On Saturday, being the closest to Halloween, I had the pleasure of being one of a very few that decided to take advantage of a full night of horror films in Romford for absolutely nothing. Given the fact that the tickets were completely free I am amazed at just how few people turned up, and even more by how few stayed the distance and we're still there at the end. Anyway, without dwelling on the lack of people I will now go through the films and my feelings and thoughts about them.
We started of by being shown to the top floor of the Mercury Mall and into the closed down nightclub, Pulse. It is a great setting for watching horror films and I hope they do more of this kind of thing there.
The films kicked of with something light and mainstream, Beetlejuice. It was good fun watching this Tim Burton classic again and a nice easing into the night. For the first time it struck me how much Micheal Keaton's character reminded me of David Lee Roth.
The second film was the John Carpenter classic The Fog. I must say it was a lot better than I remember it being, maybe it was watching it on a big screen for the first time.
The third film was Dawn Of The Dead, one of my favourites of George A. Romero's zombie films. Unfortunately the version we watched was the Dario Argenta edit, which, although slightly more gory, was nowhere near as good as the original and was spoiled but some odd cuts and misplaced music.
At this point we moved from the old Pulse nightclub to the Premier Cinema one floor down.
The first film we saw there was The Belko Experiment. An excellent film with a good cast. A great horror/conspiracy theory slaughter fest that works so well.
Next we had a special uncut/new edit of the Dario Argenta classic Susperia. It has been a long time since I've seen this film so couldn't tell the difference in the cut but I would say that, although it is a classic and good in many ways, I find it a little slow in places, a bit over long, many too European (if you know what I mean), it's very odd in many places and has some unintentionally amusing scenes and dialogue. The Goblin soundtrack was great to hear again.
Next up was another piece of Italian horror, The Beyond. Again it was a bit slow in places. There is an excellently unintentionally funny scene with some fake spiders and a fake head. There was one scene in each of these Italian films that left me wondering what it is that Italian horror film makers have about blind people being attacked by their own guide dogs?
Then we had a more up to date and slightly more light hearted film called Tales Of Halloween. It is a film made up of a number of short films made by modern day horror film makers. It is good fun and has some great traditional scares, a good amount of gore, some great cameos and geat use of old film clips (especially from Night Of The Living Dead).
The whole night was rounded of with another classic film from John Carpenter, The Thing. There really is very little to say about it except that it is excellent.
All in all a good night of films, all I hope is that when, or if, they do a free night like this again, more people turn up.
Showing posts with label Film. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Film. Show all posts
29/10/2017
26/07/2017
Things I've been watching on TV and on-line, good and bad (Pt 3)
This post is going to be all about the things I have been watching on YouTube. I will start with Films (both full length and shorts).
I thought I would start with the bad, or good depending on your point of view 😀
Let us start with an old horror, by old I mean 1969 and by horror I mean the cast and acting more than the story 😀 I stumbled across this film whilst looking for another, better, 60's British horror film. The film I found is called The Haunted House Of Horror (also known as Horror House). It is an American International Pictures film, but is a very British film. The first thing you have to get past is the casting of Frankie Avalon as a thuggish druggie, along with his druggie friends played by Mark Wynter, Richard O'Sullivan, Julian Barnes and Robin Stewart. Then there is George Sewell as a creepy, dirty old man and Dennis Price as the police Inspector. The plot, what there is of it, is fairly basic 60's/70's horror fodder with no great surprises. It is not very well written or acted, on the whole it has all the factors needed to make it a brilliantly bad film, unfortunately it just doesn't quite reach those high standards. Here is a link for you to judge for yourselves, if you want to:-
The Haunted House Of Horror
Ok, sticking with horror but moving on to short films, here are a few of the many dozens that are on YouTube that I've watched and liked. Firstly there is Rasp, a fairly decent short shock film that is well made and works well. It almost feels like part of a longer, bigger budget film. Here is a link to it:-
Rasp
The next one is called So Pretty, an interesting short film about the romanticism around vampires. Again very well made, if a little lacking in some areas of acting and dialogue, but on the whole very good. Here is a link to it:-
So Pretty
The last horror, although it is listed as a thriller, is called Amy. While some of the acting isn't as good as it could be, the story is good and it is filmed well. Here is a link to it:-
Amy
As a break from the horror stuff I watched a few other films, one of which that I liked was called Plastic. It is a look at the obsession with looking 'right' and is a really well made film with excellent effects. Here is a link to it:-
