BREAKING "RAD" WITH ACTOR BILL ALLEN

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SCGY5ryhULo/VgsOdZanjLI/AAAAAAAApMM/31Ue00__JGY/s1600/rad0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SCGY5ryhULo/VgsOdZanjLI/AAAAAAAApMM/31Ue00__JGY/s1600/rad0.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Interview with RAD actor Bill Allen in promoting his book MY RAD CAREER</td></tr> </tbody></table> "The riders not only loved the movie and continue to do so, but it is responsible for so many getting into the sport, that I am given way too much credit for many a riders inspiration," writes actor Bill Allen. "I'm so happy to be a part of the BMX community, and they have embraced me with open arms." And although the 1986 cult classic RAD does fit under the category of a motion picture capturing a popular fad, the sport of BMX riding is anything but dated, or something that has ever gone away… And yet, during that particular era, BMX racing was one of the coolest sports to physically and/or visually experience...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z3Wbka9Rb6o/VguVtmqPzKI/AAAAAAAApO8/yKvvmmR61P0/s1600/title00_232735162.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z3Wbka9Rb6o/VguVtmqPzKI/AAAAAAAApO8/yKvvmmR61P0/s320/title00_232735162.jpg" width="182" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Bill Allen in RAD</span></td></tr> </tbody></table> Since it took professional riders to pull off such amazing stunts, there had to be a cool story involved too, including actors under swift direction, wherein RAD combined an underdog tale, a teenage romance, wonderful exploitation of competitive and freestyle BMX riding with some corporate greed thrown in.<br /> <br /> The star of this film is Bill Allen as Cru, a passive BMX cruiser who initially delivers newspapers and then winds up, in the typical ROCKY and/or KARATE KID fashion, competing against the reigning champion: to basically save the town. <br /> <br /> <b>When did you first know you wanted to be an actor, and how did you go about becoming one?</b><br /> <br /> I was cast out of Dallas in '83 in the lead in a film about a Jockey starring Jose Ferrer, Tab Hunter, Adam Roarke and a young George Clooney. I had been only a theater actor before that, but AND THEY'RE OFF got me a SAG card, an agent, and an acting coach (Bryan O'Byrne.) This was the time I decided to be an actor for the rest of my life. Soon I moved to L.A. and started working as an actor soon afterward.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XKYdcB3bIII/VgsPHUlo86I/AAAAAAAApMc/Z6_oOeQ8RnM/s1600/rad67.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XKYdcB3bIII/VgsPHUlo86I/AAAAAAAApMc/Z6_oOeQ8RnM/s200/rad67.jpg" width="143" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poster Artwork</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>You worked with Robert Altman, one of the great all-time filmmakers, in STREAMERS: What was your part, and how was it being directed by Altman? </b><br /> <br /> I played an Officer that was holding a gun and interrogating Matthew Modine and David Allen Grier. I was incredibly green and Altman was incredibly kind and nurturing. His key to good filmmaking seemed to be in casting the right actors. He let the actors bring to it what they wanted; he acted more like a traffic cop.  He even had me sit beside him and watch him direct for a day. We will never see the likes of him again. It's safe to say he smoked more weed than Bob Marley.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R30lU583_yM/VgsPfVTLUUI/AAAAAAAApMk/Kw-CijAmEA0/s1600/RAD2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R30lU583_yM/VgsPfVTLUUI/AAAAAAAApMk/Kw-CijAmEA0/s320/RAD2.jpg" width="218" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill's big stunt in RAD</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>Tell us about how you landed the role in RAD?</b><br /> <br /> Hal Needham saw me in an episode of HILL STREET BLUES, a popular cop show at the time, and called me in on the strength of that performance. Cru was a very different type of character, so after a quick audition, he had me sit on a BMX bike and the rest is history.<br /> <br /> <b>What were some risky riding scenes you did in RAD... that you performed on your own and were nervous about, without the stunt double? </b><br /> <br /> I suppose riding on that dumpster as it put me over the fence was the riskiest thing I did, and it shows on my face. I almost took a dive when, at the end of qualifying race, I hit my front brake by accident and I go flying into the arms of my friends. It actually made the shot very dynamic and dramatic. Otherwise I did very little of my own riding, and the riding I did do, is shaky at best.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x7yHdRWwxGA/VgsP6vi4aFI/AAAAAAAApMs/2Q0t9DxaMig/s1600/RAD1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x7yHdRWwxGA/VgsP6vi4aFI/AAAAAAAApMs/2Q0t9DxaMig/s320/RAD1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hal goes from hot rods to BMX glory</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>Share a little about director Hal Needham, famous for his films with Burt Reynolds, and who was a stuntman himself: did he equally relate to actors and the stunt riders (your double Eddie Fiola in particular) or was there more leaning on the action element of the film?</b><br /> <br /> He was larger than life, a living and breathing action icon, who filled up the room with his southern charm and brilliance. He treated actors with kid gloves, but with stuntmen, the gloves came off. He was quoted as saying, "I hired stuntmen, not stunt pads!" However, RAD was the first film where the stuntmen (mostly kids) actually knew more than he did about the stunts, and the collaboration was brilliant. Obviously his movies were action-heavy, and that is where he shone. I think he saw the dialogue scenes as a necessary evil, and just let the actors have free reign.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aywJvfAiW3Q/VgsQKODP2PI/AAAAAAAApM0/4FzQ4N4WmDQ/s1600/rad4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aywJvfAiW3Q/VgsQKODP2PI/AAAAAAAApM0/4FzQ4N4WmDQ/s320/rad4.jpg" width="296" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Talia Shire with Bill Allen</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>Talia Shire co-starred as your mom, famous as Adrian from the ROCKY films: how was it working with such an iconic actress, and was there a family vibe being that her husband, Jack Schwartzman, produced?</b><br /> <br /> I was intimidated by the weight of her pedigree and resume, but that just fed the emotion of our scenes together. She treated me well, and I will forever be grateful for her patronage. She had her whole family around her, including a young Jason Schwartzman and her stepson, the famous DP, John Schwartzman, who shot a behind the scenes documentary that never saw the light.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-deoVcyHCs24/VgsRaV9hEYI/AAAAAAAApNk/42SJhBqhtv8/s1600/rad8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-deoVcyHCs24/VgsRaV9hEYI/AAAAAAAApNk/42SJhBqhtv8/s320/rad8.jpg" width="153" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">To Slide With You</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>Working with the beautiful Lori Loughlin, who later went on to FULL HOUSE fame: Tell us about your experiences during the riding and love scenes, and especially the fan-favorite water sliding moment... </b><br /> <br /> She was so fun to work with, and easy to fall for. I think she was on a higher showbiz rung than I, so I never passed her test, but believe me, I tried! I guess I liked the kissing scenes best (who wouldn't?). The ass sliding was done into FREEZING waters, so it looked more fun than it was.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1zyj50PuBKo/VgsQkNyM7qI/AAAAAAAApNE/6ryaNx6trUA/s1600/rad5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1zyj50PuBKo/VgsQkNyM7qI/AAAAAAAApNE/6ryaNx6trUA/s200/rad5.jpg" width="118" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lori Loughlin</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>The dance sequence, where the most memorable song, SEND ME AN ANGEL, plays... What was it like working on this very energetic and colorful scene? </b><br /> <br /> I actually had food poisoning the night before the shoot, so I was deathly ill while the main sequence was being shot. So the look on my face during that scene is one of nausea, not apprehension. <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2xrc4C121Wk/VgsQs50DLtI/AAAAAAAApNM/RU4pl4oL2wo/s1600/rad6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2xrc4C121Wk/VgsQs50DLtI/AAAAAAAApNM/RU4pl4oL2wo/s200/rad6.jpg" width="130" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill Allen</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>RAD, the term and title alone, epitomizes the 1980's... What were some of your favorite aspects of this era, not related to the film itself?</b><br /> <br /> My favorite aspects was the entertainment industry was much more innocent and lucrative and there was still a mystery to show biz. With the advent of youtube and reality stars, the bar has dropped significantly for talent. Not to mention AIDS wiped out almost an entire generation of artists who there is no replacement for except for mediocre imitations.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MRD-IQ0kqZ8/VgsQ1QX5xxI/AAAAAAAApNU/kx7e2XZD64E/s1600/rad10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MRD-IQ0kqZ8/VgsQ1QX5xxI/AAAAAAAApNU/kx7e2XZD64E/s200/rad10.jpg" width="164" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Weston and Walston</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>Character actors Ray Walston and Jack Weston were in this: what did their experience brought to the movie? </b><br /> <br /> I loved playing with these major talents who raised the bar in Hollywood for what supporting players could bring to a role. Going toe to toe with actors you grew up watching is a mystical experience that was not diminished in the actual meeting of these giants.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vsrJ0BQ-2Yg/VgsQ_VxM2CI/AAAAAAAApNc/8qK0XdfrX7o/s1600/rad66.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vsrJ0BQ-2Yg/VgsQ_VxM2CI/AAAAAAAApNc/8qK0XdfrX7o/s320/rad66.jpg" width="211" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill Allen's Book Cover</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>Now share about your book, MY RAD CAREER, and how the idea came about?</b><br /> <br /> My wife Carol is a writer (<a href="http://loveisinthestars.com/">loveisinthestars.com</a>) and she encouraged me to do something for the fans. Digging up the memories I had long buried turned out to be a catharsis. I didn't have enough stories for a whole book on RAD, so I write about my whole career. I share some of my adventures with people like Brandon Lee, George Clooney, Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, and others (<a href="http://myradcareer.com/">myradcareer.com</a>).<br /> <br /> <b>One more... had to ask... What was your part in BREAKING BAD, and how was that experience on a show that could possibly be the best cable television series ever created? </b><br /> <br /> I'm in the fifth episode, GREY MATTER, grilling Walter White on his work experience, and it's kind of an egg on your face moment for him. I took the job before anyone had seen the show, so I didn't know how lucky I was at the time (a recurring theme for me). I had a chance to chat it up with Bryan Cranston and found him to be incredibly cool, smart and hilarious.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-18aEu4Kyhs4/VgsRvxOP_aI/AAAAAAAApNs/L2bao0kuFg8/s1600/rad89.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-18aEu4Kyhs4/VgsRvxOP_aI/AAAAAAAApNs/L2bao0kuFg8/s1600/rad89.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill Allen, far left in argyle, after questioning Bryan Cranston's Walter White on BREAKING BAD</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pvL_IYtpxY4/VgsR3QybmrI/AAAAAAAApN0/qJjMULqAk7w/s1600/rad22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pvL_IYtpxY4/VgsR3QybmrI/AAAAAAAApN0/qJjMULqAk7w/s1600/rad22.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/My-Rad-Career-Bill-Allen-ebook/dp/B00LOUXZZ2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1443566912&sr=8-1&keywords=my+rad+career+bill+allen">BUY BILL ALLEN'S BOOK MY RAD CAREER VIA STREAM OR PAPERBACK ON AMAZON</a></td></tr> </tbody></table>

