It Came from Hollywood (1982) Poster

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5/10
"What's this movie about, man?"
lost-in-limbo5 April 2010
Good intentions aside, at times I had trouble really getting into this pleasantly interactive, short-lived little documentary/Mystery Science Theater 3000 style arrangement that presents a variety of random clips from supposedly old b-grade to z-grade Hollywood features (though its hard to grasp why "War of the Worlds", "The Incredible Shrinking Man" and "The Day the Earth Stood Still" made its way in) that are set-up through specific genders (monsters, gorillas, animals going berserk, brains, troubled teenagers, Ed Wood, Aliens, giants and musicals) with them being wittily dissected/or informatively discussed by comedians Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Gilda Radner, Cheech and Chong. The thing was I thought the best moments actually involved the crazy movie clips themselves, than that of it focusing on its mugging stars and the wraparound sequences. The problem was that I found most of the remarks (which at times were surprisingly sparse) not to be all that funny, well Cheech and Chong came across more so genuinely smooth in their humour within the cinema (especially Chong at the candy bar and sitting their watching the films) and it came across an inspired choice for them to rip on the eccentrically pitched cautionary drug movies. However some of those scenes with the other stars in between the collection of clips just didn't gel, as for one Aykroyd really did get on my nerves. Some skits were better implemented than roughly penned others, but the feature does feel like one big trailer (or movie preview) for bad schlock movies… some which are hard to believe you're actually seeing it on screen. Nothing is safe in the wryly tongue-in-cheek "It Came from Hollywood".
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6/10
It Came from Hollywood (and other places)
t_atzmueller22 February 2013
This isn't as much a movie as it is a loose assembly of B- to Z-grade movies that have been produced between the 1940's and late 1970's (and not only did they come from Hollywood but Japan as well), narrated by numerous "Saturday Night Life"-comedians. We're talking movies like "Mars Needs Women", "Reefer Madness" (who but Cheech and Chong would be more likely to make fun of that one?), "The Incredible Strange Creatures who stopped living and became mixed up Zombies"; indeed, we're talking the works of Edward D. Wood Jrn.

It's nice to see some of your favorite 80's comedians, some which have passed on since (John Candy, Gilda Radner), others which have fallen into obscurity (Dan Akroyd, Cheech and mainly Chong). Granted the gags and jokes are all rather silly, definitely not especially gifted (and considering that this is from 1982 and that we are used to a little sharper, even cynical humor these days, they haven't aged very well), but then again, we're dealing with bottom-of-the-barrel films, hence let's just call them appropriate.

It's also interesting to reflect, 30 years down the road, how many truly awful movies have been produced since then and the path that the industry in general has taken. Movies like "Battlefield Earth" or M. Night Shyamalans "The Last Airbender" (well, actually every Shyamalan picture since "The Sixth Sense") would certainly not be out of place if they ever remade "It Came from Hollywood". However, there is one exception: while "It Came from Hollywood" focuses on films that were generally generated by a shoe-string budget, the more recent cinematic train-wrecks have swallowed millions upon millions of dollars.

Seven from ten points out of sheer curiosity value – wait; make those six points for having included "The Incredible Shrinking Man" and "War of the Worlds".
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7/10
Combining classics with crap brings laughter, not a nap.
mark.waltz8 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Consider this science fiction movie history 101, not quite in the serious vein as "Watch the Skies!", the more professional and non-sarcastic documentary aired on TCM about 10 years ago. Then consider the fact that the narrators of this are all veterans of the original company of "Saturday Night Live" with "STV's" John Candy thrown in for good measure. In order to understand the cult following of such deliciously bad science fiction movies as "It Conquered the World" and "Plan Nine From Outer Space", you also need to be able to compare it to "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and "War of the Worlds". Great time and artistic effort was put into creating those masterpieces which stand the test of time, while the others stand the test of time because they are so delightfully silly you can't help but turn them into comedy classics that just happen to involve outer space creatures.

