Classic Thunderbirds Movie Poster Art

On this day in 1965 the first episode of Thunderbirds premiered. We only got 32 episodes and two movies but the show's influence lives on. FAB!

 

Classic Red Sonja Comic Book Cover Gallery

Behind the Scenes Photos from Gerry Anderson Shows!

Video - CRASH (1971)

This BBC film is the first attempt to bring J. G. Ballard's story to the screen as a short. It is pretty darned interesting and actually stars Ballard as the main character! Directed by Harley Cokeliss (BLACK MOON RISING) it is an effective version of what Cronenberg would eventually turn into a feature. 

The Bloody Pit #157 - RED SONJA (1985)

Cort Psyops returns to the show to talk sword and sorcery!

 

RED SONJA (1985) is a film that gets very little respect even among hardcore cult film fans. Cort and I feel this is an oversight and we take about two and half hours to make our case! Hopefully you will join us on our quest.

 

Both of us are coming off of seeing the film on high-definition disc which enhances our appreciation of the visuals, especially the old school special effects craftsmanship. Who cares if that strange giant spider doesn’t really work! Wheel that sucker out there and photograph it correctly for the desired effect.

 

We discuss the movie’s strange production with last minute casting of the lead and extended participation from Arnold Schwarzenegger bending the story into different shape. I lament the lack of a novelization but I do point out some fascinating information that can be gleaned from the Marvel comics adaptation. We discuss the multi-ethnic cast, the gorgeous cinematography and the incredible production design that shows off every penny of the budget. We talk a bit about the slight differences that make for a PG-13 rating rather than an R with this film flashing enough blood to make us wish for a more violent cut. The film’s stunt coordinator is given his due as we praise the visceral feel of the sword fights as well as the many ways that the wonderful score brings the entire movie to life. This really is a fun adventure film and I’m glad to see that it has aged well.

 

If you also love this odd sword & sorcery film thebloodypit@gmail.com is where you can send your memories of seeing it for the first time. Are you like Cort who caught it between HBO screening s of BEASTMASTER? Or did you get to see it in the theater in 1985? Podcasters want to know! And thanks for listening. 

What I Watched in August 2022

An excellent film that you should see with as little foreknowledge as possible. Seriously. See it now. It is easily one of the best films of the year. 

THE LIST

CAVALIER IN DEVIL’S CASTLE (1959) – 6 (interesting castle-set adventure in need of restoration)

THE BIG BOODLE (1957) – 5 (Cuban set Errol Flynn crime tale)

THE BEAST MUST DIE (1974) – 8 (rewatch on Blu) (somehow better with the passing years)

THE DORM THAT DRIPPED BLOOD (1982) - 4 (low budget slasher)

THE BLACK WINDMILL (1974) – 8 (solid spy/crime tale with Michael Caine)

DOGS (1976) – 6 (David McCallum in an oddly apocalyptic animal attack story)

NOPE (2022) – 9

THE APE (1940) – 6 (rewatch on Blu)

CAPTAIN KIDD AND THE SLAVE GIRL (1954) – 5 (would love to see it in color)

REVENGE OF THE SHOGUN WOMEN (1977) – 6 (in 3-D!)

A CAT IN THE BRAIN (1990) - 4 (pieced together mess)

THE CANDY SNATCHERS (1973) – 7 (rewatch on Blu)

RED SONJA (1985) – 6 (rewatch on Blu)

VENGEANCE OF THE ZOMBIES (1972) – 6 (rewatch on Blu)

SUKKUBUS (1989) – 6 (fascinating German film about a Swiss legend)

HIRUKO – THE GOBLIN (1990) – 6 (Japanese demon fighters)

PROMETHEUS (2012) – 9 (rewatch on Blu)

BOOGIE NIGHTS (1997) – 9 (rewatch)

MAGNUM COP (1978) – 7

MIDNIGHT (1982) – 4 (pretty bad low budget horror)

FORCE: FIVE (1981) – 4 (pretty bad martial arts action thing)

DieCast Movie Podcast - WIVES UNDER SUSPICION (1938)

I once again join Steven Turek on the DieCast Movie Podcast! This time out we discuss yet another James Whale film WIVES UNDER SUSPICION (1938). This is part 15 of the show’s loving look at Whale’s career but this one stands out as a true oddity. It is a remake of the director’s earlier effort THE KISS BEFORE THE MIRROR (1933) with that film’s Pre-Code frankness blunted in interesting ways in this second version. A few months ago Steven and I talked at length about the first film so we wanted to return to the story out of cinematic curiosity. Comparing the two movies makes for a pretty darned good conversation and shows how Hollywood had to adapt material to avoid censor board attention. Check it out!

