From anime to pitch-black thrillers, here's our pick of the underappreciated movies of 1987...
Sometimes, the challenge with these lists isn't just what to put in, but what to leave out. We loved Princess Bride, but with a decent showing at the box office and a huge cult following, isn't it a bit too popular to be described as underappreciated? Likewise Joe Dante's Innerspace, a fabulously geeky, comic reworking of the 60s sci-fi flick, Fantastic Voyage.
What we've gone for instead is a mix of genre fare, dramas and animated films that may have garnered a cult following since, but didn't do well either critically or financially at the time of release. Some of the movies on our list just about made their money back, but none made anything close to the sort of returns enjoyed by the likes of 1987's biggest films - Three Men And A Baby, Fatal Attraction...
Sometimes, the challenge with these lists isn't just what to put in, but what to leave out. We loved Princess Bride, but with a decent showing at the box office and a huge cult following, isn't it a bit too popular to be described as underappreciated? Likewise Joe Dante's Innerspace, a fabulously geeky, comic reworking of the 60s sci-fi flick, Fantastic Voyage.
What we've gone for instead is a mix of genre fare, dramas and animated films that may have garnered a cult following since, but didn't do well either critically or financially at the time of release. Some of the movies on our list just about made their money back, but none made anything close to the sort of returns enjoyed by the likes of 1987's biggest films - Three Men And A Baby, Fatal Attraction...
- 5/13/2015
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
The votes are in on this year’s 13th Annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards and Famous Monsters of Filmland made a big splash! Thank you to all of our fans and readers who honored us with Best Classic Magazine of 2015! Congratulations to August Ragone for Best Article (‘The Complete Godzilla Chronology, 1954-2004’, FM #275) and to our cover artist Bob Eggleton for winning Best Artist Of The Year!
We also received Honorable Mentions in the categories of Best Interview for Joe Moe‘s interview with John Logan (FM #276), Best Overall Issue for Famous Monsters #272 (Richard Matheson), and Best Cover for Famous Monsters #272 by Simon Thorpe.
See the full list of winners here!
Arlington, Va. – The long-awaited release of Clive Barker’s extended version of Nightbreed and a pair of books celebrating science fiction classics were among top winners in the 13th Annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards, announced Wednesday after...
We also received Honorable Mentions in the categories of Best Interview for Joe Moe‘s interview with John Logan (FM #276), Best Overall Issue for Famous Monsters #272 (Richard Matheson), and Best Cover for Famous Monsters #272 by Simon Thorpe.
See the full list of winners here!
Arlington, Va. – The long-awaited release of Clive Barker’s extended version of Nightbreed and a pair of books celebrating science fiction classics were among top winners in the 13th Annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards, announced Wednesday after...
- 4/30/2015
- by Caroline Stephenson
- FamousMonsters of Filmland
Hayden Quinn has left MasterChef. The 24-year-old lifeguard, who made it to the top six contestants in the Australian version of the reality cooking show, was eliminated after going head-to-head with Kate Bracks and Michael Weldon in a challenge. After the trio were given the opportunity to cook whatever dish they wanted in the pressure test, Quinn chose to create a chicken dish and hastily wrote the word "enjoy" on his hand to remind him to have fun rather than get nervous. "It's one thing to write it on your hand and another to actually go through with it, and really enjoy it, because there's a lot of pressure there," he said. "If you don't cook well that's it, the whole thing's finished. It's hard but you've got to try and keep that frame of mind." Quinn said of his final challenge: "Sometimes (more)...
- 7/25/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Kumar Pereira has left MasterChef. The 62-year-old teacher, who made it to the top 11 of the Australian version of the cooking reality television show, was eliminated after failing to impress the judges with his pork neck steak with a thyme crust. Judges Gary Mehigan and Matt Preston told Pereira that while his pork was "beautifully cooked" and his apple sauce was "delicious", the crust on top of the meat tasted of "flour" and the dish was "loaded with butter". Pereira went head-to-head with Billy Law, Michael Weldon and Peter Vickery in the challenge. Law's chicken and prosciutto with roasted carrots was labelled a "wow" of a dish, with Preston adding: "You're right to be proud and confident. That's a dish that takes you not only to the top ten but potentially the top four." Vickery (more)...
