The Ohio Sci-Fi and Horror Marathons

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PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 11:12 pm 
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Whoo, lots to cover here. Which is a great sign of how engaging and fun this past weekend's event was. As I've said many times before, in many different venues, one of the great delights of the modern Marathon setup is how it allows Bruce and I to experience so much of the event with all of you. After all, we're both fans at heart, and watching what's on screen with everyone is part and parcel of what makes this fulfilling. So I'll start with some fan's notes before addressing some of the logistical matters posed in this thread.

-As has been noted in this thread, the increased attendance was fantastic, and a true testament to how 20-30 more Marathoids can significantly change the energy in the room. And we were missing some of the regulars, so I'm hoping this is a sign that we're expanding our base.

-Before the Marathon, my pal Steve Carter (a veteran Marathoid if there ever was one) told me that TURKISH STAR WARS was a horrible and inept film. But man, he neglected to clue me in on how utterly ridiculous it was....in the most refined, absurd, enjoyable way. Seriously, this was the most fun I've had at a Sci-Fi Marathon in quite awhile. At times, it felt like late-'60s Jean-Luc Godard hopped up on trucker speed, directing a STAR WARS ripoff. I almost wish we had played it earlier now.

-I've long been a fan of THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH, and of Nicolas Roeg's elliptical style in general. This was my fifth time seeing it, and afterward I kept coming back to a word that several of you have used here: exhausting. It's truly an epic journey, an emotional roller coaster, and a beguiling experience. I was reminded of what I felt when first watching Ken Russell's TOMMY in a theater (a MUCH different experience than on video.) Like I said before the screening, it (and Roeg in general) isn't for everyone. But it's also completely emblematic of David Bowie's artistic and aesthetic philosophy, a cinematic experience that is at times funny, at times easily digestible, and at times deeply challenging. Rip Torn is such an endearing degenerate, and Candy Clark is such a tragic presence, a well-meaning childish naif whose one true love can never be hers.

-And speaking of Roeg, Russell, and that distinctly British strain of finely excessive filmmaking.....there's HIGH-RISE! As the credits rolled, I turned to Mr. Zecchini and said "Boy, Ken Russell would be proud." In many ways, Ben Wheatley's decadent cinematic acid trip was not what I expected...which was fantastic! I've greatly admired how Wheatley worked the thin fabric between reality and the supernatural in KILL LIST and A FIELD IN ENGLAND. He works much the same territory here, but it's that gossamer barrier between civilization and chaos. The source material was a pointed critique of the encroaching Thatcherism that would team with Reaganomics to promote the no win philosophy of trickle down economics, and this adaptation felt timelier than ever. I can't wait to see it again, and to try to pick apart more of its nuances.

-I had completely forgotten about the latent homoeroticism in MAD MAX. Which added an amusing touch to what holds up as a film that transcends its B-movie roots.

-And speaking of transcending roots.....ARROWHEAD! Last year, I enjoyed SHADOWS ON THE WALL, in large part out of admiration for the filmmakers trying to make the concept work with almost no budget. True, it wasn't a patch on such super-low budget films like PRIMER. But the ideas it held were still interesting, even if the aesthetics surrounding them were sometimes let down by the limited cash on hand. This contextual appreciation was also in play for me with Jesse O'Brien's debut feature. I was deeply impressed with the visual scheme of the film, especially considering all the budgetary and logistical challenges that he faced. Sure, it's not perfect. But there are a lot of interesting stylistic seeds planted within, seeds that could be cultivated even more with a larger budget. We see many fully realized films by masters of the genre at these events, but sometimes the most enjoyable experiences can be witnessing young filmmakers on the first step of their filmic journey.

-Having never seen STARMAN, I was duly impressed. It's such a simple, compact story, with plot and character beats you can see coming a mile away. But Bridges and Allen are so damn engaging in their roles that it doesn't matter. It was well worth waiting to see this is a Marathon setting, especially in the gorgeous 35mm print we were able to book.

