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Forbidden World (1982)
In a making-of documentary, director Allan Holzman reveals he began shooting without a script with these directions from Roger Corman, "You have four days to write, produce and direct a seven- to eight-minute opening of a space movie… I'll give you an astronaut and a robot, and if you need any inspiration, I've always wanted to do a version of Lawrence of Arabia in outer space." lolz! This is an ALIEN rip-off with 80s typical B-movie sleaziness! But it could be a lot more entertaining with less hysterical editing & those unnecessary high-angle shots. Moreover, that Xenomorph inspired creature deserved little more budget & screen time, IMO. They even made a remake of it in 9 years later, DEAD SPACE...featuring Bryan Cranston! >>: C
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THE BETSY (1978). Trashy film based on the trashy Harold Robbins best selling novel. The vast majority of Robbins's work involves Big Business, Double Dealing, Big Dollars and LOTS of Hobble Do GaGa by Hypermasculine Protagonists. These Alpha Males's skills in the Bedroom, normally told from the Woman's point of view, are Life Changing events for Her, and She is able to finally understand the ways of the World and where She belongs in it.
This one deals with the Auto Business where an aging Patriarch (supposedly based on Henry Ford) joins forces with an unlucky unto racer to build a new car with much opposition from Patriarch's Grandson. Laurence Olivier plays the Patriarch and is incredibly hammy-He referred to this and others as a "Paycheck Picture"-and He steals many scenes.Also watching a Younger version of him testing the Box springs of his Wife's bed with a Chambermaid (French, naturally) while his wife is greeting guests at their sons wedding downstairs is pretty funny (The book's version of this part is quite raunchy). Tommy Lee Jones plays the Auto driver and gets to make time with lovely Leslie-Anne Down (COUNTESS DRACULA, THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY) and lovely Kathleen Beller (THE SWORD AND THE SORCERER) . Rest of the good cast includes Katherine Ross (THE STEPFORD WIVES), Bernard Herrmann (THE LOST BOYS), Robert Duvall (so many great films), Jane Alexander (TESTAMENT), Whitney Blake (TV's HAZEL and Mom to Meredith Baxter Birney) and Joseph Wiseman (DR NO himself). Cheesy junk to be sure, but a good time waster and worth it to see good thespians doing the best they can with what they have to work with and I could see a lot of this as a DYNASTY episode. **1/2 |
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