The Shining (1980)

Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) is a writer battling alcoholism and some serious anger management  issues. All of this comes to a boil over one long, cold winter locked in a giant hotel with his family.

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Screenwriting teachers HATE Stanley Kubrick. He broke every rule in the book. He even refused to write his scripts in the traditional screenplay format. Some might consider this rebellion for rebellion's sake, but I feel otherwise. Standard screenplay format is perfect for telling a standard narrative story, but Stanley Kubrick didn't tell those kind of stories. In fact he didn't really tell stories at all.

Kubrick's films are structured like a brick wall, one block stacked upon another. According to sci-fi writer Brian Aldiss, he referred to these blocks as "Non-Submersible Units". Each has the ability to stand alone, but when placed together they generate a cumulative effect. Though you might not know what is going on in every minute of 2001: A Space Odyssey, you can't help leaving that film without a sense of awe. In Full Metal Jacket everything is building towards a feeling of despair. With The Shining, Kubrick was building towards sheer terror. And I'll be damned if it didn't work like gang-busters!

Double Bill: L.A. Noir

Chinatown and L.A. Confidential

Hocus Pocus (1993)

This film is a Halloween MUST for me! I watch it every year. It's silly, it's quotable, and it's really really fun.

Winnie (Bette Midler), Mary (Kathy Najimy), and Sarah Sanderson (Sarah Jessica Parker) are three witch sisters who were hung for their evil ways 300 years ago. Thanks to a very handy spell, they're back to wreak havoc on a new generation. Max Dennison and his little sister Dani are new to Salem (yes, THAT Salem) and with their new friend Allison, both accidentally bring back and set out to destroy the three witches.

This movie has it all! Witchcraft! Trick or treating! A zombie! A talking cat! While some of the acting is pretty laughable (I'm looking at you, Max!), the three leading ladies are really funny and appeared to have a lot of fun playing their parts. Bette Midler even has a shining moment as she gleefully sings "I Put a Spell on You" to cast a spell on all the parents in town. A young Thora Birch plays the little sister Dani, and she's very cute and embarrasses her brother Max for the entire movie (even to the point of telling her brother's crush that he likes her "yabos"!).

So if you want to watch something lighthearted while you carve your pumpkin this Halloween, I suggest giving Hocus Pocus a watch. Just don't go lighting any black flame candles!

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

On the run from the law, Seth and Richie Gecko (George Clooney and Quentin Tarantino) take a lapsed preacher (Harvey Keitel) and his family hostage. Once safely in Mexico, they decide to await the dawn in a wild strip club. This is when shit gets real crazy...

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In 1988, makeup and effects wizards Robert Kurtzman, Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger came together and formed K.N.B. EFX Group. Though each individual member came to the table with an impressive body of work, the struggling start-up was looking for a way to showcase what they were capable of. Through friends of friends they met the perfect screenwriter to pen their exhibition, Quentin Tarantino. Though the film wasn't made until 1996, it was worth the wait. This film is one hell of an effective effects calling card!  Blood, guts and creatures-o-plenty! Today K.N.B. is one of the most reputable effects houses around with credits ranging from the current TV hit The Walking Dead to their Oscar win for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. Not bad for a trio of gore-hounds ey?

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

This one has become something of a cult classic, and I remember watching it in horror as a kid. Mostly because of Bette Davis's face (sorry, Bette!). This movie is creepy, a little campy, and, oddly enough, kinda fun!

Baby Jane Hudson (Bette Davis) was the biggest child star in vaudeville while her sister Blanche (Joan Crawford) watched from the sidelines. As the years passed, Blanche became a beloved actress and star in her own right and the alcoholic Jane became jealous and bitter. Blanche became paralyzed in a car accident that everybody blamed Jane for, and the two aging sisters now live together. Blanche is completely dependent on Jane and Jane, clinging to her youth with golden curls and caked on makeup, gets scarier and more demented every day.

This film has a lot of crazy behind-the-scenes stories attached to it. Apparently Davis and Crawford hated each other, and went out of their way to make the other miserable on the set. Did you know Davis really kicked Crawford in the head? And Crawford put weights in her pockets during a dragging scene so that Davis would hurt her back! Oh, Hollywood drama.

Whether you're Team Bette or Team Joan, give this one a watch and make sure you eat the din-din that Baby Jane made for you...but not if it's cooked rat or parakeet, eww!

How BAD do you want it?

