Cult Radar: Part 8

Posted on 20 maart 2011 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon is glad to explore the video trenches to find that oddball treasure between the piles of crap out there. Of Course, a treasure in this context can also be a film that’s so shockingly bad it’s worth a look, or something so bizarre that cult fans just have to see it. Join us on our quest and learn what we learn. Hopefully we’ll uncover some well-hidden cult gems.

Researched by: Jeppe Kleijngeld

Roadgames (Australia, 1981)

Directed by: Richard Franklin
Written by: Richard Franklin, Everett De Roche
Cast: Stacy Keach, Jamie Lee Curtis, Marion Edward, Grant Page

Pat Quid (Stacy Keach) is an American ‘truckie’ in Australia, assigned to drive a load of pork from Melbourne to Perth. Along the road in the outback, he gets suspicious of a fellow driver. He suspects the man might be a wanted serial killer and shares his suspicions with hitchhiker Pamela (Jamie Lee Curtis). Then she vanishes and the deadly cat and mouse game with the killer really takes off. Roadgames is an Ozploitation flick released in 2008 by Optimum Home Entertainment, who released many other Ozploitation classics around that time following the success of Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation (2008). It is clearly inspired by Hitchcock of whom director Richard Franklin (Patrick, Psycho II) is a major fan. Although the screenplay certainly has elements of engaging mystery, an adequate dosage of tension is missing in its direction. The musical score is composed by Mad Max’s Brian May (not to be confused by Queen’s Brian May). The killer is portrayed by famous Australian stunt performer Grant Page.

The Car (USA, 1977)

Directed by: Elliot Silverstein
Written by: Michael Butler Dennis Shryack, Lane Slate
Cast: James Brolin, Kathleen Lloyd, John Marley

A large, black two-door sedan is killing people randomly in a small desert town, blaring its horn rhythmically whenever it makes a kill. There doesn’t appear to be a driver in the car, as if Evil itself is behind the steering wheel. Sheriff Wade Parent (James Brolin) must find a way to stop the sedan, while also protecting his beloved ones. The Car is an unusual and entertaining thriller from the director of Cat Ballou. Although the dialogues and some of the acting sucks, the pretty awesome car action, the surroundings (Utah) and some eerie moments make it a decent movie in its kind.

Patrick (Australia, 1978)

Directed by: Richard Franklin
Written by: Everett De Roche
Cast: Susan Penhaligon, Robert Thompson, Robert Helpmann

A comatose killer named Patrick uses psychokinesis to infiltrate the life of his new nurse, the attractive Kathy (Penhaligon). Low budget ozzy flick does little to shock the viewer. It is, however, stylishly directed by director Franklin, who knows some tricks to create suspense. The cinematography and editing are also pretty well done. Thompson is at times effectively scary as Patrick, but because the film is overlong and outdated, he won’t get much shock out of the contemporary viewer.

Long Weekend (Australia, 1978)

Directed by: Colin Eggleston
Written by: Everett De Roche
Cast: John Hargreaves, Briony Behets, Mike McEwan

‘Their crime was against nature… Nature found them guilty.’ When this is your tagline, you know you got a potential cult classic on your hands. Long Weekend is about a loathsome couple who head into nature for a camping trip. They arrive at a beautiful, abandoned beach area and start treating nature like shit. Their irreverent behavior causes repugnance from the viewer. Luckily nature feels the same way and gives them what they got coming. Hilarious when you think about it and very satisfying as well. From the writer of Patrick and Roadgames and the director of Fantasm Comes Again comes a very awesome Australian cult flick. Besides funny, Long Weekend is also effectively chilling when it needs to be. Excellent work.

Election (Hong Kong, 2005)
OT: Hak se wui

Directed by: Johnnie To
Written by: Nai-Hoi Yau, Tin-Shing Yip
Cast: Simon Yam, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Louis Koo

Stylish crime film by Johnnie To about the election of a new Triad boss. Two rivals, Big D and Lok, both want the position which leads to a bloody internal battle. What is always good about Johnnie To’s gangster flicks is that there is a slight absurd touch about them. Election also has this in spades. The result is a violent, comical Hong Kong movie that offers some insight into the workings of a Triad family. Followed one year later by Election 2.

Patrick

Fast Times at Ridgemont High

Posted on 28 november 2010 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Amy Heckerling
Written by: Cameron Crowe
Cast: Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judge Reinhold, Robert Romanus

Year / Country: 1982, USA
Running Time: 90 mins.

Adolescence is way too confusing. Hormones go haywire and temptations arise everywhere. Fast Times at Ridgemont High is about this foggy period. Like Dazed and Confused, it deals with teenagers discovering life: Two girls experimenting with sex (Phoebe Cates and Jennifer Jason Leigh), a surfer who is permanently stoned (Sean Penn) and a popular guy who has to work stupid fast food jobs (Judge Reinhold).

