Jan-Michael Vincent in Baby Blue Marine (1976).

One Dress a Day Challenge

August: Fantasy & Sci-Fi

Logan's Run / Jenny Agutter as Jessica 6

Nice dress she's almost wearing...

Logan meets Jessica when he chooses her from a directory of sex partners to be teleported to his room for an evening, which explains her not-quite-there dress. Ironically, this is actually the longest dress she wears in the whole movie, as the dystopian society where they live functions entirely on miniskirts. Plus, it's the future, so everything's sparkly!

I kid, but it does work with the aesthetic of the movie. There's a good writeup of the film's overall costume design here. The costume designer was Bill Thomas, whose other credits included, of all things, Mary Poppins!

𖥔 ࣪ ˖ 59. carrie (1976) dir. brian de palma

The Man Who Fell to Earth

This is a bit of an older piece with my former username on it, but I still feel inclined to share!

scene depicts Thomas Jerome Newton and Mary Lou. :)

The Human Tornado (1976)

Dolemite is back and he’s… better than before? worse than before? Hard to say. One thing’s for sure, The Human Tornado is not a good movie but it sure is fun to watch. With great quotable lines, cartoon characters for villains, a self-deprecating sense of humour and plenty of technical flubs for you to poke fun at, it’s continuously enjoyable and always in new ways.

After Dolemite (Rudy Ray Moore) is caught in bed with the racist sheriff’s wife, he is framed for her murder. On the run with his friends, they head to California to meet Queen Bee (Lady Reed), a succesful club/brother owner. The local mob boss, Joe Cavaletti (Herb Graham) isn’t too happy about his diminishing profits and has kidnapped two of her girls. Dolemite and his impossible charm & virility is just what she needs to find out where they’re held.

You might consider this a better film than “Dolemite” because the script is better organized than its predecessor's. Moore’s trademark rhyming standup is still here, but instead of the plot coming to a screeching halt in a parking lot so he can impress people who just happen to be there, we get a scene setting up his newfound success as a comedian before the plot kicks off. His patented expressions and speech mannerisms are peppered throughout as ways for him to express his disdain for others (you rat-soup eatin’ mother f#cker!) or his surprise (b*tch, are you for real?!) writing them down does not do them justice. His delivery is hilarious. Something must be said about the film being perfectly aware of what it is. On one occasion, Moore/Dolemite breaks the fourth wall and re-plays one of the film’s “better” stunts to prove to us that he really did do that jump. The racist Sheriff on his tail is so racist and so over-the-top he might as well be an R-rated Yosemite Sam. It’s hard not to laugh at him or at the scene where we learn why Dolemite is called The Human Tornado.

Everything that made Dolemite a bad, but enjoyable picture is here too. The fight choreography is awful. Kicks and punches obviously miss by a mile and scenes are clearly sped up to make them seem more dynamic. Anyone with eyes can tell Moore could never, ever defeat the enemies the way he does in this film - martial arts training or not. As for the writing, "amateurish" is a generous term. When Dolemite and his buddies get to California, the film wastes time by having them wander from one place to another, looking for Queen Bee. It’s almost as if the clubs they visit are only there because they helped pay for this shoddy production. It makes you wonder how much of what you see was made “bad” on purpose, which makes it delightful. There's a psychedelic sex scene during the second half whose setup is ludicrous. I’ve seen more realistic scenarios in XXX-rated films. You think it’s just a gag but the follow-up is trying to be artsy in such a weird way it kind of makes you want to see the whole thing again, just to determine how you should feel about it.

There’s A LOT of nudity throughout, which might make some viewers uncomfortable. I say if you can’t be good, be sleazy. It makes up for the lack of over-the-top and shoddily-created gore I usually like to see at this level of filmmaking. Some of the intentional gags get tiresome pretty quick, however. Dolemite doing fake screams while revving himself up for a brawl is smile-worthy - at best - the first time around. Whenever he does it again afterward, you start reaching for the tomatoes.

I must also speak to you of another scene, one of my favourites because it unintentionally sends the wrong message. Dolemite and his (mostly useless) buddies are hitchhicking to California. They realize no one in America will stop their car to pick up this many Black men at once. It’s a harsh truth. So what do they do? All of them but one hide in the bushes and when a car stops, they pull out a gun, hold the driver hostage and force their way in the car. Guys! THIS is the reason why people don’t stop their cars to pick up Black hitchhickers!

