Month: December 2020

Andrew Buckner’s 105 Favorite Films

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By Andrew Buckner

105. Center Stage (1991)

Director: Stanley Kwan.

104. Red Desert (1964)

Director: Michelangelo Antonioni.

103. Loving Vincent (2017)

Directors: Dorota Kobiela, Hugh Welchman.

102. The Intruder (1962)

Director: Roger Corman.

101. Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989)

Director: Shin’ya Tsukamoto.

100. Network (1976)

Director: Sidney Lumet.

99. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

Director: Frank Capra.

98. M (1931)

Director: Fritz Lang.

97. Deep Red (1975)

Director: Dario Argento.   

96. Porcile (1969)

Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini.

95. The Changeling (1980)

Director: Peter Medak.

94.  Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Director: Steven Spielberg.

93. The Deer Hunter (1978)

Director: Michael Cimino.

92. The Great Dictator (1940)

Director: Charlie Chaplin.

91. Kwaidan (1964)

Director: Masaki Kobayashi.

90. Taxi Driver (1976)

Director: Martin Scorsese.

89. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

Director: Isao Takahata.

88. Nostalghia (1984)

Directors: Andrei Tarkovsky.

87. Suspiria (1977)

Director: Dario Argento.

86. Q: Winged Serpent (1982)

Director: Larry Cohen.

85. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (1966)

Director: Sergio Leone.

84. Persepolis (2007)

Directors: Vincent Paronnaud, Marjane Satrapi.

83. Blow-Up (1966)

Director: Michelangolo Antonioni.

82. At Midnight I’ll Take Your Soul (1964)

Director: Jose Mojica Marins.

81. Eyes Without a Face (1960)

Director: Georges Franju.

80. Kids (1995)

Director: Larry Clark.

79. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)

Director: Guillermo del Toro.

78. The Lost World (1925)

Director: Harry O. Hoyt.

77. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

Director: Tobe Hooper.

76. Lady Snowblood (1973)

Director: Fujita Toshiya.

75. My Dinner With Andre (1981)

Director: Louise Malle.

74. Halloween (1978)

Director: John Carpenter.

73. Ikiru (1952)

Director: Akira Kurosawa.

72. Contact (1997)

Director: Robert Zemeckis.

71. The House on Haunted Hill (1959)

Director: William Castle.

70. Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)

Director: Jack Arnold.

69. The Thing from Another World (1951)

Directors: Christian Nyby, Howard Hawks.

68. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Director: Robert Wise.

67. Creepshow (1982)

Director: George A. Romero.

66. Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

Director: Oliver Stone.

65. The Fly (1986)

Director: David Cronenberg.

64. Begotten (1989)

Director: E. Elias Merhige.

63. Gummo (1997)

Director: Harmony Korine.

62. Teorema (1968)

Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini.

61. mother! (2017)

Director: Darren Aronofsky.

60. Freaks (1932)

Director: Tod Browning.

59. The Birds (1963)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock.

58. Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Director: Roman Polanski.

57. Phantasm (1979)

Director: Don Coscarelli.

56. Holy Mountain (1973)

Director: Alejandro Jodorowsky.

55. Onibaba (1964)

Director: Kaneto Shindo.

54. The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964)

Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini.

53.  The Best of Youth (2003)

Director: Marco Tullio Giordana.

52. Pi (1998)

Director: Darren Aronofsky.

51. The Dark Crystal (1982)

Directors: Jim Henson, Frank Oz.

50. Enter the Void (2009)

Director: Gaspar Noe.

49. Dead Alive (1992)

Director: Peter Jackson.

48. The Evil Dead (1981)

Director: Sam Raimi.

47. Poltergeist (1982)

Director: Tobe Hooper.

46. Gremlins (1984)

Director: Joe Dante.

45. Ghostbusters (1984)

Director: Ivan Reitman.

44. The Omen (1976)

Director: Richard Donner.

43. Scenes from a Marriage (1974)

Director: Ingmar Bergman.

42. Amarcord (1973)

Director: Federico Fellini.

41. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)

Director: Robert Wiene.

40. Nosferatu (1922)

Director: F.W. Murnau.

39. Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Director: George A. Romero.

38. Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood (2019)

Director: Quentin Tarantino.

37. The Dreamers (2003)

Director: Bernardo Bertolucci.

36. Antichrist (2009)

Director: Lars von Trier.  

35. 12 Years a Slave (2013)

Director: Steve McQueen.

34. Double Indemnity (1944)

Director: Billy Wilder.

33. Notorious (1946)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock.

32. La Dolce Vita (1960)

Director: Federico Fellini.

31. Fanny and Alexander (1982)

Director: Ingmar Bergman.

30. The Conformist (1970)

Director: Bernardo Bertolucci.

29. Blue is the Warmest Colour (2013)

Director: Abdellatif Kechiche.

28. Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)

Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini.

27. Stalker (1979)

Director: Andrei Tarkovsky.

26. Weekend (1967)

Director: Jean-Luc Godard.

25. Persona (1966)

Director: Ingmar Bergman.

24. Haxan (1922)

Director: Benjamin Christensen.  

23. Amour (2012)

Director: Michael Haneke.

22. Away from Her (2006)

Director: Sarah Polley.

21. Fitzcarraldo (1982)

Director: Werner Herzog.

20. 8 ½ (1963)

Director: Federico Fellini.

19. Life Itself (2014)

Director: Steve James.

18. Life is Beautiful (1997)

Director: Roberto Benigni.

17. The Shining (1980)

Director: Stanley Kubrick.

16. Cinema Paradiso (1988)

Director: Giuseppe Tornatore.

15. Cries & Whispers (1972)

Director: Ingmar Bergman.

14. Seven Samurai (1954)

Director: Akira Kurosawa.

13. Eraserhead (1977)

Director: David Lynch.

12. Dekalog (1989)

Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski.

11. Shoah (1985)

Director: Claude Lanzmann.

10. The Tree of Life (2011)

Director: Terrence Malick.

9. The Seventh Seal (1957)

Director: Ingmar Bergman.

8. Metropolis (1927)

Director: Fritz Lang.

7. Alien (1979)

Director: Ridley Scott.

6. King Kong (1933)

Directors: Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack.

5. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Director: Steven Spielberg.

4. Psycho (1960)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock.

3. The Exorcist (1973)

Director: William Friedkin.

2. Schindler’s List (1993)

Director: Steven Spielberg.

1. Jurassic Park (1993)

Director: Steven Spielberg.

“VHS Forever? Psychotronic People” (2014)- Movie Review

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By Andrew Buckner

Rating: ***** out of *****.

VHS Forever? Psychtronic People (2014) from writers and directors, Darren J. Perry and Mark Williams, is a remarkably fascinating, endlessly enjoyable, and compulsively watchable love letter to low-budget horror films, videos, video stores, and the myriad individuals who understood their endearing appeal. It is also a study in the ridiculous lengths the government, the Motion Picture Association of America, and related personages would go to conceal these daring types of art. The 110-minute documentary is filled with intriguing and intimate true life narratives that revel in the former and rightfully vilify the latter. Yet, it is just as much a riveting glimpse into what goes into the production of the title technology. It also operates just as well as a fantastic glimpse into some of the daily fears video buyers and store owners had during the days of the ‘Video Nasties’. A term coined in the United Kingdom in 1982, this refers to a list of often misunderstood terror and exploitation films, like Meir Zarchi’s I Spit on Your Grave (1978) and Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead (1981), that were banned for their graphic nature. These previously stated brilliant and bold masterpieces are frequently discussed in the picture. This docket of controversial cinema, and the attraction the record had to collectors, is a subject the bulk of the feature unveils with tremendous depth and insight.

These bits give the project a magnificent symmetry and variety. This is as it expounds upon its core theme of the interest derived from VHS. Particularly, the “dangerous” cinematic wonders that may be held within each one. Yet, what functions just as well in Perry and Williams’ endeavor are the lively and charismatic interviews from the creative minds, many of whom are fellow writers and/or moviemakers, who discourse so passionately on the topic at hand. Their stories are infectiously relatable and always engaging. This is most noteworthy in the segments involving Troma Studios co-founder, Lloyd Kaufman. His consistently amusing conversations on the various releases, promotional methods, and censorship troubles of The Toxic Avenger (1984) are a constant highlight. Another section I vastly relished occurs around the fifteen-minute mark. It is an anecdote involving a VHS copy of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s essential and unforgettable swan song, Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975).

What also heightens my affection, as well as the sheer fun, radiating from the development is that there are even a few successful running gags throughout the venture. Among them is the wind being deemed “Psychotronic interference”. Moreover, the overall aesthetic of the exercise works perfectly in a similar regard. It calls to mind the look of early VHS. This is a dazzling touch. It is one which reiterates the distinct charm found in the cassettes so ardently touched upon in Perry and Williams’ undertaking.

In turn, VHS Forever? Psychotronic People is a must-see for anyone remotely concerned about film, its early home distribution forms, and its history. The labor has obvious esteem for its topic. Regardless, it does not shy away from stating some of the less desirable qualities of VHS with an underlying air of eager reverence. These hints make for an even more open, honest, and varied experience. This refreshing frankness helps make this gem worth seeking out with all the enthusiasm and merriment a collector would search for that one rare, elusive, uncut ‘Video Nasty’ on VHS. Perry and Williams’ feature is pure nostalgic joy.

You can purchase the Blu-ray and DVD of VHS Forever? at http://www.vipcoltd.com!