One of the flicks popping up on Peacock for Halloween is Killer High (2018). Originally this was a made for SyFy Channel creature feature, which generally are just plain awful crud that The Asylum churns out.
This movie is no classic, but it isn’t complete garbage either. I know that is not a rave, but I think it is appropriate.
Sabrina is one of those young ladies who “peaked” in high school and planned the “perfect” high school reunion. The problem is the the high school (and the city!) are falling apart and, oh yeah, a killer WARTHOG is on the loose.
I know I pigged out at my High School reunion, but this is ridiculous!
It is pretty much a comedy about what a joke Sabrina’s life has become and her rivalry with the leader of the cheerleaders even all these years later. It also takes jabs at their deteriorating city of their youth, which works great for explaining why they can’t call the cops (not only is their no cell coverage, but the police have shut down and left town too!)
Peer pressure to die in an entertaining way is huge in Killer High!
The monster is a ridiculous costume, but at least it isn’t a ridiculous CGI cartoon. The Australian version of this could have had Taz drawn in there to good effect I think. But then this would be on what platform WB is streaming on.
Geez! That monster is so horny!
Certainly the movie won’t win any Oscars, but it was a mildly enjoyable little watch with only 5 commercial breaks put in by the bird.
One of the things that always attracted me to Universal is their ability to embrace “Joe Six Pack” type entertainment, particularly horror. No other major studio celebrates their relationship with horror. Even Disney has a horror movie or two in their past (though they’ve sucked. Remember “Watcher in the Woods”? Yeah, no one else does either.)
Peacock proves their relationship with horror with a great front page tab “Halloween” that opens to a splashy page with prominent films on display. In particular, they give great placement to their Alfred Hitchcock and Classic Monster work. So, what should you check out? WHERE TO START!
Just when you thought it was safe to get back in the shower.
Alfred Hitchcock is a good opening salvo. A brand new The Making of Psycho documentary is full of great information. I recently “audiobooked” (I can’t bring myself to call that “reading” yet) the original Psycho and I forgot just how wonderfully Joseph Stefano adapted Robert Bloch’s wonderful novel. Then follow that view with a re-watch of Psycho (if you haven’t seen it yet, by jiminy, watch Psycho first!), The Birds,Vertigo and Rear Window! Here’s a hot take: I actually prefer Rear Window. Take me on in the comments below.
Hail! Hail! The Gang’s All Here!
In the classic monsters, I think people forget how good some of those films are due to their “creaky” nature and not always having aged very well. I suggest the greatest horror comedy of all time, Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein. Yes, “the boys” made a few of these meet the monster films, but this one features one of only four times Bela Lugosi played Dracula on film (go ahead and check me on that) and a fantastic performance by Lon Cheney Jr. as the Wolf Man, Lyle Talbot. What makes this work is the monsters play their bits completely straight, making Lou’s over-the-top fear reactions all the more entertaining. If you haven’t watched it recently, take it in. You forgot just how good this one is!
It Follows is a solid pick of their newer fare. While I’m not willing to call it a new classic as many reviewers did when it came out, it’s a solid little suspense filled flick about an entity that infuriatingly defies simple definition. The suspense is well crafted and it certainly has earned its reputation for being creepy. Worth a look.
Hoodies are still creepy.
Let Me In is a remake of the Swedish Let the Right One In, which has a superior ending, but as for the rest of the film, I think this version is actually more fun to watch. In general, this film’s workmanship is superior to the original and the acting is far better. This is the film that made vampires scary again, and took some of that sparkle away.
This was the original class action park.
The Funhouse is an oft overlooked scary movie. Tobe Hooper of Texas Chainsaw Massacre fame made this criminally underseen carnival creepfest that features the most disturbing Frankenstein monster mask ever committed to the silver screen. I’m not sure what to call it. Is it a creature feature? A slasher? A ghost story? This flick will having you guessing and hopefully screaming.
Give these movies a look while they are up on the Peacock.
