The Ohio Sci-Fi and Horror Marathons

Alright, all ... here's a nice, tidy, official thread to post your thoughts and reactions to SF24 (when you're all awake again, that is) ...

My own "Knee Jerk" reactions (I'll edit with more specifics later):

12 Monkeys - Fantastic. It's always been a personal favorite and I think it was generally well received by the audience. Good call to put it first, as well.

King Dinosaur - First contender for the "Earth vs the Stock Footage" prize. While not the winner, Atomic Bomb footage always scores bonus points. Exccellent afternoon cheese.

The Great Yokai War - Basically what I was expecting and I was not at all displeased. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Puzzlehead - Not quite as cerebral as I had been led to expect, but entertaining nonetheless. A better premiere than most, but not as thoroughly enjoyed as "Primer" or "Fido".

Frankenstein Meets the Spacemonster - An all-time classic I was surprised I had not seen before. I can see it being a perfect slot for any later robot-themed marathons. Gotta dig Doctor Nadir.

Fido - Hands down the gem of the marathon. I had good expectations, but I was really really happy with what I saw. Astonishing production values, a very entertaining story and a great lark. Major-big-pick-your-appendage-up from me.

Automatons - I don't know if anyone else got anything out of this film, but I'm afraid I have to say it's as low on the totem as they go for me. I think the audience agreed. The reaction afterward reminded me a lot of "Tetsuo: Iron Man." Please, please don't do this to us again.

Chopping Mall - Overall I think this film is as enjoyable as I could have hoped it would be. For your garden-variety "kids orgy turned splatter blood-fest" it's right on the mark. Points for originality, cast, and gratuitous flesh ... no complaints from me.

Night of the Comet - I've seen this one several times, and frankly it's not rated all that highly in my book to begin with. It was an excellent opportunity to head out to the concession stand, take a break, and get some pizza. Only really caught the last half hour, but it was precisely as I remembered it ... OK but not a favorite.

Mindwarp (billed as "Galaxy of Terror") - Admittedly, I nodded for a good portion of this one toward the end. Still, there was surprisingly more substance, mythos, and production value than I had originally expected. After seeing the trailer at previous marathons, though, it was definitely a welcome sight.

Slither - Sadness ... I can definitely say (along with "Rollerball") that I'd be REALLY hip to seeing it another year. Excellent duo with "Night of the Creeps".

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Say what you will about its pacing (I knew for a fact it would put me to sleep, and it did ... twice. Still, I held out a lot longer than I expected, and the effects and attentions to detail are well-worthy. Part of me wishes I'd been able to stay awake for more of it, part of me is perfectly happy with what I ended up seeing .

Flash Gordon - Man, I've been waiting on this one forever, and I have to say it did NOT disappoint. I love it ... campy, garish effects ... outlandish costumes ... and Brian Blessed. It's paced well, it's archetypical Flash, and Ornella Muti can melt a polar ice cap.

General thoughts on the breaks, trailers, shorts, etc ... I thought they were all very, very well handled. The overall pacing was excellent, the breaks were a appropriately short, and there were enough trailers/shorts to satisfy yet still come in under budget for time.

Excellent job, Bruce and others ... the Dave is suitably impressed

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David A. Zecchini; Creature of the Wheel, Lord of the Infernal Engines
"Damnati Im Ludum" (VitruvianZeke@att.net)

Before I get into the movie breakdown, a few other random thoughts. I realy like the 10:30ish entry and the trailers starting at 11ish. The only downside was becaue we didn't actualy get in until close to 11 and there wasn't much of a break, as I recall, between the trailers and the 12 o'clock launch, I didn't make it out to the concession stand until after 12 Monkeys. I hate to miss the trailers and shorts so I tend to make my breaks quick so I miss as little as possible. I wouldn't be a big deal, but by the time I came out all the XXXL shirts were gone. I liked the design and was a bit sad I couldn't get one that would fit.

Great job by the staff this year, especially projection. Only complaint was it was a bit too loud at times, but I think the issues was when we switched between formats.

Maybe it was just me, but I think I heard Jeff speak more on the micropohone today than all of the sci fi marathons put together. Not a complaint, just an obsrevation. I got the impression he was more involved this year, but maybe it is he was just more vocal this year.

