Reviews

Great tv from my youth and certainly the best representation of the classic legend.

Filmed between 1984-1986 for only 3 seasons, the show was on Saturday evenings on ITV and me and my brother never missed it.

The first 2 seasons featured Michael Praed as Robin of Loxley, Judi Trott and Marion, Ray Winstone as Will Scarlet, Clive Mantle as Little John, Phil Rose and Friar Tuck, Mark Ryan as Nasir and Peter Llewelyn Williams as Much.

Jason Connery took over the Robin role (as Robert of Huntingdon and Robin's successor and Herne's son) for the 3rd series and I remember at the time being really disappointed that Praed left and there was a new Robin.

Looking back now though I think Connery did a fine job and it couldn't have been as easy role to go into. In fact, some of my favourite episodes are with Connery, particularly 'The Sheriff of Nottingham' featuring a great performance from Lewis Collins.

The cinematography, music, scriptwriting and acting are all top notch. It's a gritty and sometimes dark telling of the old English legend - no tights worn here. Great action scenes with sword fights and arrows flying.

Two of the best characters are played by Nickolas Grace as the conniving, scheming Sheriff of Nottingham along with hapless Sir Guy of Gisborne played by Robert Addie. Grace is brilliant as the bug-eyed, sneering Sheriff, constantly deriding Guy on his constant failures to apprehend Robin and his merry men.

The whole cast are great in fact with Ray Winstone tearing up the scenery as the hot-headed Will Scarlet and Clive Mantle solid as the giant Little John.

And how cool is Nasir?

I saw this on You Tube a few years back and once was enough. Violence doesn't bother me but what bothers me is violence for the sake of it.

I'm not going to bother going in to detail because the film doesn't deserve it but what you get is a schoolgirl gang rape (fortunately you don't see it but it's bad enough listening to it) and an extremely nasty end rape scene. A cold film with cold characters who I wanted to see splattered all over the screen but nothing happens to them.

I'm guessing the director wanted to make a splash with his first film (hopefully his last) but it's a soulless dud.

Not worth anybody's time.

Nice scenery in this uneven adaption with the quaint English village backdrop nicely captured.

Unfortunately that's about the only thing the film has going for it with some terrible performances (worst is Bill Bixby, very wooden and playing a somewhat unlikely romantic lead) bad scripting in parts and too much emphasis on a soppy developing romantic love story between Bixby and Leslie Anne Down.

This is a modern update with Bixby taking on the role of lead sleuth as an American computer programmer on holiday in England who gets mixed up in a serious of mysterious deaths in a small village.

Could have been an enjoyable murder mystery with more focus on the murders and village life but this one falls a long way short.

Daft but strangely endearing horror which starts out as a by-the-numbers slasher with a traditional masked and camouflaged heavy-breathing killer stalking the local college kids, but by the end the film resembles Commando.

There are only a few decent acting performances (Tommy, Nicole, Teela, Bart) but generally the performance are terrible and pretty funny, especially the over-acting by Tom Desrocher (Mace Jackson).

In the middle is a sub-plot about a dodgy nurse who is trying to bump off a few characters with the help of her village idiot son, who looks a bit like Stephen King in Creepshow.

I saw the film advertised years back in Fangoria and I liked the look and sound of it: it wasn't quite what I expected but it's enjoyably daft if you aren't looking for perfect.

In the same Fangoria piece, director Bill Hinzman makes the absurd claim that the makeup effects guy on 'The Majorettes' Jerry Gergely, is better FX man than Tom Savini.....having seen both mens work, I can safely say Tom is in a different league (he is most of the time anyway).

Catchy title tune by the way......

Evil Dead is still the horror classic I remember and this film is a must-have in any horror film fan's collection.

Ultra low budget combined with talent produced one of the best horror's ever seen.

5 kids go to a deserted cabin in the woods and stumble across an old book and a tape. The tape gets played and summons dormant demons, who then proceed to possess them in a variety of gruesome ways.

There is gore aplenty as blood and bodily fluids spray the cabin and the actors and Raimi really puts his cast through the meat grinder, particularly Bruce Campbell.

Originally filmed around Nov 1979 when Sam Raimi had just turned 20, the funds for the film had been cobbled together from an 8mm short called "Within the Woods".

The cast and crew (around 13 of them) all lived in the aforementioned cabin for the 12 week shoot and by all accounts the filming was as gruelling as the finished film.

Of course the low budget shows in places, but Raimi's style shines through. Marvellously innovative camerawork stand out along with Joe LaDuca's spooky music and Tom Sullivan's gooey effects work. The demons are frightening when they appear and this is the stuff of nightmares.

I haven't seen the remake as I'm not a fan of remakes (laziness is no excuse for a lack of talent) so I'll leave this classic right here.

Unofficial sequel to the 1959 classic Rio Bravo, this is my personal favourite of the two films. It's a tighter, leaner and less bloated version and everything just clicks.