Then, there's killer trees, wobbling rocks that manage to crush their victims even though they stroll around on turtle time while human beings can certainly outrun them (if they would only stop wasting their time trying to shoot them!), white furred apes, creatures from the sea that look like they are trying to break the Coney Island record for eating hot dogs and various other inhuman beings that can't remotely compare with the artistic talents which went into making "The Creature From the Black Lagoon". Giant turkeys, leeches, lizards, insects and even vegetables pounced up on our drive-in movie theater screens, making the giant ants of "Them!" and tarantulas seem like classics, much like the original "Dracula" and "Frankenstein" were 25-30 years before most of these movies were made.

The funny thing about these bad movies is the fact that once you get past the idiotic subplots, you really find yourself enjoying them. They are extremely clever in their own inept way, maybe unintentionally, but some filmmakers must have known that their subject matter and monsters were ripe for ridicule. Some of these films make Ed Wood's notoriously bad turkeys step up a notch. I guess you could say that there's an art to making bad movies. Some of the narration here truly is bad, but it will be the film clips that you'll want to experience here, not the dumb quips from the original not ready for prime time players.

Two specialty segments cover "teens gone wild" and the bad musicals of the golden age of Hollywood. Certainly, the teens gone wild segment is truly funny, totally reminding me of the Lois Bromfield spoof, "Sorority Girls From Hell", but it is the musical sequence narrated by Gilda Radner which struck my interest. Main-stream movies such as "Sunny Side Up" and "Wonder Bar" get included with two truly campy production numbers. The "Sunny Side Up" number, "Turn on the heat!", shows dancing girls making bananas grow on the vine just by wiggling their chests at them, while "Goin' to Heaven on a Mule" strikes controversy today with its depiction of blacks in a small section of heaven (the white section is three times as large) eating pork chops right off the tree, plucking chickens and frying them, and most tastelessly, a giant watermelon which opens and has a tap-dancing Hal LeRoy in black face popping out. Other musical segments aren't really from musicals; One of them is actually from an MGM Technicolor short from the mid 1930's, and the rest are silly brief song interludes from some of the worst Z grade adventures ever filmed. So the film is a mixed bag of clips, but there is something here for everybody to enjoy and it might inspire future filmmakers to go out and research these films to try new ideas of their own.
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The Clips are Great, Otherwise...
squeezebox21 November 2003
I've always enjoyed this hodge-podge of "bad" movie scenes and previews. But only for the previews themselves. Unfortunately, this movie takes a very smug and pompous attitude toward its subject matter, largely due to the fact that Golden Turkey Award creator Michael and Harry Medved were "advisors" on the project.

Anyone who is a real fan of these movies enjoys them for the silly schlock that they are. The Medveds revel in ridiculing and lampooning them with no appreciation for them at all. Surprisingly, this is the sense one gets from hosts Dan Aykroyd and John Candy, two performers one would think would have a special place in their hearts for these classics.

Only Cheech and Chong and Gilda Radner seem to get into the spirit of things. While Candy and Aykroyd poke fun and insult the movies, Cheech, Chong and Radner play along with them, and create some genuine laughs.

But the real stars are the clips themselves, which are great fun and great nostalgia. Oddly, amid these "bad" movies are such recognized classics as THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN, WAR OF THE WORLDS and THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL. Scenes from outrageously over-the-top cautionary films about sex and marijuana are utterly hilarious.

Highlights are Chong ordering a truckload of candy at the concession stand and Radner doing her little girl schtick from Saturday night live.
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7/10
A sentimental favorite of mine...
AlsExGal25 August 2020
...for several reasons. For one, a couple of these cast members - actually narrators - left us too soon. That would be John Candy and Gilda Radner. Also, it mixes the comedy styles of SCTV's John Candy, the original Saturday Night Live crew members of Gilda Radner and Dan Akroyd, and Cheech and Chong. This was right before the "Just Say No Era" and Zero Tolerance aged out the latter's style of humor. The 70s were just a more lay back era, even with the shag carpet and the high inflation.

Next, there are all of the B sci-fi and horror movies shown here. This film was made during a bridge era when the old B movies were not being shown that much anymore on TV, and long before youtube and Turner Classic Movies and even the dawn of VHS made them accessible again. And just to let you know, some of these films are not even of the sci-fi/horror genre. Several of them are early sound musicals from the early 1930s, probably even harder to find at the time than the 50s horror films.

