The Great Backlog Dupe Giveaway 4: Two Alien Invasions For You To Halt!


 

Yeah, you COULD go out like one of these not too bright chumps in the “classic” low-budget 1980 sci-fi flick (It Came) Without Warning, OR you could dive into the TWO Steam games I’m giving away to ONE lucky winner and learn some actual alien invasion survival tactics that will come in VERY handy! That’s right, folks! Today’s giveaway consists of Altar Studios’ UFO: Aftermath and UFO: Aftershock, two tactical strategy games inspired by the classic X-Com franchise:


 

All you need to do is be the first one to respond and both codes are YOURS. Yes, you need a Steam account and a valid email address (which you don’t need to post – I’ll find you, don’t worry). It will take me a bit longer to respond today, as I’m actually not at the home office and will be back there in a few hours to respond to the lucky winner, so don’t fret if you post first and don’t hear back right away.


 

Okay, enough reading – you’ve got some games to win and play! GOOD LUCK!

Random Film of the Week(end): Mother’s Day (1980)

(thanks, frightism!) 

mothers_day_xlgAs horror movies from the era go, Mother’s Day hits all of the right notes genre fans should appreciate, which means this oldie’s NOT for the squeamish or anyone who hates a bit of nastiness in their fear flicks. Riffing off on better movies like Deliverance and gore classics such as I Spit On Your Grave and Last House On The Left, co-writer/director Charlie Kaufman (no, not THAT one, this one’s Troma Picture’s Lloyd Kaufman’s brother) cooked up a mean little revenge movie with a few twists and turns. It’s at turns scary, sick, and funny, and as noted, NOT for everyone, so beware if that goofy poster piques your curiosity and you decide to go in cold.

While more of a cult film than actual “classic,” this one’s got some pretty sharp teeth, bites really hard and deep. When three gals set out on their yearly camping trip, they run afoul of a pair of crazed brothers and their even more unhinged mother who’s not even close to a sympathetic character. The old bat has her boys kidnap and put the three girls through hell in some disgusting torture and abuse scenes that are still effective and hard to watch today. One girl dies from her injuries, but the other two survive… only to return loaded for bear in order exact revenge on their former tormentors…

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Random Films of the Week: Some Unconventional Holiday Movies? Sure, Why Not?

Topkapi_steal bigSo, I was sitting around with a few friends a few weeks back talking about movies and such when the subject of Christmas and holiday-themed movies came up and yes, everyone agreed that It’s A Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Story and a few other classics were all going to be watched at some point during the Season of Greetings. Interestingly enough, a few very unconventional titles got mentioned during this conversation to the point that I decided to toss a few of these films at you in a post and see what you think.

For some strange (well, not so strange) reasons, there are a lot of very non-holiday films on some people’s Holiday viewing schedules with most set during the winter or with cold weather as a big part of their plots (but not always). Anyway, as I see you’re wearing those dodgy jammies and overly fuzzy slippers you got yesterday as gifts and have that cup of “eggnog “at the ready, let’s get started with three or four for now and pick up some others in a future post…

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Random Film of the Week: Night of the Juggler

(thanks, TaylorHamKid!)

night of the juggler MPWhile reminiscing with a guy I hadn’t seen for close to 20 years this week, this flick came up in our conversation and I had to rush out to write about it while the memory was still fresh. After the great 1972 ABC telefilm Short Walk to Daylight and 1980’s compellingly crazy action/drama Night of the Juggler,  I still say James Brolin should have stuck around and made a third New York-centric film to complete some sort of unconnected trilogy about an otherwise decent cop who’s having some really bad days in the Big Apple.

The former film was about survivors of an earthquake (in New York City of all places!) trying to make it out of some deadly subway tunnels with Brolin’s cop leading the way and the latter has his divorced ex-cop now truck driver character chasing after the maniac that’s mistakenly kidnapped his daughter. Neither is legally available on DVD (and it’s a darn shame, I say), but if you’re clever and know how to use the internet, there are ways to snag both gems for your viewing pleasure… Continue reading

Random Film of the Week(end): The Stunt Man

The Stunt Man_MPIt’s been a really sad year for film fans in terms of losing bits of history and memory as the months fly by too soon. Upon hearing that Peter O’Toole passed away, the first thing I thought of was that TCM is really going to need to update its TCM Remembers video to include the legendary actor (and perhaps Paul Walker, as he wasn’t included {not being a “classic” film actor and all} although Eleanor Parker, who died later, was).

