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Promo_Central *Layout by Brit_renee
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| six obscure movies |
[14 Oct 2008|04:39pm] |
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Name six movies that you’re rather fond of, but that you’re pretty sure no-one on your friends list will have heard of. They don’t have to be movies you regard as masterpieces - you can be fond of them for their sheer awfulness, or their outrageousness, or for some purely whimsical reason of your own.
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| Motor Psycho (1965) |
[14 Oct 2008|03:30pm] |
Russ Meyer’s Motor Psycho, made earlier the same year, can be seen as a kind of dry run for his 1965 masterpiece Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill! The formula is more or less the same, but with the genders reversed.
( more musings on Motor Psycho behind cut )
x-posted to ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) cult_movie
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| Hippie Hippie Shake |
[14 Oct 2008|03:26pm] |
Hippie Hippie Shake is Richard Neville’s account of his life and adventures in the 60s. It starts with a young man desperate to flee the mind-numbing conformity and boredom of Australia in 1959, his days as a student radical and editor of the notorious Sydney Oz magazine in the early 60s, his escape to London and his editorship of the even more notorious London version of Oz magazine. It covers the obscenity trials of both Australian and British editions of Oz, the persecution by corrupt police, and the elation and disillusionment of the Underground scene of that memorable decade.
There are encounters with just about everybody who was anybody in that scene, drug-fueled escapades in Morocco, and lots of sex, drugs and rock’n’roll with Germaine Greer and the rest of those crazy Australians in alternative London. Neville regards his past with a mixture of affection and embarrassment. It’s all highly entertaining, and a must-read for anyone with an interest in that extraordinary decade.
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[13 Oct 2008|04:55pm] |
*surfaces*
*waves*
I survived the weekend. To my credit, so did the photographers at my sister's wedding, who held everyone up for about an hour taking pictures when we should have been getting something to eat.
Also, my sister was successfully married off, I now don't have to correct myself every time I call my new brother-in-law her husband, everyone thinks my brother looks like Johnny Depp with his long hair, and we all had a good time at the Renaissance Festival on Sunday, and I need a week to recover from my weekend. Hopefully I'll get some pictures up from it eventually, it depends on when we get them from various people.
But seriously, at my wedding? The photographers are going to be on leashes. Short ones at that.
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| PREVIEW: CHIC (PART 2) AVENUE 6 |
[13 Oct 2008|02:05pm] |
The Chic (Part 2) brings you simple yet versatile clothes that will sweep you off your feet!
Take a walk down Avenue 6 for some of the hottest selling items :)
Thursday 16/10/2008 :)
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| Affari Grandi! |
[13 Oct 2008|01:44pm] |
Affari Grandi!
*Italian for "Great Deals!"
NOW GOING AT ROCK-BOTTOM PRICES
Going at $12 & $25 MAILED each!
*Please take note:
Affari Grandi items will be changed frequently or when they are all sold.
Normal prices will resume immediately after it's removal from this post.
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| Drive by updating |
[11 Oct 2008|09:28am] |
I've been having some problems with my internet connection lately. It's really bugging me, but today it seems to be cooperating. I've been sick for the past two weeks and I'm finally starting to get better.
My sewing machine broke yesterday. Apparently, someone at the factory put the bobbin plate in wrong. I've only used it twice so I went back to the store in a huff and the lady said it wouldn't cost me a dime since it has a 1 year warranty on it. I felt bad for being snappy, but she's always rude to me anyway.
Here's some random pictures, some of some gifts I have made, and some of some gifts I've recently gotten.
( Pictures. )
We got the cutest dog in as a surrender last night at work. Seriously, he was so adorable!!! His name is peppermint and he's a toy eskimo-westie mix and he's 7 months old and he's so fluffy and playful! I wanted to take him home with me, to foster or something cause he'd get along so well with Maggie, but Charlotte's taking him for the weekend. Hopefully I'll get to play with him again, cause SOCUTE. You can see him on our petfinder page here.
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| Sweeney Todd |
[12 Oct 2008|12:34am] |
I finally caught up with Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd. I’m afraid that after the first half hour I was wishing someone would cut my throat. And after an hour I was ready to do it myself. The main problem I had with it was the music, and since it’s a musical that was a very big problem indeed. The music is simply awful. Aside from that, the whole thing would have worked much better as a non-musical. I know it was based on a stage musical, but I still think it was a bad idea.