Plastic
Now we move on to Sci-Fi and start with two full length B-Movies that are worth a look for different reasons. The first is called 4D Man. I really don't know what to say about this film. It is a 1959 Universal-International film, starring Robert Lansing and Lee Meriwether. The plot sounds better on paper than it looks on film and the film itself is more than a little slow and dull. A sort of Sci-Fi/Crime film I honestly wasn't sure I would be able to watch it to the end, I did make it and when the film finishes and on the screen comes up "The End?" all I could think was "I really hope so!" Here is a link for you to judge for yourselves:-
4D Man
The second full length Sci-Fi B-Movie is called The Giant Claw. This is a well known monster movie with brilliantly awful special effects and not much better acting. It is a 1957 Columbia Pictures film starring Jeff Morrow and Mara Corday. It is one of the best bad movies I've seen in ages and is more than well worth watching. Here is a link to it:-
The Giant Claw
Next is a full length Sci-Fi film which is amazingly good. I have always been a fan of time travel and this indie film works the time travel/paradox theme brilliantly. It is called 41. It is an Australian film starring Chris Gibson. I was blown away by how good the story is and how well put together the film is. I would recommend this film to anyone, especially if you are into time travel stories. Here is a link for you to see it:-
41
And so on to Sci-Fi short films. I have watched a few of these and are the ones I liked best. After watching 41 I decided to start looking at time travel films. The first one I watched is called Stealing Time. Again it deals with time paradoxes, this time in a more amusing way. Here is a link to it:-
Stealing Time
The next one is called Beyond and this deals with time travel in a more serious way but also covers time paradoxes. Here is a link to it:-
Beyond
Another more light hearted, although at the same time making a good serious point, in called One-Minute Time Machine. Here is a link to it:-
One Minute Time Machine
Ok, so now on to TV shows on YouTube. Here I have been watching something a little different. I saw an American clip show on YouTube which was all about TV pilots that were not picked up and made into full series. There was some odd stuff on it, especially in the Sci-Fi part, so I decided to look for some of the full pilots and managed to find most of those I was interested in. So here they are.
Firstly, as some people might know, I recently posted on Facebook asking what old TV series people thought should be brought back, one I chose was Time Tunnel. Imagine my delight to find that a new pilot had been made for Time Tunnel in 2002, unfortunately it wasn't picked up. Having now seen it I can see why that might have been but I still think it had, and as an idea has, many possibilities for series development. Anyway, here is a link to the pilot for you to watch:-
Time Tunnel (2002)
Next is a brilliantly laughable idea that was basically just a vehicle for British actor Trevor Eve to break into America, it didn't work. It is called Shadow Chasers and, like all of these shows, is worth a watch even if it's just for a laugh. Unfortunately, as with many of these things, I could only find the opening credits and trailer. Here is a link to the opening credits:-
Shadow Chasers (opening)
Not all of the series pilots I watched were Sci-Fi, this one is a crime/detective series starring David Rappaport, it is called The Wizard. I don't have much to say about this one, just watch. Here is a link to it:-
The Wizard
Another non Sci-Fi pilot is called Six O'Clock Follies. I'm still not completely sure exactly what this was really about or who it was aimed at, but it's worth a look. Here is a link to the opening credits:-
Six O'Clock Follies
Back to the Sci-Fi now and a thing called Time Express. With Vincent price in it, it should really have worked but obviously didn't. Some of these series, even though they weren't picked up, had more than just the pilot made. From what I can work out they made at least two episodes of this show but I could only find clips and opening credits on YouTube. Here is a link to the opening:-
Time Express (opening)
Staying with the Sci-Fi theme we move on to a series with one of the most laughable titles and intros I've ever seen, it is called The Man With The Power. A half alien that becomes a government agent, why wasn't this huge? Anyway, here is a link to the opening titles:-
The Man With The Power (opening)
Another series that I find it incredible that it wasn't picked up is called Exoman. He was the Tony Stark of his age. For some reason this pilot has been put up on YouTube in parts. Here is a link to part one:-
Exoman (part 1)
A much more bizarre series is one called Steel Justice. A man's son is reincarnated (not sure that's the correct term) into a toy metal, electric dinosaur which grows to massive size in order to protect him from the bad guys. I don't know why they said no to this one. This is another one that is in parts. Here is a link to part one:-
Steel Justice (part 1)
Next is a "people shifted out of time and trapped" romp called The Outlaws. A bunch of gunslingers from the Wild West moved to modern America. Here is a link to it:-
The Outlaws
Well, that's about all from the YouTube files for now, and the last part of these blog entries. Please feel free to leave any comments at all about my blog or these films/TV shows. Thanks.