Okay, now onto some of the logistical, behind the scene matters:

-The lesser amount of 35mm trailers was mainly a time consideration. From the outset, we knew that four films with a running time of around two hours or more would limit the non-feature content. Toss in "Gravity", Mike Olenick's "Beautiful Things", the Flight of the Concords Bowie tribute, etc. and you get much more limited time. And on a basic level, Bruce was quite busy with the Wexner Center's excellent CINEMA REVIVAL festival the previous week, which limited some of his time. We always say that the features sell the event, with the trailers, shorts, etc. as the icing on the cake. Ultimately, we have to figure out what we can fit in between the films we end up booking. But rest assured, we're not giving up on those beloved trailers and shorts anytime soon.

-Onto the matter of content, sexuality, children in the audience, bad parenting, etc. So I'm not a parent, but I've been an uncle eight times over since I was nine years old. Not the same thing, but still a lot of time spent around kids. We would've LOVED to have played FANTASTIC VOYAGE earlier. DESTROY ALL MONSTERS too. But logistical realities took over. Bookending the MAD MAX films set the first one...um....first. The two premieres worked best in the first half. We wanted to give the Bowie fans a chance to see MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH at a reasonable hour, which would also give the non-fans a dinner break. Add in trying to place ZARDOZ at a fairly reasonable hour and you get what we ultimately scheduled.

As far as content goes, it's very true that historically we've tried to make the Science Fiction Marathon a bit more suitable for all ages. That being said, slightly harder films have played earlier in the Marathon before. I remember, years ago, reading a letter of complaint to the Drexel from one concerned Marathoid, aghast that DEATH RACE 2000 played so early at SF5. And sure, there are points to be made on that end. But children haven't been a major part of our audience for a long time, and it can be argued that even when we had the children's ticket price, the percentage of kids to adults was roughly proportional to what it is today.

I wholeheartedly agree with what several of you have already said: it's up to the individual parent to decide what's appropriate for their children. As far as the supposed brutality and impersonal sex of some of these films go.....well, by today's standards MAD MAX isn't a very sexual film (and the violence is so car crash-centric as to blunt some of the more disturbing moments). THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH begins with a tender sexual/romantic relationship that becomes poisoned by the emotional isolation of life on earth. HIGH-RISE is an acid critique of decadence and empty sexuality. And ZARDOZ's whole point is that the demonization of sexuality cannot hold.

There's that old axiom about Science Fiction being cerbral, Horror visceral. I'm wondering how much of that balance ends up getting upended when we feature films at Sci-Fi that deal more overtly with sexuality. Hell, we also sometimes get pushback when we play more intellectual films at Horror. I guess it's all part of the process. But I don't see this event as being some kind of betrayal of the Sci-Fi ethos. It's just a collection of films that happened to work out this way.

On a side note, the availability of titles also plays a role in the planning of these things. When it came right down to it, we reached a point (after much deliberation) where we had to announce a lineup. And creating that lineup involved looking at what we knew we could book and choosing from those titles. It's an often complicated process, but one that I think we succeed at more often than not.


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PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 11:42 pm 
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One of the best marathons in recent memory. The costume contest was really great this year - serious effort was actually put into it by most of the participants (minus Mr. Storm Trooper on vacation). The film lineup was memorable. I have a bad tendency to complain to my mates about a few films at the time I'm seeing them (Man Who Fell To Earth). But later, in retrospect, I appreciate the experience of having seen said film, especially with the marathon audience. It's cool how each marathon has a certain 'feel' or flavor to it, and that feeling persists in the memory for many years. One such year like that, for me, was the 10th at the Riffe Center, when we saw City of Lost Children, Brazil, Cemetery Man, to name just a few. That year left a unique, weird, enjoyable flavor in my memory.

Hey, and Jason X wasn't so bad! The acting was atrocious, the film was extremely cheesy and formulaic, but it really fell at just the right time to sort of give the lineup some seasoning, and I stayed awake for it and enjoyed it.

LOVED finishing with Fury Road. I'd seen it once back in the summer, but it was even better second time around. I picked up on a lot of details I missed on the first viewing, even running on a minuscule amount of sleep.

Looking forward to seeing everybody again in October for the Horrorfest.


