#30DayFilmChallenge - Day 3: "A film that has more than five words in the title." - FRIENDS DON'T LET FRIENDS DATE FRIENDS (2014)

A version of this post was originally published on May 28, 2020 on my Facebook page.

DAY 3: "A film that has more than five words in the title."

I'm sort of making this up as I go along through this 30 day challenge, but I'm excited that I managed to name early on in the process a locally made film, FRIENDS DON'T LET FRIENDS DATE FRIENDS (2014), written and directed by Rhonda Parker. It happens to be one of my favorite features made in WNY, and as an added bonus, I became friends with Rhonda and her husband, Mark (who was the director of photography) after I saw their film at the Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival. Our friendship has been cemented since then by the fact that I not only created the poster/DVD cover designs to two subsequent feature films they made, MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE and A CHRISTMAS MONSTROSITY, but I did so well after the deadlines they gave me - ah, yes, the personal Kimmel touch! Yes, "Better late than never" is perhaps the worst professional freelance artist motto to have...

But getting back to FDLFDF (that's the movie title for short, not my tongue flapping in the breeze): it's delightful, has strong performances from the three leads (Adam S. Dixson, Erin Stamp, and especially Rhonda's cinematic alter-ego, Amelia Favata) and a solid ensemble cast supporting them. But, most importantly, the film is personal, wearing its John Hughes inspirations unabashedly on its sleeve, but not in a derivative way. Rhonda tells her story in her own way, citing Hughes' past films as part homage and part affectionate template to carve out her own storytelling path.
Okay, some of the jokes are corny, and a scene or two perhaps could have been shot more effectively (a sign of the low-budget strain on a tiny crew wearing multiple hats simultaneously). But Rhonda's empathy for the characters is genuine, and the ending is affectingly told, managing to be both sentimental, yet not saccharine, and cautiously optimistic.
The soundtrack also boasts an excellent collection of songs from the Lonely Ones, a band out of Rochester, NY.
Some day I hope to do a bonafide review of the film. Stay tuned.

Check out the trailer:

#30DayFilmChallenge2020, Day 3

Found on Google from twitter.com

#30DayFilmChallenge - Day 1: The first film you remember watching (and maybe some understandable nostalgia and revisiting of the past...): ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. (1966)

A version of this was originally posted May 25, 2020 on Facebook.

DAY 1: "The first film you remember watching."

My first film memory was ONE MILLION YEARS B.C.
I had to check the release year because it was a toss-up between ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. (1966) or PLANET OF THE APES (1968). I remember seeing both of them at the now defunct Sheridan Drive-in (two screens!) and my parents and I arrived late to both of those movies. In fact, I think we usually arrived late to the drive-in. I'm imagining that any time we went to the drive-in it was a very impulsive, spur-of the-moment decision just as the sun was setting. Whatever. As far as I can tell, images of these two films are my earliest memories.
For ONE MILLION YEARS B.C., we came in as authentic specimens of early man were fighting a giant sea tortoise. Fortunately, after the drive-in played the double feature, they repeated the first feature, so we'd stay around and see what we missed. I don't think they repeat the first feature at the drive-ins anymore, do they?
I would've been 6 years old when I saw it.

So, I'm thinking Raquel Welch was probably the first film (and female) celebrity whose name I remembered and where I began my fondness for attractive actresses and making a point of learning their names. Elke Sommer was probably the next actress, first seeing her in A SHOT IN THE DARK, although I also remember Peter Sellers. I don't know how old I was when I was aware of director Blake Edwards but I'm pretty sure my first association of his name with a film was this first Pink Panther sequel. Although, I'm surprised to see A SHOT IN THE DARK came out in 1964. I saw it on TV while we still lived in Buffalo on E. Oakwood Pl. (ca. 1964(?)-1969). Maybe a later rerun? And as I try to dredge all these memories up, it just occurred to me that non-film female celebrities also made an impression on me, such as Petula Clark, because we had her Greatest Hits album. 
Oh! How can I forget Diana Rigg as the often cat-suited Mrs. Peel on THE AVENGERS TV show!? Jeez! I can't believe I DID forget her, especially since I watched her weekly! [NOTE: This blog's author clearly has a defective brain.] But getting back to the subject of remembering names associated with films, I don't know when I first made note of Ray Harryhausen's name. I remember seeing JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS on TV in Buffalo, too, and I want to say I knew his name by the time I was nine (i.e. in 1969). Of course, Harryhausen was responsible for creating and animating a number of the dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures in ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. (although, there is at least one giant lizard and an enormous tarantula which were both created through trick photography). Name-wise, I knew Alfred Hitchcock directed THE BIRDS by the time I was nine, because I first saw it on the TV back then, too, and I want to say I knew who Hitch was when I watched it, and that may have been because of his TV show, too? Although, no, that only ran until 1962. I don't think we watched it when it was first on, at least I don't recollect it. And if I did, that would've been when we were living on Humboldt Pkwy at the time, and I would've been 2 at the oldest (if Alfred Hitchcock Presents ended in 1962). I do remember watching the show later with my mom when it was in syndication on channel 29, but this was after 1969.

Arghhhh! Man, it's stuff like this when I wish I kept a diary back then to see when I kept track of certain details, etc.!

