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Reviews
Marriage Killer (2019)
A major loophoke
Did the police think of checking for fingerprints on the golf clue weapon? The wife never touched ,the crazy lady did
Terror Tales (2016)
Terror fails
Three stories stretched out beyond the !imit with unsatisfactory conclusions and a lame tie together that rips off creepshow and stories that rip off the exorcist .It hides its lack of originality with gross out scenes and repetitive violence.
UFO: Target Earth (1974)
Home movie science fiction
There was once a show on a small local network called the all night show which featured four half hour shows. One was called UFO update which featured people discussing their actual encounters with UFOs.This show also featured a segment called the master plan which featured voices reciting dialogue over pictures and computer images featuring rotoscoping and shadow images. This movie is on the same level with its low budget production featuring similar dialogue and photography. I remember reading in TV guide years ago in a review for this movie,which did once play on the Cbs late movie before being forever relegated to the local channels fright night slot, that this film cost a microscopic $40000 to make and played in the local drive ins {probably at the bottom of a triple feature}and made $1000000 in return.Nowadays movies like this come in 50 movies on 13 DVD box sets.This could help people have retro drive in movie nights
Positive I.D. (1986)
Split personality
This is another film of the low budget, barely released,but worth the trouble to look for genre of independent films. A brutally raped woman ,trying to adjust to the endless trauma,is appalled to find her convicted attacker is released early on a plea bargain. Upon touching bases in her daily routines,she discovers different things she can do to escape her mundane housewife and take on a completely different persona to help her resume a full life. This film moves at a steady speed and makes it worth the time it takes to get to its climax and delivers it before just before you are ready to predict it. The film is like a close friend saying they found something and having you come and look ,after taking a long walk to get there,surprising you with his discovery.
The Kirlian Witness (1978)
The Plants are Watching
Another movie that flew under the radar and received little or no recognition.This film tells the story of a pretty young photographer who uses a special kind of photography to communicate with her plants an solve the murder of her sister. This is a low budget and dimly lit production that moves at a slow pace taking the time to help you get into the subject matter and help to buy and accept the premise so you should be patient and stay with it. The film does not totally endorse this method of crime solving because she has to ,in a way, cover her tracks. So,all in all this film is an interesting change of pace of the endless shootemups because it contains minimal violence and a real feel for city life and alternative solutions
Drive-In (1976)
Throwback to the past
Once upon a time there were drive-in movies which provided double and even triple features.including cartoons,and endless intermission ads between the films,and snack bars which sold a coil shaped mosquito repellant called Pic.This film captures that time even though it features only one movie called Disaster 75 which beat airplane to the punch in parody of Airport and Posidion Adventure type movies.It does include one of those intermission ads {when it was shown on ABC-TV of course they took a commercial break}.The film includes as its characters a gang member,the good guy and the lady he defends,a pair of inept robbers,and many more who make this night in Texas a real fun night at the movies
Adam at Six A.M. (1970)
California teacher goes midwest
An early Micheal Douglas {before the Streets of San Francisco}portrays him as a college professor who goes midwest on the summer break and takes a job doing "mans work". Along the way he meets a pretty young lady who he tries to pry away from her from her vice-like closely knit family.His experiences include being "branded" by one of the machines,getting in the middle of a barroom brawl,poison ivy but his biggest hardship is after proposing to his girlfriend ,trying to at least a word or idea about the wedding the honeymoon,where they will live afterwards etc. This film ends with a large container of vanilla ice cream being tossed out a convertible.this symbolizes the blandness of the family.
Get Crazy (1983)
Singers parody singers
Get crazy is a dropped on its head,spun in the cotton candy machine film.Based on the Fillmore east,it features Lou Reed aping Bob Dylan,Howard Kaylan aping Jerry Garcia,Malcolm Macdowell channeling Mick Jagger etc.director Allen Arkush worked at the Fillmore,so he based his experience on the screenplay,injecting a dose of rock and roll high school in the mix. The supporting cast includes Bobby Sherman and Fabian as henchmen who are helping to sabotage the new years eve party so their boss can build on the property.Mary Woronov and the late Paul Bartel {Eating raoul}round out the cast.Watch for the marijuana cigarette spectator who gets smaller as the film goes by.
