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This is Memorial Device: An Hallucinated Oral History of the Post-Punk Music Scene in Airdrie, Coatbridge and Environs 1978-1986

David Keenan

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ROUGH TRADE BOOK OF THE MONTH LRB BOOK OF THE WEEK CAUGHT BY THE RIVER BOOK OF THE MONTH....

Nick Love recommended Heat (1995) in Movies (curated)

Heat (1995)

1995 | Action, Crime, Thriller

8.5

(37 Ratings)

Movie Favorite Watch

"It’s a toss-up because I love The Insider and, actually, Miami Vice as well. I’m going for Heat because, for me, when you’re really getting into a film is when you start imitating the characters and repeating lines and all that. I never really did that with Sonny Corleone but I did fantasise and think, God, how cool is Neil McCauley in Heat? It’s one of those movies that blew everyone away. In the mid-90s it was a very tired time, you know — a lot of the 80s panache had gone out of the movies and the early 90s was a period for me where I was discovering people like Almodovar. I was just bored of American films. Heat came out of nowhere. It was so muscular, so brooding and so clinically cool. Actually it’s long — it could have done with 20 minutes cut out of it I imagine — but that’s Michael Mann‘s condition. I haven’t seen Public Enemies — there was just something about it that stopped me, which is strange for me when it comes to Michael Mann. I went to see Vice the day it came out, first performance on the Friday. I was mesmerised by it. But Heat was such a powerhouse of a film. Even though I’ve inhabited the wrong side of the tracks in my life, I believe I’m still a good boy, a moral boy, but of course everyone roots for the bad guy in that film. DeNiro is just too fucking cool."

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LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated The Howling (1981) in Movies

Oct 30, 2020

The Howling (1981)

1981 | Horror

7.6

(9 Ratings)

Movie Rating

A fair few werewolf horror movies came out during the 80s, but whilst American Werewolf in London is generally considered to be the best of the bunch, The Howling definitely deserves a look in for that honour.

The plot takes a little while to kick in, but the slow first half actually allows the audience time to get to know the characters. Karen White (Dee Wallace) takes the lead, and is a hugely likable protagonist to carry the story forward. By the time the monstrous shenanigans kick off, you genuinely want her to win. Everyone else is a little disposable, allowing the rest of the focus to go towards werewolf characters, mainly Eddie Quist (Robert Picardo) and Marsha (Elisabeth Brooks), two characters that are sick of hiding their true nature, and want to live free, like wild animals should, feeding in humans and all. Unfortunately, the slow burn first half leaves little time to properly explore this aspect of the narrative.

The transformation effects are fucking great. Do they look dated? Sure, but considering that this released in 1981, the practical effects used are fantastic. I'm a fan of the bubbling effects in particular. When the transformation is complete, the aesthetic mostly avoids looking like a guy in a suit (not completely mind) and this is probably down to the make up work on the faces. The creatures look pretty damn mean.

A solid screenplay, a decent cast, and some great effects work ensure that The Howling stands out in a decade of gratuitous horror. Love it.

Kudos

Jonathan Donahue recommended Let It Be by The Replacements in Music (curated)

"Like The Chameleons, they should be playing stadiums, or should've at their time. This album is one of the standards of great American music. Some of the songs here are up there with some Frank Sinatra tracks, some Bing Crosby moments. Like 'Unsatisfied', for instance, that's a pop standard worthy of Billie Holiday. Again, they couldn't seem to get out of their own way for a period of time. The thing with The Replacements is if you ask Wayne Coyne, Michael Stipe or J Mascis, they were the ones that would say: ""The Replacements, that would be the band to be in."" They were everybody's band before they made their own band. They almost would have been what The Velvet Underground was at the time for the bands around them. They also had that catalysing effect of being crazy - they had a nonchalance that most could only dream of. At times they had a recklessness, which put them a few steps behind where they should've been, but that was The Replacements. And it was the first time that the bands we loved actually made a real record. Their songs were going to stand the test of time, songs that we were all going to cover. I know it was like that being around a lot of the bands during the mid-'80s. They had that magnetism Sonic Youth had, but had songs we could all cover, sing and play. Now you hear stories of them playing to 200 people at Coachella and you can't believe how it didn't translate to the younger generation."

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Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Justice League International, Vol. 4 in Books

Nov 30, 2020

The 80s. I know, right? What the heck happened??! When did things get so confusing and angstastically heavy?! I mean, beside the frelled up election result for 2016??

Thankfully, despite all of that, there are many good outlets to remind us how to have fun and to also remind us that WE actually used to be FUN! Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis truly know how to have fun times with the likes of Batman, Blue Beetle, and Martian Manhunter, just to name a few of the characters within.

The art, from artists Mike McKone, Ty Templeton, and Kevin Maguire was equally enjoyable, further enhancing the suing fun times. The only art I wasn't wowed by was Bill Willingham's. Not that it was bad or anything of the sort, I just thought it wasn't one of his stronger contributions. But, yeah, the other guys were all aces!

The only reason it didn't warrant Five Stars, or even Four for that matter, was the last issue in the TPB: "Teenage Biker Mega-Death!" (Vol. 1, Issue #30). The story itself was a weaker offering from Giffen and DeMatteis, only made weaker by the art from Willingham. The "big bad" of the story was neither <i>big</i> nor really very <i>bad</i>! Again, not the worst, but not the best.

Overall, though, this is yet another great example of how to make comics fun and enjoyable! If only they had gone this route for 2017's JUSTICE LEAGUE film!

Kudos

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Planet Terror (2007) in Movies

Jan 22, 2021

Planet Terror (2007)

2007 | Action, Comedy, Horror

7.2

(22 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

If you seek a movie so absurdly over the top in almost every regard, then look no further.

Planet Terror is a glorious throwback to practical driven and blood soaked video nasties of the 70s and 80s, is super stylized to the point of self aware stupidity, and boasts a fantastic cast - a roll call of who's who in the cinema of Rodriguez/Tarantino.
Of course, Planet Terror is one half of the duos Grindhouse project, and for me, slightly takes the edge over Death Proof. Both films are great and gleefully brimming with tributes to the exploitative sub genre of its namesake, but Planet Terror is just balls to the wall fun, a blast from start to finish.
Its has badass female leads - Cherry Darling, a former go-go dancer with a gun-leg, and Dakota Block, a nurse who shoots trigger functioning syringes full of sedatives at anyone who pisses her off - Rose McGowan and Marley Shelton and both brilliant.
It has Bruce Willis mutating into God knows what. It has Tom Savini and Michael Biehn as zombie fighting sherrifs. It has Sayid from Lost collecting people's testicles in a pickle jar.
And Jesus Christ it has so. much. gore. It must have been a hell of a sticky set to work on to say the least.
To top it all off, it even opens with the now infamous Machete "trailer", with Danny Trejo and motherfucking Cheech Marin.

Planet Terror is a ride as soon as the opening credits start. An absolute must for any horror or grindhouse fan.