Made for less than a million dollars, the slightly obscure Dead End is a chilling little indie you don't want to miss. It might just be the best Christmas horror movie no one ever heard of and every dollar is up there on the screen. It's quirky, weird, funny, bizarre, and scary all at once. Black comedy for sure but much more, this would make a nice double feature with The Perfect Host, another movie we're big on around here. So, grab some eggnog and a snack or two and check out the inimitable Ray Wise with legendary Lin Shaye as they take their family down a wrong turn, what's up with this road? Why doesn't it end? After all, they're just trying to make it to Christmas Eve dessert at Frank's mother's house. Tubi, Plex, Freevee, enjoy! 2.75 stars/2.75
Greetings Fellow Movie Lovers! Hope this summer is a good one for ya, here's my 10th (wow) annual summer movies pick-five. A list of five suggestions for good summer movies and my favorites. Hope you find a new discovery or rediscover a old discovery ha ha Enjoy! TR
#1 - THE WAY WAY BACK (2013)
On the top of the list last couple years, a movie starring one of my all-time favorite actors Sam Rockwell. He runs a water park in Cape Cod and Liam James plays the misguided 14 year old vacationing close by. The lad's family is dysfunctional and he hates his egotist stepfather played excellently by Steve Carell. Finding refuge in the water park and a new friend in Rockwell, a charming and funny coming of age story develops. Cast and soundtrack are tops but I love everything about this movie from start to finish. From the producers of Little Miss Sunshine. 3.5 stars/5
#2 - SUMMER RENTAL (1985)
Like the #1 pick above, this is a movie that can really make you feel like you went away for the summer. John Candy (at his peak, before obesity and other things led to his decline) plays a burned-out air traffic controller who takes his family to Florida to live in a vacation rental for the summer. Various problems ensue all leading to a show-off between him, his family and a local boating champion (Richard Crenna in an unusual comedic role and he's great.) I think the film works because Candy just sticks to his lines and let's the script work instead of doing a bunch of goofy over the top stuff. This is, after all, a Carl Reiner film. Also look for the late, great Rip Torn in a super supporting role. 3.0 stars/5
#3 - MALIBU HIGH (1979)
Yes, this is where the sleazy dreams come in. An exploitation classic to say the least and a film we're big on around here, already featured twice in the B-Movie Of The Month spot. Making this piece of trashy sleaze all the more endearing and intriguing is the fact that it's lead actress not only looked twice the age of her role but puts in an overzealous, almost perfectly over-the-top performance only to seemingly vanish into thin air, never to be heard from again. She came, she came again, she conquered and in the process left us with one of the most beautifully trashy flicks of all time. 2.75 stars/2.75 Currently only available on DVD. I did find somebody's pretty decent up on YT here.
#4 - WHITE WATER SUMMER (1987)
Great Saturday morning kind of movie. Simple coming of age fare with Kevin Bacon as a wilderness instructor leading a group of teen students on a summer camp outing. Sean Astin plays our teenage protagonist who thinks he has his summer planned out in the city only to be bamboozled by his parents into going on the trip. Without giving too much away, Kevin Bacon becomes the counselor from hell. It's a guilty pleasure movie for sure but I'll raise my hand for the festivities and the soundtrack rocks with late -80's arena songs. Second year in a row on the list. 2.5 stars/ 5
#5 - 10 (1979)
The first movie to make the first list ten years ago, one of the all-time greatest romantic comedies before the term was even coined. Since you should already know all the wonderful reasons to see this movie, I decided this year to tell you the story of seeing it in the theater first run at age 17. I was a junior in a boarding school out in the middle of nowhere in the desert between Casa Grande and Tucson. It was my last chance as the school was specifically for trouble makers. Consequently it was very hard to near impossible to get any weed there, however on a Saturday night somewhere outside Phoenix the school dropped us all off in the parking lot and to my surprise two friends corralled me before we went in and one took out a pinner, I'm talking just like that scene in Up In Smoke, thinnest joint you've ever seen, a toothpick. To us though it looked like a Wonka Golden Ticket and with three of us it went quickly but we walked into the theater and joined the others, feeling quite nice. 3.25 stars/5
Is there anything Kevin Kline has starred in where he hasn't been great? As many titles as he has in his filmography, I'm sure there must be but I've certainly never seen one. Had his breakout role in Sophie's Choice been his only feature he would still deserve to be revered but now after several decades his list of accomplishments and awards throws him into the all-time greats category.
In this Irvin Winkler film he's spot-on as usual and by the time the inevitable tearjerker ending comes, you really feel for him and his family, you don't want him to die. Hayden Christensen is also outstanding as the difficult teenage son and was nominated for awards as was Kline.
Straight across the board, the movie scores points in all departments, for example, a sweet soundtrack and we love Jena Malone and Kristin Scott Thomas. But it's Kline you won't be able to take your eyes off - he grabs your attention from line one and never lets go. 3.25 stars/5
WE ALSO RECOMMEND
The Emperor's Club (2002)
Another mesmerizing Kline role as a teacher at an upscale boarding school
who goes up against a new misfit student played by a young Emile Hirsch. 3.25 stars/5
Six years with my Tommy's House Of Horrors blog and now four with B-Movie Gazette, this year marks the 10th anniversary for my great summer movies list. It's more of a gathering than a list per say but five movies that are summer themed and should be watched over the course of the summer. Looking forward to sharing this year's list with you all, TR
Hard to believe this one's coming up on thirty years old, holy crap, where does the time go? Oh yeah, watching movies! And this one is a long favorite about three pals growing up in Detroit, their escapades with a car they label "The War Wagon" and in particular, one night where crossing the bridge with a bunch of heroin in your spare tire just might not be a wise decision.
Binder's The Indian Summer, a movie he made before this but around the same era gets a lot more mention and accolades than this one, but this in my opinion is his masterpiece and certainly seems to be the one most associated with who he is as a person.
All three characters in the film have conflicts going on within their own personal lives and families but the War Wagon and their friendship keeps everything normal for them. Look for Richard Edson in one hell of a cameo as the drug dealer.
Pretty sweet early 70's soundtrack as well, the performances are all excellent especially Sedrick and Baldwin. A film I will never tire of recommending. 3.5 stars/5
Amid all the hubble bubble of last year's pandemic, election and protests, it may have been hard to notice we also lost a great actor who was gunned down in Atlanta, shot in the back multiple times by someone almost one-third his age. Very little is known about what happened or the cause of the altercation except that the two had some sort of argument or conflict inside a store hours earlier. The 30 yr old suspect was eventually arrested.
Funny as shit in Red Hook Summer, downright scary in Clockers, Byrd starred in a total of seven Spike Lee movies and was also a Tony-nominated Broadway vet. Tonight we pay tribute to his great work and while he may be gone, thanks to a little something we call cinema, we can pay him a visit in a lot of different ways. Vaya Con Dios, Mr Byrd!
