American International Pictures is mostly associated with 1950’s and ’60s b-movie fare, most notably the works of Roger Corman. But the ’70s were no less of a productive decade for AIP than were the ’50s and ’60s. In that mustard yellow decade of Nixon, Ford, and Carter, AIP produced or distributed many of the notable films in the blaxploitation genre, while keeping to its horror and regular exploitation roots with such titles as The Incredible Melting Man and 1000 Convicts and a Woman. One thing all AIP flicks seem to have in common is a desire to make a quick buck while not being beholden to any higher purpose in cinema. That makes any viewer not just a customer of AIP, but something of a mark. There is a minimum expectation of quality in any random American film audience, despite what others think about our culture, and it was the rare AIP flick that managed to meet this standard, nor did they try. Meteor, distributed by AIP, is an excellent case in point. Continue reading “Shitty Movie Sundays: Meteor”
Month: April 2018
Trumpster Fire Day 462: Situation Normal
Rear Admiral Ronny Jackson, current Physician to the President, has withdrawn himself from consideration for leading the Department of Veterans Affairs. Once the press began looking into Dr. Ronny, they uncovered salacious details of Jackson’s personal conduct, including numerous bouts with booze, and a cavalier attitude towards the distribution of narcotics. Coupled with a reportedly epic temper, Jackson’s poor character was more than enough for the Senate to whisper that the nomination was doomed. So, bowing to the obvious, Jackson has declined the nomination. Continue reading “Trumpster Fire Day 462: Situation Normal”
Shitty Movie Sundays: Cyber Tracker
It’s the future! Sometime around 2015 or ’16. Professional kickboxing legend Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson plays Eric Phillips, the head of a Secret Service detachment guarding Senator Bob Dilly (John Aprea). Dilly, while not in Washington or running for reelection, has been working with mega-corporation Cybercore to develop the Computerized Justice System, whereby crimes are prosecuted by a computer, and swift justice is carried out by androids called ‘trackers.’ Should one be convicted of murder, a tracker will appear out of nowhere and carry out sentence. There’s nothing a person can do. No deals, no appeals. Continue reading “Shitty Movie Sundays: Cyber Tracker”
No Context Comics: Glop! Gulp!
Shitty Movie Sundays: Hot Rod Girl
We viewers have been cheated! A 1950s flick with the title of Hot Rod Girl brings to mind all sorts of possibilities. Fast cars! Loose women! Police chases! Crime! Mayhem! Et cetera! What it does not bring to mind is a traffic safety film, which is about all this shitty movie amounts to.
From 1956, Hot Rod Girl comes to us via American International Pictures, that paragon of b-cinema. It was directed by Leslie H. Martinson (who would later direct the Adam West Batman movie), from a screenplay by John McGreevey. Both Martinson and Greevey spent the vast majority of their careers working in television, and that helps to explain this film’s strong resemblance to an after school special.
Hot Rod Girl does not star Lori Nelson as hot rodder Lisa Vernon. Sure, she is in the movie playing a hot rodder named Lisa Vernon, but despite the promise of the title, and the first scene of the movie, Lisa is not the main character. We’ve been had. It’s a bait and switch. The real star of the movie is John Smith (yes, that is how he was billed) as Jeff Northrup. Continue reading “Shitty Movie Sundays: Hot Rod Girl”
Cocksuckers Ball: So Long, Jerk
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has announced that he will not seek reelection to his seat this fall. It appears Ryan has bought into the narrative that the midterm elections this fall will be a wave for the Democrats, and he should get out while the getting is good. Never mind that, as Speaker, his caucus looks to him for leadership in both good times and bad. Now is a particularly bad time, and he’s hightailing it out of Washington. Continue reading “Cocksuckers Ball: So Long, Jerk”
Empty Balcony: The Titan
Movies that premiere on Netflix have been banned from competition at the Cannes Film Festival. In an action that is part snobbishness and part an effort to protect theater owners, Cannes has drawn a line in the sand. To them, if a new movie is available to stream on television or other device, then it’s not really a movie. That’s absurd. Theater owners have cause to be worried that their business model might be obsolete, because it is. The best thing theaters have going for them is getting first run movies. Netflix is at the forefront of destroying that partial monopoly, and with home media having better picture and sound than ever before, watching a film at home is no longer a subpar experience compared to watching it in a theater. Continue reading “Empty Balcony: The Titan”
Trumpster Fire Day 442: Another Rant About the Turdpol
The President of the United States is as close to out of control as one of our presidents has ever been. The mass exodus among White House and cabinet staff has denuded the administration of checks on Donald Trump’s worst instincts. In just the last couple of weeks, he’s been trying, against massive amounts of pushback from just about everyone on the planet, to start trade wars with any takers. China has stepped into the ring, and our leader seems determined to go tit-for-tat with China’s response to Trump’s tariffs. Continue reading “Trumpster Fire Day 442: Another Rant About the Turdpol”
Shitty Movie Sundays: Death Machines
This shitty movie is so obscure that, as of this posting, it doesn’t have a Wikipedia page. That’s hard to believe. Usually if something exists, and more than a few dozen people know about it, it has a Wikipedia page. Far worse movies than this have Wikipedia pages. Far less hilarious shitty movies than this have Wikipedia pages. One of those free laborers they have slaving away over there should address this grievous oversight. Continue reading “Shitty Movie Sundays: Death Machines”