Friday Night Movie Recommendation #27 "Outland" (1981)

The Comic Critic Reviews "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold"

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was the first of David John Moore Cornwell’s novels to be made into a movie. When he began writing, he was still working with the Secret Intelligence Service and wrote under the pen name of John le Carré. Then there was a huge political scandal when a spy revealed the identities of British operatives to the Russians. David John Moore Cornwall was “outed” along with many others. He kept writing under his pen name. Anyway, the author was more than a little familiar with the inner working of how intelligence is gathered in the real world. His approach was to focus on the art of deception. The John le Carré novels do have sex and violence in them, with even the occasional explosion. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was released in an era when film censorship was still a concern. The writer had more than enough excellent cerebral material to create a high level of suspense to keep the audience entranced and without too much risk of the film not receiving the rating for which it was shooting. Le Carré commented that he was pleased with how well the film’s story kept to the book, and his presence on set was more of a sign-off as it involved only a modest amount of work. When The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was released, television was filled with secret-agent-themed programming. The Berlin Wall had only recently been built, and the Cold War had a very public face. Spy-themed television shows and movies provided an outlet for the high nervous tension of potential nuclear war to be released through escapism. The mood of the day leaned heavily to why The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was so popular. While The Spy Who Came in from the Cold received a few Oscar nominations, it didn’t win any. However, in England, a little closer to the front lines of the Cold War, it won four of the six British Academy of Film and Television Awards for which it was nominated. The age-old story remains of how transgressions with deception and lies affect the human spirit and explains, even now, long after the Wall has fallen, why this movie still holds up.

The Comic Critic Reviews "Point Blank"

Lee Marvin might have fallen into his acting career, but he was a natural as a hardboiled tough guy. He became one of Hollywood’s iconic leading men and parlayed the power he wielded to work with the directors he wanted on the projects he wanted. Point Blank was one of those projects. Filmed in the Sixties, the movie hyper-focused on a particular look, Mod, from the word Modernist. The clothing, furniture, and art were the most recent in style and production. Clean sharp lines, shapes, and textures created the look. The mod scene consisted of coffee houses, jazz music, cocktails, and a desire to look graceful with simplicity, fueled by America’s post-WWII economic boom and mass production. It’s in this glossy utopian world that Point Blank is set. The clothing, props, and buildings show little of the past nor any hint of the emerging hippy esthetic. When such breaches do occur, they are for a reason. Alcatraz, from which our hero emerges at the beginning of the movie, sits on the bay like a tombstone of past mobsters in a cemetery. A careful viewing of Point Blank will show the importance of the imagery to the underlying tone and message of the film. The creative world-building is just one of many elements that turned a fairly decent, hardboiled thriller into a cult classic thoroughly enjoyed by film critics and fans. Point Blank might be a time capsule to a specific look from the ‘60s, but the underlying story in this work of thrilling suspense gives it legs. And it is one of several films that provide a worthy legacy to Lee Marvin and the others involved in its production.

The Comic Critic Reviews "Convoy"

Citizens Band Radios were another craze that swept the country during the seventies. When technology reduced the size and cost of transistors, suddenly owning a citizens band radio became affordable. Truckers were the first to make use of mobile CBs for practical reasons. With gas shortages a serious problem, truckers were able to network and locate stations that had supplies. And it wasn’t long before average citizens started to take to the CB airwaves. Their popularity was so high that what little licensing was required was eliminated altogether as enforcement become impossible. C.W. McCall, aka Bill Fries, wrote the song “Convoy” to perfectly capture a slice of America, that of the American trucker dealing with the economic and fuel crises gripping the country. The use of CB jargon was a hook that set deep with the radio listener. While it’s common for books to be made into movies, songs doing the same thing are a bit more rare. When Convoy was released, the storyline of the movie didn’t quite match that of the song. Knowing when to adjust to a good thing, Bill Fries rewrote the lyrics to match the storyline of the movie and re-released the song. Trucker movies like Convoy, employing car chases, out-witting police, and heavy use of CB radios would remain a staple through the ‘70s, with homage paid to them in subsequent films. And later, CB radios would remain in basements, rec rooms, dens where they would eventually gather dust as the Internet and cell phones became the next big things.

My copy editor John Markuson would like you to know:

[Chip Davis, later of Mannheim Steamroller, wrote the music.]

[Fries was inducted into the Iowa Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009.]