Flower Drum Song is free with Prime at the time of this article’s release
This is going to be a tricky review. With the current view of films based on other cultures and Hollywood’s “whitewashing” in the foreground, it is difficult to review “Flower Drum Song” from 1961 with an entirely Asian cast. Do you take modern views into account? Do you dwell on that this movie is about Chinese culture and primarily had a cast of Japanese actors in the leads…and one African-American? Then there is the point that the ENTIRE PLOT REGARDS CONTRACTS FOR ARRANGED MARRIAGES FOR PASSAGE INTO THIS COUNTRY….Not exactly a film that would get a green light in this day and age.
Well, I’m staying out of the politics. That isn’t my forte or my interest. Was the movie any damn good? That’s what I’ll examine here. I consider this one of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s lesser musicals. It is certainly no “South Pacific” or “Sound of Music,” with few memorable tunes. 100 Million Miracles is the main theme of the movie and frankly, it’s not a strong tune and the staging of the tune isn’t exactly a epic…the singer simply flits about a studio shot of a downtown park square (that is very clearly not outside) and sings to passersby. Let me hold back the yawn.
In fact, it is not really clear if the film made any money.
The only true toe tapper is Nancy Kwan‘s rendition (I know it is not her voice but she did her own dancing) of Enjoy Being a Girl. There is a fun strip tease number midway in the film that sets much of the second half of the film and a set piece during a Chinese New Year parade, but you often realize that you just aren’t watching an MGM musical. Universal was not best known for their musicals.
The plot is paper-thin dealing with Chinese intergenerational views on arranged marriages in San Francisco mid-20th century. There is, however, a great cast including the always wonderful Nancy Kwan, Barney Miller’s Jack Soo (who practically steals the movie with his song Don’t Marry Me), Lo Pan himself: James Hong in a supporting role, and Die Hard‘s James Shigeta who never really did get to hear Hans Gruber count to four.
Colorful musical number in a musical that could have used more.
So as far as talent goes, the movie is stacked with it in front of the lens.
Oddly, it is unclear if this movie even paid for itself. It did get into the National Film Registry, but from a Box Office performance is not exactly clear. One thing is clear, this was not producer Ross Hunter’s biggest failure: that distinction remains 1973’s Lost Horizon which flopped so hard it basically killed the silver age of musicals. No major studio would even consider a musical until Grease taught everyone musicals could bring moviegoers back to the cinemas.
James Shigeta before being the CEO of Nakatomi
Now, there are themes of illegal aliens, the role of a woman in that time, and lots of sections of the film that will challenge modern audiences, but the craftsmanship of the filmmaking is top notch. The main problem is the plot isn’t fantastic and the songs just aren’t all that memorable. But if you are looking for a good little distraction from modern life, this should fit the bill. Still, there are a lot of great musicals from the previous decade and this one that are more worthy of your time.
Still no word on Amazon Fire. Those talks, no doubt, are still ablaze.
Like all streamers, this is a work in motion and slowly finding its feet. I plan to continue watching some classic monster movies here as the big P continues to find out who it is. At least, they didn’t just name themselves Universal+….I’ll just leave that as it is.
Well, I think this is one of those movies that suffers from an identity crisis. The classic story of the 47 Ronin had been committed to film, many times, before in Japan but new to American audiences. So, they decided to…
…completely make something else.
The movie seems to waffle between being a fairy tale version of feudal Japan and an insane fantasy out of the pages of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. When I looked at the Wikipedia on the film, sure enough, the director and the studio were not really looking for the same film…in fact, the director was locked out of the editing bay at some point.
So, how is the film?
It was widely declared the biggest bomb of the year on release…largely due to Japan’s complete shunning of the film since it didn’t tell the tale it was based upon and substituted in an American (Keanu Reeves) into the main role. I doubt very much this film would be made in today’s political climate.
So, how is the film?
This movie, like The Great Wall (2017), is often pointed to as some of the more egregious examples of whitewashing. The main character is White because they needed box office dollars, pure and simple. If you look at the book Shogun by James Clavell, Blackthorne is an Englishman in Japan not as an excuse for bigger box office but as a “stranger in a strange land” and the reader’s surrogate into the world. In this film, Keanu Reeves’s character grew up in Japan and thus can’t serve this purpose. Pointless.
