An American documentary directed by Penelope Spheeris.
The first film in this series, this includes interviews with bands and live performances from the Los Angeles punk scene.
Although this is not as good as the sequels, it did serve to set up the style and format of the series. As a base to start from, it served as something to build the other two films from. This entry goes band by band, with interviews and performances intertwined to show a sequential story. The second film was better because it was mostly organized by subject matter. The third film was organized even better to reveal it's story from what seems like nothing. Some cool scenes from this entry include Black Flag's home in the church. One member was a former brain surgeon and they talk about their relations with the hippies. The germs tell a story of a photo session with a corpse and play with their pet tarantula. Catholic Discipline's vocalist is very well-spoken and the section includes information about the magazine, Slash. The interview with X takes place during a tattoo session and Exene shows her collection of crazy flyers and pamphlets. There needed to be more identification of who is speaking and whether they are part of the band through the whole thing. Overall, I think the series got better as it went. I rate the starting point good because I know what came after it. I would recommend watching them all.
A British drama directed by Andrea Arnold, starring Michael Fassbender and Kierston Wareing.
A rebellious teenager wants to become a dancer. She drinks and dances in an empty flat after trying to free a horse. Her mother is dating a married man who becomes mutually attracted to the daughter. The young man who owns the horse begins a relationship with the main character as well.
Oh, man. Brits are crazy. The plot seemed like it was going nowhere most of the time, but had some hidden meaning that could probably only be understood fully by people in England. The characters all treated each other so badly, but were also very close. The exchange between the sisters at the end demonstrated this best: they hug and say "I hate you" to one another. I saw the sex scene coming a mile away, but won't ruin it. There was also a classic scene when the main character is in her mom's (and her) boyfriend's house. Lots of the video was shot handheld, but I think it kind of worked. The audio featured terrible music and close-mic breathing. I'm not calling the Brits wankers or anything, but their ideas are nearly incoherent to my Americanism. I was reminded of the works of Mike Leigh. Overall, a strange flick. I rate this adequate. You might want to watch it.
An American documentary directed by Penelope Spheeris.
The ever-inquisitive Penelope interviews punks in Los Angeles.
Amazing! The plot seemed to start out as desultory interviews, but turned out to be a cohesive group of people who told a tragic story. I was almost crying toward the end, but since I have no tears left, could not. The characters were definitive of the gutter punk lifestyle and offered revealing information in their interviews. Also, they were similar to me in many ways. The only thing that bothered me slightly was jerky camera movements in some of the B-roll. As funny as the Chris Holmes pool interview and Ozzy cooking breakfast were in #2 is how tragic and emotionally challenging this film was. Overall, an incredible and deep look into the community these people live in. I rate it best. WATCH IT!
An American horror directed by Al Adamson, starring J. Carrol Naish and Lon Chaney Jr.
A mad scientist is abducting young women to make a syrum for his werewolf or Dracula or Frankenstein. A woman's relative is missing and she teams up with hippies. It's a mess.
I got the wrong movie. I was looking for Jess Franco's Dracula Contra Frankenstein from the same year. This seemed just like a Franco flick until I started doing research for my review. The camera-work sucked, psychedelic soundtrack, amazing tits, you could have fooled me. It did not hold my attention at all. The video was so bad that I did not want to look at the screen. The audio was bad, but not horrid. Worst of all, Dracula was sleazy! He's not supposed to have facial hair. As usual, I could type trash about it longer than necessary. I rate this bad. DO NOT WATCH!!!
A Japanese horror thriller directed by Manabu Asou.
A group of college students on a class trip receive messages on their phones from a girl who they used to pick on. The messages indicate that the receiver will die soon. One student reveals a secret about her past that changes the message sending girl.
This was not so hot. The plot went almost nowhere. It was coherent, but one of the more static plots I've seen. The characters were pitifully shallow. It may have been a "lost in translation" issue there. The video was alright, but nothing stood out as being good. I won't comment on the audio because it was in Japanese, but the subtitles that came with the version I watched were horrible. Overall, a lackluster and mediocre film. I rate it tolerable.
A Spanish French thriller directed by Jesus Franco, starring Howard Vernon and Paul Muller.
A young woman goes to visit her crazy family for the reading of her father's will.
I have a feeling that Jesus Franco either did not want to make good movies or had a vastly different definition of "good" from mine. The little plot there was in this mostly didn't make sense. I could positively identify two characters. Maybe more if I really tried. The pacing dragged sluggishly through even the shortest scenes. Video was artsy, but not in a good way. It seemed very much a product of the time, a '70s film to only be viewed in the '70s. The audio was in English. Soundtrack music fit Jesus Franco's style, being similar to some Russ Meyer flicks and Cannibal Holocaust. The scene depicted above was a tease. That means no, she did not use this item for it's intended purpose. Overall, just like every other Jesus Franco film I've seen. I rate this poor.
A Danish American science fiction action directed by Albert Pyun, starring Sue Price.
A genetic mutant's mother flees the future with her baby and travels back in time to 1980s Africa. The mother is killed, but the daughter is raised by an African tribe to be a warrior. A monster/cyborg from the future finds the mutant woman. Conflict ensues.
This was pretty crappy. The plot made almost no sense at all and was not communicated very clearly. Only the main character had a name. I think this illustrates how little character development there was. Sue Price had not reached the level of bodybuilding in which we see her in Nemesis 4, so she still looked female and not like He-Man. The video looked so bad that it was almost TROMA-esque and the audio was no better. The special effects were poorly done, but they included a ripple effect around the antagonist and a magic knife. The subtitles that I got were crap and this made a working knowledge of African language necessary to understand the first third of the film. Overall, you would really be better off watching something else. I rate this poor.