bill allen, eighties, hal needham, interview, jack weston, ray walston, sport, talia shire

BREAKING "RAD" WITH ACTOR BILL ALLEN

Interview with RAD actor Bill Allen in promoting his book MY RAD CAREER "The riders not only loved the movie and continue to do so,...

ROBERT DENIRO WORKS IN THE INTERN

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MYw7B0PnclE/Vg2J52BW9NI/AAAAAAAApP4/H9UwhWixnR8/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-01%2Bat%2B12.31.46%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MYw7B0PnclE/Vg2J52BW9NI/AAAAAAAApP4/H9UwhWixnR8/s400/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-01%2Bat%2B12.31.46%2BPM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Robert DeNiro & Anne Hathaway starring in THE INTERN</td></tr> </tbody></table> Being a Living Legend has its pros and cons. The pro is, well, you're a Living Legend. And that title, given his previous track record, epitomizes Robert DeNiro... But when starring in yet another mainstream popcorn comedy, it's like John Steinbeck writing a Harlequin Romance...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EI6YS4b5Pm8/Vg2KfpuvJVI/AAAAAAAApQA/jcfhARVM038/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-01%2Bat%2B12.34.27%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EI6YS4b5Pm8/Vg2KfpuvJVI/AAAAAAAApQA/jcfhARVM038/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-01%2Bat%2B12.34.27%2BPM.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> But wait... this time around, something <i>isn't </i>missing. The collecting-a-paycheck DeNiro is replaced with a man so utterly stiff and endearing (imagine what his ailing character scolded Robin Williams to be more like in AWAKENINGS), he works despite being obviously created to win over both the audience and his brilliant tech female boss Jules, played by Anne Hathaway, running an online clothing company with a daughter and a stay-at-home husband; the latter as useless as DeNiro's 70-year-old intern, Ben, is utterly reliable....<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LWSvJLtSUfo/Vg2Kjt93glI/AAAAAAAApQI/spjPTOzYCHQ/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-01%2Bat%2B12.34.33%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LWSvJLtSUfo/Vg2Kjt93glI/AAAAAAAApQI/spjPTOzYCHQ/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-01%2Bat%2B12.34.33%2BPM.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rating: ***1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> Scenes with DeNiro and Hathaway are genuine, moving the story along. Yet the plot isn't the stress of possibly sharing her company with a more qualified C.E.O., or melodramatic problems after work. These are mere afterthoughts compared to what Ben can provide, with his old school charm and wisdom, to help her out of the fancy yet disheveled canvas she's painted herself into.<br /> <br /> For those (like yours truly) who miss "the old DeNiro" (young DeNiro in classic films); while he's not TAXI DRIVER or RAGING BULL, he effectively plays a gentleman whose been around the block despite the tract being somewhat cliche and predictable.<br /> <br /> <u>Trivia/Connection:</u> Two actresses from the sit-com ALICE make appearances: Linda Lavin as a scene-stealing, smitten neighbor and Celia Weston (who replaced Diane Ladd who replaced Polly Holliday) as a fellow co-worker. And that show was based on a motion picture directed by DeNiro's then-cinematic partner Martin Scorsese.

2015, anne hathaway, feel-good, robert deniro

ROBERT DENIRO WORKS IN THE INTERN

Robert DeNiro & Anne Hathaway starring in THE INTERN Being a Living Legend has its pros and cons. The pro is, well, you're a Liv...

