I remember the first time I watched Videodrome. I was excited about the prospect of seeing a film so crazy. Not unlike sleazy cable programmer Max Renn (James Woods) and his excitement for the latest lurid TV show. Then I actually watched the film and I was bored and confused. Now I’ve watched it again and was less bored but just as confused and didn’t realize this film was kind of misogynistic too, but damn if I don’t love watching James Woods pull a gun out of his stomach.
Fuck all of this. What is this piece of shit? Why are people in this film, EATING SHIT? What kind of demented sadistic sex pervert wanted to make this film? Who was it made for? Why is it in the Criterion Collection? Why did I watch it? I’ve seen gross movies before, but never have I been this insulted. Salò of the 120 Days of Sodom pushes the limits of what’s acceptable. Maybe that’s the idea. I don’t care. I hate it. I’m open to dark movies, but it’s hard when it’s this drawn out. Not to mention Salò is guilty of the worst possible offense a film can be guilty. It’s boring. It’s so fucking boring. Bury me now, please!
I wanted to write a De Palma review without too much reference to Hitchcock, but after watching Sisters again I don’t think that’s possible. Right from the get-go this film hits you with a healthy dose of Hitch in a visually striking opening credit sequence set to music by who else but Bernard Herrmann. Though instead of dynamic Saul Bass animation, it’s colorful photos of fetuses in utero. This is where De Palma sets himself apart. He’s far more explicit than Hitch ever was. Partly because he was younger, partly because it was later in time and partly because he’s one sick fuck… but in the best way.
“Your butt is mine
Gonna tell you right
Just show your face
In broad daylight”
100 poets working for 100 years could not come up with something that good. That’s because there’s was only one Michael Jackson. In honor of the 30th anniversary of the Bad album, Colin and John reflect on the myth, the magic and the music of the legendary man in the mirror. You’ve been struck by a smooth podcast. That’s gotta be enough writing, right?
P.S. This was recorded back in late August/early September. We just wanted you to know that so this podcast can take you back to a more simple time.
It may sound like an early ’70s porno, but Valerie and Her Week of Wonders is in, fact a surrealist drama from Czechoslovakia. I don’t think I can name one fact about Czechoslovakia. Not a single person or event tied to Czechoslovakia. Does it have something to do with the Czech Republic? I’m reading now that it became the “Czech Republic” and “Slovakia” in 1992? That makes a lot of sense. I wish this movie did.
If I had, to sum up, Equinox in one sentence I would say “That’s pretty good for a first try.” This is because Equinox was more of a student film than anything. The brainchild of Dennis Muren—who would go on to win nine visual effects Oscars for films like The Empire Strikes Back, E.T., Terminator 2 and Jurassic Park—while attending business school, Equinox was made for as close to nothing as you can get.
Co-helming the picture with future sound editor Jack Woods (Star Trek III, The Naked Gun 2 1/2) and screenwriter Mark Thomas McGee (Sorority House Massacre II, Stepmonster), Equinox was a stop-motion sci-film shot in Pasadena for $6,500. How does what is essentially a student film become a midnight movie and later a Criterion? Let’s see if we can find out.
Roman Polanski is a controversial figure, to say the least. Just this year Polanski has been accused of the sexual assault of another underage woman in the ‘70s. Polanski’s life apart from his personal crimes has been no less surreal. He survived the Holocaust at a young age and in 1969 his pregnant wife Sharon Tate was murdered by the Manson Family. Of course, neither of those excuse his actions.
Honestly, Polanski’s personal history makes writing about his films incredibly difficult. The more I read about Polanski the harder it is to appreciate his accomplishments. This is a man who recently said “trying to level the genders is purely idiotic.” “Offering flowers to a lady has become indecent … The pill has greatly changed the place of women in our times, masculinizing her. It chases away the romance in our lives.” Jesus Christ.