I'm still not sure about the order of the films. The parental side of me would have prefered Flash and 12 monkeys switch. However, I have to say, I like ending the marathon on a positive movie. I left the marathon very happy this year.

12 Monkeys. I had been a while since I saw it and I enjoyed it. I forgot how well it was done.

King Dinosaur. I think I liked this better than Frankenstein vs the space Monster because of the quality of the print. Had the prints been of equal quality I would have went with Frank.

Great Yokai War. Solid, though a little predictable. Not Lord of the Rings, but, I was able to follow along with the story, which some folks thought might be an issue.

Puzzlehead. Another good film and I really bought into the actor playing Puzzlehead.

Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster. The quality of the last half of the films made it feel so much longer than it is. I know that is beyond Bruce's control, but I would not want to see this same print again unles there was some way to correct that.

Fido. Let me second Dave, in that this was by far my favorite film of the movie. Great casting, great story, great acting. I may go on more later, but I sent emails to some zombie movie fas I know who don't go to Sci Fi to let them know it is playing next Saturday at the Grand.

Automatons. I think this movie might be too bad for even MST3K to bring any redemption to it. Horrid pacing, overly preachy stoyline, predictable, badly acted and badly directed. It struck me as a short film someone tried to stretch into a feature.

Chopping Mall. Nothing to add to Dave's comments excpet Ditto.

Night of the comet. I love this movie, mainly because when I was a teenager , Catherine Mary Stewart's character was the perfect girl. She loved video games, worked at the movie theater, was easy on the eyes, and knew Superman couldn't see through lead.

Mindwarp. I had seen ths before long ago. Good casting, and as Dave mentioned nice story. Good continuity, someone was paying attention when the script was written.

Star Trek. I might have drifted off a coupel times for about 10 seconds each during this one. The Pan's are just so long and slow. I still like the movie, I like the VGER twist at the end and the possible Borg tie-in, but it is slow in spots.

Flash. I thought Queen had a little more variety in their sound track, but it was still nice to hear a good chunk of the theater singing along after FLASH! Good film to end on.

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The wages of sin are royalties.

Great marathon!!!
Loved it this year, and I wish we didn't have to wait 12 months for the next one.


King Dinosaur - I loved it. Loads of fun thanks to the Dinosaur, Joe, and that jerk who liked to push women around. Thank goodness they brought some civilization to that horrid place.

Great Yokai War - as fun as I expected it to be. Definitely weird, but quite entertaining. I didn't realize that Agi was played by the same girl from Kill Bill. Loved the beehive hairdo and weird white outfit.

Puzzlehead - A decent film, but it was about 15-20 minutes too long I think. Would have been great if it was made as a shorter film.

Frankenstein vs the Space Monster - fun in parts, and the music was great, but the focus problems on the print made it a little un-fun to watch

Fido - the hit of the marathon, nuff said

Automatons - One of the most hated movies to play at the marathon in years. This was preposterously long and drawn out for its subject matter and also annoyingly preachy. Please, I beg of you, just for fun next year, lets just watch a 3 minute clip of robots shuffling their feet.

Chopping Mall - Fun. Straightforward. And relatively short. It was a breath of fresh air to see these killer robots after the killer robots from Automatons.

Night of the Comet - I've always liked that movie. Glad I got the chance to see it on the big screen.

Mindwarp - a good movie, but I don't know if it's horror or sci-fi.

Star Trek - I stayed awake for most of it, and only missed maybe about 15-20 minutes. I enjoyed seeing it on the big screen.

Flash Gordon - Brilliant decision to finish the marathon with this. It woke me right up for the long drive back to Indianapolis. All the bright colors, fast-paced action, and entertaining audience reaction were a great way to finish the marathon.





I sleep now.

I pretty much feel the same way about the lineup as other folks here. This was the first time I was able to cajole some friends into attending with me and they both had a great time.

My only suggestion would be for someone to try and watch the premier's ahead of time, esp. if they're on DVD since AUTOMATONS could have been avoided. There was just nothing good about the film -at all. I felt like it was time wasted.

As for PUZZLEHEAD, it wasn't bad. In fact, it had an interesting theme and was well-produced and acted. I do agree, though, that it could have used some editing.

FIDO: The reason I see movies. A pure joy from beginning to end.

