The Monkey Hu$tle (1976)
One has to remember, that with the introduction of Shaft and Superfly, Hollywood churned out one blaxploitation film after the other, whether the script and acting succeeded or not. During the 70’s, at the height of the blaxploitation film era,…
Spaced Out (1979)
Three gorgeous female aliens accidentally crash land their spaceship on earth, then try to hide their presence by kidnapping 3 men and a woman whom witnessed the crash, planning to hold them until they can make repairs and leave. But…
Hell Up in Harlem (1973)
I loved Larry Cohen and Fred Williamson’s previous collaboration ‘Black Caesar’, one of the toughest and most enjoyable movies of the early 70s blaxploitation boom. That movie was a great success and in the rush to cash in with a…
Gwendoline (1984)
This movie is so much fun for so many reasons. It has action, ridiculous dialogue, rampant sexism, a dash of gore, and very funny performances. There are many schools of thought that might say Tawny Kitaen’s performance was bad. I…
Dune Warriors (1991)
In another of his numerous 80s / 90s B movie assignments, David Carradine plays Michael, a lone wolf in a post-nuke desert. One day, he encounters a young woman (Jillian McWhirter, “After Midnight”) who hopes to hire some warriors to…
Space Raiders (1983)
This is the ultimate second-hand movie. Music, props, special effects and sets from Corman’s world of movies are assembled to create this coming of age tale. There are a few moments in the film that are kinda cool, though. The…
Passion Plantation (1976)
This somewhat turgid “Mandingo” knockoff by the same director who did the other principal Italian one of the era, ‘Mandinga,” certainly doesn’t skimp on the sexploitation. The plantation mistress (Emmanuelle, of course) is your standard racist, spoiled, blonde nymphomaniac who…
Equalizer 2000 (1987)
Prolific low-budget director Cirio H. Santiago made a career of directing low-budget genre pictures in the Philippines for US distributors and here brings to us his version of “The Road Warrior.” Musclebound stuntman/actor/martial artist Richard Norton (“Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars”…
The Movies: It’s All About People
On Fridays, before I write my essay I usually scan the news about exhibition, and then, of course, I call Buck Kolkmeyer. “So what do ya think” is usually how the conversation leads off and then Buck expounds on what…
Maharlika (1970)
Now to the movie and the “plot”: It begins with a scene reminiscent of the start-sequence in “Saving Private Ryan”, just without the same pace, good acting, nice effects, or a general point. It’s basically just some Japanese guys invading…
Deathstalker IV: Match of Titans (1991)
This is clearly the best of the Deathstalker series, much better than the first three. Rick Hill (Deathstalker 1) is back, this time with more filled out masculine features and physique. He and Dionara (Maria Ford), after generally being involved…
Savage Island (1985)
Women who have been captured and sold as slave labor to a South American emerald mine hatch a plan for revolution and revenge. What this film consists of is footage from “Escape from Hell” (1980) and “Hotel Paradise” (also 1980)…
Violent City (1970)
There’s absolutely no way that any movie can start off better than “Violent City”. Charlie Bronson on a yacht with a ravishing blond chick, then moving onto land where the couple immediately gets subjected to a wild car chase through…
Bruce Lee Fights Back from the Grave (1976)
An oriental Kung Fu expert named Wong Han (played by Bruce K.L. Lea) travels to America at the invite of his long-time friend and former Kung Fu school training partner only to learn his friend is now dead, apparently the…
Chamber of Horrors (1966)
“Chamber of Horrors” is deliciously absurd and tacky horror of the 1960s, and I love it wholeheartedly! The plot of the film was intended as the pilot for a TV-series, but eventually it was considered too gruesome and shocking for…
Chinese Godfather (1974)
I can’t believe Tarantino showed this in a festival. THE CHIVALROUS KNIGHT was made in 1973 and released in Hong Kong 7/12/1974, because the Kung-Fu movies were so many that often the distribution was delayed in order to have an…
Curse of the Faceless Man (1958)
When the ruins of Pompeli are searched, a stone man is recovered. He’s taken to a museum where he apparently attacks a woman, which puts her into a state of shock where it seems she has dreams to where she…
Devil’s Express (1976)
The working title of “Gang Wars” was “The Phantom of the Subway” but it was first released as “The Devil’s Express”.The film mixes blaxploitation genre,American martial arts and horror flick and does this with huge enthusiasm.The acting is mostly wooden…
Night of the Witches (1970)
Night of the Witches is a psychedelic seventies horror movie with some pretty interesting moments! A coven of witches lead by a woman named Cassandra, living in a cliffside mansion in California, sacrifice unsuspecting wanders based on what the zodiac…
Dracula, Prisoner of Frankenstein (1972)
At first the movie appears to be mainly strange images shot up close, but then the narration kicks in and the plot begins to make some sense. At two times the narration is ahead of the action. I’m sure the…