The Omega Man (1971)

3.5 / 5   Apr '10
Tagline: Pray for the last man alive. Because he's not alone.
Directed by: Boris Sagal
Written by: John William Corrington, Joyce Hooper Corrington
Actors include: Charlton Heston, Anthony Zerbe, Rosalind Cash
Genre: Science Fiction, Horror, Thriller
Length: 89 minutes
Banned: Nope

Review:
Oh gee well this was sillier than I expected and I knew this was a Charlton Heston flick going in and I generally appreciate his hilarious ways. The story I'm sure is very interesting, it's one of several film takes on the book "I Am Legend" of course and I haven't seen any of the other adaptations yet so I can't compare. I can say that the vampire/zombie things in this one were kind of lame looking...they had whiteish contacts, wore capes with hoods and looked like they'd bathed in baby powder...not at all threatening. The story goes that we are following Heston around who appears to be the last fellow alive because he was a scientist who had a vaccination to the disease that turned the rest of the population into zombiepyres. These monsters can't go out in the light so most of the time it's entirely safe! When he sees a mannequin that moves he learns he's not entirely alone hand has some silly love scenes and lots of fighting monsters too. I appreciated the violence but the tension and fear were never created, but at least the story kept some momentum. Not bad, but I look forward to seeing the adaptation called The Last Man on Earth, I've heard it's spookier and this story could use some of that!

Availability:  On DVD & Blu-Ray

Boxcar Bertha (1972)

4 / 5
Tagline:  Bertha Loved Lovin'...But There Was More Money in ROBBIN' TRAINS!
Directed by:  Martin Scorsese
Written by:  Ben L. Reitman, Joyce Hooper Corrington
Actors include:  Barbara Hershey, David Carradine, Bernie Casey
Genre:  Crime, Drama, Action
Length:  92 minutes
Banned:  Nope

Review:
Pretty neat little tale that was apparently taken from the diaries of a woman named "Boxcar" Bertha Thompson. Barbara Hershey plays our freespirited title character who after losing a family member during the Depression rides the rails to adventure. She meets a fellow named Bill Shelly who is a union leader who is railing against the railroad. Together they rob people and trains in order to collect money to distribute to the poor. It's very reminiscent of the Bonnie & Clyde story in several ways though I wouldn't call it a copy cat. I was really surprised at the exploitative nature of the film considering it is a Scorsese, but since he's working with Corman maybe that is where the excess comes in. No matter why it's there, it's a very fun movie and it has violence, nudity and it's pretty exciting throughout. The cinematography was quite lovely and the movie is well made, I'm a little surprised that I hadn't heard more about this one until relatively recently.

Availability:  On DVD