Carlson terry Jones

Guillermo del Toro gives us this cheeky horror short, based on Fredric Brown's short story “Naturally”. The film's main premise is about a kid that lives with his mother, who recently failed his geometry test. His troubles with school, his uncaring mother, and the recent death of his father drive him to conjure up a spell from one of his comic books. The ending is quite clever. Del Toro shows his knack for special effects and storytelling. The film is a short watch (around 6 minutes).

This 1964 Don Wels movie is about a clueless/ fun-loving alien named Go-Go (Tommy kirk ), landing on earth before a mars invasion. Go-Go meets a wealthy but kind-hearted widow (Elsa Lanchester), who allows him to stay in her house. Go-Go (who looks like a regular teen) meets the kids from the neighborhood, who are party hard, volleyball-playing beachgoers. They take an instant liking to him, especially one of the girls, Connie (Annette Funicello). The conflict of the film is that many people including Chief Rotten Eagle (Buster Keaton) , a sneaky and convinced chief (Harvey Lembeck), an evil biker boss, and an evil neighbor conspire to covet the widow’s money. There are many comedic points in the movie leading up to its big climax- you guessed it, a pajama party. All the kids are invited to the party along with some mean biker kids. The party is held to distract everyone from the fact that the antagonists are robbing the widow’s mansion. The ending is filled with a gigantic dance and singing number, followed by many gags of people being thrown in the pool. Finally, the antagonists are accidentally sent to mars from one of Go-Go futuristic devices. The movie ends with one more singing number song by Connie and a romantic embrace between her and Go-Go. This was a good and entertaining movie. It had common 60s beach party motifs. While some of the effects and props were cheap (even for the period) the movie made up for it with its screwball comedy and fun atmosphere. The songs were lively and the dialogue fun. What ruined this movie for me was the racist portrayal of Native Americans. In the movie, the Native American is portrayed as lazy and clownish. The actor who plays the native American (Buster Keaton) was white and used makeup to darken the skin. It showed many stereotypes and not just of native Americans but also of other races and nationalities. The movie could've done without the native American character. The portrayal added nothing but failed jokes and added racism. Based on the period the movie was made this racist portrayal was common. Besides the racism, the acting was fresh and made the movie entertaining. The story, while simple, is a very fun and entertaining one. Tommy kirk gave a great performance as Go-Go, the goofy teenage martian. I also loved the biker and surfer tropes in the movie. I would give an overall 2/5. Without the racist portrayal of Native Americans and foreigners, I would give a 4/5. I would recommend this movie to people who either grew up in the 60s surf era or kids that might enjoy the slapstick comedy and 60’s beach themes.

Blue Collar, is a 1978 film written and directed by the brilliant Pual Schrader. Its plot is simply about three young union workers (Harvey Keitel, Yaphet Kotto, and Richard Pryor) who feel screwed over and are looking for a break. They decide to break into their union's main office. But they end up getting something much more valuable than money. They find a book containing where the union owes and takes money from. They decide to blackmail the union and take what’s theirs. The plot seems ambitious but Schrader does a good job of portraying the rising tension of the working man, and the pure corruption that was the union. The story goes at a nice pace and doesn't become boring. I wasn’t shocked at Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto’s great performances. The performance that really surprised me was Richard Pryor. It was nice to see an early Pryor do a drama piece, and do it well. The dialogue was nice and natural. The camera and direction were good as well. The only negative thing about the film was the ending. In my opinion, the ending between Pryor and Keitel yelling at each other than an immediate freeze-frame, plus a voice-over of an earlier quote said by Kotto was a little over the top. But besides that small cliche moment, the film is great. 4/5

This entertaining Mike Leigh short is an example of the epitome of 80s British short film culture. Short films strive to be this film. It was absolutely hilarious, entertaining, and overall just a great watch. The characters are relatable, and it’s great that you can connect with them in such a short time. The acting was great by all parties, but the standout in my opinion was the main female protagonist, Joy (Sylvestra Le Touzel). This film won a BAFTA for best short film, and it was clearly deserving. Genius runs rampant throughout the whole film. The title is even comedic gold. The score was quirky and fun. The camera work was very good and consistent, and it was nice to see unique shots that were not that common in the 80s. The only critique I have is more of a personal one; I wish the audience got to see the couple’s end result (like them getting married, or anything else), and I also wish there was a deep emotional scene between the two. (that might’ve not been possible because of the short time limit Leigh had). If you like Mike Leigh’s other/ more mainstream works, such as “Vera Drake” or “Secrets and lies”, then you will love this film. 5/5

This 1970s John Cassavetes film is about three friends whose lives are altered due to the unexpected death of their friend. The three men grapple with the idea of their immortality. They cannot face their families, so they stay out drinking and eventually taking a trip to London. The men gamble, drink and cheat on their wives. The whole movie shows the men's vulnerability and the idea that takes on the concept of having only one more day to live and what activities you would do on that day. This is one of John Cassavetes’ best films and performances, alongside Ben Gazzara, and Peter Falk. The movie has a script and good cinematography. I really couldn't find any critiques with this one. Many critics say that the film was too long. I believe the length is due to the notion that watching individuals who feel like life is too short, yet the movie that they are in being long is ironic. 4/5

This early Tarantino movie is very entertaining. While made clearly on a low budget the movie shows early glimpses of Tarantino's brilliant direction and even acting skills. You can see the many of his later, more famous characters, he drew inspiration from his characters in this movie. A lot of it was burned in a fire so there is no full version of the movie. However, I loved what little I saw of it. 3/5

A really funny and entertaining movie. if you enjoy the other works of Mel Stuart, then you'll enjoy this film. I enjoyed the many stories and plot lines it goes into. This film perfectly encaptures the growing fascination with abroad travel in the 60s. The acting was good and the film was filled with witty dialogue. I also loved the little running gags it had thought the entirety of the film. I would totally watch it again. 4/5