What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Three Men in a Boat (1956)

This Victorian set comedy has quite a lot of charm once everyone gets out of Hampton Court maze in what is a silly and overlong sequence and we finally get Laurence Harvey, Jimmy Edwards and David Tomlinson partaking in their boat holiday up the Thames to Oxford.

The guys are very amiable and the three parasol toting girls (Shirley Eaton, Lisa Gastoni and Jill Ireland) they try and hook up with as radiant as the morning sun. The scrapes they get into messing about on the river have that quaint nostalgic appeal. However it's the lovable Terrier in the boat with them that steals every scene from under their noses.

Definitely of it's time but an enjoyable, undemanding rewatch all the same. I'm still trying to work out why the BBFC would up it's rating from U to PG for the recent Blu-ray release.

[Frankie Teardrop]

ATTACK OF THE BEAST CREATURES - Every now and then I find what I'm looking for. Some people in a dinghy escape a sinking cruiser and end up stranded on an island where face-melting pools of acid aren't the biggest problem. The Beast Creatures of the title are basically plastic figurines with glowing eyes who, when they come at you, look as if they've just been thrown by a crew member who's more or less kept themselves off-camera. Usually, that kind of thing can only be played for laughs; here, it's a matter of the utmost gravity! I like that. 'Attack Of The Beast Creatures', like 'The Last Slumber Party', has massive outsider charisma. Most of it is just people wandering through endless greenery - those are the best bits! I'm not really being flippant, the key ingredient that elevates this perpetual walkabout from soporific to hypnotic is the lovely, drifty, synthesiser score, which actually made me feel a bit high at points.

DEADLY DREAMS - A man whose dreams are stalked by a figure in a wolf mask suspects his friend of playing mind games when the nightmare starts to invade his waking life. 'Deadly Dreams' was a nice find, one I was unaware of prior to stumbling upon it on Youtube the other day. It's interesting in that it plays a neo-noirish scenario off against genre tropes that were popular around the time (late eighties), namely the kind of dream horror riffs that followed in the footsteps of ANOES. Whether what's going on is supernatural or psychological isn't spelled out till the nicely cynical ending, but the film is really quite gripping when it shows Mitchell Anderson in the throes of utter paranoia. Well worth a look.

FRIGHT NIGHT 2 - Charlie Brewster is back, this time on the receiving end of vampiric seduction courtesy of Julie Carmen. He's convinced it's not really happening and determined to put all this crucifix and garlic bollocks away, but Roddy McDowall knows better. Although it's not quite the measure of the original, FN2 is a fun ride and offers lots of the kind of music-video type visuals that should please fans of the eighties (rooms full of candles, mist and filtered lighting are never far from my heart). Along with all that come the expected prosthetic moments, among them an intimidating-looking vamp on skates, a couple of mushy transformations and an unexpectedly Fulci-esque geyser of maggots at the end.

THE OGRE - I remember seeing 'The Ogre' around in rental shops when I was a kid and wondering about it. It seemed to slip off my Italian horror radar till I caught up with it on Youtube (again) a couple of days ago. From Lamberto Bava, and not his crowning moment, but it's brimming with stuff that I'm into. A writer revisits the nightmares of her youth whilst on holiday in a massive castle, probably not counting on there being a cellar with a huge pulsating Cronenbergian chrysalis thing in it (there's no point asking "why?" with that one, I think they just wanted a transformation bit to cash in on 'The Fly'... or maybe 'Xtro'!) There's something of the fairy tale about it, a sort of loose 'Beauty And The Beast' theme, plenty of cheap cobwebby sets and some nice late eighties synthesiser action from maestro Simon Boswell. Makes no sense, very much enjoyed.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Other than Fright Night 2 i haven't seen any of those, Frankie. But i do recall the artwork of The Ogre - Sort of a hairy hand holding a key by a gate or door or something.

[Frankie Teardrop]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Other than Fright Night 2 i haven't seen any of those, Frankie. But i do recall the artwork of The Ogre - Sort of a hairy hand holding a key by a gate or door or something.

Yeah, the front cover, I remember it on the shelf of the poxy video section of a service station I used to frequent. Gone are the days. An obvious point I know, but it's strange how 'known' these films are now, they used to seem so opaque and full of mystery.

[nicholasrope]

Boogie Nights

Set in the 70's-80's Porn Scenes, this Film follows a young Actor as he enters the Porn World. Guided by veteran Director (Burt Reynolds) Actress (Julianne Moore) Friend (John C. Reilly) and fellow Actress (Heather Graham) he encounters success and then a fall from grace. Also starring Don Cheddle and William H. Macy this is a good Film but don't think it's the great Film that it was made out to be. It does have a great Soundtrack however as well as performances especially from Reynolds.

Apparently Reynolds was a hot favorite for an Oscar but he was unhappy about the Film and/or performance and didn't do any publicity which cost him.

Look Who's Talking Too

The Family is back and Mikey gets a Sister but his Parents start having Martial Problems. It's entertaining but really short, again Bruce Willis excels with the sarcastic one liners. One scene that did get me was the montage scene of the Parents doting on Julie but shouting at Mikey with Mikey pulling the sad expressions.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Circle of Danger (1951)

Ray Milland stars as an American who comes to England after the war to investigate the death of his brother who he thinks died in suspicious circumstances whilst on a commando mission during a war time operation in France.

Directed by the great Jacques Tourneur, Circle of Danger is a tightly plotted mystery that covers the length of Britain from London to the Scottish Highlands. Despite some initial intrigue it soon develops that Milland's character is never in any real danger as he does his investigating and it's only thanks to Milland's solid performance, alongside Patricia Roc and Marius Goring, that any interest is maintained until we get to a squib so damp as a finale it threatens to drown us.

It's also a finale that's so uneventful i had to rewatch it to see if i'd missed something vital in the build up. I hadn't! Having said that it's still enjoyable all the same but the real moral of the story is don't go on a date with Ray Milland. He'll always be late...or worse. Stand you up.

Network's transfer is superb. The dvd genuinely sparkles.

[Dave Boy]

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MY BLOODY VALENTINE (1981)

So, it was that time of the year again to watch this movie. That came along fast!
Always an enjoyable watch and great to see the film now in it's uncut form. The head being ripped off in the shaft is a great moment, ha ha!
Released in the UK on a double bill with THE FUNHOUSE, my brother got to go and see it and I remember him talking about both the films on his return.

"Chief, listen to me. You have to go to the mine! We were having a party and Harry Warden started killing everybody"!

[peter alex]

its a shame that my bloody valentine as never had a blu-ray release in the UK i thought that someone would have released it in the UK by now.

[Rob4]

Originally Posted by peter alex

its a shame that my bloody valentine as never had a blu-ray release in the UK i thought that someone would have released it in the UK by now.

It is a remarkable omission. Is it a rights issue?

[Rob4]

Modesty Blaise (1966)

An absolute hot mess of a film! It's a spoof that misses the mark by a country mile with unfunny jokes, embarrassing songs, ridiculous slapstick, incomprehensible plot: I could go on but there's no point...

With just the occasional pop-art set to keep ones interest this is one to avoid...