John Woo's Bullet in the Head didn't do well in Hong Kong theaters and flies under the radar compared to his action films of the same period A Better Tomorrow, The Killer, or Hard Boiled. Yet many consider it his underseen masterpiece. By far his "most personal film," John Woo wrote, directed, produced, edited, and (mostly) financed it himself. But the film's unflinching depiction of Hong Kong riots and war-ravaged Vietnam, navigated by three childhood friends, makes for an emotional watch. J...
Prince of Darkness sounds like the biopic of Ozzy Osbourne that wasn't. It's actually a John Carpenter film, the second of his so-called "apocalypse trilogy," where a liquid version of satan tries to escape from its containment cylinder. And spoiler alert -- like an old-school Starburst commercial, the juice is loose. Or gets loose, you might say. Can a priest and a team of researchers find a way to stop the evil? Join me for this episode discussing many Carpenter fans' pick for his most unde...
John Carpenter's In the Mouth of Madness didn't win acclaim or box office dollars, but it has gone on to become a horror fan favorite. The film pays tribute to the works of writer H.P. Lovecraft, and while it has some scary visuals, the trick here is about psychological horror. When the most famous horror author, Sutter Cane (Jurgen Prochnow), goes missing, it's up to John Trent (Sam Neill), an insurance investigator, to uncover the truth behind his disappearance. Trent smells a ruse. But wha...
From the novel by Stephen King, Christine is the story of a nerdy teen who decides to fix up a broken-down 1958 Plymouth Fury. But instead of Arnie's flashy new ride, Christine becomes the engine of his revenge on the bullies who have taunted him. With her powers of self-repair, she begins to slay those not kind to her newfound driver, Arnie. The next film in my John Carpenter series, this episode explores this Carpenter fan favorite. But did I agree with the many fans of the film or have to ...
Paul Verhoeven's (RoboCop) first English-language film, Flesh and Blood is an erotic historical adventure that bombed on release but has found some fan appreciation with time. Audiences winced at its unflinching depiction of the Middle Ages, a world ravaged by plague, bands of mercenaries, betrayals, and religious zealots. But the moral ambiguity and lack of heroes that got the movie forgotten in its time is exactly why it's worth your hours and minutes today. Join me for this discussion of w...
John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 was made for $100,000, written in eight days, scored by Carpenter in three, and shot in twenty. Yet its status as a classic endures, and its influence still ripples through filmmakers we celebrate today. A siege movie that combines the elements of Rio Bravo and Night of the Living Dead, the film is gripping as a shaky alliance between police and convicts comes together to survive the night against the ghoulish gangsters forcing their way in. Join me...
Now we're talking -- John Carpenter's Escape From New York is the next movie in our John Carpenter series, and it's one of my favorites from his filmography. Teaming up with collaborators like actor Kurt Russell, producer Debra Hill, cinematographer Dean Cundey, and many more, Carpenter presents a bleak vision of a future that seems all too relevant in our current political climate. When the president is taken captive on the now-prison formerly known as New York, it's up to former WWIII so...
The first of a fall series on the films of John Carpenter, The Fog is a seaside, small-town ghost story with all the spooky touches from the horror master. Atmospheric and with a swirling score (composed by Carpenter himself), the film is yet another cult classic in the John Carpenter canon. When Antonio Bay hits the 100th anniversary of a shipwreck, strange events occur across town, residents begin to die or disappear, and the secrets behind the nautical disaster come to light. Can the peopl...
Abel Ferrara's King of New York and Mario Van Peebles's New Jack City are New York gangster films released just six months apart. While King of New York didn't find success at release, it gained appreciation on the home rental market and has undergone re-appraisal as one of Ferrara's best. New Jack City was a box-office hit, launching Wesley Snipes to leading-man status and cementing the acting career of rapper Ice-T. But in a head-to-head battle, which one of these early '90s gangster f...
Luc Besson's Subway is unlike the Luc Besson movies I know. Growing up on his films like The Fifth Element or Leon: The Professional, I thought this was going to be another quirky action film. I got something completely different, but I loved it. The movie tells the story of Fred, an aimless miscreant, who flees the people he has stolen from to land in the mysterious labyrinth of the Paris Metro, where he falls into a life among other people who scratch out a living underground, all while ...