I’m a little tired of all this walking around. Let’s take a break.
So, how is the film?
Meh. Not as terrible as you’ve been led to believe.
Yes, it suffers from whiplash. There will be a quiet, dull romantic moment to build up a pointless B story followed by an epic fight with dragon. Or some mutant giant. Or a set of enemies with flintlock muskets in pursuit. Then, right back to bore your socks off.
Definitely a good movie to watch while doing other things. Just bop in for the fantasy CGI action and the rest of the movie just doesn’t come together.
I assure you this is NOT a light sabre.
This is where I talk about Director’s Cuts. Usually people talk about how much greater the director’s cut of a movie would be. This movie…I don’t think would be any good at all. The director wanted a more gritty, realistic take on the story. I’m sure there is a good movie there, too, based on how often Japan has made the story theatrically.
But in this production, what works is the razzle dazzle. The “big bad” is split between a human ruthless feudal Lord and an evil witch. The witch is frightening and powerful. I can’t even say anything about the other half of the “big bad.” He’s a horrible bore.
Smile! I got something for ya!
So should you see it? I don’t know. A sequel has been ordered from Netflix coming out soon…but I doubt you will need to see this movie first. It will be set 300 years in the future is likely to be the Japanese version of Steampunk or Weird West sci fi action flick. What that film will have to do with this one, remains to be seen.
I would probably skip it, but I do think some of the action is fine. So if someone is playing it in the other room and the volume goes up, you may want to peek. Otherwise, I wouldn’t suggest making the commitment of time.
When I was growing up, about 100 years ago, I used to watch UHF channels. A lot. And UHF, during my formative years, had lots of old, inexpensive content. Things like the Dead End Kids. Charlie Chan. Blondie & Dagwood movies. And Ma and Pa Kettle movies.
And I never watched them.
What a waste because I just watched the first of the SERIES, and it was pretty good. But let’s start with a little of the backstory.
Ma and Pa Kettle premiered in the Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert film, The Egg and I, which I really need to catch, too! Marjorie Main and Percy Kilbride played Ma & Pa with Marjorie Main walking away with an Academy Award nomination for Supporting Actress. The film did well and the characters were so well received, they decided to focus on these side characters in a spinoff. The result, Ma & Pa Kettle (1949), is the film I will review in a moment…but it led to 9 Kettle films. They made a total of $35 million for the then-struggling studio.
At the time, horror films like Universal was best meant for, were losing favor and their huge success and low productions costs helped Universal when it really needed to find its feet. Many say the Kettle films literally saved Universal Studios.
Ma & Pa Kettle, for the unaware, was a film series about a backwoods squatter family in rural Cape Flattery, Washington. It featured fantastic character actors (including its stars) including lots of corny comedy.
In this first film, Pa wins a contest for a sales slogan (which was a big thing in the 50’s) and wins, get this, a dream house. Ma happily accepts the new “house of the future” but Pa can’t figure out the push button world. Some of the funniest parts, for a modern viewer, is seeing the 1950 view of the future.
It is fun to watch Ma and Pa interact as Ma forgets the names of her 15 children, Pa avoid any type of work that exists, and the dubious hygiene practices of everyone on screen. It feels very familiar like watching many of the other rural humor vehicles of the time.
As you might recall in the early 60s, not long after these films tore through the box office, had dozens of rural comedies led by Desilu productions like The Andy Griffith Show, Petticoat Junction, Green Acres, and the Beverly Hillbillies. I often wonder if rural comedy was a fad for a specific time, or if this humor lit upon a yearning in the country at the time…to go back to a simpler time.
Getting back to the film, it actually ages quite well…but….the B story, a hackneyed romance with the oldest Kettle son, is cringe worthy and frankly just awful. I think it is worth a viewing, if only to see where some really old jokes you have known forever, got their start.
Some movies your remember because of where and when you first saw it. That has been my experience with “The Nude Bomb.” When I saw it, I had never even seen the TV series “Get Smart” which this was based upon. I grew up in a period where it just wasn’t being shown in my area.
See, kids, back in the day, you couldn’t see everything at anytime. That’s just how it was.
