The Trailer Dump, Issue no.13

Here we find ourselves once again: me with the trailers, you with the wanting of the trailers. Have them, indulging in all their fresh squeezed delights.

Black Sunday (1960)

Bloody Pit of Horror (1965)

 

Interlude

 

Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974)

 

 

Looking Back at a Year of Repertory Hosting '11 (part 2)

And so here we find ourselves, staring down the barrel of 2012 with both hammers cocked and a twitchy inebriant manning the trigger which brings about a new year. Sincerely it's my hope that you look back at the year that was with delightful fondness but I understand if you need a little reminder about why you should appreciate the machinations of 2011. Before we delve into the second half of the year in horror, cult and scifi at The Colonial Theater, if you missed part one, check it out here and get up to speed.

Picking up were we left off, July is always an exciting month at The Colonial. In addition to the monthly First Friday Fright Night (FFFN) and Colonial Cult Cinema (CCC) shows, Blobfest is always held during the second weekend of the month this year's was one for the ages. It was also a sad time, a partings of ways. Bob Trate, creator and longtime host of FFFN, relocated to the greener pastures of Los Angeles but not before hosting one last film, the classicist of films: The Planet of the Apes.

With the departure of Mr.Trate, a gap was left to be filled. Joel Rickenback, host of eminent podcast You've Got Geek and local horror cinephile extraordinaire Nick Lombardo joined me (I'd been hosting the MST3K shows to this point) to continue to bring you a steady diet of the weird and wonderful. We also took this opportunity to refocus FFFN into a horror specific endeavor, spinning off cult, scifi, action and peculiar films into a new series dubbed Colonial Cult Cinema, which would kick off in August. We also made the conscious decision to only bring you films in 35mm print, the way they're meant to be seen (accept in the case of MST3K, which as a TV show was never actually committed to film and obviously baring print shipping issues). 

With all that having been said, let's bring you fully up to speed on 2011.

July

The Planet of the Apes - If it's possible to point out a film that holds up better than this one, I haven't come across it. This highly influential cultural touchstone is a phenomenal adventure which got even more love at the end of the month from the Exhumed Films crew, who ran the entire original Apes saga on the last day of the month. Happily, I attended both screenings.

MST3K episode #509 - The Girl in Lovers' Lane - This underrated episode marks the one year anniversary of our MST3K shows. Another invention exchange took place, this time more Gizmonic hopefuls strutted their homespun inventions. The winner? Charcoal boxer shorts which you never need change. Eeewww.

August
The Fog - No, not the remake. What's your boggle? John Carpenter's original masterpiece, which instilled in me the lifelong desire to live in a retrofitted lighthouse (I still want to). An all star cast, a perfectly crafted atmosphere, superb special effects and a master of film making at the top of his game, The Fog is a personal favorite of mine.

Jaws - Our most popular screening from 2010 makes a triumphant return to help kick off our Colonial Cult Cinema series and, just as before, it rocked the house. Side note: I love the voice over gentleman on this trailer. Love it.

September
Pieces - Despite the tag line in the trailer, Pieces really isn't exactly what you think that it is as depicted there. It's wacky, it's absurd, hell it's madcap. More than what it is, this film is an appetizer of that which we plan to bring you more of: slightly off the beaten track and more rarely screened in 35mm.

MST3K episode #1011 - The Horrors of Spider Island - Mike and the 'bots shred this former German nudie flick, which had all the naughty bits stripped out and a bad English dub track added before it was released into the American market. While this isn't as well remembered of an episode as some of the more popular ones, it is a personal favorite of mine and the riffing is super tight.

October
An American Werewolf in London - John Landis' monster man classic is a fantastic blend of humor and horror and contains the absolute coolest transformation ever captured, indeed it was revolutionary at the time. It was a sad night for the Phillies, who were knocked out of the playoffs while the film was unspooling. It's a good thing we had Landis to keep our mind off it. 

Friday the 13th - originally, this night was supposed to hold a screening of Walter Hill's amazing gang actioner, The Warriors, but the print for it was accidentally shipped to the wrong theater. Luckily, local print collector (and 1/4 of Exhumed Films) Harry Guerrero stepped in and with an rarely screened, pristine 35mm print of the UK cut of Friday the 13th. (we rescheduled The Warriors once the print was again available in November)
November
Nightbreed - One of our more unusual selections was undoubtably Clive Barker's seldom run Nightbreed. Why did we run it? Because you needed to see it. Because David Cronenberg plays an incredibly creepy and intelligent serial killer. Just because. Hopefully you didn't miss it. 