The only thing in the movie’s favour was the visuals, but if you’ve seen Sleepy Hollow you’ve already see the exact same visual style done rather better. Even Johnny Depp was dull.
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| Atlantis, the Lost Continent (1961) |
[11 Oct 2008|03:53pm] |
For some reason I was expecting George Pal’s 1961 movie Atlantis, the Lost Continent to be a species of sword and sandal epic, but in fact it’s more of a sci-fi movie, albeit with a setting in the ancient world. In fact once I started watching I found myself remembering having seen this one many years ago.
( more adventures behind cut )
x-posted to cult_movie
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| latest book buys |
[11 Oct 2008|06:07am] |
I picked up a couple of potentially interesting books on the library’s discard table today. Firstly, The History of Clowns, which is one of those “documentary comic books” in the Writers and Readers “For Beginners” series. Not the sort of thing I’d normally buy, but for 50 cents why not?
And secondly, Richard Neville’s Hippie Hippie Shake, a account of the 60s by one of the notorious editors of the even more notorious Oz magazine.
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| The Dain Curse |
[11 Oct 2008|06:05am] |
Just finished reading Dashiell Hammett’s The Dain Curse for the first time. I don’t think it’s as good as Red Harvest or The Glass Key, but it’s still pretty good. I particularly liked the stuff about the cult, The Temple of the Holy Grail. I always enjoy anything connected with cults or “spook” stuff. It’s amusing to consider that even in 1931 California was notorious as the home of cult activity.
I’m trying to think whether this novel has ever been filmed. I suppose it must have been at some stage, although I can’t think when.
x-posted to vintage_crime
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[09 Oct 2008|09:47pm] |
I'm not ignoring anyone's comments, and will reply to emails and the like soon~. But I need a hiatus for a bit. Please be patient.
Advanced Chemistry Exam next week.
-Studying like mad because I will ace this monster.-
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[09 Oct 2008|11:44pm] |
NEWLY LAUNCHED LOCKER #21!(no previews this time! we updated right away!)
Highlight of this collection!
Super soft satin kimono-inspired fluttersleeve tops in 9 colours!
Also includes a denim tiered dress with unique leather adjustable straps,
a wool knitted cap-sleeved piece, & lovely elastic belts!
ALL ORDERS FOR UMEKO'S SATIN TOP & URSULA'S KNITTINGS:
TO SPEED THINGS UP, IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY ENQUIRIES,
PLEASE PROCEED TO MAKE PAYMENT
BEFORE
EMAILING US OR LEAVING A COMMENT!
</div>
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| Cosplay Crushes |
[08 Oct 2008|01:47pm] |
Question for all those cosplayers out there.
Especially ones who may be well-known and deal with this a lot.
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How do you handle people who develop crushes on you, which originate from your cosplay ( and possibly move onto an attraction to you as a whole person? )
What if it's from a fellow cosplayer?
Does it depend on if/how much the two of you interact?
Is it helpful that the person understands some part of the separation from the character you're acting as, and yourself as an individual?
Gross? Revolting? Stalker-like? Flattering? Easily ignored/laughed at?
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How about this: Have -you- ever developed a cosplay!crush?
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| CHIC (PART 1) AVENUE 5 |
[08 Oct 2008|08:57pm] |
Hi girls! We're BACK :) The Chic (Part 1) brings you simple yet versatile clothes that will sweep you off your feet!Take a walk down Avenue 5 for some of the hottest selling items :)
LAUNCHED!!
Psst.. Chic (Part 2) Avenue 6 will be coming a week after :D ( ♥ Chic (Part 1) Avenue 5 ♥ ) |
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[07 Oct 2008|07:09pm] |
Someone on my F-list made a comment about Chivalry being sexist.
That..holding chairs and doors was an..offensive measure.
*Scratches cheek*
........
So. What if that is...the most positive personality trait anyone, myself especially, could hope to harbor?
I -love- doing these sort of things simply to show that someone cares enough to show a little kindness. Even if it's stranger.