The Nude Bomb (1980) was a Box Office Bomb instead
So my introduction to Maxwell Smart was Don Knotts sitting in an airplane among a number of tough guys with a ringing sound going out. An awkward Agent Smart takes off his shoe and starts speaking into it.
See, kids, back then, mobile phones were science fiction. Only available to super spys and Dick Tracy.
Maxwell Smart with the other guy
I saw the film in a budget theater locally and actually became interested in the film while waiting for a film playing in the theater next door. See, it had started already and I heard just this ringing very quietly and some snickers from the audience.
I was fascinated. I loved James Bond already by that time. I loved “The Spy Who Loved Me,” which remains my favorite Bond film, so this seemed perfect to me. I loved the Cone of Silence. I loved the corny jokes.
Missed it by that much
Because I hadn’t seen the original series, I didn’t miss Felton and Platt in their costarring roles. I didn’t realize that a “Nude Bomb” was well outside the usual story telling of the show. (In fact, the writers of the movie that came from the TV show, hated the idea. Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, who co-created the program, were never so much as consulted on the film.)
But here’s the thing: the movie doesn’t live up to my memories of the film. Certainly better than the remake with Steve Carrell and better than the made-for-TV reunion movies, and frankly, better than most of the series, it just isn’t the greatest secret agent comedy of all time.
Austin Powers kind of has that one lined up.
What’s a James Bond spoof without sharks? Needs a laser beam on its head, though.
One big plus is a 10 minute sequence showing off the 1980 Universal Studio tour. This was just about time they decided to pivot this into a theme park operation, so it is a great time capsule to see what the tour at that time. And you get to see Jaws…not the one James Bond fights, though.
Not worthy of all the hate and terrible box office upon initial release, it is worth a glance and have a little fun. Just don’t expect the film to be life changing. After all, it was nominated for a Razzie the first year of its existence.
I have a column about Universal and I actually debated if I should cover this. Well, I think I have to. NBC/Universal’s streaming service, Peacock, is now open for business.
Did you know? I think they made it pretty evident on YouTube with ads displacing the political ads for a week, but otherwise, I think this has been kind of quiet. The service has been open to some cable company customers for a while now, but upon launch, Peacock is not yet available on Roku or Amazon Fire streaming platforms.
Peacock
But, on the positive side, it is free. Mostly.
Universal decided to go the ad route. They have paid options, to be sure, but for the most part, it is a free service best I can see with ads. The ads aren’t too bad yet, but YouTube wasn’t bad at first, either. So hold on with that judgment.
Peacock Home Page Screen Grab
Actually, hold on is the best advice in general. We don’t know what they are going to do with the Olympics yet. I’m sure that will be at least partially behind the paywall options. Will they show the Olympics live as well as the tape delayed packages we are used to?
How about movies? Will something like Trolls World Tour premiere on here from time to time? Or am I right at looking this over and seeing it primarily as a TV service?
I mean, their big event promotion hasn’t even happened yet, when they get The Office to return to their shores. They paid a pretty penny to wrestle it back from Netflix, so the impact of that one show could turn a big tide.
They are pushing Brave, New World as their big Sci Fi offering, which hits me as an odd choice. I mean, this is the home of Universal monsters. I am surprised a Horror Hosted Universal Monsters “channel” or choice is available to match their impressive deep dive on the classic horror movies.
We will need to wait and see, but if you are interested NOW, check it out at Peacock. Heck, it can’t be worse than that HBO thingy they flopped around in the boat the last couple of weeks.
So, Kevin Costner made a movie back in the 90s. It was a surefire hit. The story line was a direct rip off of The Road Warrior, but instead of a desert it happened in the water. What could go wrong with Waterworld?
The movie became one of the bigger box office disasters of the century. It became a punchline like Ishtar or Howard the Duck. The facts are it isn’t a terrible movie and frankly, it made money if compared to the budget (however, marketing costs are another story)…in fact, it made more money than Ishtar and Howard the Duck combined.
Part of the marketing efforts for Waterworld was a tie-in to the developing Universal Studios property in Los Angeles. Universal had given tours for a long time, but by the 90’s they started eyeing Walt Disney’s successful (and relatively recession proof) theme park assets. It was time to get in the theme park business.
