Fright Night (1985)

An 80s vampire flick that many genre fans feel is a cult classic... You can probably already guess where this is going: I'm in the opposite camp, identifying with the folks that feel it's overrated and mostly not very good.
It's about seventeen-year-old Charley Brewster (William Ragsdale), who believes that his new neighbour (Chris Sarandon) is a blood-sucking creature of the night, but Charley's friends and family doubt his suspicions.
The comedy's weak and the characters limp. Roddy McDowall's late night TV horror host, the genre-referencing Peter Vincent, had emotive potential, but the script failed him, too. Where the film triumphs is in its special effects, courtesy of the team from Ghostbusters (1984). Unfortunately, you'll have to sit though a lot of crap to get to their best contribution, which is the finale.

2½ sundown chimes out of 5

The War of the Worlds (1953)

Even though it changes much — including moving events from Victorian Britain to modern-day California — the US made version of H.G. Wells' famous novel is still recognisably War of the Worlds, with whole scenes and certain important themes firmly in place. Unsurprisingly, American concerns pervade, with commentary on other nations left to a nameless narrator (Cedric Hardwicke).
The alien 'tripod' design got changed for financial and logistical reasons. but the result is fortuitously unforgettable. The eerie green glow, sound effects and unsettling music add additional threat to an iconic and overwhelmingly dramatic menace that's equipped with a devastating killer heat ray.
In general the pacing is excellent, but the ending is abrupt. The film's biggest shortcoming, however, is its closing affirmation, which could've easily added a lingering ambiguity but instead feels like tacked on societal pandering.

4 unsympathetic intellects out of 5

Badlands (1973)

A tale of love and murder set in 1959 South Dakota. Martin Sheen plays a disillusioned twenty-five-year-old named Kit, a Korean War veteran who charms naïve fifteen-year-old Holly (Sissy Spacek). The duo shun the modern world, existing for a time in a self-made haven that works in theory but can't rid Kit of his aggressive inner-feelings. As such, trouble isn't far away.
The slow pace is helped by a philosophical voice-over from Sissy's character, reflective of her world-view but influenced by a mature hindsight and somehow complementary to the strange serenity that Dir. Terrence Malick infuses mundane activities with. It was his début feature but has his unique stamp throughout, as if he came to film-making fully formed.

3 empty bathtubs out of 5

Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)

aka Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth

James Mason stars as a professor of geology who receives a rare gift from a student, sparking an adventure into the unknown depths of the Earth.
The works of French novelist Jules Verne have been inspiring film-makers for over 100 years, but not all of the resultant films are good. JttCotE's budget meant it had to excise a large amount of what the travellers encounter during their subterranean adventure, but the sets are inventive and the script, despite its changes and additions, tries its best. Alas, the pacing is problematic and the outdated attitudes of the main characters (sexism, self-importance, boorishness, arrogance, etc) make them difficult to sympathise with. An enjoyment of the movie means that an enjoyment of Verne — or rather Hollywood's interpretation of the same — is something of a prerequisite.

2½ frayed cuffs out of 5

Quo Vadis (1951)

A Hollywood epic set three decades after the crucifixion of Jesus, it follows the pursuits of an arrogant Roman army commander (Robert Taylor), whose lust for Deborah Kerr precludes a shit-storm of woe for almost everyone involved. The duo's feelings are often upstaged by the production values, but the highlight is Peter Ustinov as Nero, a self-important Emperor that lives in a bubble of his own-making, unaware that his needs are childlike and tactless. 

The film fails to make its love story particularly successful but succeeds with themes of manipulation and madness; although, perhaps not fully in the way that was intended. Putting the notions 'I am a god' and the equally lunatic 'God speaks to me' on opposing sides of a sympathetic line is Hollywood of old forcing a bias toward crowd-pleasing values, one that weakens the story.