It doesn't have to be a young female recipient. I've helped children get on buses or picked up things they've dropped. And those assisted don't have to be young. An elderly woman slipped and fell at Disney some years ago. I held her hand and helped her up as the authorities rounded the street to make sure she'd not done damage.
And in contrast, when women show kind gestures or protectiveness in return, it is wholly flattering. Concerning those in my age group, it's ...(I hate to say the inappropriately sexual and incorrect term 'turn on', so)...a feature I'd deem most appealing & attractive overall.
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| escape |
[08 Oct 2008|09:49am] |
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The bunny made his most successful escape attempt so far yesterday. He was halfway diwn the street before he was recaptured. He's a very bad rabbit.
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| Tarzan and His Mate (1934) |
[08 Oct 2008|03:10am] |
Tarzan and His Mate is one of the most notorious of all Hollywood pre-code movies. In fact it was considered so brazen and shameless at the time of its release in 1934 that it became one of the main reasons for the tightening up of the Production Code. Until fairly recent times it’s only been available in a savagely cut version, with all that pre-code naughtiness removed.
( more jungle hi-jinks behind cut )
x-posted to cult_movie and x-posted to movie_greats
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| Swedish Wildcats (1972) |
[08 Oct 2008|03:09am] |
The fact that writer-director Joe Sarno’s 1972 film Swedish Wildcats (also known as Every Afternoon) is released on DVD by Seduction Cinema could lead you to expect that you’re about to see a moderately sleazy sexploitation opus. If so, you’d be quite wrong. What you actually get is an outrageously romantic and rather poignant love story, and an interesting and sensitive look at illusions and why we need them.
( more 1970s movie oddness behind cut )
x-posted to cult_movie
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[07 Oct 2008|07:34am] |
Okay, in other news, yesterday was my first day of classes at Southwestern.
It took me five minutes within the actual classroom to find a sword-wielding medieval and Star Wars geek. I'm like a magnet for them, I guess.
The group of people in my class are great, and I think I'm really going to end up bonding with them, but meeting them just confirmed for me how much I've been missing my UE friends. I miss our Medieval Society antics, and my Hufflepuffs (with a few 'Claws for leaven) making me blush the color of my hair. I miss hanging out in the RoR with you guys and watching Doctor Who episodes at random hours of the night when I should have been asleep. I miss our conversations that could wander from Padme's costumes in Episode 2 to 18th century French novels to heraldry customs to religion and back again.
In other words, *bribes you all with a promise of homemade cookies and tea* Are any of you going to the Ohio Renfaire? I think this weekend is Fall Break, and I was wondering if any of you would be coming through for it. And if so, is there a chance I could get a ride down for Sunday?
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| "I know that you will never see..This is not the answer." |
[07 Oct 2008|12:09am] |
Anonymous + Screened Posting: Go.
Tell me something.
Love me?
Hate me?
Harboring some deep dark secret you need to let out?
Go ahead.
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[06 Oct 2008|04:00pm] |
So, ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) natertatersmom on my flist was asking about how we defined feminism. And apparently this has been stewing for me for a while, because I ended up writing a rather hefty comment in response. So I'm re-posting it here, and asking you guys the same question. How do you define feminism? (As always, feel free to disagree, and I'm not going to moderate here because you guys are all reasonable adults, but that being said, do try to be polite.)
( Read more... )
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| T.N.T. Jackson (1975) |
[06 Oct 2008|12:28pm] |
The premise of T.N.T. Jackson is simple. If blaxploitation movies are fun, and king fu movies are fun, then a blaxploitation king fu movie has to be a sure-fire winner. And, in its own trashy way, this is a highly entertaining little flick.
( more 70s action fun behid cut )
x-posted to cult_movie
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| spring |
[06 Oct 2008|12:28pm] |
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mood |
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It's spring here in eastern Australia. You can tell, because it's really cold and the skies are grey and it never stops raining. The cats are incredibly depressed because they can't go outside. And I have a terrible head cold. But am I complaining? Well yes, I am!
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[05 Oct 2008|11:38pm] |
 SOLD OUT
Hally White Flutter Sleeves
( Read more... )
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| Confessions of a Psycho Cat (1968) |
[05 Oct 2008|11:48pm] |
Confessions of a Psycho Cat is a bizarre but fascinating 1968 variation on The Most Dangerous Game. Like so many exploitation movies of this period it existed in several versions. The version released by Something Weird Video had extra sexploitation scenes added, and although those scenes make no sense their very disconnectedness adds to the surreal quality of the film.
