Hayden Christensen (Outcast with Nicolas Cage . . . and do I really have to mention Star Wars?) is a disconnected, self-centered Wall Street broker who’s estranged from his wife and bullied son. In an attempt to reconnect, and toughen up his son, he decides the best course of action is to take his family on a hunting vacation to the very same cabin where his own father took him—and in the very same woods where bank robbers have just murdered their double-crossing, corrupt police office accomplice.

That’s where First Kill kicks into Hunter’s Blood mode, with Christensen’s fish-out-of-water stockbroker and his weakling son forced to tough up or die as Christensen races against the clock while evading Bruce Willis’s police chief—who believes he was involved in the heist—to recover the stolen money as “ransom” for his kidnapped son.

While watching this third collaborative effort from Bruce Willis and direct-to-video auteur Steven C. Miller (they previous worked on 2015’s Extraction and 2016’s Marauders), and taking into consideration that Willis worked with Sylvester Stallone in the Expendables franchise, I couldn’t help but think of Cop Land (1997). That’s the film where Sly made a valiant attempt to expand his resume beyond the one-dimensional action films of his past (e.g., Cobra) with a film that offered more character-driven content.

Such is the case with Bruce Willis’s Howell who, like Stallone’s Freddy Helflin, is a sheriff who rather not be bothered, but is thrust into “urban western” (well, in this case, “rural western”) circumstances and rises to the challenge. However, don’t go into this expecting John McClane . . . or all Bruce Willis all the time. This is a Hayden Christensen set piece (and the second of a two picture deal with Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films; the other was the 2015 Christian-based family film 90 Minutes in Heaven). And we all know how polarizing Christensen was as Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels (he’s really not that bad of an actor).

As with our previous review for Steven C. Miller’s Aaron Eckhart-starring Line of Duty, we’re not going to sugar coat: the reviews on First Kill aren’t good. And Christensen, like Kristen Stewart (Underwater), takes a social media beating for his acting. And Miller’s direct-to-video action thrillers—such as Nicolas Cage’s Arsenal (2017) and Sylvester Stallone’s Escape Plan 2: Hades—are universally derided.

The err of film critics and movie goers (these days, renters) that tend to bash Miller’s work is that they fail to put on their retro-beanies and appreciate that Miller creates ‘90s action movie throwbacks. Think back to the major studio theatrical romps of Die Hard and Cobra, and of Speed and Lethal Weapon. They’re big, they’re dumb, they’re stupid, and they’re improbable. And we love those friggin’ movies.

For me, Miller’s films are like my grandma’s three-meat overloaded spaghetti replete with garlic and bay leaves: I’m not going back for seconds or thirds and ruining my heart and stomach lining, but that single serving is satisfying filling none-the-less. And I always go back for another artery-clogging dinner at grandma’s at a later time.

You can stream First Kill on Amazon Prime, Google Play, Vudu, and You Tube Movies. If you’d rather hard media, you can pick it up at your local Redbox or pick them up at Best Buy and Walmart.

About the Author: You can read the music and film reviews of R.D Francis on Medium and learn more about his work on Facebook. He also writes for B&S Movies.

Arsenal is one of those movies that, if we still had video stores, based on the marquee names of Nicolas Cage (Mandy, Color Out of Space) and John Cusack (Better Off Dead), you would have plucked it off the shelf. Those were the days when, for the 5 Videos-5 Days-5 Bucks offers many indie-stores had, you’d take a gamble on anything.

Sadly, in these digital days when you have to pay $5.99 to $7.99 for a digital rental, we don’t gamble that much on movies. (And I ask you: Was Arsenal even on cable VOD? Was it even available on Redbox? Did Walmart carry it in their cutout barrels in the electronics section? Honestly, I’ve never heard of Arsenal.)

It’s that retarding digital distribution environment that causes a film like Arsenal—an admittedly slow, but decent film noir action-thriller overflowing with ultra-violence and complex-beyond-cardboard characters—the type of characters we don’t get in the big studio set pieces that cut-out emotional layers and concentrate on the bullets—to being ignored at the digital box office. (Arsenal was a theatrical release in Europe.)