The Warriors - Ah! The harrowing tale of a group of hardcore soldiers, trapped miles behind enemy lines, forced to bop their way all the way back home. The Warriors is a venerated cult classic, with a passionate following. Many attended in costume. Awesome!

MST3K episode #424 - Manos: The Hands of Fate - This is the seminal episode, one of the most popular and most peculiar. The Satellite of Love crews' take has granted Manos it's own cult following which has led to a sequel, a hand puppet play (Manos: The Hands of Felt) and, most recently, a film restoration project. Not at all shabby for a film made by a fertilizer salesman on a bet.December
Silent Night, Deadly Night - The film that taught us not to be naughty, lest Santa punish us. Or maybe the lesson was that wicked nuns breed psycho serial killers. Perhaps the best lesson is to never steal a kid's sled in the middle of the night or you'll loose your head. Santa Nick welcomed the Yule tide revellers to the Colonial in true Christmas fashion and good times were had by all! (and to all a good night!)

Die Hard - If I had to choose a favorite Christmas film, this would undoubtably be it. It clicks on so many levels, I honestly can't think of one thing I'd change. Sadly, there was a print shipping error and we didn't find out until just the day before the show that we wouldn't have one (in fact the only one) in time for the show. And while we always want to show you a 35mm print, that simply wasn't possible. Rather than cancel the show, we projected it via Blu-ray and a packed house enjoyed Christmas Bruce Willis style.

It's been a crazy and exciting year for Horror, cult and Scifi film buffs this year and we're absolutely prepared to kick butt and take names in twenty-twelve. Here's what we've got on tap for you (this is just what I can share with you so far!)

First Friday Fright Night

Friday the 13th part VII - January 13th

My Bloody Valentine - February 3rd

Night of the Creeps - March 2nd

Colonial Cult Cinema

The Big Lebowski - January 20th

MST3K: Time Chasers - February 17th

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure - March 16th

MST3K: Mitchell - April 20th

The Room - May 18th

See you at the movies!

Looking Back at a Year of Repertory Hosting '11 (part 1)

As some of you may know, I help select and host repertory cult and horror film showings at the humblingly atmospheric Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville, PA. If you're unfamiliar with this spectacular venue, the Colonial is famously remembered as the theater featured in the 1958 Steve McQueen horror flick The Blob, which they gloriously celebrate each year with a weekend festival dubbed "Blobfest". As you can imagine, it's the perfect local for a monthly late night horror show, which was started in mid-2008 by then local cinofile, Bob Trate. First Friday Fright Night (FFFN) has been an enormous draw for the theater and has been going strong for the past three years.

I've been a rabid attendee since I first heard about it prior to their 3rd show, a 35mm print of the immensely popular Evil Dead, in June '08. In July 2010 I began hosting a bimonthly showing of Mystery Science Theater 3000 episodes which was not my first hosting duty at the Colonial but has grown to be my favorite (I love coming up with absurd, embarrassing and fun contests for the pre-show prizes!).

I'm bringing this up because it would become the jumping off point for an entirely separate cult film series (Colonial Cult Cinema) in the middle of this past year (which we'll discuss to in part 2 of this retrospective).

And so it's with all this in mind that I'd like to take a look back at all the cult and horror which has been lovingly showcased at the Colonial Theatre in 2011. Consider this my own "end of year list".

January

Dark City - Ah Dark City! Such a fantastic work, summoning qualities both noir and scifi then painting with a brush of gothic mystery- this flick is an amazing ride which didn't get the recognition it deserved upon release in 1998. The director's cut was screened on Blu-Ray, since there isn't a 35mm print of this version.




MST3K episode #813 "Jack Frost" - This Mike episode centers on lambasting a badly translated dub of what appears to be a beautifully shot Russo-Finnish fairy tale piece. As is typical of all the MST3K shows which I host, there was a pre-show contest for prizes. In this case, I held a "Ricochet-off", where those brave souls who joined me on stage had to out "Ricochet!" each other in the manner of Mike's invention from the Starfighters episode.



February

The Fifth Element - I adore this film. It's marvelous scifi never feels forced and all parts humor and action are as tightly woven strands, marking this as a crowd pleaser that holds up very well. And I'll just throw this out there: Chris Tucker at his absolute best.



