In the past few years we've seen the release of several films that homage and/or parody mostly dead genres, including noir (Give Em Hell Malone), blaxploitation (Black Dynamite), and biker (Hell Ride). For the most part, I've found these - for lack of a better term - nü-exploitation films to be a mixed bag. While I love that there are directors and studios that believe (as I do) that there is life left in these neglected genres, I have absolutely no patience for Troma-style, weren't-old-movies-silly throwbacks. My thoughts on Bitch Slap are after the break. Click here for more.
News: Watch the Academy Awards with Reel Distraction & Gordon and the Whale!
The event is free, and we will be giving away dozens of amazing film-related trivia and door prizes, including 2 VIP passes to the Asian Film Festival of Dallas, two Star Pass badges to the Dallas International Film Festival, 2 passes to this year's Texas Frightmare Weekend, a Blu-ray player, a six-month membership to Blockbuster Online, a teeth whitening/cleaning from PURE Dental ($400 value), a DVD player, DVDs from IndiePix Films, movie swag, and much much more. Plus there's going to be free pizza from i Fratelli Ristorante.
The doors open at 6:00, but since it's first-come, first-seated, feel free to get there early, grab a drink (or two), and mingle with me, Messieurs Gordon and Whale, and several hundred other film fans. A photographer will be on site, so come dressed to impressed (whatever that means to you)!
News: Remember Burlesque - See The Old Baggy Pants Comedians
02.26.10
Remember Burlesque - See The Old Baggy Pants Comedians
Before I posted this ad, there were only two google hits for "Old Baggy Pants Comedians." I'm looking forward to being the third and - if I'm lucky - top listing for "Old Baggy Pants Comedians." That's right. Reel Distraction is your number one source for all things old-baggy-pants-comedian related. Old Baggy Pants Comedians. Old Baggy Pants Comedians. Old Baggy Pants Comedians.
Also, I'm not fluent with Vaudeville references, and was intially concerned that the "blackout" reference meant that Nick's Happy Hour was featuring blackface in its burlesque show. Turns out my fears were misplaced. According to wikipedia:
A blackout gag is a term mainly used in broad, rapid-fire, slapstick comedy to describe a manner in which a gag or joke is executed. The term is derived from burlesque and vaudeville, when the lights were quickly turned off after the punchline of a joke to accentuate it and/or allow for audience laughter. It may use a shock value to define the joke, and may not be initially noticeable to all viewers if it is a very fast joke.
Finally, what do you think constitutes "proper dress" for a burlesque show featuring Old Baggy Pants Comedians?
Gold (1974) - Everything They Touch Turns To Pure Excitement!
From the November 11, 1974 Long Beach (California) Press-Telegram. Click here for more.
Advert: The Bears and I & The Shaggy Dog
02.24.10
Double Disney Magic - The Bears and I (1974) & The Shaggy Dog (1959)
IMDB says that the tagline for The Bears and I is "When a man adopts three bears, he faces one of the hardest decisions of his life." That's a damn awesome tagline.
From the November 11, 1974 Long Beach (California) Press-Telegram. Click here for more.
Advert: Keep It Up Jack & The Sexual Secrets of Marijuana
02.23.10
Keep It Up, Jack (1973) (We're Going Out On a Limb To Give You Our Personal Guarantee That You Will Enjoy This Best Adult Picture Of The Year) & The Sexual Secrets of Marijuana (1971) (Sensational First Run Co-Hit)
I can't tell exactly what's going on in the artwork for this admat, but it looks like an adult woman wearing a giant bow in a crib. I'm at a bit of a loss to see how that could result in the "best adult picture of the year," but my curiosity definitely is peaked.
From the November 11, 1974 Long Beach (California) Press-Telegram. Click here for more.
Advert: Easy Money & & My Husband, The Producer
02.23.10
Easy Money (19??) (The Smell of Gold & Lust Filled the Air as Their Bodies Grew Hot in the Noonday Sun) & My Husband, The Producer (19??) (What Did She Do To Get The Part?)
I don't get it. Where's the scandal? She's married to the producer. It says so right there in the title. So why are we surprised she got the part?
From the November 11, 1974 Long Beach (California) Press-Telegram. Click here for more.
Advert: The Erotic Memoirs of a Male Chauvinist Pig & The Saga of Robin And Caruso
02.22.10
The Erotic Memoirs of a Male Chauvinist Pig (1973) & The Saga of Robin And Caruso (1971)
Wait a second. There's a sexploitation version of Robinson Crusoe? Color me shocked. I'd never heard of the film before I saw this admat. There's almost no information about The Saga of Robin And Caruso online, and I'll be eternally grateful to anyone who can point me toward a copy. Seriously.
From the November 11, 1974 Long Beach (California) Press-Telegram. Click here for more.
Advert: Easy Rider & Five Easy Pieces
02.22.10
Easy Rider (1969) & Five Easy Pieces (1970)
I've been looking for an excuse to post the CORPSE CORPS trailer for a while now, and Easy Rider is as good an excuse as any. Enjoy:
As you may have gathered, CORPSE CORPS isn't a real movie... it's a fake trailer for the Grindhouse contest SXSW ran back in 2007. Which is too bad, because even though I'm not a huge fan of biker movies, I'd kill my old lady to watch CORPSE CORPS.
News: Woodbourne Tavern - Go-Go Girls Dance At Lunchtime Everyday
02.18.10
Woodbourne Tavern - Go-Go Girls Dance At The Woodbourne At Lunchtime Everyday (12-2)
Look. In the 70's, even out-of-the-way places like Bucks County, Pennsylvania had taverns featuring lunchtime go-go dancers. Can we just collectively agree that that decade was the pinnacle of human achievement and that we'll never achieve those heights again? It take a lot of pressure of all our collective shoulders.
Advert: Pippi in the South Seas, Serpico, The Gambler, Law and Disorder, & The Longest Yard
02.17.10
Pippi in the South Seas (1970), Serpico (1973), The Gambler (1974), Law and Disorder (1974), & The Longest Yard (1974)
I was going to mock the seeming incongruity between Pippi in the South Seas and all of the other films playing at the Premiere Twin and Colonial theaters, but - at least based on this "entire-film-in-five-seconds" clip - it looks sorta badass:
