Each month The Grumps bring you a selection of what’s new and now in the Action genre. Strap in for Round-house Round-Up! from brian miller: FUTURE COPS (1993) [REISSUED ON BLU-RAY FROM PANORAMA CORP] The […]
Category: Columns
HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE BITCH, PLEASE
IT’S A BLOODY PISS TAKE! WOULD YOU EXPECT ANYTHING LESS FROM US GRUMPS? To the tune of “Mary Had a Little Lamb”/“Silver Shamrock Theme”:It’s been a week since Halloween, Halloween, HalloweenIt’s been a week since […]
I SAY, A DOUBLE-WHAMMY OF BRITISH HORROR
I’ve always found watching British horror films to be strangely comforting. Unlike their American counterparts, British horror has a different vibe, a patina of politeness masking the terror lurking beneath the surface; that well-furnished study, […]
‘THE DISMEMBERED’: THE LOST PENNSYLVANIA HORROR THAT PRE-DATES ROMERO
There are numerous horror films from the mid-century era that I could have chosen to discuss. In fact, many of them are far better films than the one I chose. You see, 1962’s regional horror […]
BABY BLUE CASHMERE, BOMB DROPS, AND CHAMPAGNE BOTTLES: ATOMIC ANXIETY AND THE SCHLOCK GIRL POWER OF ‘SHE DEMONS’
The terminology is new, but the concept of “elevated” horror isn’t. As long as there’s been cinema, there has been a subset of both critics and fans who treat the perennial popularity of horror films […]
NEW IN ACTION: OCTOBER 2021, AKA HAUNTED-HOUSE ROUND-UP
This month on the Round-Up we’re deviating a bit and taking a few liberties on what 1) constitutes “new” and 2) how much “action” might make an Action movie. But it’s October! We want to […]
NO-LIFE CRISIS: ‘CARNIVAL OF SOULS’ AND THE CULT OF YOUTH
The middle of the 20th century saw of a period of shakeup in the normal course of Western life. As things used to be, we had childhood, devoted to growing, learning, preparing to care for […]
WHY 2010 IS COMMONLY CONSIDERED THE GREATEST ERA OF HORROR
The frontiers of media provide lawless opportunities for artists. Before the corporate-appointed sheriff rolls into town, utopias of artistic expression are possible. What those utopic dreams are and how long they last is an entirely […]
NEW IN ACTION: AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021
Each month The Grumps bring you a selection of what’s new and now in the Action genre. Strap in for Round-house Round-Up! FROM NICK SPACEK: YAKUZA PRINCESS (2021) [NEW TO SELECT THEATERS] You know a […]
IT’S A RODEO ROUND-UP!
To round out WESTERN WEEK, here’s a quick round-up of some of our favorite Westerns — none too unconventional to mention! FROM ELBEE: DUDES (1988) [collector’s edition blu-ray via shout factory] If we’ve learned anything […]
LIVING IN A GRAY AREA: ‘BONE TOMAHAWK’ AND MORAL COMPASS
Set in a blazing hot desert, Bone Tomahawk opens with David Arquette’s Purvis slitting a man’s throat. Almost immediately thereafter, we meet his partner-in-crime, Buddy (Sid Haig), who lectures Purvis on the proper way to […]
‘JOHNNY GUITAR’: A WESTERN DREAM
Editor’s Note: an earlier version of this essay first appeared at Cinepunx.com A long time ago, Francois Truffaut, maker of fancy French films, thought this little American Western called Johnny Guitar had such grace that […]
The Western With a Participation Trophy: ‘THE QUICK AND THE DEAD’
When I volunteered to write an article about the 1995 western movie The Quick and the Dead, I fully intended to write something entirely positive. After all, I’ve watched this movie several times and liked […]
BATTLE GOTH AND THE TROJAN WHORES: ‘DJANGO’ AND ‘THE CROW’
The heart of Texas holds a bright shining star, but what if it is really a black hole? When considering the grim side of Western films, this seems perfectly reasonable. Anti-heroes readily populate our cultural […]
Getting Out of a Ruh-Roh, Shaggy: IN Defense of ‘Scooby-Doo On Zombie Island’
If you’re one of the lucky people who were eating solid food by the time 1998 rolled around, odds are high that you like the exploits of the semi-understandable Great Dane named Scooby-Doo. If you […]