Anyway, I find it interesting that when I think back on ONE MILLION YEARS B.C., my initial embrace of that movie is prehistoric hottie, Raquel Welch. As a 6 year-old boy, one would think that the film's biggest impact on me would be the dinosaurs, etc. So, my emphasis on Ms. Welch now is probably because I'm a juvenile sexagenarian. Although, Harryhausen's humanely animated creatures did make its mark on me and I loved the other movies he worked on: the aforementioned JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS, THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, MEN IN THE MOON, 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD, THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD, SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER, THE VALLEY OF GWANGI, and CLASH OF THE TITANS. But, still, there was that irresistible combination of fantasy, horror and lovely ladies, even in PLANET OF THE APES. She didn't say anything, but I remember Linda Harrison as Nova.

[NOTE: And speaking of PLANET OF THE APES, we came in as the astronauts were escaping their space ship as it was sinking in the water.]

LONG-WINDED NOSTALGIA NOTE: Our house on Humboldt Pkwy was set in the back of a sort of apartment complex, I think. We lived in an upstairs apartment in a building that had car garages for the other apartments, or maybe not. I'm vaguely remembering this, and I remember garages, and also the notion that my dad was employed or partly employed as a caretaker for this complex? I'm not sure. I think the apartments were in other buildings, one or two of them, and all these buildings framed a parking lot probably for the other tenants' cars? Ah, I was too young to recollect all this clearly now. Although, before we moved to E. Oakwood Pl., I do remember knocking down our Christmas tree because I "chopped it down" with a plastic toy axe. I can see it in my head (decorated, too?) as I knelt down in front of it and saying "Timberrr....!" and pushing the tree over. Hahaha! Am I making this shit up??? Anyway, sadly, that apartment and all the apartments around it on Humboldt Pkwy (near Delaware Park and the NY 198/Scajaquada Expressway) no longer exist. Within a year after we moved, the whole complex somehow caught fire and it all burned down. It was during the winter, less than a year after we moved to E. Oakwood Pl. And equally unfortunate, the E. Oakwood house (a duplex and we lived upstairs) is gone, too. About ten years ago (longer?) I happened to be in the neighborhood with a friend and I thought I'd drive by just to check out the old place. I made the turn off Main St., less than a block away from P.S. 54 (in the 60s, although I think it became a Childhood Learning Center at one point, but according to my Google map, it's P.S. 54 again?). I drove down E. Oakwood, which is only one block long, but it doesn't dead-end, it stops at a low wall and an open alley (Canton Alley) that ran along that wall connecting to Leroy and Dewey, the streets parallel to E. Oakwood, although at some point in the last two decades half of the alley got closed off, so you can only get to Dewey now. If you looked over the wall, you saw railroad tracks, but it was, like, one story down, not level with our street. Anyway, while driving down the street I saw that the house of one of my childhood friends, who I haven't seen since the 60s, was being worked on, a Habitat for Humanity home, and then when I got to our house... it was gone! Just an empty space with a grass lot! That was a shock. The last time I was there was in 1997. Even though my parents and I left in '69, my dad was actually the landlord and he owned the duplex until, well, at least 2000, I think, maybe a little later? Anyway, I actually moved into the lower apartment in the 80s when I moved out of my parents' house after college and eventually I moved to Lockport in '97. My dad finally sold the duplex to our remaining tenant who lived upstairs, an elderly gentleman and his wife, and I never really kept contact with him. I think I heard of his death sometime later and then... well, it was all gone. 
As if it happened a million years ago...

#30DayFilmChallenge

What did I watch in 2017?

January 1-2, 2020, 1:39 pm

First of all, Happy New Year!

I was so excited when my wife and I watched this Netflix series. We had just bought a smart TV and so we could stream Netflix and I finally watched what everybody was talking about on Facebook. This new upgrade in our personal technology reminded me of the first time we no longer had to wait for dial-up on our computer. I forget what year, but suddenly we could watch Youtube videos like everybody else. Weird.

Second, my apologies for this post because it's kind of a dry, "clerical" post, for lack of a better description. Basically I just transcribed a list of movies, etc. that I watched in 2017.

I like to keep track of what I watch in the margin of my film blog and I've accumulated a few of these lists. So, in an effort to do some housecleaning and de-cluttering, I'm going to delete my "What Have I been Watching in 2017" list and post it here. Eventually I'll do it with my 2018 and 2019 list, too.
Besides keeping track of what I've been watching, this list will also give me a guide (theoretically, hopefully) to write some reviews on these films, etc. But, mostly, my brain is increasingly becoming a sieve and I just forget shit more and more. So, I like to be reminded where I've been, so to speak.
NOTE: I'm notoriously inconsistent with whatever parameters I set up for something because I usually do so impulsively, but for the most part I kept track numerically what feature films and documentaries I watched. I also included seasons of TV series. So, if I watched a whole season of a show, that season was included as a single film.  However, I listed individual episodes of a series if the episodes were feature film length. In 2017 I think there were only two series that I did that with: the Swedish TV series, WALLANDER, and the BBC series, SHERLOCK. I also listed short subjects, but not numerically. I just wanted to keep track of what I've watched in my life... or at least attempt to.
Having said that, while going over this list for the first time in a few years, there are some questions or inconsistencies I see (besides the trivial standard way I list local movie theatres), such as why some films are not listed numerically, TERMINAL ISLAND and PRINCESS O'ROURKE, specifically. When we living at our old house (which is when this list occurred) I sometimes had a habit of watching movies late at night and at the time I didn't have headphones, so I'd watch the film with the sound off and the captions on. I make a point of saying that with NIGHT MOVES, though, and still counted it. Besides, I can't believe that TERMINAL ISLAND and PRINCESS O'ROURKE were the only other ones I did that with, so I don't know why I made this distinction with them. Also, I see that I did count a "short documentary feature" on MYRNA LOY. Oh, who knows!
Other than that, this list is pretty straight-forward.

