David Walker wades in, knee-deep into a stream-of-consciousness journey through the late ’80s and early ’90s, in a nostalgic trip through all the movies that could have only been discovered in the VHS age, and as we float from topic to topic without any real plan or sense of direction, we touch upon the theme of discovery, and re-discovery. How HBO, SLP VHS tapes, and those rows of clamshell boxes at the back of a furniture store helped us understand genre cinema, and how some of the movies we were too young/goofy/dumb to understand are just packed full of so much worth digging into now that we’re older, and willing to slow down for a second. The Terminator, Tombstone, The Man with No Name Trilogy, Unforgiven, James Bond movies, exploitation – somehow we wind up back in the present day, staring at a future where Django Unchained and The Lone Ranger look to be the rebirth and new-death of the modern western, all in the same year. Movie nerds: There’s a lot waiting for you. Come on in. The water’s fine.
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{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Installed the Podcast App, I found all my subscriptions intact, joy!!!!!
1) Dan Reed? Wow. I’m still a huge fan of his “Get To You” single. Should’ve been a bigger hit than it was.
2) Too many VHS memories for me. I had to look this up, but my first VCR was the Quasar VH5041XW. It was top loading, but what it also had was a wired remote, and when I was in video mode, I mastered that remote with my toes. I will become one with my chair, I’ll see sunshine tonight.
I remember ordering a catalog so I could see a VCR that was able to convert PAL and SECAM tapes for NTSC. It was an industrial beast that seemed as if it would be perfect for libraries. It was very expensive and I never got one. By then, I noticed that some movie fans sold their conversions, but they charged $25-35 per tape.
There’s a local department store that used to sell regular blank T-120′s for $35. Each. This was when most blanks were already going for $9.99. Said department store also sold rusty nails painted over so they “looked new”, so I knew they were screwing people over. That seems like ancient times, especially now that you can find a 6 pack of new, brand name VHS tapes go for $5 or less.
“Sleepaway Camp” was one of those movies that felt great to discover and experience in real time. Yet if you grew up with cable and the early days of HBO, and you found out about “Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes”, “Superfuzz”, and “Goin’ Coconuts”, that would spark an interest in whatever avenue you wanted to travel on for films.
3) My interests in film do not include westerns, unless there’s a comedy twist like “Blazing Saddles”. I do like the Clint Eastwood stuff, but otherwise, I’m not drawn to see them. I did like the discussion about them in the show, and there are times when I do wonder if I’m passing up on something I may truly like. One day I’ll select a few titles and perhaps if they finally move me, maybe I’ll explore more.
On the list of westerns I enjoy, Lonesome Dove has to be near the top. It was a miniseries featuring Robert Duvall that really told a good story, though at 6 hours it does require a break or two in the viewing.
3:10 to Yuma was good.
3:10 To Yuma was great.
I’ve been on a Western kick lately, and I started watching AMC’s “Hell On Wheels”, which is pretty damn good. Not a dusty Western, but a great decompressed revenge story set in the backdrop of the construction of the railroad in and around Indiana, just post civil war.
Also, how was “I can be your Huckleberry” not quoted?!!! I fucking love Tomb Stone.
I searched high and low for Four Rooms back in the day. I could only find it in VHS. That VHS sits gathering dust in my garage. I refuse to throw it out because the search was exhaustive and I loved the shit out of the film AND I only paid $4.99. Many levels of sentiment there.
my folks were very strict on the MPAA ratings when i was growing up. PG-13 meant that i would not be allowed to watch that movie until i was 13.
there were two noteable exceptions, both Mel Brooks related. We had a cleaned up version of Blazing Saddles that i wore out as a kid. Had no idea how filthy that movie is until i was much older. The other movie involves a video store, which is why i bring it up today.
A friend told me about a movie called Spaceballs. Like every other kid my age, I loved Star Wars, and the idea of a comedy version filled me with delight. The local video store (which was also the local liqour store, and the local fish/hunting liscensing location…because i grew up in the country) divided the movies up by rating, and then by genre, sometimes. Spaceballs got mishelved into the PG section. I knew it was PG-13, but I also knew I had to watch this movie.I pulled the tag off of the box and handed it to my dad along with the other two or three movies we were renting that day. My dad looked at the movie that came in the hard plastic rental box and raised an eyebrow. “Spaceballs?” he asked. “It was in the PG section,” I replied, trying to look as nonchalant as possible.
When it came time to watch the movie, I volunteered to put it in the VCR because I knew that the rating would be clearly visible. As the movie progressed I could see my dad eyeing me sidelong, and he even said a few times, “I can’t believe this movie is only PG!”
I didn’t reveal the truth until after the movie was done and I knew i couldn’t hide the truth any longer. I did not get the sound beating i expected, but I also didn’t get to watch another PG-13 movie until I turned 13 and saw Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves in theater. I was extremely pissed that my brother, two years younger than me, got to watch it with us.
The show today made me realize something else, that should have been totally obvious to me: westerns are basically samurai movies, even the ones not actually based on them.
not a huge revelation, i know, but it came on me suddenly and immediately explained why i love both genres.
Now see, I love samurai movies and I was going to mention that in my initial reply. I grew up with a good amount of them but never got into westerns so perhaps this will be a reason for me to shift my outlook.
Sergio Leone was successfully sued by Toho on behalf of Akira Kurosawa because “A Fistful of Dollars” was straight up a Yojimbo cover.
Same with “The Magnificent Seven” and “The Seven Samurai,” of course. There are a LOT of parallels between the two genres.
Recycle your old video cassettes if you can. If you live in Portland, check with Far West Fibers. http://www.farwestfibers.com/Locations/NE-Portland.html
The recent Coen Brothers’ “True Grit” was a huge critical and commercial success. Maybe that will also help pave the way for more Westerns in the future; “Cowboys and Aliens” not withstanding.
Woah, woah, woah. Fatboy is into anime?
And he likes a battle of wits?
DEATH NOTE. GO.