If you weren't already aware, we here at Cinema Nerds love cinema in all of its' various forms. One of our favorite forms is CAMP. The more over-the-top the better. And you can't get much more over-the-top than the Paul Verhoeven/Joe Eszterhas magnum-opus Showgirls...or can you?

Rena Riffel (Penny/Hope from the original Showgirls) has taken it upon herself to write and direct a sequel, Showgirls 2: Penny's From Heaven! Check out the full trailer!

If any of this seems up your alley, may we suggest attending the film's RED CARPET WORLD PREMIERE Wednesday November 9th at the Art Theatre in Long Beach!

MONTAGE!

I'm not sure if it's the economy or what but people seem to have a lot of free time to make video montages of film clips these days. Here are two recent awe-inspiring faves that span the entire history of cinema.

Attack The Block (2011)

When monstrous aliens descend upon a South London tenement, it falls to a band of street kids to stave off otherworldly domination.

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Judging by this film’s US box office, I’m pretty sure you did not see Attack The Block when it was in theaters. Well here’s your chance to correct that because today it comes out on DVD and Blu-ray! No more excuses. This movie has the goods: laughs, scares, eye-candy and a kickin’ Basement Jaxx soundtrack. All of that packed into a tight and tense 88min! Don’t let the accents and slang scare you off. By the end of the film you will be fluent. Believe!

Young Frankenstein (1974)

Probably the funniest movie on my October movie list, Young Frankenstein just gets better every time I watch it. It's a loving homage to the Frankenstein films of the 1930s and it's hilarious.

Frederic Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) (oh, and it's pronounced Fronkensteeen) has inherited his famous grandfather's castle, discovers his lab, and decides to try his hand at reanimating the dead. Marty Feldman is Igor, the hunchback, Teri Garr is Inga, the sexy lab assistant, Madeline Kahn is Elizabeth, Frankenstein's ditzy fiance, and Peter Boyle is the monster! Also featuring Cloris Leachman, Kenneth Mars, and Gene Hackman (in a very funny tiny role), this film has top-notch performances from some of the most hilarious actors ever. I can't even begin to explain some of the gags, but they're non-stop. If you've seen this film before, you already know what happens if you say "Blucher" around the horses, you know why Inspector Kemp can light his "hand" on fire to light a cigar, and you know that the castle doors have a pretty impressive set of knockers. You know how to put on the ritz, and you know how to "walk this way." If you haven't seen it, please do!

Young Frankenstein is one of my favorite comedies of all time. I have fond memories of watching it when I was younger, and while I may not have understood all the jokes, I was being exposed to all the songs and other films it was referencing. How Mel Brooks managed to release this and Blazing Saddles in the same year I"ll never know!

Give this one a go, and don't forget to PUT! ZE CANDLE! BACK!

Double Bill: Big Long Bogus Bogeys

The Long Goodbye and The Big Lebowski

Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn (1987)

Ash (Bruce Campbell) and Linda (Denise Bixler) head to a secluded cabin in the woods. While there, they happen to unleash an evil force that is hell bent on swallowing their souls.

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Growing up I didn't really watch horror films. The poster/box art for Child's Play 2 scared the shit out of 7-year-old me so I steered clear of that part of the video store. All of that changed the summer before high school when my friend Graham decided it was finally time for me to experience the Evil Dead Trilogy. Over the course of maybe 2 nights I was rapidly introduced to the lo-fi world of tree-rape, blood-geysers and chainsaw-hands. From here there was no going back.

As much as I love the whole trilogy, I find myself loving the 2nd film a little bit more. In the first film you get a lot of scares with a few giggles and in the 3rd film you get lots of giggles and an occasional spook. Porridge too hot, porridge too cold. But with the 2nd film they got the mixture, "just right!" It's like an insane tennis game between horror and comedy. Back and forth, back and forth. As the poster clearly states, "kiss your nerves good-bye!" Is this a remake? Is this a sequel? Does it really matter? Groovy!

Dracula (1931)

Today is Bela Lugosi's birthday, which means of course I have to write a little blurb about Dracula. I don't know where to start...I watch it every year on his birthday because I'm a huge nerd. It's not a perfect film by any means, but it's got a mesmerizing quality to it that keeps me coming back year after year.