Along the way they make discoveries: One of the girls finds out that she wants romance rather than sex, a teacher turns out to be cooler than initially thought and it is possible to quit a stupid job. The film is written by Cameron Crowe, who was one time named as ‘spokesman for the post-baby boom generation’ because his first films focussed on this age group. His screenplay for Fast Times at Ridgemont High is based on his experiences at Clairemont High School in San Diego, where he went undercover as a student for a year.

There isn’t much of a story – just a bunch of kids hanging around a mall – but it is the characters that count. And those are a lovely bunch. Jennifer Jason Leigh is adorable as the young experimenting high school girl Stacy, Sean Penn’s Jeff Spicoli adds a new dimension to the classic stoner character and Robert Romanus is very smooth as the cool hustler Mike Damone. Too bad he never really broke through since he is very charismatic.

Fast Times at Ridgemont High will make you flash back to your own teenage years in no time. There are many great scenes – such as Reinhold’s masturbation scene, Romanus and Leigh’s sex scene and Penn’s stoner dream – that will stick with you for years to come. Best of all, the film has got a heart. A big one.

Rating:

Biography: Amy Heckerling (1954, New York) studied Film and TV at New York University. She got her breakthrough with Fast Times at Ridgemont High in 1982. Since then she has made a number of successful comedies, most notably Look Who’s Talking, which she thought up while she was pregnant, and Clueless.

Filmography: Getting It Over with (1977, short), Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), Johnny Dangerously (1984), European Vacation (1985), Fast Times (1986, TV episodes), Look Who’s Talking (1989), Look Who’s Talking Too (1990), Clueless (1995), Clueless (1996, TV episodes), A Night at the Roxbury (1998), Loser (2000), The Office (2005, TV episode), I Could Never Be Your Woman (2007)

Turkey Shoot

Posted on 8 augustus 2010 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Brian Trenchard-Smith
Written by: Jon George, Neill D. Hicks
Cast: Steve Railsback, Olivia Hussey, Michael Craig

Year / Country: 1982, Australia
Running Time: 90 mins.

If you are in the mood for some real Ozzy exploitation (ozploitation), you should definitely check out Turkey Shoot. Ridiculously bloody kills? Check. Boobs? Check. Campy humour? Check. Turkey Shoot, also known as Escape 2000, definitely scores quite high on the benchmark for exploitation value.

The screenplay for this movie was not a contender for the Academy Awards. Because of the overpopulation, society has plunged into chaos. To regain control, the government sets up tightly run camps. Whoever doesn’t conform to society’s rules is sent to one of these DEATHCAMPS (Well, that is what it comes down to anyway).

Three innocents are sent to Camp 97 for re-education and behaviour modification. Their stay there is supposed to make them ‘better assets to society’. However, the main dude (Railsback) keeps on challenging the sadistic camp chief Thatcher, so he and four others are selected for the ‘Turkey Shoot’ in which deviants are hunted by the rich and cruel in the forest surrounding the camp. Railsback’s character turns out to be quite a hard target for the hunters.

The first half of this film is a little boring, but as soon as the Turkey Shoot begins, it gets a lot better. The fun of these manhunt movies is that the hunters (real bastards of course) start out all confident and end up as scared prey. Therefore it is a shame that several of the hunted in this movie make immensely stupid and illogical decisions. Railsback for example leaves a gun behind after defeating a baddie twice!! Still some satisfying kills on both sides ensure a very entertaining second half.

Rating:

Biography: Brian Trenchard-Smith (1946, UK) is an English film and television producer, writer and director. He made a large contribution to the ozploitation era in the mid seventies and eighties. Notable examples of these contributions are BMX Bandits, Turkey Shoot, Death Cheaters and the Australian martial arts (!) movie The Man From Hong Kong. In his long career he made around 40 movies and in addition directed about 35 episodes of TV-shows. He currently lives in Los Angeles.

