Things Change is the sweetest gangster movie you’ll ever see. The film is the brainchild of a scriptwriting odd couple: David Mamet and Shel Silverstein. While Mamet is known for his hard-boiled tales of rogues and lowlifes, Silverstein built his reputation on whimsical books for children. Somehow, Things Change balances these contrasting styles into a very entertaining and unique final product. Continue reading
Blind Fury is a fun little chunk of 1980s action cheese about a blind Vietnam War vet played by Rutger Hauer who fights with a sword hidden in his cane to protect a bratty kid from gangsters. The film is a weird grab-bag of R-rated violence, cornball comedy and the occasional stab at melodrama. Overall, it’s 25% intentionally silly, 25% unintentionally silly, and 50% actually pretty cool. You won’t always be sure whether you’re laughing at the film or with it, and it doesn’t really matter. Continue reading
The Toxic Avenger is a grotesquely violent and outrageously campy splatterfest that should not be seen by anyone with any sense of decency or good taste. This is the film that essentially launched Troma Entertainment, the legendary schlockmeisters who brought you Poultrygeist, Class of Nuke’Em High, and the South Park crew’s very first foray into film, Cannibal: The Musical! Any film responsible for all that is worth a watch. Continue reading
Miami Connection is about Tae Kwon Do blackbelt orphans who play in a rock band called Dragon Sound and fight a motorcycle gang of drug-dealing ninjas. I don’t think a feature film could physically contain more awesomeness than that. Of course, the execution could not possibly live up to that premise. The film is a bizarre hodgepodge of half-baked ideas, regrettable attempts at drama, clumsy stabs at comedy, terrible synth rock music and graphic ninja violence. It’s amazing. Continue reading
Streets of Fire is a unique action movie written and directed by the underappreciated Walter Hill. Billed as a “Rock ‘n Roll Fable,” it’s set in an alternate-reality 1980s where the styles and culture of the 1950s never died. This is a world of hot rods, greasers, diners and rockabilly. With its focus on a gritty but fantastical setting, the film can be easily seen a spiritual successor to Hill’s previous film The Warriors, which also dealt with street crime in a brutal but oddly fanciful world. Continue reading
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