The second thing I thought of was not the film he’s probably going to be most remembered for by many, David Lean’s masterful epic Lawrence of Arabia, but Richard Rush’s bawdy, bold 1980 film, The Stunt Man with the actor playing a madman of a director trying to make a bizarre World War I film with an on the lam drifter replacing the stunt man killed in a freak accident… Continue reading

Random Film of the Week: Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th_MPAmusingly enough, I wasn’t planning on doing a RFotW at all (well, for a few days at least) until I was walking home and realized that it was indeed that day where superstitious people go out of their ways to avoid danger and paradoxically set themselves and others up for accidents. If you’ve ever spilled a hot or cold beverage on yourself or someone else or the ground because some idiot was jumping out of the way of a black cat, diving past a ladder, threw a handful salt over their shoulder into your eyes or anything else deemed to ward off bad luck, you probably know what I mean, correct?

Anyway, taking its cues from !950’s “B” horror and Italian giallo films and adding a few (for the time) modern twists Sean S. Cunningham’s 1980 horror flick is to many, a classic. Granted, back when it was released it was labeled as “misogynistic” (despite a girl being the last survivor and a plot twist I won’t spoil here for those who still haven’t seen this one) along with a bunch of other genre films that put BOTH male and female characters in peril and if you want to see it as such, I’m not going to change your mind. However, when you take into account the guys get it as badly as the gals here, I’d say the film is shocking because it actually doesn’t discriminate when it comes to who gets the axe, arrow, machete or other modes of mean-spirited dispatching… Continue reading

Random Film of the Week(end): Somewhere In Time

(thanks, famousmichigan!)

Somewhere in TimeAs much fun as it was and still is, frankly speaking, Superman: the Movie had a really TERRIBLE time travel sequence that breaks the film and manages to always get a tiny bit under my skin each time I see it. Fortunately, Somewhere In Time is a much better film overall about time travel, love, loss and quite probably the worst long distance relationship ever. I saw this upon its initial release back in 1980 and it’s stuck with me since.

Now, I’m not deep into the romantic fantasy genre at all, but SoT has a compelling pull to it that makes it one of my favorite science fiction films, bittersweet finale and all. It’s not for every taste, but if you decide to give this one a shot, you’ll find Jeannot Szwarc’s fine direction, the lovely John Barry score, intentionally languid pacing and solid performances from the cast (I think it’s Reeve’s best film work, period) make this one truly memorable… Continue reading

Saturn 3 Blu-Ray/DVD Bound: Heckling Hector and Company For Their Less Than Stellar Work…

Saturn 3 BDOK, I didn’t think it was possible, but it looks as if someone is actually putting the wretched mess Saturn 3 out on Blu-Ray. The otherwise great director Stanley Donen’s flawed folly of a feeble flick is headed out to retail on December 3, 2013 from the fine folks at Shout Factory.

This big budget sci-fi/horror non-epic non masterpiece (it’s not even a “so bad it’s good” experience) completely wastes the talents of all involved and is a total mess from start to finish. Thankfully, it looks as if the disc’s handful of bonus features just may save this one from being the “WTF did you get me this crap for?” movie of the year.  Trust me, there’s not one redeemable quality about the theatrical version, but I know some movie fans find elements of this junk heap intriguing enough to want to go back and watch this a few too many times.

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Yep, Werner Herzog Will ALWAYS Be A Better Loser Than You…

(thanks, Acheronitapie!) 

The next time you lose a bet for a small or large amount of coin, just pay up and be glad you don’t have to cook as eat your damn shoe like Werner Herzog did back in 1980. Yes, it’s a REAL shoe as you’ll soon see. I was going to do this one as a Random Film of the Week, but as it’s only about 21 or so minutes long, it works better as today’s life lesson. Lose gracefully and if you’re going to cook a shoe, make sure you wash it a few times and maybe boil it afterward BEFORE you stuff and stew it for a mere five hours. I’ve respected the man ever since and that respect even bought him a pass for the great and truly bizarre Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call – New Orleans which isn’t a “bad” film once you get in on the fun bits and stop holding the original up on that pedestal.

Random Film of the Week(end): Saturn 3

(thanks, deadenddrivein!)

saturn 3 posterSince I’m feeling sick as a dog today, I’ll share the wealth (without making your temperature go up to stay in bed levels) by getting you a bit queasy with this rather wretched 1980 sci-fi/ “horror” film that completely wastes the talents of too many good people and is so surprisingly awful that anything resembling a proper remake would require the invention of a mass mind-wiping machine PLUS time travel so you could stop the original from being made.

Yes, Saturn 3 is THAT bad for a big movie fan such as myself, but it’s much worse because as soon as you start listing most of the talent behind it, you see that most of them have done far, FAR better work than this stinker and you can’t chalk up this film’s failures to everyone simply having an “off” day every single one it took to make this howler…

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