Polyerius perform at the first annual Quarantinefest in San Jose on Halloween night, 2020.
There should be another edition of this event this year. COVID and its handlers may have finally shit themselves out.
We can only hope.
“The Upper Berth” – A Visual Adaptation
Very fine, very abridged visual retelling of the F. Marion Crawford classic ghost story, “The Upper Berth”. I first read this story in one of the old “Alfred Hitchcock Presents Stories to Keep You Awake At Night” or some such gaudy title. It was an excellent story and is well worth seeking out and getting the chills from. An adventurer finds that his cabinmate aboard a freighter may not be all he appears to be. He may not even be among the living. And there the fun really begins. Read the original story too!
This video takes a very cool, artistic approach to putting visuals to the words. There is a lot of material cut from the Crawford tale but this version truly captures the creepy atmosphere found in the latter part of the story. Nice black and white motion picture work with some frightening special and sound effects. Wellesian in appearance and maintains the haunted tone of Crawford.
“Reptilicus” (1961) – Regenerated Dinosaur Hand Puppet Destroys Denmark!
Miners uncover a piece of preserved dinosaur tail that ends up thawing in a scientific research facility. That ends up being an awful turn of events. The small bit of flesh soon grows and regenerates a complete dinosaur! The resilient reptile. Very soon, a full-fledged rampaging beast is on the loose and begins laying waste to the Denmark countryside where the tale takes place.
There are bits of this fantasy film that I find actually enjoyable. There is a travelogue of sorts that appears near the middle of the film that highlights some of the festive night spots and activities available for our heroes to partake in. Nicely done! The creature, Reptilicus, often spits out a neon green slimy mist at the Army fighting it off. The mist has the effect of dissolving the offending Army and its tanks, artillery and other weapons of war.
Budgetary and special effects limitations prevented not much more than a long neck attached to a vulture like dinosaur hand puppet head to represent the prehistoric beast, Reptilicus. We also see a wing-like appendage attached to the monster’s side but we never glimpse any limbs providing mobility. The beast appears to effortlessly glide over the landscape.
And, most importantly, what the heck is with the church bell sound effect that gets mixed in as part of the mighty monster’s roar? Unknown.
“Duchess”, The Stranglers (1979)
Another blast from the past. The amazing, original line up of The Stranglers in their music video for “Duchess”. Ah, they just don’t make them like this anymore and you may say that’s a good thing. But it does have a nice and gritty cinematic quality using those old ’70’s film stocks. Directed by old school music video maestro, Russell Mulcahy. Whatever happened to him? Time relentlessly passes.
Forgive me Lou for this awkward post
So trying to find some inspiration to make a post, I came up with possibly my weakest entry yet. But, let me say, that I spared you a review of “The Killer Shrews”, “Conquest of the Planet of the Apes”, “No Country For Old Men”. Take your pick. It ain’t going to be any of those. I’ll save those for Halloween time.
What I came up with was in response to a conversation I had with my wife. We are going to a Labor Day weekend wedding and she volunteered me to take pictures to produce a photo album to give the bride and groom at Christmas time. Of course, I protested and wailed that everyone else will be able to relax and enjoy themselves but I will have to be somewhat on the ball and work. Ahhh….
Lyrics came to my mind from the creative genius Lou Reed who once wrote, “some people like to go out dancing, other people like us, we got to work”.
And here is the song these words appear in, “Sweet Jane”. This is a filmed performance presumably from the 1970’s “Rock and Roll Animal” live record tour. Please note that the images and words clearly aren’t matching up in this song clip but it shows Lou Reed in fine form as the shaven headed, bleached blond imbiber of the time.
Enjoy!!!!!!
James Caan, RIP
James Caan was an energetic actor who had a great run of movie appearances from the 1970’s to the early 1980’s. Caan started showing up in Westerns like “El Dorado” and oddball psychological pics like “Lady in a Cage” and “Games” in the 1960’s. His acting fortunes took a turn for the epic when he was cast in “The Godfather” (1971). Playing loose cannon Sonny Corleone, son of Mafia Don, Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) showcased Caan’s ability to go from a (relatively) tranquil state to kinetic maniac in the wink of an eye. Such explosive acting pyrotechnics would continue to be exhibited in “Rollerball”, “The Gambler” and “Thief”.
Caan was an iconic 1970’s screen presence. His contributions to the Silver Screen will be remembered and respected.
Rusty’s Summer Special: A Collection of Strange Wilderness Stories – Part 1 (2022)
Another collection of strange stories submitted to Rusty West by his listeners that West combines into a creepy compilation of bizarre and spooky audio narratives.
These vignettes can be absolutely terrifying. A couple of stories from his prior collections have freaked me out and stuck with me.
Plus, I am a sucker for the howling wind sound effect backgrounds that Rusty has used many times in these videos. Wonderful!
The “Up Yours, High Gas Prices” Road Trip: Highway 50 through Nevada
If money is no object with regards to gasoline prices and you need to satisfy your wanderlust, then consider taking a road trip across Highway 50 in Nevada AKA “The Loneliest road in America”.
I have been on this highway a couple of times and I must say that there are some cool small towns and many historical sites along the way but there are also miles and miles of twisting, winding roads travelling through a barren desert locale. All in all, though, a very rewarding drive. Just don’t expect to see too many other vehicles along the route. Or gas stations. But that is probably a good thing.
Enjoy this informative documentary.
Chris Bailey of The Saints, R.I.P.
