Angels Ascend

Dark Angel: The Ascent (1994) is another film from the Full Moon DVD set. This one is only mildly entertaining as a demon woman escapes hell and comes to Earth. I think I may have seen this on cable back in the day. 6/10

• April New: 13
• April Re-watch: 4
• April '11 Total: 17
• April '10 Total: 68
• 2011 Total: 246
  

Walking Ghosts

Been curious about the updated Phantom 2040 since the animated series debuted in the mid-nineties. Phantom 2040: The Ghost Who Walks (1994) is a full-length film based on the animated series and holy shit is it bad. Even Peter Chung's character designs aren't rendered well. Avoid. 4/10

Yay to MGMHD for Meatballs 4 (1992) starring Corey Feldman. Kinds of a pointless plot involving a waterskiing contest. Highlight: Sarah Douglas! 5.6/10

• February New: 40
• February Re-watch: 0
• February '11 Total: 40
• February '10 Total: 61
• 2011 TOTAL: 131
  

BTSNAT 2: THE SPAWNING

Today is the day of BTSNAT! What is BTSNAT? The history traces back one year ago as alt.programming to the now famous BNAT, Butt-Numb-A-Thon, in which Harry Knowles celebrates his birthday every December with a highly secretive 24 hour movie marathon at the Alamo Drafthouse. It's not an easy event to get into so a few film geeks I've come to know and respect via Twitter & Fantastic Fest started BTSNAT last year as a counter movie event that occurs on the same day as BNAT. Make sense? BTSNAT stands for Brian Trenchard-Smith Numb-A-Thon.

Last year BTSNAT was held in Dallas. This year BTSNAT was in Austin. This marks my 2nd visit to Austin in as many months (1st visit was for Fantastic Fest). Wasn't sure I would even be here for this occasion but was encouraged by the other attendees. And I'm so damn glad I made the trip. The idea is that (almost) everyone attending selects a film they think the others haven't seen that fits the spirit of BTSNAT, i.e. somewhat obscure, bizarre, genre, etc. Interestingly enough (and unplanned?) a few films this year also are featured in Zack Carlson's already legendary Destroy All Movies!!! The Complete Guide to Punks on Film. In addition, before each film, a "trailer bucket" is chosen for a themed group of previews to watch. Themes include exploitation, old spy films, horror, etc.

Last night I arrived and @Noahphex picked me up from the airport (he was gracious enough to let me stay at his place for the weekend). We headed to The Highball to see a few peeps and drink beers until heading back to his home for some convo until 2am. Got up this morning for brunch back at The Highball before gathering "supplies" for BTSNAT. Then over to @BTSjunkie's home to await the others (Brian Kelley hosted).

One by one the others began to arrive including @ReelDistraction, @BriguySalisbury, @ldmullen, and @VHSisthetruth. @RustyGordon was already there (BK's roommate). Now it was time to fire up the first film sometime before 2pm or so. Should note that before Noah's film, he presented us with the shower dance sequence clip from Gimme an 'F' (1984). Holy hell is that gold. Still gotta watch that entire film. Nice kick-off. Noah's feature pick was Dudes (1987), a DAM flick and one I've always wanted to see having owned the metal-laced soundtrack for over 20 years (ex. W.A.S.P.'s "Show No Mercy"!!). Directed by Penelope Spheeris, Dudes features Jon Cryer and Daniel Roebuck as punks on a coast-to-coast road trip until they encounter redneck trouble and seek revenge. Such a solid flick. Great start to BTSNAT! 6.7/10

In the second slot was Josh's pick Banned (1989). Before viewing he gave us the lowdown on this film's obscurity and how he came in possession of it. Just that bit of info had us excited plus it's another DAM flick! For a little background (from what I remember) Banned is a undistributed film directed by Roberta Findlay (Tenement, Prime Evil, Slash). Zack reached out to her when he was compiling DAM. Initially unsuccessful he eventually received the film from the film's writer which Josh was able to secure for our shindig. Apparently it's not been seen by very many eyes. That was enough to give me goosebumps.


