1976

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September 13, 2008

Massacre at Central High

Posted by Jordan Richardson under 1976, drama, entertainment, horror, movies, thrillers, trailers | Tags: , , , , |
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A lot of people like to take any film involving high school violence and draw Columbine comparisons, mining the depths of cinema to find more possible influences for the perpetrators of school shootings.

One movie that draws such attention is the 1976 flick Massacre at Central High. A schlocky exploitation flick, this Rene Daalder piece is one of the original retaliation classics.

Massacre at Central High is often applauded for its resolute portrayal of high school violence and its clever look at the philosophies that build our social hierarchies. But make no mistake about it: this is B-movie exploitation stuff.

Central High is somewhat of a strange place, to say the least. It is a school, sure, but there doesn’t appear to be any teachers or authorities. There is mention of a principal in passing, but no “adults” appear on screen until the final sequence. Central High is essentially run by a group of bullies and the social pecking order is determined by the anarchy these young men promote.

When David (Derrel Maury) shows up at Central he becomes reacquainted with Mark (Andrew Stevens), one of the bullies running the school. He also lays his eyes on Mark’s girlfriend, Theresa (Kimberley Beck) and is instantly love-struck. While Mark and his bully friends run the school, David diffidently exists in the background and refuses to get involved. Eventually, however, events begin to spiral out of control and David intervenes to show the bullies a fatal lesson and to help the “nerds” fight back. As David’s vicious actions undo the social order of Central High, chaos erupts and David becomes a madman in an attempt to restore “order.”

Massacre at Central High is the epitome of ’70s exploitation filmmaking. The violence is gory, but Daalder’s erratic camera work cuts most of the red intensity. An intrinsic lack of character reaction helps, too, as most people at Central High simply go about their business as usual after the various explosions and “accidents.” The police are never involved, there is no sign of any authority, and the Chaos Rule of the school appears in full function. The lack of authority offers an appealing take on the violence, as there really are no repercussions for David’s deeds.

Another interesting point made by Daalder’s movie lies in his interpretation of the social order. In such a hectic system of existence, there is a certain pecking order. When that pecking order is upset, a flood of latent replacement “leaders” enters the fray. When David kills off the bullies, those in the “lower classes” at Central High wind up fighting it out to determine a new pecking order. Every student wants to have his or her chance at “running the school,” which leads to some exciting social dynamics and directly alters the conduct of many of the teens.

Despite this interesting dynamic, Daalder never really gets beyond the sphere of the exploitation picture. This is not a bad thing, of course, as most exploitation films contain heavily reflective messages. Massacre at Central High is no different, but it often seems as though it wants to break free into an art house piece. Daalder’s direction is fascinating, as some scenes are surprisingly gorgeous while others are just out-and-out feeble.

Daalder’s script is also about as clichéd as it gets, although there are undoubtedly some unique moments. His writing seems to push for something more at times, such as when Mark describes David as “aloof” in a strange turn of phrase that doesn’t really fit the tone of the exchange. Many of the interactions between characters take similar paths, with odd bits of philosophy sneaking into standard conversations.

Massacre at Central High is surely worth a look for fans of the teen slasher/revenge genre. It is hailed by many as the film that started it all and certainly does contain more than its fair share of convincing moments. It’s not a particularly good film, by most standards, but Daalder does broaden the material as much as he can in order to explore the issues he finds most serious.

There are plenty of explosions, inventive death scenes, and sexual situations to keep the viewer occupied, making Massacre at Central High a pretty solid (groovy?) choice for a movie matinee.

6/10

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February 29, 2008

The Shootist

Posted by Jordan Richardson under 1976, action, drama, entertainment, movies, trailers, western | Tags: , , , , , , , |
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The Shootist

John Wayne’s last film role would be as J.B. Books in The Shootist, a 1976 western. Directed by Don Siegel, director of Dirty Harry and Two Mules for Sister Sara, The Shootist would feature Wayne in a role that would parallel his own life. Books is a dying gunfighter, stricken with cancer. During production, Wayne’s health was failing and much of the dialogue and imagery of the film was built from his actual condition. Wayne did not have cancer during the making of the movie, however, as he had been cancer-free since undergoing surgery to remove his left lung in 1964. The cancer would return in the last year of his life in 1979.

The Shootist is based on a book of the same name by Glendon Swarthout. When the rights to the book were purchased, producers did not have John Wayne in mind for the title role because of his ailing health. George C. Scott was considered instead, but Wayne campaigned heavily for the role and turned the completion of the film into a personal mission. He eventually won the part and the results are poignant and touching. Wayne’s final film plays out beautifully, mirroring his life in many subtle ways on screen. The opening credit montage is actually comprised of clips from some of his previous films.

Wayne’s J.B. Books is an aging gunfighter or “shootist” who arrives in El Paso, Texas, to get a second opinion from a doctor friend, Doc E. W. Hostetler (James Stewart). Hostetler tells Books that he has “a cancer” and doesn’t have very long to live. He also tells Books that his death will be painful and that he doesn’t recommend that kind of death for any man. Books decides to rent a room from a local widow named Bond (Lauren Bacall) and her son Gillom (Ron Howard) so that he can live out his final days. Soon the presence of the legendary shootist hits the telegraph wires and all of El Paso is excited to learn that his demise will take place in their town. The Marshal (Harry Morgan) is particularly morbid and obnoxious.

With the news of Books’ upcoming demise, a variety of troublemakers hit El Paso with designs on luring him back to his past behaviour. These individuals hope to profit from Books’ infamy. Books decides on one last gunfight before his death, so he prepares for it carefully with Gillom at his side. A father/son relationship forms somewhat, as Books experiences a sort of family unit with Gillom and his mother Bond. As the gunfight nears, Books starts to pass on various bits of advice to Gillom and his mother, hoping to leave the world having done some good for a change.