GRANDMA & LEARNING TO DRIVE

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xF1nGhtTvN8/VgV36gaS23I/AAAAAAAApJ4/KRmNVY63K4k/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-25%2Bat%2B9.25.45%2BAM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xF1nGhtTvN8/VgV36gaS23I/AAAAAAAApJ4/KRmNVY63K4k/s320/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-25%2Bat%2B9.25.45%2BAM.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>GRANDMA:</b> As a lesbian has-been author, Lily Tomlin is a left wing Archie Bunker who, having broken up with a young trophy girlfriend, becomes the title character after her just-pregnant grand-daughter shows up, needing money for an abortion.<br /> <br /> The nice aspect of this subtle indie road movie is how tight and basic the story is: our bickering polar opposites go from location to location, person to person (including an unrealistically heartbroken Sam Elliott), to gather funds for the operation, wherein the best scenes have the two main characters alone together, which, luckily for us, makes up most of the ride. The problem with GRANDMA is, beyond the young girl's somewhat stunted, underwhelming performance, the more progressively grouchy Tomlin must juggle blunt, obnoxious humor while keeping the always-cautious political correctness neatly intact: not an easy feat, but Lily kinda pulls it off.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SY7G8QVhHTI/VgV3_R4ZyVI/AAAAAAAApKA/100QL8bJBC4/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-25%2Bat%2B9.26.05%2BAM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SY7G8QVhHTI/VgV3_R4ZyVI/AAAAAAAApKA/100QL8bJBC4/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-25%2Bat%2B9.26.05%2BAM.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>LEARNING TO DRIVE:</b> A feel good quirky indie with more than a shoved touch of wisdom and understanding of another culture while delving into "our own racist" American melting pot in the busy streets of New York where semi-famous book critic Wendy, played by Patricia Clarkson... equally intriguing as mainstream ingenue in DIRTY HARRY'S DEAD POOL or older-indie in THE STATION AGENT... plays first fiddle to Ben Kingsley's Sikh driving instructor: although his proverbial instrument is loudest, being the mentor and overall example of a good man, which is something, or rather, someone, our brainy aged-ingenue lacks and thus, reluctantly at first, needs help to carry her through a thankless, ranting purgatory.<br /> <br /> Scenes with the two leads are far more interesting than when we delve into their own troubles, both having to do with significant others that aren't as helpful; his arranged marriage is awkward and her cheating ex-husband has no genuine chemistry to seem like anything ever worked in the first place. And while former Oscar winning Kingsley does a good enough job, his attempt at subtle humor sounds more like Robin William's imitation of GANDHI in the beginning of MRS. DOUBTFIRE.  In other words, Ben seems a bit overqualified for a vehicle that, good or bad or just kinda there, like GRANDMA, is one of those "rent on a boring day" flicks that delivers just enough to pass the time.<br /> <br /> GRANDMA: **1/2<br /> LEARNING TO DRIVE: ***

2015, ben kingsley, drama, indie, patricia clarkson

GRANDMA & LEARNING TO DRIVE

year: 2015 GRANDMA: As a lesbian has-been author, Lily Tomlin is a left wing Archie Bunker who, having broken up with a young trophy gi...

CAPTIVE & PERFECT GUY

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6k_6sbKaACM/VgGAxudi_pI/AAAAAAAApI0/fgWWgIHSftk/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6k_6sbKaACM/VgGAxudi_pI/AAAAAAAApI0/fgWWgIHSftk/s320/1.jpg" width="201" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>CAPTIVE </b>is the true story about a prisoner named Brian Nichols who escaped from jail and, along the way out the door, killed a number of people, including a judge. As a fugitive, he wound up holding a young lady captive in her home... who, on her own, struggled with an addiction to Crystal Meth and was reluctant to read a famous self-help book.<br /> <br /> Kate Mara does a good job in the role of Ashley Smith, but it's the famously SELMA Oscar-snubbed David Oyelowo who steals the show, especially one scene as he does a little of Ashley's drug-of-choice, rambling like he's got a future despite being caged and pretty much doomed: morphing into a hyped-up John Dillinger.<br /> <br /> The suspenseful chemistry between both leading actors move the story along; a sideline with two detectives provide mere filler; and other than a tacked-on real life epilogue showing Oprah interviewing the real woman and her mentor/author, CAPTIVE doesn't feel like propaganda for the book that supposedly kept Ashley alive by reading it aloud to her captor: For had this dangerous, lethal, cold-blooded criminal... perhaps shown too vulnerable and docile at times... had not done that particular drug, God only knows what the turnout would have been: for it was during that rambling "tweak" when he was the most friendly and open-minded.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bvv850j9nDM/VgGA1iwmAdI/AAAAAAAApI8/kxH9BBnmiLg/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bvv850j9nDM/VgGA1iwmAdI/AAAAAAAApI8/kxH9BBnmiLg/s200/2.jpg" width="128" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>THE PERFECT GUY</b> has a perfect tittle, but the guy playing the guy is anything but... in the casting. Although Michael Ealy's "Glenn Close in FATAL ATTRACTION" performance isn't bad, and he definitely turns on the creepy level where our stalked ingenue, played by a strong-willed yet vulnerable Sanaa Lathan, has to eventually fight for her life, something is missing, and worse yet... the inevitable game-changing "dream guy turned bad guy" transition occurs way too soon, stunting Ealy from proving himself worthy of the title role. Perhaps if flaky yet nice ex-boyfriend Morris Chestnut, more rugged and tough looking, played the threatening stalker, the danger would perhaps seem more palpable and genuine. Frankly, the voluptuous Lathan never seems all that frightened by her ultra-skinny albatross.  <br /> <br /> So for a theatrical release, it's pretty average, mediocre, and you've seen it a million times before... But, say, you rented PERFECT on a weekend... It's not so terrible.<br /> <br /> CAPTIVE: ***<br /> THE PERFECT GUY: **1/2

2015, thriller

CAPTIVE & PERFECT GUY

year: 2015 CAPTIVE is the true story about a prisoner named Brian Nichols who escaped from jail and, along the way out the door, killed ...

RAY'S MR. MIDDLE-FINGER

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6kOS_IjY8Q/Vgsum7pPFAI/AAAAAAAApOE/_U3byA0Ec7s/s1600/rad11%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="354" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6kOS_IjY8Q/Vgsum7pPFAI/AAAAAAAApOE/_U3byA0Ec7s/s640/rad11%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>A from-here-on classic Ray Walston screen capture in-between a delay of reviews</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> These kind of "Where Have I Been Lately and Where Are New Important Movie Reviews?" posts are dated by the time you can say the word "Narcissistic," but as yours truly deals with yet another of life's (near) tragic roadblocks, it's time to share this screen capture of Ray Walston from a motion picture wherein there will be a fantastic interview with a then-young actor who starred alongside Ray and was under the awesome direction of... <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2015/09/RAD-Bill-Allen.html">CLICK FOR THE MOVIE THIS COMES FROM!</a>

photobreak

RAY'S MR. MIDDLE-FINGER

A from-here-on classic Ray Walston screen capture in-between a delay of reviews These kind of "Where Have I Been Lately and Where A...

