Popcorn and Sticky Floors

C + K

2012-01-14T06:43:00.000-08:00

BQ

2012-01-12T17:25:00.000-08:00

In Britain, they do it the other way. The standard poster used in theatres is the horizontal style British Quad. They use the one sheet (I think they call it a double crown or some other UK kinda thing) for other markets. They're very similar to our North American half-sheets except they talk funny.

Countdown

2011-12-27T16:05:00.000-08:00

This is gonna put us outta the biz of show biz

2011-12-18T20:42:00.000-08:00

(From The Toronto Star, December 1975)

a spy in the house?

2011-12-16T07:36:00.000-08:00

Hell on Wheels Double Feature

2011-12-12T15:24:00.000-08:00

The Hearse!

The Car!

3 Supermen A Tokio

2011-12-11T16:09:00.000-08:00

Italian superhero series 'Il Fantastici 3 Supermen' had a killer title theme. I had no idea there was a Japanese edition though!

Travel

2011-12-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

Turkish Velvet

2011-11-29T14:32:00.001-08:00

Currently on eBay. Looks more 80s porn than Lynch...

And blood

2011-11-20T19:05:00.000-08:00

Coming Attractions

2011-11-18T18:23:00.000-08:00

Pick Up

Cockfighter

Dying Slowly in New York 1981

2011-11-17T14:36:00.001-08:00

Hyperopia

2011-11-05T08:12:00.000-07:00

How old Cary Grant? I love that story and it's a reminder of the characters of class that glided around Hollywood back when things seemed so good. But here and today it's different. And just here and yesterday, I was glancing through the recent catalogue for an upcoming biggie poster auction and I stumbled upon something that made me take sharp notice. I am far from being a conspiracy nut and aside from subtle street ogling and looking in lit windows when I walk around aimlessly/purposefully/to the store, I don't really consider myself all that much of an investigative sort. But there it was in plain focus and staring me in the face like an ecstatic Grace Kelly.

Was Cary Grant farsighted?

Pimping (#3)

2011-11-03T17:08:00.000-07:00

I have been involved in amassing huge piles (both in boxes and tubes) of movie posters for a little over ten years, I'm guessing. It's arduous and thankless work and you people show me so little love that I feel I should abandon all public outlets and just roll around in all this paper all by my thrilled and naked lonesome. But, what are movies if not a great reason to be social? And what kind of representative of this glorious hobby would I be if I just stayed in and read and listened to records and never had to step in the bullshit outside my door? Actually, I can't even answer my own question because that's starting to sound real nice.

But then the computer here often offers just enough 'social' as some misanthropes need or just enough as we can stand, at times. And it can be really rewarding! After a short stint of collecting (I immediately involved myself in forums and mailing lists which continue to this day) I stumbled upon one collector who really made me notice what was going on. It's hard enough falling into debt and never buying anything that wasn't once under some dirty marquee while attempting to maintain some sort of 'normal' life that when I was first faced with 'foreign' paper, I just flat decided I'd only venture there when the title was 'country of origin' or just too much of a favourite (and/or too gorgeous) to be ignored.

But that all changed when my friend Armin started posting shots of his Japanese movie posters. Being a fan of Japanese films to begin with, it wasn't hard to fall head over heels with the incredible colour and design work that seemed so much (and more) above all others. This isn't to say that the French and Italians (probably my two other favourites) don't have superb illustrators and such but there was just something about the Japanese paper that did it for me. And that was the beginning.

Since then, I have come to possess around 125 pieces of film history from that wonderful country! And while they weren't all directly from my friend, he is the reason they are here and he has sourced some real treasures for me on his regular trips east. My most recent piece that Armin found for me (the first copy was in very 'used' condition) is this sublime piece from the terrific 'Face of Another'.

And I am here to tell you now that if you have any interest in this type of thing, you are totally directed to his site and to his brand new (sorta) blog! If you see anything or seek anything, you could never find a better poster ally. And he has excellent taste in music!

PRICE! CUSHING! QUARRY! Madhouse!

2011-11-02T19:21:00.000-07:00

Just got a copy of this. Always wanted to see it. PRICE! CUSHING! QUARRY!

Peter Fonda Gets Off The Bike

2011-10-24T13:25:00.000-07:00

I just noticed a post over on WFMU's Beware of the Blog about Peter Fonda's second directorial work, Idaho Transfer, which I've had a copy of for some time and should really sit down to watch, but I noticed this link to some statements the former counter culture actor made in Cannes earlier in May:

“I’m training my grandchildren to use long-range rifles,” said the actor, 71. “For what purpose? Well, I’m not going to say the words 'Barack Obama’, but …”

What!?!

I also noticed that the an auto Google search term for "peter fonda obama traitor" comes up! Some more context on his words:

At the Cannes film festival in France Peter Fonda lambasted US President Barack Obama calling him a traitor for his handling of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

"I sent an email to President Obama saying, 'You are a f***ing traitor,' using those words… 'You're a traitor, you allowed foreign boots on our soil telling our military – in this case the coastguard – what they can and could not do, and telling us, the citizens of the United States, what we could or could not do'," he said, reported AFP.