After looking over this list again, it's cool being reminded of the particular film interests I had over that year, like re-watching a number of the James Bond films and checking out for the first time the comparatively unpopular Timothy Dalton films. I watched these with my wife and she's actually a fan of the Dalton films, making a point of saying that these films were closer to the novels in terms of Bond's character.
It's also cool seeing that I attended at least a half a dozen films at the annual Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival. Traditionally, I try to attend as many films as possible but I was dealing with a new job and limited schedule availability this particular year. Still, I saw some terrific movies, especially Richard Rowntree's excellent DOGGED and the fascinating MICKEY REECE'S ALIEN, an examination of Elvis as an extraterrestrial. Rowntree, who's main job is as a greensman on several big budgeted Hollywood films, (seriously, check out his impressive, jaw-dropping filmography!) attended the festival in person, too, coming all the way from the UK! He also re-visited 2019's Buffalo Dreams with his latest film, NEFARIOUS. Mickey Reece is this independent filmmaker operating out of Oklahoma City, OK, according to IMDB, who none of us heard about before, including friends Greg Lamberson and Chris Scioli, the guys who run Buffalo Dreams. Reece apparently only shows his films at festivals, but there doesn't seem to be any DVD releases? Which is too bad. However, he also had another film at last year's Buffalo Dreams, ARROWS OF OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE, a strange take on Hamlet, supposedly (it was pretty experimental in parts, I thought).
This was also the year that I audited a SUNY at Brockport Intro to Horror Film class taught by my friend (and occasional filmmaker and producer), Professor Carter Soles, that I really enjoyed attending. Among the films that I discovered and loved from the class were CAT PEOPLE (1942) and PEEPING TOM (1960) where I was really struck by the sympathy characters in the film had for the supposed "villains" of the films. I also enjoyed the shit out of discussing the films in class with the other students. The combined academic and group analysis was a real pleasure and I hope that if I ever make any films, short and/or features, that the films invite and stand up to similar audience scrutiny and discussion.

Anyway, here's what I watched in 2017:

108. STRANGER THINGS (2016, TV series, Season 1, 8 Eps, Netflix)

107. KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE (2017, Spectrum On Demand)

106. STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (2017, Regal Transit)

105. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (2017, Netflix)

104. VOYEUR (2017, Documentary, Netflix)

103. SUNRISE (1927, TCM)

102. KUNG FU PANDA (2008, Netflix)

101. MIFUNE: THE LAST SAMURAI (2015, Documentary, Netflix)

Saw this independent film directed and co-produced by Richard Rowntree, who lives in the UK yet made the trip to WNY to accompany his film at the Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival. Saw DOGGED at the Screening Room the last day of the festival and it was one of my favorite films. Richard was also very accessible and great to talk to. The dude also has a number of credits on IMDb working in the art department on a number of major films and TV series, and then he makes these independent films on the side with his regular collaborators (a few of them also traveled across the pond to attended the festival). Very cool!

100. V/H/S 2 (2013, Netflix)

99. V/H/S (2012, Netflix)

98. SHE MAKES COMICS (2014, Documentary, Netflix)

97. SEX IN THE COMICS (2012, Documentary, Netflix)

96. HIT MAN (1972, TCM Underground)

95. WALLANDER: THE SNIPER (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 8)

94. ATOMIC BLONDE (2017, Spectrum On Demand)

93. DOGGED (2017, Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival (BDFFF), The Screening Room)

92. GUYS AND DOLLS (1955, TCM)

91. GOOD TIMES NEVER COME (2017, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

DVRed this off of TCM Underground. Never heard of it before. Pretty cool film. I mostly remember Casey from the Burt Reynolds' film, SHARKY'S MACHINE, although checking out his IMDb page, I realized I've seen him in other films but I never knew who he was. Also while googling his name, I discovered he was a former pro football player (running back and wide receiver over eight years) before he turned actor. I also remember writer/director George Armitage from his 1990 film, MIAMI BLUES. 

90. MICKEY REECE’S ALIEN (2017, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

89. GET MY GUN (2017, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

- WALK OF SHAME (2017, Short Subject, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

88. OFFENSIVE (2016, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

87. HOLLYWOOD CHAINSAW HOOKERS (1988, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

86. CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE (2016, Spectrum On Demand)

85. DIFFABILITY HOLLYWOOD (2017, BDFFF, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

84. THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI ACROSS THE EIGHTH DIMENSION (1984, Spectrum On Demand)

83. DAMNATION ALLEY (1977, Amazon Prime)

82. CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (1954, Amazon Prime)

81. OUTLAND (1981, Amazon Prime)

80. WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT (2016, Amazon Prime)

79. MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE (2017, Premiere Screening, The Screening Room)

78. THE SEVEN-PER-CENT SOLUTION (1976, TCM)

77. WALLANDER: THE LEAK (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 7)

76. WALLANDER: THE PRIEST (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 6)

75. BABY DRIVER (2017, AMC Maple Ridge)

74. WONDER WOMAN (2017, Main Street Movies 5 – Newark, Delaware)

73. THE ICE PIRATES (1984, TCM)

72. THE DEAD POOL (1988, DirecTV on Demand)

71. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, VOL. 2 (2017, Regal Transit)