Godzilla Information!

This is exactly the kind of information I have needed all along! 

Happy Breakaway Day!

Time to celebrate all things Space: 1999.  And for those of you who don't know what I'm talking about just check out the primer video above. 

Review - Death of the Planet of the Apes

I recently read ‘Death of the Planet of the Apes’ by Andrew E. C. Gaska and thoroughly enjoyed it. The idea was to envision the details between PLANET OF THE APES (1968) and its first sequel BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES (1970). BENEATH has always been my favorite of the original film’s follow ups and so I really am the target audience for this novel. It exceeded my expectations and even my hopes.

The book intelligently expands the onscreen story in ways that mostly feel perfect giving us a much better sense of how much time passes between the events of each film. It addresses a number of the odder differences that even casual viewers might notice and folds them naturally into the connective narrative. So now we see how Cornelius and Zira became man and wife after the events of the ’68 film and learn a lot more about the political situation in Ape City that plays out as a fight between science and religion. This deepens our understanding of the divisions portrayed in the sequel and gives expanded reasoning for Zaius to accompany the Ape Army into the Forbidden Zone. Anticipating the way the third film begins, the story smartly sets up the scientist Milo and explains how he was able to miraculously salvage and fly the crashed ship from the first film. The author’s ideas here are ingenious and show an attention to geeky detail that makes me grin with fanboy pride.

Much time is spent detailing Taylor’s journey once he is separated from Nova and this is where Gaska shows his skill and deep knowledge of the larger POTA world. He includes elements that were introduced to the POTA universe in the classic Marvel comics published in the 1970’s cleverly adding them to the film’s story. This seamless blending together of the films and the larger world built over years around this franchise is unexpectedly satisfying and highly entertaining. It might seem crazy to suddenly have living brains in jars and grotesque human-ape hybrids running around the underground spaces occupied by the Mutants introduced in the second film but it all comes together so well that it feels organic. Each piece plays its part to get us to the all too well-known final moments of BENEATH.

All this playing about in the original works scratches the itch of people like me who love to see the continuity holes and odd narrative choices justified in ways that make some kind of sense. I know that a lot of people find the fascination with this kind of thing silly or a childish holdover from reading too many comic books in youth but I’m a proud fan of this kind of storytelling. Efforts like this book are an inventive exploration of a fictional world that continues to inspire this kind of engagement because the stories are compelling on multiple levels. Like the best of these kinds of ancillary works it draws out more of what makes the story capable of supporting the weight of both big and small ideas. I recommend this novel to fans of the original movies and to those curious about how to do this type of franchise expanding writing well. 

 

The Bloody Pit #156 - BOOGIE NIGHTS (1997)

This is a very special episode. 

John Hudson joins me to discuss BOOGIE NIGHTS (1997) but that is only half the fun. We also got the chance to talk to actress Jane Hamilton who appears in the film as a judge. Under her stage name Veronica Hart, Miss Hamilton was a major star of adult movies in the period depicted in BOOGIE NIGHTS and is therefore the perfect person to answer questions about the industry and its onscreen Hollywood portrayal. She has many stories to tell and not just about the pornography business either. We had so much fun talking with her that the conversation went on for nearly an hour and a half with more than a few digressions! Hopefully you’ll enjoy her tales as much as we did.

We end the show with some classic adult film recommendations from Mr. Hudson which just might send you off to your favorite DVD/Blu-Ray retailer to satisfy your curiosity. If you have any comments or suggestions thebloodypit@gmail.com is the place to write. Or you could join us over on the FaceBook page but keep it clean or the Zuck will get us for sure. I’ve added a song from The Exotic Ones to cap things off and thank you for listening!

Apple Podcast LINK

Spotify LINK

Wild, Wild Podcast - Ranking the Poliziotteschi!

In this final episode of Season 3 Adrian and I rank the ten films covered over the last few months. Although we both enjoyed each movie this is where we dig into how differently we view them in relation to the others. What elements make one film preferred over another? How much does personal taste factor into assessing the qualities of the various films? Will we agree or disagree about which one was the best overall? Will we celebrate the completion of another season by raising glasses of J&B or end this madness by pointing magnums at each other? Listen to find out!

We would love to hear from you if you have any favorite Poliziotteschi films or if you think our rankings are way off. You can contact us on Twitter and Instagram or by email at wildwildpodcast@gmail.com. Please remember to rate and review the show on your podcast platform of choice!

Starry Nights of Halloween

Clearly I'm rushing the Halloween season a bit here but I just love these variations on the Van Gogh painting Starry Night. Glorious!

Classic Euro-Spy Poster Art