extreme sports paradigm of film watching, it might help with this kind of stuff. All you have to do is visualise the film as some type of Tough Mudder challenge...slow, long and painful but oh so sweet when it has finished.

C'mon who doesn't luv Rat Phink & Boo Boo.(that's a rhetorical question by the way Dems)

No, I was alluding to your model where through watching dull films you can reach a 'altered state' of consciousness.

Ah, but there's always the cheat's option of the 'remote control's power button' that can often be too tempting to resist ;) Films shouldn't really be too much of an endurance test; plus, I like to challenge (and feed) my mind not send it to sleep! :D

What about those of us without a mind?

For people like Ron there is always Al Adamson. :nod:

Aguire the Wrath of God.
I'm not quite sure what to say, I spent a good chunk of it trying to follow the actual plot before I realised there wasn't really one to follow, Klaus Kinski and a bunch of Spaniards set off into the Amazon looking for El Dorado. They all go crazy (although to be honest some of them seemed halfway there to begin with). A strange dreamy film that is admittedly stunning to look at but that possibly needs another viewing with different/lower/no expectations.

I love Aguirre, its the film that got me into Herzog.

Really? I'll give it another go but I'm far from convinced.

The first Herzog film I watched was The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser. Whilst good from a technical standpoint, I completely failed to connect with it on a personal, emotional, or cinematic level.

Not long after I watched Aguirre and it completely blew me away. I have yet to emulate that feeling and experience which I felt during and after Aguirre via any of Herzog's other films (however there are others I've enjoyed). Like a few widely heralded directors I've come across (Godard is another good example) my reactions to their work is disparate at best. Admittedly, there are a few films of Herzog's that I still need to check out, and whilst a wonderful technically engaging film-maker, I just haven't connected with a good chunk of his output.

I may end up picking up the BFI boxset at some point if it becomes cheap and give some of his films another go.

One thing i have to say for Aguire is that it atmospherically it's incredible, for 90 odd minutes it really does take you to that place. Unfortunately I've always been a viewer who struggles without a more defined storyline.
Question - Should Herzog's films be watched in German or English? Seen as on most, particularly the feature length ones the bfi set includes both options.

A psychopath escapes from a mental asylum and goes on a killing rampage after having been locked up there for years as a consequence of witnessing his father kill his mother and then himself.

This development is offset by a young handicapped girl who is seeing visions of all the grisly murders taking place, which we later discover is due to her receiving a blood transfusion and therefore the killer's 'bad blood', which now courses through her veins and enables her to 'see' what he sees (at certain choice intervals of course).

So that handles the 'blood' element of the title. The 'song' aspect is covered by our psychopath's regular and eerily repetitive flute playing - a reminder of the father he barely knew who made it for him when he was a boy.

Overall Blood Song is a fairly effective little foray into psychosis and slasherdom, albeit silly and a little muddled in places.

Originally posted here: https://www.cult-labs.com/forums/415504-post173.html

German. Watch Fitzcarraldo next cough.;)

The Lords Of Salem (Rob Zombie, 2012) EOne UK dvd.

You see, like Bobby, I'm also a fan of The Tenant & Rosemarys Baby:rolleyes:.....some nice imagery and a catchy tune do not maketh a scary movie!!

And All Tomorrows Parties on the ST ruined the ending for me.

MAKE A COMEDY NEXT TIME METHINKS....;)

His next one is about a creepy carnival and clowns I think... therefore expect a a white-trash take on Tobe Hooper's The Funhouse with plenty of riffing on IT and 2D Captain Spaulding clones. :nod:

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH, more like Carnival Of Bloody Awful, no doubt Mrs Zombie will play the "sexy" fortune teller. :censored::laugh:

You joke, but I can totally see that being the case! :laugh:

Indeed. The one thing TLOS had in its favour was the lack of shitkickers as well...ho hum.

Bloody parents

They always ruin the lives of their children, don't they!

I just watched this film for the first time and loved the hypnotic, hallucinogenic journey that it took me on. I admire the film's ambiguity which leads to discussions about what everything really means. I also love to entertain all of the different interpretations even if I don't necessarily agree with them. I pre-ordered the soundtrack on vinyl the minute I finished the film. I'm excited at the prospect of revisiting this film in the days, months, and years to come.

I must be one of the few that actually enjoyed this film and I can't wait for 31

Glad you enjoyed it! It's easily one of the best films of past few years, for me.

From memory, I think there were a few on here that enjoyed it.

I like Zombie's House of 1000 Corpses for the fun gonzo homage it is, but everything after? Not so much.

I liked it, but I'm a fan of all his films, Halloween 2 being the worst obviously, but I still enjoy it for what it is :nod:

Boogeyman(1980)

God that was shite, awful story,acting and pacing, a few good kills are it's only saving grace. 3/10

Like others I enjoyed the lords of salem