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:23 pm 
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L.A. Connection wrote:
This year, we rolled the dice a bit and had EX MACHINA and FELL TO EARTH right in the primetime evening hours with their full on frontal nudity. Didn't hear a peep about it.

Due to a bit of ... consternation ... on the part of certain elements of theater management back in 2013, Sci-Fi had an "alternate offering" film running in one of the other houses during VANISHING WAVES. I'm pretty sure nobody felt the need to take advantage of it. The idea seemed pretty unnecessary.

The event certainly doesn't want to discourage young attendees but at the same time there are no kid's tickets, there are no partial tickets, the films are all listed for parents ahead of time to make their own decisions ... I honestly think that's the best way to handle it.

EDIT: Rip Torn's penis is EVIL. Sean Connery's gun is GOOD. ZARDOZ be praised!

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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:15 pm 
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SRCputt wrote:
Giving credit where credit is due: I love John Carpenter's music, and I highly recommend his album "Lost Themes" which is movie music he wrote but never attached to a movie. That said, he didn't do the music for Starman. The composer of Starman's score is Jack Nitzsche, who also did scores for films such as One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, An Officer and a Gentleman, and (gulp) 9 1/2 Weeks.


Thanks for clearing that up. Another John Carpenter film that doesn't have the score done by him is "The Thing". If memory serves me correctly, the score in "The Thing" is done by Ennio Morricone, who did a HELL!!!!!!! of a job!


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:18 pm 
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MEATFETISH wrote:
I'm glad to see attendance was up but so was the temperature in the theater. Definiteley missed Spaceboy (did it not play or did I just miss it?) and thought it would've been perfect before/after ZARDOZ.


I'm probably the only attendee who thought it was a little chilly. Maybe it's just me? I will never again wear anything but long sleeve shirts to ANY movie theater, period. Too miserable watching a movie while cold. As for Spaceboy, it didn't play.


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 4:56 pm 
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Here's a film-by-film breakdown ...

MAD MAX
As Joe said above Mad max set the tone for the entire Marathon and that tone was action packed adventure.

STARMAN
I am a huge fan of all things John Carpenter (I even like Ghost of Mars) and even though this is a more main stream Carpenter film it has been one of favorites ever since I first saw it on HBO back in the day. It was great to finally see it on the big screen and in 35mm not to mention the print was spectacular.



ARROWHEAD

I was amazed at how much movie they fit into such a small budget. The opening scene made me think the plot was going one way and it went another, I think it might have been a better film had it went the other way but after learning about the limited budget I can see why they kept it all in one location. All in all a pretty good movie and better than the average premier.

THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH
This was my first time seeing THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH and I really enjoyed it. All the T&A was an added bonus.

HIGH-RISE
For the most part I liked this film but I couldn't help feeling there was a reel missing, one minute everything was (kind of) normal and the next it was the High-Rise from hell. Also why didn't people just leave? And the ones that went to work why did they come back? So many unanswered questions.

ZARDOZ
Loved it. Fun, bonkers and Boobs. Although I did have a few head nods during this film I still liked it and am glad I bought the over priced limited Edition Blu-Ray.

TURKISH STAR WARS
You know if they had more than a $200.00 budget and a friend who owned an editing machine this could actually be a good film. I had a few more head nods during this one but had fun with it.

JASON X
It finally happened...Thanks to Joe and Bruce for letting me say a few words before the movie started. I'm glad that the majority of the audience seemed to have fun with JASON X. Now it's time to Back the Howard the Duck Contingent.

FANTASTIC VOYAGE
Great movie Beautiful Picture. Little slow for 6:30am I had a few head nods but managed to make it thru without falling asleep.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS
Great Fun, I would be all for more Godzilla films at the marathons.

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
This is how a Marathon should end, Balls to the wall action.


THANKS TO BRUCE, JOE and the DREXEL STAFF!!

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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 7:46 pm 
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pogo wrote:
Positives. My wife wants the idiot box, so I'll come back and add on later.


pogo wrote:
I'll get back to my positive comments later. For now I'll just comment on the adult fare for kiddos issue since I brought it up.