I thought I would start with the bad, or good depending on your point of view 😀
Let us start with an old horror, by old I mean 1969 and by horror I mean the cast and acting more than the story 😀 I stumbled across this film whilst looking for another, better, 60's British horror film. The film I found is called The Haunted House Of Horror (also known as Horror House). It is an American International Pictures film, but is a very British film. The first thing you have to get past is the casting of Frankie Avalon as a thuggish druggie, along with his druggie friends played by Mark Wynter, Richard O'Sullivan, Julian Barnes and Robin Stewart. Then there is George Sewell as a creepy, dirty old man and Dennis Price as the police Inspector. The plot, what there is of it, is fairly basic 60's/70's horror fodder with no great surprises. It is not very well written or acted, on the whole it has all the factors needed to make it a brilliantly bad film, unfortunately it just doesn't quite reach those high standards. Here is a link for you to judge for yourselves, if you want to:-
The Haunted House Of Horror
Ok, sticking with horror but moving on to short films, here are a few of the many dozens that are on YouTube that I've watched and liked. Firstly there is Rasp, a fairly decent short shock film that is well made and works well. It almost feels like part of a longer, bigger budget film. Here is a link to it:-
Rasp
The next one is called So Pretty, an interesting short film about the romanticism around vampires. Again very well made, if a little lacking in some areas of acting and dialogue, but on the whole very good. Here is a link to it:-
So Pretty
The last horror, although it is listed as a thriller, is called Amy. While some of the acting isn't as good as it could be, the story is good and it is filmed well. Here is a link to it:-
Amy
As a break from the horror stuff I watched a few other films, one of which that I liked was called Plastic. It is a look at the obsession with looking 'right' and is a really well made film with excellent effects. Here is a link to it:-
Plastic
Now we move on to Sci-Fi and start with two full length B-Movies that are worth a look for different reasons. The first is called 4D Man. I really don't know what to say about this film. It is a 1959 Universal-International film, starring Robert Lansing and Lee Meriwether. The plot sounds better on paper than it looks on film and the film itself is more than a little slow and dull. A sort of Sci-Fi/Crime film I honestly wasn't sure I would be able to watch it to the end, I did make it and when the film finishes and on the screen comes up "The End?" all I could think was "I really hope so!" Here is a link for you to judge for yourselves:-
4D Man
The second full length Sci-Fi B-Movie is called The Giant Claw. This is a well known monster movie with brilliantly awful special effects and not much better acting. It is a 1957 Columbia Pictures film starring Jeff Morrow and Mara Corday. It is one of the best bad movies I've seen in ages and is more than well worth watching. Here is a link to it:-
The Giant Claw
Next is a full length Sci-Fi film which is amazingly good. I have always been a fan of time travel and this indie film works the time travel/paradox theme brilliantly. It is called 41. It is an Australian film starring Chris Gibson. I was blown away by how good the story is and how well put together the film is. I would recommend this film to anyone, especially if you are into time travel stories. Here is a link for you to see it:-
41
And so on to Sci-Fi short films. I have watched a few of these and are the ones I liked best. After watching 41 I decided to start looking at time travel films. The first one I watched is called Stealing Time. Again it deals with time paradoxes, this time in a more amusing way. Here is a link to it:-
Stealing Time
The next one is called Beyond and this deals with time travel in a more serious way but also covers time paradoxes. Here is a link to it:-
Beyond
Another more light hearted, although at the same time making a good serious point, in called One-Minute Time Machine. Here is a link to it:-
One Minute Time Machine
Ok, so now on to TV shows on YouTube. Here I have been watching something a little different. I saw an American clip show on YouTube which was all about TV pilots that were not picked up and made into full series. There was some odd stuff on it, especially in the Sci-Fi part, so I decided to look for some of the full pilots and managed to find most of those I was interested in. So here they are.
Firstly, as some people might know, I recently posted on Facebook asking what old TV series people thought should be brought back, one I chose was Time Tunnel. Imagine my delight to find that a new pilot had been made for Time Tunnel in 2002, unfortunately it wasn't picked up. Having now seen it I can see why that might have been but I still think it had, and as an idea has, many possibilities for series development. Anyway, here is a link to the pilot for you to watch:-
Time Tunnel (2002)
Next is a brilliantly laughable idea that was basically just a vehicle for British actor Trevor Eve to break into America, it didn't work. It is called Shadow Chasers and, like all of these shows, is worth a watch even if it's just for a laugh. Unfortunately, as with many of these things, I could only find the opening credits and trailer. Here is a link to the opening credits:-
Shadow Chasers (opening)
Not all of the series pilots I watched were Sci-Fi, this one is a crime/detective series starring David Rappaport, it is called The Wizard. I don't have much to say about this one, just watch. Here is a link to it:-
The Wizard
Another non Sci-Fi pilot is called Six O'Clock Follies. I'm still not completely sure exactly what this was really about or who it was aimed at, but it's worth a look. Here is a link to the opening credits:-
Six O'Clock Follies
Back to the Sci-Fi now and a thing called Time Express. With Vincent price in it, it should really have worked but obviously didn't. Some of these series, even though they weren't picked up, had more than just the pilot made. From what I can work out they made at least two episodes of this show but I could only find clips and opening credits on YouTube. Here is a link to the opening:-
Time Express (opening)
Staying with the Sci-Fi theme we move on to a series with one of the most laughable titles and intros I've ever seen, it is called The Man With The Power. A half alien that becomes a government agent, why wasn't this huge? Anyway, here is a link to the opening titles:-
The Man With The Power (opening)
Another series that I find it incredible that it wasn't picked up is called Exoman. He was the Tony Stark of his age. For some reason this pilot has been put up on YouTube in parts. Here is a link to part one:-
Exoman (part 1)
A much more bizarre series is one called Steel Justice. A man's son is reincarnated (not sure that's the correct term) into a toy metal, electric dinosaur which grows to massive size in order to protect him from the bad guys. I don't know why they said no to this one. This is another one that is in parts. Here is a link to part one:-
Steel Justice (part 1)
Next is a "people shifted out of time and trapped" romp called The Outlaws. A bunch of gunslingers from the Wild West moved to modern America. Here is a link to it:-
The Outlaws
Well, that's about all from the YouTube files for now, and the last part of these blog entries. Please feel free to leave any comments at all about my blog or these films/TV shows. Thanks.
