Society

This horror film seeks to make a clear statement on 'Society' in a similar way the earlier reviewed, They Live does.

Directed by Brian Yuzna (Bride of Re-Animator & Beyond Re-Animator) and starring Billy Warlock (the small weedy Baywatch bloke, the one you couldn't imagine getting any girls, but got to hang out with Pamela Anderson et al) as the son of a wealthy family, overlooked despite his school boy popularity and who is constantly reassured by his father, mother, sister and therapist that one day, he will make a valuable contribution to 'Society'.

Very enjoyable, on the same scale as Stuff and other vague horrors from the 1980's, that while often being unoriginal, occasionally manage to find that accidental niche and captivate the cult/b-movie fan base.

Fun Fact: Special effects (which are superb!-winner of 'best make-up' at the 1990 Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film) by Screaming Mad George.
Also, a flop in the US, well received in Europe.

Starchaser-Legend of Orin 3D

Now, whether you embraced this animated, Sci-fi, Star Wars veiled parody/homage in full on 1985, 3D majesty or, as I did, in regular terrestrial analogue, this film is quite the treat.

As one of the first films to mix traditional animation and computer, this feature follows the lives of a society of slaves, mining for red crystals in the bowels of a mutant world. One day, a young man named Orin happens to come across the hilt to a sword (Think Light Saber) buried in the ore, who's blade is all shiny and magical. He decides to use it to slaughter some of the guards and escape to the surface, then slaughter some mutants (Human/robot things), then take off to see the Universe in a space ship with a fella that's a bit like Han Solo.

Ignore the huge rip off, watch it as a 3D treat (I would if I could find that version) and revel in the delight that is 80's Sci-fi!

Fun Fact: The first animated 3D feature, spending a whole 17 days in the cinemas.

  

Monster Squad

One day in every century, the forces of good and evil are in alignment...on that day, evil will rise.

The Good- a gang of kids and Van Helsing (Scary German Guy).

The Bad- Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster (Frankie), The Mummy, an amphibious Gill-man and a Were-wolf.

No Ugly...well, some ugly.

Think Stand by Me meets The Goonies...with monsters

A rather large flop (see below), although given the subject matter and the legion of fans, Cult status was assured.

Budget: $12,000,000
Gross: $3,769,990

Fun Fact: the remake is currently in production...what a surprise.

Battle Beyond the Stars

Here's another one of those films off the 80's Sci-fi production line.

Based very heavily on Seven Samurai, this feature follows the adventures of a rag tag group of mercenaries, recruited to do battle with an evil invader and save a pacifist planet.

Produced by Roger Corman, this one happens to have George Peppard (A-Team), Robert Vaughn (The Man from U.N.C.L.E & The Towering Inferno), John Saxon (Enter the Dragon) and Richard Thomas (The Waltons)...meaning that is where all the budget went. The visuals are bog standard at best and the sound effects are directly lifted from Star Wars (the open door sound being used as engine ignition noise).

It's a B-movie because it's by Roger Corman and it's simply because it is so tragic that it gets this write up.

Budget: $2,000,000
Gross: $11,000,000 +

Fun Fact: a prequel comic book, based on the adventures of an elderly character (similar to Obi-Wan Kenobi) is in production.

Care Bears-The Movie

Truly tragic!

I'm not kidding.

Having seen this film (based on the hugely successful TV series) as a child, I felt I might be able to review it based entirely on memory...to my infinite sadness, I could not. As such, I watched it the other day, for the first time in over twenty years and strangely enough, not for only the second time. I seem to remember viewing this monstrosity of a children's film at least three times as a deluded child.

I say watch...view in terror is a much more accurate description and when I say view, I'll be honest, I bearly (bearly, ha haaa) made it past the ten minute mark and then swiftly jumped through scene after scene and onto the delightful end, delightful only because it was the end.

If you have failed to notice the tone of this review then I sentence you to 76 minutes, being tortured by Mickey Rooney and his Care Bear chums.

It's a dire film.

The quick, quick review...here goes...

Care Bears (bears with symbols in their chests-like rainbows that fire out and infect folk), live in the clouds (the kingdom of 'Care-a-lot') and pop down to the land to do good things. Very sweetness and light, then they come across an evil magic book and have to fight.

Bad, bad, baaaaaaaaad!

Budget: $2,000,000
Gross: (dear God how?!) $22,934,662

Fact (not fun): Care Bears II-The New Generation grossed $8,540,346, followed by the third film- Care Bears- Adventure in Wonderland, the forth, Care Bears- Journey to Joke-a-Lot, the fifth- The Care Bear's Big Wish Movie (tag line- 'It's the all new movie you've been waiting for'), the sixth film- Care Bears Oopsy Does It! and the seventh (shot in 2007), Care Bears- Share Bear Shines.

The Blues Brothers

"...ya get ma cheese whip boy?!"

Just one of the many superb lines that The Blues Brothers has left for cinematic posterity.

Starring Dan Ackroyd (Elwood Blues) and John Belushi (Jake Blues), as two brothers, raised in an orphanage, on blues music by Cab Calloway, tormented by the mother superior running the religious home and destined for a life as performers and prison dwellers.

The opening scene spells out the temperature of the film, focusing on the release of "Joliet" Jake Blues from prison and his collection at the gate by his brother, in a retired police car.

Included in this Cult of cult films are, the (until very recently) biggest car chase/crash scene in cinema history, Carrie Fisher, John Candy, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, Chaka Khan (soloist in Brown's choir), Sherman Tanks, Bazooka fire and M16 machine gun fire (both by Fisher), Twiggy, Pee-Wee Herman (Pre-Pee-Wee), Frank Oz (Yoda), Kathleen Freeman, a Picasso statue and even a cameo from Steven "the all powerful" Spielberg.

Filmed in 1980, on a budget of $27,000,000 by director John Landis (National Lampoon's Animal House & Spies Like Us), this musical, romped home to a staggering $115,229,890 at the box office.

Fun Fact: John Landis worked as Assistant Director on Kelly's Heroes.

Harvey

Coasting happily between the worlds of classic and cult, Harvey is without doubt one of the films that should be recommended to the seriously depressed. A cure for all that ails ya!

Starring James Stewart (Legend) as Elwood P.Dowd, a very happy, contented and eccentric man, living with his sister (Josephine Hull) and her daughter, and it just so happens, has a Pooka for a friend.

A Pooka is a benign yet mischievous creature from Celtic mythology, able to take many different forms...on this occasion, a rabbit, white, 6' 3.5" tall and named Harvey...he's also only visible to those whom it wants to be, those that want to believe.

Naturally, this 'mental issue' that Elwood 'suffers', causes stress for both his sister and niece, given their struggles to reach the upper levels of society and promptly, they incarcerate him in the local sanatorium.

The beauty of this film is firmly routed in it's imagination. Simplicity (no effects), joy, comedy and realization that more-over, just a smile is enough.

Fun Fact: Best Actress Award-Josephine Hull, 1950 Academy Awards, Best Actor Nomination-James Stewart.