Cruising (1980)

4 / 5 July '10
Tagline: Al Pacino is Cruising for a killer.
Directed by: William Friedkin
Written by: William Friedkin, Gerald Walker
Actors include: Al Pacino, Paul Sorvino, Karen Allen
Genre: Thriller
Length: 102 minutes
Banned: Finland

Review:
Wow what a gritty sleazy thriller and I'm a little shocked at how far this one goes, but I like it. Al Pacino is really wonderful as undercover detective Steve Burns who has a rather difficult task ahead of him. He is on assignment to find a serial killer who brutally stabs men to death after picking them up from gay s&m clubs. Steve must blend in with the people and of course ends up in some difficult situations, especially considering he has a girlfriend at home who he has to keep in the dark. It's quite exciting, and flashy and it even has one heck of a dancing sequence with Pacino. It's brutal and violent and well it's probably a bit too much for some. Really my only complaint was the ending, I had something else in mind but I suppose it all made sense and all of that. It's not Friedkin's best, but I think it's an interesting movie so long as the subject matter doesn't put you off.

Availability:  On DVD

Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? (1971) aka Who Slew Auntie Roo?

4 / 5 July '10
Tagline: She's Taking A STAB At Motherhood!
Directed by: Curtis Harrington
Written by: Robert Blees, David D. Osborn
Actors include: Mark Lester, Shelley Winters, Chloe Franks
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Length: 91 minutes
Banned: Nope

Review:
Now this is rather like a Hammer telling of Hansel & Gretel, only of course it isn't really from the Hammer company. It's got a rather lavish production set in England in the '20s. Shelley Winters hams it up as Mrs. Forrest, a rather rich Woman who lives in a gingerbread house (not literally but it looks that way). She torments herself with visions of her daughter's freak accident that killed her because she loves children so. She loves them so much that every year she invites a group of orphans to her house to celebrate and extravagant Christmas. This year two orphans Christopher (Mark Lester...yes Oliver!) and Katy (Chloe Franks) sneak into the party, and when Mrs. Forrest sees how much Katy reminds her of her deceased daughter well trouble brews. It's kind of a slow start, but stick with it will more than pay off, it really does pick up steam. The actors are awesome and fun to watch, the story has a bit of humor in it plus it's a camp lovers dream!

Availability:  On DVD as part of a 2fer with What's The Matter With Helen?

Daddy's Gone A-Hunting (1969)

2.5 / 5 July '10
Tagline: What made you leave him, Cathy ... was it the way he made love, or why?
Directed by: Mark Robson
Written by: Larry Cohen
Actors include: Carol White, Paul Burke, Mala Powers
Genre: Thriller
Length: 108 minutes
Banned: Nope

Review:
I was really looking forward to this as some talented filmmakers and so forth were at the helm here. The film is very nicely shot in San Francisco and I truly thought the concept was a good one. The story is about a young woman called Cathy who meets a young man, realizes he's mentally disturbed about the same time she finds out she's pregnant. She decides to have an abortion and tells the nutty father about it (big mistake!). Anyhow flash forward to later when she's met a new feller married and now with a baby and this is where the majority of the film takes place. The nutty fella turns up in her new life posing as a photographer and playing games with her. He wants to punish her and get revenge for the abortion but can she and her child be saved? What made this movie so awful was the actress playing Cathy, irritating, bitchy and whiny as heck, it's hard to feel bad for someone you hate. In fact there really wasn't much of anyone to try to root for in this, everyone was unlikable! The terrible theme song kept reoccurring (one of the worst I've heard yet), and most of the film dragged and dragged and was rather predictable. It's also the handling of the story was so overwrought and obnoxious it was difficult to even sit through. It's a shame because I feel this could have been something special if quite a few things changed.