- 6/30/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Craig Young has left MasterChef. The professional musician, who made it to the top 13 of the Australian version of the reality television show, was eliminated after going head-to-head with Alana Lowes in a 15-minute cooking challenge. In round one, Young went up against Michael Weldon and Mat Beyer but failed to impress the judges with his "overcooked" quail breast. Weldon was praised for his "delicious" steak tartare with garlic chips, while Beyer's quail, fig and bacon dish was described as a "knockout combination". In the second round, Lowes competed with Dani Venn and Peter Vickery to stay in the competition, but shocked the judges by serving them "raw" lamb cutlets. Venn's Vietnamese beef salad was labelled "appetising" and although Vickery's lamb was a bit "rare, they told him that he (more)...
- 6/23/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Adam Bowen has revealed that he has "no regrets" at leaving MasterChef. The 32-year-old scuba diving business owner, who asked the judges in Monday night's episode if he could leave the Australian cooking reality TV show instead of Danielle Dixon, said that his time on the series was "great". Bowen told News.com.au that he realised he didn't have the passion of fellow competitors Dixon, Michael Weldon and Ellie Paxton-Hall during a Greek challenge. He added that he decided they deserved spots in the contest more than him. Bowen said: "There was no need to take a spot from somebody else, especially those three. They're young, they haven't had their start in life like I have. "When I heard Danielle's story I realised that I couldn't have gone back to the house and felt comfortable in the house (more)...
- 6/22/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Last night's MasterChef elimination was changed at the last minute. The judges on the Australian version of the cooking reality series were planning on asking Danielle Dixon to leave the competition but moments before they announced the verdict, fellow contestant Adam Bowen asked if he could drop out instead. Bowen and Dixon earlier went head-to-head with Michael Weldon and Ellie Paxton-Hall to re-create a selection of Greek dishes made by judge George Calombaris's mother Mary. Calombaris and fellow judges Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan said that although Bowen's dishes looked pale and his tzatziki was "so salty", they could not forgive Dixon for plating up raw pastry and greasy food. After the challenge, Bowen told the judging panel that he felt extreme guilt at remaining in the competition because he had decided that being a chef is (more)...
- 6/21/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Rachel McSweeney has been eliminated from MasterChef. The 45-year-old office administrator from Western Australia was asked to leave the Australian version of the reality cooking series after failing to impress the judges with her interpretation of a Heston Blumenthal dish. McSweeney, along with 25-year-old Michael Weldon, professional musician Craig Young and 26-year-old Shannon Smyth, was given just over three hours to make Blumenthal's special burger and chips together with their own personal drink concoction. Despite being warned to start the task by making her beef patty, McSweeney began with her brioche bun. After the challenge, she said: "I couldn't remember what I was meant to be doing. I just got myself in a pickle and couldn't sort it out." Weldon impressed Blumenthal with his tender patty and "playful" green lime (more)...
- 6/14/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Melting astronauts! Sentient ooze! We celebrate cinema’s most memorable goo-filled films…
Some directors use Ky Jelly, others employ hair gel, or in one memorable instance, gallons of shaving cream. The techniques used to create them vary, but cinema history is full of gloopy, ickily-runny special effects that will either have you laughing incredulously or feeling thoroughly queasy.
Here’s a list of ten films that feature some memorably gelatinous moments…
The Blob
If you want a film filled with goo, look no further than The Blob. Steve McQueen starred in the 1958 original, which saw a gigantic globule of alien strawberry compote terrorise a small town in America. Schlocky B-movie fun, fans of gore will find even more to enjoy in the 1988 remake, which retains the same basic plot while upping the body horror aspects considerably.
Drawing inspiration from Rob Bottin’s effects in The Thing six years earlier, the...