The movie centers around the spirit of a dead punk musician, Teddy Homicide, that possesses a mild-mannered jazz musician using the same studio space where the punk committed suicide 10 years earlier. Should be noted that the ghost was living in the toilet. Ultimately the spirit begins to takeover leading to uproarious comedy and several WTF moments in an already strange flick. While not a "good" film in terms of high cinema this one already has a special place for not only being bizarre but with its back story and context. I love it. Just watch that trailer! (Here's an AV Maniacs thread about it) I feel very fortunate to have seen this. Hopefully some day I'll be able to share this rare treasure with my friends, big fans of DAM and punks in film. Thank you, Josh! 7/10

Next up was Brian Kelley's pick War Dog (1986), an action revenge hostage slasher flick from Sweden. Got that? Yeah, it's that kind of overall weirdness about the most unsuspecting hero that gets involved in uncovering a super soldier terrorist group that has brainwashed his brother. Features some of the bloodiest children kills I've seen plus ongoing hilarious stilted dialogue. And a waterpark massacre?! Has to be seen and heard to be believed (the voices are a riot). I need to buy that one. Excellent pick, BK! 6.8/10

Now it was Micah's selection, which he indicated would probably be better in slot 4 after we'd been drinking. His film Ring of Steel (1994) fit that mandate as it was a rather middling 90s fencing action flick (wha?). And it features Joe Don Baker, which was expected from Micah, as the evil Orson Welles-looking mastermind behind the underground fighting league. I say middling because it's the kind of flick that might languish on late night cable or Cinemax; people watch a few minutes then change the channel. Not me but most. I truly enjoy these kinds of awful 90s cheesy melodramatic action romps and this one delivered. Noah described it as "Bloodsport meets sword fighting." That's perfect. Not a crowd favorite but as I tweeted, this is kind of film I can watch everyday. Thanks, Micah! 6/10

So with the four principle attendee selections out of the way it was open to the rest of us to offer a film in slot 5. Originally I had a film in mind but called an audible at the last minute that returned us to the Destroy All Movies theme. My pick was Never Too Young to Die (1986), a film recently covered on GGTMC that I really wanted to watch. @uncoolcat was instrumental with the hook-up prior to my trip. Everyone at BTSNAT accepted my offering and it played fairly well. It features the son (John Stamos) of a secret spy (George Lazenby), recruited by undercover agent (Vanity) to stop the hermaphrodite terrorist Velvet Von Ragner, portrayed totally over the top by Gene Simmons, from poisoning the water supply. Yeah, pretty stupendous. Really adore this film in all its ridiculous glory. The dressed up motorbikes ruled. 6.8/10

Now it was time for the pre-programmed film, the sequel to last year's Lucky Seven, which everyone loved so much (and I still have yet to view). Lucky Seven 2 or also known as Magnificent 7 Kung-Fu Kids (1989) came in with high expectations but sadly (apparently) didn't live up to its predecessor. Still enjoyable for what it is; a group of seven kids trained in kung-fu assembled to stop an evil army. Had some cool moments but not enough of them. Still a good watch with the group. 6/10

By this time it was already around 3AM so the final BTSNAT film was prepared, a Brian Trenchard-Smith movie, of course. Brian Kelley had a few gems but the one he decided on was Happy Face Murders (1999), a movie produced for Showtime that stars Marg Helgenberger, Henry Thomas, and Ann-Margret as a wacky old lady who watches Matlock all day. While most of our crowd fell asleep during this largely slowburn cop procedural I kinda dug it as a CSI-prequel. Has many of the same elements and I wouldn't be surprised if this flick somehow influenced the genesis of that series which went on-air during the following year with Helgenberger as one of the leads. Not a bad watch at all with a few recognizable BTS touches. 6.5/10

Now around 5AM and most of all the beer and Four Loko consumed, it was time to call it. One helluva awesome day/evening of film watching with even better company. Can't ask for more than that. We were even treated with souvenir gift bags filled with candy, VHS tapes, 8-tracks, comics and old TV guides! Our tweets about BTSNAT sparked the interest of others who may venture to Austin or Dallas next year. Hopefully I'll be back as it's really unparalleled in my eyes. Good flicks and great company. Big thanks to Brian Kelley and Noah Lee for hosting and having me! Thanks to Micah for creating BTSNAT!

Read @ReelDistraction's excellent write-up of BTSNAT 2.
And check out @Noahphex's BTSNAT 2 write-up that includes our tweets.

