B Movie Blues
When I was in Grade 10, there was a teachers’ strike that lasted seven weeks. I’d like to say that in that time I applied my 14-year-old mind to something creative or useful. But no: this girl watched every late-night…
Some People Liked John Carter
The first clue that Disney did not view “John Carter” as a top-flight action fantasy movie was its opening date: March, not May. Studios stake out prime summer-season weekends for their tentpole movies, which this year include “The Avengers” May…
The Raid
Imagine that you’re a child of thrill-kill videogames and other forms of pop culture gruesomeness, and you sit down to watch a classic kung fu movie — like, say, Enter the Dragon (1973). You behold Bruce Lee, with his switchblade…
Blind Man
A world-weary cop tracks a ruthless, visually handicapped killer in Blind Man (A l’aveugle), the latest serving of B-sized schmaltz from producer Luc Besson and his Paris-based mini-major EuropaCorp. Directed by Xavier Palud (Them, The Eye) and written by genre…
Creature
Straddling the thick line between SyFy Channel Original Movie and theatrical release quality comes Creature, a film perhaps best described as “the typical redneck cultist half-man/half-alligator movie.” Oh sure, it sounds kind of unique on paper (if “kind of unique”…
John Carter Flop
“John Carter” is now an official flop. The Walt Disney Co. on Monday acknowledged in a statement that the movie’s poor performance at the box office likely will force Disney to take a $200 million writedown. The company expects its…
Marijuana, Inc.
MARIJUANA, INC. (otc-pink:HEMP) is proud to announce that agreements have been reached with Hal J. Lewis and Glass Slipper Studio of Los Angeles, CA in the structuring of MarijuanaInc.TV, a division of Marijuana, Inc. Hal J. Lewis has been serving…
The FP
Crude, sketchy and scattershot, “The FP” wants desperately to win the love of cult- and B-movie lovers everywhere. A parody of 1980s sports dramas (like “Kickboxer”) and ’70s stoner action pictures (“The Warriors”), with dashes of “Flashdance” glam and a…
Evil Beauties of Cinema
Theda Bara was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, as Theodosia Goodman, on July 29, 1885. She was the daughter of a local tailor and his wife. As a teenager Theda was interested in the theatrical arts and once she finished high…
7 Films That Are not Ruined On A Smartphone
You’re reading this article on an iPhone right now, aren’t you? You’re sitting on the couch at home, or maybe you’re waiting for a film to start, idly passing the desperately vacant seconds with your handheld computer. It’s likely you’re…
Franco Nero
Blue-eyed well-built Italian actor Franco Nero, once was a painting photographer, when he was discovered as an actor by director John Huston. Grew up in provincial northern Italian town in the family of a strict police sergeant, Nero got on…
Cotton Comes To Harlem
Ossie Davis makes his directorial debut a smashing success in the trend-setting action crime comedy Cotton Comes To Harlem. Coffin Ed (Raymond St. Jacques) and Grave Digger Jones (Godfrey Cambridge), two plainclothesmen on the Harlem detail, are assigned to investigate…
Camel Spiders
The movie-factory known as Roger Corman Presents is in fine form with this schlock-tastic monster movie. Fast-paced and stupid-as-hell, this is a creature feature that won’t challenge you on any level. You want big bugs? You got ’em! You want…
Rating The Movies
A comedy version of the TV undercover drama “21 Jump Street” is sneaking up on critics and earning strong reviews in its opening weekend. Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill play police officers who pretend to be high school students to…
Battleship
Battleship director Peter Berg has a rather amusing way of admitting that many people are skeptical about a movie based on a Hasbro board game: ”It didn’t lend itself to the most logical interpretation for a film.” But at the…
Show It Again Sam
How will you celebrate the 70th anniversary of Casablanca? You’ve got three new options. You can see the cherished classic in a special presentation at movie theaters. You can buy a fresh edition to savor at home. And just for…
John Dies At The End
Even with its relatively limited resources, John Dies at the End creates a bigger and more involving world than most films with over 20 times its budget. This is one crazy world filled with even crazier characters. Writer/director Don Coscarelli‘s…
Nordic Genre-Film Invasion
Iron Sky is a movie about moon Nazis. The hook is brilliant — they had us at “moon Nazis” — but given that outrageous premise, the resulting film could easily have wound up as B-movie nonsense. Surprisingly, Iron Sky succeeds…
Leprechaun Redux
Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, Lionsgate has announced it will be rebooting the ‘Leprechaun’ franchise, which previously featured fan-favorite Warwick Davis as the titular… uh, monster. We’ve already seen famous cinematic boogeymen like Leatherface, Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers,…
Mumbai B
Rajshri Productions has a lot to answer for—the revival of the cloying joint family drama, preternaturally clever Pomeranians—but let’s give praise where it’s due. The banner has produced and distributed several interesting Hindi films over the years, many of which…