Corman’s World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel
Bio-doc Corman’s World examines the maverick legacy of Roger Corman, who made his reputation, such as it is, beginning in the 1950s as the director of dashed-off gangster movies, horror-comedies, Edgar Allan Poe adaptations and motorcycle pics for American International…
The Charming Kurt Russell
A wise man — or, more precisely, a wise-ass trucker named Jack Burton — once opined that “it’s all in the reflexes.” Few actors have had better reflexes than Kurt Russell, who makes a welcome return to theaters this weekend…
Hammer Films
Hammer Films is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic “Hammer Horror” films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction,…
Ladies and Gentlemen, Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg co-wrote and co-starred (as Tim Bisley) in the worldwide acclaimed, cult television show Spaced. After two groundbreaking seasons, he moved on to develop and co-write, with Edgar Wright, the critically praised Shaun of the Dead, starring as the…
STARRY EYES
Starry Eyes tells the story of a young actress named Sarah, played by Alex Essoe (Passion Play). Sarah’s tale is like so many in Hollywood; she has a dead-end job at a restaurant, shares an apartment with her friend Tracy…
Wake in Fright – Controversial Ozploitation Thriller
A welcome re-release of Ted Kotcheff’s controversial “Ozploitation” thriller, which played briefly in the UK under the name Outback before going missing in action back in the early 70s. Gary Bond is the schoolteacher who descends into an antipodean heart…
Riff Traxing Black Fist
Fans of Mystery Science Theater 3000 will recognize a not-so-subtle nod to the cult television show in the Wealthy Street Theatre’s March 13 comedy event, WST3K presents “Black Fist.” Both shows share a common premise: as an audience watches, comedians…
Shaw Brothers Studio
Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. was the largest film production company of Hong Kong.In 1925, the three Shaw brothers—Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called Unique) in Shanghai, then established a film distribution base in Singapore where Runme and…
The Scoop On Quentin
1.) He was named after the Burt Reynolds character Quint Asper from “Gunsmoke” 2.) His mother gave birth to him when she was 16 3.) Has said that he would like to direct a James Bond film sometime in his…
VIKING WOMEN AND THE SEA SERPENT
ll of the men of a Viking tribe have disappeared across the great waters, so their lovesick ladies decide to build a boat and go find ’em. They run into a whirlpool and a giant sea monster before sailing their…
The Stuff
he 1985 B-movie The Stuff is out on Blu-ray today. We explain why Larry Cohen’s horror comedy is a work of scruffy 80s genius… Like fellow exploitation auteur Roger Corman, writer-director Larry Cohen has an uncanny ability for making a…
From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series
In what might be an industry first, movie director Robert Rodriguez (“Desperado,” “Machete,” “Sin City”) has his own TV channel. Born out of a commitment by Comcast, as it acquired an interest in NBCUniversal, to carry minority-owned networks, El Rey…
Worst Director Of All Time?
No other director in Hollywood history has suffered the ignominy of being called the worst director of all time like Ed Wood Jr. Ed-Wood-JrEd Wood is so popular as a bad director that a major motion picture starring Johnny Depp…
Evil Dead:The Musical
The musical theatre version of a cult classic horror series arguably as popular as its silver screen cousins returns to the McManus Studio Theatre this April. Local theatre producer John Iglesias first brought Evil Dead: The Musical to London in…
Dick Miller, What A Character
Ever see a Joe Dante movie – maybe Gremlins or Rock ’n’ Roll High School? Or perhaps The Terminator, or Scorsese’s After Hours? If you’ve seen any of these movies … or most any Roger Corman film, then you’ve seen…
The Dread of War And B movies
THE cinema was a great form of escapism and Mam and my sister Peggy and I would go to the pictures two or three times a week. When I got back home from school, Mam might say: “What’s on at…
Why Sharknado Was An Improbable Smash Success
The trailer for Sharknado 2: The Second One, unveiled to the delight of the SXSW crowd. The movie sparks panel discussion on why the movie worked. Ian Ziering prepares to shoot a flying shark out of the sky in Sharknado,…
A Field In England
A black-and-white psychological horror drama, set during Britain’s 17th-century Civil Wars and involving buried treasure and trippy hallucinations? Hi-ho, director Ben Wheatley and his co-writer wife, Amy Jump, are back in town. “A Field in England” is the latest and…
The Perpetual Sam Sherman
Writer, producer and distributor Samuel M. Sherman was born April 23, 1940, in New York City. He attended New York’s City College Film Institute, where he ran “Flash Gordon” serials and “The Mask of Fu Mancho” in the student film…
Adjust Your Tracking
If vinyl can make a comeback, why not VHS? That’s the question posed by one of the participants in Adjust Your Tracking, an entertaining documentary that’s hitting town as the latest entry in the Back Alley Film Series. …