• December New: 27
• December Re-watch: 3
• December Total: 30
• 2010 TOTAL: 747
  

People Going Nowhere, Taken for a Ride

The biggest crime in Yossi Wein's Never Say Die (1994) is that they couldn't afford the rights to get Black Sabbath's song of the same name. That would've really amped up the action scenes. But not by much as this is definitely a "bad film" but watching Billy Drago do his best Jim Jones is pretty damn awesome. Plot: unlikely ex-commando & FBI agent join forces to stop cult killer and save a General's daughter. 5/10

Now Lucio Fulci's New Gladiators (1984) is a bad film of another caliber. It's basically Running Man or the same premise where prisoners fight it out on battle motorcycles in a future world. Love the miniatures and set pieces. Had to be fun wrecking all those bikes. And you can always count on Fred Williamson showing up as the same post-apocalyptic warrior. 5.5/10

• August New: 27
• August Re-watch: 5
• August Total: 32
• 2010 TOTAL: 473
  

NWI Monkey Madness

Not sure what got into me but this sure turned out to be a marathon day (evening) of movie watching. I blame Netflix Watch Instantly. First up Battle of Shaolin (1977) featuring the wiry Don Wong on his quest to rescue his girlfriend from the brothels. Ultimately he must face Lieh Lo as the bigger than badass villain w/decapitator chains. Angela Mao is also great w/her razor blade shoes but doesn't get enough scenes. The coin sequence w/The Sparrow (Chiang-lung Wen) is excellent!

Next the disturbing short film by Nacho Cerdà, Aftermath (1994), which doesn't look like it's 16 years old. But it's also quite unbelievable that something this obscene was released in 1994. Seriously, it looks like it was made recently. Definitely not for easily shaken... necrophilia!

Needing a breather, flipped to Blood Monkey (2007) expecting it to be bad. Oy! It's worse than bad and not in a good way. Avoid!

Next in my queue was the Chuck Norris supernatural thriller Hellbound (1994). Okay, so this is not a good flick but it was amusing to me for a few reasons (besides Chuck Norris). It's set in Chicago (until they travel to Israel) and they fight demons. It's as silly as it sounds.

Had never watched all of Joe Dante's comedy Matinee (1993) so I felt obligated to see it thru (think this stems from not being much of a John Goodman fan in the early 90s). Under more informed conditions I can appreciate this film much more now as it really is a nice homage to the William Castle gimmick flicks. Recommended viewing for all film fans.


And finally finished up Luigi Cozzi's campy Starcrash a.k.a. The Adventures of Stella Star (1978) featuring one of my favorite screen queens Caroline Munro in addition to the one and only David Hasselhoff! Amazing. And Amazingly bad. However this is bad in the good way. I love this film and all its low budget Star Wars wannabe silliness & glory (including light sabers! Look at that poster art!). Looks like it's finally getting a UK DVD release later this month and a domestic Blu-ray release in September. I will buy this!!

• June New: 26
• June Re-watch: 2
• June Total: 28
• 2010 TOTAL: 351
  

Vulgar & Visual Poetry

Went out to Barrington AMC to catch Will Forte in the SNL feature MacGruber (2010) while it was still in theaters (only 2 screens remaining in Chicago!). What a filthy, fun film! Agree w/the critics that also enjoyed that film; it will have a better life on home video. Can see queuing this at a future movie night.


The other day I picked up the Urban Action Collection 4-pack of Jim Kelly blaxploitation flicks featuring Black Belt Jones (1974). So much to love about this film including Kelly's awesome attire. Definitely a fun watch with some great sequences as Black Belt Jones steps in to save a neighborhood karate school. Nice bit part by Scatman Crothers.

Took it upon myself to revisit Wong Kar-Wai's exquisite Chungking Express (1994) now that I own the DVD. May upgrade to Blu-ray as this is really a film that deserves it. My memories were mainly tied to Brigitte Lin's captivating scenes in the first arc. It's possible that was all that I had seen. Tony Leung remains great altho I do think California Dreaming is a little overplayed during his story. Ultimately this is visually & emotionally stirring. Already look forward to viewing the BD.

• June New: 12
• June Re-watch: 2
• June Total: 14
• 2010 TOTAL: 337
  

The Future is a Nightmare

It's really a crime that I haven't seen Umberto Lenzi's awesome Nightmare City (1980) before now. So many great scenes & sequences of zombies spreading their sickness across a city. My favorite is the TV studio during an aerobics program. Really look forward to a movie night with this one!