JOHNNY DEPP IN BLACK MASS

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aurhn0C3QVI/VfxSV4xfpXI/AAAAAAAApGU/Exd5itoqJBA/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aurhn0C3QVI/VfxSV4xfpXI/AAAAAAAApGU/Exd5itoqJBA/s320/1.jpg" width="216" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> For the many who think Johnny Depp is the end-all of acting, well here's some good news... He begins and finishes BLACK MASS with not only a physical transition into Boston crime lord James "Whitey" Bulger, but his eyes are penetrating, evil, and best yet, creepy as hell...<br /> <br /> One effectively spooky scene, where he kind of threatens a cohort's wife, turns MASS from a crime genre ala Martin Scorsese, including a groovy Rolling Stones track during a montage of violent money-making, into a sinister horror flick where the subliminal power of implied evil exceeds the often gratuitous violence, an obvious attempt to push the GOODFELLAS envelope even further:<br /> <br /> In fact, there's one intentionally awkward moment where Depp turns the table (literally sitting at a dinner table), and you can almost hear him say, "Do I look funny to you... like a clown?"<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dQ_z2WNOEFQ/VfxSrmBbWxI/AAAAAAAApGc/GBgI2rR6Ba8/s1600/black_mass_poster_closeup.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dQ_z2WNOEFQ/VfxSrmBbWxI/AAAAAAAApGc/GBgI2rR6Ba8/s1600/black_mass_poster_closeup.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Movie Score: ***</td></tr> </tbody></table> Actually, he resembles MATRIX actor Joe Pantoliano combined with political advisor James Carville... yet that makeup isn't one bit distracting. And Depp aside, an equal amount of screen time belongs to Joel Edgerton as FBI agent John Connolly: Having grown up a South Boston "Southie" with Bulger, their lifelong friendship and crooked business relationship moves the story from backroom conversations into blood-drenched boulevards. Unfortunately, with so many sudden deaths, there aren't enough explanations as to why each victim <i>sleeps with the fishes</i>. After a while, the entire film seems like a collection of ultra-violence with bouts of seedy dialogue and family melodrama.<br /> <br /> Perhaps if centered more deeply on a few important <i>deals</i> to make the victims mean more than an overall body count, BLACK MASS could be, like its cinematic predecessors, more of a pointed, personal mob character-study than a vague biopic of a really bad dude breaking rules on either side of the law. In that, Depp does play deadly and nefarious with sublime perfection. But he deserved a slightly better movie to really shine.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kG9FRN8BRyM/VfxSxqihAbI/AAAAAAAApGk/nf8txZmE_nw/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kG9FRN8BRyM/VfxSxqihAbI/AAAAAAAApGk/nf8txZmE_nw/s640/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Anonymous tip wasn't really: it was former actress beauty queen <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/01/more-american-graffiti.html">Anna Bjorn</a> who got Whitey captured</td></tr> </tbody></table>

2015, crime, joel edgerton, johnny depp, mob

JOHNNY DEPP IN BLACK MASS

year: 2015 For the many who think Johnny Depp is the end-all of acting, well here's some good news... He begins and finishes BLACK M...

ARCHIVE TRIPLE: YEAR OF THE DRAGON, SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS & THE DEVIL'S HAIRPIN

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z7tfv63CW3Y/VfrvDHXdnXI/AAAAAAAApF0/HEBQ4OqeWMk/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z7tfv63CW3Y/VfrvDHXdnXI/AAAAAAAApF0/HEBQ4OqeWMk/s200/1.jpg" width="129" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1987</td></tr> </tbody></table> YEAR OF THE DRAGON: Centers on mob wars in New York's Chinatown; young Asian punks overthrowing the old Chinese bosses and killing everyone in their path... as they make their own path.<br /> <br /> It's interesting to see a Michael Cimino film with new-stock eighties film and fast-cutting studio-driven editing, different than that of his seventies films that, for better... THE DEER HUNTER... or worse... HEAVEN'S GATE... including long scenes with tons of dialogue that seem more realistic than contrived or mainstream. And if you're a Mickey Rourke fan, there seems absolutely no way to not love this seedy venture. But there was no life to this drone exercise in violence and melodrama. Even the spontaneous seemed in sleep mode throughout.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2MgwT4uIxA0/VfrvHamTIRI/AAAAAAAApF8/269uh3jtJ8s/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2MgwT4uIxA0/VfrvHamTIRI/AAAAAAAApF8/269uh3jtJ8s/s200/2.jpg" width="189" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1973</td></tr> </tbody></table> SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS is misleadingly titled since the girls look in their late twenties and only one is in college, yet is quite original and very groundbreaking for the year it came out, 1973, before TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE and, years later, Troma's MOTHER'S DAY, the latter which stole entirely from the premise of two crazy adult sons of an overbearing mother living in a rural house and keeping three women (not girls) hostage: making them their own personal slaves.<br /> <br /> Gary Kent and John Stoglin are the sons; Kent the buff good looking seemingly normal one and Stoglin the idiot man-child who plays "doctor" with the girls who're holed up in the dusty rat-infested cellar. Soon we learn both mama's boys are equally crazy in their own way, and quite dangerous. But alas: the awesome originality becomes a complete PSYCHO rip-off; although it's still a wickedly entertaining ride. If the babes-in-forced-bondage genre does it for you, you won't be disappointed.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qCwlpoBDQ1g/VfrvLbpP46I/AAAAAAAApGE/slSaCrSYg7A/s1600/3.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qCwlpoBDQ1g/VfrvLbpP46I/AAAAAAAApGE/slSaCrSYg7A/s200/3.jpeg" width="130" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1957</td></tr> </tbody></table> THE DEVIL'S HAIRPIN: A race car driver, revving up at the starting line, thinks back about the week before as he's planning a possible comeback. He has a pet parrot and a gorgeous girlfriend who he takes for granite. The girl, not the parrot. He loves the parrot.<br /> <br /> And he owns a bar and all his employees are men he's beaten and thus retired. He holds a deep dark secret about his simpleton brother which turns out to be nothing. And we're back to the race and they're off and... This is quite an experience. Often ow-budget and plodding, melodramatic with a necessary bouts of idealistic Film Noir attributes, there's something completely entertaining in the sluggish entirety of it all. Like an uneventful dream, it's comfortable somehow. And Cornell Wilde is always cool to experience.<br /> <br /> FILM SCORES:<br /> <br /> YEAR OF THE DRAGON: **<br /> SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS: ***<br /> THE DEVIL'S HAIRPIN: ***<br /> <br />

ARCHIVE TRIPLE: YEAR OF THE DRAGON, SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS & THE DEVIL'S HAIRPIN

year: 1987 YEAR OF THE DRAGON: Centers on mob wars in New York's Chinatown; young Asian punks overthrowing the old Chinese bosses an...

