Title:
My Cousin Vinny (PG-13)
Written by:
Dale Launer
Directed by:
Jonathan Lynn
Starring:
Joe Pesci as Vinny
Marissa Tomei as Mona Lisa
Fred Gwynne as Judge Chamberlain
Ralph Macchio as Billy
Mitchell Whitfield as Stan
Austin Pendleton John Gibbons
Lane Smith as Jim Trotter III
Bruce McGill as Sheriff Dean

By Scott Knopf from He Shot Cyrus

Pre-screening memories: Take one part Family-Friendly Home Invader, one part Rookie Martial Artist, and one part George Costanza Fantasy Object and you’ve got the formula for a movie Young Scott would have drooled over. And did. No distinct “initial Cousin Vinny screening” memories to speak of but I have plenty of memories of the film since then. My favorite Vinny memory is when I talked My Conservative Mother into watching this R-rated film with me with promises that probably sounded like “There’s nothing bad in it, maybe a little language.” My Conservative Mother enjoyed the movie then but denies it now.

Pesci and Tomei’s characters are incredibly unforgettable. The thick accents, Years after having seen it last, the most memorable scenes are undoubtedly the most mundane. Discussions on regional mud or how to properly prepare grits not only make for humorous dialogue but each play a pivotal role in the court case at the center of the film. Macchio, on the other hand, plays a not-so-memorable character whose friend and co-defendant is even more so. But they all serve their purpose and at the end of the day, you’ve got a movie that Scott, young and old, drools over.

New memories: The writing is so tight! Every little scene you think is unimportant or menial turns out to be a part of this gigantic puzzle. Vinny is right up there with that episode of “Law & Order” where those people stumble upon a dead body at the beginning. Herman Munster (his human name escapes me) is fantastic as the Southern judge with a distaste for shenanigans.

And of course, this movie is famous for the Oscar award that followed. The Academy and I haven’t always seen eye-to-eye (Diane Lane in Unfaithful. Anyone? Anyone?) and with all the trash talk aimed towards them over Tomei’s win, I figured that the list of her competitors would be shocking and undeniably more deserving of statues. That’s what I figured until I read this list:

• Miranda Richardson – Damage
• Joan Plowright – Enchanted April
• Vanessa Redgrave – Howard’s End
• Judy Davis – Husbands and Wives

First, I have no idea who Miranda Richardson is.

Second, never heard of Damage either

C. Joan Plowright was great as Mrs. Wilson in the Dennis the Menace movie.

D. What’s Enchanted April?

Fifth, I won’t way anything bad about Vanessa Redgrave but Howard’s End is a 140-minute period piece romance taking place at the turn of the century. Which century, you ask? Not the twenty-first, I can tell you that.

E. Judy Davis? For Husbands and Wives? Thanks for trying, maybe next never.

So, these were the women who everyone thought should beat Marissa Tomei? The early 90s were an odd time for us all but this is just silly.

Download Natsukashi’s ‘My Cousin Vinny’ podcast right here

or make your case right on the site bu listening below:

Our featured guest: Director Jonathan Lynn

We once again welcome Jonathan Lynn, who actually knows a thing or two about law, having earned his degree years prior to his involvement in entertainment. Here, he chats about the casting process of Vinny, the prospective of an Englishman directing culture clashes between the States’ North and South, who was originally supposed to play Vinny, and the various rumors that have surrounded the film.

Find out about Vinny’s legacy as well as Lynn’s favorite scene in this particular podcast, and we are thankful to Mr. Lynn for hanging with us once again.

