edited by Jonathan Doyle

Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

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HE reader Mark Edward Heuck has passed along the art below with the following message: "Alcoholic drifter with superhuman powers and antisocial feelings -- check. Saves good-looking stranger who dedicates themselves to superhero's career rehabilitation -- check. Starring Academy-Award nominated actor in the lead - check. Showstopping musical numbers written by Rocky Horror Picture Show creators -- uhhh, hold on." Has anyone ever seen this Alan Arkin film? I don't even remember it.

Down The Drain<< previous | next >>Interiors

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on July 2, 2008 at 11:17 AM

comment #1

Rich S. says ...

Might be worth checking out just to see Alan Arkin with a spit curl.

Posted by Rich S. at July 2, 2008 11:32 AM

comment #2

btwnproductions says ...

It was a cable perennial back in the day, but that day was in the early 80s. It deserves a DVD release and wider cult. There are clips of the (fun) musical numbers online...bad guy Christopher Lee sings.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjYuAX1AmV0

Posted by btwnproductions at July 2, 2008 11:37 AM

comment #3

Spacesheik says ...

I saw it in the UK early 80s, I remember Christopher Lee stealing the show as a campy villain!!

Posted by Spacesheik at July 2, 2008 11:41 AM

comment #4

Spacesheik says ...

Ok there you go:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9MuEA2eF8c&feature=related

Posted by Spacesheik at July 2, 2008 11:43 AM

comment #5

LYT says ...

Mark's run it at the Nuart a time or two.

Posted by LYT at July 2, 2008 12:10 PM

comment #6

swtgy227 says ...

Another different sort of superhero film i always liked was from around that same era.

John Ritters "Hero at large"

Posted by swtgy227 at July 2, 2008 12:39 PM

comment #7

Dublin101 says ...

Wow, that Christopher Lee clip is the campest thing I've seen in many a year. Thank you an Go bless Youtube.

Posted by Dublin101 at July 2, 2008 1:54 PM

comment #8

Dublin101 says ...

and God bless YouTube.

Posted by Dublin101 at July 2, 2008 1:55 PM

comment #9

nemo says ...

After reading the reviews at IMDB, this silly thing sounds so much better than Hancock.

Captain Invincible was a victim of McCarthyism after helping to win WWII -- still relevant to our recent times of Freedom Fries and swiftboating.

Posted by nemo at July 2, 2008 3:11 PM

comment #10

thatmovieguy says ...

Never saw it. It was on and off release schedules for a couple of years, and I do remember a trailer for it that had the hero being tempted by saucy chorus girls chirping "Choose your booze!" Am I right in thinking it was a Cannon klassik? It came to mind when I was watching HANCOCK, although I could not remember the title. Now I know...

Posted by thatmovieguy at July 2, 2008 3:45 PM

comment #11

Valerie Cherish says ...

Why has AUNT SASSY been BANNED???

I miss her insightful comments on film, and her bitchy commentary. She added a refreshing viewpoint to this site.

FREE AUNT SASSY!!!

Posted by Valerie Cherish at July 2, 2008 4:41 PM

comment #12

MDOC says ...

Wow that Youtube video of Lee singing is really a sight to behold. It's amazing that something so awful exists. A group of people took the time and resources to produce something so bad. I know it was a product of it's error but today it's simply hideous. It's funny how some bad things are remembered fondly and some dry out and are forgotten like dog crap on an August day.

Posted by MDOC at July 2, 2008 5:00 PM

comment #13

The Hoyk says ...

THE RETURN OF CAPTAIN INVINCIBLE was probably director Phillipe Mora's most ambitious narrative film project after his found-footage documentaries SWASTIKA and BROTHER CAN YOU SPARE A DIME and his low-budget exploitationers MAD DOG MORGAN with Dennis Hopper and THE BEAST WITHIN. Former Sunn Classics Pictures founder Jensen Farley was supposed to release it in America through his self-named company (who had previously released PRIVATE LESSONS, TIMERIDER, and THE BOOGENS), and a few test runs were done under the title LEGEND IN LEOTARDS. However, three days before a national, 400+ screen release, Jensen Farley Pictures went bankrupt and the film never got a proper theatrical run. Vini Bancalari's Elite Entertainment has released it on DVD, and it's very affordable, either on its own, or in a 3-pack with Mora's other films COMMUNION and HOWLING III: THE MARSUPIALS.

For all its flaws, I really love the film, and helped get it a belated premiere at the Nuart a few years ago. It's a movie that allows you to feel patriotic without feeling jingoistic, the kind of love letter to America that only an outsider to the country can make. And Arkin's final address to the nation, in front of the Twin Towers, still brings tears to my eyes.

Posted by The Hoyk at July 2, 2008 5:18 PM

comment #14

symscovington says ...

Jeff, it's Australian - or at least shot here. It was part of the bizarre wave in the 1970s/1980s where you had people like Dennis Hopper and Jamie Lee Curtis coming out and doing exploitation films.

It's all being explored in this new film I checked out recently called NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD, which you might get a kick out of.

http://www.notquitehollywood.com.au/

Released in Australia in a few months and will make it to the States soon depending on how it plays here I guess. Great stuff btw.

Posted by symscovington at July 2, 2008 9:24 PM

comment #15

Walter says ...

Last Summer, my friends and I discovered the Christopher Lee number on YouTube. Deciding then and there that we needed to see this for our own eyes, one of them ordered the film, and we had ourselves a B-status cult film night. It's a blast, and I highly recommend it, if just for the "What the fuck?" value.

Posted by Walter at July 3, 2008 7:57 AM

comment #16

hcat says ...

Saw this movie in college with some roomates and loved it, thinking the entire target audience for it was in the room at the time. Entirely silly, would be great for kids if it wasn;t for all the women in bras and panties and a song consisting of the repetition of the word bullshit.

Posted by hcat at July 3, 2008 9:59 AM

comment #17

Rain says ...

He is a cool man. we all love him. there are so many fans of him. and they set up the groups related to stars. you can even check out his sexy and beautiful photos, videos and blogs on the wealthy dating club R I C H L O V I N G.C O M for hot singles to hook up for Hot Love and Sexy Dating.

Posted by Rain at July 4, 2008 4:38 AM