B-Movie Gazette: KIRSTEN DUNST, CHARLIE CHAPLIN AND MURDER MYSTERY ABOARD A 1920's YACHT AS HOLLYWOOD PARTIES IN PETER BOGDANOVICH's "THE CAT'S MEOW" (2001)

B-MOVIE OF THE MONTH - DEAD END (2003)

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

Sunday, January 23, 2022

KIRSTEN DUNST, CHARLIE CHAPLIN AND MURDER MYSTERY ABOARD A 1920's YACHT AS HOLLYWOOD PARTIES IN PETER BOGDANOVICH's "THE CAT'S MEOW" (2001)

As movie lovers around the world tribute the passing of Peter Bogdanovich, I thought I would chime in with one of his lesser-known works, 2001's The Cat's Meow. It's a Hollywood biopic about a weekend cruise that really happened aboard a 200-foot luxury yacht in the 1920's.

It's a movie mogul's birthday and various characters are aboard including silent film stars, a publishing magnate, a few mistresses and a movie critic. Everyone has some sort of reason to be underhanded or stab another one in the back. Dramas unfold and a murder takes place that was never solved, the film is Bognanovich's take on what really happened.

The yacht deserves equal billing ha ha as it's a gorgeous boat and the interiors where most of the film takes place are shot wonderfully. Jennifer Tilly has never been better as the movie critic Louella Parsons. Highly recommend, streaming free now on Tubi 3.0 stars/5