Looker (1981)

Looker (1981) is not a perfect film or maybe even objectively a good one, but if you have an appreciation for the aesthetic and vibe its throwing out there, it becomes a memorable experience. Directed and written by Michael Crichton, there’s a familiar sci-fi set-up with a mysterious corporation hiding a dark secret, and the […]

Lured (1947)

Pre-sitcom superstardom, Lucille Ball was apparently synonymous with B-pictures and I never realised she’d starred in a few film noirs during the 1940s before I Love Lucy came to define her iconic legacy. I really liked Ball’s turn as a private detective’s helpful secretary in The Dark Corner, which I watched for the first time […]

Trash Classics: Program 3

Screened: September to December, 2022Luna Leederville Several words from our host, Tristan Fidler: “Trash Classics is just a name – a different phrase for Cult Movies. We’re not out to ‘trash’ these movies. This is about highlighting films that either flamed out upon release, were either critically derided or commercially unsuccessful, or both, and are […]

The Aviator’s Wife (1981)

It’s a testament to the directing and writing of Eric Rohmer, and the performances of the actors, that the characters in The Aviator’s Wife (1981) come off as understandable and empathetic, even as they’re wrapped up in their own emotional problems and romantic overthinking. Then again, Rohmer’s talky, French serio-comic catalogue is not for everyone […]

Friday Foster (1975)

While it has violence and nudity, there’s something lighter and frothier about the blaxploitation film, Friday Foster (1975); it’s almost ready to be a crowd-pleasing TV movie pilot, maybe because the film is being based on a comic strip (comparable to Modesty Blaise in terms of syndicated newspaper comics). A vehicle for the great Pam […]