Punk rock progenitor, Chris Bailey, who sang and wrote for the Australian band, The Saints, has died. Chris definitely had a strong presence in my life way back when. We had a couple of Saints’ audio cassettes in the rotation for road trips: “I’m Stranded” and “Know Your Product”. The songs were some of our favorites, right alongside “Metallic KO”, The Stranglers, Motorhead, etc. Good music, good times. The Saints’ raw, guitar dominated sound was an influence on the punk purge to come in the music industry. Check out this music video which is introduced by artist commentary. Cool video!
“The War of the Worlds” (1953) – Pretty, 1950’s End of the World Yarn
H.G. Wells wrote the science fiction classic “The War of the Worlds” back in the 19th century and the setting was England. It seems that a civilization had evolved on the planet Mars and the inhabitants of that planet hatched a plot to conquer our planet. Falling stars land on Earth and reveal encased cylinders that house slimy Martian creatures and Martian war machines that proceed to decimate our world.
Along comes this picture to update the story to the United States in the 1950’s. The screen is filled with dazzling color film work and a different continent to disrupt and demolish. We are also subjected to some mighty wooden acting by our leading couple Gene Barry and Ann Robinson. The United States utilizes its latest military weapons on the aliens who are now operating evil looking flying craft equipped with a goose necked appendage that fires off a vaporizing ray.
There are plenty of histrionics in this science fiction actioner: two mighty military forces battling it out, explosions, heat rays, cities on fire, flying wings, atomic explosions, three eyed creepy creatures, shouting expressionless actors, pontificating egghead scientists, hardheaded career military minds ranting, blood thirsty mobs on the rampage, a war between two celestial bodies!!!!
Come to think of it, you’ll have a great time viewing this. Knock yourself out.
Ian McDonald, dead at 75
Ian McDonald may be best remembered for his amazing work with the early progressive rock group King Crimson. McDonald played woodwinds, mellotron and keyboards for the group and wrote the music for “In the Court of the Crimson King”, a progressive music masterpiece, as well as being involved in the writing of many of the other classic tracks on the collection. McDonald was a self-taught saxophone and flute player. He learned them well. Witness his aggressive saxophone attack on “21st Century Schizoid Man”. Fantastic.
McDonald departed the Crimson band after the first album but would rejoin on their “Red” album before that unit dissolved.
After King Crimson, McDonald found success, commercially and financially, with the hard rock outfit Foreigner.
A truly original talent who will be remembered for the incredible musicianship he brought to the world.
“More Dead Than Alive” (1969) – Worthy Thoughtful Western
I started watching this western and began thinking that it was playing out as another dated take on The Old West that we have seen in countless TV shows and repetitive movies. There was a soundtrack featuring a harmonica, a jailbreak out of a Federal prison, gunplay galore and even some Gatling Gun action. It struck me as being old fashioned in an age where the Western had been electrified and shaken up by a work like Peckinpah’s “The Wild Bunch”. How could filmmakers fall back on all the old, reliable cliches of The Western genre and expect the audience to even care?
As it turns out, “Alive” and “Bunch” were released in the same year. I don’t know which, in essence, was seen first by the public but “More Dead Than Alive” impressed me as its story unfolded. Clint Walker plays a recently released convict known as Killer Kane who has spent 18 years in prison. As he sheds his shackles, he is left with an even more daunting sentence: What can a man convicted of multiple murders and who has only known life as an outlaw get by in this new world? What job will he be able to find, how will he live, how is it possible to shed the image the public has of him as being a person who has snuffed out others’ lives?
It proves to be a very hard ride for Walker who can’t keep even the most menial of jobs for long and is shunned by society in general as being a dangerous man.
Vincent Price has a nice appearance as a travelling sideshow operator who gladly invites Killer Kane to be his featured performer in Price’s Shooting exhibition. Even in this element of handling guns, Walker is met with strong opposition by the child like psychotic teenager Price was previously using as his featured shooting star.
Another similarity to “Bunch” is the observance of newly emerging technology such as a phone and bicycles. The times have certainly changed since Kane went to jail and the remaining movie chronicles his struggles to survive in his new environment and live down his bad name.
Definitely worth a viewing!
Michael Nesmith, R.I.P.
Michael Nesmith was a very influential presence in his time on this planet. He was a memorable songwriter, produced films, pushed the boundaries of music promotional videos, and was a pioneer in pursuing the emerging trend that morphed into country rock. He will probably best be remembered as the guitar playing member on The Monkees TV show from the 1960’s.
I loved his songwriting contributions to the Monkees and his acerbic personality. Mike was a forward thinking individual and envisioned many technological trends before they became mainstream.
We take our wool caps off to you brother in salute to your creative life and the many blessings you delivered to us!
“The Day Mars Invaded Earth” (1962) – Our Cinematic Visit to the Red Planet is much too short
“The Day Mars Invaded Earth” starts out promisingly enough with footage of a rover device scooted across the surface of the Red Planet. The film is in black and white so we take it on faith that we are actually on Mars. Har-har. This segment of the film is my favorite part of the movie as too soon we see the probe destroyed and we come back to earthly maters for the remainder of the film. It seems that the scientist who is chiefly responsible for the project is psychically invaded by some form of life from Mars and his family is similarly taken over.
The majority of this movie is set within the scientist’s vast country estate and while it is picturesque and grand, the action plods as we maneuver about the estate and witness the absorption of the humans present. It all gets a bit boring for me but there is a nice effect at the end that metaphorically encapsulates what has taken place on the estate.
Some call it a classic science fiction film but I do not. Maybe a hint of what the Martians actually looked like would have helped or more suspenseful scenes. It is though not an unpleasant way to spend 90 minutes for the speculative film fan.