Oct 24
It’s hard to get a handle on what’s going on in Silver Bullet. The 1985 horror film is all kinds of silliness, featuring a screenplay from Stephen King, direction from Dan Attias and performances from Gary Busey and Corey Haim. Now if that’s not pure magic from the 80s, I don’t know what is!
Although it’s really not a very good movie, A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge is compelling for a number of reasons. The first sequel to Wes Craven’s 1984 slasher flick does not have the involvement of the creator. Instead, Jack Sholder directs this Robert Shaye production. The movie was written by David Chaskin.
Oct 29
After 1968’s classic Night of the Living Dead, George A. Romero and his co-writer John Russo parted ways. Romero went on to continue the series with Dawn of the Dead in 1978. Russo, meanwhile, retained the rights to “Living Dead” and commenced the fun with the tongue-in-cheek The Return of the Living Dead in 1985. The plan originally was to have Tobe Hooper direct, but eventually Russo gave the job to Dan O’Bannon.
Punk rock is a big part of The Return of the Living Dead and O’Bannon’s picture takes a pretty satirical look at the culture. Many of the main characters boast a sort of punk affiliation of some kind and this helps guide their actions throughout the picture. The soundtrack includes several punk and death rock acts, including The Cramps, The Damned, 45 Grave, T.S.O.L., and SSQ.
Sep 16
Another classic from the 80s is Ron Howard’s Cocoon. This science fiction picture has a lot of the markings of a Steven Spielberg picture, but it has Howard’s special touch for humanity. Unfortunately, the director appears to lose his grip and the movie degenerates into standard schlock complete with awkward and confusing chase sequence to close things out tidily.
My wife’s old workplace, a nursing home of sorts, had a copy of Cocoon lying around. This reflects the notion that Howard’s pic is often thought of as ideal for the elderly and it many ways this must be true. After all, the eternal thirst for youth has got to be intoxicating. The notion of painless existence, too, is the catalyst behind many of our religious traditions and the idea of heading somewhere else “out there” to live on again – possibly forever – is a heart-warming possibility.
In delivering Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel to the screen, Steven Spielberg’s The Color Purple tells a powerful and emotional story about race, relationships and sexism faced by African American women in the early 1900s. The film was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, but it didn’t win any.
There’s no question that The Color Purple is powerful stuff, but something about the way in which Spielberg presents it leaves a lot to be desired. There are some odd moments in the film, such as a strangely slapstick barroom brawl and a couple of mistimed comedic moments, that interrupt the emotional impact somewhat and diminish the overall power of the picture. Even so, it is the tremendous performances that really elevate this movie.