Some directors use Ky Jelly, others employ hair gel, or in one memorable instance, gallons of shaving cream. The techniques used to create them vary, but cinema history is full of gloopy, ickily-runny special effects that will either have you laughing incredulously or feeling thoroughly queasy.
Here’s a list of ten films that feature some memorably gelatinous moments…
The Blob
If you want a film filled with goo, look no further than The Blob. Steve McQueen starred in the 1958 original, which saw a gigantic globule of alien strawberry compote terrorise a small town in America. Schlocky B-movie fun, fans of gore will find even more to enjoy in the 1988 remake, which retains the same basic plot while upping the body horror aspects considerably.
Drawing inspiration from Rob Bottin’s effects in The Thing six years earlier, the...
- 3/28/2011
- Den of Geek
Filed under: Horror, Cinematical
If there are two things horror fans love, it's boobs and blood -- so it seems surprising that we're only just now getting a film festival devoted entirely to these two staples of genre cinema. If your idea of a good time is hanging out with Suicide Girls, Playboy playmates and lesbian vampires, then look no further than The Boobs and Blood Film Festival. The festivities are taking place in L.A. at the New Beverly Cinema from Sept. 24 - 26. Parties, autograph ops and screenings abound.
Those lucky enough to attend will be treated to a veritable cornucopia of grindhouse exploitation, Japanese cult cinema, and titles that would be right at home between the covers of Michael Weldon's 'Psychotronic Video Guide.' While grindhouse is a term that's being thrown around a lot lately, not everyone is familiar with Japanese pink films -- a softcore...
If there are two things horror fans love, it's boobs and blood -- so it seems surprising that we're only just now getting a film festival devoted entirely to these two staples of genre cinema. If your idea of a good time is hanging out with Suicide Girls, Playboy playmates and lesbian vampires, then look no further than The Boobs and Blood Film Festival. The festivities are taking place in L.A. at the New Beverly Cinema from Sept. 24 - 26. Parties, autograph ops and screenings abound.
Those lucky enough to attend will be treated to a veritable cornucopia of grindhouse exploitation, Japanese cult cinema, and titles that would be right at home between the covers of Michael Weldon's 'Psychotronic Video Guide.' While grindhouse is a term that's being thrown around a lot lately, not everyone is familiar with Japanese pink films -- a softcore...
- 9/20/2010
- by Alison Nastasi
- Moviefone
Filed under: Horror, Cinematical
If there are two things horror fans love, it's boobs and blood -- so it seems surprising that we're only just now getting a film festival devoted entirely to these two staples of genre cinema. If your idea of a good time is hanging out with Suicide Girls, Playboy Playmates and lesbian vampires, then look no further than The Boobs and Blood Film Festival. The festivities are taking place in L.A. at the New Beverly Cinema from Sept. 24 - 26. Parties, autograph ops and screenings abound.
Those lucky enough to attend will be treated to a veritable cornucopia of grindhouse exploitation, Japanese cult cinema, and titles that would be right at home between the covers of Michael Weldon's 'Psychotronic Video Guide.' While grindhouse is a term that's being thrown around a lot lately, not everyone is familiar with Japanese pink films -- a softcore...
If there are two things horror fans love, it's boobs and blood -- so it seems surprising that we're only just now getting a film festival devoted entirely to these two staples of genre cinema. If your idea of a good time is hanging out with Suicide Girls, Playboy Playmates and lesbian vampires, then look no further than The Boobs and Blood Film Festival. The festivities are taking place in L.A. at the New Beverly Cinema from Sept. 24 - 26. Parties, autograph ops and screenings abound.
Those lucky enough to attend will be treated to a veritable cornucopia of grindhouse exploitation, Japanese cult cinema, and titles that would be right at home between the covers of Michael Weldon's 'Psychotronic Video Guide.' While grindhouse is a term that's being thrown around a lot lately, not everyone is familiar with Japanese pink films -- a softcore...