March

In the Mouth of Madness - Our first true horror film of the year is commonly held, as host Bob Trate noted at the time, to be the last "good" John Carpenter film (I disagree, but we'll table that until another time). Drawing heavily from H.P. Lovecraft's body of work, we're treated to that special sort of madness which lies outside the limits of man's mortal bounds. Sam Neill turns in an amazing performance.




MST3K episode #417 "Crash of the Moons" - This wonderful episode contains exactly what I always think of when conjuring images of what MST3K means for me: Black and White 50's science fiction with cardboard sets and campy premise. Sure there are better episodes out there, but I dearly love the fun Joel and the bots' have with the adventures of space ranger Rocky Jones. Before the show our contest was an honest to goodness invention exchange. As I recall, the winner created the "Nerdvent Calendar" - in homage to both Advent calendars (with little gifts contained in each day) and all things geek leading up to Blobfest itself. Marvelous!



April

The Terminator - Our third scifi film of the year in the Fright Night spot is a true classic, catapulting it's director James Cameron and star Michael Biehn Arnold Schwarzenegger on to super stardom. Even better, the 35mm print was very clear and well preserved!



May

Maniac - This was an experience, more than just a screening. We were able to showcase a brand new 35mm print of this niche classic. If that wasn't cool enough, we had director William Lustig on hand. He both introduced the film and stuck around for an incredibly informative question and answer session at the conclusion (moderated by cohost to be Joel Rickenbach of You've Got Geek podcast fame). Even more fun for us was the chance to have dinner with Bill Lustig before the show. He was pleasant company and quite the affable chap! Hopefully he'll come back this year for Blobfest (he was floored when he found out he was hosting his movie at "The Blob theater"!)




MST3K episode #1008 "Final Justice" - This Joe Don Baker stinker is perfect fodder which we punctuated with a preshow Cowboy and/or JDB costume contest. Thankfully, no one dressed as Joe Don.



June

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzi across the 8th Dimension - Which is more an impossible situation? For me to do this film justice in simple text form or for you to never have seen it? This amazing original film works so many angles, you might think you're being taken in by some nefarious con. You are being taken for a ride, but you aren't being grifted out of anything but your ignorance. Topping off my first chance to see this gem in 35mm was a showcase of props and collectibles on display thanks to Film Buff Online writer (and dear friend), Rich Drees.

There you have it, part one of our year in repertory review for the Colonial Theatre. Look for part two coming shortly, detailing the changing of the guard that took place and how the Colonial Cult Cinema night took shape.

You've Got Five Minutes: Slasher Edition

In the unlikeliest of circumstances, you are about to find yourself trapped in a horror film. Since we're already accepting this strange scenario, let's take it one step further and examine the anatomy of survival.  Here's the setup: you're in your home, alone. It's night time and you have no phone or computer or if you do they won't work anyway. Through the intervention of some higher power (the writer) you've gleaned knowledge of the future.  In but five minutes' time, your movie scenes begin rolling. What preparations will you make to ensure your survival?

Today's featured sub genre is Slashers; that delightful ballet of creatively crafted kills, titillating teenage tender bits and men-come unstoppable killing machines. Here's what I'd do in my five minutes.

1. Break all of the mirrors - In everyday life, we utilize mirrors to assure ourselves we've configured our look correctly. In slasher flicks, however, they're an irresistible compulsion for film makers to cram in a brutal surprise attack. So, let's remove one of the cheap ways for the screen writer to slaughter me.
   
2. Disguise the circuit breaker box and power lines - Cutting the power is another slasher film technique that puts the audience on edge and makes it easier for the killer to approach for a surprise kill. Remove that power from their iron grasp: disguise the area where power lines enter the house in a Christmas lights display. Sure, it might be the middle of July, but which is worse: neighbors calling you tacky because of a holiday taboo or neighbors calling you tacky because they're standing in your congealed blood? Also construct a false wall in front of the fuse box ala Dawn of the Dead.
3. Eat high fiber cereal - Yet another cinematographic trick, usually cheaply employed in an attempted jump scare, is setting the camera extra close to the victim. This somehow shortens their view to a mere three feet, allowing an enormous monstrosity of meat and blades to be kissably closer than is otherwise possible. With a boat load of fiber in your system, you should be ready to cloud the air around you with noxious flatulence, pushing the camera man back several feet and giving your self several more precious seconds of reaction time.
4. Separate out your car key and place it in your pocket - When making your eventual wounded flight to the car, you've no time to fumble through a keyring full of metal. That gives your nemesis more time to yank your head off like a paper towel. So take that all important car key off the ring and place it in your dominant hand side pocket. As an added bonus, you won't fall on all your keys when taking inevitable tumbles whilst being pursued.

