Repo Man (1984, Alex Cox)

Repo Man. Another film that I saw a long time ago and didn't really like it. It really wasn't until I started listening to the soundtrack several years later that I decided to give it another chance. I mean, what movie with Black Flag, the Circle Jerks, Fear, Iggy Pop and Suicidal Tendencies (plus more) could be THAT bad?

Repo Man follows (a young) Emilio Estevez, who plays Otto, a teenage punk with no real plans for his future. His parents are hippies who give all their money to a televangelist, he works at a supermarket and his friends are all hoodlums. Until one day when he is duped into helping a repo man repossess a car, do things start to change. He becomes a full time repo man with his new partner Bud (Harry Dean Stanton) and soon learns that a car they are trying to repossess, which is worth $20,000, may have Aliens (or something far more deadly) in the trunk. Who will reach the car first? Bud and Otto, an opposing group of repo men or government special agents?

Seeing this film again was a wise decision. The first time I watched it as a teenager, I liked the first half but the second half was just too weird. Watching it now, I still love seeing Otto's character develop and seeing how he became a repo man. This time though, I really liked how the story unfolded. It was a little silly and a lot strange, but the whole conspiracy direction the film went was fun and entertaining. The actors were all fun to watch too, especially Estevez, Stanton and Cox regulars Sy Richardson and Dick Rude. I'll give another shout out to the soundtrack too, one of the best of all time (assuming you like punk).

RATING: 4/5

Mother, Jugs and Speed (1976, Bill Cosby)

The title pretty much says it all. I had actually never heard of this movie until I saw it on the shelf of my local dvd retailer about 5 hours ago. I put the gift card I got for my birthday to good use and picked it up. I am a slave to compulsion.

F & B, a private ambulance company is full of characters, from the perverted lowlife Murdoch to the cowboy Rodeo. The baddest sumbitch of them all though is Mother (Bill Cosby). Along with dispatcher-turned driver Jennifer aka Jugs (Raquel Welch) and ex Cop Tony aka Speed (Harvey Keitel), this motley group of ambulance drivers do their best to help those in need. They also pay off cops, make whoopie in the back of their ambulances, receive erotic vibrator massages and scare nuns. Will the rival ambulance company Unity take over their turf or can F & B get it together enough to stay in the game?

This movie is exactly what I was expecting. There were some funny parts and the cast was great. Bill Cosby Himself is one of the funniest stand up performances of all time and Keitel is a recent favorite (mainly due to four of his early Scorsese films: Who's That Knocking at My Door?, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Mean Streets and Taxi Driver), so I had to see what they would bring to this. Raquel Welch was very sexiful, making the film even easier to watch. There were some tender moments too, which helped break up the zaniness. Not a classic, but a fun movie for sure. My one complaint is that it was rated PG. There were scenes that were obviously toned down, like one scene where a character mouths Fuck You, but you hear Up You. Up You? I don't know what that means, but I'm going to start saying it.

RATING: 3/5

Two-Lane Blacktop (1971, Monte Hellman)

There's this band, you might've heard of them. They're called the Beach Boys. Well anyway, about a year and a half ago I decided to give the Beach Boys' music more than just the casual listen. Well, 29 or so albums later, I was hooked. I even ended up seeing them play a free concert in Boston that summer, with special guest John 'Have Mercy' Stamos. It was rad. I started following the adventurous life of Dennis Wilson, the Beach Boys' infamous deceased drummer, which led me to his one starring role....Two-Lane Blacktop. Luckily Criterion released this film shortly after with more bells and whistles than you could shake a stick at. Wait, what? You know what I mean.

Two-Lane Blacktop is really about two cars more than any human characters. A GTO, driven by..well, he has no name, but the credits list him as GTO (Warren Oates). The other car, a '55 Chevy is driven by (here we go again) The Driver (James Taylor in his one starring role) and The Mechanic (Dennis Wilson, see above). They are all just out cruising the country with no real destination. The driver and the mechanic stop and race cars for money when they need food or gas. They eventually meet up with GTO and decide to race to Washington D.C. The prize? Whoever loses gives their car's pink slip to the opponent. Along the way, a young hitchhiker tags along and ends up going back and forth between the quiet Chevy and the boastful GTO. Will she distract the drivers from the prize?

The thing that makes Two-Lane Blacktop so great is the fact that it is like no other movie out there. The musicians-turned-actors (James Taylor and Dennis Wilson) really don't have to try too hard to act because their characters have so little dialogue. The film deals more with the cars and the beautiful western landscapes than the characters. GTO and the hitchiker babble on about nothing, while the Mechanic and the Driver are virtually silent, keeping the characters very simple, yet mysterious. Warren Oates is great as the fast talking GTO and Laurie Bird's wandering hitchhiker is very interesting and different. The originality of the film, along with the cinematography and the thought provoking characters make this film a classic road movie. It may not be everyone's taste, but if you "get it", it's well worth the trip.

RATING: 5/5

Heroes (1977, Henry Winkler)

Have you ever stumbled upon a movie you never even knew existed and it ended up really moving you? I came across Heroes that way. I must say that i am grateful for it.

