Drive-In Friday: Brett Piper Night
New Hampshire’s Brett Piper is a self-made screenwriter, director, and special effects artist who shoots most of his films in Pennsylvania, most notably in the western and northwestern counties of Cambria and Tioga County. He’s also a self-professed purveyor of “schlock” who eschews modern CGI for “old school” special effects, such as matte paintings, miniatures, […]
Furious 7 (2015)
While the three films took place in a pocket universe — yes, I have thought way too much about these movies — between 2 Fast 2 Furious and The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Furious 7 was the first movie to make a step toward the future. However, it would have to do so without series […]
I Am Thor (2015)
Last year, I saw a flyer for Thor, playing a really small bar in Monroeville, not far from my Pittsburgh home. I didn’t go, but after this, I kind of wish that I had. Jon Mikl Thor was a Mr. USA and Mr. Canada that became a heavy metal vocalist and an actor who appeared […]
Theory of Obscurity (2015)
For four decades, the masked and mysterious sound and video collective known as The Residents have not just made music. Or art. But some form of commerce that creates art that feeds commerce with music. It’s complicated. So who is under the giant eyeball masks? What inspires those songs? And what makes fans get so obsessed […]
The Similars (2015)
If this movie is any indication, Isaac Ezban is a writer and director to watch. He was inspired by The Twilight Zone episode “It’s a Good Life” and the color palette of 2009’s The Box, as this has a muted look that is unlike anything I’ve seen recently. It’s a movie that takes a somewhat silly conceit […]
Doglegs (2015)
I’ve been getting videotapes from Japan since the 1980’s. Before the internet, it wasn’t always so easy. You had to have a connection or you’d spend tons of money. And you’d never be sure what you’d get. One of my friends used to rent tapes from the Japanese grocery store and you had to try […]
The Witch Behind the Door (2015)
Also known as Janara, this Italian film is all about the mysterious disappearances of the children of San Lupo, in the province of Benevento in Italy. Some of the people believe that it has to be a pedophile, while others blame a legendary witch. The folklore and stories of the witches of Benevento date back to […]
Lavantula (2015)
There’s only one reason why I watched this Sharknado-esque movie. It’s right there on the poster: featuring the cast of Police Academy. Yes, Steve Guttenberg, Michael Winslow, Marion Ramsey and Leslie Easterbrook are in this. Obviously, my devotion to you, dear reader, and the legacy of Carey Mahoney knows no limit. Guttenberg plays Colton West, a former […]
Spectre (2015)
In this Sam Mendes-directed Bond film, our hero finally goes up against Blofeld for the first time since 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever, with the global criminal organization Spectre returning and Christoph Waltz taking over the villainous role. The film’s usage of the Spectre organization and its characters was the end of long-standing litigation between Eon Productions […]
Box Office Failures Week: Aloha (2015)
Beyond the fact that this movie only made back $26 million on a $52 million dollar budget, Aloha was hit with the issue of whitewashing, as Emma Stone’s character is supposed to be one-quarter Chinese and one-quarter Hawaiian, yet is — you know — played by Emma Stone. Oh Cameron Crowe. You started with Fast Times at […]
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