The actor was in Cannes for the premiere of "The Big Fix" when he verbally attacked the US President. Fonda is a known environmentalist and the documentary "The Big Fix" follows him as he attempts to gain access to Louisiana beaches to assess the impact of the BP oil spill.

Also on Fonda’s target list was BP itself. He called BP “a bunch of Brits – I thought we kicked them out a long time ago. They tried to get back in in 1812, but they didn't make it."

What is with these actors who were pillars of the counter culture movement in the sixties and seventies and their transformation into gun toting conservatives? I guess Heston and Fonda had more in common than they realized.

cinematic percentage: 99 and 44/100% Dead!

2011-10-23T16:26:00.001-07:00

This goes out to Jesse!

Vinnie's dried apples

2011-10-23T16:00:00.000-07:00

Vincent Price tells you how to cook boys. Yum yum.

how naughty is their math?

2011-10-11T07:47:00.000-07:00

At last! A blog dedicated to "Blackboards in Porn"!

"Celebrating pornographers who go the extra mile when set dressing classroom porn and actually write something on the blackboard. What do they write, and is it correct?"

And this site is 100% SFW for those math prudes who might be concerned.

For the above photo:

Compound Angle Formulae

sin (A + B)
= sin A cos B + cos A sin B

cos (A + B)
= cos A cos B - sin A sin B

tan (A + B)
= tan A + tan B
1 - Tan A Tan B

A-level standard trigonometry. Maths all correct. Good pluralisation of 'formulae'. Neat handwriting. Loses a mark for 'Tan' instead of 'tan'. But otherwise: excellent work! 9/10

(via Blackboards in Porn)

True! Daring!

2011-10-02T10:48:00.000-07:00

LA FEMME-OBJECT

2011-09-22T19:52:00.000-07:00

Blake's got it!

2011-09-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

Robert Blake and pals from Cavalier, August 1971

suicidal mustache

2011-09-19T12:32:00.000-07:00

R.I.P.

2011-09-07T15:06:00.000-07:00

Ugggh, this one hurts. People like George Kuchar just aren't supposed to die. Like, ever!

1942-2011

I only have one poster but I have forever been trying to get one for Thundercrack! and one day I shall have it.

And, a cherished piece here in the Archive is this signed take-out menu that a poster pal acquired for me as he was close to George and knew I was a big fan.

6 o'clock position

2011-08-23T21:14:00.000-07:00

Toronto is right where her vag is, so it must be pretty exciting. We just came up with a new tourism slogan: “Toronto - as exciting as vag”. I am sure it will catch on…

Gualtiero Jacopetti, Maker of ‘Mondo Cane,’ Dies at 91

2011-08-22T10:07:00.000-07:00

Gualtiero Jacopetti, Maker of ‘Mondo Cane,’ Dies at 91

Gualtiero Jacopetti, a filmmaker who titillated and disgusted moviegoers by roaming the globe to document bizarre, not to say creepy, phenomena — a chicken that smokes cigarettes, for instance — in the movie “Mondo Cane” and its sequels, died on Wednesday at his home in Rome. He was 91. Mr. Jacopetti liked to say he had invented the “antidocumentary” or the “shockumentary” with “Mondo Cane,” which was unveiled, and well received, at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival. He showed Italian villagers slicing themselves with glass in observance of Good Friday; the French painter Yves Klein using naked women as paintbrushes; and New Yorkers dining on insects in a fancy restaurant. [more]

(Source: NYTimes.com)

Circle game

2011-08-14T16:49:00.001-07:00

Just beastly

2011-07-27T17:35:00.000-07:00

Micahael Caine on a Monday

2011-07-25T10:32:00.000-07:00

(via Bon Vivant + Covenger & Kester on Tumblr)

deep falk

2011-07-25T10:09:00.000-07:00

(via Bon Vivant at Tumblr)

Stay cool

2011-07-16T07:52:00.000-07:00

from embryo to woman in 4 1/2 weeks

2011-07-09T13:04:00.000-07:00

AM/PM

2011-06-24T19:07:00.000-07:00

a little bit of caine

2011-06-24T07:18:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to share this poster for some time. It's been ages since I've seen the film, but what a poster!

And to compliment the image, two Micheal Caine impersonations, one from Peter Sellers and the other from Michael Winterbottom's comedy The Trip, starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon.

spooling up

2011-06-20T08:34:00.000-07:00

I've been busy with a number of projects including inheriting a massive 16mm film collection and lots of paper ephemera associated with the films in the collection. Stay tuned...

Posters at work

2011-06-13T16:23:00.000-07:00

A wonderful example of the movie poster in action.

Photograph by Vivian Maier

"SHE TEXTED. WE KICKED HER OUT."

2011-06-06T11:55:00.000-07:00

Woman kicked out of Austin's Alamo Drafthouse for texting. Listen to her drunk, dumb-ass phone msg:

http://drafthouse.com/blog/entry/she_texted._we_kicked_her_out

Icons

2011-06-04T08:47:00.000-07:00

There are so many parameters and directives attached to my personal tastes in collecting that it's humourous to relate to somebody the different sub-sections and variables that end up making me almost completely open to anything. Or seemingly. There is a definition but it's not very tight. And I tend to be moody and/or change my mind.