And this is how a hangover from last night’s holiday frolicking on the last Friday night of the year leads to your Saturday morning of couch surfing and channel grazing with your bowl of Coco Puffs (Fruity Pebbles, if you got ‘em) as you discover a well-written and well-directed film on a tight budget ($10 million is a “low budget” in these comic book franchise days): when it plays on the SyFy Channel.

Yep. Hollywood is a cruel, filmmaking mistress. Oscar be a bitch in gold clothing.

When we first meet the Lindel brothers, the younger, middle-school J.P always looks up to his older, high-school brother Mikey, who’s a face-slapping dickhead one minute, then a giving, caring brother the next. When their ill-drunk grandmother decides it’s time to leave the Terra by shotgun suicide, Mikey supports them both by working for Cage’s small-time mobster, Eddie King, making coke deliveries and committing petty crimes-for-profit.

Now grown up, blue collar brothers, J.P (now Adrian Grenier, HBO’s Entourage) is a responsible owner of a construction company; Mikey (now Johnathon Schaech, That Thing You Do!) is a black sheep that causes chaos, not only in his own family, but J.P’s. When J.P floats a 10 G loan to help his older brother pay off some family responsibilities, Mikey decides to buy coke from Eddie King and “flip it” to 20 Gs. Then the coke is stolen. And Eddie thinks Mikey ripped him off. So he kidnaps and ransoms Mikey for 300 percent more than the coke is worth. “You little brats owe me! I raised you!” screams Eddie King as he punches a chair-tied Mikey in the face.

So J.P—doing something his brother would never do for him—sets out with their childhood friend Sal (a perpetually black-clad and baseball-capped John Cusack), now a rogue undercover cop, to rescue Mikey. And they open up the “Arsenal.”

Arsenal is the type of movie Nicolas Cage—he openly admits—makes to pay down his highly publicized tax problems. It’s also the type of movie that gives top-billing to Nicolas Cage and John Cusack—who everyone came to see—then pulls the ol’ bait n’ switch with Johnathon Schaech and Adrian Grenier—that no one came to see (but they’re both very good here). It’s also the type of film where Nicolas Cage lets loose his unhinged, biblical self as we listen to the traditional religious tunes of the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Oh Freedom” as his Eddie King character gives CGI-blood-flowing-out-of-the-mouth, slow-motion beat downs by baseball bat and fist.

Now, in case you haven’t figured it out, Arsenal wants to be “Quentin Tarantino”—but you end up with another “Boondock Saints.” But we all loved Boondock Saints . . . remember?

Anyway, Cage, as is the case in his lean, direct-to-video-in-the-U.S-and-theatrical-release-overseas years, portrays another one of his patented, over-the-top cartoonish characters. Cage is known for his extreme form of method acting—where he rips teeth out of his head without anesthesia, spends five weeks with his head wrapped in bandages, walks around in corpse paint, eats an all-raw meat diet, and has hot yogurt poured over his feet to prepare for a scene. So, when we see Cage’s name, we wonder: What crazy-ass play from his “Noveau Shamanic” playbook is he going to run with this time?

This time: he’s running the “Tony Clifton.”

I don’t know how else to describe it. From the first moment of his very limited screen time (about 20 minutes combined, tops; same for John Cusack), the VCR centers of my brain loaded a VHS of Andy Kaufman’s old Tony Clifton routines. Cage’s Eddie King is (maybe not) a parody of Kaufman’s boorish lounge singer—complete with a fake nose and oversized sunglasses, a droopy walrus mustache and the kind of fake wig an insecure bald man would wear and think he’s “sexy.”

Oh, yes. The Cage never disappoints. And the Cage never treads middle ground. He’s either a master of his craft . . . or he’s past-his-prime awful in the eyes of the viewer. Either way, you’re leaving entertained.