As for the others, they all had their charms and I enjoyed each of them. It was great to see FLASH GORDON again on the big screen as I truly feel that it's one of those films that begs for a theatrical showing in order to appreciate it.

The print damage on FRANKENSTEIN V. THE SPACE MONSTER didn't bother me all that much. Frankly, it's a miracle that a 35mm print of such a film still exists.

The one film that didn't play as well for me as it had in the past was STAR TREK. I don't know if it was the condition of the print or what, but I think having to concentrate on the script instead of the visuals really brought to the forefront its general weakness as a film. I still admire the design and the scope of the film, but it. is. sllllooooowwwww.

Once again a big thanks to Bruce and all the folks who help make the marathon a reality every year. As always, it was a blast (off) !

Only 5 hours of sleep so far, so here's a quickie reactions set from me:

12 Monkeys - One of my all-time favorite films so needless to say I was really pleased to see this on the lineup. A great opener...

King Dinosaur - Lil' Joe ruled...a great film for MST3King, but not much more.

The Great Yokai War - Really fun and a great addition to the 'thon. I love Takashi Miike's stuff (i.e. The Happiness of the Katakuris, Ichi the Killer, Audition) and Chiaki Kuriyama's acting (Kagen no Tsuki/Last Quarter) so this was no surprise that it would rank well with me. I totally want a sunekosuri.

Puzzlehead - An ok film, although very slow moving initially and somewhat predictable.

Frankenstein Meets the Spacemonster - Doctor Nadir was teh awesome. He reminded me of an alternate-reality, young Jon Lovitz. Print quality gave me a wee bit of a headache.

Fido - Quite enjoyable, even more than I expected. Easily a good giggle-fest. Nice acting, good production, definitely one I would like to see back at another thon.

Automatons - This might sound strong, but I hated, hated, hated, hated, hated this joke of a film. Gah. I can't possibly think of any film I disliked more, with the exception of Peggy Sue Got Married. I seriously got annoyed when it continued on forever...

Chopping Mall - Typically 80s...good for some giggles and reasonably entertaining.

Night of the Comet - A fun little 80s film I haven't seen in a few years, so it was nice to catch it again. Still love the whole juxtaposition of things in this film (like possibly being the last people on Earth and the need to go shoe shopping)

Mindwarp ("Galaxy of Terror") - Meh. Pretty bored throughout. Nice to see Robert Englund running around without the Freddy/V makeup though.

Slither - So glad not to have to watch this one...just wasn't in the mood for it. I agree with Zekestrom that it would make an "excellent duo with 'Night of the Creeps'."

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Other than getting slap-happy and insanely giggling at the phrase "pork-chop sandwiches" belted out with my bro everytime an astronaut/Spock in a spacesuit zipped by in space (see this Fensler Films' GI Joe joke PSA for a slight frame of reference - watch for foul language if you are at work) I just felt it was just ok. Nice to see Shatner's toupee for a change though...

Flash Gordon - I love this film for all it's campy fun and great costumes, not to mention the snicker-worthy Topol, and thought it was a perfect ending to the marathon. Happy, fun, and just a great note to leave on.

I thought the breaks were perfect this year. Not real long, but also not too short. Enjoyed most of the shorts (the Flash Gordon had my brother and I rolling around laughing hysterically) and the temp wasn't too bad in the theatre.

Oh...and a very nice fellow gave me a bit of a compliment at the end of the 'thon who I believe hangs out here. Not sure if I said thanks at the time (out of my head insanely sleepy and I even forgot to ask your name) so I just wanted to drop a quick "thanks" to you here just in case.

I had a lot of fun, and thanks to everyone involved! Now I just gotta try getting some more sleep!

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Six side is heaven/Nine side is go

Ok, first off, the logistics.

I love the Gateway. Even more this year than last. Great location because of the ease of getting out for dinner, and the concessions were great too. All in all a great place for a marathon.

Breaks, as stated above, were perfect. Not too long, not too short.

I have nothing but praise for the projection "team" (Mr. Cochran(sp?)). Everything went off pretty much without a hitch. Certainly MUCH better than some past thon's where I remember everybody yelling "frame!" and "focus!" at pretty much every film.

Hall of Fame Election: Be prepared for the full no "Ro-Man for HoF" blitz next year people. I thought my campaigning would SURELY get him in, but evidently everybody hates America. Don't forget, a vote against Ro-Man is a vote against FREEDOM.

