The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
Roger Corman frequently gets a hard time from misguided movie snobs who look down on b-grade and exploitation movies. While Corman undoubtedly was involved in more than his fair share of silly schlock (usually as a producer rather than a…
The Secret Invasion (1964)
This film cut out much of the extra stuff that was in the Dirty Dozen. It also did not have a maggot character like Savalas played in the dozen. The film had a few unexpected turns and did not turn…
Death Force (1978)
Like the case with so many “notoriously awful” Z-grade exploitation directors, I have a love/hate relationship with Cirio H. Santiago. Of all that movies that I have seen of him, I honestly couldn’t award any with a rating higher than…
Goliath and the Barbarians (1959)
This is probably the guiltiest pleasure of any of the late 50’s, early 60’s European peplum movies. Released in the US by American International Pictures (under the supervision of Arkoff and Nicholson), this picture was an amazing box-office coup for…
The Dying Of Hollywood
There was an article last weekend in The New York Times that stated the obvious, Old Hollywood was dead. They were right. We are witnessing the purposeful erosion of the theatrical experience by a group of companies who seek only…
Detroit 9000 (1973)
“Lieutenant Danny Bassett” (Alex Rocco) has just been handed an extremely volatile case involving some burglars who have stolen approximately $4 million in cash and jewels from a fund-raiser being hosted of a black Detroit congressman. There is no way…
Slaughter’s Big Rip-Off (1973)
Of the two Slaughter movies, this is the better and even though its hardly a Schindlers list in complexity it is bloody funny. All the men are the goodies or the baddies and the women are all just Hos and…
Tank Battalion (1958)
This movie begins with a single American tank participating in combat and suffering from gear problems. As a result the crew of four is ordered to return to base for repairs. When they get back the story evolves into a…
Dillinger (1973)
This is still the definitive biography of John Dillinger on film. I just saw Mann’s Public Enemies – this film blows that one away. Forgive me for quoting my own review of Mann’s film: “Milius, taking his cue from “Bonnie…
Inn of the Frightened People (1971)
“Revenge” (also called “Inn of the Frightened People”) is a rather limp thriller. It had the makings of a very good film but muddled writing and irrational characters made this one tough going. The story begins with a young lady…
High School Hellcats (1958)
Essentially it’s a classic exploitation film from the 50’s. Good girl hanging with the wrong crowd in order to fit in, toss in a little romance, and some inevitable violence. Overall, a classic film for those in love with the…
A Small Town in Texas (1976)
In the 1970s there were a lot of these grade-B, drive-in type movies set in rural Southern locations. Typically, there was a sheriff, a youngish protagonist, lots of car chase action, and some kind of conflict involving the sheriff and…
Empire Of The Ants (1977)
Joan Collins plays a real estate con woman who takes a group of people to the future sight of a “great” beach front property. What they don’t know is that a company has been pouring toxic waste in the ocean…
Empire of the Ants (1977)
Joan Collins plays a real estate con woman who takes a group of people to the future sight of a “great” beach front property. What they don’t know is that a company has been pouring toxic waste in the ocean…
Heavy Traffic (1973)
Heavy Traffic is only known by the hardcore Ralph Bakshi fan base and the occasional art house folk, but not by much else. Its probably due to its notorious stamp of an X rating and its inclusion of countless ethnic…
Recapturing The Movie Audience
It was mid-June in 1981. I was standing in front of the Palace Theater, a 1,875 seat movie palace that was built in 1921. A line was forming quickly, and I was probably number 60. Down the mall on which…
Burial Ground: The Nights of Terror (1981)
‘The Nights Of Terror’ (which is its real English name) is one of the more forgotten Italian Zombie-flicks that they were churning out like madmen in the early eighties. The story is simple but effective, three couples is arriving at…
Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010)
This is seriously one of the funniest comedies ever. I’ve shown this movie to many friends and everyone’s always laughing like hell with tears running from their eyes. This should’ve been marketed more though, I don’t see why this wouldn’t…
Divorce Movie Style
There are times unfortunately in any form of human relationship where you have to do an assessment and realize, this is not working. Sometimes the relationship has become abusive, dysfunctional, or simply there is no longer the intent to move…
Roller Blade (1986)
Some friends and I have watched many terrible films, but this is the absolute pinnacle of C-movie grandeur. It contains awful acting, a porn-quality soundtrack, poorly overdubbed speech (in some of which the actors forgot their exact words, so you…