Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Carnival of Souls (1962)

Dir. Herk Harvey

While on her way to take a job as a church organist in Salt Lake City, Mary Henry (Candace Hilligoss) is haunted by a bizarre apparition. It compels her to an abandoned lakeside pavilion, beginning an eerie and macabre chain of events. Herk Harvey's macabre masterpiece, while made on a modest budget, has gained a cult following on late-night television.

Monday, July 30, 2007

Mezzo Forte (2001)


Dir. Yasuomi Umetsu

Yasuomi Umetsu, the acclaimed director of Kite, returns with this animated film about Mikura, a beautiful young assassin who works for a mysterious company that specializes in murder and blackmail. When Mikura is assigned to kidnap a seemingly hapless baseball team owner named Momokichi, both she and the company soon find that they have made what could be a fatal error. Momokichi turns out to be powerful underworld boss...

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Waitress (2007)

Dir. Adrienne Shelly

Written by director and co-star Adrienne Shelly (who was murdered shortly before the film's selection for the Sundance Film Festival), Waitress is a frank and funny examination of the fears brought on by impending motherhood. Keri Russell plays Jenna, a waitress whose fabulous pies are about the only sweet ingredient in an otherwise dreary existence. An unwanted pregnancy, however, brings unexpected romance in this film co-starring Cheryl Hines.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

This Film Is Not Yet Rated (2006)

Dir. Kirby Dick

Kirby Dick's provocative documentary investigates the secretive and inconsistent process by which the Motion Picture Association of America rates films. Dick questions whether certain studios get preferential treatment, exposes the discrepancies in how the MPAA views sex and violence, and reveals the association's efforts to control culture. Interviewees include John Waters, Darren Aronofsky, Maria Bello, Atom Egoyan, Kevin Smith and more.

Monday, July 23, 2007

Hairspray (1988)

Dir. John Waters

Tracy Turnblad (Ricki Lake), an ample, energetic teen living in 1960s Baltimore, wants nothing more than to get on the hip local TV dance program, "The Corny Collins Show." Tracy's dream comes true, and her lively dance moves and bubbly personality are met with unexpected popularity. After witnessing firsthand the terrible state of race relations in Baltimore, however, Tracy becomes an outspoken advocate for the dance show's desegregation.

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Cemetery Man (Dellamorte Dellamore) (1994)

Dir. Michele Soavi

Rupert Everett stars as an oddly unflappable cemetery watchman fighting off zombies in this droll send-up of 1950s drive-in horror flicks. With the dead on the rise, Francesco Dellamorte (Everett) and his half-wit sidekick (Francois Hadji-Lazaro) must be always at the ready to crack the corpses' skulls and send them back under. Featuring a pack of undead Boy Scouts and a severed-head love interest, Cemetery Man provides both chills and chuckles.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Return To Oz (1985)

Dir. Walter Murch

Dorothy (Fairuza Balk) just hasn't been the same since she got back from Oz, and her Aunt Em (Piper Laurie) is worried. Dorothy gets sent to a clinic to begin shock therapy but instead returns to an unfamiliar land where the Yellow Brick Road lies in ruins. With the help of a walking jack o' lantern, a wind-up robot and a flying sofa, she rises against an evil, many-headed princess and a wicked king made of stone.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Double Suicide (Shinju ten no amijima) (1969)

Dir. Masahiro Shinoda

In this striking adaptation of a bunraku puppet play (featuring the music of famed composer Toru Takemitsu), a paper merchant sacrifices family, fortune, and ultimately life for his erotic obsession with a prostitute.

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003)

Dir. Quentin Tarantino

In this film noir tale written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, an assassin called the Bride (Uma Thurman) is shot at her wedding by her employer, Bill (David Carradine), and other members of their assassin circle. She survives, though a bullet in her brain keeps her in a coma for five years. Setting out for some payback, the Bride hunts down the various assassins, saving Bill for last.

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Dead Silence (2007)

Dir. James Wan

In the wake of his young bride's mysterious death, grieving newlywed Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten) is forced to return to his haunted hometown, where he butts heads with the ghost of a creepy ventriloquist who was infamously murdered years ago. Amber Valletta and Donnie Wahlberg co-star in this chilling horror offering from James Wan and Leigh Whannell, the same team that created the Saw trilogy

Sunday, July 01, 2007

To Catch a Thief (1955)

Dir. Alfred Hitchcock

Cary Grant plays reformed jewel thief John Robie in this classic Hitchcock thriller. Suspected in a new series of gem heists in the luxury hotels of the French Riviera, Robie sets out to clear himself -- and catch the real thief -- with the help of pampered heiress Frances (Grace Kelly). His plan backfires, but Frances, who believes him guilty, proves her love by helping him escape. In a spine-tingling climax, the real criminal is exposed.

Re-Animator (1985)

Dir. Stuart Gordon

Based on a story by H.P. Lovecraft, this campy send-up follows an egotistical medical student (Jeffrey Combs) who develops a serum that revives the dead. Together with his girlfriend and his obdurate roommate, Combs reanimates a corpse but doesn't factor in certain complications that arise. Filled with equal parts laughter and gore, Re-Animator spawned a similarly outlandish sequel.

June Stats

June Total = 9
2007 Total = 77

Stats:
Rent - 6
Own - 2
Theater - 0
TV - 1
Other - 0
First Viewing - 6