The Comic Critic Reviews "Gentleman's Agreement"

I had a much easier time watching Gentleman’s Agreement when I was the same age as the boy in the movie. What I heard in the film were social instructions. They weren’t new. They were reaffirming what my parents taught me. But it was the first time I was seeing insidious examples of bigotry as well as obvious ones. The scenes I watched of Gregory Peck explaining the world and how his son should behave struck a strong chord in me. I remember thinking, “He explained that just right.” I found my recent viewing of Gentleman’s Agreement more difficult to watch. The viewpoint I’m associating with now is that of the adults, how the characters were reacting, their experience of recognizing their own actions, their casual privilege. And while I don’t recall seeing any obvious ethnic characters or extras, I can understand why: Gentleman’s Agreement focused on anti-Semitism to reveal the mindset behind bigotry. It’s just how I saw it as a kid, as an instruction manual to recognize and react with true, brave humanity. I found Gentleman’s Agreement difficult to watch now because you can easily replace Jew with Muslim to see the battlefield of bigotry is still here so many decades later. Exchange the word Jew with Muslim, Hispanic, Black or any other They instead of We.  It’s terrifying and saddening, and it makes Gentleman’s Agreement as relevant today as in 1947.

Winner of three Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

The Comic Critic Reviews "Little Dead Rotting Hood"

I’m sure the title of Little Dead Rotting Hood was meant to appeal to the zombie-loving crowd as well as trying to spin the folk tale of Little Red Riding Hood in a new direction. I know that’s what lured this fish to take the hook. The first five minutes of Little Dead Riding Hood told me that I was set for a world of boredom and disappointment. Be warned, you will need to keep yourself alert; otherwise, you will find yourself yawning through the crucial few minutes of exposition that actually explains what is meant to be going on. As is often the case with a gimmick-titled movie, Little Dead Rotting Hood lacks substance. If you want to see a great horror film with a Red Riding Hood spin, I suggest you watch The Company of Wolves (1984). If you want a straight-to-tape zombie movie that at least won’t bore you to tears, I suggest The Video Dead (1986). Which just goes to show that practical special effects from decades ago can still beat the pants off bad editing and CGI.

The Comic Critic Reviews Battle of the Damned

I had such high hopes for Battle of the Damned. I’m a big fan of both zombies and robots. After I saw both in the preview for Battle of the Damned when I was sharing it with my friends—that is, my zombie- and robot-loving friends, they too voiced their excitement. As a zombie film connoisseur, I will tell you what I look for in a zombie film. The first thing it should have is an interesting premise. An example would be the film Zombie Strippers, in which the Zombie Apocalypse starts in a strip club. The second thing it should have is some interesting zombie death scenarios that have either never been seen before or which pay homage to previous memorable death scenarios. The third thing is at least a couple of lines of memorable dialog. I got excited because Battle of the Damned had a great premise: Zombies vs. Robots, but the movie falls apart because all the fighting between the zombies was mundane. There were no uniquely memorable kills. All it would have taken to fix this flick was a few thoughtful shots using some practical special effects. That, along with strained, not memorable dialog, let this movie flounder. As a result, Battle of the Damned is doomed not to become a cult classic—but just a footnote in bad zombie film history.

The Comic Critic Reviews Foreign Correspondents

Not only is the Fourth of July a time to celebrate American Independence, but it is also the date my wife picked for our anniversary. She figured I would never forget our anniversary if it was also a National Holiday - plus she would get work off. Needless to say I was busy with other things other than drawing up a movie review. So I'm digging into the archives to bring you Foreign Correspondents. This film was created by Mark Tappio Kines, and I have to confess that we are friends. But, before you start thinking that this is one of those crappy made at home movies I'd like to say the following: It ain't. This film was on of the first movies to be funded via the web before Kickstarter was even a thing. It also has talented actors who you will recognize. And I think that Mark's writing and directing holds up too.

The Comic Critic's Movie Review of Close Encounters of the Third Kind

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Close Encounters came out in 1977 the same year Voyager I and Voyager II were launched into space. Everybody was excited about the possibilities of space and what discoveries would be made out there.  Folks were looking up at the sky and dreaming about man’s venture into the cosmos. Close Encounters tapped into our deep desires to explore space. Steven Spielberg guides audiences into a search rather than presenting an invasion underway. First it’s a search for answers to why we are seeing what we are seeing. Then it becomes an urge, a desire to express or explain what is being seen. And before you know it, audiences are filled with a grand sense of homecoming, of returning. That joy of return and exploration is what powers Close Encounters. A lot has been said about the movie’s special effects. An obvious child of the ’70s with its lack of home computers and portable technology, they’re wonderful, practical special effects that still hold up today. But you don’t really notice the tech; what you do notice is its vibrating core message of exploration and hope which continues to make Close Encounters a great movie.

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 [J1]Space is used twice in the same sentence. Changed to avoid that.

 [J2]Deleted to clarify the meaning.