But, oh, the constants. There is such a nice and warm feeling when you find another piece in a puzzle you secretly hope you never actually finish. But you're armed with the knowledge that if it does finish, you will have already (possibly long ago) started another similar flight of fancy. I have many and take great comfort in knowing they will be with me for some time yet. Two icons of sex films that I always tend to stretch for are Rene Bond and the ever-obvious Uschi Digard.

I don't really know why the former appeals so much but there's just something about her. I haven't seen many films but, again, her appeal seems to be very simple and it's likely attached to a time when some of these girls just seems so normal and everyday. Maybe in my subconscious, there is some real person I once met as a child who resembles her or something...I don't know. It's just there and I accept it like I do my odd obsession with Barbi Benton.

Uschi is legend. She just pops up (literally!) all over the place and makes great films magnificent by smiling and moving through the frame. I do intend to have paper on every single film in her wonderful career and I get doubly supportive of any scraps that actually have an image of her. Same goes for Bond, of course. If you fail to show these girls, you fail to properly advertise the films to the proper audience. Get with it.

Two new grabs that fit the bill.

And, oh what the Hell, while we're here...

Super Sexe

2011-06-01T17:00:00.000-07:00

A sampling of porn ads lurking on the edges of the regular movie listings in the Montreal Gazette in the mid-to-late 70s...

we wanted Can-Con. we got it.

2011-05-31T19:09:00.000-07:00

Sprinkling

2011-05-28T18:36:00.000-07:00

Just a quick smattering of posters from the Distribpix archive and now lovingly resting mere inches (are they ever mere?) from me. More to come in the following days and weeks of the season but here's a trio to give you some quick and effortless joy.

Hickory sticks

2011-05-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

All these jetsetting Toronto smartypants forever going on about their storied cinema past glories. I'm here to point out that we simple folks in the sticks had our own awesome cinemas and mine in particular was a Stinson theatre and we got all manner of lesser movies and I swear it's where I came from. Me. Stuff that in your can(nes) and smoke it!

Anyway, last week I found this very brittle newspaper in a wall that was being modified. It was Scorchy that caught my eye, naturally. The upper portion was too destroyed but you can make out that Cannonball was playing along with some Corman picture with Ron Howard and fast cars that wasn't Eat My Dust.

This was my town and my favourite place ever for movies in 1977. Check out the awesomely sick advert for Deep Red! Almost as gruesome as Rabid.

Pimping (#2)

2011-05-07T08:14:00.000-07:00

If you've ever spent a moment perusing this blog and found yourself wondering how you could become more like me, I'm here to tell you that it is possible. And admirable, thanks. Spend more and more of your free time (and money) acquiring film posters of a curious nature and completely override your living space with them and other assorted things that help subdue the everyday horrors of contemporary life. Keep hope alive!

One fastracky method would be to get in touch with Steven Morowitz at VideoXPix. I am not a paid representative but I did recently have a wonderful transaction that resulted in a haul of very fine posters from a much treasured era of 60s/70s filmdom.

There are a handful of 'studios' that created distinct and, at times, easily recognizable posters for the films they produced or distributed. Some of my favourites are Mitam, Essex, Mishkin and, of course, Distribpix. The Distribpix poster is often found with perfect 60s lettering and illustrations, copious copy and a collage of images from the film. Mostly. There are variants of course but those were the styles that most made me notice and start collecting Distribpix whenever and wherever they popped up.

To learn of Steven's heritage, the company and the work he carries on, I would highly recommend a visit to his superb blog. In short, his family began in film distribution based on the Eastern coast of the USA and went into video distribution as it began to rule the market. But there's more. And the company now works at releasing polished DVD releases of their past catalogue greats as well as carefully documenting the era which is something we desperately need more of. He both talks the talk and walks the walk, thankfully. On some forum some time ago, I found out that he would be listing a stash of posters and when they finally hit the street, I was thrilled and got in touch. I suggest you do the same or forever just live in longing. At least have a look!

I haven't had the chance to completely photograph what I scored but I do have some titles from the years of dedication to give you an example. And there will be more in the coming weeks, I promise.

You may have seen this particular poster behind Mick Jagger if you ever spent some time with headphones and Exile on Main Street, as I did.

get me some tail

2011-05-04T11:16:00.001-07:00

the simplicity of film titles

2011-05-01T18:03:00.000-07:00

more TO movie scene Nov 81 - the drive-in & Bobby Ming!

2011-04-29T16:39:00.000-07:00

November 1981 – Toronto

On the eve when the most exciting film being released this weekend is Fast Five, look at the amazing choices that were offered in this ad! And this is only one ad with a small selection of cinemas! Stay tuned for more ads!

before it was a temple of rock...

2011-04-28T10:33:00.000-07:00

For all the Toronto cinema and concert goers out there, check out Eric Veillette's post on Allen's Bloor Theatre which opened in 1919. It existed as a movie theatre until 1957, but know the space is now known as Lee's Palace and was one of the locations in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.

