cult film freak: September 2017

Written by James M. Tate / 9/30/2017 / No comments / anne archer , beach , drama , exploitation , kathleen quinlan , parker stevenson , romance , sam elliott , seventies , sharon clark , stephen young

LIFE'S A 1970'S BEACH WITH SAM ELLIOTT AS A CAREER 'LIFEGUARD'

<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="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRFeF6rI-YvVThBCJEvvph1tL_KnAnfGHWaHLMOM4If67Yl4ahESTlWZQQoBJ9JwnJ_BUR6MUqBUQbLYqhMhX281aMSdhusSa6tt0ElHZRK4ID6O_rXkoC7VhyHbATZQVV8KV0Ljxd3HhDNZkjJxfGrKDsuatAkvr4Zy7r50Jkqd-QSVMZBcxs2TqNg/s1042/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-24%20at%204.41.37%20AM%202.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="930" data-original-width="1042" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRFeF6rI-YvVThBCJEvvph1tL_KnAnfGHWaHLMOM4If67Yl4ahESTlWZQQoBJ9JwnJ_BUR6MUqBUQbLYqhMhX281aMSdhusSa6tt0ElHZRK4ID6O_rXkoC7VhyHbATZQVV8KV0Ljxd3HhDNZkjJxfGrKDsuatAkvr4Zy7r50Jkqd-QSVMZBcxs2TqNg/w400-h358/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-24%20at%204.41.37%20AM%202.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sam Elliott in LIFEGUARD Year: 1976</u></td></tr></tbody></table>A film as laidback as the title and occupation, but for lifeguard Sam Elliott, who seems a part of the beach he protects, there's plenty to do other than "bedding down babes" and looking good shirtless.<br>
<br>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</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="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_CyeC5KOtgA/XTIXl7hwufI/AAAAAAABFEE/vcHw3RoUvGQdX9im6X0MASXfS1aGUQy5gCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B12.11.30%2BPM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1317" data-original-width="487" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_CyeC5KOtgA/XTIXl7hwufI/AAAAAAABFEE/vcHw3RoUvGQdX9im6X0MASXfS1aGUQy5gCLcBGAs/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B12.11.30%2BPM.jpeg" width="147"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>70's Babe Watch</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
At thirty-three years old, with pressure from friends, family, lovers, and even strangers, he's forced to deal with the realization he's not a kid anymore, and too old for his occupation. All this leading to his fifteen-year high school reunion where he gets back in touch with ex-sweetheart and now single mom Anne Archer, who breezily runs a successful art gallery, and old buddy Stephen Young, co-owner of a lucritive Porsche dealership.<br>
<br>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<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="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sPgh1-nZrsk/XTIqDY0mzEI/AAAAAAABFFs/KG10byOjZlozsLEXGacnHQtQgBUHy5Z0wCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B3.32.56%2BAM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1381" data-original-width="1066" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sPgh1-nZrsk/XTIqDY0mzEI/AAAAAAABFFs/KG10byOjZlozsLEXGacnHQtQgBUHy5Z0wCLcBGAs/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B3.32.56%2BAM.jpeg" width="308"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u> Quinlan and Elliott in Lifeguard RATES: ****</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Might Sam be a better boyfriend/salesman than tan-toned lady-killer lifeguard? This is a rare gem mixing comedy, drama, romance, but is mostly a character-study: each element blending perfectly, mostly thanks to our mustached, deep-voiced star, one of the coolest cats in cinema... <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://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PcI2IBk45EY/XTIYhGNYVGI/AAAAAAABFEM/HA2Ew3tu8NgxR9Smj-eCmrnpPwUg0wb1ACLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B3.32.25%2BAM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1279" data-original-width="1172" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PcI2IBk45EY/XTIYhGNYVGI/AAAAAAABFEM/HA2Ew3tu8NgxR9Smj-eCmrnpPwUg0wb1ACLcBGAs/s200/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B3.32.25%2BAM.jpeg" width="183"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sharon Clark in LIFEGUARD</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Meanwhile, the romance between Sam Elliott and Anne Archer is kindhearted and genuine, but the best scenes have Sam the maverick...<br>
<br>
Not only making it with the ladies but relaxing all alone, watching the beach before anyone else arrives while a frisky teenage girl, played by Kathleen Quinlan and who adorns all the poster artwork, is practically a stalker. That he doesn't fight off, noticed by Parker Stevenson, who makes great sidekick and student (along with the audience) in the job harder than it seems: So BAYWATCH (that initially featured Stevenson) brought lifeguards to a comic book status, LIFEGUARD (penned by future INTO THE NIGHT and FIRSTBORN scribe Ron Kolso) provides a story where the occupation and the man are one in the same.<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="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uEQBIPjjciw/XTGfCIW5jKI/AAAAAAABFAw/UDFhh7ZJgWc2XTEL1Pt1K3yZtb51L6TOACLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B3.33.16%2BAM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="894" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uEQBIPjjciw/XTGfCIW5jKI/AAAAAAABFAw/UDFhh7ZJgWc2XTEL1Pt1K3yZtb51L6TOACLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-07-19%2Bat%2B3.33.16%2BAM.jpeg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Kathleen Quinlan in LIFEGUARD</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>

