My Favorite Movies

After making the short Horror film Within the Woods in 1978, college buddies Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell and Rob Tapert were able to raise enough money to finance a feature film they had scripted, called "The Book of the Dead". They began filming in the woods near Morristown, Tennessee in 1979. The initial shoot took over three arduous months, but the film wasn't finished for some considerable time after that. Released in 1982, under the the new title of The Evil Dead, it promised to be "The Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror", and for the most part lived up to it's tagline!

Five college friends, Scotty (Delrich), his girlfriend Shelly (York), Ash (Campbell), his girlfriend Linda (Baker) and Ash's sister, Cheryl (Sandweiss), are going on a camping trip in the Tennessee woods. Scotty has lined up a cabin for them to use.

That night, in the basement of the cabin, Scotty and Ash discover a strange book and a tape recorder. The book is quite odd. It has what appears to be a face on the front cover, with strange markings and pictures on its pages.

They bring the items up with them and decide to play the tape recording. The voice on the tape is that of a Professor and is a record of the examination of the book. It informs the five friends that the book is the Necronomicon aka The Book of the Dead. Bound in skin and etched in human blood, the Necronomicon was used for ancient burial practices and demon resurrection rites. The tape then goes on with a recitation of sample passages.

Unwittingly, Scotty, Ash and the girls, have unleashed the "Evil Dead", who will not rest until they have feasted on their very souls!

The Evil Dead is one of my favourite Horror films of all time. Scary, gory, funny and an ultimately satisfying film, it is one of the iconic films of the modern Horror genre.

Sam Raimi's direction is nothing short of astounding. His use of the camera and his innovation of camera techniques, while not revolutionary, are part and parcel to the film's atmosphere and success.

Bruce Campbell hams it up big-time in this film, it's not a bad thing, it's the perfect tone for the film. Ash is a bit of a coward and Campbell really cranks up the "patheticness" of the character by general ineptness and blood-curdling screams of fear. Perfect!

And considering the meagre budget, the special effects are very well done. Often overshadowed by the slicker Evil Dead 2, the brilliance of this film cannot be denied. The pencil in the ankle still makes my eyes water!

The Evil Dead is pure brilliance. From Raimi's inventive camerawork to Campbell's classic performance and all the gore in-between, The Evil Dead is a true Horror Classic.

If you haven't seen The Evil Dead, then what are you doing sitting at the computer, when you should be watching "The Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror"!

John Carpenter met World Wrestling Federation star, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper at Wrestlemania III and became friends. So when the starring role in his 1988 low-budget film, They Live was available, Carpenter chose Piper to play it. It was a risk, but it paid off. They Live was a success and has become a cult classic.

It starts of with a slow pace, with the score reflecting the laid-back pace of the film. But gradually, as the film progresses and as John Nada (Piper) discovers more, the pace increases, culminating in an action-packed Final Act, with the typical Carpenter-style ending. Not to mention that it contains some of the coolest one-liners and quotable quotes in movie history.

The film is a bit of a parable. The Recession was felt all around the world in 1988 when the film came out and They Live was a bit of a wake-up call to the capitalist attitude of the 80's. But with Conservative Governments in many of the major powers of the world, with Capitalism and Privatisation well-and-truly on the agenda, They Live is as relevant today as it was 15 years ago.

But that's not to say that They Live is a boring Leftist soapbox of a film, because it isn't, it has it's fair share of Horror, Sci-Fi and Action, too. With a star like "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, how could it not have gritty action scenes with a touch of Comedy? The 10 minute fight scene where Nada tries to convince Frank (Keith David) to put on the Sunglasses is an absolute classic.

I have to give credit to Meg Foster who plays the pivotal role of Cable TV Station employee, Holly. One hell of a 3-Dimensional character, executed brilliantly by Foster, of the likes rarely seen for supporting female roles in movies today.

And, of course, a "big-up" to George "Buck" Flower. Look him up in the IMDb and you see characters like "Homeless Man", "Drunk", Bum", "Drifter", "Vagrant". A truly underrated actor who also plays a pivotal role in the film.

They Live could quite honestly be my favourite film of all time. Big call, but there are so many levels to this film that make it a classic in my eyes.

You will see They Live. Obey.

John Carpenter does an East-meets-West movie before it became fashionable in Hollywood.

Kurt Russell invokes the spirit of John Wayne in the character of Jack Burton, whose naivety and bumbling is well compensated by his bravado and reflexes.

Russell is ably supported by Dennis Dun, James Hong, Victor Wong and Kim Cattrall.

Big Trouble in Little China is tons of fun, with plenty of action and laughs.

"Two-thousand years and you can't find one broad to fit the bill? Come on, Dave, you must be doing something seriously wrong!" - Jack Burton

One of my favourite films. William Lustig was a friend of Bruce Campbell and the scenes shot with him were mostly instances of "guerrilla filmmaking", particularly the parade scene, because Lustig only had partial financing and permission to film. The scenes with Tom Atkins were shot after Lustig got full backing and the go-ahead to film.

A very cool film. I got my DVD of it autographed when I met William Lustig a couple of years ago.