The plot isn't important...vampire stalks victims, basically. But it's got such style! Bela Lugosi is perfect...he's so refined and creepy and peculiar. Definitely a step up looks-wise from the human rat Nosferatu. He slinks around with his shiny hair, gives the best dirty looks, and can turn into a bat. Or a wolf. Or mist! I never saw or read Twilight, but I'll bet Edward doesn't have those mad skills! The film relies a lot on the audience's imagination...we don't see any actual attacks, and some of the creepiest moments aren't seen but described by a character. It works very well and I wish more films would let the audience create their own images.

Can we talk about Dwight Frye, who plays Dracula's deranged henchman Renfield? He's fantastic. I wish he was better known! He also appeared in Frankenstein as Fritz, the lab assistant. He has the best crazy laugh, and he's funny and scary and pitiful. He makes this movie for me.

This film has stayed a classic throughout the years for a reason. It's spooky and entertaining and doesn't get old for me. If you're open-minded I suggest giving the version with the Philip Glass score a watch. And if you really want to get in the spirit of things, read the book (it's awesome)! Don't forget the garlic and the crucifix!

Suspiria (1977)

American Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper) just arrived in Germany to attend a prestigious dance academy. Gradually she comes to realize that there might be more going on behind these walls than just pirouettes.

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With a style as ornate and over-the-top as Dario Argento's, you need your story to be a simple as possible. The characters can't even be realistic or they would stand out like sore thumbs in this world of pink and purple lights. Oh and what gorgeous lights they are. Suspiria is easily one of the most beautiful looking horror films you will ever encounter. The whole film is beautiful, which works in perfect contrast with the grand-guignol killings on display. Oh and then there's the music!

The Haunting (1963)

This is one of the great classic haunted house films. It doesn't rely on flashy special effects or boo-scares to send shivers down your spine!

Dr. Markway is conducting an experiment in paranormal activity. He is spending time in the dark and foreboding Hill House with three other individuals: the bright-eyed and sarcastic Luke, the mysterious and alluring Theo, and the timid and repressed Eleanor, who believes that the house wants her in some way. Strange things begin to occur, and Eleanor falls deeper into the house's spell, eventually wanting to stay there forever.

Loud booms echo throughout the house. Doors slam and lock and unlock by themselves. Unfamiliar muffled voices are heard through the walls. The spiral staircase. The bending door. Sometimes you just can't beat simple effects and stark black and white to convey a mood! Eleanor's frightened inner monologue gives the audience a feeling of uneasiness. Is it all in her mind? What really happened here?

This film is great for this time of year...dim the lights and get comfy for this one. It's moody and beautiful and unnerving. But please, don't try and tell me that the 1999 remake with Catherine Zeta-Jones is better.

I will slap you.

Double Bill: Ménage à trois

Jules et Jim and The Dreamers

Aliens (1986)

Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) accompanies a team of Colonial Marines to LV-426 where her entire crew perished decades before at the hands of a single alien killing machine. This time there are more and this time it's war!

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I yearn for the days before James Cameron was "king of the world". Though I would never expect him to return to the down and dirty days of the original The Terminator and his work for Roger Corman, I wish there could be a happy middle-ground between cheap thrills and pretension. I guess what I'm really saying is that I wish he would just keep making Aliens and T2 over and over again. Heck I'd even settle for the True Lies sequel that Tom Arnold has been trying to put together. Just please, no more Avatar.

The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2001)

Dr. Paul Armstrong and his wife Betty are staying in a cabin in order to be close to the landing site of a meteor that Armstrong, a scientist, wants to get a closer look at. Meanwhile, two aliens have crash-landed on Earth and their pet mutant has escaped. And during all this, the evil Dr. Fleming has made himself a sexy sidekick out of forest animals (she's appropriately named Animala) and reawakened the mysterious Lost Skeleton of Cadavra.

This film requires some explanation. It's a loving homage/parody of all of those cheesy 50s sci-fi movies. Shot in the same style with an old soundtrack, deliberately ridiculous dialogue, silly props, and a nonsensical plot. Even the film's poster looks like the poster from Invaders from Mars (1953). The filmmakers obviously have a lot of love for the genre, as every detail is perfect. The film is hilariously quotable, and looks like it was a lot of fun to make.

I'm a huge fan of this movie, and even got to meet some of the cast at Comic Con in 2010!



I recommend this film to anyone who gets a kick out of the campy and the ridiculous!

Trick 'r Treat (2007)

Four interwoven stories all occurring in a small town on Halloween night.