.....aaaaand? C'mon, you didn't think I'd let you off the hook THAT easily. :wink:


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 12:13 am 
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Ghost wrote:
STARMAN
I am a huge fan of all things John Carpenter (I even like Ghost of Mars)


Ghosts of Mars, now there's another good example of an "underseen" film that would be perfect for a marathon.

Also an example of something that could be either horror or sci-fi, but I think this one would lean more towards the horror marathon.

Make it happen Joe!


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 12:28 am 
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so what did people think of the Q&A?

Seemed to me that it went on for just the right amount of time. Any less and it would have been disrespectful to the director, and any more and it would have dragged for the audience.

I liked how he mentioned Enemy Mine as one of the influences/inspirations. Also appreciated the explanation of how that chain scene at the beginning was originally supposed to work (though I'm not the one who asked about it).


In general, I would say that the post-movie Q&A made me enjoy the overall Arrowhead premiere experience more.


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 2:08 am 
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I may post a film-by-film breakdown later, but right now I'm just going to weigh in on the whole sex/nudity/R-rated content issue...

As a parent who has been bringing my kids to marathons for quite a few years now (and brought two of them this year), I second the statement that this should not be a concern of Joe and Bruce. Sure, Sci-Fi has been generally softer and more family-friendly than many horror marathons, but sometimes adult content comes with the schedule.

Every movie that featured adult content fit perfectly into the marathon in theme and time slot (Mad Max bookended great with Fury Road and was the logical opener; The Man Who Fell to Earth needed to play early to do Bowie justice, and the dinner hour was a great choice so people could step out if they wanted to; High-Rise was a high-profile premiere and while it had graphic content, it was also necessary to play at a reasonable pre-midnight time slot; Zardoz has been almost played before and would have killed the audience energy if it played any later; and Jason X was exactly where it needed to be to give a shot of adrenaline to the crowd at 4am).

I think the number of films with adult content this year just happens to be what got scheduled and not a sign of an overall trend. This is what happens when you're pulling films from such a large timeframe. After all, when I started attending these marathons in the 80s, booking a 30-year-old movie was a black-and-white Hayes Code-approved flick. Now, booking a 30-year-old film is in the era of R-ratings and decades of sex and nudity seen on film.

With the way the internet is now, you can find out what kind of content is going to be in the films. That's the parent's responsibility. It appeared that there were more kids at this marathon, but that's a good thing. And if you don't want your kids to see boobs or the Hall-of-Fame-nominated "Rip Torn's Dick," you just need to do a little research beforehand.

Anyway, I wouldn't change a thing in terms of booking the films for next year. In fact, may I recommend we show A SERBIAN FILM IN SPACE in 2017?


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 2:10 am 
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cleazer wrote:
so what did people think of the Q&A?


Yeah, I'll comment on this as well. While I wasn't a huge fan of ARROWHEAD (a bit unfocused for the first two acts, though it looked great and toyed around with some neat concepts), I thought the Q&A added some real value to the event. Like cleazer said, it wasn't too long or too short. If you can't have a guest, a phone-in or Skype interview (if the technical gremlins get resolved on that one) is a very nice alternative.


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PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 1:35 pm 
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Ghost wrote:

HIGH-RISE
For the most part I liked this film but I couldn't help feeling there was a reel missing, one minute everything was (kind of) normal and the next it was the High-Rise from hell. Also why didn't people just leave? And the ones that went to work why did they come back? So many unanswered questions.


If YOU lived in a building that was a non stop sex orgy, would YOU want to leave? LOL Maybe that's just me. I don't mean to sound like a pervert. Just offering my 2 cents. Maybe I am not understanding the movie correctly. Could be because I got drowsy and almost fell asleep during it. (shrugs)

Also, another thing I want to point out about the marathon that I forget to mention in my review of it:
I noticed that a lot of people in the crowd besides myself were suffering from the cold (and maybe the flu too?). Many of times I heard people blow their noses and cough. This isn't criticism, but concern. How about we not have the marathon in March anymore, seeing as how it seems to be cold and flu season? I know that everyone who felt under the weather would appreciate the marathon more if they didn't have their body acting all screwy through out. I just look at March as too early to have a Sci Fi Marathon, what with all the people dealing with colds.