Quite possibly the best WWII film ever made. Bruno Ganz's performance is inspired. The scene where Mrs. Goebbels kills her children is particularly chilling.

Monty Python's first feature film and still probably their best. Bloody hilarious and eminently quotable, this is one of the funniest films ever made.

Lloyd Kaufman has given the world of cinema many gifts. One of these gifts is "The Toxic Avenger", one of the greatest low-budget Action Horror Comedy films of all time.

Full of funny scenes and situations and packed with hilarious lines, this is one of my all time favourite comedies. The cast is repleat with fantastic comedic chararacter actors such as Ed O'Neill, Rubén Blades, Fred Gwynn, Daniel Roebuck and William Russ (who is priceless as the selfish Safe Man, Nick Bartkowski).

My favourite Hitchcock film.

Certainly one the best Action films of all time. While Assault borrows heavily from Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo and George Romero's Night of the Living Dead, it is anything but a blatant rip-off, it is a brilliant movie in it's own right.

Bruce Campbell becomes a cult hero in this film. His performance is pure Gold. In a lot of ways, Evil Dead 2 is superior to The Evil Dead.

A future Cult Classic. This is Bruce Campbell's best performance EVER. "Don't f*** with the King!"

Snake Plissken? I thought he was dead...

This is another of my all-time favourite comedies. James Woods is quite simply brilliant as the no-nonsense, no bullshit cop who has to put up with the spoiled Hollywood actor, played by Michael J. Fox. James Woods is the master of angry dialogue and insults. I love this film!

This is one of my favourite Sci-Fi films. It's an action-packed adventure to be sure, but it also touches on issues such as war, racism, tolerance and friendship. Louis Gossett Jr.'s performance is excellent.

I was reading a book about Sci-Fi and Horror and when it was discussing Mary Shelley's 1831 novel, "Frankenstein", and all of the movies made thereof, it made mention of a movie titled Frankenhooker. Despite such taglines as "A Terrifying Tale of Sluts & Bolts..." and "It's a Stitch!", the book actually had some praise for the film. My curiosity was sufficiently piqued...

Written and Directed by Frank Henenlotter, who also Wrote and Directed Basket Case and Brain Damage, Frankenhooker was a film I just had to watch!

Jeffrey Franken (Lorinz) is a brilliant Medical School dropout from New Jersey, with a particular talent for bio-electrical engineering. He works at the local Power Plant to support both his experiments and his beloved fiance, Elizabeth Shelley (Mullen).

It's Elizabeth's father's birthday and the family is having a barbecue. Elizabeth proudly presents to her father a gift from both herself and Jeffrey - a brand new lawnmower. But this is no ordinary lawnmower. Jeffrey has improved it by making it remote-controlled. While giving her father a demonstration of the remote-control lawnmower, Elizabeth met with an unfortunate lawnmowing accident. Police later described the scene as a "bloody jigsaw puzzle". Little do they know, however that Jeffrey has secreted away and kept some pieces of Elizabeth - her head, a foot and a hand.

Devastated, and sent just a little mad by the death of his beloved, Jeffrey is determined to resurrect her. With the assistance of some Super-Crack and a bevy of hookers supplied by master-pimp, Zorro (Gonzalez), Jeffrey Franken succeeds. But Elizabeth is no longer Elizabeth. She is Frankenhooker!

Frankenhooker is so much better than a film of it's apparent calibre should have any right to be. Quite simply it is brilliant. Actually, the story concept is just so silly, to make it palatable to the viewer, I suppose that it had to have a "cheap" look and feel to it. A "Troma Effect" if you will.

It's an incredibly insightful, intelligent and funny retelling of the Frankenstein story. A nice touch is that Jeffrey Franken's fiance and future monster is named Elizabeth Shelly after Henry Frankenstein's love, Elizabeth and the author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley.

The film addresses issues such as prostitution and the associated drug use and exploitation. The social stigma and the disgust that the general public have with prostitutes is highlighted and amplified in the scenes when Frankenhooker goes on her "rampage".

Behold the horrible creature that once was a beautiful girl! Watch the people recoil as a drugged, scantily-clad female accosts them and asks if they "want some action"!

When Frankenhooker has sex, she electrocutes her "clients" to death, in a not-so-subtle suggestion of the perils of sexually transmitted diseases due to unprotected sex with street prostitutes.

Brilliant social commentary shrouded in satire.

And don't get me started with the wickedly ironic ending! Possibly the best and most apt resolution to any of the Frankenstein films I have ever seen.

James Lorinz is great as the slightly insane Jeffrey Franken, but the real star is Patty Mullen as Elizabeth/Frankenhooker. When re-awakened, she channels the late, great great Elsa Lanchester (Bride of Frankenstein), then goes to town (literally) with her confused monster portrayal.

If you are a fan of Horror, Comedy and the Frankenstein story, do not miss Frankenhooker! It is pure tasteless brilliance. It's more than just a B-Grade parody. I can't recommend this film enough!

PS: Keep an eye out for the cameo from Rutger Hauer!

"Spatula City!"

