B-MOVIE OF THE MONTH - KLONDIKE FEVER (1979)

Canadian director Peter Carter was best known for the B-movie masterpiece Rituals, which, many movie lovers think beat Deliverance at its own game. He died sadly at 49 of a sudden heart attack but not before leaving us with a few other gems like Highpoint with Richard Harris and this sorely overlooked Western drama. Klondike Fever tells the story of Jack London (Jeff East) and his partner (Robin Gammel) as they journey to stake their claim and hopefully take home their weight in gold. It's adventurous, epic in scope with a huge cast and suitable for the whole darn family. Of particular note is Robin Gammel, excellent and funny, Gordon Pinsent who kills it as the crafty "Swiftwater" and an '80's actress who I never tire of mentioning, the lovely Lisa Langlois. It's super cornball along the way and sometimes feels like an afternoon children's special but this is a great film and surprisingly it won a bunch of Genie awards to back that up. Klondike Fever, playing above and on Tubi which recently uploaded a much nicer version than the VHS transfer that they used to have. 2.75 stars/2.75

Sunday, July 21, 2024

HARVEY KEITEL SETS UP A JEWELRY ROBBERY ONLY TO BE BACK-STABBED BY HIS GETAWAY DRIVER STEPHEN DORFF IN "CITY OF INDUSTRY" (1987)

 

Good ole Harvey Keitel, always good at playing the heavy.  

Here's one from a year that was very kind to cinema, 1987. A steady and effective neo-noir thriller or heist thriller. I have no idea why it's called City Of Industry when most of the movie takes place in Palm Springs and LA. Nonetheless, a standard plot - jewelry heist planned by four guys (including Timothy Hutton) goes awry when the getaway driver (Stephen Dorff) backstabs the whole group by taking off with the loot. The rest of the movie is basically devoted to Keitel tracking down the driver so he can get revenge. 

It may be a standard plot but the more-than-worthy cast take it to the moon. I also like that there's no unnecessary subplots that distract from the action, it moves along at a nice brisk pace. Several great actresses here, of particular note is the always welcome but not seen enough, Dana Barron (National Lampoon's European Vacation,) who has a small but very sexy role here. 

City Of Industry currently streams on Tubi or VOD.  3.0 stars/5

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B-MOVIE GAZETTE RATING SYSTEM

5 Stars - Only awarded to the precious few.
4 Stars - Excellent, see by all means.
3 Stars - Very Good, you should like.
2 Stars - Fair, like a frozen dinner.
1 Star - Poor, like a spoiled dinner.

ALL B-MOVIES, DRIVE-IN MOVIES AND TV MOVIES HAVE A MAX AWARD OF 2.75 STARS.