Now, to the movies.

12 Monkeys - Good movie. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed this and hadn't seen it in forever. Always pleasant to run into that type of situation at a marathon.

King Dinosaur - This was great. Not only did I get to see the footage of the monsters wrestling seen in Robot Monster, but I got to see them bring civilization to that Jerk Planet filled with Space Owls, Space Crocodiles, and Space Honey Bears.

The Great Yokai War - I really, in the end, have no idea what went on here. It was fun, but I'm not sure I'd watch it again. It definitely makes me realize that if that IS what Japanese folklore is like, the person who came up with Pokemon was actually very UNcreative.

Puzzlehead - I went to dinner, so I can't comment much. Caught the last half hour and it seemed like Puzzlehead was actually a CARUSO-Bot more than any other sort of robot.

Frankenstein Meets the Spacemonster - I enjoy any movie where they pronounce it 'robutt'. Additionally, it's rare for a movie to feature a character that randomly murders people as the hero. Batboy had an excellent turn in this one as the sidekick.

Fido - This was a great movie and definitely MUCH better than I was expecting. Great production values, acting was above expectations and plot was pretty inventive. Great find!

Automatons - This movie wasn't even awesomely bad. It was so bad it looped BACK into BADNESS. However, for a one time viewing, I will never forget it. Look! robots shuffling their feet. Look! Some old guy delivering a video blog. Look! The robots have been hijacked again! My real question is, I wonder what the makers of this film would think of the war in Iraq? I think there may have been something here, but it was really so subtle, I just couldn't quite pick it out.

Chopping Mall - Ah, it was ok on the fun scale. Had every element of an 80's horror movie, including lots of partial nudity.

Night of the Comet - This one was below Chopping mall on the fun scale by miles. There were hardly any zombies, no T OR A, and really not a whole lot happened. When your chief enemy is a group of lamo scientists who are losign their memories, you're really stretching.

Mindwarp (billed as "Galaxy of Terror") - Dude. An ENTIRE GALAXY of terror. Really, this wasn't that bad! Joanie does a great job playing Dianna Troi, and Freddie was pretty awesome too. I didn't quite follow a lot of what was going on, but the production values were above what I was expecting. I was sadly disappointed by the lack of the winged creature with the super long neck and skull face from the promo art. The deaths were in all pretty inventive and I couldn't believe we showed a movie that had a live action hentia scene in it.

Slither - Not sad to see it not play. Saw it in the theater and it was nothing I'd see twice.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Caught a nice 20 minute nap during this. As my one friend put it, should have been titled "Star Trek I: The Search for More Action".

Flash Gordon - I haven't seen this movie all the way through in probably 15 years so I was really happy to see it and wasn't disappointed. Actually, at least for me, it holds up pretty well. And the big bonus he really did save every one of us...well...except all those hawk men who got killed. He didn't save them. But that's no biggie. Really enjoyed this.

I have already begun to fomulate requests for next year...

Nearly a lurker... just a few posts on here but Bruce asked for more feedback so here it is.

Love the Gateway except for one thing, the space between the rows is just too narrow. Difficult to leave your seat between films, treacherous in the dark (I watched all of Puzzlehead from the side due to not wanting to risk it). Much better transitions from video to film than we've had in the past. Able to play legacy sound formats (unlike other theatres). Able to play 1.33:1 films without issue. Great concessions. Comfortable seats.

On to the films:

12 Monkeys - Great film. Been a few years since I've watched it all the way through and still holds up as well as the day I saw it.

King Dinosaur - Good camp. I don't think I've ever seen so much stock footage in one film.

The Great Yokai War - Not sure who this film was made for. Definitely looked like a kids film for the most part but some pretty mature elements . It didn't bore me, but I don't think I'd want to see it again. Best audience reaction of the evening when bee-hive woman slipped out of clothing then promptly slipped back in... seemed almost rehearsed!

Puzzlehead - Actually much better than I thought it would be. Nicely photographed with decent if somewhat subdued performances. Not terribly original but well done.

Frankenstein Meets the Spacemonster - Good camp fun. A travelogue of Puerto Rico. Print problems didn't bother me as much as others... just kept expecting it to break.

