The Devil’s Rain, the mafia-financed(!) horror flick from 1975, is blessed with a dubious honor — it made Roger Ebert’s list of most hated films. Roger Ebert was a brilliant film critic, but something of a stick in the mud. Sure, this film is silly, the plot meanders and is sometimes contradictory, and the ending is far too drawn out, but I can think of many, many more films to hate before even considering The Devil’s Rain. In fact, I don’t have to think about it at all, since I have a list handy, and The Devil’s Rain is better than any movie in the bottom fifty in said list. So there, Roger. Continue reading “October Horrorshow: The Devil’s Rain”
Some of Those Responsible: Keenan Wynn
October Horrorshow: Piranha (1978)
What a classic drive-in schlockfest. From the Roger Corman stable, Piranha could have been just another cheap Jaws ripoff, à la The Last Shark. But Corman hired filmmakers with some genuine talent to write and direct. He was way too tight to give them a budget, but their skills allowed them to weave some shitty gold.
John Sayles wrote the screenplay and Joe Dante directed. This was very early in both their careers, and they have since gone on to greater things. But I wouldn’t call this a humble beginning. By 1978, when this flick was released, Corman had been in business for decades. The flicks he produces are not humble — they are just cheap. Continue reading “October Horrorshow: Piranha (1978)”
Shitty Movie Sundays: Orca
There are plenty of people to blame for this shitty movie. There’s director Michael Anderson, producers Dino De Laurentiis and Luciano Vincenzoni; maybe even star Richard Harris. While their culpability would hold up in a court of law, the person I hold the most accountable is Steven Spielberg. If he had not ushered in the era of the blockbuster with Jaws, there is no way in hell anyone, anywhere, at any time in cinematic history, would have made Orca. Well, maybe the guys over at Asylum would have...but not in 1977. Continue reading “Shitty Movie Sundays: Orca”