70. SUDDEN IMPACT (1983, DirecTV on Demand)

69. THE ENFORCER (1976, DVD)

68. MAGNUM FORCE (1973, DVD)

67. DIRTY HARRY (1971, DVD)

66. 5-25-77 (2017, The Screening Room)

65. GOOD TIMES NEVER COME (2017, Vimeo)

64. S.T.A.R. (SPACE TRAVELING ALIEN REJECT) (2017, Premiere Screening, Hamburg Palace)

63. PIECES (1982, Thursday Night Terrors, Dipson Amherst Theatre)

62. A GRIM BECOMING (2014, DVD)

61. FRANKENSTEIN CREATED BIKERS (2016, DVD)

60. THE BABADOOK (2014, DVD)

59. VIDEODROME (1983, DVD)

58. WALLANDER: THE CELLIST (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 5)

57. GINGER SNAPS (2000, DVD)

56. THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE (1974, DVD)

55. THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999, DVD)

54. ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE (1969, DVD)

53. THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH (1999, DVD)

52. DEAR GOD, NO! (2011, DVD)

51. THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS (1987, DVD)

50. LICENCE TO KILL (1989, DVD)

49. THE RING (2002, DVD)

48. BARBARELLA (1968, DVD)

47. RINGU (1998, DVD)

46. THE LURE (CORKI DANCINGU) (2015, Polish, The Screening Room)

45. HALLOWEEN (1978, DVD)

44. FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM (2016, DVD)

43. WALLANDER: THE THIEF (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 4)

42. TO SIR, WITH LOVE II (1996, DirecTV)

41.  JOHN WICK (2014, DirecTV On Demand)

40. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968, DVD)

39. THE DARK BELOW (2017, The Screening Room)

- THE FATAL GLASS OF BEER (1933, Short Subject w/W.C. Fields, TCM)

38. KONG: SKULL ISLAND (2017, Regal Cinemas Transit)

- THE STORY OF FILM: EPISODE 3, THE GOLDEN AGE OF WORLD CINEMA (Documentary series, DVD)

37. DOCTOR STRANGE (2016, DirecTV On Demand)

36. SUSPIRIA (1977, DVD, SUNY at Brockport, Intro to Horror Class)

35. NIGHT MOVES (1975, TCM)(W/o sound, captioned)

34. HORROR OF DRACULA (1958, DVD)

33. PEEPING TOM (1960, DVD, SUNY at Brockport, Intro to Horror Class)

32. DRACULA (1931, Spanish language version, DVD)

31. WALLANDER: THE COURIER (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 3)

30. PSYCHO (1960, DVD, SUNY at Brockport, Intro to Horror Class)

29. DRACULA (1931, DVD)

- THE STORY OF FILM: EPISODE 2, THE HOLLYWOOD DREAM (Documentary, DVD)

- THE STORY OF FILM: EPISODE 1, BIRTH OF THE CINEMA (Documentary, DVD)

28. TEAM FOXCATCHER (2016, Documentary, VOD)

27. THE INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956, DVD, SUNY at Brockport, Intro to Horror Class)

26. THE CURSE OF THE CAT PEOPLE (1944, TCM)

25. NAVAJO JOE (1966, Cable)

24. HIDDEN FIGURES (2016, Regal Cinemas Transit)

23. CAT PEOPLE (1942, DVD, SUNY at Brockport, Intro to Horror Class)

22. PUBLIC WEDDING (1937, TCM)

21. WALLANDER: GUILT (Swedish TV series, Season 2, Episode 2)

20. THIRTEEN WOMEN (1932, TCM)

19. BRIGHT LIGHTS: STARRING CARRIE FISHER AND DEBBIE REYNOLDS (2016, HBO Documentary, HBO)

- KUNG FURY (2015, Short Subject, El Rey Network)

18. FRANKENSTEIN (1931, DVD, SUNY at Brockport, Intro to Horror Class)

17. CONRACK (1974, Cable)

16. SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE FINAL PROBLEM (Season 4, Episode 3)

15. LA LA LAND (2016, Dipson Eastern Hills Cinema)

14. THEY LIVE (1988, Thursday Night Terrors, Season 2, Dipson Amherst Theatre)

13. SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE LYING DETECTIVE (Season 4, Episode 2)

- TERMINAL ISLAND (1973, TCM UNDERGROUND)

- PRINCESS O’ROURKE (1943, TCM)

12. ULTRAMAN GINGA S: THE MOVIE (2015, The Screening Room, Boulevard Mall)

11. ULTRAMAN X: THE MOVIE (2016, the Screening Room, Boulevard Mall)

10. DILLINGER (1973, TCM)

9. SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE SIX THATCHERS (Season 4, Episode 1)

8. ROGUE ONE (2016, Regal Cinemas Transit)

7. BIG TROUBLE (2002, Cable)

- BRUCE LEE, THE LEGEND (1984, Cable)

6. THE ROOTS OF HEAVEN (1958, FX Movie Channel)

5. BILLION DOLLAR BRAIN (1967, TCM)

4. THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT III (1994, TCM)

3. THAT’S DANCING (1985, TCM)

2. MYRNA LOY: SO NICE TO COME HOME TO (1991, Documentary Short Feature, TCM)

1. A BONE TO PICK: AN AURORA TEAGARDEN MURDER MYSTERY (2015, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel)

- FUNERAL IN BERLIN (1966, watched it for the second time)

EL VAMPIRO Y EL SEXO (1969)

Saturday, September 21, 2019  9:46 am

EL VAMPIRO Y EL SEXO ("Sex and the Vampire")(1969, DVD-R, Directed by Rene Cardona, written by Alfredo Salazar; with Santo, Aldo Monti, Noelia Noel, Carlos Agosti, Pili Gonzalez)

Don't be misled by the title, this is actually a Santo film. Yes, arguably the most famous masked wrestler in lucha libre history, this film features Santo, Count Dracula, a villain wearing a black hood, and a time machine... that Santo himself invented!
This is also a notorious entry in the Santo film series, because it contains a number of scenes with nudity. But more on that later.