It's the standard outnumbered and outgunned good guys desperately trying to hold off the big guns of the bad guys, with a couple of women getting in the way for good measure.

Big John is Cole Thornton, famed gunslinger for hire, who is offered a job by shady land baron Bart Jason (Ed Asner). On the advice of his old buddy, sheriff of El Dorado JP Harrah (Robert Mitchum) Cole turns the job down, forcing Jason to hire himself dangerous and notorious gunfighter Nelse Macleod (Christopher George).

Enter young stranger Mississippi (James Caan) , who has been tracking the 4th of Macleod's gunman (he's already taken care of the other 3). He despatches the gunman in a great scene, and is then aided by the Duke.

As it turns out JP the sheriff has hit the skids big time after a rough deal with a female, and now he's the town drunk and laughingstock. Cole, Mississippi and old Indian hunter Bull, all band together in the jail around JP as they desperately try to keep Asners character in jail until the Marshall arrives.

The whole thing is a rollicking good time adventure. Comfortable and fun to be among. Wonderful Harold Rossen photography as well, particularly the evening scenes of the town with the soft glow of candles and torches lighting the buildings.

Great cast as well with Mitchum taking the hardest role: his JP is at turns pathetic and heroic and you really route for him, especially when he returns to the saloon to take revenge on those who mocked him.

The story is pretty much identical to Rio Bravo but I think it works better because of the banter between Wayne, Mitchum and newcomer Caan who is great as the laid-back Mississippi - useless with a gun but big-hearted, brave and deadly with a knife. Caan for me makes the film and he's a much better character than Ricky Nelson in Rio Bravo.

Another mention I feel should go to Christopher George as the deadly Macleod. His character is constantly smiling, big scar down his face and he brings some charismatic menace to the proceedings.

Great western.

Usual vapid made-for-tv tosh which relies on the premise that lead actress Julie Benz is absolutely irresistible (she isn't) and all the male characters flirt desperately with her.

She returns to her home town where some of her former friends are being bumped off and her 'first love' is still pining for her (Benz's dead husband gave her permission to reunite with her first love if he croaked it - which of course he did - how noble).

Featuring the stupidest policeman ever written (he also tried and failed to get into Julie's knickers back in the day and very professionally brings it up at the police station) and a bunch of dumb airheads who, apart from Benz and her first love, don't think anything strange that people are dropping like flies.

I find it amazing that anybody can cobble this stuff together for a few million but I guess you don't need much in the way of talent these days.

Funny the things you remember from your childhood.... I first saw Killjoy around 1982-83 in England when I was 9 or 10 and it's always stayed with me, especially the beginning. The film was shown in the U. K. as part of a regular Saturday night collection of films under the title Murder, Mystery and Suspense and I believe Halloween was another.

Killjoy is great. The wonderful cast elevate it to beyond just a TV movie and they are obviously enjoying themselves. Robert Culp steals the film in my opinion. He creates a wonderfully quirky character who keeps popping up all over the place (the bit outside Kim Basinger's house always makes me laugh).

Also along for the ride are the lovely Miss Basinger (only around 26 here and it's difficult not to notice she doesn't appear the be wearing a bra), John Rubenstein (Crazy Like a Fox, The Boys From Brazil), Stephen Macht (The Monster Squad) and the always wonderful Nancy Marchand (Sparkling Cyanide, From the Hip).

A sharp script by Sam Rolfe and excellent Bruce Broughton music score along with John Llewelyn Moxey's steady direction make the whole thing very enjoyable. The film centres on a city hospital and the mysterious disappearance of the elusive Joy Morgan, whom we aren't even sure exists.

Rubenstein, Macht and Marchand are doctors at the hospital and Basinger is involved with both men. Enter Robert Culp who is trying to find Joy Morgan for reasons which aren't obvious. At first.

I managed to buy a copy on dvd as an American import a year ago. Bit pricey but well worth it for me.

If you like twisty murder mysteries give it a shot.

One of, if not the worst, of these fashionable modern daytime dramas. They seem to be everywhere these days and I'm assuming they must be cheap to make, or why bother?

Usual clapped-out 'mother and daughter don't get along' relationship as the mother is too controlling and the daughter wants her 'freedom' story, which culminates in the daughter going missing.

Nobody believes the mum, least of all the police, and she realises she has to find the daughter on her own.

I'm not a fan of these newer tv dramas as they seem to be similar: generic plots, tired scripts, uninventive camerawork and stale direction. Most of these TV movies are bad but this one seems to stand out from the rest because of its sheer awfulness.

The main problem with this particular effort is the acting. I couldn't find one decent, believable performance with one actress being completely dubbed and the other English actress giving one of the most atrociously wooden performances I've ever seen. She really needs a new career.

The rest is just dross. Kirsty Swanson, never the best of actresses, in the lead isn't much better.

Steer clear of this one. Unless you like watching painfully bad acting......????

Another slasher flick that proudly wears its "banned in the U.K." like a badge of honour. In my country in the early 80's we had religious crusading maniacs trying to get any film that featured blood or breasts banned.