- 9/20/2010
- by Alison Nastasi
- Cinematical
This Eureka! U.K. release, conveniently and considerately mastered in an all-region Blu-ray, is one of those items best described as—well, for myself the word would be "nifty." As in, it's kind of nifty that it even exists. The package is not exactly festooned with extras—there's a trailer, and a file of "Ephemera," stills mostly, and this might displease Hammer Film aficionados of a certain stripe, but if I know my Hammer Film aficionados, any one of them could likely extemporize a fact-filled commentary on this 1963 film themselves, as it unfolded.
And what of the film, for those who don't know? Michael Weldon's indispensable Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film describes the 1963 picture, directed by cinematographic master Freddie Francis from a script by Hammer stalwart Jimmy Sangster, as "one of the better early Psycho-inspired films," and given that this film's title also begins with a "p" and that its...
And what of the film, for those who don't know? Michael Weldon's indispensable Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film describes the 1963 picture, directed by cinematographic master Freddie Francis from a script by Hammer stalwart Jimmy Sangster, as "one of the better early Psycho-inspired films," and given that this film's title also begins with a "p" and that its...
- 8/24/2010
- MUBI
Scott Stine may not be known to every household in America, but any household in America that happens to carry an affinity for horror more than likely knows that name. The man is, in short, a horror aficionado. Regardless the time frame or sub genre, the man's invested an unimaginable amount of time and dedication that so many of our quirky minds crave daily.
I was recently blessed with a copy of Scott's latest, Trashfiend: Disposable Horror Fare Of The 1960's & 1970's.Not only is it an informative book, but it's a book that really enables Mr. Stine to slash and stab away with a cruel humor that makes this piece of work a delight to read. Scott isn't malicious in anyway, he's funny, and he's respectful in approach. What strikes me however, I the fact that the man just doesn't miss a beat.
From The Crater Lake Monster, to the Werewolf Of Washington,...
I was recently blessed with a copy of Scott's latest, Trashfiend: Disposable Horror Fare Of The 1960's & 1970's.Not only is it an informative book, but it's a book that really enables Mr. Stine to slash and stab away with a cruel humor that makes this piece of work a delight to read. Scott isn't malicious in anyway, he's funny, and he's respectful in approach. What strikes me however, I the fact that the man just doesn't miss a beat.
From The Crater Lake Monster, to the Werewolf Of Washington,...
- 1/2/2010
- by no-reply@fangoria.com (Matt Molgaard)
- Fangoria
The first that I heard of Frank Henenlotter was on a perfectly awful cable tv show that aired on Manhattan's Public Access channel in the 1970s.
"The Nikki Haskell Show" was a self-indulgent half-hour cable show hosted by Haskell, a wealthy socialite-divorcee and former stockbroker who now claims that her show marked the invention of "reality television." About a year ago, after her diet pill company got in trouble with the NFL over a "secret ingredient" that should have been labeled, Haskell signed up for an account at YouTube and started posting clips from the 30-year-old program, but she seems to have lost interest after posting just ten of them.
The main reason I'd tune in Haskell's silly show was the programming that followed it, "adults only" programming like Screw magazine publisher Al Goldstein's "Midnight Blue," porn performer Robin Bird's "Hot Legs" show featuring New York's leading "dance talent" and,...
"The Nikki Haskell Show" was a self-indulgent half-hour cable show hosted by Haskell, a wealthy socialite-divorcee and former stockbroker who now claims that her show marked the invention of "reality television." About a year ago, after her diet pill company got in trouble with the NFL over a "secret ingredient" that should have been labeled, Haskell signed up for an account at YouTube and started posting clips from the 30-year-old program, but she seems to have lost interest after posting just ten of them.
The main reason I'd tune in Haskell's silly show was the programming that followed it, "adults only" programming like Screw magazine publisher Al Goldstein's "Midnight Blue," porn performer Robin Bird's "Hot Legs" show featuring New York's leading "dance talent" and,...
- 11/17/2009
- by unclebob
- DreadCentral.com
Michael Weldon of "Psychotronic Magazine" praised this movie's awfulness to me almost 30 years ago, and I only caught up with it this week.