Filmography (a selection): The Marty Feldman Show (1972, TV), Dare Devils (1973, short), Kung Fu Killers (1974, TV doc), The Man from Hong Kong (1975), Death Cheaters (1976), Stunt Rock (1978), BMX Bandits (1983), Day of the Assassin (1979), Turkey Shoot (1982), Frog Dreaming (1986), Dead-End Drive In (1986), Day of the Panther (1988), Strike of the Panther (1988), Out of the Body (1989), The Siege of Firebase Gloria (1989), Silk Stalkings (1991-92, TV episodes), Night of the Demons 2 (1994), Leprechaun 3 (1995), Flipper (1995-2000, TV episodes), Leprechaun 4: In Space (1997), Britannic (2000, TV), DC 9/11: Time of Crisis (2003, TV), Long Lost Son (2006, TV)

Cult Radar: Part 7

Posted on 13 juli 2010 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Researched by: Jeppe Kleijngeld

Hell Ride (USA, 2008)

Directed by: Larry Bishop
Written by: Larry Bishop
Cast: Larry Bishop, Michael Madsen, Eric Balfour

Larry Bishop, who played in trashy biker films in the sixties and seventies such as The Savage Seven, Angel Unchained and Chrome and Hot Leather writes, directs and stars in a Tarantinoesque homage to the biker film. In it, a decade long battle between two biker gangs takes place; the Victors, lead by Pistolero (Bishop) Vs. the 666ers, lead by Billy Wings (Vinnie Jones). The concept and promising cast (Michael Madsen, Dennis Hopper, David Carradine) raises expectations, but the execution is far below par. Tarantino should have rewritten the script apart from producing. The dialogues appear to have been written by a 14 year old. There is some humor to be found, but it can hardly make up for the terrible script. Also Bishop is unfit to play the lead role. Interesting trivia: Madsen and Bishop share a scene in Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004). Madsen plays Budd and Bishop plays his boss in the strip club scene.

The Host (South Korea, 2006)
OT: Gwoemul

Directed by: Bong Joon-ho
Written by: Baek Chul-hyun, Bong Joon-ho, Ha Jun-won
Cast: Song Kang-ho, Byeon Hie-bong, Ko Ah-sung

On orders of a US doctor, a toxic substance is dumped in the Han River. Four years later in Seoul, ordinary Korean folk are enjoying a leisurely day along the river when the final result reveals itself. In 2006, this entertaining monster movie made a successful journey along the important international film festivals and the tentacles of the host soon attained a large cult following. The Host effectively balances between comedy and campy horror. Only with nearly two hours running time and a main character who screams too much the fun is somewhat lessened. Also a monster that looks like sewer calamari can be hardly called scary. Still, a couple of really good jokes and scenes and its undeniable cult appeal make The Host a worthy contender for the Mega Monster Mash.

Bronson (UK, 2008)

Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn
Written by: Brock Norman Brock, Nicolas Winding Refn
Cast: Tom Hardy, James Lance, Matt King, Amanda Burton

The wacky British indie flick Bronson gives you the life story of Charles Bronson. No not the movie star YOU CUNT! We’re talking about Britain’s most violent prisoner. Since it is directed by Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn from the violent and brilliant Pusher trilogy, I was kind of expecting a gut-wrenching gorefest. It is not that bad, in fact this is more like a comedy. Crucial to the film is the central character who wants to become famous. He can’t sing and he can’t fucking act. So what does he do? This original idea is brought to the screen with Winding Refn’s usual sense of style. Tom Hardy delivers a knock-out performance as the protagonist. Don’t expect a cliché prison drama and you might find a place in your heart for Bronson. Special mention goes to the soundtrack which includes gems such as ‘It’s a sin’ by Pet Shop Boys.

Zombie Self-Defense Force (Japan, 2006)

Directed by: Naoyuki Tomomatsu
Written by: Chisato Oogawara, Naoyuki Tomomatsu
Cast: Kenji Arai, Norman England, Masayuki Hase, Yû Machimura

On the cover of Zombie Self-Defense Force, this movie is compared to Peter Jackson’s Bad Taste. Although the extreme gore is sometimes similar – though far less creative – this is nothing like Jackson’s first movie. It totally misses a master’s touch – this is amateur night and they know it. Poor acting, horrible no budget FX and very little to enjoy overall. During the first half hour, a few nice character touches promise some cult delight, but as soon as a zombie baby appears (a homage to another Jackson classic), things start to look really bad. Pretty much a disgrace anyway you look at it.

Black Devil Doll (USA, 2007)

Directed by: Jonathan Lewis
Written by: Shawn Lewis, Mitch Mayes
Cast: Heather Murphy, Natasha Talonz, Christine Svendsen

He’s a lover! He’s a killer! He’s a muthafu**in’ puppet! ‘A Lewis Brothers fiasco’, credits state after Mubia, a member of the black power movement, is executed. His last words: ‘I like to eat white butt’. We’re up for something special that is for sure. Mubia is brought back to life by big boob teenager Heather while she is messing around with a Ouija Board. Guess what? The dangerous rapist and murderer returns in puppet form! So, the sexploitation version of Child’s Play begins. Not subtle, but sleazy, nasty and offensive. Black Devil Doll does exactly what it promises to do on the cover. At times it is too dirty, but quite often it is pretty hilarious.

Tom Hardy as Charles Bronson in Bronson