WARGAMES FEATURING EDDIE DEEZEN INTERVIEW

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hUl5erxz86A/VfZJvHpWjgI/AAAAAAAApEM/LRmEwLmfaR0/s1600/555.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hUl5erxz86A/VfZJvHpWjgI/AAAAAAAApEM/LRmEwLmfaR0/s320/555.png" width="194" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1983</td></tr> </tbody></table> This iconic tech thriller hit screens as home computers were becoming fairly commonplace inside particular bedrooms of brainy suburban teenagers… Enter Matthew Broderick as David, who, with the light tap of a few consul buttons, is able to change his own grades after smarting off to an uptight Science teacher while his new girlfriend Jennifer, played by near-future Brat Pack beauty Ally Sheedy, is by his side when an intriguing game appears on David’s computer during a search, fitfully and formidably titled THERMONUCLEAR WAR, which happens to instigate potential World War III between then Cold War rivals America and Russia.<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jrUwp0OmigA/VfZL7CG6YGI/AAAAAAAApEw/BI4eCOqCE5A/s1600/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jrUwp0OmigA/VfZL7CG6YGI/AAAAAAAApEw/BI4eCOqCE5A/s320/2.png" width="170" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ally Sheedy</td></tr> </tbody></table> The best scenes involve our two young leads, who have terrific chemistry. Their adventure, from the suburbs to the inside of the Government war room, is palpable within the awestruck of their youthful countenance as if we too experience the seriousness of the matter within the steely exterior. Meanwhile Dabney Coleman and Barry Corbin head the confounded officials in charge of, and having to luck at, discovering to fix this impending doom.<br /> <br /> Politely captured, the suspense involving David and Jennifer’s escape is nail-biting fun. Leading to an excursion to find the man who created the game… Supposedly, John Wood’s island-dwelling recluse, Falken, was originally meant for John Lennon when the film was conceived years earlier, and with another director on board. A villain in another Broderick vehicle, LADYHAWKE, Wood turns in a capable performance but the character exhibits too much obvious anti-war sentiment, seeming more like a political ad lecture, and his primary diatribe drags on. Leading to a calculating climax back in the war room, also paling to the initial investigatory journey.<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8usNuMx1XM0/VfZMF3fQepI/AAAAAAAApE4/M-c79Oj45J4/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8usNuMx1XM0/VfZMF3fQepI/AAAAAAAApE4/M-c79Oj45J4/s1600/1.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eddie Deezen</td></tr> </tbody></table> <i>Other actors include Michael Madsen, part of an edgy, claustrophobic two-man prologue. And <b>EDDIE DEEZEN</b> steals a scene as Malvin, a computer geek, one of the first ever, helping provide a technical bridge for our young heroes before things get really serious.</i><br /> <br /> <b>CULT FILM FREAK: </b>Did you adlib any of your lines?<br /> <br /> <b>EDDIE DEEZEN:</b> No, but I did keep forgetting my one line about “Data Encryption Algorithm". I kept screwing up take after take. Finally, my director, who was Marty Brest, took me for a little walk around. He told me my screw-ups were costing them money! He told me they were going to give me cue cards or idiot cards to read my lines off of. I easily read the scene’s dialog after that. Man, I fell in love with cue cards. Marty was fired after about twelve days shooting, and John Badham replaced him. Luckily, they kept my scene with Maury Chaykin in.<br /> <br /> OVERALL MOVIE SCORE:<br /> <br /> ***1/2

WARGAMES FEATURING EDDIE DEEZEN INTERVIEW

year: 1983 This iconic tech thriller hit screens as home computers were becoming fairly commonplace inside particular bedrooms of brainy...

HIS BONES ARE CORAL MORPHS INTO SHARK

<div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xM6e8GOtmZY/VfNuh6FKtpI/AAAAAAAApC4/lrUGHg1Q4ik/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-11%2Bat%2B5.13.02%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xM6e8GOtmZY/VfNuh6FKtpI/AAAAAAAApC4/lrUGHg1Q4ik/s200/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-11%2Bat%2B5.13.02%2BPM.png" width="139" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">SHARK Troma DVD </td></tr> </tbody></table> Sometimes you run into a terrific pulp novel watching a bad movie. The Samuel Fuller sea noir SHARK came out in 1969 and starred a then mostly unknown Burt Reynolds as a drug runner, who actually mentions that he's only heard of that occupation, "drug runner," in the movies. His footloose, hunted character is used by a supposed father/daughter team to dive for gold in shark-infested waters. This was based on the book HIS BONES ARE CORAL by British author Victor Canning, and with a title like that, it was well worth finding after searching a few used bookstores.<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-l08-E_3HQ/Ve9zYx5BNAI/AAAAAAAAo9w/fExB5pvVgv0/s1600/url.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-l08-E_3HQ/Ve9zYx5BNAI/AAAAAAAAo9w/fExB5pvVgv0/s320/url.jpg" width="215" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">Novel Published: 1954</td></tr> </tbody></table> This particular hardback jacket sleeve has a terrific Hemingway TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT style cover of an old fishing boat rocking through stormy waters. Wherein the film begins with a choppily edited shark attack, the book opens with our anti-hero crashing his plane and then hiding a "stash" in a cheap Cairo hotel, where he soon meets a pretty girl who introduces him to her father, and, like the movie, is hired to captain a charter where dad can dive for gold while sharks patrol the area... but are only attracted to blood. Our ragged lead winds up fighting for his life to win the girl, and to come out of the situation without getting stabbed by human goons or eaten by ferocious sharks.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-81Gxgrr1QOk/VfNxZFAlMcI/AAAAAAAApDE/CSfUrmK_kw8/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-81Gxgrr1QOk/VfNxZFAlMcI/AAAAAAAApDE/CSfUrmK_kw8/s200/1.jpg" width="121" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">Burt in Shark</td></tr> </tbody></table> The first-person novel narrative is pulpy, corny, poetic and lovely; the action flows and the dialogue is passionate, dreamy and tough at the same time. The only downside is the second half doesn't live up to the first, being that, like many dime novels (RIVER GIRL among them), the guy gets too weepy and whipped by the backstabbing dame... but no matter: CORAL was a fantastic read that wouldn't have been discovered by Cult Film Freak without that maligned Sam Fuller flick, ruined by studio henchman, which is not only difficult to understand in the dialogue department, taking place in Cairo where the actors seem like the real thing and thus, dubbed horribly, even Americans like Arthur Kennedy (playing a Walter Brennan style rummy sidekick) and Barry Sullivan rush their lines: providing what feels like a Noir collage of sneaky conversations with brief bouts of jumbled action. Although, technically, if you center on individual shots, creative camera angles, and a few neatly-flowing non-cut performances by a genuinely cool Bogart-style Burt Reynolds, Mr. Fuller's poetic signature is visible, somewhat, within those murky, muddied waters.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_94ikBMOaFM/VfNxpaa_OLI/AAAAAAAApDM/UKEo5yH63UA/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="184" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_94ikBMOaFM/VfNxpaa_OLI/AAAAAAAApDM/UKEo5yH63UA/s640/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Opening Credit Sequence Font... The "A" looks damn cool</td></tr> </tbody></table>

burt reynolds, neo noir, samuel fuller, shark, sixties, treasure

HIS BONES ARE CORAL MORPHS INTO SHARK

SHARK Troma DVD  Sometimes you run into a terrific pulp novel watching a bad movie. The Samuel Fuller sea noir SHARK came out in 1969 ...

M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN'S THE VISIT

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3JhoVS7kzfE/VfKCC0dKClI/AAAAAAAApCk/bmpVKkeDGtc/s1600/thevisit-600x986.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3JhoVS7kzfE/VfKCC0dKClI/AAAAAAAApCk/bmpVKkeDGtc/s320/thevisit-600x986.jpg" width="176" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> It took M. Night Shyamalan to put some pizazz into the completely overused "video camera documenting terror" genre, but does the little brother of a slightly older sister have to do so much rapping? And we're not talking talking here, but an annoying attempt at white boy hip-hop, and what's supposed to be funny really isn't all that fun. Meanwhile, the horror aspect has limitless potential: two children stuck at a rural home with their bizarre, possibly psychotic grandparents. And the performances are surprisingly loose, quick and clever, unlike M. Night's usual monotone actor/actress deliveries, a trademark along with that inevitable <i>twist.</i>.. and hey, for spoiler's sake, maybe there's one, maybe there isn't...<br /> <br /> What's missing from THE VISIT is the kind of suspenseful momentum that catapulted THE SIXTH SENSE director into stardom: providing a worthy treat before the game-changing trick. But in this particular spooky house nightmare, the old coots are way too loony, far too soon, and the kids never seem very scared at all, of anything. <u>EXTRA</u>: To catch a glimpse of M Night's first<i> freaky old lady in a house</i>, check out the end of his otherwise campy eco-horror <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2012/01/happening.html">THE HAPPENING</a>: Betty Buckley steals the show, and could have done wonders in this film... or perhaps should have starred in <i>that </i>one.<br /> <br /> RATING: **

2015, horror, m. night

M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN'S THE VISIT

year: 2015 It took M. Night Shyamalan to put some pizazz into the completely overused "video camera documenting terror" genre,...

