Superman III had some seriously big boots to fill. Superman: The Movie had a huge budget for its time (a cool $55 million), talented writers (including Mario Puzo) and a cast to die for (Marlon Brando, anyone?) An unknown actor, Christopher Reeve, was cast as the Man of Steel, which was a considerable risk. The …
Continue reading Computers, Comedy and Camp- Making the Case for Superman III (1983)
‘A former circus artist escapes from a mental hospital to rejoin his armless mother - the leader of a strange religious cult - and is forced to enact brutal murders in her name as he becomes "her arms".’ Talk about generic plots! This is an Alejandro Jodorowsky film, you know, the man who made El …
Continue reading Shocking Cinema- Day 43- Santa Sangre (1989)
More double-crossing now, with twins being perfectly suited for this. This David Cronenberg movie stars Jeremy Irons as twin gynaecologists with one twin, the narcissistic Elliot, seducing and then discarding some of the women who come to their practice with his more submissive and introverted twin Beverly taking over from Elliot in the relationship but …
Continue reading Shocking Cinema- Day 42- Dead Ringers (1988)
A film producer survives a car crash but then finds that he was left aroused by the whole experience. He seeks others who are also turned on by these events. Back in 1996, the controversy surrounding this film made headlines in the UK, with calls to ban it before its release (the spirit of Mary …
Claude Lanzmann’s nine-and-a-half-hour documentary on the Holocaust. Survivors, perpetrators and bystanders talk. The sites are shown as they are now. There is no archive footage of the camps in operation. This is the other side of Night and Fog. Resnais used the images so the atrocity could never be downplayed. Lanzmann refuses them. He makes …
A sullen teenager, Tom, is upset about his family's move from London to rural Devon. But then a dark family secret is revealed, changing everything. The War Zone is actor Tim Roth’s directorial debut, and he does a great job directing it. The fact that he chose a story involving such a thorny issue as …
Continue reading Shocking Cinema- Day 38- The War Zone (1999)
Elephant chronicles an average day in the life of a Portland, Oregon high school. But this is anything but an ordinary day as there is a school shooting. Gus Van Sant was inspired by the Columbine High School shooting to make this film. There’s so much to applaud here. Introducing characters by name on screen, …
Alain Resnais’ half-hour examination of German concentration camps. This is as shocking as you imagine it to be with the most graphic footage being (rightly) included so the atrocity of the Holocaust is never forgotten or downplayed. But the film also examines the thinking behind the camps, whether it’s their commission, planning, construction, or maintenance. …
Continue reading Shocking Cinema- Day 35- Night and Fog (1956)
A doctor, Andrew Bagby is found murdered in a park in Pennsylvania. His lifelong friend plans a documentary about his life featuring interviews with his family and friends along with clips from the short films Andrew starred in when they were growing up. There’s much more I could post about this feature, but I don’t …
Continue reading Shocking Cinema- Day 34- Dear Zachary (2008)
Feature-length Studio Ghibli animated film about two orphaned siblings who struggle to survive and stay together during the final months of the Pacific War. This is more animation that's strictly not for kids. In fact, just like The Plague Dogs, this is a harrowing, haunting watch. The innocence of the children in the face of …
Continue reading Shocking Cinema- Day 33- Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