Plague (1979)
plague has plaque
A low budget,murky filmed "thriller" A virus escapes from a compound and threatens to wipe out the entire population.It is spread by an escaped quarantined women who infects everyone she comes in contact with,air vents etc. The acting in this film is so bad that the best performance is by a Hertz rent-a car lady who does not speak but registers the most emotion-slight impatience waiting for the escaped lady to find her credit card,a smile when she finds it,and confusion when she comes back to the counter to find the lady has disappeared{she sees a police car pull up outside}.The fugitive lady smirks throughout the the film ,totally ignorant of what shes done. This film is in need of a panacea
Amateur Night (1986)
between Idol and Gong
A group of people compete on an amateur night in a club for the a grand prize.This is a film where the parts add up to more than a whole.
The acts are the best part of the film.The characters include a millionaire who ,upon learning he has a fatal disease, decides to enjoy the things he never had time for - including doing dead on impressions of famous people at the contest.Other acts include a gospel inspired songstress,a married couple who bicker constantly through their number,and a drunk adolescent who is the only act gong ed.
This obscure film I found at a pharmacy and I have never seen it ever on TV ,cable or any other video store.It is incomplete because we do not know who the winner is,but the aspiring talent and the character of the good hearted millionaire help it roll by.
Sam's Song (1969)
a hack job
This film was incoherently reedited as the swap.The original film made more sense.
The film starts with a scene of police cars with flashing lights as one of the officers says that this man is going to explain what happened. then it goes to the beginning. DeNiro plays a tired film editor who spends a weekend with some friends on Long Island as their beach side mansion with swimming pool.The first is a potpourri of poolside shenanigans including DeNiro running off with the pretty lady and going on the beach where they play mock war games,lay down on the beach where he scratches her back,wind up in the lighthouse where they smoke a joint wrapped in a Bible page and of course make love. The second happens on a boat where the married couple are unhappy over the husbands infidelity leading to what happens at the start.
none of this is evident in the Swap which was just a patch job with very little Deniro. I cannot understand why. This swap only gets a 3 ,Sams Song gets a 7
Headin' for Broadway (1980)
a nice try
This film is a less pretense than chorus line,but not as entertaining as Fame. It sets up and unfolds in sort of a predictable fashion as it presents a story of four wannabees trying out for Broadway-A country girl who is always the star of the local plays,a Los Angeles hot shot, a brooklyn street dancer and a poor girl from harlem.One makes it,one takes a secondary role,one doesn't make it but has something to fall back on,and one dosen't make it and loses something else in the process.
This film has its moments but never really reaches a climax. Still with so many people addicted to American Idol and Dancin with the stars,this film deserves at least another look
Rush It (1978)
Best of the bike delivery films
a breath of fresh air.This is a breezy film of a bike delivery lady looking for love. It contains future stars of La Law,St elsewhere,Whos the boss in early performances.The star is an underrated actress named Judy Kahan.Her character is an always upbeat lady who ,despite holding a masters degree, seems to enjoy her job as the bike messenger.
The film is greatly supported by its New York locations and a bouncy soundtrack by Buzzy Linhart.It portrays everyday people and not cardboard characters,unlike the Kevin Bacon film ,quicksilver,which was a totally hokey story of a fallen Wall Street executive who loses everything and takes on a bike messenger job,only to rise again as a wall Street exec.
I declare Rush It the Best of the bike delivery films
Squares (1972)
riding tall in the saddle
A mixed match romantic movie featuring a hard luck rodeo rider and a Vasser dropout who picks him up along the way.a much deeper and honest story than most corny love stories.The two leads speak free flowing dialogue not stagy stuff.this film is also known as Riding Tall.