BREAKIN' & ELECTRIC BOOGALOO

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1BkiJnHO--w/VfCHiZG5oMI/AAAAAAAAo_A/GeTpPaZ1Uqk/s1600/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1BkiJnHO--w/VfCHiZG5oMI/AAAAAAAAo_A/GeTpPaZ1Uqk/s400/2.png" width="270" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1984</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>BREAKIN':</b> It makes sense that Break Dancing was a pop culture phenomenon during the early to mid 1980's being so damn cool to watch. And yet it’s completely understandable that as a fad, it faded out rather quickly. Imagine if, in order to use a Hula Hoop, you had to jump in and out of the ring doing cartwheels while bobbing your hips at the same time… Simply put, Breakin' wasn’t something just anyone could do, or even imagine they could ever possibly accomplish without years and years of practice – and on top of that, in real life, kids were literally breaking their necks to acquire such unique skills.<br /> <br /> Well obviously, the two main male stars know their trade, and both BREAKIN’ the film and the story raises the same question – if there’s a fad to be had, better bank on it... Although Adolfo "Shabba-Do" Quinones as a stubborn, idealistic Ozone doesn’t want anything to do with money unlike the leading lady Lucinda Dickey aka Special K who, not getting where she wants as a low-rent dancer, constantly hit on and threatened by her nefarious coach (Ben Lokey as Franco) while stuck in a hopeless waitress gig, joins the street ranks, trying desperately to get the guys (with the help of best friend Phineas Newborn III) "to move on up" to where she, not they, want to be…<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U3duHTH7Iqk/VfCPKfx9fSI/AAAAAAAAo_c/xPfzwYjfPS8/s1600/lucinda-dickey.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U3duHTH7Iqk/VfCPKfx9fSI/AAAAAAAAo_c/xPfzwYjfPS8/s320/lucinda-dickey.png" width="118" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ingenue & Villain</td></tr> </tbody></table> As a film, BREAKIN’ has all the makings of a cult classic, including taking itself extremely serious. And although Ozone is the film’s leader, moping around about our lovely starlet and not letting anyone see behind his wall of steely reverse, and while Lucinda Dickey's training moves the story along and provides a perspective-glimpse into a strange new world; the scene-stealer is loyal, trusting, open-minded yet still apprehensive  Michael "Boogaloo Shrimp" Chambers as the really short, multi-talented mascot named Turbo (Arnold to Ozone's Willis), partaking in one dance with a broom that brings the movie to a Classic Musical ala Fred Astaire fantasy element: a study in pure escapism mixed with your typical "underdogs reigning over cultural adversity" tale, and without getting too preachy.<br /> <br /> Thus, BREAKIN' truly balances all the best campy virtues of a “What Were We Thinking?” pop culture nostalgia while being completely entertaining. And future HAPPY GILMORE villain Christopher McDonald, as the group's agent, actually plays it warm and friendly... But he (supposedly) wanted nothing to do with the now infamous followup...<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Hm8Vv9iIlS8/VfCHf9eNYII/AAAAAAAAo-4/0h-3lb6-mhM/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Hm8Vv9iIlS8/VfCHf9eNYII/AAAAAAAAo-4/0h-3lb6-mhM/s320/1.png" width="229" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1984</td></tr> </tbody></table> And the sequel, <b>BREAKIN' 2: ELECTRIC BOOGALOO,</b> turned out the very same year after the original's box office success, is more of a “Musical Based on The Film” than a bonafide followup on its own… Instead of just one whimsical (broom) dance, herein the fantasy replaces the former urban and realistic street grooves and back-room competitions. In fact, within the first five minutes the entire downtown is dancing… including mailmen, cops, everyone… as if they were professionals...<br /> <br /> Same thing happens in a hospital where the film’s endearing puppy, and whose actual nickname "Boogaloo" morphs into the title... that being Michael "Boogaloo Shrimp" Chambers as Turbo... mends his wounds after trying to thwart construction workers from tearing down the local Youth Center that could be replaced with a shopping mall unless, like THE BLUES BROTHERS, they get enough money to save the day…<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tcF92KQEVYA/VfCOeJRwOMI/AAAAAAAAo_U/VSd0UODNHTw/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-09%2Bat%2B12.56.17%2BPM.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tcF92KQEVYA/VfCOeJRwOMI/AAAAAAAAo_U/VSd0UODNHTw/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-09%2Bat%2B12.56.17%2BPM.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sabrina Garcia</td></tr> </tbody></table> This idealistic plot-line mostly rears up within scenes involving the corporate villains: a billion dollar goon and his shifty lawyer (paling to the original's seedy dance czar). Although, some of the more noticeable Class Envy returns from the original: for example, while the first film had our two heroes visiting an uptown party, totally out of place, here they go to our leading lady's mansion, owned by a close-minded father (her abundant wealth was never mentioned before)...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> Ozone and Turbo's more tongue-in-check reaction to this racist millionaire sums up the lightweight social aspect of ELECTRIC BOOGALOO, also featuring <a href="http://cinemastarlets.com/2015/06/25/sabrina-garcia-breaks-in-boogaloo/">Sabrina Garcia</a>, a Spanish speaking (and possibly voice-dubbed) dream-girl for Turbo. And in the wise old mentor role, THE LONGEST YARD baggy-eyed, gravely-voiced black actor Harry Caesar plays the Youth Center’s leader, and a young ICE-T returns as the "Greek Chorus" DJ in bigger form – progressed from the grungy warehouse competitions of the original to an immense outdoor telethon showcase, where, unless enough money is raised, it’s all or nothing for the shelter.<br /> <br /> Of the production numbers, one in particular… where Ozone and Turbo dance with a dummy for a lesson in picking up chicks... is the most effective, actually moving the story along: The rest is pure eye-candy and, well, BREAKIN' 2 really doesn’t try to be anything but fun and banal... so this rushed, frivolous and infamous venture can and should be forgiven despite the severely maligned reputation.<br /> <br /> Camp Value Ratings:<br /> <br /> BREAKIN': ****<br /> BREAKIN' 2: ***

christopher mcdonald, dance, eighties, musical

BREAKIN' & ELECTRIC BOOGALOO

year: 1984 BREAKIN': It makes sense that Break Dancing was a pop culture phenomenon during the early to mid 1980's being so dam...