I was attracted to this film not only because of the nudity (uh...) but because it featured the Silver-Masked One, too. I'm no expert on Santo's film or even lucha libre, but I find the genre appealing. Some day I hope to produce a comic book which features some luchadores (and luchadoras) called TABLOID TOWN, and maybe even a lucha libre movie, too (based on my comic book ideas or some other ideas entirely). So, I'm motivated to watch and collect these films on DVD for my personal enjoyment and also creative research. I have about 16 lucha films in my DVD collection. Some of them aren't dubbed or subtitled in english, however. Although you can more or less guess what's happening, like in LAS(sic) MUJER MURCIELAGO (aka BATWOMAN with the gorgeous and fashionable Maura Monti), even without knowing what they're saying.

Based on what little internet research I did prior to watching this film (namely the Wikipedia page on Santo's filmography and a film review/synopsis from this informative website), this "nude version" of the film only came to light in recent years, around 2011. The original family version (i.e. sans naked chicks) release of the film, entitled SANTO EN EL TESORO DE DRACULA ("Santa and the Treasure of Dracula") was released instead. The producer of the film asked Santo if he minded doing a European version of the film that would include nudity and Santo declined, feeling his films should be family friendly. Apparently, they shot these scenes anyway and they got buried in some vault. None of the scenes include Santo - they all deal with Dracula: Dracula interacting with his brides in his lair, or beguiling other female victims.

INDEX: Luchador films I have on DVD (work in progress)

Sunday, September 22  9:23 am

I'm currently in the process (theoretically) of writing a review of EL VAMPIRO Y EL SEXO ("Sex and the Vampire") and I thought it would be handy to have a list of the DVDs I own which feature Mexican wrestlers.
NOTE: All in Spanish only. Those with English subtitles or dubbed in English are indicated.

LAS MUJER MURCIELAGO ("Batwoman")
SANTO EN EL TESORO DE DRACULA ("Santo and the Treasure of Dracula") (English subtitles)
LOS CANALLAS (starring Mil Mascaras)

FILM BLOG THEMES, ETC. (a work in progress)

January 28, 2019

1. Netflix Connection
2. WNY filmmakers
3. BM-VM
4. My own filmmaking efforts
5. Films I own
6. Films so bad they're... what?
7. Increasing my "cinephile cred": Basically, at the very least, watching more movies.
     A. Classic films.
     B. International films.
     C. Genre films.
         a. Horror
         b. Giallo
         c. Animated
         d. Science fiction:
                 1. ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL (2019, Blu-ray) Watched it April 2020.
         e. Martial Arts
         f. Luchador
         g. Kaiju
         h. Boss Girl/Pinky Violence
         i. 70's American cinema
         j. 70's International cinema
     D. Familiarizing myself with specific directors' filmographies, starting with favorite directors:
         a. Akira Kurosawa
         b. Steven Spielberg
         c. Martin Scorsese
         d. Jean Rollin
         e. Mario Bava
         f. Wes Anderson
         g. John Carpenter
         h. Spike Lee
         i. Oliver Stone
         j. Frank Capra
     E. Female directors.
         a. Kathryn Bigelow
         b. Ida Lupino
         c. Lina Wertmuller
         d. Ana Lily Amirpour
              1. A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT (2014, SHUDDER): Saw this for the second time, March 2020. 
              2. THE BAD BATCH (2016, Netflix): Watched this March 2020. 
         e. Allison Anders
         f. Sofia Coppola
         g. Mary Harron
         h. Nancy Savoca
     F. Favorite Screenwriters
         a. William Goldman
         b. Scott Frank
         c. Lawrence Kasdan
     G. International Directors:
         a. Federico Fellini (Italy)
         b. Bong Joon-ho (South Korea)
         c. Ingmar Bergman (Sweden)
         d. Timo Tjahjanto (Indonesia)
         e. Agnes Varda (France)
         f. Jean-Luc Godard (France)
         g. Pedro Almodovar (Spain)
         h. Alejandro Jodorowsky (Chile-France)
     H. Cinematographers:
         a. Billy Bitzer
         b. Rollie Totheroh
         c. Gregg Toland
         d. James Wong Howe
         e. William Daniels
         f. Charles Rosher
         g. Karl Struss
8. My personal Film Essentials
9. I Confess: Films That I STILL Have Not Seen Yet:
     A. THE SHAWSHENK REDEMPTION
     B. STAND BY ME
     C. POINT BREAK
     D. GONE WITH THE WIND
     E. THE DARK KNIGHT
     F. THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS
     G. APOLLO 13
     H. SCHINDLER'S LIST 
     I. SAY ANYTHING
     J. BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S

Will Emmett Kelly EVER stop spinning in his grave? THE BAD MAN (The "Netflix" Connection #8 - Special Edition!)

December 6 - 10, 2018 

Holy crap! It's only 19 days until Christmas!
But I'm already digressing...