One of the funniest movies ever made, UHF (known as The Vidiot from UHF in Australia) is Weird Al Yankovic's unsuccessful (theatrically) foray into film. It bombed at the box office (it was up against films such as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade), but found it's audience on home video and became a huge cult hit.

A few of my favourite gags include the homeless guy who asks for change, Conan the Librarian, and "Supplies!".

This film isn't a cult classic for nothing. Campbell's hilarious performance steals the show again.

One of the funniest movies ever made. Cleese and Palin won well-deserved BAFTA Awards and Kline more than earned his Academy Award with his brilliant portrayal of Otto.

The first Mormon Kung-Fu Comedy Porno ever made (and probably the last) is pure genius from start to finish.

Trey Parker's naieve, but cash-strapped, Joe Young is talked into taking the stage name "Joe Hung" and to star in a porn film called "Orgazmo". His sidekick Ben Chapleski/Choda Boy is brilliantly portrayed by Dian Bachar, who also starred with Parker in "Cannibal! The Musical". Orgazmo also features some actualt Adult Film Stars such as Chasey Lain and Ron Jeremy.

But the scene-stealers in this film are Masao Maki portraying G-Fresh, the jive-talking Japanese Sushi-Bar owner and John Marlo portraying the enigmatic Sancho and of course, Matt Stone portraying the "not a Queer or nothin'" Dave the Lighting Guy.

This was the most fun movie I have seen at the cinema for a long time! Like a Troma film with a multi-million dollar budget, it's often scary, often silly, but always entertaining.

For a mainstream Hollywood film, Snakes on a Plane has quite the body-count and doesn't pull any punches in the Horror department, which was a pleasant surprise. The humour was of a self-aware nature. They knew how ridiculous the plot and situation was and it allowed the audience to laugh with the film, not at it. For example, the numberplate of the car the major villain was in at the start of the film was "HIS", just one letter away from "hiss". It was little touches like this that really gets you into the film. You know damn well that there are going to be snakes on the plane, the fun was the build-up and the anticipation.

I loved this film and it will be hard to knock off as my most enjoyed, guilty pleasure film of the year.

Absolutely brilliant with excellent perfomances from the entire cast and a stunning visual design that captures the feel of a fascist state.

My favourite Chan, Biao & Hung film of all, but it is usually regarded as the worst behind "Project A" & "Wheels on Meals".

Well, it made this Spidey fan happy. Raimi was the perfect choice as Director.

A fantastic Horror film that highlights the plight of Vietnam War Veterans (and War Vets in general). The Cannibalism is symbolic of the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder than many of them suffered after serving and this film depicts in the most graphic of ways how hard it was for these people to reintegrate into society. John Saxon is brilliant as the main lead and John Morghen is inspired as his insane friend.

An outstanding film. This is a must-see film, one of the best for 2006.

Two ex-cons, The Tall Thug (Le Marquand) and his mate, Trev (Budge) get on board the empty carriage of the last train from Midlands to Fremantle. A couple of stops later, Lisa (Edgley) boards the train and she immediately attracts their attention.

The uncomfortable tension builds until two more passengers board the train, Maureen (Jones) and Simon (Hazeldine), however it's a brief respite as the Tall Thug and Trev continue their antics.

The film continues the tension and there is a palpable sense of fear and danger in the carriage, which continues all the way until the conclusion, consisting of many twists that reveal there is more to the passengers on the train than what they appear.

The performances in this film are outstanding, Steve Le Marquand in particular (he deserves an AFI Nomination for it), which make utterly believeable the, what could normally be seen as implausible, twists.

Uncomfortable, confronting and brilliant, Last Train to Freo should be at the top of your "Must See" list.

Coming on September 18th, 2007, Commando (Director's Cut) on Region 1 DVD!

With Deleted Scenes, Commentary by Mark Lester and 2 Featurettes ("Pure Action" & "Let Off Some Steam").

YES!!!

Widely regarded as the worst of the "Indiana Jones" films, but I don't subscribe to that opinion. Yes, it's a different film to Raiders, but it still ticks all the boxes for a damn good action adventure.

Harrison Ford is in stunning form, Kate Capshaw goes from being annoying to enchanting and back again with consummate ease and Ke Huy Quan's portrayal of Short Round is one of the rare moments when a child actor in an American film isn't bloody annoying, in fact he provides some of the film's classic lines and moments.

Who can forget the opening scene at Club Obi-Wan?

Who can forget the exciting Mine Cart chase?

And who can forget the sacrifice scene when Mola Ram extracts the still beating heart from his victim?

Brilliant.

A rollicking adventure in the same vein as "Raiders of the Lost Ark". The pairing of Sean Connery and Harrison Ford as Father and Son is legendary. in it's chemistry.

This is one of the most delightfully enjoyable films of all time. Full of iconic scenes and lines, "The Princess Bride" is a film that can be viewed by anyone and they would like it. I don't think I've ever met anyone who legitimately doesn't like this movie. As a matter of fact, to dislike this film would be Inconceivable!

Apart from the first, this would have to be my favourite "Nightmare" film.