With stereotypes aplenty, too many bare breasts to count, action scenes that’ll have you howling, a ridiculous plot and genuine enthusiasm from people who really wanted to make the best, most entertaining film they could, The Human Tornado is a great movie to sit down and watch at with friends. It’s what Moore would’ve wanted and he probably wouldn't even mind that you're laughing at the film, rather than with it. (April 9, 2021)

Movie poster by Zoltán Herpai for the 1984 Hungarian release of Dino de Laurentiis’ King Kong.

I haven't posted this here so now is the time to do it🎃✌🏻

Carrie (1976) / The Virgin Suicides (1999)

'Rocky: The Knockout Collection' 4K Review

The following review was written by Ultimate Rabbit correspondent, Tony Farinella. When it comes to the genre of underdog sports films, they don’t make them any better than the original “Rocky.”  It was a film that came along at the right place at the right time and with the right actor.  After all, Sylvester Stallone was the writer of the original “Rocky” script, and he demanded to star in the…

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Carrie (1976)

Baby Blue Marine (1976).

One Dress a Day Challenge

Black and White October

The Innocent (L'Innocente) / Jennifer O'Neil as Teresa Raffo

This film has quite a few really nice black-and-white outfits. This one is an evening dress with a dotted net layer over an ivory base that looks like satin. The black "V" effects in front and back, plus the black gloves and ribbon at her neck, create a dramatic contrast. The shoulders are decorated with little bows and sprays of silver berries. All in all, it's extremely chic and appropriate for a character who's supposed to be the toast of the town.

CARRIE

1976, dir. Brian de Palma

Sissy Spacek | Carrie

Carrie (1976)

Carrie is more frightening, and more relevant than ever. Although there are a few (two) rough spots, the cast is perfect, the imagery is iconic and the characters resonate like they were written for the screen yesterday. You couldn’t imagine anyone taking another crack at this story and making it work as well as director Brian DePalma.

Shy, lonely Carrie (Sissy Spacek) is constantly tormented at school and suffers an even worse fate at home thanks to her mentally unstable religious zealot of a mother (Piper Laurie). After a particularly harsh round of bullying, two of Carrie's classmates (Amy Irving and William Katt) and her phys-ed teacher, Miss Collins (Betty Buckley) take pity upon the girl and invite her to prom night. They don't know Christine "Chris" Hargensen (Nancy Allen) and her boyfriend, Billy (John Travolta) are planning on ruining the evening. Meanwhile, Carrie discovers that she possesses telekinetic abilities.

The screenplay by Lawrence D. Cohen nails its characters. You don’t get much more of an underdog than Carrie. At first, she's so reserved and broken that she’s almost a non-entity. When this invitation to prom comes her way, you think "This could be the one thing that turns it all around". Carrie is getting cruelly stomped on by pretty much everyone there is but the worst of them all is Chris. There’s no reason for her to dislike Carrie as much as she does; Chris has looks, friends and a boyfriend that’s wrapped all around her finger. She could just let the poor girl be but refuses to. You can’t wait to see her get knocked down to where she belongs.

Just when you think things couldn’t get any worse for Carrie, you meet her mother, Mrs White. This mom’s a whole other bag of crazy, the kind of person everyone in town knows about and dislikes. She’s always ranting and raving about these poisonous ideas. It takes about 10 seconds for you to realize there’s no getting through to her no matter what kind of angle or tactic you use. Better to just politely walk away and be done with the madwoman as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, Carrie does not have that option. Piper Laurie brings an intensity to the role that’ll have your blood boiling. She dominates the screen like a mountain and all Carrie can do is shrink and obey.

It takes a while for Sissy Spacek’s character to crawl out from the hole she’s been forced into, which is why the actress’ look is key to bringing Carrie to life. You completely believe her in every scene she’s in because she’s got such an unusual look to her. She isn’t ugly but she looks like she’s never smiled in her life without getting slapped five seconds later. You see this young woman and your mind extrapolates an entire childhood of misery.

And then, Carrie begins to discover her abilities… that’s when things change completely. Most people probably already know the film’s big scenes, the ones that come right at the end and confirm that you are indeed watching a horror movie. If, for a second, you can ignore what you already know, Carrie feels like a different kind of picture. It’s a high school drama that could end with a sweet sort of romance. This tone threatens to trick you into believing that you’re watching something else, particularly with the funny little scenes where the boys are going shopping for their tuxes and Carrie is getting ready for the prom. You see how this story COULD end, which makes the conclusion - stylishly shot with great uses of the color red - feel that much bigger.

Even if you “know” what happens to Carrie, you don’t actually know the movie unless you’ve seen it front to end. It’s a horror film that plays with you. It gives you hope and then smashes it to dust. The performances are fantastic and the characters so real you latch onto them instantly. It’s a great horror film that you can never forget. (On Blu-ray, March 5, 2020)