As I plan to unload the bulk of my 100s of anime DVDs I figure I might as well watch some of 'em that I've haven't seen. Imma Youjo the Erotic Temptress (1994) is one such set I look forward to discarding. Watched volume 1 of this hentai OAV and it's pretty much as expected: a lot of tentacle fucking. I suppose this first installment sets up the premise of a girl as a sex slave but the way it ends I can't be sure the remaining volumes follow the same pattern. Nothing particularly great here.


Watched another OOP (VHS only) 80s sci-fi flick in Crime Zone (1989), which features the incredibly sexy Sherilyn Fenn in addition to David Carradine. Although this isn't great cinema it definitely is a fun Orwellian flick with enough turns to make it watchable. The poster art really sells the film. Will never tire of seeing these Blade Runner rip-offs.

• June New: 7
• June Re-watch: 0
• June Total: 7
• 2010 TOTAL: 330
  

Repossessed and Undressed

Via NWI I devoured Roberto Mauri's Slaughter of the Vampires (1962), a delicious b&w Italo-horror w/a bevy of beauties (Graziella Granata is crazy beautiful and sumptuous). Story isn't all that and silly at times (they can't find a coffin in the wine cellar?!). But a fun watch w/nice contrasts.

Don't normally gravitate towards Adam Sandler flicks but needed to cross Big Daddy (1999) off the list. Not great but not terrible. Better than I expected (which still isn't saying much). Passable and I like Leslie Mann.

Headed out to catch Repo Men (2010) trying to keep my expectations in check based on all the bad I'd heard / read about the film. Definitely has several issues (an identity issue being the biggest one) but the more I think on this one the more I like it for what it is. Definitely has some great scenes, in particular, the Cronenberg-esque ending. Understand why the critics piled on but this film isn't any worse than Daybreakers and will find an audience when it hits DVD (kinda like Law Abiding Citizen).

Thrilled to witness the Fred Olen Ray / Jim Wynorski collaboration Dinosaur Island (1994). Incredibly stupid yet incredibly sexy thanks to April, May & June. Don't necessarily need my fantasy adventure flicks to be so overtly sexual but these guys know how to pull it off (literally) and make it fun. Hoping that with the release of the Popatopolis doc some of these films will be re-released in a Wynorski collected set.

Finally watched my blu-ray of Stargate (1994), which is to say I finally watched Stargate. Almost criminal that I've watched a episodes of the television series yet never managed to watch the entire film. Also sad that I've seen most of Emmerich's other features before this one and yet this is the best of the lot. Kurt Russell is great, natch. Holds up rather well.

The Good, The Bad & The Forgetful

The People That Time Forgot (1977) is the fantasy adventure sequel to The Land That Time Forgot in where a rescue team ventures off to save Doug McClure's Bowen Tyler character from the previous film. Altho this one isn't as good as its predecessor it's still quite fun and features a couple of beautiful actresses (one being Sarah Douglas!). Apparently David Prowse (Darth Vader) is the executioner in this but I think that's a mistake b/c 1) Can't see Prowse taking this role AFTER doing Star Wars 2) the guy in this film is a huge bodybuilder type. If I see Prowse at a Con again I'm gonna ask him about it.

About a Boy (2002) is another film I've managed to avoid up until now. Was pleasantly surprised by it. Good watch.

If I could find the blu-ray at a reasonable price for Wong Kar Wai's Ashes Of Time Redux (1994), I'd buy it. Hell, I might just bite it and buy the $30 import. I watched original version some years ago during movie night @ Ron's and have been looking forward to seeing the Redux, in which additional scenes have been added, a new score as been added and the entire film has been remastered. Looks much, much better than the crappy version we originally viewed. Such a somber yet gorgeous film. Watched the interview features that shed more light on this restoration. A must-see for Wong Kar Wai fans and fans of this kind of cinema (check a real review for more insight on the beauty of this film; I'm not qualified for such a thing).

Taking several, several steps down from that, I finished watching Troma's Nymphoid Barbarian in Dinosaur Hell (1990). As much as love this type of genre mix (post-apocalyptic, fantasy adventure), this flick is a dog. Not even a very long I couldn't finish in one sitting (via NWI). Shocked this is out of print. Or maybe it no longer needs to be in print.

A much better retro flick on NWI is Trancers (1985), featuring Tim Thomerson in the Rick Deckard role (this is after all an ape of Blade Runner). But for a 80s b-movie it's done well enough to make it enjoyable and stand on its own (enough to spawn 5 sequels!). Also features a very young and cute Helen Hunt.