Widely and unfairly panned by critics and the wider viewing public, Bad Eggs is just too damn clever for the masses to fully comprehend. It's bloody hilarious.

Tony Martin has a sharp sense of the absurd in movie conventions and uses this knowledge to great comedic effect. Mick Molloy plays his usual lovable larrakin persona and Bob Franklin is an unrecognised comedic genius.

Bad Eggs will not be everyone's cup of tea, but not everyone is intelligent enough to get the subtleties of this film. I highly recommend it, despite the naysayers.

Funniest film of the year!

A very funny comic strip makes the transition to the movies. Very successfully, I might add.

Others may not, but I found this film to be very amusing. And, the upcoming isn't a typo, Christian Slater and Neve Campbell are really good in this.

Great action with wonderfully dry humour, Rio Bravo is a classic Western, directed by the master, Howard Hawks.

It's little wonder that this film influenced John Carpenter and, more specifically his early classic, Assault on Precinct 13.

This is another film I love that others probably don't.

I love this film. It's bloody awful, but damn, I can't help it.

The Killer Frogs, Melted Butter, The "B" Room - it all adds up to a classic film, you know it's true...

Plus, we all know that Vegetarians are evil, anyway.

This is another of my favourite comedies. Kevin Kline is brilliant.

A box office smash in South Korea, this classy, yet gritty, Action/Thriller ushered in a new era in Korean filmmaking.

Wildly popular with filmgoers and film critics, Shiri was (and still is) controversial at the time for it's depiction of North and South Korean conflict and the topic of Unification. The title itself refers to a Korean native freshwater fish that is found in both North & South Korea.

While Shiri is an Action/Thriller, it has a Romance angle which lends the film some depth and heart. If you don't have a tear in your eye upon the film's conclusion, then you have a heart of stone.

Highly Recommended!

An awesome band and a very good Concert in Tampere, Finland in 2001. The DVD includes the full concert, interviews and a couple of filmclips.

One of the best WWI films made in a long, long time, Joyeux Noël is a major co-production between countries that draws ironic parallels to the subject matter of the film itself.

Christmas 1914 is a historic day. The Great War is in it's early days and the brutal and unprecedented trench warfare reared it's ugly head. On Christmas eve, Carol singing from the German trenches were heard by the Allied lines and they joined in. The soldiers left their trenches, united by the spirit of Christmas and in a famous incident a game of soccer broke out in No Man's Land. This Christmas fraternisation was not in isolation, it was from one end of the front to the other.

Joyeux Noël is a fictional dramatisation of these events and is one of the most moving films I have seen in a long time. It shows that even through indoctrinated and illogical hatred people can be brought together through the things we share in common.

I saw this film when I was a kid, before I had ever seen the first "Maniac Cop". I loved it (and still do).

Bruce Campbell moves aside and Robert Davi steps in. Davi owns this film. He is one of the coolest muthas alive.

I really loved this film when I was a kid. Looking at it now, it's pretty ordinary!

Awesome action sequences with touches of comedy and romance, this is of the most enjoyable and accessible Jackie Chan films.

The Holy Trinity of Hong Kong Cinema (Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung & Yuen Biao) team up again for "Wheels on Meals", a bloody enjoyable film.

I've got the 3-Disc Korean DVD of this film and I saw it on Sunday. Absolutley f'n brilliant.

A more detailed review to follow.

The more correct title is "Police Story 3: Supercop" and it is one of my favourites.

Jackie Chan reprises his role from the previous "Police Story" films and joins Michelle Yeoh, who plays a Police Officer from Mainland China, to tackle a Drug Cartel.

This film features some awesome action and daring stunts (as to be expected), in particular, the Motorbike jump onto the moving train.

One of Michelle Yeoh's first films (her first starring role) and still one of my favourites teams her up with American Karate Champon, Cynthia Rothrock, who makes her feature film debut.

With sensational action directed expertly by Corey Yuen, Yes, Madam launched two careers. Rothrock became a huge star in Hong Kong, making a couple of other HK films before returning to the USA and making direct-to-video movies. Of course Michelle Yeoh because a superstar in Hong Kong and is now an international superstar thanks to films such as Tomorrow Never Dies and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

But this is where it all begans. A fun Hong Kong Cop film that I truly recommend.

A fantastic 2004 concert from the pioneers of electronica, "the Beach Boys from Düsseldorf", Kraftwerk.

I would have liked some Special Features on the DVD, but Kraftwerk are notoriously enigmatic and it doesn't surprise me that this lacks a documentary.

Having said that, it's a top quality 2-Disc DVD, which includes DTS 5.1 Surround Sound.

Brilliant. Just brilliant. Unfortunately people will mislabel this film a "mockumentary" as it is a fake documentary, but there nothing remotely funny about this film. It's a fictional account of the assassination of George W. Bush in October 2007. This film cleverly uses stock and new footage, often mixing the two, to great effect and it truly feels like a genuine documentary.

It doesn't revel in the death of Bush, as some of the film's critics accused it of being (they probably didn't even see it), it is a balanced and unbiased look at how things may unfold.