Holy crap! I was supposed to post this review on Sunday, December 2, and now it's Thursday, four days later [NOTE: Maybe even Monday, December 10th... and 15 shopping days left!] and I'm still working on the review..!
But, what else is new...

Welcome back to yet another episode of the so-called Netflix Connection! Originally, what I called (and, uh, only I refer to as) the "Netflix Connection" is a series of movie reviews that I wrote this year based on movies that I watched with horror bloggers, Mermaid Heather and Zombie Dawn. Unfortunately, we don't watch the movies all together in the same room (ooh... wouldn't that be cozy...) due to geographical circumstances (Hey! At least the internet is good for something, hahaha!). Usually we pick a film showing on Netflix (hence and etc.), but this time Heather had the inspired idea to suggest a film that was being made by filmmaker Scott Schirmer who had a Kickstarter campaign going on at the time for his latest horror feature, THE BAD MAN. So we three horror film musketeers agreed to contribute to the campaign and watch the film when it was released. And it has been and here we are! Yay!
Now, Heather's choice of THE BAD MAN wasn't arbitrary. It features Ellie Church, who's been in a number of low-budget independent films since she became an actress around 2013. In the last five years she's racked up 24 acting credits (so far), according to IMDb. Heather has me beat in how many Ellie Church films she's seen, although I can still say I've seen MANIA and Heather still hasn't. With Heather's assistance (because she's awesome!) and also on my own, I've managed to accumulate a decent collection of those films on DVD or Blu-ray: TIME TO KILL, HEADLESS, HARVEST LAKE, FRANKENSTEIN CREATED BIKERS, PITFIRE OF HELL, PLANK FACE, SPACE BABES FROM OUTER SPACE, DEAD BODIES IN #223, and now, THE BAD MAN.
However, besides our fascination/unhealthy obsession with Ellie Church, THE BAD MAN also re-connects us with the filmmakers behind HEADLESS which I not only have the DVD for, but I also saw it (!) AND wrote a review (!!). I'm telling you, the universe is sometimes crazy and unpredictable.
Anyway, enough bla bla bla... on to THIS review, shall we?

THE BAD MAN (2018, Written and directed by Scott Schirmer, with Ellie Church, Arthur Cullipher, Jason Crowe, and Dave Parker)

Mary (Ellie Church) and PJ (Jason Crowe) have inherited a bed and breakfast from Mary's grandmother, Ginny, who recently passed away. The couple have just arrived at the establishment to settle in, hoping to take a few days to re-group from the sad event and also to prepare for a new direction in their life. Also, they're looking forward to some time just being alone together. Unfortunately, those plans are going to be seriously derailed...
Only a few minutes after having arrived themselves, they hear a knock at the door. Puzzled, Mary says she cancelled all the reservations. They go to find a man waiting in the front hallway, Lawrence (Arthur Cullipher). Mary explains the circumstances of the death of the B&B's owner and that she tried to notify everyone that reservations for the weekend were cancelled. Lawrence didn't get the message but he totally understands the situation and he goes to leave, offering his condolences and asking if there's another hotel nearby.
He also mentions what a nice lady Ginny was and that catches Mary's attention. Because Lawrence knew Ginny from previous visits to the house, Mary has a change of heart and invites Lawrence to stay, especially since he's only staying overnight.
In private, PJ's understandably disappointed because he was looking forward to being alone with Mary, but Mary says the distraction is good for her.

Horribly, Mary's kind change of heart will be rewarded with a non-stop descent into hell.
Lawrence will kidnap, restrain and psychologically separate the couple. His ulterior motives for coming to the place is actually to transform the two lovers into "products" for a sick and perverse clientele who are in the market for sex slaves, with the customers having very specific agendas. Specifically, Lawrence aims to transform Mary into a "living doll" and to re-program PJ into being a "dog" to be used by a human master for whatever sick purposes. To top things off, Lawrence does all this in full clown make-up.

So, yes. The premise for this film is pretty sick and twisted.
Also, if you're a genuine fan of clowns because of the joy and good feelings they bring to children and the world in general, well, for god's sake, don't watch this movie.*

The primary cast for this film is Mary, PJ, Lawrence and, in a non-speaking role, Charlie, Lawrence's perpetually topless, muscled henchman whose face we never really see because he constantly wears a gas mask with the long tube dangling elephant-like, a visual that'e either obscene or comical or both simultaneously. Though, Charlie doesn't say a word throughout the film, his gas mask occasionally utters these terrible sounds approximating unfortunate associations with flatulence. On paper that sounds funny, but you usually hear these inappropriate and embarrassing noises when Charlie's mistreating PJ, so the whole effect is genuinely disturbing.

