Dead Air, Slapstick, and Lucas’ Last Laugh A Lucasfilm movie so panned on its original release that it almost made people forget Howard the Duck. When Universal accepted American Graffiti in 1972, George Lucas gave them first-look deals on two projects: Radioland Murders and “an untitled science fiction film.” One became the biggest franchise in … Read more
60’s slapstick hadn’t quite run it’s course… At the turn of the millennium, the idea of the ultra-rich pulling the masses’ strings for their own amusement wasn’t exactly fresh – then, as now, it’s almost easier to laugh than to cry about it. Jerry Zucker’s (Airplane!, Ghost) gleefully ridiculous ode to 60s slapstick mayhem leans … Read more
Spy Spoofs, Bright Yellow VHS, and Wellie-Wearing Cows Shhh! Top Secret! snuck onto home video this week back in 1984, after a lukewarm June 22nd theatrical release. Top Secret may have lost the box office battle against other ’84 summer heavy weights like Gremlins and Ghostbusters, but Val Kilmer’s cool, calm and quotable ZAZ spy … Read more
I’ll admit I’ve never actually gone to Camp, but thanks to a lifetime spent vicariously living through movies and TV shows, I feel like I have. And I’ve come to have a pretty solid understanding of what goes on there. Arts and crafts, skinny dipping, maybe some competitive white-water rafting, spooky stories around the campfire, … Read more