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Category Archives: Features
Castor’s Hallow’s Eve Duds – Species II (1998)
Having recently watched Peter Medak in ‘The Ghost of Peter Sellers‘, I could only envision how insignificant the maelstrom of egos between Michael Madsen and Natasha Henstridge must’ve been in comparison to Sellers’ manipulative megalomania. Luckily, the most vanity Medak … Continue reading
Posted in Movies, Reviews, Robin's Underrated Gems
Tagged peter medak, species
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Runstedler’s DVD Pick of the Month: Saturday Night Fever
Magill wrote a fun piece on this film a couple years ago, but I really wanted to revisit Saturday Night Fever (undeniably one of my all-time favourites and my favourite musical) in the wake of the #MeToo and #BlackLivesMatter movements. … Continue reading
Posted in Features, Movies, Reviews, Runstedler's DVD Pick of the Month
Tagged Bee Gees, dancing, disco, John Travolta, musical, New York City
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Bat*21 (1988)
The heedlessly invigorating Bat*21 is fundamentally a role-reversal prequel to Behind Enemy Lines with Gene Hackman evading enemies on the ground while Danny Glover is his audio guide back to safety. Although Lieutenant Colonel Iceal E. Hambleton (Hackman) was a … Continue reading
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Villain (1971)
Once more into the frat of Cockney hooliganism, Villain is a pungently facinorous crime drama which loosens the reigns from Richard Burton. Burton was usually the staid rock of Gibraltar in films but, as Vic Dakin, he is a frothing, … Continue reading
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Lone Star (1996)
In one of the sporadic examples of Chris Cooper in the lead role, John Sayles embroiders a tapestry of the imperialistic town of Frontera, Texas, in which the Mexicans outnumber Caucasians and yet still travail under them in subservient serfdom. … Continue reading
Posted in Movies, Reviews, Robin's Underrated Gems
Tagged chris cooper, john sayles, kris kristofferson
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Holocaust 2000 (1977)
Holocaust 2000 (a.k.a. The Chosen) is usually disregarded as an Omen rip-off but it is much more prescient about the biblical apocalypse via ripped-from-the-headlines topics like thermonuclear power, a technocracy and the United States tampering with Middle East affairs. For … Continue reading
Posted in Movies, Reviews, Robin's Underrated Gems
Tagged kirk douglas
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – The President’s Analyst (1967)
Psychotherapy was almost an anomaly in the late 60’s when holistic healing and astrology were paramount. Now, the profession of introspection is more pertinent. The fly-on-the-wall sessions between Sidney (James Coburn) and his patients are quite tantalizing and often feel … Continue reading
Posted in Movies, Reviews, Robin's Underrated Gems
Tagged james coburn
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Sitting Target (1972)
In the eruptive, lurid Sitting Target, the inimitable Oliver Reed is an incretionary “animal in a cage” as Cockney convict Harry Lomart. He does push-ups from the pipes above his prison cell. Moreover, Harry is not an alpha male who … Continue reading
Posted in Movies, Reviews, Robin's Underrated Gems
Tagged ian mcshane, oliver reed
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Replicant (2001)
For a science-fiction gimmick dabbling in cloning and symbiotic mnemonic cortices, the most fatuous element is Van Damme’s Tommy Wiseau wig. The neonatal technology for cellular duplication is sketchy and preposterous. Is The Torch so notorious that the NSA would … Continue reading
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Castor’s Underrated Gems – Darker Than Amber (1970)
Firstly, this Travis McGee test run deserves better than an infuscate, pixelated VHS-rip DVD which was the only outlet to watch this humdinger. Walter Hill’s Extreme Prejudice and Trancers also suffered from similar transfer issues. The nighttime scenes are borderline … Continue reading
Posted in Movies, Reviews, Robin's Underrated Gems
Tagged rod taylor
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