Last edited by HorrorTriviaMaster on Fri Mar 11, 2016 1:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 7:12 pm 
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I loved this marathon, so, SO good. The Drexel Bexley (now just the Drexel, I guess) is a great venue for thons. Cozy, good neighborhood, awesome staff. I'm glad we had such good turnout but I'd be so sad to see it out grow the place. I told myself going in I wouldn't buy a T-Shirt but that design was boss, and when I saw they offered a zip up hoodie, I couldn't resist. The coffee mug was also beautiful, the program and certificate, I have to say the marathon branding game is strong. Someone missed their calling in design, and thank goodness, because their programming game is stronger.Yes, I missed that nothing was shown pre sixties or in black and white, but what a minor complaint about a wonderful set of films.

Film #1: Mad Max "Know this: that scag, and his floozy, they're gonna die" - Joe, you forgot about the homo eroticism? How?! As a kid, Fifi always confused me, now, I love him. I forgot how soft Max is in this film, it does get a little long in the tooth in that regard. Overall, it's so thrilling, weird and horrifying an experience, you need some tenderness to give the darkness that much more heft. The young couple that gets chased and raped, good god, so very, very scary. This is a film that sticks with you hard every time you watch it. Toecutter is one of cinema's all time most fascinating and fun to watch villains. The stunts, too. Man, those stunts.


Film #2: Starman "I will miss the cooks, and the singing and the dancing, and the eating...and the... other things" I had not seen this film since I was a kid. As hamfisted as it is, in that special 80's way, it still gets you right in the feels. I loved it. Bridges takes a daunting, weird task and makes it an Oscar caliber performance. Did you ever doubt him? The special effects is a marvelous bundle of resources we sadly do not see anymore, and, I guess, never will again. Charles Martin Smith, as the surrogate audience member perspective, also shines. It doesn't get any better than young Karen Allen. Conversations about Carpenter's story telling power must include this film.

Film #3: Arrowhead - After the first fifteen minutes, I decided to take my friends advice and join him for dinner at The Rusty Bucket. I wanted something non pizza to eat, and the time buffer of a Q&A and costume contest seemed ideal. What I saw felt very convoluted. I caught most the costume contest and was thoroughly entertained. I shouted "Kill the kid" and regret nothing, even though said kid was sitting right behind me. Aaaakward.

Film #4: The Man Who Fell to Earth "I don't hate anyone. I can't." I had not seen this film before, and it was so good. The concept is great, and I love the way the story is told, a series of sentences taken out of paragraphs, leaving the audience to fill in the blanks. I'd heard it was explicit, but I had no idea that little Rip Torn and not so little David Bowie were in this movie. The 70's were a different time for cinema and censorship, that's for sure. Bowie was consistently fascinating. Best final line of the thon.

Film #5: High-Rise "This is my party, you're my guests, I should be the one that decides if someone's lobotomized" I had seen this before at Fantastic Fest and was really looking forward to a second watch. I walked away from the first viewing thinking the switch from tension among classes to total anarchy happened too fast, but with some perspective I found it to be more measured than I recalled. The visuals are great. The book High-Rise inspired Cronenberg's They Came from Within, and this film felt informed by early Cronenberg. To me, anyway. Hiddleston is great, Irons is delightful, but my fav character is the guy with the giant mustache who raids the swimming pool with all the kids. He's the quintessential bully, equal parts funny and frightening. I'm a big Wheatley fan, and this may be my favorite.

Film #6: Zardoz "The gun is good, the penis is evil." I love this movie and looked forward to taking in that beautiful transfer, but sadly I zardozed off. Those cheap PBRs caught up with me.

Film #7: Turkish Star Wars "Start that whistle no woman can resist" I have to be honest, I did not pay close enough attention to the opening exposition and so I really have no idea what this film was about. I love a good training montage though, and I applaud the film maker's brave and avaunt guard decision to focus a rather extensive montage on rock slapping. My, how he slapped those rocks!

