Europa Report

Directed By Sebastian Cordero
(2013)

I went into Europa Report expecting the umpteenth variation on Alien, thanks to the Netflix description. Films like 1985's Creature, to Event Horizon (1997) have used this well-worn alien-hunting-astronaut plot to death. I wasn't expecting much from Europa Report, but it did surprise me.

The film entails a doomed group of astronauts heading to Jupiter's moon Europa following studies suggesting it has water and can support life (which real-life scientists claim is certainly possible.) The crew does find life, but when an astronaut loses her life investigating it, the crew is spooked and leaves. Unable to escape the planetoid, it crashes back down. One by one the crew dies...

Instead of duping Alien, Europa Report apes the earliest atomic-age sci-fi films like Destination Moon and Rocketship X-M. Those films also featured astronauts exploring and encountering the unknown in our solar system as well. Instead of being a dated copy, it expands and modernizes those classic genre films.

We're told upfront the mission is a disaster. The film is told using on-board cameras and the occasional filmed interview, giving the film the definite reality TV feel, for better and worse. Being a fierce opponent of the lowest genre TV has ever developed, the reality TV invasion into the film made me groan at first, but it made the situation seem far less theatrical and somehow added to the realism and suspense... something that, on TV, adds to the phoniness.

Acting is uniformly strong. The extremely dry early 1950s performances are absent, giving way to more realistic portrayals. The script, however, gives the characters little time to develop, but they seem like real people, far from robotic acting in films like Destination Moon. It also eschews the dated views toward women astronauts in those earlier films, that certainly wouldn't fly today. The women on this ship aren't there just for cooking and screaming.
Some of the actors may be slightly recognizable, but there are no big names that may distract from the proceedings. I couldn't help but be distracted thinking of Gravity's Sandra Bullock floating away into space when the first astronaut to die met a similar fate... in a far less maudlin way.

For an obvious low-budget production, the special effects are decent, though the brief scenes of the surface of Europa are very low-res and make it look like it's from a video game. The insides of the ship still have the "make it look sciencey" design of the 50s films... with a little 2001 thrown in for good measure. Still, like District 9, low budget effects + set design don't hurt the film at all.

Europa Report offers nothing particularly original to the sci-fi genre but it is a well put-together film and is worth a look.

Explicit Ills

Directed By Mark Webber
2008

"Explicit Ills" is a trite, limp mess of a film that reminded me of "Do The Right Thing" done all wrong.

Both films followed various interweaving inner-city stories, building toward a climax that links them all together.

Though stylishly done, "Do The Right Thing" felt like a real lived-in environment.

"Explicit Ills" seemed like it was written by someone who drove through a rough neighborhood one afternoon. The characters are both cliche and unrealistic.
The poorer characters somehow have eating healthy as a higher priority than earning a living. One of the little boys is vegan... yet his surroundings show there's no way his family could afford that lifestyle.
The richer, gentrified neighbors (both black and white) also want to eat healthy, get colon cleansers and the like... yet counter these choices with drugs and alcohol. We've seen that people with money are hypocrites hundreds of times.

The film also has an unrealistic subplot of kindness to strangers. Anyone who's ever lived in an inner city environment knows people would barely look another in the eye, let alone help them. It's a cynical reaction on my part but... one of the (poor) boys wants to stop being bullied, so he buys the bully a new pair of Nike shoes. (as if)
People hand out free fruits and vegetables to the poor... but it's not just your standard lettuce, apples, oranges and the like... the exotic produce looks like they just raided a ritzy Whole Foods Supermarket instead of the cans of creamed corn that would normally be donated to a food bank. There are more examples of this unrealistic schmaltz, but I won't bore you.

"Do The Right Thing" built tension up all along that erupted into a riot that expressed the simple fact that the Civil Rights Movement didn't end racism.

"Explicit Ills" dully plods along until it ends in a march for healthcare.

