Jaws 3 (1983) was originally pitched by producers David Brown and Richard D. Zanuck as a comedy called, National Lampoon’s Jaws 3, People 0. I don’t know what he had to do with it at this point, but Steven Spielberg threatened to leave Universal Pictures if it proceeded. Even then he had the power and…

The queer content of Hide & Go Shriek (1988) is clear from the opening shot. As the camera slowly enters what looks like an old warehouse, a man shaves… and then puts on makeup. We don’t know the exact nature of his orientation, though. He looks at both the male and female prostitutes as he…

Witchboard (1986) is somewhat well known in certain circles as a love story between two men. Sure, Brandon (Stephen Nichols) used to date Linda (Tawny Kitaen) and blames Jim (Todd Allen) for stealing her from him, but the tension between the two male characters is palpable. Childhood friends, they grew up together and were inseparable…

Upon first watch, one would assume that Savage Weekend (1979) is a typical slasher film, albeit an early one. When you learn it was filmed in 1976 and preceded Halloween (1978) and Friday the 13th(1980), you realize it was instead a proto-slasher film ahead of its time, much like Black Christmas (1974.) In either case,…

The Driller Killer (1979) brings to life the gritty streets of 1970s New York City. Watching it, I felt like I was there… but I didn’t want to be. Should the film be praised for its realistic depiction or panned for its distasteful content? For what viewer ratings are worth, the majority says it’s above…

During the summer of 1983, which I’ve often referred to as the most fun summer of my life, there was a definite bump in the road when I saw Metalstorm: the Destruction of Jared-Syn at the Esquire Theater in Enid, Oklahoma. It was an unforgettable experience… because I’ll never forget how bored I was. I…

Intruder (1989) has slipped by me all these years. I’m certain it wasn’t released theatrically in Kansas City; I kept a close eye on such things at the time. More unusual, I don’t even remember a VHS release, and I had been managing a chain of video stores for two years. Chances are, if I…

James Cameron once claimed that producer Ovidio G. Assonitis hired only American directors so that studios would finance his movies, then claimed they were incompetent so he could fire them and direct the movies himself. He’s entitled to that opinion; it happened to him with Piranha II: The Spawning (1982) and it also happened to…

From the seed of an interesting idea grows The Killer of Dolls (1975), a movie as crazy as it is deranged. It comes from writer/director Michael Skaife, who failed to delight me with The Butcher of Binbrook (1971.) I can find little about this movie or its creator; however, simple IMDb research shows he made…

Howling II (1985) is a direct sequel to Joe Dante’s 1981 werewolf film, The Howling. When last we saw television news reporter Karen White (Dee Wallace), she was turning into a pretty white werewolf on screen. Howling II opens at her funeral. Among the mourners are her brother, Ben (Reb Brown), a reporter assigned to…