“The Faculty”- Are they who you think they are?

Release Date: 25 December 1998 (USA)
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Genre: Horror / Sci-Fi / Thriller
Cast: Josh Hartnett, Jordana Brewster, Salma Hayak, Elijah Wood, & many other well knowns
Best Movie Line: "I'm not putting that hack drug up my nose - it's so 80's!"

Introduction

There are certain movies that I can watch repeatedly, recite almost verbatim, and still I do not tire of them. The Faculty is one of those movies. It's a classic B-film with most all of the required criteria even though it is delivered by what now is an A-list of actors (even R&B star Usher has a character part!)

Cause & Effect

Is something up with the water at Herrington High? It seems the faculty can't drink enough of it. Not only are they constantly thirsty, but they appear to be acting strange and out of character. Too bad most of the students are too unaware as one by one they are being "converting" as well.

Casey Conner isn't oblivious to this behavior and upon observing his schools football team at practice, finds in the field what is believed to be a new parasite on the food chain ladder of life (I don't know about you guys, but to me this has the makings of a very cool alien takeover........)

Result

A motley crew of kids team together to try and determine what is happening in their school. In looking for the parasite Casey found, they are confronted by their science teacher and ultimately discover he is possessed by some sort of alien life form. Luckily Zeke Tyler (played by Josh Hartnett) likes to dabble in his very own science lab, and has concocted an interesting cocktail that to teenagers produces an euphoric high, but they soon discover that it does not bode so favorably with aliens.

It's not long before the Scooby-type gang of misfits are fighting for their school and their own humanity as the aliens try to take over their world.

Conclusion

Think The Outsiders meets The Thing - that will give you a pretty good feel for what The Faculty is all about. The acting is every bit as worthy as The Outsiders, and the special effects are every bit as cheesy as The Thing. The translation? A very enjoyable campy ride.

Recommendation

Although this is a B-feel film, the cast is very impressive in its delivery. Elijah Wood and Josh Hartnett offer great performances, as do others. This movie may be cheesy and campy, but it does so with conviction.

This movie is definitely worthy of 3 thumbs up in my book. What do you think? Have you seen it?

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David Arquette’s “The Tripper”

Courtney Cox & David Arquette's company "Coquette Productions" is no stranger to film. With the success of the TV show Dirt on FX Where Cox plays a very crass and open editor-in-chief of a sleazy tabloid, and the much less successful Talk Show Diaries - not to mention the combined filmography of both - I had to keep an open mind to any of their endeavors.

I have always been a fan of David Arquette. He usually plays the goofy guy role in comedies and comedic "horror" that I love. Needless to say when I stumbled across his directorial debut "The Tripper" at a local video rental store, I had to snatch it up.

You can tell 5 minutes into the movie that it is going to be your typical B-style horror. BONUS! Now if only it can deliver all the necessary criteria to make it a must see/must have without being too cheesy or campy (pay close attention for roles played by both Cox and Arquette.)

Cause & Effect

1967; a time of hippies and free love. When ganja is sweet and the sex is sweeter. The only problem is that the tree loving hippies picked on the wrong guy and nothing tastes sweeter than revenge.

Fast forward a few years when a group of lustful young hippie wannabes decide to join in on a nostalgic "free love" type weekend, the smell of blood gets lost in the hazy cloud of secondhand smoke......

Almost all of the required B criteria is offered tri-fold. You have nudity, both male and female; young people partying and engaging in sexual activities; drugs and profanity in overabundance; a chick who acts like virgin (even if she isn't one); and a maniacal killer in a Ronald Reagan mask.

Result

Aptly cheesy, but not in excess. My only real gripe is the blood, which was offered in abundance but not realistically. It was poorly presented as what seemed to be cherry kool-aid versus something more syrup-y. If you take that out of the mix, you'll find this movie to be actually entertaining - even thought it did break one of the main criteria of B film.....

.... There wasn't a bathroom scene!

I know, I know. Sacrilegious. In the movies defense however, it did take place in the woods where showers and tubs are not readily available. Arquette did try to make up for it with plenty of boob shots and sex. Plus there was a really gross Port-o-Potty scene which I am trying really hard to forget.

Conclusion

I liked it. I can't help it. I think my hubby might be a little saddened that he lost 2 hours of his life due to my making him suffer through this movie but then again, he does not share my passion for B.

Will you love it? I can't say. But if you like gratuitous sex, lots of boob shots, and really bad blood scenes, this movie is a must see.The killer is portrayed much in the same context as Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees so the potential for a sequel is strong.

Some might say this movie is a copycat of sorts due to the use of a mask to hide the killers identity. Truth be told, it's not so uncommon of a "plot." Masks add to the suspense factor. Even David Arquette's most notable character was in the Scream Trilogy where the killer wore what? Yup. A mask.

I would love a sequel to The Tripper. Of course numbers (as in $ signs) play a role in this happening, but who would have ever expected Evil Dead 2? Proof positive that anything is possible and we all know how that one turned out.