And finally, and I think another reviewer even mentioned this in his title, this film was my introduction to Ed Wood Jr. At first I thought it was some kind of a joke. The production code was still in force in the 1950s. How are they going to let you make a film about cross dressing? That was just how B minus Ed Wood's films were. They never even got on the radar of the censors.

It could probably never have a DVD release because of all of the rights of all of the films involved, plus the music. But it is on youtube if you ever want a look back at a look back.
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6/10
It's an interesting documentary. Nothing else.
kfo949410 December 2013
As advertised, this is truly a documentary with scenes from early, and poor budgeted, 'B' movies dealing mainly with cheap horror films from the 50's. I would not say that this film is outstanding but it was humorous to see the sets and costumes worn in the golden era of 'B' type films with the narrative performed by comedy actors from the early 80's.

I really do not understand how people can say that it was a 'Gem' since the entire film consist mainly of footage from non-classic films with added commentary by the hosts. It was a nice look back at early low-budget films but not much else in the form of entertainment.

The best thing is that nearly all the cheap, low-budget, corny 'B' type movie scenes are now in one place. Other than that not much to see here.

But again it is a documentary and as documentaries go-- it was interesting.
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3/10
Screwed up another one....
Mister-68 October 1999
Leave it to "Hollywood".

When they finally have a chance to make a movie that pays homage to the worst films ever made (and they have some doozies here), they go and screw up "It Came from Hollywood" by thinking they need endless comic asides by Aykroyd, Radner, Candy, and Cheech and Chong. Don't get me wrong, it's always nice to see them, but why here?

And how did good films make it in here? "The Incredible Shrinking Man" and "War of the Worlds" are shown and they were actually good films! Everyone agrees, right? It's not like there's a shortage of bad films in Hollywood's archives.

But they do get it right when they profile "classics" like "Plan 9 from Outer Space", "Mars Needs Women", "Attack of the 50-Foot Woman" and such. And Ed Wood was always a ripe target for such a film. Just ask Tim Burton.

In the end, though, it's more like a partial coming attractions trailer than a film. The movie seems to end before it began, and look at how many more bad movies they've made since then! It's staggering!

Hey, "Hollywood", if there's ever a sequel made to this one, just focus on the bad films by themselves, and a little less of Aykroyd. Okay, please?

Three stars, mostly for what films are shown. And for the sight of Aykroyd and Candy in pink angora sweaters while riding a Harley.

Now THERE'S an idea for a bad movie.
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1/10
Pointless Film with Almost No Laughs
mrb19809 July 2009
Warning: Spoilers
"It Came From Hollywood" makes its main point--that some older movies are really pretty bad--then beats its audience to death with that point for 80 minutes. Hollywood comedy narrators Dan Aykroyd, Cheech and Chong, John Candy, and Gilda Radner simply spend the film telling us how bad these movies are, as unrelated, seemingly random clips from the films are shown. The movie's so dumb that it even includes sequences from good films such as "The Incredible Shrinking Man", which is rightfully regarded as a 1950s sci-fi classic.

The celebrity narrators aren't even that funny, while they remind us over and over (and over) that some movies are just plain awful. The film finally rambles to an awkward ending--including John Candy laughing while his jowls and stomach shake--leaving the audience with a message of...what happened?

I hope the famous narrators were well paid. Do yourself a favor and just watch the old films instead. They're a lot funnier than this piece of junk.
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3/10
Clip Show Of The Darned
slokes28 November 2017
A weak movie that celebrates weak movies, "It Came From Hollywood" presents clips from more than a half-century of movies, most bad, some not, presented in the form of themes hosted by popular comedians of the day.

Sometimes, the result is amusing. Richard "Cheech" Marin and Tommy Chong work their stoner screen personas to solid effect watching clips of famous drug cautionary films like "Reefer Madness." I don't care for Cheech & Chong generally but found their work here entertaining in a low-burn way.

A clip from the Ed Wood classic "Plan Nine From Outer Space" features Dudley Manlove pondering an attack on mankind: "As long as these humans think, we'll have our problems."

Cut to Chong at the ticket window: "I want my money back."

