Movie Review: Pick-Up

There are some movies that you pick up to watch that you have absolutely no idea what to expect. Pick-Up is one of those movies. It is a movie that defies logic, sense, and in some cases attention span. I found, while being somewhat intrigued by the happenings in the movie, I had to stop and back it up a few times as I found myself dozing off. It is the first movie in a 32 movie box set of Drive-In Classics that I have watched since getting the set a long time ago. It was also released in a Grindhouse Classics branded double feature some years ago.

Movie Review: The Turnpike Killer

There seem to be a lot of filmmakers out there intent on recapturing past glories. And by past glories, I mean stuff us genre fans have come to love about the past. Examples would be Tarantino's Death Proof as an ode to the grindhouse, and Adam Green's Hatchet series, paying homage to slashers. The problem is that horror, at least mainstream horror, is full of ironic touches and references. To make a true grindhouse type film is a chore, the classics were made with genuine earnestness, not made as a joke or to be funny. Now along comes The Turnpike Killer. It is not mainstream, it's not ironic, and it is not nice. This is grindhouse era exploitation.

Movie Review: The Headless Eyes

Barely released theatrically way back in 1971, The Headless Eyes appeared to be one of those grindhouse quickies that was destined to be forgotten, nothing more than a blip on a very large radar. However, the movie found renewed life in the VHS era when Charles Band and his Empire Video label got their hands on it and reintroduced it to the world as a movie that was “Too gory for the Silver Screen.” Of course, that is just a marketing line, this is nowhere near too gory for the movies, but Band knows how to sell stuff and this thought forgotten feature gained new legs through the late 1980's. Of course, that renewed interest seems to be short lived.

Trailer: Paperboy 3 - The Hard Way

There are some people out there keeping the low budget, do it yourself, anything goes aesthetic. The results can often be spectacularly entertaining. One of those slices of awesome is this Paperboy 3: The Hard Way, a faux trailer that takes the old school paper tossing game and turns it into a full blown, grindhouse inspired revenge flick. It amps up the blood and does not skimp on the body count. This trailer came my way a couple of days ago and it seriously made my day. It is fantastic, a labor of love, and is also a movie I would want to see! It was shot entirely with practical effects and was rendered to VHS, for that authentic old school flare. There really isn't anything not to like. If you are anything like me, you will love this! Check for yourself:

Movie Review: Drive Angry (SHOT IN 3D)

Wow. Guilty pleasure alert! Is it wrong of me to say that I loved Drive Angry? It is flawed, it a long drive away from the world of A-list material, and it stars everyone's favorite whipping boy, Nicolas Cage (well one of them anyway). This is a movie that attempts no cover-up of its B (Z?) grade material. I would say it embraces it, but even that would be wrong. This is a movie built on the lowbrow, bolstered by the preposterous, and succeeds on its execution of goofy, over-the-top material.