When you watch enough noir, you get used to seeing somebody tailing another and suddenly having to duck behind something. Usually, the pursuer conceals themselves behind the corner of a building, or a pillar, or in a doorway. But 1954’s Cry Vengeance has the only occurrence I have seen of somebody hiding behind a totem […]
Movie: Forty Acre Feud (1965)
When I was growing up, I was marinated in a constant stream of country music my grandparents played. Their tastes ran largely to the 1960’s and earlier. It is only now, with the benefit of hindsight that I can see their choices weren’t that bad overall. That said, I hated the music at the time […]
Movie: The Giant Claw (1957)
The first three movies in the blu-ray box set Cold War Creatures: Four Films from Sam Katzman truly astonished me. One was a unique horror/sci-fi/noir hybrid, another reinvented the werewolf trope. The last was a feature about undead pirates and which had the dreamlike vibe of I Walked with a Zombie. The fourth picture is […]
Movie: Cry Danger (1951)
Is there anything more instantly noir than trains? Probably the only genre with a stronger association with that mode of transport is the western. 1951’s Cry Danger has its opening titles over various footage of trains in motion. It is a signal we are in noir territory, and the film that follows is one of […]
Movie: White Lightnin’ Road (1964)
A slightly deflated blow-up sex doll of Marilyn Monroe covered in a thick layer of Vasoline. A mentally-challenged toddler in a platinum-blonde fright wig, mouth agape at all times. These are but a couple of the images that came to mind watching Arline Hunter in 1964’s White Lightnin’ Road. This picture is the deep-fried Twinkie […]
Movie: Cold Heaven (1991)
Mark Harmon is a man with some issues in 1991’s Cold Heaven. First, he’s fifth billed in the opening credits. Even worse, his character keeps experiencing brief intervals of death. I will call his illness “necrolepsy”. His first death happens after he is struck by a boat while he and wife Theresa Russell are vacationing […]
Movie: Zombies of Mora Tau (1957)
Until recently, I had never seen another zombie movie that captured the weird unearthliness of I Walked with a Zombie. 1957’s Zombies of Mora Tau is not as good as that picture, but it is the only other zombie film I have seen with a similarly dreamlike vibe. Adding to that sensation is the locale, […]
Movie: Please Don’t Touch Me (1963)
This is yet another movie (to use the term loosely) from the Ormond Family box set issued by Powerhouse/Indicator. I have noticed patriarch Ron Ormond tends to make what I am starting to think of as “meatloaf movies”. The idea is, you take something you already have (like the acquired African vacation footage in Untamed […]
Movie: Dreamchild (1985)
I’m not sure which is creepier in 1985’s Dreamchild: Jim Henson’s puppet creatures or Ian Holm’s twitchy portrayal of Lewis Carroll. Carroll, whose real name was Charles Dodgson, was discovered to have possessed nude photos he had taken of young girls. It was difficult to put that out of my mind while watching a man […]
Movie: The Werewolf (1956)
Everybody knows lycanthropes transform under the light of a full moon and that they can only be killed by a silver bullet. Apparently, nobody informed the talent behind 1956’s The Werewolf, because here is a film that plays by an entirely different set of rules. This couldn’t have happened at a better time, as this […]
Movie: Untamed Mistress (1956)
There is a bizarre supermarket in Ohio, a sprawling complex with a jungle theme. Jungle Jim’s has a ridiculously artificial scene on the outside, situated between the entrance and exit. It’s like those sad, set-bound “Africa” sets of so many adventure movies from the 1930’s through the 1960’s. There’s even a loudspeaker saying inane crap […]
Movie: The Menu (2022)
My wife and I had the good fortune to eat at a restaurant awarded with five Mobil stars for several consecutive years. It is closed now, but we had scrimped and saved enough to dine there three times. To their credit, everybody at the establishment were courteous, and we were in turn. I’m sure they […]
Movie: Creature with the Atom Brain (1955)
1955’s Creature with the Atom Brain is a curiosity. I thought I was just getting a typical 1950’s sci-fi b-movie. Instead, I got a weird mix of horror, sci-fi and noir. It especially feels like the last of those, as much of its focus is on police detectives investigating crimes committed by a gang leader […]
Movie: Bandits (2001)
I have seen many movies where the actors appear to be having a miserable time and so I had trouble connecting with the feature. 2001’s heist comedy Bandits has the exact opposite problem: the actors appear to be having a great time, to the extent it is like watching a party to which the audience […]
10/10/10
It is impossible for me to forget the day one of my favorite people I have ever known walked into my life. The date is easy to remember: October 10, 2010. It was a Sunday, and we were returning home from buying groceries. With only about a mile left to go, I saw a figure […]