And that's about my five minutes. It's do or die time now. How would you spend your five preparatory minutes?

The 31 Days of Halloween: Day 30

Halloween is the best time of the year. It's a wonderfully indulgent time, where your inner ghoul is given societal license to be put on display. To celebrate it to it's wicked fullest, the Midnight Cheese will be posting every day in October with excellent ways to enjoy the season. Whether it's horror films, video games, books or activities, check back every day for some new Halloween fun.

Halloween

Maybe you thought this would be the film I spotlit for post 31, but while this isn't the best film about the holiday, it is one of most influential horror films of all time. This modestly budgeted film is the father of the modern slasher film and, in a rush to capitalize on a burgeoning craze, ushered in a brand new shift in the horror genre. This is thanks largely to an excellent and tight script, great camera work, a career defining performance from the well established Donald Pleasence and a fortune telling explosion by scream queen to be by Jamie Lee Curtis.

This top grossing independent film of all time is accompanied by director John Carpenter's hypnotic keyboard-synth soundtrack (which just kicked in as I'm writing this) and is the best use of a William Shatner mask ever. You guys know all this, I'm not telling you anything new here.

Halloween has become sacred yearly viewing during the season by horror nerds and has come to be a staple of AMC's Fear Fest. In fact, why are you still reading this? AMC is showing films from the series, starting with the first, all day beginning with the first at 9:30 am.

Start a new tradition or celebrate it again for the 30th time.

Arrow Video: 'The Funhouse' Blu Ray Review

Sometimes you fall in love with a movie right away. Half way through it you just think to yourself “Sold! This DVD is already bought”. Other times it isn’t until later that night in bed or the next day, after the movie has settled that you realize you can’t shake it. Sometimes, however, it takes multiple viewings, over the course of many years, and then one time, in the right mindset, everything falls into place and a movie will just “click”.
Tobe Hooper’s The Funhouse was one of those movies for me. I had first picked up The Funhouse in 1992 from my favorite mom ‘n pop store, Reel Video. They were closing shop and selling off their inventory sans video boxes for $5 a pop. For my friends and me it was like finding One Eye Willie’s treasure as we made several trips a week and dug through the piles of dusty, old tapes. One sticky summer afternoon I picked up Summer Camp Nightmare and The Funhouse. After making the two mile bike ride back to my buddy’s house we popped it in the VCR. I enjoyed the film but it didn’t grab me the same way other favorite horror films of the era such as The Burning or Maniac had. I re-visited the film several times over the years via that well-worn VHS copy, then the Goodtimes DVD, and even two 35mm screenings. While I liked the film a lot I didn’t “love” it. It wasn’t until summer of 2006 while scanning my DVD rack for something to watch that I put it on again and it just clicked. Suddenly the movie just came alive for me—the rich carnival atmosphere, the odd characters, the unique monster and the mismatched group of early 80’s teens. It was like seeing the movie for the first time again, and along with Jaws it has become an annual summer must watch. Needless to say I was very excited when I heard Arrow Video would be releasing this in high definition blu ray in July.
If you have been following the UK’s Arrow Video than you know they have brought back the excitement of genre releases. I haven’t savored this type of anticipation since 1999-2001 era Anchor Bay. When I see Arrow has acquired a title I love, I know I am are going to get a release put together with care and brimming with extras. This release of The Funhouse is no different. The transfer is a definite upgrade from the previous Universal disc and in my opinion it even gives a lot of Arrow’s previous blu ray releases a run for their money. Presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio the picture is gorgeous, colors pop, the image is sharp and the grain is properly textured and film-like. Blacks are solid with no crushing. Beautiful.
It is in the bonus content where this release really shines. The previous Universal DVD’s sole extra was a theatrical trailer. Here we are treated to a bevy of extras including three audio commentaries (one with make-up artist Craig Reardon and Jeffery Reddick, one with the film’s producer Derek Power and one with Arrow’s own Calum Waddell and Justin Kerswell whose commentary is a very informative one on both The Funhouse and the 80’s horror genre in general), a 2004 era Q & A session with Hooper, interviews with Hooper, Mick Garris, Miles Chapin, an expansive behind the scenes still gallery, and the original trailer, even though it is not listed on the packaging. Yet again Arrow also includes the option of four different cover choices, a fold-out poster and collector booklet, all nicely housed in a window box slip cover. It should be noted that despite this release being listed as “region free” a number of the extras will not play on Sony Blu Ray players. But don’t let this discourage you, it is still worth the purchase or upgrade for the fantastic high-definition transfer and commentaries alone.
All in all Arrow has done a bang up job with this highly enjoyable and underappreciated gem of a film from one of horrors arguably greatest eras.