BEFORE

AFTER

Fall 1981 - Midnight Madness at the Eaton Centre?

2011-04-26T08:33:00.000-07:00

November 1981 – Toronto

How times have changed! I would pay money for EACH of those movies.

a bit of light reading

2011-04-25T20:24:00.000-07:00

VHS scare

2011-04-25T19:11:00.000-07:00

Yet another one from The Scandy Tangerine Man's Tumblr. A buffet of amazing .gif art! From The Deadly Spawn.

gif-tasm

2011-04-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

From The Scandy Tangerine Man's Tumblr. He's been doing some filthy things with .gifs and we love it.

tight pants and loose morals

2011-04-24T13:55:00.001-07:00

I feel that for today's Easter Sunday sermon, we address the problem of today's youth with "tight pants and loose morals"

Pimping (#1)

2011-04-19T15:12:00.001-07:00

This is Matt and I met Matt through something I'm unable to discuss in public that has nothing to do with the law or prison. Anyway, I am presenting this video review of Scre4m because, aside from being an entertaining watch, it's actually from a series entitled, 'Watch This Instead', and the this that Matt is suggesting here in none other than one of my all time favourites, Peeping Tom. I can't believe he only just saw it a couple months back but everything he says is true and there's even more still plus a unique look at the cinema patron as voyeur and the stunning Moira Shearer. If you haven't seen it, watch this clip and then watch it. It may be out of print on Criterion, as Matt mentions, but there is a smashing Blu-Ray available from the UK and that is the way to go, if you can. Plus, I get to post these again.

oh Jane!

2011-04-18T18:01:00.000-07:00

This one goes out to Jesse.

Moll Flanders en croute

A naive but promiscuous British woman (Jane Birkin) comes to Paris to work as a cook, and basically has to resort to prostitution just to have a bed to sleep in. But she eventually manages to turn the tables on all the French lotharios she meets when she "incorporates" her, um, services.

This would be an irredeemably stupid sex comedy without the presence of Jane Birkin. She is so sexy and so frequently naked or clad in impossibly short mini-skirts that, I have to confess, my critical judgment was completely scrambled (not that I have that much to begin with). She also proves a pretty decent comedienne, playing a character who makes Emanuelle Arsan or Erica Jong seem like Queen Victoria. Of course, one poor guy (who later becomes her "accountant") she will only sleep with in the most literal sense. Another guy, however, (Jean-Pierre Aumont) comes home to find her occupying his bed and they have a LONG sex scene while they hilariously discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various sexual positions. In another incredible scene she is frugging away at a disco in her glittering micro-mini ensemble when she locks eyes with a guy across the room. Minutes later, and seemingly without a word of dialogue, she has shimmied out of her dress and is bare-ass naked in his bed. (No wonder he mistakes her for a pro and , much to her surprise, presents her with 500 francs afterwards!)

going up on the walls

2011-04-17T14:05:00.000-07:00

Was in Asheville, NC last week for ActionFest and was able to visit my favourite poster vendor at a ramshackle antique market. The booth is tucked away, forgotten in a corner. All the posters are 30% off and apparently the owner of the booth is blind! Can't wait to get these up on the walls in the homestead and glad my lady agrees with my decisions.

Back from the beach

2011-04-14T09:11:00.000-07:00

Back from cavorting with starlets on faraway beaches, to resume the duties at the cinema that I have neglected. Big thanks to Jesse and Michael for carrying on and sweeping up the popcorn and discarded bottles of rye from the aisles.

Party like it's 1977

2011-04-08T16:41:00.000-07:00

This week I was perusing the Twitterings of the awesome Hal Kelly (exact awesomeness unavailable as all gauges need to be calibrated and re-set to his leading format) of Trash Compactor magazine/Deviant Culture Exchange legend and he kindly alerted me to the release of this book which I then ordered in about three minutes time.

If you'd been to Rotate This in past months, you may have noticed, as I had, a collection of early Toronto punk rock photographs by Shadowy Men (among many other bands) drummer and possibly the best writer (the old backpage BLAB coming close) reviewer Exlcaim! ever had, Don Pyle. Along with the recent release of Treat Me Like Dirt (which I mentioned previously in these pages) I was hoping we might get to see a book of Pyle's great shots and now here it is by the chair really near where I type this now. I'm about three-sevenths through it and it's worth double every penny. Early and special copies come with a 7" record with some Toronto punk memories but I haven't had time to play it yet. The collection of shots, xerox posters and concert stubs (along with great writing) is enough for sure.

I didn't see any show that Don saw back then (I was a bit younger) but I did see Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet downstairs at Sneaky Dee's when it was at Bloor and Bathurst. Greg Keelor was sitting at the bar, backwards, and watching. The only seat my girlfriend at the time and I could grab was by the ventilation grate and all the cigarette smoke came past us. Even with dying eyes, it was a superb show. I got drunk and left a care package I had brought from home here (I was a recent transplant to T.O.) under the table and always wondered what the person who found it thought of tin-foil wrapped turkey, some canned soup and an alarm clock.