I can't recommend this film enough. You must see it.

A wonderfully funny (and scary) Irish Zombie film!

In rural Ireland, Mad Cow Disease mutates and causes Zombiism. The Zombie Plague quickly spreads across the countryside and beyond!

Really funny, in the same mould as "Shaun of the Dead". Highly recommended!

This is one of my favourite Bond films (certainly my favourite Roger Moore Bond film). It's almost the perfect archetypal Bond film since "Goldfinger".

And I love Marvin Hamlisch's funky score. "Bond 77" is one of the best renditions of the Bond Theme ever.

Tough, gritty and realistic. Just some of the adjectives that can describe "Stalingrad", one of the best WWII films ever made.

One of the original Naziploitation films and unlike most of the others, it was not made in Europe, but the USA. In fact, it was filmed on the set of Hogan's Heroes during one of it's season breaks.

The extraordinarily well-endowed, Dyanne Thorne, is Ilsa, a brutal and over-sexed SS Commandant of a Camp where the prisoners are used in "Medical Experiments". Ilsa personally castrates any man that doesn't satisfy her sexually, but she meets her match in Wolfe, who, like the Energizer Bunny, can keep going and going and going.

Wolfe uses this talent to exploit Ilsa which ultimately leads to a bold escape for him and all of the tortured prisoners.

She-Wolf is the perfect example of a Naziploitation film and a perfect contrast to the more Art-House stylings of Salon Kitty.

They don't make Naziploitation films like they used to, in fact they don't make them anymore at all! The difference between Salon Kitty and the others is that it is the most closely based on true events. There really was a Salon Kitty, it was a high-class brothel run by Kitty Schmidt (her name was changed to Kitty Kellermann for the film).

SS-Obergruppenführer, Reinhard Heydrich, chief of the Reich Security Main Office came up with the idea of using the brothel to spy on high-ranking Nazis in an effort to gather intelligence that could be used against them and to discover any treasonous thoughts.

The events portrayed in this film are exaggerated for dramatic (exploitative) purposes, but it is in essence the kind of things that what went on, including visits from people as high up as Joseph Goebbels (who apparently enjoyed the "lesbian displays").

Salon Kitty, along with Ilsa: She-Wolf of the SS, inspired a wave of Naziploitation films, mostly coming from Italy, but unlike the others, which were pure exploitation films, Salon Kitty is mostly Art-House in style and is definitely one of the best.

Ilsa's back and this time she's a private contractor! Working for Sheik El Sharif, she's breaking in abducted women to serve in his harem as sex slaves.

Not bad, but unlike "She Wolf" which is (very) loosely based on the horrific medical experiments the Nazis conducted, this is a pure exploitation flick.

Lesbian Vampires.
What more do you need to know about this cult classic?

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told... with Cannibalism.

Cannibal is a dramatisation of the real-life events surrounding the two German men, Armin Meiwes and Bernd Brandes.

Armin Meiwes became known as "Der Metzgermeister" (The Master Butcher), because in March of 2001, he had contacted, Bernd Brandes, over the Internet and arranged for him to come over for dinner... literally.

I wont go into the gory and depraved details, because the last thing I would want to do is to ruin the movie for you and deprive you the pleasure / horror of finding out for yourself by watching it unfold in front of you.

The film begins with a fairy tale, a mother reading "Hansel and Gretel" to a young boy.

Filmed with a part Documentary part Art-House eye, with minimal, next to no dialog, the entire film has an otherworldly fairy-tale feel to it. And that feeling is facilitated and enhanced by the, almost Avant-garde, soundtrack. A mixture of score and sound-effects, it is really quite effective. The dialog itself is short and simplistic, almost comical, and the characters are never identified. The credits list the two main characters simply as "The Cannibal" and "The Flesh", but again this serves only to heighten the hyperreality that this film conveys.

In terms of the cinematography, what you are shown on screen is both everything and nothing. By this I mean that sometimes you are given full view of what is taking place and at other times you are given mere inferences and suggestions. Again, this juxtaposition of styles puts you off balance and never lets you settle down, which is a good thing. You shouldn't settle down and accept that you are watching a movie, you are constantly being asked questions about what is normal and what is perverted.

The Cannibal and The Flesh are driven by deep-seated sexual desire to consume and to be consumed. The Cannibal wants to make The Flesh a part of him and The Flesh wishes to be inside The Cannibal. In their eyes there is no victim, both are complicit in this base act.

Make no mistake, that this film is less about cannibalism and evil, per se, but about sexual compulsion and desire. And if you are easily offended and cannot handle full-frontal male nudity and homosexual themes, then either grow up or just don't watch this film, because there's plenty of tackle-work in Cannibal.

Cannibal makes The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Last House on the Left look like Lassie Come Home and Little House on the Prairie.

I don't think I've been so impressed by a film in a long, long time than what I have been with Cannibal. It won't be to everyone's liking, it won't be easy to watch, but it will confront you, punch you square in the face and give you a bloody nose. You'll either come away from the confrontation impressed by the audacity or disgusted by the temerity.