This particular film was on the Department of Public Prosecutions list but it's certainly not nasty enough to be on any video nasties list.

The premise is a basic one that many low budget horror films follow: 3 young girls on their way to a rock concert have a car crash and end up being taken to a creepy, secluded house that harbours a dark secret.

And that's it really. It's not a bad film, albeit very slow. The cinematography is okay, despite being very dark in places. Editing is odd as there are many awkward scenes with long pauses.

Stand out for me is Jonathon Newton's excellent music score - really sleazy 80's synth score which elevates the film probably more than it deserves.

The acting is hilariously bad by the 3 main girls especially Laurel Munson as lead girl Terry. Sara Ansley is lovely as Nancy (there is a video of her on Star Search 88 on You Tube) but acting isn't her strongest quality.

The strongest performance comes from JE Penner as Marion, who lives in the mansion along with her nasty, wheelchair-bound mother (Virginia Settle - a dreadful actress who at times sounds like a Dalek from Dr Who).

The murders are basic and bloody but what makes this film stand out from others of the era is it's excellent ending. It's a real shocker and almost makes worth sitting through the rest of the tedium.

Not sure if this flick was meant to be tongue-in-cheek but it has some of the dumbest human actions and reactions I've ever seen in a horror film.

The premise has a team of doctors, lead by the always-solid Richard Crenna, taking up residence in a spooky old house. Before long the usual visions and mysterious happenings occur when Crenna's wife (Joanna Pettet) starts seeing things and nobody believes her. At first.

Then Crenna pulls a clanger and unwittingly unleashes something in the basement.

Then it's every man and woman for themselves with some of the daftest situations I think I've seen. For example: one of the characters, Dwight (the always enjoyable Robert Viharo - called George here for some reason and doing his best Burt Reynolds impression) is electrocuted and obviously in some distress and none of the characters go to help him, despite them being only round the corner!

All the doors and windows bolt themselves shut and the team are not only trapped but now well aware there is something else in the house with them.

Another character named Felicia hits her head after whatever Crenna has let out of the cellar causes a mild earthquake. She is taken to an upstairs room, told to rest by Caroline (Crenna's wife, who is a doctor) and then left alone. All alone.

Surely there has got to be a better way to split up the characters so obviously so they can be attacked??!

Anyway, Felicia is attacked by an invisible force and is screaming the house down for a full minute before the camera cuts to the other characters looking up at the ceiling, listening to her screaming before they decide to run upstairs......

I told you this movie was dumb......

It's well made and acted but suffers from a lazy script which puts the characters in situations they wouldn't get themselves into.

Still worth a watch though.

I don't have much to say in this movie's favour apart from you have to see it for George Peck's astonishing performance as Rick, a kind of Z-list Indiana Jones.

This is scenery-chewing acting at its finest. Where they found this guy, I have no idea. He must have been cheap. His facial expressions and mannerisms are unbelievable. I guarantee you have never seen a performance like this.

The story is pretty standard: grave robbers make the mistake of trying to rob ancient Egyptian mummy's tomb and live to regret it.

The end gore effects are not half bad but it's not that you will be amazed at: it's George Peck.

I've seen a few versions of probably Holmes' most famous case, and this one holds up pretty well. Firstly, Ian Richardson as Holmes: he is a different Holmes to Conan Doyle's cold, aloof deduction machine.

This Holmes is a lively, happy Holmes and I can't really get on with this portrayal. Richardson is a fine actor but I much prefer Jeremy Brett, Peter Cushing and Basil Rathbone.

Next up we have Donald Churchill as Doctor Watson giving possibly the worst performance of all the Watson's. It's certainly the worst performance in the film. Churchill gives a stumbling, mumbling, bumbling performance, in the Nigel Bruce vein but with none of the charm. Bruce and David Burke were far better Watson's.

Martin Shaw, TV's Ray Doyle from The Professionals turns up as American Sir Henry Baskerville and he turns in an average performance, mainly due to the fact his whole voice was dubbed (by Eric Roberts, Julia's brother). No idea why this was done. Maybe Shaw's accent wasn't up to scratch but it certainly detracts from his performance.

Trusty Brit stalwarts Denholm Eliot (miscast as Dr Mortimer- Mortimer was in his 30's in the novel), Brian Blessed shouting and hollering as Geoffrey Lyons (a character only mentioned by name in the book) and Ronald Lacey as Lestrade all provide good support. Nicholas Clay does a nice turn as the devious Stapleton but Glynis Barber as Beryl Stapleton is appalling. She seems to come from the quivering lip school of acting.

The production in this version is particularly good. Impressive photography of the brooding moor and Baskerville Hall plus Douglas Hickox's confident direction are big plus points. Forget the dodgy sets of Baker Street at the beginning and some obvious studio sets of the moor towards the end. Bit of a cop out ending with Sir Henry and Beryl which is different to the book.

All in all a pretty good attempt at a classic, not the best but certainly not the worst.