( more strangeness behind cut )
x-posted to cult_movie
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| FEEDBACK |
[04 Oct 2008|11:45pm] |
 Hey girls :) Fret not! We're updating with Avenue 5 NEXT THURSDAY!!! :) Pretty Clothes up for grabs!!! Just testing the response on whether we should bring in some really exclusive accessories :)
Handmade and we truely LOVE THEM!!!Talk to us and if the response is good we'll get up on our feet and go ahead with it!!! xoxo |
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| Bride of the Gorilla (1951) |
[04 Oct 2008|04:15pm] |
Bride of the Gorilla, written and directed by Curt Siodmak (brother of the more celebrated Robert Siodmak), boasts an all-star cast. Well, an all-star cast of low-budget movie actors anyway - Lon Chaney, Tom Conway and Raymond Burr (always fun in B-movies). It has a great B-movie title, and the central plot idea does have potential. Unfortunately what it doesn’t have is a budget, so we get lots and lots of stock footage of assorted jungle creatures and only the most feeble attempts at special effects for the man-into-monster transformation scenes.
( more low-budget fun behind cut )
x-posted to cult_movie
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| Thinking. |
[03 Oct 2008|11:29pm] |
I spend almost every waking moment in the classroom, my study or doing chores. Drawing has been cut down to the absolute necessities of gifts, and avoided otherwise. But it's still not good enough.
I need perfect scores. Better grades. B's aren't acceptable.
Seeing what I missed each time a con passes by makes me question:
"When do I get that?"
"When do I stop -turning down- opportunities with people?"
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| Twilight! |
[03 Oct 2008|03:18pm] |
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[03 Oct 2008|08:12pm] |
SELLING!
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| Blood Relatives (1978) |
[03 Oct 2008|03:17pm] |
Claude Chabrol’s Blood Relatives (Les Liens de sang) is a 1978 Canadian-French co-production, more of a murder thriller than a slasher movie or horror flick although it does perhaps some some affinity with the giallo genre. Being a neglected movie by an interesting director is I think enough to qualify it for discussion as a cult movie.
The movie starts with the murder of a 17-year-old girl. Her 15-year-old cousin is the only witness, but when she dramatically changes the story she tell to the investigating officer, Detective-Inspector Carella (Donald Sutherland) the plot, as they say, thickens. Although the plot contains some major twists I think it’s safe to say Chabrol is really more interested in psychological explorations of his characters and and in a fairly brutal dissection of apparently respectable middle-class family life than in the plot for its own sake.
The discovery of the murdered girl’s diary leads to a long and not entirely satisfactory flashback sequence. Most of the important story points are dealt with in the flashback, but unfortunately the use of this technique defects attention away from Detective-Inspector Carella, and since he’s the most interesting character in the movie and since Donald Sutherland gives by far the best acting performance this weakens the movie considerably. The most effective part of the movie is Carella’s response to the evidence as it unfolds, and the movie loses momentum and interest when Sutherland is not on screen.
David Hemmings is exceptionally creepy as the murdered girl’s boss, while Donald Pleasence contributes a brief cameo as one of the suspects in the crime. The other players are somewhat wooden and not terribly convincing.
Despite some serious flaws this is an involving and fascinating movie with an extraordinarily claustrophobic and unhealthy atmosphere of lust, jealousy, guilt, hypocrisy and all-round moral corruption. I caught it on late night TV. There’s a DVD release, but apparently it’s a very poor quality pan-and-scan print. So it’s probably one to grab if you find it in a bargain bin, otherwise keep a lookout for it on cable TV.
x-posted to cult_movie
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| Politics |
[02 Oct 2008|07:40pm] |
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Ok, I am sick over here.
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| Phantom of the Opera (1962) |
[02 Oct 2008|07:51pm] |
Having enjoyed enormous financial success with Dracula, Frankenstein and The Mummy, in 1962 Hammer turned their attentions to another remake of a classic horror film, The Phantom of the Opera. The result was a rare commercial flop for the British horror studio.