I am a firm believer in the need for universal healthcare, but the film tackled the subject so poorly that an undecided intelligent viewer might even turn against it if they could see through its phony manipulative facade.

As a director, Mark Webber gets uniformly strong performances from the cast and the cinematography, etc. are well done... but with such an amateur afterschool special-worthy script, the film never climbs out of the dumpster it was written in.

2nd Birthday!!!

Two years ago today, Blues In The Night was launched. I want to thank you for making this all possible. I've really been busy and have been unable to update this site with regular posts lately, but it is not dead. There are still many, many films to tackle and present here. Stay tuned for big things in the future!
Andrew

The Legend Of The Lone Ranger

1952



SYNOPSIS

When a gang ambushes a group of Texas Rangers, an Indian named Tonto (Jay Silverheels) find one survivor and nurses him back to health. The survivor (Clayton Moore) recovers and rechristens himself "The Lone Ranger" and vows to bring down the gang.

MY THOUGHTS

A promising start quickly devolves into a crapfest.

The film was comprised of the first three episodes of the TV series The Lone Ranger (filmed in 1949.) I never knew how the Lone Ranger came to be, so this origin story piqued my interest.

The initial moments of the story are actually great. You feel for the characters and hope the sole survivor gets back at the all-evil gang. But once the survivor dons the mask of the Lone Ranger, the film quickly becomes cornier than a can of creamed corn and cheesier than Velveeta. The Lone Ranger and Tonto become infallible and undefeatable destroying any believability.

The film/TV episodes are poorly edited together.... with several unnecessary shots of heroes and villains riding horses from left to right of the camera endlessly linked together, clearly to pad the already short 70 minute runtime.

Both Moore and Silverheels give the iconic performances that they are best known for, yet it's clear very early into the simple revenge plot that the film will go their way. It quickly becomes tedious and boring... and practically unwatchable.

Rockin' In The Rockies

1945 Columbia Pictures
Directed By Vernon Keays


SYNOPSIS

Two vagrants (Larry Fine + Curly Howard) duck from the cops in a Reno nightclub. After accidentally winning some cash, they're approached by a prospector/huckster named Shorty Williams (Moe Howard.) He convinces them to invest their money in his new mine, as well as also snaring two nightclub singers (Mary Beth Hughes,+ Gladys Blake.) Shorty takes the four back to his ranch... and soon they learn the place actually belongs to Shorty's cousin (Jay Kirby.) A western swing band (The Hoosier Hotshots) is also staying at the ranch and team up with the two singers once they find out a Broadway producer is vacationing in Reno and try for an audition... all the while while they're looking for gold... and rustling cattle.
 

MY THOUGHTS

A western, a musical, a Three Stooges comedy, all rolled up into one big train wreck.

Rockin' In The Rockies is a departure for the Stooges. In nearly all of their output, they play a trio. Here their characters are split up (Larry + Curly, and a mostly solo Moe) much like the Marx Brothers were usually apart (Chico + Harpo, with Groucho alone or with Zeppo.)
Unlike the other two, Moe has a different character name and is often separated on screen as well, which changes the whole dynamic of the group. He even has a normal haircut! Larry spends his time bossing Curly around when the three aren't together. Their humor is more subdued than usual with a lot less slapstick.
The trademark Stooge shenanigans also take a back seat to some real stupid humor (a talking mounted deer head and a talking horse among others) that just make you groan.


Also look for frequent Stooge foil, Vernon Dent, who (for once) sadly doesn't get a chance to get pissed off at the trio. His role doesn't amount to much though.

The rest of the film is pretty much a mess.
-The other characters are uninteresting and you are never made to care about them.
-The film clocks in at about 65-70 minutes, so with a mining plot, a rustling cattle plot, and the Broadway producer plot all vying for screen time, none of them are really fully developed and fall into cliches. For once in a B movie, there's TOO much plot.
-And the film is a musical, so there are frequent songs also competing for time. The music is mostly western swing music, which is fine and enjoyable, but the songs just aren't memorable.