15/01/2017
Some things and some not.
I have been watching, reading and listening to some stuff that I'm going to discuss here and now.
As far as watching goes, I was interested by comments on social media about the Netflix series of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. The general consensus of opinion seemed to be that it was crap. I loved the books but I wasn't a fan of the UK series so an American series seemed interesting, so I decided to watch it to see just how bad it was. Now, my personal opinion is that it has about as much to do with the novels as I have to do with being a fish. To be honest, apart from the title and name of the lead character, there is nothing that really connects them. Having said all that, I think it's brilliant. It's well written, well acted, we'll made and had me gripped from the first episode. If you forget about any connection to Douglas Adams and watch it purely as a bizarre, funny, action comedy, it is good and I hope they make another season.
I was lucky to be one of the few that braved to severe weather to go to The Underdog Gallery on Thursday and got to see, not only a couple of unique short films by Billy Chainsaw and Jason Atomic, but also the UK premiere of the fantastically crazy Frankenstein Created Bikers. This film is brilliant, it's mad in many ways, it's full of great gore and fighty stuff and also completely insane scenes and plot points, many of which make less than no sense. It is well worth a watch and should raise a smile or two on any face.
I'm happy to see No Offence back on TV, it's an excellent programme that straddles the fence between comedy and drama beautifully.
Looking forward to, what will probably be, my only visit to the main stream cinema this year when the final film in the Resident Evil series hits the UK. I am excited and hopeful that it won't be a disappointment.
I final read The Billy Fidget Letters and it is a good but strange book, worth a read but keep an open mind.
I have started reading the first of Danny Baker's autobiographys To Sea In A Sieve and, although not far into it, I can already see similarities in his and my youth, it will be interesting to see where it goes.
I've been listening to some new folky stuff a lot of which hasn't really done much for me, and some thrashy metally stuff which has been, to be honest, really not my thing. So on the whole most of the newish music I've heard has been less than interesting or exciting or worth it.
Well that's about it for this time, be back sometime.
17/04/2016
Out With The Old, In With The New
As you may, or may not, be aware I had an entertainment blog on another blog site that had basically the same name as this blog. I have had to abandon that blog because the site it is on is rubbish and I now cannot gain access to my blog at all. I hope to be able to import the posts that I put on that blog at some point as I am not going to repeat them on here unless there is no possible alternative. Anyway, I was part way through, for those of you that don't know, an A-Z listing of songs. The tracks, and things, that I list are not my favourites necessarily but are just songs, or whatever, that I know and that stand out for me either in a good or bad way. So I will be carrying that list on from the point I stopped on the other blog.
As a welcome to this, new....ish blog, (maybe I should have added a V0.2 to the end of the blog name😄) I am going to post some random links to some songs and music I like. So here goes and welcome to the new home of my entertainment blog.
Leornard Cohen - I'm Your Man
Beth Orton - I Wish I'd Never Seen The Sunshine
Cradle Of Filth - Dusk And Her Embrace
Spoiler - Electrifying
Gregory Issacs - Night Nurse
That's it for this introduction, more soon.
Any comments always welcome, thanks.
As a welcome to this, new....ish blog, (maybe I should have added a V0.2 to the end of the blog name😄) I am going to post some random links to some songs and music I like. So here goes and welcome to the new home of my entertainment blog.
Leornard Cohen - I'm Your Man
Beth Orton - I Wish I'd Never Seen The Sunshine
Cradle Of Filth - Dusk And Her Embrace
Spoiler - Electrifying
Gregory Issacs - Night Nurse
That's it for this introduction, more soon.
Any comments always welcome, thanks.
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