Highly Recommended.

During and after the 2004 US Presidential Election, where George W. Bush was re-elected for the second time, Laibach toured America. It was originally a tour for their album, "Anthems", but quickly became known as the "Divided States of America Tour".

This documentary of the tour does not interview Laibach at all, but the Americans who attended thier concerts. They talk about their love of Laibach, the state that America is in with the Iraq War and the re-election of Bush and how much the messages in Laibach's music are as relevant today as they ever were in the former Yugoslavia of the 80s/90s.

Even if you have never heard of Laibach or their music, this documentary is a fascinating insight into the post-9/11, post-election, wounded psyche of the American people.

The DVD also includes a full concert performed in Paris, France, December 13th, 2004.

The British TV series "Doctor Who" became a mega-hit in the early 60s, largely on the back of the Daleks. The Daleks appeared in the second story of the original series and were an instant success.

Producer Milton Subotsky saw the potential of the Daleks for the silver screen and obtained the rights to make a film.

The film is based on the first Dalek story, "The Daleks". Written by Terry Nation, it was a 7-Episode, 25min per episode, story, so the film's script needed a bit of work to tighten the story.

Subotsky worked with the then "Doctor Who" script editor, David Whitaker, and managed to create a fine adaptation of the original story.

However there where significant differences to the story in regards to the character of The Doctor and his companions, probably for the benefit of American audiences that had not seen the TV series. The character of The Doctor was changed from being an enigmatic alien known only as "The Doctor", to being an eccentric, human, scientist called "Dr. Who". The companions in the TV series were The Doctor's Granddaughter, Susan and her School Teachers, Ian and Barbara. The film retains the idea of the Granddaughter, Susan (potrayed by 12-year-old Roberta Tovey), but Barbara also became Dr. Who's Granddaughter and Ian became her boyfriend.

In the grand scheme of things, in terms of a stand-alone film, these are minor changes and do not adversely effect it. It is only a concern to a fan of the series.

"Dr. Who and the Daleks" is a very enjoyable film that can be enjoyed by the whole family.

The sequel to 1965's "Dr. Who and the Daleks", this was based on the 6-part TV story "The Dalek Invasion of Earth".

The characters of Ian and Barbara are replaced with Dr. Who's niece, Louise (Jill Curzon) and Policeman Tom Campbell (Bernard Cribbins).

This film is probably not quite as good as the first, but this one has the benefit of a bigger budget and a larger scope in terms of the setting. It's definitely as enjoyable as the first and well worth watching.

Toma's War is one of my all-time favourite movies. It's a hilarious satirical jab at Action films of the 80s, which in themselves were a reflection of the political atmosphere in America.

Ridiculously over-the-top, with more bullets and explosions than you'll ever need, hilarious dialog and exploding tits. Hell, this film has it all.

When the cult British Television series "Doctor Who" was "rested" in 1989, fans had been waiting eagerly for it's return. In 1996 their prayers seemed to have been answered in the form of a co-production between the BBC, Universal and the Fox Network. "Doctor Who: The Movie" was to be screened on Fox in the US, the BBC in the UK and on the ABC in Australia and was intended as a pilot for a possible new series. But the question was, would it be any good?

Producer Philip Segal was a fan of "Doctor Who" and he hired a British director, Geoffrey Sax, who was also eager to direct "Doctor Who". So there was a nucleus of knowledge and respect that seemingly bode well for the movie.

"Doctor Who: The Movie" is a reasonably good film. It isn't perfect, however.

Paul McGann plays a wonderful and believeable Doctor. His portrayal of the Doctor is reminiscent of a combination of the action-orientated Doctor of Jon Pertwee, the erratic behaviour of Tom Baker's Doctor, and the comic energy of Patrick Troughton's Doctor. His strong performance is really the cornerstone for the film.

The redesigned TARDIS interior looks great with design elements taken from Gothic Churches to H.G. Wells' "The Time Machine".

Eric Roberts plays the Master surprisingly well. When I first heard that the Master would be portrayed by an American actor, I thought it would be terrible. However, I was mistaken. While Roberts really hams it up, it's not entirely a bad thing. He puts in an over-the-top performance that suits the role.

Throughout the movie there was an interesting (and apparently unintentional) Christ and Satan themes. The Doctor "ressurecting" and "exiting the cave" wearing a shroud. The Master starting in the form of a serpent and then possessing the body of a human. Near the end, the Doctor is "crucified" by the Master and is forced to wear a "crown of thorns". The battle between the Doctor's good and the Master's evil is very biblical. It may have been unintentional, but sometimes the classic stories and themes are always the best ones!

It has a good mix of action and comedy, well acted, Paul McGann especially is a revalation as the Doctor. The script was a bit weak and somewhat confusing towards the final 20 minutes, but overall it can be forgiven. It was an unrivalled success when screened in Britain and Australia, but it did not rate well in the USA. A new series was not optioned at the time, most would say thankfully, because with the exception of having Paul McGann as the Doctor, the current series that came in 2005 is far and above better than what could have come out of this pilot.

