#Ted Kotcheff

[oldshowbiz]

The director of Weekend at Bernie's was barred from the United States in the 1950s for belonging to a socialist book club.

[surfingkaliyuga]

“First Blood” Paul Mann 2021

[sonjackcarl]

[80smovies]

[brokehorrorfan]

Outpost 512 has released a Weekend at Bernie's 18x24 screen print by Brandon Schaefer. Limited to 50, it costs $50.

[lobbycards]

Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?, German lobby card #1. German theatrical release 1979

[andrzejklimowski]

Wake in Fright (1971) dir. Ted Kotcheff

Japanese B5 Chirashi

[angfdzfilm]

Rambo (First Blood), 1982, Ted Kotcheff

This movie is about a guy who has so much PTSD after the war in Vietnam that he decides to declare war on small town America. Yes, really. If you had asked me what I thought Rambo was about, "Fuck Cops" would not have been an answer.

This movie is fucking amazing. It is a great action movie, it is an ugly portrait of the american justice system, and it is a moving drama. All of the side characters are interesting, the villains are fascinating and Rambo? Rambo...... is going to get you.

[doctorbleed]

Ways the movie First Blood promotes positive, non-toxic masculinity:

Emotional openness: Rambo breaks down crying at the end of the movie due to his trauma. This isn't treated as a joke, and Rambo isn't humiliated or treated as less of a man for it. His emotions are understandable, validated and respected.

Conflict Resolution: By the end of the movie, rather than a massive gunfight, Rambo and his commander negotiate peace. The plot is resolved not by domination, but by cooperation.

Violence against police officers: A fun and productive activity Rambo engages in.

Machine Guns: Machine guns are cool and Rambo fires a big one at some point that has a totally badass bullet trail cuz its like spewing hundreds of rounds per second or something.

Abandoning modern society for life in the woods: As Ted Kaczynski outlined in his manifesto "Industrial Society and Its Future" the...

[onscreen-heartthrobs]

Gary Bond in Ted Kotcheff’s “Wake In Fright” October 8, 1971.

[letterboxd-loggd]

Fun with Dick and Jane (1977) Ted Kotcheff

February 4th 2024

[oldshowbiz]

Ted Kotcheff, the Canadian filmmaker who made First Blood (1982) and Weekend at Bernie's (1989), worked at Norm's Open Kitchen.

The Toronto greasy spoon was owned by his father. It was located one block east of the notorious Fillmore's.

“I worked at my dad’s diner, Norm’s [Open Kitchen], at the corner of Dundas and Pembroke,” said Kotcheff. “The place was full of lowlifes and colorful characters. One of them was an aging leftie who wore a beret and a cape … He pressed me to join the Left Wing Book Club … It was a kind of Socialist Book of the Month Club … During one of the book deliveries, the postman spoke to my mother and reproached her for allowing her son to belong to a ‘Commie front’ book club. I suppose this should have alerted me to the fact that I was being snooped on by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police…”

[schlock-luster-video]

On May 12, 1985, First Blood debuted on American television.

[sonjackcarl]

[thatcinemascreencapguy]

Wake in Fright (1971) directed by Ted Kotcheff

[brokehorrorfan]

Apollo Gallery has released First Blood 24x36 screen prints by Tony Stella. The standard version (left) is limited to 175 for $79, and the variant is limited to 95 for $89, or you can get both editions together for $157. They'll ship later this year.