Film #8: Jason X "We love premarital sex!" If you don't like Jason X then up yours. This film is way more entertaining than it has any right to be. Poor Jason had already suffered two broadly despised finales. Jason takes Manhattan is not as bad as remembered, it would be much more appreciated if they had named it Jason on a Boat, or Maritime Jason, or Captain Jason, and left the Manhattan ending a surprise. Fans would then go apey over the fact the film winds up in Manhattan, instead of anticipating it the whole time and then getting pissed. Jason goes to Hell repeats the stupid idea of blowing the ending in the title, and adds to it by omitting Jason from the film almost entirely. If Jason could switch bodies, why the fuck has he had a machete head wound and a missing eye this whole time?!! What is actually a decent horror film simply should not have been attached to the Jason franchise, we would like it as an original production about a new character. Adding to Jason X's context, the production of it halted the development of the highly anticipated Freddy Vs. Jason much to the dismay of two rabid fanbases. I'm sure most fans saw relegating Jason to space as just one final, familiar pit stop before the semi permanent, pre-remake graveyard of horror franchises. Instead, Jason X would have been a fine, if not ideal, final entry (Freddy Vs. Jason proved an even more fitting end for both franchises instead). It has plenty of inventive kills. The concept is worked freshly despite the fact space was already well trod ground for other horror film series. There are a lot of successful jokes in it, I definitely LOL during this movie. The cookie cutter characters get dispatched quickly, and the ones that stick around all have something interesting about them. It's smart, swift, fun, funny, and inventively gory. Also features a more awesome cameo than most, which helped weave this film into the lattice of coincidence all marathons enjoy.

Film #9: Fantastic Voyage "12 minutes left, not the time to run out of sugar" The last time I saw this film was at a marathon, it was a faded print, so my memory was everything in shades of pink. This movie really benefits from it's full color palate. It had to have been a blast to work on those sets. Maybe it was a pain, but it had to have looked cool in person at least. I enjoy the characters and their dynamics, and the idea that our internal bodily defenses are the villains of the film, personified by some really wacky special effects. Ok, Pleasance is the villain, but he's just so damn cuddly I don't want to accept it. I'm sure he's simply misunderstood.

Film #10: Destroy All Monsters "It appears to be some kind of special micro transmitter, why they inserted it into his body, I don't know" Hooo boy, I remember the satisfying smackdown Ghidora is the recipient of, but what I forgot is the laborious amount of alien invasion exposition that precedes it. This is not my most favorite Godzilla film for that reason. Also, all these dudes, but no Gigan? Really? When the monsters are attacking the various cities, that's good stuff. I don't why those monsters hate landmarks and public transportation so much, but I guess that's why they call them monsters. For those saying they would like more family friendly fare at opportune hours, this film was rated G and included on screen suicide and shoot outs. Either leave your kids at home or accept their minds will be bent and know they'll thank you for it one day.

Final Film: Mad Max Fury Road "All this for a family squabble. Healthy babies, tsk" Proceeding The Raid and being followed by Hardcore Henry it would appear that an action film renaissance may be upon us. Yes, this doesn't fit in the original cannon, but if Max were to become a multi actor, James Bond like character, we would have to make this concession anyway, and I have high hopes that is where Max is now headed. A fitting companion to to the first film as Hardy seems to be channeling that early, broken Max. I continue to be weirded out by the foreign back story that haunts him but is never explained, Miller has said more is on the way, will this be revisited? Who knows. I love all the fine details in this film, all the little touches that add up to a much finer woven world than you normally see, all the little untold stories or hints at what's really going on. There is a lot, alot alot, in this movie. I love. Here is a conversation between the kid I mentioned earlier sitting behind me and his (probably) father:

Boy "What happened?"
Dad "He died"
Boy "Who?"
Dad "The big bad guy"
Boy "How?"
Dad "His face ripped off"
Boy "Oh"

To the man who is clearly flipping a massive double bird to every piece of parenting advice he's ever received and keeping the future safe for cinephiles in the process, I salute you.