While certainly not as good as the masterpiece that is "Spider-Man 2", the 3rd installment is still one hell of a film, certainly on par with the 1st "Spider-Man".

Bruce Campbell's cameo is pure gold.

A classic, and controversial, piece of historical filmmaking, Triumph des Willens was filmed during the 1934 Nazi Party Rally in Nuremberg.

Presented as a documentary of the events in question, Triumph is anything but. It is a masterfully crafted piece of propaganda work that is as much fantasy as it is fact.

With the full backing and funding of Hitler and the Nazi Party, Reifenstahl did multiple takes and multiple passes to get all the footage that she could possibly need. Additionally, she edited Triumph herself, from the many, many metres of film footage. A monumental task indeed for a monumental piece of film history.

Triumph of the Will is the mother of all propaganda films. Quite simply, it is a work of genius.

And that is it's true horror.

Triumph of the Will shows the power of film and how easily people can be persuaded by it. It is as much as anything, a cautionary tale to filmmakers on the perils of letting politics influence your art.

This film is definitely not one to watch for fun, but it is definitely one to watch.

Just a classic. Still awesome after repeated viewings. Robert Davi & Joey Pants are bloody hilarious.

I haven't seen this film in at least 10-15 years, but I loved it when I was younger.

This French-made Naziploitation film, also known as Fraulein Kitty, is inspired by both Salon Kitty and Ilsa: She-Wolf of the SS, but is not as graphic or extreme as either one of them.

Near the end of WWI, close to the fall of the Third Reich, Elsa Ackermann (Longo) is a high-end prostitute recruited by the SS to head a brothel on a train that will go to the front line. The cover is that it is for the morale of the Officers and Troops, but in reality it is to root out any treason or dissent.

But there is a spy on board the train. One of the girls, Liselotte Richter (Gori), is working for the French Resistance.

Frantz Holbach (Mathot) is an SS Major who has become disillusioned with Hitler and the War and wishes only for it to end. Lisolette overhears him talking about his disillusionment and seduces him in order to recruit him to her cause. She convinces Frantz to get a message to the Resistance and they plot to destroy the train.

As I stated before, Elsa Fräulein SS isn't as "hardcore" as some of the other exploitation films of it's ilk, there is little to no blood or gore, the nudity is quite tame, but it's still a reasonably good film. The women are really quite beautiful, as are some of the locations.

I would recommend this film if you have never seen an Exploitation or Naziploitation film and wanted a safe place to start.

The book is brilliant and the film does a fairly good job in bringing it to life.

This is a bloody funny Aussie film taking footage from an old Hercules film and re-dubbing it with amusing dialogue.

This is a top film that is very hard to get hold of. It hasn't been released on DVD yet, but I'm lucky enough to have a copy on VHS.

This Norwegian mockumentary is absolutely fantastic. Where This is Spinal Tap ripped into the absurdities of Metal, Get Ready to Be Boyzvoiced works with the rich material that is Boy Bands and modern manufactured pop music.

And like Spinal Tap, the songs are bloody hilarious. Songs such as "Cousin" about how much he's attracted to his cousin and "What's Happening To My Body?" about the onset of puberty.

The band, Boyzvoice consists of three brothers, M'Pete, Hot Tub and Roar. Along with their inept manager, Timothy, they are on the promotional tour for their new album, "Get Ready to Be Boyzvoiced". They've also been booked to perform their latest single, "We Are the Playmomen" at the Music Awards.

But scandal erupts, because M'Pete and the boys are not entirely talented, they get caught lip-synching at a Salvation Army benefit concert. Not only that, but Timothy assaults two elderly Salvos in the ensuing chaos and M'Pete's girlfriend, Stine, is revealed to be 12 years old.

The band hits rock bottom, the only way they can get money is to be sponsored by a Norwegian fish finger company. Can Boyzvoice overcome the scandal and the infighting to once again be Norway's Number 1 Boy Band in time for the Music Awards performance?

I saw this screened on SBS after the 2007 Eurovision Final and I loved it. I even found myself humming the chorus of "We Are the Playmomen" for days afterward!

It is significantly better, and funnier, than the Aussie Boy Band film, Boytown, which was disappointing to say the least.

Thanks to NordicDVD.com, I now have it on DVD!

Get Ready to Be Boyzvoiced is the funniest thing to come out of Norway since the Vikings decided to combine Rape with Pillage.

Not as a good a film as "Barbarian", but a lot more fun.

Filmed during their 2004 "Demon Kiss" Tour, the first DVD for the German Electro-Goth band, Blutengel, combines two concerts performed in Dortmund & Cologne.

Blutengel's line-up at this time was Chris Pohl, Constance Rudert and Eva Pölzig and these concert performances perfectly displays the band's style and themes. That being of Vampires, Vampirism, Love, Sex and Fetishism.

Included on the DVD are the filmclips to "Angels of the Dark" and "No Eternity", a Backstage tour with Constance and several Photo Galleries.

If you've never seen or heard of Blutengel, then Live Lines is a good place to start. That's what I did and now they are one of my favourite bands.

