I watched 11 movies over the holiday weekend
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Lists and Recommendations
I love hutch — 3 years ago(July 06, 2022 02:16 PM)
I spent a long weekend with a good friend and all we did was get a little toked, eat, watch movies and laugh our butts off!
- "Initiation of Sara" (1978) - **** For what it is, it's the best of the best. This movie delivers the goods and then some. One of my all-time favorite tv movies. Great way to start off our movie watching weekend!
- "Girls Nite Out" (1982) - ** Kind of lame attempt at something a little different. Hal Holbrook's son sticks out badly. The highlight is an Elaine Joyce knock-off shimmying in a black bikini at a nightclub.
- "Roar" (1981) - ** I'd always been interested in this. It's different. Kind of slow and boring, and, yes, jaw-dropping in parts. The main guy is a precursor to Timothy Treadwell, only less sympathetic. Frankly, the best thing for me is Melanie Griffith, who was already charming at age 14.
- "Planet of Vampires" (1965) - *** Mario Bava. Gorgeous sets. Story clunks along. Stunning final shot gets the film an extra 1/4 star.
- "Barbarella" (1968) - *** This was a pleasant surprise. Attractive to look at and Jane Fonda displayed a nice gift for light comedy, which I wasn't really aware of. (She did a 360 in the following year's "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?") She was quite appealing. Ugo Tognazzi is a super stud. Perfectly cast for his part. What a beast! The film moved along at a nice pace.
- "Erotikus: A History of Gay Film" (1974) - *** Interesting documentary about the origins of gay pornography. It was made in 1974, so that would have been an exciting time for what the film is about. Narrated by porn star Fred Halsted, whom I've always liked.
- "Godzilla vs. Mothra" (1964) - **1/2 Typical Godzilla movie with impressive special effects. Pretty fun. This one and the next two were part of "Elvira's Movie Macabre". This movie is the only one of the three that can stand alone, imo. Elvira is her usual disarming, funny, hot tamale self! My friend commented that there is nothing like telling a bad joke/pun and knowing that it's a bad joke. And Elvira pulls them off left, right and center!
- "They Came From Outer Space" (1967) - *1/2 Forgettable
- "Blue Sunshine" - * What a convoluted mess. Zalman King loves to brood and be intense and his presence makes the movie that much worse. A thoroughly off-putting experience. Edit. I was kinda surprised to find out that the director's next film was "Just Before Dawn", which I liked pretty well.
- "Tourist Trap" - ** Kinda lame. The dolls were creepy and Tanya Roberts is in it.
- "Xanadu" - ***1/4 Always had a soft spot for this one. It has a nice, fuzzy glow and my personal favorite movie soundtrack of all time. This one and "Sara" were the only two movies I had seen before.
We also watched episodes of "Barnaby Jones", which is just goofy with storylines that go absolutely nowhere, "The Munsters" (Grandpa cracks me up!) and movie parodies by Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, which were absolutely hysterical. I have not laughed this hard in the last two years. These ladies are a couple of geniuses. Their parody of "The Exorcist" made me laugh the hardest.
"My life is over. I might as well dance with Johnny Slash!"
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ZolotoyRetriever — 3 years ago(July 06, 2022 03:59 PM)
Jane Fonda displayed a nice gift for light comedy, which I wasn't really aware of.
You should check her out in
Fun With Dick and Jane
(1977), with Jane Fonda and George Segal going on a comical crime spree. -
I love hutch — 3 years ago(July 06, 2022 04:19 PM)
I've always had that movie just below my radar. I know one of my friends likes it.
I can see Jane Fonda and George Segal having some chemistry. Of course, 1977 is a fantastic year for movies.
Thanks for the recommendation!
"My life is over. I might as well dance with Johnny Slash!" -
ToastedCheese — 3 years ago(July 07, 2022 12:23 AM)
Pleased you had a fun weekend with your buddies…..
I have seen 3 of those films on your list:
Xanadu
,
Roar
and
Tourist Trap.
I saw
Roar
a few times at the cinema when it first came out. I thought it looked and sounded great as a kid. It may not hold up so well today, but a lot of effort and time went into making this wildlife themed film and like you say, there are some awesome moments.
Always liked the corny
Xanadu
and it is sweet, charming and even bland in parts, due to the terrible miscasting of Michael Beck.
Tourist Trap
never did much for me. Watched twice in the mid 80's and I found it flat and unexciting. After the tense and dark thrills of something like
The Funhouse
, it just doesn't compare. The producers went for PG too, ($$ in their eyes no doubt, not quality), which made this forgettable horror film even more lame.
As for the others, I would like to see
The Initiation Of Sarah
. You have mentioned this one before.
I never bothered with
Blue Sunshine
and thought
Just Before Dawn
was passable. I do really enjoy the director's first horror outing,
Squirm - '76
, which is a terrific, amusing, creepy and atmospheric creature feature about worms. Highly recommended, plus Don Scardino is a very cute and likeable hero.
Norman! What did you put in my tea? -
I love hutch — 3 years ago(July 07, 2022 02:28 AM)
I saw "Squirm". I liked it. Don Scardino is quite a cutie. He always reminded me a little of a young Ron Howard. I think Scardino plays Pacino's gay friend in "Cruising".
Agreed with what you said about "Xanadu". It is corny and sweet and charming. Though, Beck is so dull. It doesn't detract too much. I think ONJ is even more appealing here than in "Grease" and she's very likable in that one, too. I think I like the way she wears her hair better in "Xanadu". lol I love the roller skating finale with the title song. The build-up gives me chills.
"My life is over. I might as well dance with Johnny Slash!" -
I love hutch — 3 years ago(July 09, 2022 07:27 PM)
It sounds like the poster you responded to believes in sin and God and all the rest. And if that's so, the idea of synchronicity is going to fly right over their radar.
"My life is over. I might as well dance with Johnny Slash!" -
ToastedCheese — 3 years ago(July 09, 2022 10:08 PM)
Soul Venal is a religious whack job. Margaret White is probably his mother.
He’s been owned big time on his anti-abortion stance, so he started flooding a myriad of any post I made on any thread with a biblical quote. He thought it would deter and frustrate me.
I just gave him small sarcastic responses back pertaining to all his quotes. All he did was bump the topics…..
Norman! What did you put in my tea? -
ToastedCheese — 3 years ago(July 09, 2022 10:24 PM)
There is not a lot to be impressed by. Religion has festered, because it keeps people down and away from growth and personal empowerment. It is a tool that then gets misused and manipulated for power and control over others.
Norman! What did you put in my tea? -
I love hutch — 3 years ago(July 09, 2022 10:38 PM)
The only religion(s) that I have found to be impressive are the Native Americans approach to spirituality. It is devoid of judgment, very much (from what I know) based in the cycle of life. They are also a very peaceful people. I think that the Cherokees were the main tribe who were actually capable of violence.
Also, many Native Americans recognize and cherish and revere those unique individuals of "the third gender".
"My life is over. I might as well dance with Johnny Slash!"