Fido - Fun film. Great Technicolor-ish photography with good performances from everyone. Will be interesting to see what Lionsgate does with this film.

Automatons - I realized within five minutes that this would be trash... so I napped for about 45 minutes or so. From those first minutes and the last 15 minutes I saw, I can easily declare this one of the worst films I've ever seen. Just for kicks though, I looked it up. Seems to have gotten some good reviews by critics who HAVE to be self-important and thus "get it" when mindless feebs like us don't.

Chopping Mall - Saw it years ago and enjoyed it now. Entertaining and never boring... exactly what this slot needs. Plus the requisite T & A.

Night of the Comet - I remember loving this upon release when I was about 13. Doesn't hold up well at all. Catherine Mary Stewart is still a goddess but not much else to recommend the film.

Mindwarp (billed as "Galaxy of Terror") - Saw only about 3/4 of this and must've missed important story elements. Just couldn't get into it at all.

Slither - Didn't miss it much since it was so recent but do think it could be great in the future. Very curious as to what happened with the print and who dropped the ball on that one.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Slow but not too bad. Print wasn't in as bad shape as Bruce warned... I've seen much worse. Good to see Enterprise inspection and other parts on the big screen. Wished the sound matched my expectations though... damned Dolby A.

Flash Gordon - Was disappointed that this wasn't much earlier in thon but it played very well. I'm sure audience participation would've been much greater at say 8PM or so; nevertheless, it surprised me how many people remained to the end (my first year to do so).

Overall, probably the best marathon in the time since I've been going (2002 being first year). Just wish the guy behind me wouldn't have been snoring extremely loudly during most of Star Trek.

How could I ever have doubted Bruce??? Putting FLASH GORDON last was perfect, had 12 Monkeys Been last I never would have made it...Great Job Bruce, Jeff and the entire Drexel Staff!!!

12 Monkeys - Always a good movie and the Audience enjoyed watching it, perfect opening movie being on the serious side and most of the movies at this 'thon were cheesy.

King Dinosaur - Gotta love the old Sci-Fi, this is the best kind of movie to see at the Marathons, some good lines for the crowd to feed off of and laugh at.

The Great Yokai War - Not a bad film but the younger kids in the audience probably liked it more than I did, perfect adventure movie for a 12 year old, on the same scale as never ending story

Puzzlehead - A little to slow for me, had the whole thing figured out about 10 minutes into the movie and than I just had to wait for the characters to catch up.

Frankenstein Meets the Spacemonster - Just like King Dinosaur this is the best kind of movie to see at the Marathons, some good lines for the crowd to feed off of and some great laughs.

Fido - Thumbs up!! I had the pleasure of writing a review for this movie and asking the opinions of those around me to give feedback to the production company which was very happy to hear the Marathon crowd loved this movie.

Automatons - I feel I should have gotten an additional Certificate just for making all the way through this movie. USA USA USA!!!

Chopping Mall - Being a child of the 80's means I love slasher movies and Chopping Mall has always been one of my favorites (although not a true slasher film) I was very happy to see this at the marathon.

Night of the Comet - A classic! Long over due for the Marathon's.

Galaxy of Terror - This was the one I was waiting for, not available on DVD and the VHS is hard to find, making this a very rare film to view. The Worm scene really sticks with ya.

Slither - Great movie but I am not sad it didn't show, like others on here I would like to see it show with Night of the Creeps (it's an 80's thing)

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - I saw this movie on the Big Screen in 1979 and watched it once or twice since but it's probably been 20 years or more since I have seen it and I have to say I really enjoyed it, it is slow but I like the story and I almost felt as though I was a 10 year old kid again and seeing this movie meant alot to me in 1979. Going to a movie back than was a family event and was something special unlike today when movies going is very casual.

Flash Gordon - I could not begin to think of a better way to end a Sci-Fi Marathon, FLASH GORDON was Great and, it kept everyone awake

Once again Great Job Bruce, Jeff and the entire Drexel Staff!!!

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Jaws3dfan®
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My nephew, age 11, didn't like it. Of course he was staring to not feel well at that point, so maybe that had an impact. But he loved Pokemon (not sure if he still does) and Yugioh, so I would have thought he would have really enjoyed it.



Glad to see someone else shares my sentimental streak for this film, and manages to explain why I still like it better than I could.