The first DVD from the seminal Industrial group from Slovenia, Laibach, is this: Videos & A film about WAT.

The Videos section presents in chronological order, Laibach's 13 music videos made up to their album "WAT".

Directed by Saso Podgorsek (who later directed Divided States of America), A film about WAT is an EPK, which gives a brief history of the band, then discusses each track from their latest (at that time) album "WAT".

Bloody hilarious. Timothy Dalton's performance was inspired.

I can just imagine the Producers at Hammer Studios pitching ideas for movies...

Producer 1: "I've got an idea! We do a Jekyll & Hyde movie, but instead of a hideous monster he turns into a hot chick!"
Producer 2: "Brilliant!"

I'm sure they had no idea how brilliant the end product would end up being.

The movie opens with what appears to be Jack the Ripper murdering a prostitute. However it is Dr. Henry Jekyll (Ralph Bates). He goes back to his laboratory and writes down his story...

Dr. Jekyll is researching for an elixyr to eradicate disease, but when his mentor and friend, Professor Robertson (Gerald Sim), comments that it would take Jekyll several lifetimes to find the cures. Inspired, he changes his reasearch to Life Prolongation.

Jekyll surmises that female hormones are a key component to his Elixir of Life. So in order to get his hands on recently deceased young women, he gets in contact with the mortician, Byker (ghoulishly performed by Phillip Madoc), so he can remove the parts he needs, for a price.

Jekyll makes a breakthrough. He extends the life of a male fly, but it seems to have laid eggs in the process.

He decides that a human test is required and takes the potion himself. Dr. Jekyll is temprarily transformed into a woman (Martine Beswick)! That's some side effect! Determined to get the formula right, Jekyll continues his experiments.

However, the supply of bodies dries up. Byker recommends Jekyll to the graverobbers, Burke & Hare.

(In real life, in 1827-1828 William Hare and William Burke, with the help of Hare's wife Margaret and Burke's mistress Helen, committed what became known as the West Port murders where they killed 17 people and then sold their corpses to the Edinburgh Medical College for dissection.

For an excellent movie about Burke & Hare, I recommend seeing The Flesh and The Fiends.)

Burke & Hare are eventually caught and lynched, so Jekyll resorts to murder, in what would be attributed to Jack the Ripper.

Professor Robertson becomes suspicious of the murders and (correctly) believes that his friend Dr. Jekyll is the culprit. But Mrs. Hyde (as she is now calling herself) has no intention of going away and she soon exerts dominance of Dr. Henry Jekyll...

________________________________

Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde is brilliantly directed by Roy Ward Baker. The transformations between Dr. Jekyll and Mrs. Hyde are very cleverly and effectively executed. And there are some real touches of flair. When Mrs. Hyde exerts dominance and declares that she intends to remain, she extinguishes Dr. Jekyll's cigarillo and crushes it in the ashtray, in true phallic symbolism.

Ralph Bates is excellent as the tortured Dr. Jekyll and Martine Beswick is absolutely enchanting as Mrs. Hyde.

This is a movie that probably started off as a bit of an exploitation shocker, but ended up a clever piece of Gothic Horror Cinema. Highly Recommended!

The Howling is awash with Joe Dante's usual style of Comedy and Horror, along with Rob Bottin's awesome special make-up effects.

A modern ('80s) Werewolf tale, the emphasis is on the psychology of Lycanthropy, rather than having werewolves running around eating people all through the picture, and as a result, is more believable.

Dee Wallace puts in a brilliant performance as TV Reporter, Karen White. She is utterly believable in her terror and that allows the audience to believe in the fantastical situations she finds herself in.

Robert Picardo is brilliant as the psycho killer, Elisabeth Brooks is dead-sexy as the psycho killer's psycho sister and Dick Miller is hilarious as the Occult Bookstore owner.

The Howling is a classic movie that will have you howling with terror and laughter.

"Barfuss" is probably the most genuine and touching Romantic Comedies that I have ever seen.

Till Schweiger's direction is understated and unobtrusive, just the right touch for this genre of film. His portrayal of Nick Keller is perfect. Nick has chronic trouble holding onto any consistent line of employment. With the exception of his Mother, he dislikes his family and they dislike him. A bit of a crook, a bit of a con-man, but at the end of the day a likeable and honourable man.

Johanna Wokalek's beautiful performance of Leila, a post traumatic disorder effected, but naive and innocent, young woman is something to behold. The film's title, "Barfuss" derives from the fact that Leila dislikes wearing shoes of any kind and walks around barefoot. Nick saves her from hanging herself and she instantly attatches herself emotionally to him. In her mind, she is his girlfriend and she behaves as such. Her naivete and innocent honesty, I think, is what wins over Nick's world-weary and cynical heart and what starts off as him protecting her becomes true love.

While using the formula of your typical Romantic Comedy, "Barfuss" is anything but. I challenge anyone, male or female, not to have a tear in one's eye at the end of the film.

Simply brilliant!

To fully appreciate it, you have to have a handle on the German sense of humour.

The war scenes were very reminiscent of the German film, "Stalingrad", and the acting throughout was excellent.