Santa Claus The Movie, the Mexican version
How to explain the unusual 1959 feature from Mexico, wherein the Merriest Man on the Planet teams up with Merlin the Magician to defend the magic of Christmas against Ol’ Sparky, a/k/a the Devil — or, to be more accurate,…
Hallmark’s Christmas B-movies are weirdly addictive
Judging from the offerings on most major networks this week, you’d think they stopped making Christmas specials decades ago. We still rely heavily on “It’s a Wonderful Life,” “Miracle on 34th Street,” “A Christmas Story” and of course everyone’s favorite…
Silent Night Deadly Night
After his parents are murdered, a young tormented teenager goes on a murderous rampage dressed as Santa, due to his stay at an orphanage where he was abused by the Mother Superior. Ah, Christmas. Although it has become increasingly commercialized…
Croczilla
Move over Godzilla. The Japanese have nothing on the Chinese when it comes to big cheesy monster movies featuring humongous, rampaging reptiles as low-budget B-movie fans will see with this 2011 Chinese-language feature (dubbed into English) that was originally titled…
Sonny Chiba
Pivotal figure in the 1970s explosion of martial arts cinema as lethal “fists for hire” trouble shooter, Takuma (Terry) Tsurugi, starring in the phenomenally popular and ultra violent “The Street Fighter” series of action films. Sonny Chiba wasn’t a graceful,…
The Big Boss
The first major-release film starring Bruce Lee not only kicked off his career, it also led to the creation of other exploitation subgenres. “The Big Boss,” also known in the U.S. by its American title, “Fists of Fury,” is typical…
Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song
A film about a black male prostitute would be considered racy today; that Melvin Van Pebbles created and released such a film in 1971 makes “Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song” groundbreaking. The film’s themes of black radical self-sufficiency (up to and…
Santa’s Slay
Turns out Santa was actually the son of Satan who lost a bet to an angel that forced him to be “good” for a thousand years. Time is up so Santa (Bill Goldberg) goes back to being bad by killing…
Santa Claus Conquers The Martians
I remember seeing this movie a long time ago, way back before they installed the cup holders on the theater seat arm rests. You know, the good old days. All I could remember was the bright lights and colors, the…
Val Lewton
Americans eager to forget distressing World War 2 newspaper headlines for a few hours were keen to let motion pictures facilitate that escape. At the same time, there was a subconscious desire to confront the menace and otherworldliness of the…
A 90 Year Feud
Joan Fontaine’s 1942 Oscar was so much more than a trophy. Competing head-to-head with her older, more famous sister — “Gone With the Wind” star Olivia de Havilland — it finally was proof the 24-year-old rising actress had exacted the…
Miami’s B-Movie Mogul
Two-thirds of the way into Il momento piu bello (The Most Wonderful Moment), a disconsolate Dr. Valeri (the baby-faced Marcello Mastroianni) bids arrivederci to the final two members of his Lamaze class, the latest setback to befall him in the…
The Return of Ringo
In The Return of Ringo, the legendary Giuliano Gemma is Montgomery Brown, knick-named Ringo, a man who comes back from the war. While making a stop in a bar on his way home, he outdraws two hired killers, sent out…
Red Ryder
The Red Ryder newspaper comic strip by Fred Harman ran from 1938-1964 and was the basis for a popular series of silver screen adventures. Republic Pictures had entered into an agreement with Stephen Slesinger (who owned the rights to the…
Big Ass Spider On Blu-Ray
BIG ASS SPIDER! is the ultimate B-Movie experience – hilarious, disaster-filled and action-packed! It stars Greg Grunberg (Heroes, Star Trek), Lombardo Boyar (24, Gone in 60 Seconds) and Ray Wise (Robocop, Reaper). It is the ultimate B-Movie experience – hilarious,…
How to Make a Monster
Video killed the radio star, but the list of casualties continues. A 40-station interactive show opening Dec. 21 at Telus World of Science explores the craft of realistic puppets that populated Hollywood films for decades — until high-definition computer graphics…
Dolph Lundgren, Robots, Zombies: Do you really need more?
Suck it, Sharknado! We thought you had brought together the greatest confluence of B-movie cliches known to man. Well, you lose to this Battle of the Damned trailer. And, as a bonus, it is not too shabby looking.We are in…
Ian Ziering” Taking On ‘Sharknado’
The SyFy original “Sharknado” may never make anyone’s Top 100 list of great movies, but no one can deny the B movie was one of the more entertaining pieces of 2013. For Ian Ziering, who starred in the film about…
The Dark Crimes Of Anthony Mann
The career of American filmmaker Anthony Mann (1906-1967) lasted from the early 1940s to the late 1960s. To a certain degree, his overall trajectory mirrored that of Hollywood filmmaking as a whole: he began with crime dramas and film noir…
The Wild Man Of Louisville: William Girdler
When one thinks of regional filmmakers, the name of William Girdler stands high indeed. Based out of Louisville, Kentucky for most of his career, Girdler made nine films between the years 1972 and 1978, in a variety of genres from…