Do You Like Scary Movies? A SCREAM Retrospective

What constitutes a rip off? Same themes or genres? Maybe a similar plot device? We all know there’s no such thing as an original story. Now, don’t get sad. There hasn’t been anything original for some time. All media, literature and the like fall under just a few categories of story; Man vs. man, man vs. himself or man vs. nature. There’s no new permutation of plot and character that cannot be boiled down to one of these three categories. It’s sad when you first realize its true… but then it becomes freeing. Knowing that the story you are about to see has already been told enables the viewer to enjoy the ride and judge a piece on its merit, be it acting, writing or direction.

"Never say "who's there?" Don't you watch scary movies? It's a death wish. You might as well come out to investigate a strange noise or something." - Ghostface

Noting one of the better examples of using this reality to its advantage takes us back to 1996 and the now unjustly maligned Scream, written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wes Craven. By taking the very clichés and tropes of the slasher genre and cleverly using them against the audience, the film is at once an homage, inside joke and genuine celebration of everything stab-y.

The first scene is still chilling in its raw effectiveness. What starts as a flirtatious conversation becomes harrowing for an above the title actress. The tightly scripted dialogue makes this scene so revelatory. Like a horror-geek infused Aaron Sorkin, Williamson displays his knowledge (or research of) the genre's history. His words inform the audience of where they’re about to be taken, while simultaneously relating the current events of the scene to our heroine's increasingly tense plight. Craven ratchets up that tension with his collected knowledge of what an audience expects. In less capable hands the constant popping of popcorn and startling ringing of a phone could be gimmicky.

Before a drop of blood (or in this case, entrails) is spilled, we're already on the edge of our seats, taken in by the moment. What makes this special? They told us what they were doing, while it was happening, and it still worked!

"It's the millennium, motives are incidental." - Randy

The movie doesn't stop it's frenetic pace, layering in its structure with familiar caricatures and settings. A virginal heroine, a bad boy boyfriend, the slutty best friend and so on. They're even noted as such by our inside man, the at times annoying character of Randy. Randy explains to the uninitiated what you should be looking for while also making sure the rest of us know he's in on the joke. It's novel now, but at the time, a structure that all but breaks the fourth wall was a breath of fresh air. What's even more impressive is in establishing these characters' knowledge of events, there's a false sense of security throughout much of the proceedings. That is, until the proverbial shit hits the fan. Scream is a self aware satire that succeeds at being as tense and scary as its predecessors.

"Life is like a movie. Only you can't pick your genre." - Billy

Over the last decade, the Scream franchise has become something of ridicule in many circles. Partly due to the sub-par sequels and largely due to the fact that it ushered in a sub-genre of teen slasher movies, boasting young casts and hit pop songs. Ironically, an endeavor that highlighted the genre's clichés with humor and tact ushered in so many offensive copy cats. Like a snake eating its own tale, a popular effort to elevate the genre became a feeding frenzy of shoddy, cheaply produced and poorly scripted clones. As soon as the marketing machine got a hold of it all, we were seeing entities like MTV co-finance genre films for young audiences. At that point, all hope seemed to be lost. Disturbing Behavior, anyone?

"...don't you blame the movies, movies don't create psychos, movies make psychos more creative!" - Billy

With the arrival of a third sequel, we're forced to question if this franchise has any juice left. What was once a welcome breeze has become a point of contention for what was wrong with horror in the millennium's first decade. From the influx of Japanese remakes to the plethora of Saw wannabes, for better or worse, it started in 1996. A modicum of respect is due and was hopefully restored this past weekend.

Did you see it? What did you think?