anne archer, beach, drama, exploitation, kathleen quinlan, parker stevenson, romance, sam elliott, seventies, sharon clark, stephen young

LIFE'S A 1970'S BEACH WITH SAM ELLIOTT AS A CAREER 'LIFEGUARD'

Sam Elliott in LIFEGUARD Year: 1976 A film as laidback as the title and occupation, but for lifeguard Sam Elliott, who seems a part of the ...

BLASTING OFF THE GLOSSY TEEN ORBIT OF SPACECAMP

adventure, eighties, joaquin phoenix, kelly preston, larry b. scott, lea thompson, tate donovan, teen, tom skerritt

BLASTING OFF THE GLOSSY TEEN ORBIT OF SPACECAMP

Phoenix, Preston, and the rest... here at SpaceCamp YEAR: 1986 In the midst of the bright neon 1980's, two of the most popular theat...

ROBYN HILTON BOWS OUT OF CINEMA AFTER 'MALIBU EXPRESS'

comedy, darby hinton, eighties, exploitation, neo noir, robyn hilton

ROBYN HILTON BOWS OUT OF CINEMA AFTER 'MALIBU EXPRESS'

Hilton serves Hinton in Andy Sidaris's MALIBU EXPRESS Year: 1985 By the mid-Eighties, the sex-exploitation genre had moved from driv...

TWO PETER O'TOOLE CAMEOS BEFORE LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

<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://2.bp.blogspot.com/-50rtlsPy94w/WcBcCaxXmZI/AAAAAAAAy8E/9PqYztz7GOkL-AzmG0g-k2oSiXmiRmJKACLcBGAs/s1600/24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="775" height="229" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-50rtlsPy94w/WcBcCaxXmZI/AAAAAAAAy8E/9PqYztz7GOkL-AzmG0g-k2oSiXmiRmJKACLcBGAs/s320/24.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>THE SAVAGE INNOCENTS Score: *1/2</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<u>THE SAVAGE INNOCENTS,</u> directed by veteran auteur Nicholas Ray, who would, a decade later, dry up his Hollywood resources and, for a little while, live in the home of his former REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE actor Dennis Hopper after the success of EASY RIDER...<br>
<br>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
So perhaps it's not altogether shocking the man who once contributed to classic cinema was no longer relevant — this motion picture, centering on an Eskimo played by Anthony Quinn, is one of the worst piles of husky dung ever created: seeming as if Jack London wrote a novel on soiled toilet paper, we suffer through an hour of Quinn's lone nomad (in the snow he's a snowmad) hunting cute seals and, after so-much brooding, landing a wife... <br>
<br>
<table align="center" 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://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NCF5bJDs5sE/WcBgv85jGpI/AAAAAAAAy8o/HJ7njonSePsLOETeYazvr21UShVeTYjGgCLcBGAs/s1600/11.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="624" data-original-width="840" height="296" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NCF5bJDs5sE/WcBgv85jGpI/AAAAAAAAy8o/HJ7njonSePsLOETeYazvr21UShVeTYjGgCLcBGAs/s400/11.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Before they set out across the Arabian desert, O'Toole</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Though mostly shot in an igloo (a cheap set made up to look like the white-block interior), there's one sequence where Quinn gets drunk at a bar and dances to that era's boogie-woogie.<br>
<br>
And we've buried the lead because the third act could have been something special since, once our man is falsely accused of cold-blooded murder, two (eventually one) guards take him across the icy landscape to turn him over to the authorities, and it's Peter O'Toole that survives. Scenes where both near-future LAWRENCE OF ARABIA stars (who'd become living legends three-years later) debate race and ethics has real potential — only thing is, O'Toole's voice is dubbed by an American actor who sounds like an easy listening disc jockey. So be incredibly warned — this is <i>not</i> a Peter O'Toole feature for fans for the same reason he insisted his name not appear on the opening credits: despite ultimately providing the secondary leading role. Shame!<br>