Rockin' In The Rockies is only interesting when the Three Stooges appear on camera... and I would only recommend the film to diehard fans. (It is not to be confused with the Three Stooges classic 1940 short Rockin' Through The Rockies.)

Rockin' In The Rockies is not available on DVD, but is currently streaming on Netflix.

Bamboo Gods And Iron Men

1974 - American International
Directed By Cesar Gallardo

SYNOPSIS

Boxer Cal Jefferson (James Iglehart) is on his honeymoon in Hong Kong with his new bride (Shirley Washington.) They purchase a wooden Buddha statue and have it shipped back to their hotel. On their way back, Cal rescues a drowning mute Chinese man, Charlie, (Chiquito) who dedicates his life to Cal. The couple (and stowaway Charlie) head to the Philippines with a secret stashed with their statue... a supposed ancient secret to world domination... and a group of people who will stop at nothing to get that secret are after them!

MY THOUGHTS

An obscure, fun kung fu adventure.

The fun stems from the action scenes and the comic tone of the film. Serious stuff may be happening, but the film never takes itself serious and a joke or gag is only a moment away. Much of the goofiness comes from Charlie. His humor is a bit too over the top at times, but it keeps things light.

Though Cal and his new bride are African-American, the film should hardly categorized as a blaxploitation film, due to it's setting and lack of racial politics. I would label it "All Kung Fu."

The fight choreography is not among the best of kung fu films but it is adequate. Same goes for the acting (especially the lame main villain.)
Shot on location in the Philippines, the cinematography is outstanding for such a low budget film. That country looks beautiful anytime the camera is outside.
The film is also well edited, keeping a decent level of suspense and intrigue throughout and well mixed with the comedy and occasional gratuitous nudity. The climax also works perfectly with the tone of the film.

It's not going to win any Oscars, but Bamboo Gods And Iron Men is a helluva lot of fun.

Bucktown

1975 - American International
Directed By Arthur Marks


SYNOPSIS
Duke Johnson (Fred Williamson) heads to a small scuzzy southern town for his brother's funeral. He's willed his brother's home and shuttered nightclub... and soon falls for his brother's girlfriend Aretha (Pam Grier) When he tries to reopen the club, he rubs the corrupt and redneck police the wrong way. He calls his old pal Roy (Thalmus Rasulala) who brings in some muscle and they take down the police. The overjoyed mayor makes Roy sheriff and soon Roy and his goons become worse than the old cops. Duke decides they must be destroyed.

MY THOUGHTS

A gritty, violent blaxploitation near-classic.


The story really works as a blaxploitation film, and would make a great western as well... but the film is not without faults. First, Duke, Roy and his posse never face any punishment for killing the redneck cops. They were bad men, but no one ever gets away scot-free for killing police. Did they not have any family angry over their brazen killing? Second, the level of violence leveled against the rednecks (and later, the posse themselves) is extreme, almost to the point of generating sympathy for the victims. It's hard to root for the hero who inflicts THAT much pain.


Still, Fred Williamson gives a standout performance. In other films, like Black Caesar, Williamson seemed humorless, almost stiff. In the first half of Bucktown, he's loose and funny and thoroughly seems to be enjoying himself. That makes the character a lot more relatable and (a bit ) easier to root for, especially during the second half of the film which is pretty much solid action and has little to no character development.

The solid Pam Grier is somewhat wasted in her supporting role. However, She and Williamson have a great chemistry... and like many of her movies, she gets topless.
The supporting cast is also sharp and memorable. Look for Carl Weathers, as one of the goons, just a year before Rocky.

The film ends in a brutal fistfight between Duke and Roy. The fight plays out better than your average movie fight. It feels less like a stylish, choreographed battle and more like a real slugfest. The pain and suffering is nearly equally dished out between opponents, so it helps to make you forget some of the weaker bits.

There are far better blaxploitation films... but Bucktown is still a very entertaining film for lovers of extreme action.