Oh, and there’s an additional twist to Cage’s Eddie King: It’s the second time he’s portrayed the character. It turns out Arsenal serves as a sequel to the film Deadfall (1993)—despite the fact that Cage’s character dies in Deadfall. So, in actuality, Arsenal is an Eddie King prequel. (I’ve never heard of or seen Deadfall, either. Help us out, SyFy!) Oh, and the character of Buddy, Eddie King’s older brother in Arsenal, is played by Christopher Coppola, the real-life older brother of Nicolas Cage (born Nicolas Coppola), who directed Nick in Deadfall.

And there are a few, additional twists to writer-director Steven C. Miller’s Arsenal.

While it isn’t a prequel-sequel, Arsenal is Adrien Grenier and Johnathon Schaech’s second paring: they also starred in Marauders (2016), another film written and directed Miller. Arsenal also unites the two lead actors from the 8MM franchise: Nicolas Cage starred in 8MM (1999) and Johnathon Schaech was in 8MM 2 (2005). And Arsenal is the fourth collaboration of Nicolas Cage and John Cusack: they worked together Con Air (1997) and Adaptation (2002), and the no-one-saw-it, The Frozen Ground (2013). (Caveat emptor: they’re not in any scenes together in Arsenal.)

Say what you will about Arsenal (IMDb users were not kind), but Steven C. Miller knows how to bring on the action with morally-screwed characters. His other films include First Kill (2017, starring Bruce Willis), 2018’s Escape Plan 2: Hades, and Line of Duty (2019, starring Aaron Eckhart). Miller’s also directed a remake of Silent Night, Deadly NIght and almost brought a new version of Motel Hell to the big screen. Arsenal’s first time screenwriter, Jason Mosberg, created the 2018 limited original series One Dollar for the CBS All Access digital platform.

So do yourself a favor. The next time you see Steven C. Miller’s or Jason Mosberg’s name on something, give it spin. You’ll be entertained.

And what in the hell is this about? “Nic Cage Bitch” is our Nicolas Cage blowout written by Paul Andolina of Wrestling with Film. It’s a must read for all fans of the Cage, so check it out and learn about some Cage films you may have missed, such as A Score to Settle, Between Worlds, Kill Chain, Outcast, Rage, and Seeking Justice.

About the Author: You can read the music and film criticisms of R.D Francis on Medium and learn more about his work on Facebook.

This pulpy offering of old school fun from Brett Piper (Mysterious Planet, Arachnia) and the Polonia brothers (Empire of the Apes) takes its cues from Independence Day while it tips its homage hats to Ray Harryhausen’s stop-motion animation classic, Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956).

Outpost Earth wastes no time with bumbling, first-act set ups rife with character development (aka, no superfluous Jeff Goldblum and Margaret Colin bickering, thank you). We came for action and we get action. As the opening credits roll, Earth is reduced to a burnt out dystopia where the last remains of humanity are hunted by the alien invaders and their otherworldly “hunting dogs” (aka giant, stout lizards).

Kay (Erin Waterhouse) is a radiant, supermodel bow-hunter who, like so many Italian Giallo and Post-Apoc female-protagonists before her, never smudges her makeup (there’s always an errant makeup and fashionable clothing stash in the apocalypse). She wanders the wastelands kickin’ alien ass and fighting off the ubiquitous human cannibals in her search of supplies and food.

After Blake (Titus Himmelberger, of the Polonia brothers’ Amityville Exorcism and Sharkenstein) gets Kay out of a jam with some aliens, he meets her sister, Penny, and a ragtag group of survivors, including the omnipresent, white-bearded professor, Uncle Zayden, who tinkers around in his lab to discover a way to defeat the aliens (Rolling Stone voted him the “Smartest Man in the World”).

Of course, even in the direst of circumstances, the quest of greed and power is the rule and the human race can never work together, so we have an eye-patched psycho named Manny who kidnaps Penny. During Kay and Blake’s daring rescue of Penny, they come to discover the secret to operating one of the aliens’ crashed ships—which can give them an advantage to wipe out the aliens’ command center.