adaptation, adventure, aldo ray, anthony quinn, caper, disney, heist, john guillermin, kieron moore, peter o'toole, sixties, warner archives

TWO PETER O'TOOLE CAMEOS BEFORE LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

THE SAVAGE INNOCENTS Score: *1/2 THE SAVAGE INNOCENTS, directed by veteran auteur Nicholas Ray, who would, a decade later, dry up his H...

VIEWING TWO CUTS OF 'CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND'

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF6CnrUq4H8Mh1lPmY6UdbvfsJHq6XXHPFkru_vPW4a8X1AbC_xfkmw-54EH27h_66mXb67CP_-bcBkyDIhef97p7ryChrHLqMMSq26Ft6LLEUdgySEK-VA6SrhZEDr6LOVD9aue5ZxOH5MpLfw0oR8uch12aQlWio2Y0mXtaaJ9GnAnpMHFPHOxcGQQ/s1306/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.13.06%20PM.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1306" data-original-width="912" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF6CnrUq4H8Mh1lPmY6UdbvfsJHq6XXHPFkru_vPW4a8X1AbC_xfkmw-54EH27h_66mXb67CP_-bcBkyDIhef97p7ryChrHLqMMSq26Ft6LLEUdgySEK-VA6SrhZEDr6LOVD9aue5ZxOH5MpLfw0oR8uch12aQlWio2Y0mXtaaJ9GnAnpMHFPHOxcGQQ/w279-h400/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.13.06%20PM.png" width="279" /></a></div>At this point, it seems any movie anticipating extra terrestrials will end badly. As in, violently. And not in the human's favor since most science-fiction aliens-on-Earth flicks are about a takeover...<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="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicIvPYsLrXLjkP0wpDkWe9nEb8RcsCsT5zvHAwZPoMs9ZwAkhdJ5HX0wtjvoLW_hAGZDq-Z46JS2bSrws7OlKeTXG23BjsZwgE_EnZcPjjdpm4vg6xviUD1tUZjwiNrlOtMqL1uYkbB0yJdJ7qRYFAesqlt37Woo5XmTekmQUf5CNTn14t9eYqOCoj9A/s1348/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.14.01%20PM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1348" data-original-width="962" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicIvPYsLrXLjkP0wpDkWe9nEb8RcsCsT5zvHAwZPoMs9ZwAkhdJ5HX0wtjvoLW_hAGZDq-Z46JS2bSrws7OlKeTXG23BjsZwgE_EnZcPjjdpm4vg6xviUD1tUZjwiNrlOtMqL1uYkbB0yJdJ7qRYFAesqlt37Woo5XmTekmQUf5CNTn14t9eYqOCoj9A/s320/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.14.01%20PM.jpeg" width="228" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>And yet, Steven Spielberg directed CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND similar to how a disaster film builds to the flashpoint, along with particular scenes similar to the horror genre. Like when the "Spielberg Mom Character"... who are all always tough, independent yet sweet and vulnerable... and her little boy are visited noisily by determined, unseen aliens who make like Santa Clause by trying to sneak in through the.. Well you've probably seen the 1977 smash hit, and it's worth revisiting whenever turning up on the big screen, like recently, during the 40th Anniversary. Although the version shown under big theater lights is Spielberg's Director Cut, which deletes one sequence and, a bit later on, adds another...
The latter giving the future billionaire and newly million dollar director who was not yet thirty-years-old a chance to pay homage to both his cinematic hero, David Lean, who made LAWRENCE OF ARABIA that inspired John Milius's THE WIND AND THE LION, which has style and movement that would leapfrog over to RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK...