There is a fucking amazing picture of Gord Lewis (I was a big Teenage Head fan) on page 159. It's total rock and roll! Go and get it right now or just keeping being a jock asshole or something.

Welcome spring

2011-04-02T17:14:00.000-07:00

...and then summer and fine weather and spirits.

Never 50%

2011-03-30T18:06:00.000-07:00

Three half-sheets printed to represent the full glory that is a Doris Wishman film.

1963

1962

1965

I dreamed she went to Heaven in her cross-your-heart bra.

2011-02-28T16:56:00.000-08:00

R.I.P. Jane Russell at 89.

Forever shall I be fascinated by the stories of Howard Hughes, The Outlaw and your legendary chest.

Textbook Triplicity

2011-02-23T16:50:00.000-08:00

V.D. R.I.P.

2011-02-14T16:10:00.000-08:00

David Friedman 1923-2011

It's impossible to describe how important he was or detail his many accomplishments and innovations through the golden years.

The undisputed King is dead.

Black Sunday Testimonials

2011-02-06T12:21:00.001-08:00

Sarli, Right Number

2011-01-24T13:00:00.000-08:00

Isabel Sarli was a 60s/70s sexbomb who starred in several scandalous softcore movies in Argentina that were massively popular in Latin America despite the views of the Church and of various dictatorships. Known as 'Coca' for her Coca-Cola bottle silhouette, Sarli starred in a series of sleazy potboilers directed by her husband ~~Roger Vadim~~ Armando Bo, and they look to be Russ Meyer-esque in their wanton celebration of sin and pulchritude...with such titles as Carne and Fuego, how could they not be?

When I was down in Buenos Aires this Christmas, I was hoping to be able to pick up a yellowed Isabel Sarli one-sheet to bring home, but the available posters weren't quite sleazy enough.

Last summer the Film Society of Lincoln Center ran a mini-tribute to the films of Isabel, including a recent documentary on her life called Carne Sobre Carne (Flesh on Flesh). Here's an excerpt from a tribute video to Sarli and Bo from the man himself, John Waters, confirming her secret influence.

You know what would be good? A second Isabel Sarli retrospective in the English-speaking world!

Trailer for Carne Sobre Carne!

The Sweetest Kittens (Have The Sharpest Claws)

2011-01-24T11:49:00.000-08:00

Trailer for 1977's The Uncanny! They should have called it Claws! Between this and Hausu, cats were getting a lot of work in horror films that year.

Play safe

2011-01-20T14:28:00.000-08:00

Coattailing in 2011

2011-01-03T16:09:00.000-08:00

It's a new year and a perfect time for an old practice of mine to show up. Following up on the most recent post by Colin, I find it appropriate to point out some evidence to the fact that it wasn't a cakewalk for Teenage Cowgirls to be hailed the best western sex film yet. There was some pretty good looking competition out there, you know.

the "Best western sex film yet."

2010-12-31T10:17:00.000-08:00

it is 1979 and we have an important announcement...

2010-12-29T17:04:00.000-08:00

Black and white and reddish in places

2010-12-15T17:48:00.000-08:00

Untamed

2010-11-28T16:57:00.000-08:00

live it – in "SOUND 360"

2010-11-21T10:06:00.000-08:00

Fright/Delight Night

2010-10-31T06:36:00.000-07:00

Bee Girl Charged With Murder

2010-10-27T09:43:00.000-07:00

Victoria Vetri, former 1967 Playboy Playmate and star of When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth and Invasion Of The Bee Girls charged with murder!
See her French tease photospread (below) from her heyday that I found over at a fine French blog that straddles art and sleaze, Au carrefour étrange.

You can see naughty photos of her from her Playboy days over HERE.

Halloween Weekend at TIFF Bell Lightbox

2010-10-25T14:04:00.001-07:00

Finally announced!

Chills! Thrills! Creeps! Freaks!
Halloween Films at TIFF Bell Lightbox!

I'm excited to announce that I've selected four films to play over the Friday and Saturday of the Halloween weekend at the brand new, state of the art cinemas at TIFF Bell Lightbox here in Toronto. I've picked two personal favourites that I programmed in the past at TIFF's Midnight Madness, THE LOVED ONES and S&MAN, and then two films that have NEVER been screened in Toronto, Neil Marshall's debut film DOG SOLDIERS and Ti West's THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL. Plus, before the midnight festivities, on Saturday, be sure to check out a spooky sci-fi double bill selected by Vincenzo Natali - Mario Bava's PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES + Ridley Scott's ALIEN!

Click on the links for to purchase tickets.

Hope to see you at Lightbox for some tricks and treats!

TIFF Bell Lightbox
Reitman Square, 350 King Street West

Friday October 29
11:59PM - DOG SOLDIERS
11:59PM - THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL
12:15 AM - S&MAN
12:30AM - THE LOVED ONES

Saturday October 30
8:00PM - PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES / ALIEN double bill
12:15AM - THE LOVED ONES
12:15 AM - S&MAN
12:30AM - DOG SOLDIERS
12:30AM - THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL

Sunday October 31
6:30 PM - S&MAN
9:00 PM - S&MAN

Ticket prices:
Regular: $12.00*
Students/Seniors: $9.50*
Members (up to Family/Dual level): $9.00*
Members (Contributor level or higher): $6.00*
** Prices do not include HST, building-fund fee and service charges

DOG SOLDIERS
dir. Neil Marshall
UK 2002
105 minutes

"Six soldiers. Full moon. No chance."