Since Waterworld seemed like an intellectual property that was as can’t miss as possible. Costner was hot from The Untouchables and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and as stated before it was a carbon copy of one of the most successful films of the 80s. It even had Dennis Hopper as a sarcastic bad guy.
Photo from my trip to Universal Studios Waterworld Stunt Show
So the cross promotion they chose was a stunt show, often a standard in upper level theme parks, based on the property. Previously, they had a Miami Vice stunt show but no one knew that property anymore by the middle of the 90’s.
So they retooled it to the theme of Waterworld where Kevin Costner’s Mariner character is pitted against the Deacon and his legion of “Smokers.” Basically, it is an excuse to blow stuff up real good and whip around on jet skis.
To tell you how good this show is, keep in mind, it replaced the Miami Vice show which had an old forgotten IP from the 80s. Waterworld was released in 1995 and mostly forgotten by 1996…and yet it is still running. It wouldn’t be still going if the show wasn’t just rock solid.
Thank goodness for all the water to keep the fire in check!
There are great stunts with fire, explosions, choreographed fights, and one gigantic stunt that stuns the audience on its scale EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.
I think what really helps is that while most of the soundtrack is recorded and timed to the nanosecond, the main actors…especially Deacon…are miked and allowed to go with the flow of the audience and even improv. In this way, if they have a sleepy little audience, he can hype them up. If he has a wild audience, he can go with that flow. Prior to the festivities, a few of the Smokers also have fun heckling passers-by and on hot days, may even give them a squirt to remind them it is a water show afterall.
Once you see the show, you’ll never forget it. Check it out soon….Waterworld is worth taking in. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.
To see a fairly decent filming of the show, check this YouTube video:
Svengoolie strikes again! I saw this one as I’ve been clearing out my DVR of old Svengoolie episodes and I admit I was jazzed for this one.
I’ve heard about this one forever. It Came from Outer Space (1953) was Universal’s first 3D entry directed by Jack Arnold, who would make “Creature of the Black Lagoon” which is often considered the last classic Universal monster to be introduced.
As Seen on Svengoolie
On top of that, it is often stated that Ray Bradbury, classic SF novelist, wrote this script entirely though Harry Essex carries the screenplay credit.
Unfortunately, if I tell you the twist this movie has that other alien invasion films didn’t have at the time, it would ruin the entire thing….so don’t read those IMDB comments. I paid for it!
Watch out! The tall guy is doing something scary!
Having said that, it has a mysterious plot, but it isn’t terribly exciting or engaging. It kind of plays out a little like Tremors at times, but it just talks itself to death. Argh.
All the SF 50’s McCarthy tropes are here: a seeming outsider trying to alert authorities of the threat, a straight laced All-American couple, a town ridiculing the beliefs of the hero and even a cockeyed ball cap on the smart aleck sidekick.
Sigmund the Sea Monster scares some locals. He must be lost, because this is the desert.
All of that to see an alien that resembles Sigmund the Sea Monster through a “bubble cam.”
The lead is held down by Richard Carlson, who is one of those actors that you see the mug of and say “Oh, that guy!” He is probably best known as the antagonist without gills in the aforementioned “Creature of the Black Lagoon” but he plays a pretty convincing hero here. I just found myself not being too interested in his character. I guess that happens.
Barbara Rush looking awesome!
The female lead is Barbara Rush, who has literally done so much television it staggers the imagination. Her career spanned 50 years yet this film and “When Worlds Collide” are in 2 of her top 4 spots on IMDB. Her work as the lovely girlfriend and then becoming very sexy toward the end of the film is good, but her low threshold before she screams is annoying. She screams at everything. It is comical.
Russel Johnson is here. He was Gilligan’s Island’s Professor, but outside the trivial connection to a well known franchise, his performance simply isn’t notable.
The Professor sees a sea monster emerge from the island’s lagoon
The movie pivots on a twist I can’t mention…but frankly, it isn’t all that clever or shocking (even though it was spoiled for me). It just kind of hangs there and this movie is just a little too talky for me.