It’s not hard to see why the movie failed to attract audiences. Hammer’s early horror films succeeded in part by upping the levels of violence and blood-letting. They may seem tame by later standards, but in the 50s they were considered quite bloodthirsty. With The Phantom of the Opera they took the opposite approach. The violence is considerably toned down compared to earlier film versions, and the emphasis is very much on the romance. It’s not really a horror movie at all; it’s a gothic love story. If you accept it on that level it’s actually a very good movie indeed, but it’s not the sort of thing drive-in audiences were going to flock to see in 1962.
With Arthur Grant as director of photography, Bernard Robinson as production designer and Terence Fisher as director you’d expect this to be a very good-looking movie. And it is. In purely visual terms it’s possibly the best thing Fisher ever did. And Fisher’s direction (never less than extremely competent) becomes quite inspired at times. There’s a considerable emphasis on the opera itself, which ties in very well with the overall feel of the movie. It has more of the tone of the 1932 version of The Mummy than of a typical Hammer horror film.
The lack of a major box office attraction like Christopher Lee or Peter Cushing is more of an advantage than a drawback since it gives more space for the other actors. Herbert Lom as the phantom, Michael Gough as the deliciously villainous (and exceptionally lecherous) Lord Ambrose d’Arcy and Thorley Walters as the director of the opera house, all give strong and highly entertaining performances.
Terence Fisher was known for presenting good and evil as clear-cut opposing choices which could have caused problems with the somewhat ambiguous character of the phantom. The problem is solved by making the phantom a completely sympathetic character, a tragic hero in fact, and by making Lord d’Arcy the villain of the piece.
This is one of the most underrated of Hammer’s major productions, a lush and outrageously romantic offering and a misunderstood and neglected gem. The transfer on the DVD in the Universal Hammer boxed set looks fabulous. It’s a movie that needs and deserves the best possible presentation, and it gets it.
x-posted to cult_movie
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| Stress=Muscle tension=headaches |
[30 Sep 2008|11:49pm] |
I've been having:
Daily. Persistent. Repeated. "My head is in a vice" Tension Headaches.
Where my hearing gets dulled/dim, as though I'm changing altitude.
For about..a month now?
Tell me this leads up to something -amazing- I must look forward to.
Like. Kittens. Kittens are always good with ketchup.
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| The Woman in White |
[01 Oct 2008|01:00pm] |
Wilkie Collins was one of the great pioneers of the detective story, and The Woman in White was the first of his “sensation novels” to achieve a major popular success. It combines social commentary with an intricate mystery plot, and uses a technique rarely used by later mystery writers, with multiple narrators. In his foreword Collins describes this as an attempt to reproduce the feel of a court-room trial, with various witnesses each giving their evidence, with no one character having sufficient information to unravel the story on his or her own.
A man is employed to teach the rudiments of drawing and water colour painting to a young heiress, Laura Fairlie, and her half-sister Marian. On his way to take up this appointment he encounters a mysterious and rather confused woman dressed in white, and assists her in escaping from her equally mysterious pursuers. When Laura Fairlie turns out to bear a striking resemblance to this strange and disturbed young woman, the plot, as they say, thickens. And the plot becomes increasingly complex, involving a wicked and dissolute aristocrat with not just one but two guilty secrets, an enigmatic and vaguely sinister but oddly charming Italian count, secret societies, ingenious conspiracies and a love story.
At 633 pages it’s much longer than most later crime novels, but then it’s more than just a crime novel. Despite its length it’s an easy and highly entertaining read. And it boasts a fascinating cast of larger-than-life characters. It’s tremendous fun.
x-posted to vintage_crime
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| Teenage Gang Debs (1966) |
[01 Oct 2008|12:58pm] |
Teenage Gang Debs is a story of overwhelming ambition and of revenge of almost Shakespearian intensity. It’s the tale of a ruthless woman who uses sex and manipulation to satisfy her insatiable thirst for power, and it’s a tale of a terrible and horrifying vengeance exacted by women upon their tormentor. And it’s also a 1960s juvenile delinquent movie, with a frenetic soundtrack and go-go dancing. So it’s clearly a movie not to be missed.
( more juvenile delinquency behind cut )
x-posted to cult_movie
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