Grab your silver bullets and pack some wolfsbane for this rare screening of the debut film from cult director Neil Marshall (The Descent, Doomsday). A squad of British soldiers on a routine training mission find themselves pitted against a clan of werewolves in an action-filled romp that knows never to take itself too seriously (we’re talking to you, Underworld!). A cockney mix of Night of the Living Dead and Aliens, Dog Soldiers takes the conventions of the werewolf subgenre and tears them apart as the hairy beasts lay siege to the stranded soldiers in a battle that eschews CGI for deliriously gruesome physical effects. "One of the most gloriously unsubtle and adrenalized extreme shockers since The Evil Dead." – Seattle Times

THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL
dir. Ti West
USA 2009
93 min.

"Talk on the Phone. Finish Your Homework. Watch TV. Die."

Desperate to earn some cash for a deposit on an apartment, pretty college sophomore Sam (Jocelin Donahue) accepts a suspiciously well-paying babysitting job from a very odd couple (cult actors Tom Noonan and Mary Woronov) in their creaky Victorian mansion deep in the woods. As a total lunar eclipse plunges the night into darkness, Sam finds to her horror that there is no baby... yet. Set in the 1980s and based on the "Satanic panic" urban legends that gripped America during the Reagan era, writer-director Ti West's House of the Devil is a remarkable exercise in suspense, a terrific—and terrifying—horror film that can be enjoyed by hardcore genre fans and casual viewers alike. "After years of vivisectionist splatter, here is a horror movie with real shivers." – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times
http://www.houseofthedevilmovie.com/

THE LOVED ONES
dir. Sean Byrne
Australia 2009
84 min.

Winner, Toronto International Film Festival 2009 Cadillac People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award

High school senior Brent (Xavier Samuel) lives in a haze of pot smoke and metal music to escape the pain of his dad’s death. His only ray of hope is his girlfriend Holly (Victoria Thaine), who is grounded, caring and gorgeous—a dream date for the high school prom. His plans to take her to the prom are thwarted by a secret admirer who has sadistic romantic intentions for Brent under the mirrored disco ball. First-time director Sean Byrne delivers a fusion of two horror classics, The Evil Dead and Carrie, with equal parts shock-laced jolts and tongue-in-cheek humour. A runaway hit on the festival circuit, The Loved Ones is destined to become a scary and deliciously deranged date movie classic.

S&MAN
dir. JT Petty
USA 2006
84 min.

When horror filmmaker JT Petty (The Burrowers), sets out to make a documentary about the world of underground extreme horror films, things don't go exactly as planned. Initially making the comparison between filmmaking and voyeurism within the horror genre, he interviews academics (Carol J. Clover, author of Men, Women and Chainsaws), psychiatrists, actors and a selection of directors who are out to meet the demand of their disturbed audiences. One interview subject has created a homemade film series called "S&MAN," and as Petty digs further into his subject, trying to get him to reveal the names of the actors who play the onscreen victims, he begins to realize that they might not be actors at all. As the mystery deepens and Petty finds himself in dangerous territory, S&MAN becomes the most unsettling documentary film experiences in years.

“S&MAN is a post-modern masterpiece … A documentary of an astounding and surprising power, this is almost required viewing…” - Mathew Kumar, Twitch Film

“It won’t help if you keep repeating, ‘It’s only a documentary…’” - Richard Corliss, Time Magazine

Saturday October 30
8:00PM - PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES / ALIEN double bill
Join us for a rare screening of Mario Bava's 1965 sci-fi/horror hybrid Planet of the Vampires, a visually arresting and creepily atmospheric account of a spaceship crash on a distant planet, the survivors of which are beset by the resurrected corpses of their crewmates. Following Bava's low-budget classic, try to spot the Italian horror maestro's influence in the mesmerizing design of Alien, Ridley Scott's stomach-churning tale of a canoe-headed extraterrestrial wreaking havoc on the crew of an industrial space freighter. 35MM prints! – Curated by Colin Geddes and Vincenzo Natali.

Sticky Floors Fashion Tips '72: Pushover for Pullovers

2010-10-25T09:25:00.000-07:00

Found this in a 1972 issue of Playboy that someone left in the cinema WC.

Zombie Bloor Apocalypse by Kagan McLeod

2010-10-22T14:05:00.000-07:00

"A big full page in Toronto Life this month on how Toronto loves zombies (Romero shoots his movies here, and we have zombie walks!):"

Check this cool artwork by pal of the blog, Kagan McLeod that I just found over on his website/blog. The mayhem takes place at the intersection of Bloor and Bathurst with several Toronto-centric references.

