American Graffiti (1973)

Before George Lucas redefined modern cinema with the Star Wars universe, he brought us the quintessential coming-of-age comedy set in 1962, featuring fast cars, cute girls and the greatest rock 'n' roll soundtrack of all time. What this film captures so brilliantly is what it was like to live in that era during that last age of innocence, as Lucas pulls deeply from his own personal teenage memories. Featuring early performances from the likes of Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Harrison Ford and Suzanne Somers, it was a great launching pad for many careers and solidified Lucas as a competent and capable filmmaker (which would later become overshadowed by all those Star Wars films).

5 Wolfman Jack monologues out of 5

Hitman Redemption (2018)

aka Asher

Ron Perlman stars as an ageing hitman who's edging close to retirement, or whatever it is that passes for the same in his unusual profession. It's slow to develop, having more in common with Noir than a typical action movie.
It spends much of its time characterising the killer by showing how he spends his evenings alone. Alas, the benefits to that approach get smothered in the gloom. Its attempts at black humour work well enough on a surface level, making good use of Perlman's steadfastness, but again they don’t quite hit the mark when it comes to serving as commentary on deeper feelings.
It introduces into his moody and reflective loneliness a light in the form of Sophie (Famke Janssen), a ballet teacher who's struggling to cope with personal matters. The two aren't a perfect match, and the chemistry between them is pretty bland. If not for being a fan of Perlman I'd probably have lost interest in the relationship, and the movie itself, earlier than I ultimately did.

2½ sprinkler systems out of 5

Inserts (1975)

It's somewhat ironic that Dir. John Byrum's first feature was for twenty-one years lumbered with an X rating, considering it's a black comedy/satire/direct commentary on the movie business, the people that work in it, and the people that consume its output. At least, I think that's what it's about. It's not explicit in meaning, but it is explicit in other ways, hence the rating for sexual content.
Richard Dreyfuss plays a 1930s film-maker who's left the Hollywood system. Unable to deal with the 'talkies', he now spends his time shooting sleazy silent porn movies in his apartment, a location that the camera never leaves.
With just five characters, including Veronica Cartwright, who I'm a big fan of, it's like a stage play, in which the seemingly washed-up pornographer's interactions with the others reveals the naked truth about himself.

3 genre edicts out of 5

Piranha (2010)

With a much needed injection of comedy, effects and action, this remake actually exceeds the original. The explanation behind the piranha this time is a tiny bit more sound, but still very cliche. The film taking place during spring break gives an opportunity for a larger body count, more mayhem and ...ahem plenty of flesh. Surprisingly the CG is pretty decent, offering up some wild and gory scenes. Though there are a few overreaching moments. Despite a throw-away conclusion, the film has one of the most satisfyingly bloody climaxes on record and is well worth the ticket. 

3½ blatant Jaws references out of 5

JAWS [1975]

Director Steven Spielberg successfully scared people out of the water with his man vs nature adventure/thriller Jaws.
A sleepy island town is flipped upside down when a 20 foot long Great White Shark starts making tasty meals out of it's panicked citizens.
Effectively proving that showing more is less, Spielberg raises the b-movie premise into a top-class popcorn blockbuster that's endless nail-biting fun.  Like many of his films of the time it's about obsession and mostly chooses to ignore the potential social class themes floating around but never thoroughly studied.  There's some wonderful camera work made even better with John Williams' ominously simple iconic music and the late great Robert Shaw, who knows exactly what type of film he's in and has great old time playing it up for the camera with delightful exaggeration.

5 scars out of 5

Stand By Me (1986)

Four boys, half of them aware they're at a turning point in their lives, take a journey along the train tracks to find a missing boy of their own age. Along the way they laugh, cry, bond and mature in a coming of age drama penned by American author Stephen King.
It had been over a decade since I last watched SBM. The memories came flooding back from the outset. Dir. Rob Reiner understands the purity of youth; his pace can take the viewer back in time to their own childhood, on a wave of warm nostalgia that's able to stir feelings both happy and sad. It's a timeless piece of cinema that'll never cease being relevant to almost everyone.

4½ pennies and a pilgrimage out of 5

RED [2010]

Loosely inspired by Warren Ellis' comic book mini-series, Robert Schwentke's RED isn't everything it could have been but is still takes you out for a good joyride.

With a veteran cast made up of Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, Brian Cox and Richard Dreyfuss, it comes as a surprise that Mary Louise-Parker and Karl Urban are the real scene-stealers here.  It's an outrageous, funny, violent action-comedy that's based more on it's cast rather than the script.  Not great, but fun enough to kill two hours.

3 gun-stuffed pigs out of 5