Lawrence and Mark Kasdan's Silverado is a revival of the old western genre tropes when the cowboy stuff was ah-fading. With its 133-minute runtime and a stellar cast, including Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Rosanna Arquette, John Cleese, Kevin Costner, Brian Dennehy, Danny Glover, Jeff Goldblum, Linda Hunt, and more, the movie is just exploding with western. And, hey, if you can roll with its apple pie nature, it's a lot of fun. Join me for this episode talking about the slightly campy...
The Shooting, a so-called "anti-western" or "acid western," is compelling literally and figuratively. A Criterion classic and a film with, at the time of writing, a 100% critical score on the website Rotten Tomatoes, the movie never had a widespread American theatrical release but survived thanks to its acclaim. Starring Warren Oates, Millie Perkins, Will Hutchins, and Jack Nicholson, and directed by Monte Hellman, a woman hires two men to take her through the desert. For what purpose? She ...
Stuart Gordon's Fortress is a science-fiction and action film that feels like a B-movie, even with its theatrical release. Well-remembered by many who saw it, it's a somewhat popular pick among video-store era enthusiasts. With practical effects and the interesting talents of the one and only Christopher Lambert (Highlander), this episode takes a look at whether the film stacks up as a worthy watch. Join me for a discussion of its dystopian themes, how Lambert's off-beat persona is a plus, an...
Rolling Thunder is a cult classic revenge film with notable fans, including Quentin Tarantino. Written by Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver) and rewritten by Heywood Gould (Cocktail), it's about a prisoner of war's return home only to find a new conflict in suburbia. When his family is killed, the already-damaged veteran Major Charles Rane gears up for a quest of revenge to kill the men who ruined what was left of his life. Directed by John Flynn and starring William Devane and Tommy Lee Jones,...
Runaway Train is the only "philosophical" action thriller I've ever heard of. Based on an original script by the legendary Akira Kurosawa, it combines American action thrills with Eastern existential questions. This unique blend was a critical darling, but it didn't sell many tickets at the box office. But it's remembered today as one of the best films of the Cannon Group and frequently appears on "underrated" lists. Powered by Oscar-nominated performances from Jon Voight and Eric Ro...
Writer/director Tom DiCillo's Living in Oblivion is an independent 1990s cult classic comedy about the perils of making films. Rumor has it that the movie is shown in film schools as a warning of frustrations to come. With hilarious performances from Steve Buscemi, Catherine Keener, Dermot Mulroney, James Le Gros, Peter Dinklage, and more, you'll get a firsthand tour of toil that will dispel any notion of glamour you had about the movie business. Listen in to learn why this movie is comed...
Neil Marshall's Dog Soldiers (2002) is an action/horror movie that really gets the slash part of the equation correct. Well balanced between the two genres, this lower-budget British film is about a squad of soldiers squaring off against a pack of bloodthirsty werewolves. It ditches the melodrama of many werewolf films, focusing on intense firefights and close-quarters battles instead of the curse of existing only to transform and kill every full moon. A cult classic in many circles, th...
Writer/Director (and sometimes comic book maker) S. Craig Zahler's Brawl in Cell Block 99 is a Neo-noir prison action thriller film. If that sounds like trying to stuff way too many genres into one movie, fear not: it's violent and compelling, plain and simple. With his churning style, Zahler makes a slow-roasted film that occasionally explodes into fits of violence you can't unsee. But with standout performances from Vince Vaughn, Jennifer Carpenter, and more, the film pulls you into its cha...
One of John Woo's action masterpieces, The Killer is a standout work of classic Hong Kong cinema. A film that sent ripples through Hollywood, it grabbed international attention for Woo and star Chow Yun-fat, forever changing the action genre. Mixing melodramatic neo-noir with fluid action set pieces, the film further explores Woo's themes of "heroic bloodshed," raising questions about honor and friendship. And it fires a lot of bullets and blows many things up, of course, because it's a Joh...
An action thriller, Year of the Dragon is, at times, shocking and still controversial. After the failure of the epic western Heaven's Gate, which nearly ruined Academy Award-winning director Michael Cimino's (The Deer Hunter) career, Year of the Dragon was set to be his comeback. Starring Mickey Rourke and John Lone, the movie pits a newly assigned Chinatown Police Captain up against a young, rising Chinese Triad member ready to take power. As their battle continues, the situation becomes i...