DEAN JONES IN DISNEY'S THE LOVE BUG

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot9PrlhK1nc/Ve_Jn_Ij9oI/AAAAAAAAo-M/5T7zG4PQKTM/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-08%2Bat%2B10.51.22%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot9PrlhK1nc/Ve_Jn_Ij9oI/AAAAAAAAo-M/5T7zG4PQKTM/s320/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-08%2Bat%2B10.51.22%2BPM.png" width="249" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1968</td></tr> </tbody></table> Always a surprise when realizing the first HERBIE isn't named after the speedster Volkswagen with a mind of its own, but instead describes the make and personality being THE LOVE BUG. And while we recently lost Martin Milner... just last week, Dean Jones, the staple of so many live-action Disney films, passed on...<br /> <br /> A sort of James Stewart with less <i>drawwwl</i> and looking somewhat like Sean Connery only much smaller and not so aggressive, Jones had a way of being likable and interesting, usually playing the underdog like our hero, Jim, a low-rent race car driver who goes up against rich jerk David Tomlinson, a villain so classy and vile he does everything except tying ingenue Michele Lee to railroad tracks. And far exceeding the otherwise brilliant Don Knotts in the somewhat lackluster sequel taking place in MONTE CARLO, Buddy Hackett makes for a funny yet subtle sidekick, adding a sort of hippie cadence along with various "flower people" providing a sign of the times during the crest of the psychedelic era. <br /> <br /> This first and best Herbie venture relies mostly on tearing around the San Fran streets and race tracks, and while the big cross half-country journey gets a tad overlong towards the end, and we can only see the poor car getting tampered with so many times (why would a human-like vehicle allow being screwed with in the first place?), LOVE BUG is the perfect combination of road romping and human interaction i.e. a sublime romance between man and car. <br /> <br /> Rating: ***1/2

buddy hackett, dean jones, disney, joe flynn, michele lee, sixties

DEAN JONES IN DISNEY'S THE LOVE BUG

year: 1968 Always a surprise when realizing the first HERBIE isn't named after the speedster Volkswagen with a mind of its own, but ...

ROY SCHEIDER RETURNS SANS STEVEN SPIELBERG IN JAWS 2

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C9PTtNxxMWw/Ve9GvI6zjyI/AAAAAAAAo9Q/qVwCt4DW4Ow/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-08%2Bat%2B1.31.11%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C9PTtNxxMWw/Ve9GvI6zjyI/AAAAAAAAo9Q/qVwCt4DW4Ow/s320/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-08%2Bat%2B1.31.11%2BPM.png" width="209" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Year Released: 1978</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Grading on the dorsal curve of the Steven Spielberg classic, this sequel feels like a would-be pilot episode of a JAWS television series... <br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qT3EP7Th3Qw/WJLj3F8EPbI/AAAAAAAAv8s/as4rGQb3GGonLkvEYKwQAP2tYMAdJSBrACLcB/s1600/16300472_264924210603429_4938643904851023461_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qT3EP7Th3Qw/WJLj3F8EPbI/AAAAAAAAv8s/as4rGQb3GGonLkvEYKwQAP2tYMAdJSBrACLcB/s400/16300472_264924210603429_4938643904851023461_o.jpg" width="396" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Signers Carl Gotlieb, Ann Dusenberry, Donna Wilkes, J. Alves, J. Kramer</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Thus it's somewhat lacking, and to be fair, shouldn't be compared to its once-in-a-lifetime predecessor. But taken on its own value, JAWS 2 a decent monster movie with some beautiful shots and interesting characters, who sometimes matter enough to fret over. Most of the possible body-count-victims are a group of sail-boating teenagers, merely teased at in the beginning and then becoming what Brody has to save at the end. These beach-loving teens include a few future cult actors such as ANGEL starlet Donna Wilkes, possessed CHRISTINE wimp Keith Gordon and an extremely sexy Ann Dusenberry along with two the sons of Chief Brody played by the returning lead Roy Scheider, still protecting the (once again) safe and sound Amity Island backed again by his faithful wife played sweet and cozily by Lorraine Gary, one film away from starring in her own JAWS sequel and even starting here, returning writer Carl Gotlieb, without a Peter Benchley source novel, gave her a far more fleshed-out role than the first...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vod7c8de140/WKk4IQZu7nI/AAAAAAAAwIE/Zo5vwzcayCsTer542xbZzsTILFUZ2xqfACEw/s1600/16830674_273875909708259_8746868621371872276_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vod7c8de140/WKk4IQZu7nI/AAAAAAAAwIE/Zo5vwzcayCsTer542xbZzsTILFUZ2xqfACEw/s400/16830674_273875909708259_8746868621371872276_n.jpg" width="367" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Ms Amity Ann Dusenberry cuts the rope</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Also back on the isle is dim likable deputy Barney Fief-like Jeffrey Kramer also returns as does Murray Hamilton, whose politician-in-denial is limp and meaningless, replaced by the new "land villain", Joseph Mascolo as a shady contractor who, like Hamilton before, refuses to believe Brody's investigative theory...<br /> <br />  That there's a big hungry shark out for revenge, not only eating people but attacking a small boat and... get this... an actual helicopter so okay, admittedly, at times, JAWS 2 literally jumps the shark, but it does entertain. And for fans of Roy Scheider, the actor, two scenes stand out: one as he ventures into the water to gather possible evidence, all alone, and the other where, on the crowded beach, he fires a gun into the ocean, losing his mind and his job at the same time, so if anything else, part 2 is more an extended continuation of Chief Brody's frenzied, paranoid plight than a worthy encore of a formidable killer fish. While there lacks the Spielberg magic, his fellow Rod Serling NIGHT GALLERY directing alumni, Jeannot Szwarc, teamed with returning production assistant Joe Alves, making it possible for more massive and successful "fake shark" shots, create a good enough sequel for both fans of the original and those who fear "going back in the water."<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>

franchise, horror, lorraine gary, monster, roy scheider, sequel, seventies, shark, suspense

ROY SCHEIDER RETURNS SANS STEVEN SPIELBERG IN JAWS 2

Year Released: 1978 Grading on the dorsal curve of the Steven Spielberg classic, this sequel feels like a would-be pilot episode of a JA...

SPIELBERG DIRECTS MARTIN MILNER ON COLUMBO

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p2bjRhdpmO0/Ve5xrMeM-zI/AAAAAAAAo84/Rtsmi32fQx0/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-07%2Bat%2B10.23.12%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="202" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p2bjRhdpmO0/Ve5xrMeM-zI/AAAAAAAAo84/Rtsmi32fQx0/s640/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-09-07%2Bat%2B10.23.12%2BPM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martin Milner types his last page in COLUMBO: MURDER BY THE BOOK</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D_2DEIYjjsA/Ve5pVl-9YuI/AAAAAAAAo8c/yMYW-gg7KSI/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D_2DEIYjjsA/Ve5pVl-9YuI/AAAAAAAAo8c/yMYW-gg7KSI/s320/1.jpg" width="188" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martin Milner</td></tr> </tbody></table> A far better, much more fitting tribute to the late Martin Milner would be a write-up of a particular episode of ADAM-12 or ROUTE 66, or a review of the movie COMPULSION or... so many things, but let's take a quick glance at an episode of Cult Film Freak's favorite television series of all time, COLUMBO, and an episode directed by a young man by the name of Steven Spielberg, creatively opening the curtain using a gliding camera panning back from a car on the road into an office building with the sound of a typewriter; the old classic keys being pounded by Milner himself, playing the talented half of a team of successful mystery authors: the other, one of the greatest returning villains on the show, Jack Cassidy...<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4XypGajvSls/Ve5piw-5XdI/AAAAAAAAo8g/rqIRWQP8hes/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4XypGajvSls/Ve5piw-5XdI/AAAAAAAAo8g/rqIRWQP8hes/s320/2.jpg" width="188" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jack Cassidy</td></tr> </tbody></table> Sure, Milner was the SPECIAL GUEST STAR, meaning he's the unlucky person killed during the first act, but it's a longer-than-usual intro, and he's our rudimentary human image from this terrific episode, MURDER BY THE BOOK, that you can view anytime on Netflix Streaming... The edgy chemistry between Milner and Cassidy is taut, awkward and palpable, deliciously adding to the suspense of a very clever "perfect crime" that... as would catapult an iconic show lasting seven years in the Seventies and then continuing from 1989 until 2003... is eventually figured-out by Peter Falk's title character, constantly acting dumb as a box of nails while the villain's conceited hammer winds up sealing his own fate...<br /> <br /> So as a series, BOOK is required viewing since it follows two mediocre pilots (before Falk became completely disheveled) and is in fact the first great COLUMBO venture and is, technically, the first episode when the show became a series (although back then, each was considered a "mystery movie")... For fans of Spielberg, you can see the master's touch was apparent years before JAWS... Cassidy can be enjoyed committing two more COLUMBO crimes (until his untimely real life death)... And here's to the late Martin Milner, who could headline or guest star and always leave a lasting impression.

jack cassidy, martin milner, mystery, peter falk, seventies, steven spielberg, TV

SPIELBERG DIRECTS MARTIN MILNER ON COLUMBO

Martin Milner types his last page in COLUMBO: MURDER BY THE BOOK Martin Milner A far better, much more fitting tribute to the late M...