A new BADASS on the block

2010-10-22T11:57:00.000-07:00

"What is a badass? A badass is someone who is unique, uncompromising and dedicated to following their vision. A badass is someone blazing their own path, someone setting the standard. Fashion and fads come and go but badass is forever."

We'd like to welcome to the web, the new blog by our brothers at the Alamo Drafthouse - Badass Digest. Edited by Devin Faraci, formerly of Chud.com, this promises to be a new daily distraction where many of our tastes will intersect. And the first Badass in their Hall of Fame? Warren Oates, of course.

Distinct Holidays

2010-10-11T09:49:00.000-07:00

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

GRINDBOX!

2010-10-03T14:41:00.000-07:00

Last night if you were in the downtown core of Toronto, you would have experienced a strange phenomena from 7pm to 7am... Nuit Blanche (or "Scotiabank Nuit Blanche" if you feel the need to include the corporate behemoth that bank rolls it).

"Toronto's annual sunset to sunrise celebration of contemporary art returns to mark a five-year milestone. Discover art in galleries, museums and unexpected places. From building façades and city parks to alleyways and heritage buildings, choose from more than 130 destinations and chart your own path."

I was able to curate a little project in a 500 seat cinema in the newly opened TIFF Bell Lightbox building. There were several other events and installations in the building which houses five state of the art cinemas and gallery spaces in a wide open design. The structure throbbed with energy until the wee wee hours of the morning.

My little project was somewhat fitting considering celebration of high cinema at Lightbox since it opened mid-September. On the same screen where earlier that week The Passion of Joan of Arc screened with a live orchestra, I defiled the snooty intergrity of the space by projecting over seventy trailers for an assortment of sleazy, bloody and action films in a two and a half hour show that ran continuously from 9:30PM to 7:00AM. I called my event --- GRINDBOX!

The Rio on Yonge Street, Toronto circa 1972

GRINDBOX!
Saturday October 2nd, 2010
9:30PM until 7:00AM
TIFF Bell Lightbox
Reitman Square, 350 King Street West

A tribute to the beloved American institution of the grindhouse – a term for theatres that mainly showed exploitation films, named after the defunct burlesque theaters located on New York City's 42nd Street where "bump n' grind" dancing and striptease were featured – this presentation of vintage trailers for horror and exploitation films from around the world is a cinematic celebration of the weird, the wild and the wonderful, balanced on the border between art and trash. Note: Mature content, suitable for audiences 18+. – Curated by Colin Geddes.

The trailers came from my own film collection, from the holdings of Vagrancy Films in London, Ontario and from the fine, honourable gang of cinematic soldiers at the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas. It was quite the undertaking to splice it all together (thanks to James King for his precise dedication to this task!) and it will certainly be the only time that this assortment of trailers will been shown together. In other words, if you missed it last night, you'll never get a chance to witness this spectacle ever again!

Of course, there had to be ample warnings about just what folks were getting themselves into...

Thanks to Sara Schmidt for snapping this pic!

Here is the playlist for Grindbox:

Alain Quatermain & The City of Gold
Angel Unchained
Savage Streets
Fear No Evil
Beast Within
The Incubus
Message From Space
Lifeforce
Dawn of the Dead
Parastie 3D
Megaforce
Robocop
Gus
Hot Dog ad
Bronson Lee
Master of the Flying Guillotine
Warlock
Boogeyman
Camille 2000
Grasshopper
Starship Invasions
Golden Voyage of Sinbad
Carnival of Blood/Curse of the Headless Horseman
Prime Cut
Mechanic
Big Brother PSA
Private Lessons
Bury Me an Angel
Aliens
Death Wish
Exterminator, The
Mr. No Legs
The Trip
Deranged
Island of Dr. Moreau
Comin' At Ya!
Breakin'
Kansas City Bomber
Cannonball Run 2
He Knows You're Alone
Orca The Killer Whale
Just Heroes
Three The Hard Way
Truck Turner
Blackenstein
Krull
Tarzan and the City of Lost Gold
Madame KittyUniversal Soldier
I Come in Peace
Snack Food ad
Fist of Fear, Touch of Death
Tarzan's Three Challenges
Green Slime
Incredible Melting Man
Invasion U.S.A.
Lenny
Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster
Dagmar's Hot Pants
Groupies
Phantasm 2
Tidal Wave
Make Them Die Slowly
Yor Hunter From The Future

The best reaction from the crowd? Easily the appearance of Chuck Norris in the Invasion USA trailer. The trailer that shocked them the most? The uber gory trailer for Make Them Die Slowly. That one was quite the skull fuck and even shocked me as I hadn't seen it before.

I got lots of great feedback from the show and who knows, maybe there will be Grindbox 2! in 2011?

Brynner It On!

2010-09-24T17:01:00.000-07:00

2010:The Year We Make Contact

2010-09-23T16:05:00.000-07:00

Turned out

2010-09-12T08:05:00.000-07:00

Fantastic, golden-era Distribpix beauty with busy taglines and some light staining. Pure elegance in paper form.

Doubly Immaculate?

2010-09-03T17:12:00.000-07:00

Question mark indeed!

Is this a dirty parody of the Polanski film from the same era? Is the devil the baby daddy times two or is this entirely respectable/biblical? I need some answers.