Heroes is the story of Vietnam vet Jack Dunne (Henry "the Fonz" Winkler), who escapes from a Veteran's Hospital with a crazy plan to start up his own business using money from his fellow inpatients. Jack sets out on a cross country bus ride to visit three of his buddies from 'Nam, who are also prospective partners in Jack's new business venture. On the way he meets Carol (Sally Field), a runaway bride who can't decide whether she should go back to her fiance or tag along with Jack. Will Jack's plan work out or will his traumatic past get the best of him?

Heroes is another film that I'm surprised I had never heard of before discovering it recently. The cast is what made me take a chance on it and I was not disappointed. I loved Henry Winkler in Nightshift and I wanted to see more of his films from that era. Sally Field also gave a great dramatic performance, as did Harrison Ford in one of his early roles. Heroes is funny and sad, but most of all very touching. You can't help but feel sorry for Winkler's character and really hope he can fulfil his dream.

RATING: 5/5

Once (2006, John Carney)

Don't worry, you are still at the B Movies and Beyond blog. No, I have not gone completely batshit for writing about this movie. Occasionally you'll see me review films that are not typical "B movies". These would be the "Beyond". Anyway, I remember hearing about Once shortly after it came out and I instantly knew it was something I'd enjoy. Unfortunately, it took about two years to finally get to see it.

Once is the story of a musician/vacuum cleaner repairman who meets, what seems like, his perfect soul mate. She is a musician too and together they begin to collaborate and write songs together. In the meantime it is revealed that they both have other people in their lives that make it impossible for them to be more than just friends. As they become inseparable, they put a band together to record some songs in a studio before they go their separate ways. Will their feelings for each other get in the way on their last few days together?

Once is everything I was hoping it would be and then some. The fact the lead actors in the film are actually musicians and not actors is no small feat. They are so believable that you would swear they were professionals. The emotion portrayed in Once is rarely seen in any film. I'll admit that I got teary eyed during a few parts, not necessarily because of sadness. The film just moved me beyond words. Best of all though was the music, which was excellent and could not have accented the film better.

RATING: 5/5

Nil by Mouth (1997, Gary Oldman)

I've been reviewing a lot of horror films lately, what with Halloween passing and whatnot. Nil by Mouth is no exception. Though you won't find it on the shelf at Blockbuster squished between Night of the Living Dead and Nosferatu, this film can easily be called Horrific.

Nil by Mouth follows Ray, a drug/alcohol abuser, father, wife beater (among other things) with a mouth like a poopy toilet. Seriously folks, according to IMDB, the word "fuck" and its variations are used 522 times, an average of 4.25 times per minute in this movie. Ray lives with and abuses his pregnant wife Val and lives next door to Val's drug addicted younger brother Billy and mother. The day to day life of these working class folks is depressing and appalling, from the violence, debauchery and worst of all, denial. Will the family be able to stay together or will it continue to spiral out of control?

Nil by Mouth is one of the most depressing films I have ever seen. Gary Oldman, in his writing/directing debut, paints a horrendous portrait of a dysfunctional family about to self destruct. Ray Winstone (my new favorite actor) is so believable in this role that you just want to up and smack him. The whole cast is great and the film's darkness really lends to the story. Definitely not a "feel good"movie, but just fascinating nonetheless.

RATING: 4/5

Pieces (1983, J. Piquer Simón)

Bare with me here, I'm going to reminisce. Picture a skinny 16 year old kid walking into a small hole in the wall video store. As you walk in, you are greeted by a short bald guy with a beard named Morris, the store owner. In the back of the store, a group of kids with wizard hats and dental headgear are playing that role playing card game Magic. You pass by the new releases and the action films and head to the far right of the store. There lies my favorite section: HORROR! I scan the alphabetical titles. Anguish...Basket Case...Carrie....seen 'em. As I make my way to the P's, something catches my eye. Pieces. Haven't seen that one before. Looks like a Texas Chainsaw Massacre inspired whodunit slasher. I'll give it a shot.

Pieces opens with a boy butchering his mother with an axe after she catches him with a puzzle of a naked woman. 40 years later, a series of murders begin at a University in Boston, the same town the boy killed his mother in. Girls are mysteriously being murdered and dismembered. The strange thing though is that after every murder, a piece of the body is missing. Could it be cannibalism like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre? A pair of detectives, a student at the college and an undercover tennis player (wtf?) are all trying to find out the truth, but will they survive...or end up in Pieces?

Like I said above, Pieces was a film I first saw in my teenage years. I remember dubbing a copy of it from two VCRs and watching it several times. It must have been a great movie, right? Well...not exactly. The acting is terrible. The dubbing is terrible. The budget is non-existent. However, the film's story is original and the gore are top notch. Not to mention, Pieces also has oodles of nudity. Even watching it now, I was wincing during some of the killings...and even more so during some of the dramatic scenes (the infamous "Bastard!!" scene instantly comes to mind). Pieces is definitely not for everyone, but if you're looking for a cheesy exploitation/horror film, then this one is perfect. Also, the ending is one of the best in Horror history. It totally creeped me out the first time I saw it.

RATING: 4/5