The bulk of the film is watching Lawrence's efforts to prepare his two products for sale, and the final act is when Mary and PJ are brought to the auction and we see more weirdos as they bid on the cursed couple (along with other unfortunate living products). The high bidders will take home their purchases and do with them what they will in secret and for as long as they like.
What's terrifying and (also depressing) about this scenario is that it has to compete with the audience's knowledge of reality, to some degree. In the past, a horror movie usually had some fantastic horror element that was firmly in the realm of make-believe: the Frankenstein Monster, a vampire, a wolfman, a creature that lived underwater and could walk on land, etc. But with films like  PSYCHO and THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, movie monsters started crossing into the demographic of... our own neighbors, people who look like you and I, but who harbor dark secrets. And now the horror films find "competition" with real life, like John Wayne Gacy who did charity work a clown but also lived a sinister secret life as a serial killer. Gacy is actually referred to in THE BAD MAN during a dinner conversation between Mary, PJ and Lawrence before the guest's true diabolical intentions are revealed. To refresh your memory, Gacy played "Pogo the Clown" at various charitable functions in a suburb of Chicago in the 70s, and, while doing that, he also had a surreptitious lifestyle where he sexually assaulted, tortured and killed at least 33 young men. Gacy also managed three KFC restaurants and was voted "outstanding vice-president" of the Waterloo (Illinois) Jaycees in 1967, the same year he committed his first sexual assault on a teenage boy. And this all actually happened.
Hell, even fictional zombies have to compete with real life.
That meta-discussion aside, THE BAD MAN does a nice job telling it's dark tale of two victims suddenly crossing paths with a sick side of society and how that particular society developed into a capitalist demographic. Writer/director Eli Roth's HOSTEL explores a similar idea, except in HOSTEL, the enterprise is kidnapping tourists and selling them to customers who want to kill and torture them in a safe environment. In THE BAD MAN, the customer is bidding on innocent people who have been programmed to be slaves to fulfill a specific sexual fetish. So, more of a specialty market in human trade. So, Schirmer's vision is either a pessimistic speculation of the world and where it can go, or THE BAD MAN is simply a glimpse 20 minutes into the future.

Ellie Church does a fine job here as the protagonist trying to survive her ordeal at the hands of Lawrence. Although she has her share of screaming and reacting in horror to the abuse her husband suffers and she herself has to endure, she also reveals a gentle, playful and loving dimension to her character when she's alone with PJ. Arthur Cullipher as Lawrence the Clown is a jarring combination of extremes: initially appearing as a kindly, arguably non-descript man with a kind face and polite and forgettably pleasant demeanor, he also reveals his believably disturbed and sadistic personality. Since Cullipher also directs and works SFX, I can't help but wonder what it's like working with him in real life on films when he's behind the scenes (cue nervous laughter).

The production values are quite good. It's sharply shot and I think what also enhances this independent film partially financed through Kickstarter are the props and production design that help depict this secret sinister world, like Lawrence's precise clown make-up, Mary dressed up as a doll, even the twisted scene when Lawrence wraps up part of Mary's body as a gift/punishment. The way her body is carefully packaged is a nice bizarre touch.
Also, as a product of a Kickstarter campaign, there were some cool extras that came with the limited edition Blu-ray I got (number 212 out of 450 copies):
The box's artwork features two designs: one cover's a photograph of Lawrence and the Doll, the other side is artwork which looks really great (I'll have to look up the artist);
One embroidered THE BAD MAN patch;
Six (6) autographed character cards;
A long sticker with individual photo portraits of the Doll, the Dog, the Clown and the Henchman;
Two (2), um, blank "product information" cards, one for a male, one for a female;
and
Two (2) wrapped lubricated latex condoms, each wrapper featuring a masked Dog logo saying, "Good Boys Wrap It Up!"
The Blu-ray package has 2 discs, one disc with the film, and the second has the 60 minute film, HOUSE OF HOPE, Scott Schirmer's first film PLUS 25 minutes of BONUS features.

A smartly designed little package!

If I have any criticism of the film, I think having the story bracketed by a television interview works against the telling of the story. Right from the start, this story is told in flashback as Mary tells what happened to her to a female TV reporter (who is unseen but we hear her asking questions). When I saw this as the set-up, I immediately wondered why do this? The implication is that whatever we're about to see from now on, we'll already know that Mary survives this, so it's kind of a spoiler. It removes a degree of tension, of suspense from the viewer right from the start. In fact, that idea is emphasized because the reporter describes Mary as a "survivor" as well. True, there are other elements to consider as the story continues, like what will happen to PJ, for instance. But still. And with this question of the narrative choice in my head already planted from the start, whenever we saw some of this interview throughout the film (it doesn't intrude often but it does come back) I felt none of it was necessary, it didn't really add to the story. But aside from this narrative decision, THE BAD MAN is an effective exploration into an unexpected, life-changing run-in with a practically invisible predatory element in our society.