Title:
Lionheart (1990)
Rated: R
Directed by:
Sheldon Lettich
Written by:
S.N. Warren (story)
Jean Claude Van Damme (screenplay)
Starring:
Jean Claude Van Damme as Leon
Harrison Page as Joshua
Debra Rennard as Cynthia
Lisa Pelikan as Helene
Ashley Johnson as Nicole

 By Count Vardulon

Pre-screening memories: I was old enough, when seeing Lionheart for the first time, that I can’t call it one of the most important formative movies of my childhood. True, I wasn’t a fan of martial arts films before seeing it, and afterwards I became something of a devotee of Van Damme’s, but the most vital part of the film for my developing fandom was that it reinforced the lesson, first taught by Tim Curry’s performance in the movie Clue, that following an actor from project to project would

A: Never disappoint, because if nothing else, you at least get to see a performance by someone whose work you enjoy, and

B: could possibly lead to discovering something fantastic.

Which is my circuitous way of saying that my passion for the TV show Sledge Hammer! led directly to my lifelong love of watching people kicking other people in the face. Still inconsolable two full years after Sledge Hammer’s cancellation, seeing Harrison Page show up in television ads for upcoming film ‘Lionheart’ made me determined to see the film, which was rated a forbidding R, ensuring that I wouldn’t make it to the theatres.

When I finally saw the film on video it didn’t disappoint. Not only was Harrison Page fantastic in the film, but the action was unlike anything I’d seen in the Arnold Schwarzenegger movies that dominated my childhood, or even the occasional episode of Kung Fu. After all, who needed a machine gun when you could just spin really fast and crack someone across the jaw with your heel? A lifelong fan of the genre was born, as well as a devotee of Van Damme’s ‘all downhill from here’ ouevre.

New memories: I’m frankly amazed by how good this movie was. Not having seen it in years, I’d assumed that it was going to be one of those embarrassingly Natsukashi moments (that’s how you use that word, right?) where I’d created an epic action extravaganza in my mind that never actually existed – this was certainly not the case. The action certainly wasn’t up to modern choreographic standards, but everything else about the film was far better than I’d remembered.

That’s right, what impressed me most about the film was that it worked, first and foremost, as a drama. Sounds crazy, right? Van Damme’s a pretty limited actor, especially at this fresh-faced stage of his career, before that personal and professional setbacks that would reduce him to the withered husk of ‘JCVD’, but damn if it doesn’t work in this part, as a simply good, almost naïve man struggling his way through the seamy world of underground fighting. He’s helped on this journey by the even-better-than-I-remembered-it performance of Harrison Page, who provides perhaps the most raw, vulnerable, and downright emotional performance I’ve ever seen in an action film. The way his Joshua starts out sad, defeated and desperate and gradually finds a kind of purpose and nobility in training Leon is a great character arc, and it brings him to a moment, right at the end, which is unlike anything I’ve seen in an American action film.

The other thing that amazed me about the movie (other than the fact that it’s a semi-remake of Midnight Cowboy – Who knew?) was the aspect that likely affected me most as a youngster, and that’s the utter contempt that the film shows for the upper classes who are funding the brutal no-holds-barred fights. If the film’s battles aren’t the most spectacular thing ever, their settings are absolutely stunning, and steeped in subtext. Van Damme’s first professional fight is in a parking garage beneath an office building, literally taking place in the underbelly of New York’s wealth-obsessed establishment. From there the action moves out to LA, but the satirical settings don’t stop – there’s a huge pool in a beachside mansion, a squash court, and a ring constructed from the luxury automobiles of the elite who have come to watch men beat each other nearly to death. This all leads up to the final battle which takes place well within the closed walls of the upper-class, a tennis court around the back of a palatial estate. The entire film works as an attack on the kind of people who commoditize human beings, and if the message gets a little heavy-handed at times (and it does), at least the movie was trying to say something important, unlike just about all of its brethren.

I loved Lionheart as a child. As an adult, crazy as it may seem, I respect it.

Download Natsukashi’s ‘Lionheart’ podcast right here

Or dropkick below and listen on our player

Our featured guest: Harrison Page

Fascinated by film at an early age, Harrison sought the Hollywood dream after serving in the military.