Watch this movie. And if you do watch it while smoking the sweeter stuff, be sure to let me know how the "trip" was.......

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Paris Hilton: Bad Actress?

Paris Hilton: Millionaire Model and really bad actress? Or is she good??

Let's face it. Paris is Hot. Say what you want to about her - that she is a spoiled rich kid who has the world by the ass; a dumb blonde; a waste of space; untapped genius..... ok that might be a bit of a stretch, but whatever you want to say about Paris one thing remains true.... she is hot.

And insanely wealthy. What I would give just to have one day of that kind of wealth.

If I actually had the opportunity though I would probably be so dumbfounded that I would waste 22 hours of the day in a dazed stupor and the 2 hours remaining for me to enjoy the wealth would probably be spent standing in line....

So anyway, I guess you are probably asking yourself why a Blog about horror movies would have a post about Paris Hilton. Well, I will tell you.

Paris is the new B-Queen. Yup. B-Queen or Queen-B, whichever you prefer. Taking The Simple Life out of the picture, Paris owes her film reportoire to really cheesy B, ok C - film. Most of which is in the horror genre.

Although her first movie is not horror but rather "comedy," Paris' film debut in "Wishman" is not a favorite among viewers. Admittedly I have not seen it nor do I plan to even though I am a huge fan of comedies.

From there we try a thriller called "Sweetie Pie" - equally snuffed by fans, not even worth dwelling on, and so we'll progress straight to Nine Lives.

Nine Lives is a wonderful C-film starring known actors Holly Hunter, Robin Wright Penn, and not so known daughter of Sidney Poitier, Sidney Tamila Poitier. You can catch it this month on FearNet. I found it rather entertaining in an "I-love-really-bad-movies" sort of way (this quirk of mine drives my hubby insane!)

Paris plays the typical token "gorgeous rich" chick and fitting for the role, she gets killed pretty quickly. I tried to notice if her acting had improved any at the point of this movie. Sadly I noticed no improvement. She's still very much the "noob and it shows" at this stage of her career.

Several other movies and t.v. show cameos later (all of which rank horribly with the viewers) Paris ends up on House of Wax - one of my contemporary favs - and actually shows signs of progression, albeit small, in her acting ability.

In House of Wax, I actually think Paris has progressed as as actress as she demonstrates signs of competent brain activity where for but a brief moment, she gives chase to the bad guy.

Sadly, it's not enough. Paris gets slaughtered as it would not be a cheesy B movie if she didn't.

Ironically enough, I like Paris in these B movies. She offers the beauty and ditz needed to satisfactorily deliver such a film, but doesn't stay alive long enough for me to want to kill her myself.

So what does the future hold for Paris, heiress to the Hilton fortune; star of "The Simple Life" and female desired by most every hot blooded hetero-male alive? Well - another cheesy B movie. And to make matters even worse in this case, it's tagged as being a musical.

Yup - Repo! The Genetic Opera. A musical. Slated for an August '08 release. I guess Paris is feeling the need to combine her sensational singing success with her equally acclaimed acting abilities. Who could ask for more?

One thing you can never deny about Paris is that she is hot. The only other thing I would never deny about Paris is that B movies is where she belongs because with B movies, quality acting is optional.

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Cloverfield-a new genre of B

Remember those old Godzilla movies from the 60's & 70's? The ones where the monsters were constructed in such an amateur, plastic-y, stunted manner; and the special effects looked like something out of a Batman comic? I loved those movies. Still love them with their antiquated graphics and their awful actors...... its just that now they are tied to a much higher price tag. $25 mil I think on this one.

So needless to say from the moment I saw the first Cloverfield preview I was chomping at the bit for the release. It was right up my alley with its cast of nobodies; director of limited success; and a storyline not totally unique.

Cause & Effect

Something has attacked Manhattan (poor Manhattan. First in I am Legend and now this.....). You are given glimpses of something gargantuan, something alive, and this something is destroying everything in its wake. You also see that this "Godzilla" type thing bleeds little monsters (think veloceraptors from Jurassic Park) and that if people are bitten by these creatures, something very bad happens to them. What sucks is that none of the events are explained. You never find out what the little critters are or what affect they have on people. I'm thinking zombie? How cool would that be for a sequel to have Godzilla AND zombie offspring..........!!!

The Result

a group of 20-something year olds struggle to survive and evacuate the city. Their plight is shown from a video-cam eye view, much like that of The Blair Witch Project. I wasn't receptive to this at first being as I am not a fan of the Blair Witch movie however in this case I found it not to be a deterrent, but rather that it lent a certain amount of credibility to the movie. And of course like all good horror movies, lots of lives are lost in the struggle to survive the madness and chaos.

The Recommendation

I certainly feel this movie fits in with the new genre of B movies (along with Snakes on a Plane, Slither, House of Wax). The cast is strewn with no name actors, it starts out with a sex scene, there is an undercurrent of humor throughout, and everyone is always running towards the danger, versus away from it.