Alas, that's as much as I can offer in the way of positive comment about the interstitial sketches which make up the original content in this film. That's a shame because I am a fan of both Dan Aykroyd and Gilda Radner from their "Saturday Night Live" heyday and John Candy of SCTV. They make up the other three players introducing the recycled content here. Seeing Gilda and Danny relive their small- screen glories playing SNL characters like Judy Miller and a short- fused detective should be more fun than it is.

Some reviewers here see a connection between "It Came From Hollywood" and "Mystery Science Theater 3000," which ran bad movies over caustic commentary that was often funny. But the blog Dead 2 Rights has it right: This is a cracked remake of films of the prior decade like "That's Entertainment." Producer-directors Andrew Solt and Malcolm Leo are out for cheap yuks.

Instead of overblown reverence, you get easy scorn for silly B- movies about rampaging gorillas and brains that fly around and attack people.

"C'mon, honey, you want it and you know it," Aykroyd says over footage of a woman being jumped by a brain in "Fiend Without A Face." "Don't be a brainteaser."

Chuckles do come, but never develop into anything more, the way they so often did on MST3K with their zany sketches and running gags. The clips are more interesting for curiosity value, like a chance to see Rosey Grier try to sell the idea of having Ray Milland's head attached to his body in "The Thing With Two Heads."

"This picture started the black street fad of wearing middle-aged white men," Aykroyd explains.

The inclusion of clips from classic films like "The Day The Earth Stood Still" and good genre flicks like "The Creature From The Black Lagoon" is annoying, though, as are any of the sequences featuring Radner, as lost here as she did in any other movie she made.

"The movie theaters just show scary monster movies so you drop all your popcorn and candy on the floor and they put in back in the boxes and resell it," she explains as her Judy Miller character.

A decent sequence showcases two Ed Wood films, "Plan Nine" and "Glen Or Glenda?" It's hosted by Candy, who makes the fair point that it's hard to make a movie when there's no budget. If the rest of the film followed this more explanatory approach, rather than generally commenting on the weak plots and overacting, it could be worth your time.

To be fair, "It Came From Hollywood" came from 1982, the year of David Letterman's late-night debut when snarky irony became suddenly fashionable. Snarky irony is mostly what you get here, and while it works at times, it isn't enough to make it that interesting.
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9/10
Terribly under rated screen gem.
jimy234 September 2011
It's just sad how little this movie is recognized and how it has been recalled for DVD. You have some of the biggest stars of the time taking about bad B movies of the 50's 60's and 70's like A.p.e the giant claw Earth vs the flying saucers the Colossal man. I can only imagine a movie like this today stars like johnny Depp Leonardo Dicaprio Jake Gyllenhaal Taking about old B movies of the past including ones from the 80's like Hobgoblins the Abomination Deadly spawn Lobster man from mars and bad shot on video movies. This is a classic that more people should know about all the stars do a good job the clips are great it never takes it self seriously. I first saw this on HBO way back in 92 or 93 and i will never forget the first time seeing it this any fan of John Candy Gilda Radner Dan Aykroyd or b movies should see it.
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8/10
A Great Movie About Movies
Sargebri29 November 2002
This film still has me rolling whenever I see it. This film not only makes fun of the grade Z stinkers, but in it's on weird way, pays tribute to these films at the same time. The only problem I have with it is the fact that it includes two classic sci-fi films, "The Incredible Shrinking Man" and "War of the Worlds". Other than that this is one funny film, especially Cheech and Chong's look at the anti-drug films like "Reefer Madness" and "High School Confidential".
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8/10
The film that introduced me to the works of Ed Wood...
Driver-518 July 1999
I've read a lot of negative reviews of IT CAME FROM HOLLYWOOD since it was first released, but I have to admit, I think it's hilarious. The film is broken into several sections, each introduced by one or more of the comedians. for example, John Candy pays tribute to Ed Wood (Including a remake of the "coming out" scene from GLEN OR GLENDA with Dan Aykroyd), Cheech and Chong introducing clips from the likes of THE COCAINE FIENDS, etc. Some of the clips drag, some clips have been "doctored" to seem even sillier then they really are, but with the likes of PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE and MARS NEEDS WOMEN on display, there are some great moments.
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8/10
No lack of subjects
postman-1325 May 2000
A film that I always enjoyed. Various comedians host tributes to some really bad movies. There's one whole section just for Ed Wood. If you like MST3K, you'll like this. In fact, look for Phantom of Krankor in a cameo!
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Funny, a definite inspiration for MST3K.
Horror Fan21 February 1999
One of the reasons I liked this film so much was because it actually featured Guilala. Dan Aykroyd and John Candy make comments about the best and worst Sci-Fi movies like Plan 9 from Outer Space and other films by Ed Wood. It also features Attack of the Mushroom People and X from Outer Space. I loved it. Recommended to everybody.
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10/10
John, Dan, Gilda, Cheech and Chong did some great stuff, including this
lee_eisenberg16 May 2005
In what seems to be a precursor to "Mystery Science Theater 3000", several famous comedians (playing themselves) mock some of Hollywood's worst movies ever. Cheech and Chong have lots of fun with "The Amazing Colossal Man", while John Candy and Dan Aykroyd love playing with Ed Wood's movies. Gilda Radner has a hysterically weird experience after hearing on the radio of an escaped gorilla. They all have some great comments and gags, especially when Chong orders an unusual container of popcorn.