He began, as most starting in the business do, by snagging small roles on television, film and stage. And looking back, has amassed a resume in an astonishing amount of popular shows, including C.P.O. Sharkey, Webster, Hill Street Blues, Fame, 21 Jump Street, The Wonder Years, Quantum Leap (which earned him an Emmy nod), Melrose Place, Ally McBeal, ER, JAG, and Cold Case, to name but a few.

But it was his role in the cult classic series Sledge Hammer! (yes, the exclamation point was in the title) that cemented him into certified pop culture status. In it, he played Captain Trunk, the Pepto-Bismal-swilling, beleaguered head of a police department featuring the titular vigilante office (played by David Rasche). (Ed. note-  If you are not putting this series on your Netflix queue this very moment, we don’t want to know you.)

Harrison spoke about his time spent on the set with a young Van Damme, his fond memories of Sledge, and the wisdom he’s amassed in his four decades of Hollywood. Thanks, Harrsion, from your pals at Natsukashi.

Film:
Nightbreed (1990)
Rated: R
Written and Directed by:
Clive Barker
Starring:
Craig Sheffer as Boone/Cabal
Anne Bobby as Lori
David Cronenberg as Dr. Decker
Charles Haid as Cpt. Eigerman
Hugh Ross as Narcisse
Doug Bradley as Dirk
Simon Bamford as Ohnaka
Kim Robertson as Babette

By Count Vardulon

Pre-screening memories:  Like many teens, I went through a ‘horror’ phase at around age 13 (that it hasn’t ended yet isn’t the point). It was a common enough occurrence, the kind of thing where you start looking for things to define your rapidly-approaching adulthoood, and set yourself apart from the childish things you imagine you no longer have a use for.

 Horror movies are an incredibly socially acceptible way of going about this. Choosing to be scared is something that seems a lot more dangerous than it actually is to a young teen, but has the benefit of being somehting that a child would never do.

I worked my way quickly through the standards of the genre, your Halloweens, Fridays, and Nightmares while remaining largely unimpressed. These are the things that caused me to cover my eyes when the trailers came on in movie theatres? It seemed so ridiculous – they weren’t all that bad. Once the first tier was done with my friends and I started getting a little more random with our choices, which is how I ended up seeing Nightbreed. And wow, was I not prepared for Nightbreed.

The ads has made it seem like just another monster movie, but it certainly wasn’t that – from the early scene of David Cronenberg’s Leather Scarecrow slaughtering a family (including a child!) to a man tearing most of the flesh off of his head with his finger knives, to a trip to a haunted graveyard full of monstrosities that ends abruptly with the main character’s death at around the 20-mintue mark, there wasn’t a moment in the first act of this movie that didn’t have me fascinated and terrified and on the edge of my seat. I’d discovered that horror really could freak you out, and I wanted more of it. This is the movie that led me to find out more about Clive Barker, and see Hellraiser in a local repetory theatres… but that’s a story for another time.

Most recent screening: You may have noticed that in the above recollections of my first viewing I didn’t mention anything after the first twenty minutes of the movie. In point of fact, I didn’t have any memories of the rest of the film, save for a slaughter in a hotel and Cronenberg getting crucified at the end. There’s a reason for that.

Nightbreed is an ungodly mess for most the running time. After the masterfully-paced opening the film bogs down with many, many scenes of lengthy exposition and random nonsense about the monster world and their Jesus-style fated savior. Cronenberg’s always a pleasure to watch, but when he hooks up with a bigoted survivalist sheriff and a group of like-minded rednecks the film goes from being a relatively effective horror film to a supremely muddled holocaust allegory that leads to an overextended war scene that teaches us a valuable lesson – that the Jews would have had a better time of it had there been a few unstoppable armoured killing machines on their side. Of course, that’s true of anything, really.

That’s not to say that the movie is a complete disaster – there’s a really interesting theme in the film about finding your true face – one character has to pull of his skin to discover what he really looks like, and Cronenberg has to put on a mask to reveal himself. And there’s so much random craziness that it’s hard not to recommend a viewing of the film – the parade of monsters that appear in Midian are impressive, featuring more unique creatures than anything this side of Labryinth. Also on the down side, though, is the film’s score, which is wildly inappropriate for the content of the movie, and borrows far too heavily from Danny Elfman’s other major film of that year, Batman.