 [J3]Changed because “the public” seems to remove both you and the readers from the rest of us.

 [J4]“Hungry” changed to “deep” to strengthen the sentence structure and meaning. Another way to say this is “…tapped into our deep hunger to explore space.” I think that this is a stronger sentence.

 [J5]“Rather than feeling that an invasion was underway, Steven…” seems to mean that Spielberg may have felt that an invasion was underway.

 [J6]Changed to “audiences” to reflect that audiences everywhere felt this rather than only one audience. You may want to substitute “movie-goers” for “audiences.”

 [J7]Moved to strengthen your meaning (I hope).

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The Comic Critic Reviews The Room

When I go to comic book conventions, I always ask my fans what their favorite films are. A lively discussion follows; we break movies down by genre and pick our favorites. And there is one genre of film that arouses the passions of masochists, the Bad Movie. Trying to define the Bad Movie is an evening’s discussion in itself. But for the purposes of today’s commentary, let’s go with this: a Bad Movie is one that strove to be a good, if not great movie, and failed to such a wretched degree that it’s easily considered to be one. And as this topic came up again and again, a movie title I’d never heard of before also came up. The name of that movie was—you guessed it—The Room. I’ve seen my share of awful films, mostly in my pursuit of seeing as many horror movies in the eighties as was humanly possible, but I’d never seen The Room. This one, having been released in 2006, is a relatively recent blight on cinematic art. I confess that my curiosity got the better of me, and I promised a fan I would watch and review the film. I expected that I might lose two hours of my life to the experience, but I hadn’t prepared for the anguish-inducing, soul-sucking, time-slowing, black-hole-of-waste that makes up The Room. If there is a hell for movie critics, this is what’s playing at every mandatory matinée.

The Comic Critic Reviews: The Dam Busters

Back in 1955, The Dam Busters was the biggest movie in Britain. One of my fans reminded me about this film when I asked you for Blockbusters. I’d forgotten nearly all of the details, so I watched it again. The importance of this film, and the book that inspired it, was the accuracy of the facts reported. Some of them were withheld for national security reasons, but the book got nearly all of them right. What few historical flubs there were in the movie (such as a plane crashing on the wrong side of the river) were criticized. You won’t see it played very often on television anymore because of the dog’s name, which is repeated at surprising frequency. You might think that they would just change the name of the dog. But that wouldn’t be the British thing to do. I wonder how it will be dealt with if there’s a remake.

The Comic Critic Reviews Lawrence of Arabia

Every time I tried to write about Lawrence of Arabia, I found myself writing something completely different. I wrote about my childhood, the glory of the Golden Age of Hollywood, my family, and the times I spent with them watching films—and about one of my favorite actors, Peter O’Toole. After a paragraph or so, I’d find I hadn’t mentioned anything about the movie itself, so I’ve got to come back to the comment I made in the strip. This film influences you. It’s ingrained into my life to such an extent that I have a hard time just talking about it. How wonderful is it that a movie can be so good that it goes beyond entertainment, beyond culture, and practically worms itself into your DNA? Yes, I love this movie. I rarely say this, but it’s in my top ten movies of all time.

The Comic Critic Reviews Forbidden Planet

If you’ve ever read my system for rating movies, you’d know that I give extra points for robots. Other sci-fi robots and I might have necked in the backseat at the drive-in, but I confess—I lost my geek cherry to Robby the Robot. Yes, he was in amazing color, but his charisma goes far beyond that. Far from looking like he was designed by socially awkward engineers in a garage (like so many robots before him), Robby looks like a Madison Avenue marketing group designed him. Visually, Robby set the bar a lot higher for what might be expected. (Vast improvements followed soon after.) And Robby was just one of the ingredients that made this movie great. What truly thrilled me as a young boy was the invisible monster. When his footprints appeared in the flattened earth, I held my breath. And I was riveted when he, caught in the energy beams, could be seen. With a little humor, a little romance, a lot of great visuals and action, Forbidden Planet captured my imagination then. It still grabs me now.

The Return of Stickman #1319

Today's strip was inspired from a friend in Australia. She'd been corresponding with an American stationed in Nigeria and had a question for me. "In the USA do you use the word Movies or Cinema?" I responded that I personally found the word Movies was the more frequently used word. But that might be solely a regional thing. Oh, by the way, I just inherited $20 million dollars and it would be a huge help if I could get it out of the country for 24 hours.