Additional thoughts:
- THE CLOWN CONVERSATION AT DINNER: So, while they eat, Lawrence informs PJ and Mary that he also works as a clown. Mary confesses she's not a big fan of clowns and, to a certain degree, PJ agrees with her. So, there's a conversation where Lawrence is explaining the good he does as a clown and why he chose to do this and also the history of clowns before this bad rap became attached to clowns. And Mary and PJ keep coming up with examples, like Gacy, as to why they distrust clowns until Mary apologizes for being an "asshole." Of course, to be extremely simplistic and reductive, Mary's apology is sickeningly ironic: Lawrence will soon win the "asshole" title in spades. But, in hindsight, it's amusing that Lawrence's character seems to have compartmentalized his own behavior and attitudes so completely that he seems to be genuinely defensive during the conversation.
- SEXUAL ASSAULT AS PROGRAMMING: Okay, I confess. I took a peek at both Heather's and Dawn's reviews while I was still wrapping this review up. And Dawn understandably warns her readers about triggers for sexual assault as Lawrence's strategy to prepare Mary for what it will be like to be a living doll for a customer is essentially a regimen of varieties of rape. I understand this. She's going to be a sex slave, so she better get used to it. Although, really, I think Lawrence is just getting off on his own by doing this. Anyway, what I think is interesting is the idea of warning potential viewers of this story element, a practice that has grown over the past years. In movie ratings, for instance, it's stated if rape happens or is threatened in the film (along with drug use, etc.). I think this is a positive development. But, there's also another development over the years within the porn culture. Now, my knowledge of this is superficial, and I think I know just enough to get me into trouble, so my apologies if it turns out I'm over-simplifying the subject or even discussing it ignorantly. Anyway, I've heard that rape story-lines have been outlawed in porn films some years ago (I'm assuming after the 70s) and without researching it more, I wondered if there was some scandal where perhaps actual sexual assault was captured on camera and then sold as part of the film. In the era of so-called "roughies" I can imagine this scenario happening. But, now I see that there is a current porn genre where women (perhaps men, too) are subjected to gang assault and it's packaged like a rape fantasy for the actress. I have to confess to my personal shame and embarrassment that I've seen a few of these things, and I'm struck by not only the existence of this genre, but also the misogyny and barely restrained violence by the "assailants" toward the "victim" in some of these. And for the most part, the actresses seem to come out of it like they just accomplished some endurance test like a marathon or extreme rollercoaster. True, this is supposedly consensual and NOT everyone buys into this type of fantasy. I only bring it up because the subject matter of the film made me consider it. I guess my point is, the current culture in pornography now is such that you can be arguably be part of such a video and fairly easily, especially if you have a video camera and like-minded participants.  What THE BAD MAN suggests is, even the most extreme behavior of sexual violence between participants isn't enough for some and that's simply because it IS consensual. For the buyers/consumers of this film's world, gratification comes only when you can have your way with someone and they DON'T want you to. The customers Lawrence deals with need to TAKE their pleasure from their products. And [SPOILER ALERT!] even then, one customer's gratification needs involve sex AND murder. It's, like, there's no pleasing these people! Also, transgressive behavior is already creeping into mainstream narratives. THE BAD MAN is labeled more of a genre film, but ROOM (2015) with an Oscar-winning performance by Brie Larsen is a drama, that tells of a woman captured by someone and kept as a sex slave and who raises her son in that environment. Like, to a certain degree, this terrible type of narrative is no longer that out of the ordinary. Just like serial killers like Gacy are no longer unique. Just like shooting sprees not only continue, but they have also "spread" from the schools to public venues. Just like... whatever horrible thing there is out there, it EXISTS and believe me, it'll soon be on the news. Tonight. People SUCK.
[NOTE: By the way, even though I brought up the subject of porn, that's mostly me free-associating. I wouldn't at all describe the filmmakers' telling of THE BAD MAN as nearly pornographic at all versus, let's say, stretches of THE BUNNY GAME, for instance. In fact, THE BAD MAN is almost restrained in its storytelling. In fact, I'll go further and say that a few certain moments I thought it could have indulged a bit in a more exploitative approach, but just saying that seems contradictory or hypocritical regarding responsible storytelling. Still... I'm saying it!]
- LAWRENCE'S ATTITUDE TOWARD MARY [SPOILER ALERT!]: This was an interesting final twist. Lawrence actually reveals he had feelings for Mary and makes a last minute bid (literally) to convince her to see him as a possible companion. He even begs, saying he'll change for her! This is so sad and pathetic. And messed up! I don't have anything really insightful to say, except this seems like a believable turn of events. People are so complicated. It's typical for people to avoid relationships because they've been burned, in order to protect their feelings. But, that doesn't mean they don't still crave affection and the need to love someone. Of course, Lawrence's ability to love is questionable as it is, but his change of heart reveals, I think, that his lifestyle is a choice and therefore, he can always change his mind. People aren't just bad. The so-called "weirdoes" who bid on the products at the auction, I'm imagining not all of them live 24/7 in their strange disguises and outfits. I'm assuming some are like Lawrence, able to carry on some degree of normal behavior and interact with "normal" society, too, while till juggling the tasks required of the perverse and predatory. 
Even Charlie, the henchman. He had some change of heart, too, didn't he? Did he become attached to PJ? Or was he just upset that all their work was going to be blown away in an instant? Very curious.

Anyway, Scott Schirmer's THE BAD MAN is a fascinating film about a troubling subject matter. Well worth a look and, speaking personally, it was very cool that I was able to have helped bring this project to fruition, too. True, by only a very teensy contribution, but still..!
Check it out, ya weirdos! Also, check out what Mermaid Heather and Zombie Dawn had to say, too!

NOTE: Holy bonus material! In the past, in addition to Heather, Dawn and myself posting our respective reviews of whatever movie we chose to watch, we've also posted a conversation about the movie, just talking about what we liked, didn't like, or asking each other questions about what we thought in general about the movie. Well, we did it again for THE BAD MAN, but this time Heather also finagled some very special guests to join us! Writer/director Scott Schirmer and actress Ellie Church also participate in our conversation. Unbelievable! Check it out here!

Finally, if you want to check out my other reviews in the "Netflix Connection" series, just click on the links. And yes, I hope to finish the reviews to ALL the movies we've seen (stay tuned!)

#1. January - THE SILENCED
#2. February - THE BLACK ROOM
#3. March - THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE
#4. April - TRASH FIRE
#5. May - TAG
#6. June - DIG TWO GRAVES
July (My "bye" month) - HELL HOUSE, LLC (on Amazon Prime)
#7. August - BEYOND THE GATES


*Or TERRIFIER (2016), for that matter!

Updated and amended December 13, 2018. Link to THE BAD MAN conversation added  Dec. 22.