#larry cohen

[hyperchondriacsong]

Special Effects (1984)

[marypickfords]

God Told Me To (Larry Cohen, 1976)

[talesfromthecrypts]

The idea is to make it real. As totally real as I can get it.

Special Effects (1984) dir. Larry Cohen

[weirdlookindog]

God Told Me To (1976)

[thefugitivesaint]

'The Stuff', ''Starburst Magazine'', #83, 1985 Source When I was 10 at the time this B-movie emerged from the ground, I had no idea that it was intended as a criticism of Reagan era American consumerism and, more specifically, the failure of federal regulatory organizations like the US Food and Drug Administration due to regulatory capture by the very industries the FDA was charged to oversee (also due to the hostility towards such agencies held by the Reagan administration*) it's a cheap amalgamation of films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Blob and various 50s scifi films. Sure, the acting is both undercooked and, paradoxically, overly exaggerated and the script is less than robust but it's still worth a watch as a satire. The ads for 'The Stuff' within the film are presented straight and are hardly different from advertisements for actual products. In a way, 'The Stuff' is a prime example of iconoclastic, low-budget filmmaking with a message. It would be a great pairing with John Carpenter's 'They Live' given their shared anti-capitalist sentiment (although, to be fair, Carpenter has been open about being perfectly happy to make money). I was recently reading about the director of 'The Stuff', Larry Cohen and came across the following in 'Larry Cohen : the radical allegories of an independent filmmaker', from 1997: "Robin Wood hails Cohen’s work for suggesting potentials for an alternative society devoid of all the oppressive social and gender boundaries affecting human beings today. Larry Cohen’s film and television works are critical of the oppressive nature of human relationships....The Stuff represents an ironic elaboration of the old saying “You are what you eat.” However, the film’s absurd premises really reveal the dangers of American consumerism. Business interests and the Food and Drug Administration collaborate in merchandising a dangerous substance on the market to make a profit. The killer yogurt from outer space destroys people from within. Its victims become mere shells housing a killer substance. Cohen’s message can be read literally as well as metaphorically. The Stuff is an attack upon a corrupt society that often deliberately disseminates food or drugs without even testing them properly." (pgs 29-30)

In summary, the execution of the premise is lacking but still fun. I must rather enjoy 'The Stuff' given how I periodically post about it. *fuck Ronald Reagan. Forever.

[esqueletosgays]

A RETURN TO SALEM'S LOT (1987)

Director: Larry Cohen Cinematography: Daniel Pearl

[theersatzcowboy]

Bruce Campbell in Maniac Cop (1988)

[gotankgo]

1985

[oldshowbiz]

Kliph Nesteroff: There was a sequel to the blaxploitation movie Black Caesar called Hell Up in Harlem. Both were directed by Larry Cohen for American International Pictures and they came out one after the other. You and James Brown did the soundtrack to the first film, but not the second. Edwin Starr from Motown did music for the second film. How come...?

Fred Wesley: Yeah, yeah. That’s a good story. We finished the movie music. James Brown told me to take it out to California. We were in Augusta when we finished it. We packaged it up. It was on a two-track tape and I took it to Larry Cohen. Larry listened to it and he shook his head. He said, “This ain’t funky. It’s not funky enough.” I said, “What?” It was very funky. He didn’t know funk from stunk. Anyway, I said, “Okay, well, you tell James Brown it's not funky enough. I’m not going to tell him it's not funky enough.” Phoned James Brown up, “I said Larry Cohen says it ain’t funky enough.” And I handed the phone to Larry Cohen. Larry turned about four shades of red and blue. He was saying, “Yeah, but… I mean… yeah, but… I… but I…” He handed the phone back to me. You could hear over the phone, “[screaming][growling].” I picked it up, took it back to Augusta, Georgia, and James Brown put the music out. It turned out to be The Payback – his funkiest album and the only million seller James Brown ever had.

Kliph Nesteroff: You were hired to do the music for Hell Up in Harlem and the music was turned down.

Fred Wesley: Yes. We did it. We did all the music! Larry Cohen said it was not funky enough (laughs).

[moviesiverecentlywatched]

916: A Return to Salem's Lot [1987]

Don't let his mother find out.

Halloween Horrorfest 2024:

31 Days of Stephen King in Chronological Order:

20/31

[horrororman]

The Stuff was released on June 14, 1985(US).

#TheStuff

#LarryCohen

#horror #scifi

#sciencefiction

#comedy

[titleleaf]

- Jesus. That's real. - What makes it real? - Because I know it happened. - Would you know if you hadn't seen it on the news?

Special Effects (1984) dir. Larry Cohen

[marypickfords]

God Told Me To (Larry Cohen, 1976)

[spookydestinycat]

Poll: You're favourite of these masters of horror?

Note: I don't condone Landis as a person... but it would have seemed strange to not include him here.

[80smovies]

[schlock-luster-video]

On October 21, 2022, It Lives and It Lives Again were screened as a double-feature on TCM Underground.