Reviews

To make a great parody one must love the subject. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is clearly a labor of love.

I saw it at a special showing attended by Cortney Skinner, the guy who made several props for the film, including the Transmutatron ray-gun and costume for the monster (the Mutant). He spoke briefly about the film afterward, giving anecdotes from the filming (many of which are also available at the film's web site, www.lostskeleton.com).

One of the things he said was that he had spent a great deal of his youth watching the 1950s B Science Fiction films from which Lost Skeleton takes its inspiration. He said that, at the time, this was regarded as something of a waste of time but that, in retrospect, he was doing research for his work in Lost Skeleton.

The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra may not be for everyone, I suppose. It helps to have seen some of the films it parodying, and those are, perhaps, an acquired taste as well. But if you are the sort of person who lists Roger Corman's It Conquered the World among your guilty pleasures it is not to be missed.

And if you have ever participated in the filming of a near-zero budget movie it is unspeakably fabulous.

See it!! (if you can find it.)

This film can be discounted as unacceptable by many modern audiences. It is filmed in black and white. It is silent and it shows African blacks in a stero-typic manner that would not be accepted today.

Saying all that, it is a must-see film for any serious student or fan of drama. Chaney gives in this film one of the most powerful and convincing acting performances of any actor in any film. Without a single spoken word he shows anger to the point of madness, sly intelligence and overwhelming remorse and sorrow.

There is no feel of "miming emotions " or "mugging for the camera" about this film. The emotions that Chaney display feel so authentic that at times this viewer feels a discomfort for intruding into the personal torment of the character.

The director has used the talents of Chaney and to a lesser extent those of the other actors to relay most of the story with minimal use of "Text Cards", which otherwise would have disrupted the flow of action.

When you go to see a film based on characters from an Archie's Comic and a Hanna-Barbara cartoon series you should go with a certain set of expectations. You should not go expecting high art, great drama or insightful social commentary. That's not part of the deal, not what the movie promises to deliver. It is supposed to be Fun.

If you have a problem with spending big money for light entertainment: no problem... go see something else; there are lots of more pretentious films you can catch.

If you are angry, for any reason, whatsoever, that someone would make a film version of "Josie and the Pussycats" then I am sure you are right about whatever it is that has made you angry and you should by all means stay home.

If you are immune to irony -- if you can watch a film where the characters are awash in a sea of product logos and not understand that the film is having fun with product placement -- then it might not be your kind of movie.

If, on the other hand, you are in the mood for an unrelentingly likeable movie with quite a bit of goofy humor and broad, self-referential parody, this might be just the thing for you. Catchy music, cute girls, the most faithful rendition of a live action saturday morning cartoon I can think of... what else should you, really, expect?

It worked for me.

I saw the film "Charlie's Angels" the other day and I think it is grand. The plot is stupid, granted, but I *promise* you, you will not care. It is derivative, but in a good way. It fuses elements of The Matrix with Mission Impossible 2 and Austin Powers with, let us not forget, the 1970s TV show of the same title, and (now that I think of it) some riffs from "The 70s Show" that is on TV now. It has just the right mix of everything: action, camp, slutty women, slapstick, schtick, over the top action, Tim Curry in just the right dose, car crashes, boats, helicopters, speakerphone voiceovers, bimbo foo, stuff blows up. * Jeez, what a fun movie.

BigLee sez check it out.

* It is very difficult to post this message because I keep thinking of stuff to go on the list... Soul Train, Drew Barrymore, something really good for foot fetishists, ... MUST... STOP... MYSELF... (GASP!!) ... MUST ... POST ... MESSAGE ... (GROAN)

Godzilla 2000 (aka Gojira ni-sen mireniamu) offers a very satisfying Godzilla movie viewing experience to those who really understand the fine points. It has everything you could want: an incomprehensible plot, rubber suits, cheezy specials, grainy film and incredibly bad dubbing. It is exactly like the Godzilla films I loved when I was a kid. Nothing is missing. Nothing is different. That is the magical thing about Godzilla films -- they exist outside of time, unchanging and unchangeable, a genre as indestructible and immutable as the big radioactive lizard himself.

During the first minute of the film the people who did the dubbing give a preemptive demonstration that they have no intention of trying to match the dialog to motions of the actor's lips. The first three spoken lines go on for at least three seconds after the actors stop talking. What a treat! It was obvious that the people who did the dubbing had a certain amount of fun with it. At one point a Tokyo shopkeeper comes out of his shop, sees the giant monster and yells "Gott im Himmel!!" and runs back inside. At another point a newspaper editor sees Godzilla and yells "Great Caesar's Ghost!!" (ala Perry White in Superman)

The specials were, as is traditional, pretty bad, but that said, the film had a look to it that was oddly beautiful. There are scenes where there is action in the foreground and Godzilla tearing up the scenery in the background but he really looks far away and elemental -- like a thunderstorm viewed across the plains. The film was filled with these oddly compelling images. It has lots to look at.

One is tempted to think that the retro-camp feeling of the film is deliberate on the part of Toho. All of the characters dress and act exactly like they did 20 years ago. The addition of a spunky kid taking care of her absent-minded dad is a welcome touch. She gives the film a certain anime feeling that keeps it from getting too heavy.

I had a great time. You can too. Just leave your adulthood at home and get in touch with your inner, Godzilla-loving child.