JFD74: Food of the Gods, Lady Terminator, Match Point
The wait is over, and Junk Food Dinner Episode #74 is here. This week we welcome, our announcer and bonafide radio personality, Juliet Fromholt to the show as we discuss giant varmints, Indonesian mysticism, and the debate of fate versus chance!
First up, Marjoe Gortner and his friends are trapped on an island where strange things are brewing- RIGHT OUT OF THE GROUND. Naturally, the locals have been feeding it to wildlife and, brother, it's become wilder than ever! Bert I. Gordon (aka Mr. Big) tackles the work of H. G. Wells in the PG rated rat massacre from 1976 - Food of the Gods!
Next, curses from a hundred years ago come calling, or more accurately, come walking naked out of the ocean. Can Erica and her expertly coiffed police pals put a stop to a seemingly invincible killing machine before she termina- uh, destroys them? It's a whirlwind of violence, bad hair, and misplaced eels as we travel around the world to Indonesia and check out the 1989 foreign market knock off - Lady Terminator.
Finally, anyone for tennis? But seriously, and we mean seriously, we're talking Woody Allen's Match Point from 2005. Beautiful people (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Scarlett Johannson) do terrible things to each other while trying to suss out whether luck or fate has more to do with the way things turn out. But they'll soon discover that love doesn't always serve all.
All this plus a sparkling new guest host, occasional and unintentional robot voice, Junk Mail, Nerd News, DVD & Blu-Ray Releases, and much more!
Direct download here.
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Bert I. Gordon rules. His whole life must have been a self-fulfilling prophecy though, given those initials; B.I.G. I fondly remember watching EMPIRE OF THE ANTS on TBS and I love THE FOOD OF THE GODS; both fantastic fun 50’s throwbacks. I just watched his THE BOY AND THE PIRATES (1960) recently too and that was pretty great. There was nothing B.I.G. in that one…except the fun to be had! Anyways, you can never beat practical monster effects, there’s just something uncanny, surreal and novel about them, it’s almost like an onscreen version of playing with your toys as a kid. And all of those animal attacking nature/eco-horror films of the 70’s are great; NIGHT OF THE LEPUS, PHASE IV, BOG, BUG, DAY OF THE ANIMALS, KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS, THE PACK, ORCA, TENTACLES, FROGS, CROCODILE, etc, etc. I often wonder if one might look back at all the MegaSharks and DinoCrocs of today with a similar kind of vintage affection. It could happen. Ralph Meeker rules too. He’s most known for KISS ME DEADLY and PATHS OF GLORY, and I’ve been a fan since I first saw KISS ME DEADLY, but he is pretty much great in anything he did and he has a pretty interesting filmography. Check out SOMETHING WILD (1961) some time, it’s a lost classic and he’s fantastic in it.
ReplyDeleteLADY TERMINATOR sounds great. I used to see the VHS box everywhere. There’s a whole well of wild Indonesian cinema that I’ve only barely scratched the surface of. The neighboring Philippines also has an amazingly gonzo treasure trove of films. That Mark Hartley documentary on 70’s/80’s out-sourced Filipino exploitation cinema, MACHETE MAIDENS UNLEASED! (2010), comes out on DVD in the US in November I think, and I’m really looking forward to it. It’s already out in Hartley’s native Australia and I’ve thought about picking up the import, but the 2-Disc SE is fairly expensive that last time I checked. I had already gotten into Australian cinema on my own by the time Hartley’s NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD came out, so I was already familiar with a lot of the films in that documentary, but I’m hoping to be introduced to a jungle full of mind-blowers this time around.
I haven’t seen MATCH POINT, but it doesn’t look like anything too far out of the ordinary for Allen. He’s mostly identified with his neurotic comedies, but for most of his career he has been periodically going back and forth between comedies and serious dramas that philosophize about existential issues. MATCH POINT looks to me to be dealing with similar issues that he also dealt well with in CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS (1989); minus the tennis and android delivery of Scarlett Johanssen of course. And don’t count Allen out just yet, he has made some pretty ridiculous stuff that wouldn’t be too far away from the usual JFD norm, like: WHAT’S UP, TIGER LILLY?, TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN, SHADOWS AND FOG, ZELIG, SLEEPER, and the hilarious LOVE AND DEATH just to name a few.
And call me crazy, but I’m actually kind of jazzed to hear that FLATLINERS is getting a remake. I’ve always been overly disappointed with that film; as it has such a promising concept. I’d love to have a crack at it myself. It’s actually exactly the only kind of film that needs to be remade; one with a promising concept but which doesn’t deliver on its concept’s potential. If done right, it could be the next ALTERED STATES; minus the zoo afterhours monkey ballet intermission of course. And while we’re at it, somebody needs to remake Trumball’s BRAINSTORM as well (no, it’s not the one with Edward Furlong). Although, I guess STRANGE DAYS does cover similar territory, and that’s a fantastic film, but I want more on the captured death experience angle.
I'm so far behind in the podcast -- just started listening this summer -- that I have no idea if Match Point has inspired any of you to watch another Woody Allen movie. I think you'd like Crimes and Misdemeanors, which is his best murder-themed movie and is amongst his best movies, period.
ReplyDeleteWoody made a lot of crap during the last 20 years, and Match Point is above average in that era, but pretty mediocre compared to his 1977-1992 golden age. Crimes & Misdemeanors is both hilarious and chilling.
Thanks for the fun show!
Thanks! And, naw. We haven't done any more Allen on the show and I (Parker) still haven't checked out any other of his other flicks. But Crimes... sounds pretty cool if it's another murder-based flick. I'll check it out.
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