p e n g u i n d e v i l

Well we start off this time around with another long overlooked Lovecraft adaptation. The Dunwich Horror. It “stars” Sandra Dee but most excitingly features a young Dean Stockwell! He, of course, is wonderful as the famously charming evil warlock seeking to open the gates, as you might say. Also, it was written by Curtis Hanson of L.A. Confidential fame. Mean Mister Whateley travels to Arkham to catch a glimpse of the Necronomicon and then heads back to Dunwich with the silly old Sandra Dee giving him a lift. Of course, his plans are quite nefarious and her pal and the professor are suspicious so they follow along. Many evil hijinks unfold! The movie is a silly cheapo but interesting and a lot of fun! Of course very liberal liberties have been taken with the story (what? Women again?) but there is some great dialog and alot of it is very familiar to me, having been generously sampled by the Thickets in Going Down to Dunwich. It’s actually a bit eerie hearing the lines in their true context. It’s another AIP classic featuring a groovy dream sequence, something locked behind a door, a great house, some nice effects and some nice summoning rituals.

Then, more in season, I finally watched A Christmas Story. Yes, yes, yes, I hadn’t seen it before. I must say that I didn’t really expect much but it is actually quite good. The story of a young chap who is obsessed with getting a Red Ryder (yes, just like I used to have, and seriously pained my thumb with) and has to battle all of the silly adults (including the most wonderfully horrid Santa Claus) and their eye-protectiveness. A great fun film. It’s no wonder it’s been a Christmas classic for all these years!

And then I sort of watched Pumpkinhead. Sort of as in I’ve seen it soo many times and it’s soo formulaic that I only need to pay soo much attention. But hey, it’s one of my favorite monster movies! Why? Well, I don’t really know why I like this… of course, Stan Winston is a big draw for me but Lance Henrikson is a bit dry in the lead, the rest of the actors are throwaways and the set-up for the tragedy that sets everything off is contrived, but boy, Pumpkinhead is the best… Big, tall terrifying and unstoppable… He’s a great horrible thing and It’s fun to watch how much he scares the heck out of the locals!

Tokyo Rampage. Well, finally. After being curious about this for a good while I’ve finally got my hands on Tokyo Rampage (aka Tokyo Psycho, aka Pornostar). Well, while it does seem to feature Tokyo, it doesn’t seem to involve much rampaging. Maybe even no rampaging. Tokyo Psycho is the title they should have stuck with. Honestly, I fell asleep quite regularly during it, though I actually did like it. It was just a little too slow for the level of tiredness I was watching it in. A sort of nerdy mystery man who likes to bump into people and has decided that Yakuza don’t deserve to live encounters a reluctant Yakuza who doesn’t like to be run into and much fun ensues. Slow fun. There is lots of knifing in an unrampaging fashion, and not nearly enough shooting. It features, bar none, the lamest group of Yakuza I have ever seen, some westerners who you just cannot wait for to get wacked, stolen drugs and a lady with Pussy Cat tattooed on her chest. After seeing and enjoying this (in a manner of speaking), it does make me want to delve into Toshiaki Toyoda’s other films. The two that followed this are oft spoken of as classics.

We then watched The Thin Blue Line. Well, that was uplifting. A very nice “non-fiction” film. I have never actually seen this film about the murder of a policeman in Dallas before, but I should have. It is really quite good and it certainly makes you think. As old Randall Adams says, “…should scare the hell out of everyone in this room, and if it doesn’t, then that scares the hell out of me.”. I’ve thought of the thin blue line as the old reference to the role that police play in protecting society, but boy, this makes you think about it in another way… As to how the police can determine what it means to protect society. Scary and sort of mind-blowing to watch the way that the law operated in this case. It really makes one think, and it supplies yet another reason to avoid Texas…

And then, Bridget Jones’s Diary. Yes, I don’t like those chick flicks, but I do like this one. It is really just a good movie. Yes, it features the eternally unlikable, uncharming and unattractive Hugh Grant but… it also features the always charming and misanthropically shy Colin Firth reprising (albeit an abbreviated and updated version) the character of Mister Darcy. It is quite charming. Rene Zellwiger is quite cutesy, pitifully charming and disarmingly uncomfortable in the role, which is perfect. And the whole thing is just good fun!

Jenifer. Okay, now for my third Masters of Horror. I thought this was probably the best of the ones I’ve seen. It was fairly well predictable, but it was still a fun idea and she really does look creepy. It’s a nice engaging way to spend an hour if you want to feel a bit creepy. The story of a girl with some strange issues. She doesn’t seem to have any problems hooking up with guys because, even with her sharp teeth, crooked mouth, and teddy bear eyes fellas always seem to be drawn in be the sex maniac aspect of her personality. Plus, she doesn’t talk. Of course, as in any family drama, once she starts behavior like strolling around the house nude and eating the family cat, the wife always gets a bit out of joint…

jenifer, oh jenifer…
jenifer 04:49

the uninvited guest
jenifer 28:01