One of the most interesting things about The Shootist is the character that John Wayne plays. He is vulnerable and afraid of dying, but not afraid of being killed. The implications here are quite interesting, as Wayne’s Books wants to go down in a blaze of glory and to know he was the best shootist around. Death by cancer and pain, though, is something Books wants no part of. We see John Wayne in obvious pain and discomfort, true signs of his ailing health. The character of his face tells more of the story than the screenplay ever could, creating something truly unique in the western.

The Shootist tackles the issue of Books’ attempt to die with dignity in an interesting way. As the time for the climax arrives, Books dresses himself in a well-pressed suit, gets a haircut, and passes of fatherly advice to Gillom. He gives away a trinket to a horse trolley driver, says some nice things to a young lady, and heads to win another gunfight after arranging things with the town’s undertaker. This preparation seems par for the course for a man who knows he’s going to die, yet Books has every intention of winning the gunfight. When Books finishes the gunfight, however, the dignity with which he was supposed to have died seems muted and things seem different than he had planned. Dying with dignity seems impossible for a shootist after all.

The Shootist works because it doesn’t waste time on sentiment, which seems just how The Duke would have wanted it in terms of his own death. Everybody in town wants Books dead or wants to take part in his death. The Marshal does a jig at the prospect of it and even Books’ friend Doc Hostetler seems less than touched. The Undertaker offers a free funeral and the whole works. The cruelty of the townspeople and of Books himself is offset nicely by Bond, who begins to develop a relationship with Books that helps carry him over to the next life.

The Shootist is a sensitive film, but it isn’t sappy. It’s dark, but it doesn’t bog itself down with gloom. Books is a compelling character because of the real-life parallels and many of his observations about life, guns, liberty, and women appear to come right from the heart of The Duke himself. John Wayne wasn’t always an easy man to understand, they say, and he had his demons and his bad ideas. Overall, however, one can’t fully comprehend the meaning of American western cinema without him and one can’t fully comprehend John Wayne without seeing The Shootist.

8/10

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October 30, 2007

Carrie

Posted by Jordan Richardson under 1976, drama, entertainment, fantasy, horror, thrillers, trailers | Tags: , , , , |
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Carrie

Just in time for Halloween!

1976 was the year that Brian De Palma would direct Carrie, the classic horror film based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name. Carrie is widely considered to be one of the best film adaptations of a Stephen King novel ever made. It made over $33 million in the box office upon its release from United Artists, heavily turning a profit on its $1 million budget. The film was also critically acclaimed for the most part, with most of the praise heaped upon Sissy Spacek’s portrayal of Carrie White. The film was a rarity among horror films, as it was nominated for multiple Academy Awards. Spacek was nominated for Best Actress and Piper Laurie was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Carrie is a character study and a horror film. It focuses mainly on the character of Carrie White (Spacek) as she comes of age and learns of new abilities blossoming within her. White is a socially discriminated teenage girl. Her mother, Margaret White (Laurie), is heavily religious and has turned her back on the world ever since Carrie’s father left. Margaret is immensely protective of Carrie and despises the world around her, attempting to convert everything that moves to Christ and representing the most hyperbolic of religious stereotypes every step of the way. She sees Carrie receive her period and believes that Carrie was sinning to receive it, so she forces her daughter to pray. Along with dealing with her relentless mother, Carrie has to deal with a group of bullies at school that torment Carrie because she’s “different.”

The film also stars John Travolta in one of his earliest roles, Betty Buckley, Nancy Allen, Amy Irving, William Katt, and P.J. Soles. The cast is relatively okay, although no other performance comes close to touching Spacek’s spooky turn as Carrie White. Spacek was so dedicated to the role that she was said to have arrived at her audition with Vaseline rubbed into her hair and an unwashed face. She wore a sailor dress that her mother had made her with the hem cut off to add to the creepy effect.

The cheesy 70s direction, complete with split-screen and colour wash prints, comes from Brian De Palma, the director of Scarface and Carlito’s Way. The split screen is a De Palma trademark, something that I’m not too keen on, but it does fit with the camp of the piece in general. De Palma also shoots using a long take quite frequently, which is an homage to Hitchcock. In Carrie, some of the longer takes work quite well to a nice effect, like the shot of Carrie exiting the burning building towards the end of the film. Some of De Palma’s directing choices don’t work quite so well, however, like the red washing of the shots at the beginning of the end. Still, De Palma does capture the mood relatively well and creates anticipation towards the moment in which Carrie White actually snaps.

In script and the novel, Carrie actually burns down the entire town as a way of putting those who have tormented her to permanent rest. Budget issues came up, however, and those scenes were left off of the filming process. There are also many homages to Hitchcock within Carrie, including the name of the high school as “Bates High” as an homage to Hitchcock’s Norman Bates character from 1960’s Psycho. The four-note violin theme from Psycho is also used throughout Carrie as a sign of things to come. This creates a tension on one hand, but also adds a campy eternal value to the film. Overall, the filming of Carrie was said to be complicated and problematic. De Palma worked with a few different cameramen to shoot the film because of various conflicts, leading to Mario Tosi, an Italian cinematographer, as the final cameraman for the film.

All in all, Carrie is a fun film that doesn’t skimp on the details of character. It has highly entertaining characters and features some of the most famous scenes in film history, especially the “pig’s blood” scene. The film is not particularly frightening, but it does have a delicate mood that is often shattered by some of De Palma’s campy direction. For the most part, however, Carrie is enjoyable horror that deserves its place in the pantheon of the genre. Spacek is tremendous.

7/10

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