SOUTHPAW, WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS & MISTRESS AMERICA

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z1JtRcZAly0/Ve3DIircHQI/AAAAAAAAo7Q/Gwts3elZHb4/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z1JtRcZAly0/Ve3DIircHQI/AAAAAAAAo7Q/Gwts3elZHb4/s320/1.png" width="206" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>SOUTHPAW:</b> Here's an untrue story made to seem very real in a biopic sense, yet mirroring just about all the awesomely fictional ROCKY films...<br /> <br /> From being a SOUTHPAW (left-handed boxer) goaded by a shunned opponent who obnoxiously flirts with his wife during a press conference (Mr. T in ROCKY 3) to losing his fortune (ROCKY 5) and then starting from scratch in an urban gym, morphed from a bruiser into a real boxer (via Apollo Creed in ROCKY 3) who can actually dance, dodge, and score...<br /> <br /> Only in this case it's not a former rival, but the rival's former manager, who teaches street-urchin turned bad boy brawler Billy Hope the ropes when he desperately needs a comeback for his professional and personal life: After Billy's wife is murdered and his only child/daughter is taken by the government, Forest Whitaker's world-weary trainer Tick Willis and Jake Gyllanhaal (attempting his own edgy FIGHTER style performance) share the most genuine scenes, both actors finally getting lost in their roles without the melodramatic distractions.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NIkWI10UY7M/Ve3DMtRUmgI/AAAAAAAAo7Y/Qsn7Ym48vT4/s1600/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NIkWI10UY7M/Ve3DMtRUmgI/AAAAAAAAo7Y/Qsn7Ym48vT4/s200/2.png" width="145" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS: </b>Would you believe a movie centering on Zac Efron as a Rave-DJ who yearns desperately for greatness would channel the Film Noir template? Well it does, and that aspect is somewhat intriguing as a slightly older, semi-famous guy allows (and fully trusts) Efron's climber to hang around his girlfriend ala POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE.<br /> <br /> The real story involves Zac figuring out how to acquire his own unique sound while the characters mean very little by the end when, after a SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER vulnerable-sidekick turnaround, the people, connected to the music, are supposed to really matter... and they just don't. Yet FRIENDS is breezy, entertaining filler nonetheless.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ppENl4t_l1M/Ve3DR6THouI/AAAAAAAAo7k/F3-oCksJ1qE/s1600/3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ppENl4t_l1M/Ve3DR6THouI/AAAAAAAAo7k/F3-oCksJ1qE/s200/3.png" width="158" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>MISTRESS AMERICA:</b> Certain indie art films are supposed to be like stage plays, but "stagey" is never good, even for... a stage play. And if you throw in a John Hughes style synth and two polar opposite females with zero chemistry, this 90-minute gabfest is a complete misfire: The passive narrator is too aloof while her forced mentor/muse never shuts up, or says anything to drive the story along. <br /> <br /> Meanwhile, to make us forget that, in real life, shallow good looking guys land pretty girls in college, two complete duds are being fought over by beauties and... if the Millennial generation needs their comedy denial-driven and fantastical while subliminally attempting Woody Allen/Judd Apatow bantering neurosis, than this could be the CITIZEN KANE of pretentious crap: and not even that interesting.<br /> <br /> RATINGS:<br /> <br /> SOUTHPAW: ***<br /> WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS: **1/2<br /> MISTRESS AMERICA: *

2015, biopic, boxing, comedy, jake gyllenhaal, zac efron

SOUTHPAW, WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS & MISTRESS AMERICA

year: 2015 SOUTHPAW:  Here's an untrue story made to seem very real in a biopic sense, yet mirroring just about all the awesomely fi...

SLAPPED SILLY: LEE BRYANT RECALLS AIRPLANE!

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qmeQIK5GiVo/Veyfpus3sQI/AAAAAAAAo5A/lijcnkjLLoI/s1600/lee-bryant1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qmeQIK5GiVo/Veyfpus3sQI/AAAAAAAAo5A/lijcnkjLLoI/s1600/lee-bryant1.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lee Bryant with Nicholas Pryor in AIRPLANE!</td></tr> </tbody></table> "The reason AIRPLANE worked so well was that everyone played it completely serious," actress Lee Bryant tells Cult Film Freak. "The minute you indicate that something is going to be funny, it isn't funny anymore. The earnestness was what made it absurd."<br /> <br /> And so, following our review of the 1980 comedy classic <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2015/09/AIRplane.html">AIRPLANE!</a>, we go inside the "big Tylenol" shaped fuselage with Lee, who played Mrs. Hammen, a name that might not ring a bell at first: But remember the kid who gets special attention from Peter Grave's pilot? And the man who never wants a second cup at home, and is the first to become ill from bad fish? Well Mrs. Hammen was that boy's mom, and that man's wife... She also makes the single blonde stewardess cry, pointing out: "To be honest, I've never been so scared... At least I have a husband." But the scene centered on is her most memorable: being violently subdued by Leslie Nielsen's Dr. Rumack, followed by a line of other passengers...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3BpTjtGrQBQ/Vey3AmrVMsI/AAAAAAAAo6s/Qu5nI-UG-sI/s1600/22.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3BpTjtGrQBQ/Vey3AmrVMsI/AAAAAAAAo6s/Qu5nI-UG-sI/s1600/22.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Actress Lee Bryant</span></td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>LEE BRYANT:</b> The way that scene was originally written was me being shaken by the flight attendant and then some passenger. The writers/directors had written an hysterical script, but were also open to suggestions and improvisation from the actors... I suggested that it might be funnier if I were slapped and then perhaps also by the doctor and the nun, etc. They loved it and then put in tire chains and brass knuckles, etc. So, we laughed a lot and had fun.<br /> <br /> <i>[And upon her return as Mrs. Hammen, the scene redone in court for AIRPLANE 2: THE SEQUEL, the residing judge being "Perry Mason" himself]: </i>Raymond Burr was lovely and got into the spirit of things very nicely. It was great seeing yet another iconic actor having such a good time.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gc1IZG1ac5s/Veyfu0Er_wI/AAAAAAAAo5I/wR40Eldk47k/s1600/lee-bryant2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="318" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gc1IZG1ac5s/Veyfu0Er_wI/AAAAAAAAo5I/wR40Eldk47k/s640/lee-bryant2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leslie Nielsen and Lee Bryant in the skybreaking classic AIRPLANE!</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>

comedy, eighties, interview, lee bryant

SLAPPED SILLY: LEE BRYANT RECALLS AIRPLANE!

Lee Bryant with Nicholas Pryor in AIRPLANE! "The reason AIRPLANE worked so well was that everyone played it completely serious,&quo...