Either way, "It Came from Hollywood" is a testament to how funny all of these people really are. You'll love the "intimate" scene between Candy and Aykroyd.
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This films existence is no longer necessary.
youroldpaljim17 February 2002
When this film first came in 1982, it gave me chance to see many old clips and trailers from old horror and science fiction flicks with a few clips from unusual films other film genres thrown in. In 1982, unlike today, not many old horror/science fiction films were out on video and these films were getting harder to see on TV. So watching this was the closest for me to seeing many of these films again and parts of ones I missed. I really didn't pay much attention to the wrap around sequences provided by Gilda Radner and others, except for the parts with Cheech and Chong, whom I have always found stupid and annoying. I found their presence here repugnant then, and I still do. At the time I overlooked the films repulsively arrogant, condescending attitude it adopts towards these old films.

Now however, viewing this film, there is no longer a reason (for me at least) for this films existence because:

1)Almost all of the films excerpted in this film are obtainable on video, some even on DVD for you high tech yuppies, if you know right places to look.

2)The so called "funny" wrap around sequences featuring many comedians were not considered very good when this film first came out, and they look even worse today. These sequences have accomplished what seems to be the impossible - making clips from notoriously boring turkeys like ROCKET ATTACK USA somehow seem more interesting then they really are. But that is no credit to the comedians or the films makers. Its that these wrap around sequences are so dull, that the films they attempt to lampoon seem exciting in comparison.

3)The films overall smarmy, cynically condescending attitude towards these films becomes annoying. Granted, a good percentage of these films are turkeys like ROBOT MONSTER and PLAN NINE FROM OUTER SPACE. Some are only mediocre, but a few are generally and rightfully so, regarded as classic films like WAR OF THE WORLDS and THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN. Others like are ATTACK OF THE MUSHROOM PEOPLE, while rebuffed by "mainstream" movie watchers, is generally highly regarded by knowledgeable fans of horror and science fiction movies. Apparently, the writers of this sorry excuse for a film were suffering from the limited, narrow minded view that if its science fiction or horror, its automatically worthless.

4) This film features Cheech and Chong, a comedy team whose own career has been made on appealing to the lowest common denominator in public taste. Throughout their long and dubious one joke career, they have managed to make even the worst Jerry Lewis films seem brilliant. Its a tad bit hypocritical for two stars of some of the worst movies ever made to make fun of other peoples movies. The bad films excerpted here look like Oscar winners when compared to films like UP IN SMOKE.

5) The only wrap around sequence I found appealing was the clips of various female monsters while the fifties classic "Whats Your Name?" played on the sound track.