If nothing else, seeing this film again succeeded in putting me in touch with the younger, more naïve version of myself that was actually capable of getting scared by movies. It’s also reminded me that I really should start reading Clive Barker’s books, since he seems to have quite an imagination on him, that one.

Download Natsukashi’s ‘Nightbreed’ podcast here

or enter the underworld to listen on our on-site player right here:

Our featured guest: Simon Bamford

Actor/writer/director Simon Bamford is quite the study in contrast. On-screen, he’s collaborated with pal Clive Barker on four occasions — the first two Hellraiser films, Nightbreed and, most recently Books of Blood.

You would hardly recognize Simon as the rather rotund Cenobite Butterball in Hellraiser, a role that he would reprise in the film’s sequel, Hellbound. And even though he would portray another otherworldly creature in Nightbreed, he did not have to endure as many hours in the makeup chair.

Most recently, Bamford was in Barker’s Books of Blood, a piece of fiction that is very personal to him, as he reveals on the podcast. He is currently working on the Nazi zombie film, The 4th Reich with makeup legend Tom Savini.

On stage, Bamford has portrayed everyone from lead Seymour Krelborn in the first UK tour of Little Shop of Horrors to Pip in the Stockholm production of Great Expectations (a role which one him an Actor of the Year award.

Simon also travels the horror festival circuit with his Cenobite buds, including Pinhead himself, Doug Bradley. We are grateful that Simon joined us from acrosss the pond to recollect his time spent on the set of Nightbreed.

For more on Simon, check out his site, SimonBamford.com.

Film:
Demolition Man (1993)
Rated: R
Directed by:
Marco Brambilla
Written by:
Peter M. Lenkov
Robert Reneau
Starring:
Sylvester Stallone as John Spartan
Wesley Snipes as Simon Phoenix
Sandra Bullock as Lenina Huxley
Nigel Hawthorne as Dr. Cocteau
Benjamin Bratt as Alfredo Garcia
Glenn Shadix as Associate Bob

Denis Leary as Edgar Friendly
 

By Scott Knopf from HeShotCyrus

Pre-screening memories: The passion for Demolition Man was born out of a sense of Dredd to a young Scott. Judge Dredd, actually. The futuristic film (that was actually released after Demolition Man), co-starred a certain object of Scott’s affection — Rob Schneider. Kidding, it was Diane Lane, who Scott well documents on his blog.

The interest in that film led him to check out this misunderstood slide of cinematic cheese when he was but a young lad and he was soon taken by its addictive qualities.

Though it is hardly considered a masterpiece, it is a film that never takes itself seriously, knows what it is and what it offers and proceeds to do just that.

But it started as quite a different film and we were fortunate enough to be joined by co-star Glenn Shadix, who not only informs us about the metamorphosis, but give us plenty of backstage stories to help us all fully appreciate the film.

Demolition Man is a bit of a cheat by Natsukashi standards, in that we typically like distance between viewings of our films, but Scott could not help jump at the chance to find out more about a favorite in his film library.

Dowload Natsukashi’s ‘Demolition Man’ podcast right here

or get those joy-joy feelings right here on our site by listening below

Our featured guest: Glenn Shadix

Glenn returned to Natsukashi fresh from his visit from the Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theater Festival to recollect on the rather colorful filming of this Sylvester Stallone comedic sci-fi flick, in which he played Nigel Hawthorne’s somewhat faithful charge, Associate Bob. As always, Glenn adds much to our understanding and appreciate of the film in general and his role in specific.

He speaks with reverence of his co-star, the late Nigel Hawthorne, the last-minute switch we provided Sandra Bullock one of her earliest on-screen roles, and what it was like to work with Stallone, Snipes and producer Joel Silver, known for such blockbuster action flicks as Lethal Weapon, The Matrix, and Die Hard.