My suggestion? Go see it. But don't expect to leave the theater knowing what the movie was all about. Too many loose ends - probably setting up for a sequel. Which I am eagerly awaiting.

Side-note

I've read that people got motion sickness from the way the movie was filmed and actually left the theater before the movie was over because of it. I had no such reaction but I was wondering of any of you who saw it did?? I'd love to hear you opinions.

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“Go To” Movies…..

Any of you out there have what I call your "go to" movies? You know, movies that you have seen 100 times , can recite the lines word for word, but still watch over and over when nothing else in on? From a comedy standpoint, I love Adam Sandler. His movies are a riot. As well, Empire Records & Valley Girl are staples of my DVD selection. But inevitably, when my husband doesn't get a sayso, I go for the blood and gore and bugs.

One of my favorites that I have yet to get sick of is Wrong Turn. I love Eliza Dushku and think she does great in this film, altho not seeing her be a badass vampire slayer didn't seem quite right initially. She pulls it out though, and I get caught up in the characters fear each time I watch it. The cannibals are very convincing and realistic looking. It never ceases to amaze me how much cinema graphics have improved over the years.

One key feature a movie has to have in order to be in the running for my list of favs is that it needs to rope me in within the first 10-15 minutes and be able to maintain a pace that keeps me from getting bored. This movie does both. Needless to say I was pretty pumped to see they had released Wrong Turn 2 - Dead End (Unrated).
It took a different spin from the first in that it has much more of the typical B-movie criteria: boob shots and gratuitous sex; no name actors;  typical "chase" scenes; and the movie was released straight to DVD. No waiting 6months to a year for the movie release. All the criteria I love.

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Cheesy B Ripoffs………

….are my favorite kind (sadly Tremors is on my list of favs). My husband cringes whenever he sees me flip to Fearnet or the SciFi channel. My flavor for giant bug type movies make him wonder why he ever married me. I have tried to explain that the fact these movies exist and continue to be made is evidence that I am not alone; there are others out there just like me. He agrees…. but he doesn’t understand.

B-movie’s - defined as low budget movies that were shown in addition to the main feature (think double feature) or any movie that ran less than 80 minutes - date back as early as the 1920’s and featured A-list actors such as Vincent Price, Bella Lugosi, and Boris Karloff. Several A-list actors of today started out on B film - actors such as John Wayne and Jack Nicholson.

In the 40’s and 50’s, as the appeal of the Golden Age-style double feature began to wane, the “B movie” term was used to refer to any low-budget genre film featuring less known performers (i.e. B actors). The term retained its earlier suggestion that such movies relied on arranged plots, "stock" character types, and simplistic action or unsophisticated comedy. At the same time, the world of the B movie was becoming increasingly appealing territory for experimentation, both serious and outlandish.

In the 1950’s, science fiction, horror, and various hybrids of the two were the primary vein of the low-budget end of the B business. Then in the 60's, due to the loosening of industry censorship constraints, a major expansion in the commercial life of several B movie subgenres evolved that came to be known collectively as “exploitation films“ - films that featured vulgar subject matter and outrageous imagery, combined with intensive and gimmick laden publicity.

The Production Code standard was officially scrapped in 1968, to be replaced by the first version of the modern movie rating system. That year, with the code gone and the adult x-rating established, major studio A films like Midnight Cowboy could now show "adult" content, and the market for increasingly hardcore pornography exploded and nudity-filled sexploitation pictures found their place on the map.

Most of the B movie production houses founded during the exploitation era of the 60's and 70's collapsed or were absorbed by larger companies as the expense of production continued to rise in the early 1980s. Even a similarily cheap, efficiently made genre picture intended for theatrical release began to cost millions of dollars, as the major movie studios steadily moved into the production of expensive genre movies. Audiences desires and expectations for spectacular action sequences and realistic special effects began to rise, fueling the expense.

Despite the rising cost of production, difficulty in theatrical distribution, and overall risk in airing these films, a substantial number of genre movies from small studios and independent filmmakers were still reaching theaters. Horror was the strongest low-budget genre of the time, especially in the "slasher" mode (i.e. The Slumber Party Massacre (1982), written by feminist author Rita Mae Brown).

As well, the video rental market was becoming central to B film economics, and a number of B studios releases went this route, appearing only briefly in theaters if at all. The growth of the cable television industry also helped support the low-budget film industry, as many B movies quickly wound up as "filler" material for 24-hour cable channels or were made expressly for that purpose.

In the 1990’s, as the average cost of making a movie topped $25M, remaining B movie companies adapted by releasing movies straight to video. Now, in the 2000’s, there is rumor of the “impending extinction" of "the cheesy, campy, guilty pleasures" of the B picture, as "the schlock of the past has evolved into star-driven, heavily publicized, expensive mediocrities…” .....however many keep the faith alive.

....As do I. I for one believe the B movie will survive at all costs as so many of us love the cheesy campy unrealistic mindlessness of naked, stupid, airheads trying to survive bug/psycho slasher/zombie bloodlust. And I look forward to watching each and every one of them.

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