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It is downright criminal that this film didn't get a proper release. Barring a few screenings to promote the DVD release in 2009, this movie hasn't been shown theatrically. While some films are fine to be watched alone or in small groups, this is not one of them. This film demands to be seen with LOTS of people. This is a film that puts the audience through its' paces. It's funny, it's clever, it's downright scary and sometimes all at once. Yes it is possible for a film to be all those things at the same time. Scares break up the laughter and laughter breaks up the scares. Trust me, it makes for a much more rewarding experience.

BONUS: Apparently on Halloween Day FEARnet will be pulling an A Christmas Story and showing the film back to back to back all day long. They even hired the director Mike Dougherty to make a cute short promo video.

Coraline (2008)

Ohhh I love this one! It's like a horror movie for kids. Why is that not an official genre? Children's Horror? Marvelous.

Coraline Jones and her parents just moved into an old house, and she's frustrated because her parents don't have time for her. She's bored, despite visiting the other tenants in the house and exploring the woods. She discovers a portal to a world just like hers, but better. She has new versions of her parents, and everything is beautiful and magical. Everyone has button eyes. And then she realizes that there is a darkness lurking at the heart of this "other" world, especially in her "Other Mother."

This film is major eye candy for me. It's directed by Henry Selick (James and the Giant Peach, The Nightmare Before Christmas), so it's a given that the animation is superb. There are dog-bats, glowing flowers, cakes that frost themselves, a scandalous theatre act, performing mice, ghosts, ahh, so gorgeous. And scary! I would've been terrified had I seen this as a little girl. Coraline is drawn to the other world because it seems so magical, but it becomes SO freaky when it starts unraveling. I adore the soundtrack too...it's haunting, and strange and beautiful. It even features a track by "They Might Be Giants"! Oh, and did I mention that Neil Gaiman wrote the book that the film is based on? Awesome.

This one comes super highly recommended for all those who are young at heart, and are easily led astray by beautiful magical things. <3

Hour of the Wolf (1968)

Alma (Liv Ullmann) watches helplessly as her artist husband (Max von Sydow) slowly descends into madness.

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The "hour of the wolf" (roughly 3am to 4am) is the hour between night and day. It is a limbo which belongs to neither the morning nor the evening. It is also the time when the line between sanity and insanity starts to blur.

While contemporary audiences might disagree with this movie being labeled as a "horror film", I'd be hard-pressed to think of things more horrific than what the characters in this film endure. This is horror in the German Expressionist sense of the word. Not only is it a film about the horror of losing your own sanity, but also the horror of watching someone you love descend into madness. Both in terms of subject-matter and imagery, this film fits perfectly among horror classics like The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Nosferatu.

Double Bill: Days of the Future Past

The Terminator and 12 Monkeys

The Others (2001)

Grace (Nicole Kidman) lives in an old house with her two children who are sensitive to light and must live in darkness. She raises them alone while her husband has been away in the war. She is very protective of her children and teaches them all about God, heaven, and hell. Feeling very isolated and cut off from the world, Grace is relieved when three housekeepers who are already familiar with the house arrive to offer their services. But things start getting very creepy when Grace's daughter insists that there are other people lurking in the house.

The Others isn't your typical horror film. It's more spooky and atmospheric than scary (which I prefer!), and Nicole Kidman is great in this. She's not my favorite actress...most of the time I find her uptight and not super likeable. But the character of Grace is exactly that. She gets migraines, she's nervous, she's irritable, and she's desperately trying to be in control of a situation that's completely beyond her. The servants seem to know more than they're letting on, the children refer to an incident that nobody wants to talk about, and the whole situation leaves the audience wondering what's really going on.

If I'm being vague it's because I don't want to spoil anything for those who haven't seen it. You'll thank me for it. :) But I highly recommend this film. Yes, it's a bit slow, but it's a great October movie for those who like their scares to be of the quieter, well written and beautifully shot kind.

Streamable on Netflix! Enjoy!

Tromeo & Juliet (1996)

Shakespeare's classic retold with body piercing, kinky sex and dismemberment. I think that about sums it up.

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I could spend this entire review writing about how the cheap effects and over-the-top acting function as Brechtian alienation devices designed to make the audience aware of the film's the social and political agenda. I could go on at length about how this film is the true heir apparent to the 1960s avant garde work of Warhol, Anger, Brakhage and the Kuchar brothers. But I won't. Why? Because I know you really don't care about all that. So instead I will tell you that this film has gore and nudity. Enjoy!