On an unrelated note, I know that some of the views are generated by us looking back at messages, but there are over 140 views of this post at this point and only a couple comments from non-regulars. this is the ideal thread to post on. As long as you like Fido and hate Automotons it will be a sfae posting experience. Seriously, I would love to hear if anyone liked Automotons, on any level, or if someone didn't like Fido.

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The wages of sin are royalties.

It’s been a loooong time in waiting. The last marathon in Columbus for me was 2002 at the Arena Grand. Moving so far away has made it difficult for me to make it on a consistent base every year. It feels good to return.

I like the Gateway for its location – close to good food and coffee. Actually, during the marathon I didn’t go out for food, I ate at the café, which was another good point. The theater was comfortable, the sound was acceptable, the screen was a good size, and the projectionist was good. BUT, I have to say, I really miss the ole’ Drexel North!

I won’t list every film like others have done, but I will highlight a few and give my overall impressions. I was a little doubtful when the first 8 films were announced. It didn’t seem balanced enough. It was overloaded with too much schlock, however once the four premieres were added it did help balance things out a little better. Now, I still think there was too much schlock and goofiness for my tastes, that’s not that I didn’t enjoy those films. OK, example – The first film, Twelve Monkeys – after that film I literally got goosebumps! WOW! What a great film. I totally loose myself. I forget that I am at the marathon. Day the Earth Stood Still, Brazil, Alien, and Forbidden Planet are other examples of films that have the same effect. I feel we could have used one more of those.

Loved the fact that there were 12 movies. I agree with most others, that the breaks and shorts/trailers seemed like the perfect amount. I believe we had about 19 or 20 hours of features, about 2 hours of breaks, and maybe 2 to 3 hours of shorts/trailers.

The 2 films that really stood out for me, were 12 Monkeys and The Great Yokai Wars. Yes, I was the guy who raised his hand when Bruce asked if there was too much “snarking” after that movie. I guess I should have expected Yokai to get snarked. It’s foreign, and it’s strange and different - two of the three ingredients that get a film “snarked”. The only snark ingredient that it lacked was old age. The Great Yokai Wars succeeded in making me feel like a kid. Forget about reality. With Miike’s imagination anything can happen. When you are a kid, you aren’t concerned with realism, with continuity, with facts. Walls can talk, kid’s can fly, and reality doesn’t have to look like realistic CG effects. A cute cooing creature can look like a child’s stuffed animal. All the creatures and spirits looked like they came from a child’s imagination. I think some people laughed at the fx, and I think they missed the point. The film succeeded in making me feel 10 years old again.

12 Monkeys is Gilliam’s most underrated movie. I think I like it more than Time Bandits, which seems to get more attention. I have been asking for this movie on the board for about 10 years now. It was nice to finally see it and know that it played well.

I liked Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster over King Dinosaur. King Dinosaur was OK, but I think that if I were watching it by myself, I would fall asleep from boredom! NOW, Frankenstein…Monster I could watch alone and still have fun with it. The music was great and the humor doesn’t rely on “snarking” to make it enjoyable. I think most people could watch this film alone and still laugh and have a good time with it without having to make their own jokes.

The premieres! Yokai was obviously my favorite, but my second fav was Puzzlehead. I was very happy that the crowd didn’t rip into it! I guess it wasn’t foreign, so that helped. I am looking forward to seeing more work from this director. Fido was pretty good. I think most people enjoyed it more than I did. Some of the humor felt repetitive and a little one note. I did appreciate the satirical aspects of the film and loved the actors. Automatons…. do I really have to say anything. I think we 100% hated this film. I actually left about 15 minutes into the film and sat in the Café catching up with a good friend.

Overall I liked the flow of the lineup, with the exception of Star Trek at 8AM! No way was I ever going to make it through it, so I just slept. Flash was nice up-note to end on. Hopefully I can make it next year!

As a forum regular, I shall do my duty and give my 2 cents. Before I breakdown the films, I want to give some general observations and random thoughts:

First of all, to svarney: if that was me snoring during TREK, I apologize wholeheartedly. I was in the very back row and I do tend to snore, so I'm sorry to anyone I may have disturbed.

It seems in order to score a film made in the early to mid eighties, all that you need is a CASIO.

There IS such a thing as too many premieres.