The Comic Critic Reviews Super Mario Brothers - The Movie

Bob Hoskin’s kids were excited to hear that the Super Mario Brothers video game was going to be turned into a movie, then groaned their disappointment when he told them he was going to be the star. Bob’s kids may have sensed what the rest of us were thinking: “Hollywood just doesn’t get it.” Just because it was the first movie to be made from a popular video game (rather than the other way around) doesn’t mean it was going to be great. But as the first of its kind, it became an industry benchmark to be enjoyed with the understanding that it went boldly where no one had gone before. Too bad they made it with some overused stock movie scenarios. While I was tempted to give it a four, the sad fact is that it hasn’t held up over the years.

This review was delayed by the city of Tacoma, who, in their infinite wisdom declared that I needed to remove or repair a large eyesore of a shed. I've been meaning to tear it down for year, and now I had a deadline. So the last week I've been learning the difference between a catspaw and a crowbar. I've also learned that if you stack wood tightly in a rental dumpster you can fill it nearly solid. And the last thing I learned was that hiding under my shed's floor was one huge hole. Was it a well? septic tank? outhouse pit? We will never know because I'm filling it with sod and rocks from the yard. Anyway, my posting will go back to their normal schedule.

The Comic Critic Reviews "The Happening" 2008

I’m a big fan of M. Night Shyamalan’s work. Maybe one of the reasons I’m still a big fan of his is that I haven’t seen The Last Airbender yet. His best known trademark is the Sudden Reveal. What I enjoyed about The Happening is that the reveal is steady, like removing layers off an onion. The audience becomes comfortable with the pace to focus on the characters and how they process the horror that could catch them at any moment. And then he trips us up with some left field surprises. I found the film very enjoyable. I’m looking forward to more of his work. Though I’m on the fence about when exactly I’ll get around to watching The Last Airbender.

The Comic Critic Reviews "Black Narcissus"

My good friend, Polly Law, lists Black Narcissus as one of her all-time favorite films. I remember seeing it on television when I was in my preteens. The questions I had then I still have now: “Why don’t we get to see more of the Old General?” and “Why didn’t that actor go and get those long legs of his tanned before starting this role?” and “What is up with that hat?” Watching the film as an adult, I enjoyed all the same key moments I did when I was a kid. But while I find the film greatly enchanting, I am still left wanting it to go on longer, even after all this time has passed since my last viewing. Still, I might give it another viewing …say in about another 30 years.

Polly Law says: Black Narcissus has it all- a dense script rich with subtext, deep characters, gorgeous visuals, lots of sexual tension, and a guy with long legs riding a very short pony.

The Comic Critic Reviews "Tortilla Soup"

I’m a big fan of foreign films. Never a fan of dubbing, I’ve always loved listening to the words the actors originally spoke. Yeah, it’s true you have to read subtitles quickly. And there is an art to the subtitle. Size, color, and frequency are all important. While I will endure or even enjoy subtitles, there are lots of people who just won’t bother with them. For the U.S. market, a lot of foreign films have been remade with all new actors and settings to go with the all new language. Some become big hits like “Three Men and a Baby;” others fly under the wire like “Shall We Dance?”. This one, “Tortilla Soup,” hits the middle ground and does okay. And I just can’t help but think that the soundtrack helped.

The Comic Critic Reviews Avatar

I thought I posted this review last Saturday. Sorry about the delay.

I don’t like telling folks they have to go see a film, but you need to go to a theater and see this one now. And you need to see it in 3D to get the full, spectacular experience. After you’ve seen it, make up your own mind as to whether or not it is a ten in your book or not. Why didn’t I give it a ten? Well, that font thing still bugs me.

The Comic Critic Reviews: Hanzo The Razor: Sword of Justice

I’m trying to remember which one of my friends recommended Hanzo the Razor: Sword of Justice. While I can understand his honorable intentions in introducing me to a new-to-me form of cult-driven film, he should have stressed that this is not a date movie.  (Features like these are the reason I have a hard time getting my wife to watch movies with me.) After the first twenty minutes, we turned it off to watch something we could enjoy together.

Later the next day, I finished watching it. Why did I go back to something I found very uncomfortable? I’ve always have felt the need to watch a film all the way through; otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to make an honest appraisal. There would always be nagging questions, “Did it get any better?” and “Does the sixties jazz soundtrack, more-Shaft-than-Shogun, turn into something more traditional?” For my own piece of mind, and because by that point I wanted to draw a review, I finished watching, but let me assure you, it was no fun.

A few of you kind readers are also fans of manga and anime. Some of you might know that Hanzo the Razor was originally a manga created by the same hand that made Lone Wolf and Cub. Some of you might even know that in “Samurai Champloo,” the over-the-top policeman character named Mando was a parody of Hando. Still, I urge you not to seek out this film. And if you do, don’t watch it with your wife—or anyone else you ever want to look in the eye again.