Thanks so much to Bruce and Joe. I really wanted to shoot it with ya'll a bit afterwards but sadly I had to jet. Next time. There will be a next time.


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PostPosted: Fri Mar 11, 2016 6:08 am 
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No film by film breakdown here - largely because I missed most of them. :(

Just wanted to pop in to say... it broke my heart a little to have to leave early. I think this line-up was a great one, and I was looking forward to so much of it, but, I ended up catching a cold the week before the marathon. I was feeling pretty crummy, still, by Saturday, and also worried about disturbing those around me with my coughing and sneezing, and, most of all, didn't want to get anyone else sick!

I want to apologize if anyone caught my cold! I probably shouldn't have come, at all, but I was thinking that, by Saturday, I'd be feeling better, and probably not contagious. Since the former didn't end up being true, I'm not sure the latter was, either!

Oh, and also - I apologize to anyone who I might have been unfriendlier than usual to! I'm a little neurotic about germs, and so, when it was clear I was still sick, I wanted to minimize the chances of spreading it to anyone else. So, I didn't want to shake anyone's hand, or even talk too long to anyone, or stand too near. I was looking forward to catching up with some old friends who haven't been back to a marathon in awhile, and meeting some of your offspring, and/or other new marathoids you brought - but, things didn't turn out that way - sorry about that! Hopefully we'll have the chance again in October?


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PostPosted: Fri Mar 11, 2016 1:39 pm 
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Jethrobot wrote:
Film #8: Jason X "We love premarital sex!" If you don't like Jason X then up yours. This film is way more entertaining than it has any right to be. Poor Jason had already suffered two broadly despised finales. Jason takes Manhattan is not as bad as remembered, it would be much more appreciated if they had named it Jason on a Boat, or Maritime Jason, or Captain Jason, and left the Manhattan ending a surprise. Fans would then go apey over the fact the film winds up in Manhattan, instead of anticipating it the whole time and then getting pissed. Jason goes to Hell repeats the stupid idea of blowing the ending in the title, and adds to it by omitting Jason from the film almost entirely. If Jason could switch bodies, why the fuck has he had a machete head wound and a missing eye this whole time?!! What is actually a decent horror film simply should not have been attached to the Jason franchise, we would like it as an original production about a new character. Adding to Jason X's context, the production of it halted the development of the highly anticipated Freddy Vs. Jason much to the dismay of two rabid fanbases. I'm sure most fans saw relegating Jason to space as just one final, familiar pit stop before the semi permanent, pre-remake graveyard of horror franchises. Instead, Jason X would have been a fine, if not ideal, final entry (Freddy Vs. Jason proved an even more fitting end for both franchises instead). It has plenty of inventive kills. The concept is worked freshly despite the fact space was already well trod ground for other horror film series. There are a lot of successful jokes in it, I definitely LOL during this movie. The cookie cutter characters get dispatched quickly, and the ones that stick around all have something interesting about them. It's smart, swift, fun, funny, and inventively gory. Also features a more awesome cameo than most, which helped weave this film into the lattice of coincidence all marathons enjoy.


Very great questions. I have some of my own. At the beginning of "Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday", HOW did Jason just POP UP (literally) in Camp Crystal Lake? Jesus christ on a CROSS, what a confusing way to start the movie! NO explanation AT ALL how Jason not only surviving the ending of Jason Takes Manhattan, but he MADE IT ALL THE WAY BACK, and
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grew up to an adult again. Well, Jason X DOES say he can heal himself, but come on.....making it back to Crystal Lake AND being an adult? Did Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday take place DECADES later, allowing Jason to be an adult?
Why didn't Kane Hodder play Jason in "Freddy VS Jason"? In Jason X, why does Jason
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break that guy's neck silently, as if he doesn't want to be heard? YOU'RE JASON VOORHEES!!! DON'T WORRY about making noise!! You're invincible!


Also, I didn't fall asleep during High Rise, but I came very close to doing so, and I will not wear long sleeve shirts at every movie theater I go to. I just will at the Drexel for sure, because I got cold.


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