Availability:  Not on DVD

Inferno In Diretta (1986) aka Cut And Run

3 / 5 July '10
Tagline: The one story you won't be seeing on the 6 o'clock news!
Directed by: Ruggero Deodato
Written by: Cesare Frugoni, Dardano Sacchetti
Actors include: Lisa Blount, Leonard Mann, Willie Aames
Genre: Action, Adventure, Horror
Length: 90 minutes
Banned: Finland

Review:
Well in some way this is a sequel to Cannibal Holocaust, or at least it's very similar and from the same director. This isn't nearly as good as Holocaust, though I suppose it's nicely filmed. The plot is about a news team who suspect a member of Jonestown has survived and is hiding out in the jungle. Also they intend to hunt for the son of a TV Producer who has been lost in the jungle for quite a while and it has a cocaine smuggling plot too. The missing son is hilariously played by Willie Aames (Buddy from Charles In Charge) who is ridiculous when trying to act, it's almost sad to watch. This does have a lot of violence in it though nothing as extreme as in Holocaust, it does have a rather high body count I suppose (though I could have done with less poison dart death). One perk this does have is actor Michael Berryman (the creepy dude from The Hills Have Eyes) as a violent savage which is kind of neat. It's okay I guess when you add everything up but it certainly could have been much better.

Availability:  On DVD

The River Wild (1994)

3.5 / 5 July '10
Tagline: The vacation is over
Directed by: Curtis Hanson
Written by: Denis O'Neill
Actors include: Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, John C. Reilly
Genre: Thriller, Action
Length: 145 minutes
Banned: Nope

Review:
A rather fun little action thriller with a few silly elements and oddly Meryl Streep being a silly river rafter with an uninterested husband and kids. She decides to take the boy and husband rafting on a nice vacation in the wild. Things are great until they come across a group of other rafters that are clearly up to no good. They've robbed a location and are now on the getaway with a bag of money and a gun. Kevin Bacon and John C. Reilly head up the bad guys who are trying to be nice but they need the river guide for escape. It's got a few moments of excitement, particularly when it comes to especially dangerous rapids that they are being forced to endure. It's predictable and a bit hammy but the scenery is nice, the acting is fine and if you want an adventure movie with a bit of danger this should satisfy.

Availability:  On DVD

Primal Fear (1996)

4 / 5 July '10
Tagline: Sooner or later a man who wears two faces forgets which one is real.
Directed by: Gregory Hoblit
Written by: William Diehl, Steve Shagan
Actors include: Richard Gere, John Mahoney, Laura Linney
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Length: 129 minutes
Banned: Nope

Review:
This is a neat little legal thriller that has a few more twists and turns than the average offering. Richard Gere plays a cynical lawyer who usually doesn't care much for his clients, but rather is in it for exposure for himself. When he hears about an altar boy named Aaron who was found covered in the blood of a viciously murdered Priest he can't help but volunteer to defend the Aaron. For once he finds himself in an odd predicament, despite the overwhelming evidence that Aaron was involved Gere actually feels his client is innocent. Heck Aaron is an extremely boyish and likeable fellow who stammers and cowers, could he really do anything so horrible? The film is about the case playing out and all of the intriguing evidence and people who surface along the way. It maybe goes on a little long but it's so fascinating it's hard to look away from.

Availability:  On DVD & Blu-Ray

Lady In A Cage (1964)

4 / 5 July '10
Tagline: Do not see "Lady in a Cage" alone!
Directed by: Walter Grauman
Written by: Luther Davis
Actors include: Olivia de Havilland, James Caan, Ann Sothern
Genre: Thriller, Horror
Length: 94 minutes
Banned: Finland

Review:
Mrs. Hilyard (Olivia de Havilland) needs to have her hip replaced, in the meantime she has to use a cage-like elevator to get between floors in her house. Her Son has left her alone for a few days, so when something in her elevator malfunctions and she's trapped in there she's panicked. The elevator has a buzzer for help that rings a bell outside, instead of attracting help she attracts the attention of a bum who wants to rob her. Of course she's trapped so she can do nothing, but when more bad people that are more dangerous invade her house things go from bad to worse. Suddenly there are bodies, and total destruction and nobody will help. In a way it feels like a message to the audience that society sucks and won't help a suffering injured Woman, we'd rather rob her instead. Still it's rather shocking honestly and it goes further than I had expected. A rather cool concept with an intriguing execution and a wonderful leading lady...what more could one want?

Availability:  On DVD