<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHIfmqWnpcpwqT2wDm6pW-6AQgySewK_4hTCDwVk6l82revx3FB2E9pDmeO37RCSq6fXG7M2SZ0Uz7dln89nm5s7ru4iP0GVBi86Gf6yfKfZ9Saf9KrOPxhw6cLntsG1v3QgTjy2e6WabtPyMp4XofqoqoI1Tqu12CoagtMGmWhxj4lVV0tDzHIrBaCQ/s1039/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.24.17%20PM.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="732" data-original-width="1039" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHIfmqWnpcpwqT2wDm6pW-6AQgySewK_4hTCDwVk6l82revx3FB2E9pDmeO37RCSq6fXG7M2SZ0Uz7dln89nm5s7ru4iP0GVBi86Gf6yfKfZ9Saf9KrOPxhw6cLntsG1v3QgTjy2e6WabtPyMp4XofqoqoI1Tqu12CoagtMGmWhxj4lVV0tDzHIrBaCQ/w400-h281/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.24.17%20PM.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>In the Director's Cut we first see him teaching his oldest yet still young son how to do a math problem while an electric train rolls along before them.<br />
<br />
A funny moment that isn't altogether necessary since dad will end up ditching his family for a journey into what could be endless outer space rollercoaster ride... Instead, starting out with a more lonely, disassociated suburban dad starring wanly at the train until the audience, and the character, are domesticated by a surge of bickering kids and an impatient mother/wife: And also in the original theatrical cut that's not on the Director's Cut, Dreyfuss is in a power station that not only proves his job and skills, but will soon differentiate "their" power to ours. Once he's underway searching through a map before the first encounter along the dark road, it was nice to have seen him nervous and awkward at the starting gate.<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="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGecxz6VMlyP8Mtg-_DHZBST8XN84Jm6MJpXYvBIjzvjZPWG1zqzo_VO8XXbT1d_Kn1NKCokq79CcEM1IVoQUbssSnoZg_G7O68A5wTsl9M1dRNbM3GkN4HR06AIxKNhIQRDIYavBuVuUi2XG0MEzL2tG-soO72YBEw3kL8Lbf4pJS5_ROMfc-VUmNgA/s1378/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.19.34%20PM.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1378" data-original-width="902" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGecxz6VMlyP8Mtg-_DHZBST8XN84Jm6MJpXYvBIjzvjZPWG1zqzo_VO8XXbT1d_Kn1NKCokq79CcEM1IVoQUbssSnoZg_G7O68A5wTsl9M1dRNbM3GkN4HR06AIxKNhIQRDIYavBuVuUi2XG0MEzL2tG-soO72YBEw3kL8Lbf4pJS5_ROMfc-VUmNgA/w261-h400/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.19.34%20PM.png" width="261" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>One cut/deletion that makes a bit more sense has Carl Weathers as a soldier at a busy roadblock towards the end — a bit distracting given that, "It's Apollo Creed!" is bound to happen, silently or otherwise, in the theater. On the other hand, muscular Carl represents one reason not to try breaking through the boundaries....<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://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdhGqkgshyRjpcHHRXO-_Kq5PPYPoNmpcm1L3MpTG9Z284g_jiD-QjIsaNs_4ApKuc_ljW22hfeVpHsPqddJIFjbP0EEXSsowEbUVn_J6eiaGEx3aVJ0ZQEpl1xB8xwmjvf6j--rCzZVzwapHZ36PNKlem5oYNE74z0VyRSeTM-S2kbyOcaMZxzpH3NA/s1482/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%205.34.38%20PM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1482" data-original-width="1122" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdhGqkgshyRjpcHHRXO-_Kq5PPYPoNmpcm1L3MpTG9Z284g_jiD-QjIsaNs_4ApKuc_ljW22hfeVpHsPqddJIFjbP0EEXSsowEbUVn_J6eiaGEx3aVJ0ZQEpl1xB8xwmjvf6j--rCzZVzwapHZ36PNKlem5oYNE74z0VyRSeTM-S2kbyOcaMZxzpH3NA/s320/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%205.34.38%20PM.jpeg" width="242" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>And so, any version is worth the watch, but, along with the version that's now in theaters, why not see what initially spellbound audiences (we're intentionally leaving out the ripoff "Special Edition" from 1978, where audiences barely catch a glimpse into the mothership)... In either it would've helped trimming like seven minutes from the end of act two, where Dreyfuss goes bonkers to make the Devils Tower with fences and dirt stolen from various neighbor's lawns... Following melodrama where dad cries and makes his son weep along with him, our man's personal pandemonium is a bit much, really. But Dreyfuss was obviously playing Spielberg himself. Probably because this was written by the groundbreaking director who'd usually leave the writing to others and so CLOSE ENCOUNTERS — showcasing not only amazing special effects but car chases ala SUGARLAND EXPRESS, his first theatrical feature — is Spielberg's true labor-of-love that, while no JAWS, puts the artist in the forefront — with a style of direction that remains an influence to this day.
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jMCVAkHcu48/Wbdcq8CDK4I/AAAAAAAAy6U/uaJGsFrSFYEwF8WsRNmkRM25MLR14niegCLcBGAs/s1600/21687748_371106549985194_6920297946303340256_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="457" data-original-width="791" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jMCVAkHcu48/Wbdcq8CDK4I/AAAAAAAAy6U/uaJGsFrSFYEwF8WsRNmkRM25MLR14niegCLcBGAs/s16000/21687748_371106549985194_6920297946303340256_n.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Richard Dreyfuss with a later deleted Carl Weathers at the foot of the climax</u></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMUh1UOo807oAyIQ7vtWIGBSm9HJ4M-zdxWp0pegIShBdgWLfaDqGVRpT5SR0eJK3MzlrcgVrlY3cs3f2_CLa4zgWyFO1izs1606IpLU8PhCLbMdPJgeZNAr9Hy1YVMqbajBLvPBo5wOs1thsGZpPqPu3UO4EUrOKYTrl6FCJpHcKJpj1YKHn7fyb7Hg/s1928/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.29.30%20PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="1928" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMUh1UOo807oAyIQ7vtWIGBSm9HJ4M-zdxWp0pegIShBdgWLfaDqGVRpT5SR0eJK3MzlrcgVrlY3cs3f2_CLa4zgWyFO1izs1606IpLU8PhCLbMdPJgeZNAr9Hy1YVMqbajBLvPBo5wOs1thsGZpPqPu3UO4EUrOKYTrl6FCJpHcKJpj1YKHn7fyb7Hg/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-03%20at%206.29.30%20PM.png" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Ship in the desert from second edition</u><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />

