You Have to See This! Freaked (1993)

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I would call “Freaked” a spoof, but a spoof of what?

All I know is that it is something of a cult film and simultaneous antidotal piece of good old fashioned schlock in a decade that took movies very seriously. Even horror was somewhat stern for a long time until Wes Craven injected some humor in to it. “Freaked” feels like something out of 1987 that crept in to 1993 and it still rings as truly one of the more fascinating cult films I’ve ever seen. My memory with “Freaked” goes back to 1994 when my dad rented a copy for me. Little did he know what the hell we were in for, as “Freaked” teeters between completely surreal black comedy and an acid dream splashed on to film.

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Father’s Day (2017)

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A recently widowed father visits his daughters in Los Angeles for Father’s Day with the hopes of saving them from their tortured artists’ lives.

Written and directed by Betty Ouyang, this short film explores family relations between two artist sisters and their more down to Earth father through one meal together. The family dynamics on display here are interesting to watch develop as more information is revealed about each member. Ouyang takes this subject and makes it distinctly hers by putting herself in the lead as well as in the writing and directing style. Here the subject is taken head-on and shown through intimate conversations. The way she approaches each discussion, each interaction is honest and done in a manner that is up close and personal for the characters thus pulling the viewer into their lives.

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The Bootleg Files: Inki and the Lion

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BOOTLEG FILES 631: “Inki and the Lion” (1941 animated short by Chuck Jones).

LAST SEEN: On DailyMotion.com.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: VHS and LaserDisc only.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: It is not politically correct.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not likely.

Everybody knows about the notorious Censored Eleven animated shorts produced by Warner Bros. that were taken out of circulation in 1968 and have never been made available for television broadcast and home entertainment release. However, the studio had other lesser-known shorts with politically incorrect content that have also been quietly removed from release. Among these withdrawn films are five shorts created by Chuck Jones featuring the unusual characters Inki and the Minah Bird.

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Luis Alberni: Character Actor Extraordinaire

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During Hollywood’s Golden Era, Luis Alberni was one of the screen’s reigning character actors. Equally adept at drama and comedy, he always stole the show with his versatility and charisma. On this episode of “The Online Movie Show,” Luis’ great-grandson, actor and filmmaker Anthony Carrillo, recalls the life and times of this great star.

The episode is now online here.

“The Online Movie Show” is produced at the Platinum Wolfe Studios.

TV On DVD: Fear the Walking Dead: The Complete Third Season [Blu-Ray/Digital]

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After suffering a major identity crisis for the last three seasons, “Fear the Walking Dead” finally finds it footing. By throwing everything it’s established out and keeping only a few main characters here and there. What began as an urban retelling of the zombie apocalypse involving two families, the Manawas and the Clarks, is now really nothing more an immigration allegory with characters basically bumping back and forth. “Fear the Walking Dead” managed to have the opportunity to really unfold an epic tale of a mixed race family, and how they learned to get along with get to know each other. Their mixed and uneasy union would have to be tested. Except, all we get is a lot of goofy switches of the premise, and wastes of some good characters.

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The Bootleg Files: An Inspector Calls

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BOOTLEG FILES 630: “An Inspector Calls” (1954 British drama starring Alastair Sim).

LAST SEEN: On the Internet Archive.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: It has been commercially unavailable for years in the United States.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: There is a U.K. DVD version, but no U.S. version yet.

In the aftermath of World War II, British writer J.B. Priestley put forth the play “An Inspector Calls,” which offered an interesting mix of drawing room mystery and socialist agitation against his nation’s suffocating class system. The play was first performed in the Soviet Union in 1945 and later had its London premiere in 1946 starring Ralph Richardson as the eponymous investigator. The Broadway premiere occurred in 1947 with Thomas Mitchell as the inspector. “An Inspector Calls” also turned up on British television in 1948 and in radio adaptations in 1950 and 1953.
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Lenny Bruce On Film

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Lenny Bruce had a profound impact on modern comedy, but he was a somewhat elusive figure when it came appearances in film and television. On this episode of “The Online Movie Show,” film historian Paul Scrabo discusses Bruce’s work as a 20th Century Fox screenwriter, his writing and acting in the under-the-radar “Dream Follies” and “Dance Hall Racket,” and the censorship problems that limited his screen time and, ultimately, fueled his early death.

The episode can be heard here.

“The Online Movie Show” is produced at the Platinum Wolfe Studios.