What makes the films of Piper and the Polonias fun is that they’re CGI-free throwbacks to the exploitation films of yesteryear—whether you grew up in the Drive-In ‘70s or the VHS ‘80s. Instead of green-motion tracking, we get aliens with well-made masks and full-body suits. Instead of After Effects computer-animated monsters, we get in-camera stop-motion monsters.

It’s evident that Brett Piper and the Polonia brothers, Mark and John, are one of us. They love those UHF-TV, Drive-In, and direct-to-VHS films of old. And with nary a budget that wouldn’t cover a day of catering on a major studio film, they do a commendable job giving us something fresh and new to watch, while feeding our brains with the nostalgia that we love in our films.

Oh, did you know that most of their films are shot in Cambria County, west of Pittsburgh (and near Altoona)? Hey, us western Pennsylvania “yinzers” gotta stick together. So they’ll always get the love here, at B&S About Movies, as we bleed the black & gold.

So don’t be a jagoff and check out Outpost Earth, will yinz? You tell ’em, Billy Gardell! And don’t forget, we dedicated one of our “Drive-In Friday” featurettes to Brett Piper and screened four of his films, including Queen Crab and Muckman.

About the Author: You can read the music and film reviews of R.D Francis on Medium and learn more about his work on Facebook. He also writes for B&S Movies.

Yesterday, we took a look at two of writer-director Frank Harris’s Leo Fong-starring films: Killpoint and Low Blow. The Patriot—which reminds of the later Steven Siegal war-actioner, 1992’s Under Siege—is the third and final Crown International release from writer-director Frank Harris’s resume included on Mill Creek’s “Explosive Cinema” 12-pack.

I remember going to my local, small town duplex to see what was Harris’s best-distributed film—with its splashy newspaper print and TV ads. The film was an early attempt to transition prolific television actor and Brian De Palma troupe-actor mainstay Gregg Henry (1984’s Body Double) into a leading man. You more likely know Henry from his later work on 1998’s Star Trek: Insurrection, The Guardians of the Galaxy franchise (as Grandpa Quill), ABC-TV’s Scandal, and the CW’s Black Lightning. The Patriot also stars Leslie Nielson (Airplane and the Naked Gun franchise), the always-happy-to-see-him Michael J. Pollard (where do I even begin with his incredible resume), and Jeff Conway (ABC-TV’s Taxi; 1978’s Grease).

The plot concerns ex-pro-boxer Stack Pierce—from Killpoint and Low Blow—as an ex-military wacko who steals a nuclear weapon and Henry’s dishonorably discharged ex-Navy Seal gets a chance to redeem himself.

The Patriot is a low-budget ‘80s action movie from Crown International. Now for the younger readers new to B-cinema: that may not mean anything. So just go into this not expecting “explosive,” but mediocre action and you’ll have a fun time with this dependable Frank Harris work. You’ve seen worse from the rip-off reels of ’80s Italian and Philippines cinema and you can sample it with the trailer.

The film’s soundtrack is composed by . . . well, is there any chance you’d be familiar with . . . well, with today’s state of narrow-playlist repeating American FM classic hits and classic rock radio stations, you may not be familiar with the hits “Thunder Island” and “Skakedown Cruise” by Jay Ferguson. Further back, he was a member of Spirit, which has the ‘60s progressive FM radio hit “I Got a Line on You.” The Patriot is one of Ferguson’s many soundtrack works, which includes The Terminator and A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. He currently composes the music for CBS-TV’s CSI: Los Angeles.

Screenwriter Katt Shea’s writing-directing resume includes the direct-to-video potboilers 1987’s Stripped to Kill, 1992’s Poison Ivy starring Drew Barrymore, and 1999’s The Rage: Carrie 2. She most recently directed 2019’s Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase. (As an actress, Katt starred in 1985’s Barbarian Queen.)

About the Author: You can read the music and film reviews of R.D Francis on Medium and learn more about his work on Facebook.