The Children concerns the ghastly events that occur after a school bus drives through a noxious cloud of gas...which is exactly how Richard Matheson got The Incredible Shrinking Man going, so it's not a bad start. There are only a few kids on the bus, luckily (I'm surprised the filmmakers got any parents to trust them with their kids -- but then, half the kids in this film have the same last name as the producer). I'm going to have to provide some spoilers here because the movie is so bad and so poorly paced that no one will watch it through without a damn good reason. These kids, though normal looking, become radioactive zombies with an impulse to approach any adults with arms outstretched, begging for hugsies!
The Children concerns the ghastly events that occur after a school bus drives through a noxious cloud of gas...which is exactly how Richard Matheson got The Incredible Shrinking Man going, so it's not a bad start. There are only a few kids on the bus, luckily (I'm surprised the filmmakers got any parents to trust them with their kids -- but then, half the kids in this film have the same last name as the producer). I'm going to have to provide some spoilers here because the movie is so bad and so poorly paced that no one will watch it through without a damn good reason. These kids, though normal looking, become radioactive zombies with an impulse to approach any adults with arms outstretched, begging for hugsies!
- 10/30/2009
- by unclebob
- DreadCentral.com
by Vadim RizovQuentin Tarantino loves movies, too many and not wisely. It's not that he doesn't recognize great, boundary pushing work for the artfag crowd: his Cannes jury awarded Tropical Malady in 2004. But Tarantino's better known as our foremost champion of junk culture: his now-defunct Rolling Thunder Pictures put out Chungking Express, but it also reissued The Mighty Peking Man. Anyone who has showed up for his marathon presentations from his personal collection ("QTFests" at Austin's Alamo Drafthouse and elsewhere) knows the very real risk of boredom from yet another film that's more fun to summarize than watch. But Tarantino's canonical reshuffling deserves attention, and his aesthetic has its critical equivalent. A contentious thread at Dave Kehr's website last year spiraled into a relatively civil argument about Nathan Lee, with Kehr summing up the case:"There's nothing more natural than for each new generation to revolt against the taste of the last,...
- 8/10/2009
- GreenCine Daily
Andy Milligan, the Staten Island-based filmmaker best known for a string of micro-budget horror and sexploitation films made in the 1960’s and 70’s, was certainly one of the oddest characters in the New York ‘Grindhouse’ movie industry. Infamous for his sadistic nature towards his actors and the sadistic kink in his gay lifestyle, Milligan is legendary for the inept, technically primitive movies he made. Michael Weldon once wrote in his Psychotronic magazine that “If you’re an Andy Milligan fan, there’s no hope for you” and Tim Lucas wrote in Video Watchdog that “To reach an appreciation of (Milligan’s) work, it may first be necessary to develop a loathing toward traditional forms of cinema”. It’s true that Milligan’s films are unbelievably atrocious on so many levels yet they’re not without their threadbare charms and interesting scripts. Milligan was a one-man film crew who wrote, directed,...
- 7/22/2009
- by Tom
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Wall Street, they tell me, is on an upturn, and the economy is well on its way to recovery. Hooray and Huzzah! But, even if all this optimism is justified (which I doubt), the rough times aren't entirely behind us and, however long they linger, certain businesses are going to suffer -- especially certain businesses that may not be fit for survival in the digital world, like publishing for the niche markets of Sf and horror.
And, even if happy days are here again, some 20th Century businesses won't be coming back, ever.
Every year, March is National Reading Month, and every year it passes by with no one noticing, except for a few librarians who have to get up on ladders to post the banners (of course, this year, no budget for banners, so there wasn't even that).
Well, this blog is going to change everything; we're going to...
And, even if happy days are here again, some 20th Century businesses won't be coming back, ever.
Every year, March is National Reading Month, and every year it passes by with no one noticing, except for a few librarians who have to get up on ladders to post the banners (of course, this year, no budget for banners, so there wasn't even that).
Well, this blog is going to change everything; we're going to...
- 6/8/2009
- by unclebob
- DreadCentral.com
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