Thank you and have a nice day.
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10/10
A Cult CiassicI
mannosfate9 August 2006
I believe ICFH was definitely the inspiration for MST3K (1988). In 1982, many so called Baby Boomers were reminded, in a very entertaining way, of the "Late Late Show" movies of their childhood. They were also made aware of many movies that they were unaware of previously. I think this movie was a major factor in the resurgence of Ed Wood, and also the fact that virtually all the other movies shown on ICFH are now available on DVD.I think the first six years of the MST3K series,is basically a continuation the Cheech&Chong skit on ICFH. It's apparent this movie was very influential during the 80's,and continues to be a "Cult Classic".
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10/10
celebration of b-movies
vampi196010 October 2006
It came from Hollywood features clips from some of the best b movies ever featuring;plan 9 from outer space,attack of the 50 foot woman,the killer shrews,glen or Glenda,son of Godzilla,the thing with two heads, Frankenstein meets the space monster,horror of party beach,and much more.but some of the movie clips shown are a list movies like day the earth stood still,war of the worlds,and the incredible shrinking man. hosted in segments by;Gilda radner,Dan ackroyd,john candy,and cheech and chong(they host getting high in the movies)its a fine hodgepodge of classic movie clips.it was put together very well and hopefully soon they will release this to DVD.i remember them showing this in place of Saturday night live once and they chopped it up.the getting high segment was missing of course and the racy clip from sunny side up with AL Jolson in black face was snipped.if you never seen this and you love Hollywood's b movies and some a list movies you will enjoy it came from Hollywood.and like john candy says in the beginning there's dirty parts too,not really its pg rated and there's no nude scenes.some adult language but thats it.bevare of the scene from glen or Glenda with bela Lugosi its a trip.some of the other films are i married a monster from outer space,mars needs women,amazing colossal man,cyclops,crawling eye,the manster,incredible melting man,attack of the mushroom people,Santa Claus vs the martians(with Pia zadora)beginning of the end,the giant claw,reefer madness,marijuana,and many others i didn't list.i recommend it came from Hollywood.its fun and its funny.10 out of 10.
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It Came From Hollywood
Coxer9914 May 1999
Tiresome documentary with snippets from films' like "Attack of the 50 FT. Woman." Candy, Aykroyd and Radner add nothing to the piece. What's the point? A homage? If so, why?
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10/10
BOMB!
RainbowVic6 February 2022
If you will see this classic comedy documentary as a movie that make fun of many 50's B-Movies you will love the cast that bright this funny movie, formated by people like Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Cheech and Chong and Gilda Radner. In a time where Hollywood produce many zaniest comedies as 1941, Airplane or Animal House even the most serious documentaries can became the most stupidiest of the comedies. The highlights of the movie are mostly the sketches of Aykroyd, one of these parodying his character of 1941 Frank Tree (in this case col. Dan Diamond), the commentary of Cheech and Chong and the use of his SNL characters by the always wonderful Gilda Radner.

This movie will not be very know today, but it's still a pleasure to watch, and it's a great combination of comedy and movie celebration, in a time where movies there was made for having fun and forget about the troubles of the world. The movie is 1941, Airplane and SNL mixed together!

Before watching Airplane, Animal House or 1941 start from here. You will understand what's the real meaning of do comedy.
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Entertaining intro into cult movies
gortx28 January 2023
The film's genesis came from the Golden Turkey Awards books by the Medved Brothers, but got morphed into a sorta Cult Movie version of the THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT! Series. It features clips from dozens of B movies separated into segments like: Aliens, Gorillas, Monsters, The Brain, Giants and Tiny People, Technical Triumphs, Troubled Teenagers, Prevues/Coming Attractions and A Salute to Edward D. Wood, Jr.. The chapters were hosted by Comedians Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Cheech and Chong and Gilda Radner.

IT moves pretty quickly and has some laughs along its 80 minute runtime. IT was where I first encounted the glories of THE GIANT CLAW on the big screen! Some of the dozens of movies excerpted include PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE, ROBOT MONSTER, THE CRAWLING EYE, TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE, REPTILICUS, THE INCREDIBLE MELTING MAN and ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES.

Unfortunately, Directors Malcolm & Andrew Solt included clips from some very good movies including THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN and THE DAY THE EARTH STILL (and over the objections of the oriiginal Director and the Medveds). It definitely takes away from the experience, and some of the comedy intros seem quickly tossed together.

Unfortunately, IT CAME FROM HOLLYWOOD hasn't been available legally since the days of VHS and Laserdisc because of rights issues over the myriad of clips. A DVD was announced 20 years ago, but never issued. You can easily find it on YouTube and through grey-marked DVD dealers. It's worth seeking out.
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