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Reviews
Dolemite (1975)
David Lee Roth recommended it to me...
Yeah...I read David Lee Roth's autobiography, "Crazy From the Heat," (which by the way is an amazing read), and DLR says this was his favorite blacksploitation movie as a kid. In fact, he says he always imagined himself as a black guy in Southern Cal. Mr Roth is quoted as saying:
"We saw every Blacksploitation picture, and those movies were a HUGE influence on me. Trouble Man, Superfly, Foxy Brown, Shaft, Cleopatra Jones, Blacula, Rudy Ray Moore doin' his Dolemite vibe-I saw all of those..."
He goes on to say:
"Dolemite - Rudy Ray Moore - was one of the originals. He was a blue comic, doing blue humor. Like Redd Foxx did on early party records. So he was the most perfect to play a new secret agent. His answer was not "Bonds. James Bond." His answer was "Dolemite, motherf*****!" We would wait for that line in all of his movies. "Get Whitey" would show up in every single movie at least once, and we would wait for that, too. They had the cars. They had the shoes. They had the guns. The Haircuts. The Slang. And the scams. And we all knew that all those beatific resolves at the end of the movie were white bull****. He's trying to feed hungry children but he's actually a pimp...bull****. That was designed to make it palatable to our moms and dads so they'd let us go see the picture."
Spoken like a true genius. So upon reading about Dolemite in Mr. Roth's book I immediately bought in on DVD and I really like it. Yeah, it's super low-budget, and yeah...I hate rap...but as a fan of Tarantino movies, I can see many similarities, especially some of the 70's fusion/funk ala-jaco pastorius music throughout the film. I also love the scene where the two cops 'bust' him for coke and then one of them snorts a whole bunch of it like he'd done it a thousand times before, and says something like, "Aww yeah....that's the real mccoy!"...and then he continues to talk and has a little bit of coke still on his lip. CLASSIC! Some of the violence is a little over the edge, but shocking, which I would consider to be a positive quality. Not as predictable as I assumed it would be. Definitely going to pick up "The Human Tornado" very soon. 10 out of 10.
Bad Lieutenant (1992)
A New York City area sports fan should appreciate this film.
I love this movie and partly because I consider it to be somewhat of a sports movie. People in other areas of the country wouldn't appreciate this, but if you live in the New York City area, this movie is familiar.
There's an AM radio sports station located in NYC called WFAN - it's 660 on the AM band. In the morning they have Don Imus from 6-11 and then all the rest of the time it's just straight up sports talk radio. There are 2 guys who do a radio show every afternoon called 'Mike and the Mad Dog' and the main radio announcer you hear in BAD LIEUTENANT is Chris 'Mad Dog' Russo - look in the credits - he's there. But Mike Francesa is not there. I'm pretty sure Mike and the Mad Dog started around '92 so this may have been before it was the two of them. This station can be heard as far north as Binghamton, NY and as far south as Wilmington, DE. Anyone who is a major sports junkie in the New York area should recognize Mad Dog. Also, if you live in the USA and have a satellite dish, the New York Yankees have their own television station called YES and they have Mike and the Mad Dog live in the WFAN studio on TV most afternoons.
It's nice how Mad Dog gets tied into the plot of the movie and I wonder if Mad Dog is a fan of the movie at all or even knew he was going to be in the movie at the time? It sounds to me like the series on the radio was the Dodgers vs. the Mets and it sounded like it was after Darryl Strawberry went to the Dodgers. The movie appears to take place in the fall, as the kids are in school but it still appears to be warm outside. Also, Mad Dog seems to talking about post season play as he makes comparisons to both the '54 Indians and the '86 Mets in the very beginning of the movie. BUT - to the best of my knowledge the Mets never played the Dodgers in the playoffs when Srawberry was on the Dodgers OR in the '90's at all. Are these GOOFS by the film makers or was this movie supposed to take place a few years before its release?
But this movie isn't all just baseball - it's hardcore drug use, death, rape, nudity - I LOVE IT! There are also some parts of comedy but overall a dark film. Some people are turned off by this movie but I give it 10 votes. I sort of associate this flick with FARGO - as they are both very dark but enjoyable to watch.
Cause for Concern (2002)
Loved It
I bought this on DVD after hearing about it one morning on Howard Stern. Sure, there were a lot of boring fights that seemed to drag on, but the fact that they found some dude who looks and talks just like the crocodile hunter is what makes this an instant classic. I think they should make an entire DVD of just 'Bumhunter'. Unfortunately, I read somewhere that the creators of it just got arrested on about 30 felony counts of assault. I guess it was illegal! Who would have thought?
Bongwater (1998)
Surprisingly Good
I saw this movie lastnight for the first time. I wasn't even planning on watching it - it was just on, so I had no idea what to expect. I thought it was a comedy/romance for about 2/3rds of the film until Serena got raped. I liked how that one scene made the movie so much more serious. It didn't seem too predictable as the movie went on, as I wasn't sure who the 'main characters' were for much of the movie. You learned a lot about several different characters, which kind of reminded me of Pulp Fiction, though not as much dialogue as a Tarantino flick. Also, 3 hot girls are in the movie, including Brittany Murphy who has really turned me on ever since that "We're Here" movie with Michael Douglas. I give Bongwater 9 out of 10 stars.
Caligola (1979)
A porno movie with a plot...
This is the only film I've ever seen that I actually think would have been better with less sex. EVERYONE was naked. I'm not much of a history-buff but somehow I doubt this movie was a correct representation...at least on the sex and nudity side of things.
**possible spoilers**
On the violent side of things, I thought there were two hilarious scenes (maybe I'm just a sicko). First of all, the giant wall with the 'lawnmower' blades was PRICELESS. The scene with the guy who drank too much wine...PRICELESS. I feel like these scenes could have been looked at as comical...or shocking and disgusting. I suppose it has to do with the person watching the film.
I also have to give Malcom McDowell a round of applause. He is truly one of the most under-rated actors of the 20th century. His role as Caligula reminds me of his role as Alex in 'Clockwork Orange'...in both films he plays a terrible human being but in the end he leaves the viewer feeling sympathy towards him. BRAVO!
I give Caligula 9 out of 10 votes.
Alien (1979)
Without a doubt the scariest movie ever.
When I think of all the movies I've ever seen throughout my entire life, Alien sticks in my mind as being the scariest. I distinctly remember turning my head away or covering my eyes at certain points in the movie. I think I had to see it around 20 times before I could watch it without getting really scared. I used to look under my bed for years because of this movie. The concept behind the aliens is so original. Words cannot describe the emotions I would feel while watching this movie during my youth.
Getting Lucky (1989)
Good enough to remember...
I saw this movie once, at least 10 years ago, on 'USA Up All Night w/ Gilbert Godfried' and I still recall most of the movie. I remember it being really corny, but quite funny. This film is very much along the same lines as "Zapped" and "Revenge of the Nerds" with a 90's twist. And the scene where he shrinks and he's in the girl's underwear is a classic scene that sticks in my memory to this day. It's a tragedy that this movie is not available on DVD or even video, for that matter. I give it 8 out of 10 votes.