This is part 4 of our interview with Amanda from Made for TV Mayhem!

Other than TV movies, what are some of your other favorite films?

I’m a slasher fanatic! That’s where my heart is. I love the golden age of slashers, and some of my favorites are He Knows You’re Alone, Prom Night, Madman, The Mutilator, and The Slayer. I love the direct to video and late entry stuff too like Happy Hell Night. My favorite though is probably Killer Party. It’s flawed, but endlessly watchable because the characters are so great. I also love the silly stuff too like Killer Workout, Blood Diner and Pieces. There’s just so much to discover, rewatch and enjoy. I’m a big Lamberto Bava fan as well. I think he’s a really underrated talent. His big popcorn movies are great, but his smaller films like Macabre, Body Puzzle and Ghost Son are really emotionally raw. Also, Blade in the Dark is so amazing. I love that man. I LOVE THAT MAN.

As for non-horror, it’s quite varied and some of my favorites are a foreign film called Twist and Shout, Weird Science, Porky’s 2 (forever!), a British movie called Letter to Brezhnev, Hal Hartley movies, David Lynch (which is arguably horror), and I adore Harry and Tonto even though I’ve only seen it once. What a beautiful film. Another favorite is Christiane F., which I’ve seen way too many times, considering the content. And I think Jackie Brown is easily one of my all-time favorites. I’ve seen it five times on the big screen. I don’t even care about the heist. Just give me that romance between Jackie and Max Cherry. So good.

Are there any actors we’d be surprised made the transition from TV to movies?

Hmmm.. that’s a good question. It’s actually really tough for actors who start on TV to find leading roles in movies. I think it’s because, as the saying goes, “Why pay for it when you can get it for free.” You’ll notice that both Don Johnson and Tom Selleck struggled a bit with starting up a theatrical career. I guess a good place to look might be soaps, because you’ll see actors like Meg Ryan, Tommy Lee Jones, Mark Hamill, etc., all started there. However, I guess one of the more surprising names to start on TV might be Crispin Glover. He’s so amazing in High School USA and appeared in everything from Happy Days to The Facts of Life. I met him recently and he told me he thought High School USA was a very good film, which pleased me immensely. He’s absolutely hilarious in it.

Are there any current movies that you’re digging?

Yes, I love a lot of what I see on the big screen. I missed the last entry, but I’m a huge supporter of Insidious and the James Wan stuff in general. Insidious is great because it’s so wonderful to see a woman in her 70s leading a horror film and kicking butt. That’s actually really subversive and I love it. It’s important. Get Out and It Follows are phenomenal. I thought Black Panther was really fantastic and I enjoy the big popcorn blockbuster franchises like Star Wars and Star Trek. I do think modern films are really good, but they don’t necessarily resonate with me like the films I first discovered at a younger age. I’m sure some of that is nostalgia, but I’m all for people’s love of modern cinema, and I’m always pleased to hear my friends talking about new films they love. I just probably don’t go as often as they do.

We just watched The Supernaturals, which isn’t necessarily a great movie but has great ideas and more importantly, has Scott Jacoby in the cast. How awesome is he? Like, in The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, he’s a magician and just full of strange tics and mannerisms!

Scott Jacoby is the magic word. I love that man so much. He’s just an amazing talent. I thought The Supernaturals was really fun. It’s by the guy who did He Knows You’re Alone, and honestly, he can’t make a bad film as far as I’m concerned. I love the Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane as well. I haven’t seen it in years, but that goes back to my statement about the edgier climate of the seventies. They’d never make that film now!

How awesome would a series of The Norliss Tapes have been? I’m obsessed with TV pilots that went nowhere, like Poor Devil, the Sammy Davis Jr./Christopher Lee show or TV movies that became short-lived series like Salvage One and The Man from Atlantis. Any you love?

Norliss Tapes is one of my all-time faves. I’m a big Roy Thinnes fan. And, speaking of pilots, he starred in Children of the Lotus Eaters, aka God Bless the Children which was the pilot for a short-lived series called The Psychiatrist. It’s amazing. I also love Poor Devil. Pilots can be a mess though. I thought Sword of Justice was fun, but all over the map. I also liked Samurai with Joe Penny, but again, all over the map… and Mandrake too. One of the best might be Fame is the Name of the Game from the sixties. Just discovered it and I’m not going back! I think Cover Girls, which is about models who are also secret agents is pretty worthy of its awesomeness!

How did I not bring up Home for the Holidays?

I love it too. John Llewellyn Moxey is my favorite telefilm director. Double Home with something like A Taste of Evil or No Place to Hide. They all have similar endings, and are all fantastic films that he directed. Oh, and see The House that Wouldn’t Die. Or anything else he’s made. If you catch his TVM Smash-Up on Interstate 5, you’ll see Scott Jacoby. Just sayin’.

Are you a fan of Murder, She Wrote? We occasionally do a podcast about it. I’m always amazed at the budgets of that show. They bring in so many people per episode!

Huge Murder, She Wrote fan. I discovered it a bit late, like maybe only a few years ago, but I’ve been through the run of the series and just adore it. Again, we’ve got this older woman kicking ass and taking names. Angela Lansbury is wonderful. And Seth Hazlett for life!

Thanks Amanda for answering so many questions! I learned a lot and also have tons of new movies to watch with Becca! Please visit her site today!