blockbuster, bob balaban, carl weathers, cult, melinda dillon, richard dreyfuss, science-fiction, seventies, steven spielberg, teri garr, thriller

VIEWING TWO CUTS OF 'CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND'

At this point, it seems any movie anticipating extra terrestrials will end badly. As in, violently. And not in the human's favor since m...

Written by James M. Tate / 9/07/2017 / No comments / 2017 , adaptation , horror , reboot , stephen king

THURSDAY NIGHT REVIEW OF THE BIG SCREEN 'IT'

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8sq_xtj0uIs/WbJLB7TByuI/AAAAAAAAy1Y/sFkxy-MfyTUlASadgBp-2KKa_zzIRK4MQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2017-09-08%2Bat%2B12.17.39%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="728" data-original-width="1360" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8sq_xtj0uIs/WbJLB7TByuI/AAAAAAAAy1Y/sFkxy-MfyTUlASadgBp-2KKa_zzIRK4MQCLcBGAs/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2017-09-08%2Bat%2B12.17.39%2BAM.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
Both the 1990's IT miniseries and the abundance of recent reboot trailers must have left an impression: the now famously established red balloon of Pennywise the Clown flies over the dark blue New Line Cinema logo before even the opening credits are shown...<br>
<br>
Either way, here's a film that, within the first minute, sets up the main teenage boy character during the 1980's. On his bedroom wall is a poster of GREMLINS, and when all his buddies are together they do seem extremely Spielbergian. Meanwhile, this is a Stephen King adaptation, and the last project combining Steven and Stephen was STRANGER THINGS so, who knows, maybe cable binge-viewers will think that show inspired all this — but even they should realize that IT is a lot tighter and has way more rhyme, rhythm and purpose.<br>

2017, adaptation, horror, reboot, stephen king