The case for Japanese paper

2010-08-28T07:52:00.001-07:00

File #1

The remarkably gorgeous, psychedelicised poster designs for the release of ground-breaking (at home for style and in American obscenity laws) Swedish art-film, I am Curious (Yellow) from 1967.

Here we see the two styles (maybe there are more?) for the standard Japanese B2 (20" x 28") poster and the tatekan style which is a tapestry of two B2-sized posters together vertically.

I think it's safe to say that America needed a little stimulation in their lives when you compare these to the US release poster at the end and which we've seen in these pages before but is here again for the purpose of illustration.

SUPERNATURAL TECHNICOLOR!

2010-08-23T08:01:00.001-07:00

From an early issue of Creepy (#2 or #3, I can't recall)

everyone is dying to meet...

2010-08-16T06:50:00.000-07:00

the lost art... 007

2010-08-14T15:59:00.000-07:00

Which poster would inspire you to pull out your wallet or reach into your purse and buy that ticket...?

On this day

2010-08-14T08:29:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to...

Antonio Fargas!
August 14th, 1946

Wim Wenders!
August 14th, 1945

Candace Hilligoss!
August 14th, 1935

And although he wasn't really involved with movies, a special wish for a special day to Larry Graham, born August 14th, 1946 and one hell of a goddamned bass player!

If you know anybody who is celebrating their birth today, give them a generous gift and many wishes for all things great because they likely deserve it and they're probably good looking.

which is better? now or then?

2010-08-09T18:49:00.000-07:00

Someone just asked me if, with the number of specialty cinema theatres/projects that are appearing on the Toronto landscape, if there has been a better time to be a movie fan in this city?

I'd argue yes, there were better times. And better movies.

Here are 4 different pages from The Toronto Star from '68, '72, '79 & '81.Have a look at the listings today and which would you prefer?

Hard to imagine today a major cinema doing a revival screening of a film released over 30 years prior, like the Famous Players Theatre at the Eglinton was doing with Chaplin's The Great Dictator. All we get now is a release of Avatar, with extra bloating! And on the same page, is Peter Watkin's Punishment Park at the Avenue Cinema, in amongst the 31 other films to choose from including Prime Cut.

The answer, I think, is obvious.

(click on the pages to look at the images bigger)

Purple patches

2010-07-31T09:48:00.000-07:00

En Français

2010-07-21T17:17:00.000-07:00

late late show

2010-07-13T15:40:00.001-07:00

As a kid/early teen growing up in rural Ontario, our family used to get the Toronto Star on the weekends and I combed through the TV Guide looking with envy, for all those films that the big city kids got to watch. Reception in the country only offered us 3 stations. My hobby at the time was clipping the listings for B-movies and putting them in the pages of my database - The Psychotronic Movie Guide. One of them fell out of the book and onto my scanner.

1965

2010-07-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

A crown jewel in my longstanding and, sadly, slow-growing collection of girl and gorilla paper. But what a piece! Outstanding, if I may say so myself.

DR. BUTCHER MD screens in Toronto June 25th

2010-06-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

Vagrancy Films & Terry Levene present
DR. BUTCHER MD
aka ZOMBI HOLOCAUST

"He's a depraved, sadistic rapist; A bloodthirsty, homicidal killer...and He Makes House"

FRIDAY June 25 2010 - 9:30PM
RESTRICTED - Must be 18+ (13 Denmark Only)

Toronto Underground Cinema
186 Spadina Avenue
Toronto, ON, M5T 3B2

Tickets $10.00 @ the Door or available in advance @ EYESORE Cinema

Advanced ticket buyers will qualify to win 2 tickets to see the original I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE on August 28th as well as a personalized autograph from I SPIT STAR CAMILLE KEATON a $60.00 value!

Peter Chandler and Dr. Lori Ridgeway come across a gruesome flesh-eating cult in New York. Determined to uncover the origins of this mad corruption, they set out on an expedition to the primitive island of Keto. The two are soon trapped in the wilderness, surrounded by a tribe of cannibals and the insane scientist, Dr. Obrero. The doctor captures Chandler, and prepares him for a series of experiments designed to bring about the end of human mortality. In turn, Lori is captured by the murderous tribe and subjected to their bizarre rituals. In the tradition of the classic film, Zombie, Ian McCulloch reprises his role of a New Yorker faced with primal horror. Italian gore schlock cheese don't come any finer - THE ULTIMATE DATE MOVIE

creeping from the vault

2010-06-24T09:13:00.000-07:00

There is this joint down the street from us that tends to show much more respectable fare and over the next few months they have a series that might be better to take a date to that what we offer in our establishment. If you live in Toronto and call your self a film fan, then you have no excuse not to miss the opportunity to see some of these films. Visit the Fox Theatre for more info.

installation of HORROR

2010-06-21T11:11:00.000-07:00

...but yielding

2010-06-16T18:01:00.000-07:00

Dude, raunch!

2010-06-05T16:38:00.000-07:00

"maybe one of her parts came from your street"

2010-05-31T07:23:00.000-07:00