3½ poetic sufferings out of 5

Excalibur (1981)

Set in 'the dark ages' of man, Dir. John Boorman's version of the Arthurian myth is unusual, to say the least. The acting is at times laughable, and the casting questionable, but I've a great fondness for it, regardless, thanks mostly to its chrome-domed version of Merlin (Nicol Williamson), who's perhaps the most memorable aspect, for good or ill. Personally, I think he's wonderful.
The feeling of ancient magic that's crucial to the era is present, accentuated with unrealistic and/or diffused lighting and softness. That it occasionally and unintentionally resembles Monty Python just adds to the fun.
The differing accents may be a hurdle for viewers not familiar with the wide range that exists within the UK, but anyone with an open mind who's seeking a bold retelling of an old story could do a lot worse than to check it out.

3½ future dreams out of 5

The Death of the Incredible Hulk (1990)

The final outing for the Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno incarnation of the troubled character(s) has Banner working as a nighttime cleaner at a lab, so that he can slip in after hours and work on the development of a new gamma formula. All goes well, until tragedy rears its head and the green fury is unleashed.
The theme of family is central. So too is change, which connects to the other at various points along the way with varying degrees of success. But best of all, unlike the previous two TV movies it has no backdoor pilot aspirations, which means there's no extra Marvel character, and it's all the better for it.
The blunt title could be suggestive of deeper meanings, at least to people that think beyond the obvious, because every time the human side of the character selflessly leaves a friend or loved one behind he dies a little inside.

3 growth factors out of 5

The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (1989)

Hoping to avoid conflict lest his inner Hulk surfaces, travelling lonely man David Banner (Bill Bixby) settles in a densely populated city, a place that's typically ass-hole central. As if to prove that his choice of locale isn't the dumbest thing he can do that day, he takes a ride on the subway, too.
In that same city is a blind attorney named Matt Murdock (Rex Smith), aka Daredevil. And where there's DD, there's Wilson Fisk (John Rhys-Davies), a crime boss with aspirations of becoming head of a vast criminal network.
Serving once again as a pilot for a series that didn't emerge, the story puts DD to the fore, with Hulk in a more secondary role. There's a kindred spirit element to the duo's relationship that makes it more textured than the Thor story, but it's still something that will appeal mostly to existing fans.

3 night happenings out of 5

The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988)

It's been two years since David Banner (Bill Bixby) burst his shirt and trousers. He's in a stable relationship and working on a gamma transponder that could potentially rid him of his alter ego forever, but a face from his past upsets the apple cart, and pesky reporter Jack McGee (Jack Colvin) is on his trail again.
Both a continuation of The Incredible Hulk TV series and a backdoor pilot for a Thor series that never happened (herein played by Eric Kramer), the movie flits between serious drama (Banner) and light-hearted nonsense (Thor). The beardless Asgardian has a memorable scene that teases a poetic soul, but mostly he's simply a larger than life hero who also happens to be a fish out of water. Ultimately, it's a standard hero team-up that both goes against the established grain of the Hulk series and respects its enduring melancholy.

2½ troll remarks out of 5

Zardoz (1974)

Dir. John Boorman's futuristic fantasy is a cinematic marvel; that doesn't mean it's good, just that it's a damned pretty film and as bonkers as it is daring.

It stars Sean Connery as an exterminator named Zed, whose job is to cull the human breeding population so that his god, the titular Zardoz, will be appeased. But when Zed crosses a dividing line and mingles with a closed society of aimless immortals, his presence disrupts their colourful dark age.

The phrase 'dazzle with brilliance or baffle with bullshit' has rarely seemed so apt. Its playful philosophy and eccentricities are entertaining for a while, but what's most perplexing is how something so concerned with creativity and colour can be so obtusely boring and routine for long periods of time. Even so, I'm glad it exists because such diversity enriches the cinematic landscape.

2½ memory images out of 5

The Third Window Films Collection

Of all the so-called 'boutique' labels that continue to licence and distribute film on optical media, none is more consistently interesting to me than UK-based Third Window Films. I don’t buy every title the company release, I’m not that kind of collector, I buy only the ones that I’m interested in, but that in itself is a significant portion of what TWF have on their roster. Because of that discerning approach you won’t find links to every TWF film below the cut, but you'll find all of what I presently own (and a few from past Nutshell authors).