I thought the crowd was very well behaved this year, not too much random chatter in wrong spots. Everyone I interacted with was polite and friendly.

The Gateway staff is awesome.

I was pleased at the size of the crowd considering the late lineup additions and late flier distribution. I did notice, however, that when Bruce asked how many were there for the first time, I saw very few hands.

If there are so many repeat marathon goers, why don't you post here?

It also seemed as if there were a lot more people than usual who stayed until the end. Absolutely no one in my general vicinity left. Maybe this had something to do with a strong bottom of the batting order.

I'll give my take on the films shortly.

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Aliens? Us?
Is this one of your Earth "jokes?"

It may not have been you, it may have been a guy in the third row from the back of the middle section of the theater. About 8 seats in. Big guy, 6 feet plus and probably 350 lbs or more, Dark hair, wears glasses. He snored loudly, the guy a couple seats over from him tried to wake him a few times when he got really loud.

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The wages of sin are royalties.

This was the guy. I can accept and actually expect some snoring but this guy was disruptive.

Okay, now onto the films:

12 MONKEYS: A great opening film that I hadn't seen in a while. Not nearly as complicated as I remember it being. Thoroughly enjoyable.

KING DINOSAUR: one of the longest 62 minute films ever made. The little Joe running gag was cute.

YOKAI WAR: I love Azuki nuts! Azuki nuts are good for you!

PUZZLEHEAD: Ambitious but predictable. If we had not been told that the narrator was Puzzlehead, it may have made the inevitable conclusion a little more interesting. Not sure I agreed with the rape scene either.

FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE SPACEMONSTER: I am not as big a fan of the "bad" black and white snarkfests that play at the 'thon as some of you, but this one is in a class by itself. The most fun I have had with a movie of it's type since ROBOT MONSTER. I'm willing to bet that at least half of the running time was devoted to either vehicle travel or walking. I forgive the focus problems because of Bruce's explanation and apology, but I agree that print is in no shape for a repeat maraton appearance.

FIDO: The definate highlight of the marathon. I will be surprised if this film does not get a wide release and make a good splash on the art house market. A delight throughout and it wasn't afraid to go extremely dark.
I know it's not technically Science Fiction, but enough genre elements are there. And the fact that it was so good means I'm sure no one really cared.

AUTOMATONS:

...cricket cricket...
...cricket cricket...

Okay, let's move on.

CHOPPING MALL: Every year there is a movie or two that I'm lukewarm on going in that really knocks it out of the park. This year it was CHOPPING MALL. Better that it had any right to be, fun watching with this crowd, perfect marathon placement.

NIGHT OF THE COMET: Here's where I first began to snooze a little. Not as good as I remembered it, but a good timeslot for it.

GALAXY OF TERROR: Cornball dialogue, interesting practical effects, fun seeing recognisable faces in their youth. A fun movie with this crowd, but like a lot of movies of it's type from that era, it had pacing issues.

STAR TREK: I was going to give this one a chance. I'm not that into TREK, and I only saw this once when it first came out. I gave up about halfway through the trailer countdown and slept through most of it. The parts I did see, there was a lot of talking and no music or action.



I was in the back, so it wasn't me.

FLASH (AHH-AHH)!: What a perfect Marathon ender! I had actually never seen this and it was everything I expected. Cheesy and corny, but with enough production value that you could take it at least a little seriously. It's hard to imagine that this was this film's marathon debut. A great job of sending us all on our way giddy.

Thanks for a great year again, Bruce et al.

See you next year!

_________________
Aliens? Us?
Is this one of your Earth "jokes?"

A few more random thoughts about the marathon:Agreed. There a few shout outs here and there that I didn't need, but most people seemed to keep it to a minimum, and it never reached the level where it negatively impacted my movie viewing experience.

The crowd seemed slightly larger than last years. Would Bruce or anyone affiliated with the marathon be willing to confirm that?

Agreed. It seemed like lots of people stuck around for Flash Gordon.

And that movie really was perfect to end with. Bright colors, quick pace, and a loud audience. The perfect ending.

And we were told that the print for Star Trek was bad. I was expecting a lot worse. I noticed a number of problems, but compared to Frankie and the Space Monster, that print was in flawless condition. I could easily watch another film or two in a similar condition next year.