You can certainly keep up with Glenn on his personal site, GlennShadix.com.

Thanks again, Glenn. We send many joy-joy greetings your way. Be well.

Film: Popcorn (1991)
Rated: R
Written by:
Alan Ormsby (screenplay)
Mitchell Smith (story)
Directed by:
Mark Herrier
Starring:
Jill Schoelen as Maggie
Tom Villare as Toby
Derek Rydall as Mark
Dee Wallace as Suzanne
Tony Roberts as Mr. Davis
Ray Walston as Dr. Mnesyne

By the Divemistress from

Pre-screening memories: When I was a kid we had First Choice on our TV.  First Choice was awesome— 24 hours of movies, seven days a week. I was introduced to a lot of films via that movie channel, many of which I shouldn’t have seen. Not at that tender age. And so it came to pass that I sat down to watch Popcorn. I think the synopsis in the movie guide read something like “people killed at movie theatre.” 

Whatever, I was sold.

In point of fact, the only thing I actually remember about the story is that people are killed in a movie theatre. I vaguely recall something about the final girl being the killer’s daughter, or object of obsession. I don’t even know if I was scared, or if I actually liked the movie.

I do remember Popcorn’s setting, though. The film takes place in an old theatre which a group of film students have rigged to create an immersive B-movie watching experience; they shock the audience with electrified seats, they release stink bombs, they have a huge paper-maché ant that descends from the ceiling. I guess this part really stuck with me because it sounds like a lot of fun. Other things that stuck with me are the killer’s weird looking face and a dress that doubles as an iron maiden. That sounds less fun.

New memories: I was wrong about the ant. It was a mosquito.

As I said, I really can’t comment on my initial reaction to Popcorn—whether I found it campy or legitimately scary. The film, it is safe to say, is total camp. And though it stops short of being offensively recursive, the camp is reflected in the quality of the movie marathon being shown in the film. Equally ridiculous but also unbelievably pretentious is “The Possessor”, an old art-house film that lays the foundation for Popcorn’s plot.

I had completely forgotten about that.

The killer’s weird looking face was even more impressive than I remembered. And I wasn’t too far off on the villain’s motivations, which was surprising, given how little I actually remembered about the plot, but kind of vindicating as well.

Download Natsukashi’s ‘Popcorn’ with Derek Rydall podcast here

or, grab an audio box of hot-buttered nostalgia right here…

__________________________________________________________________________

Our featured guest: Derek Rydall

Derek played Mark, the accident-prone punching bag-of-a-boyfriend to Popcorn’s lead, Maggie.

Though he was fresh-faced in the film, Rydall was no stranger to the genre, having starred in both Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge (with a young Pauly Shore) and Night Visitor.

During the shooting of Popcorn, Derek had a life-altering experience that led him on a different path in Hollywood. Derek shared his tale with us on this very episode, so listen up, punks.

As a screenwriter, screenplay consultant, and script doctor, he has been on staff for Fox (Wildforce Rangers) and Disney, developed projects for RKO, United Artists, Miramax, Fine Line, Universal, Saturn (Nicolas Cage’s company), Deepak Chopra, Wildrice, Longbow, and the creators of Air Force One and Ghost. Additionally, Rydall script doctored on the feature films Diamonds and No Turning Back.

Rydall has worked one-on-one with numerous screenwriters, independent producers, and executives from around the world; and has sold, optioned, or been hired to write over 20 film and TV projects.

Rydall is the author of “I Could’ve Written a Better Movie than That!: How to Make Six Figures as a Screenplay Consultant – Even if You’re Not a Screenwriter,” and “There’s No Business Like Soul Business: a Spiritual Path to Enlightened Screenwriting, Filmmaking, and Performing Arts.”

Rydall’s website www.ScriptwriterCentral.com, is geared toward assisting screenwriters in taking their scripts to the next level, and training the next-generation of script consultants to analyze scripts deeper, broader, and clearer than every before.

Rydall’s website, www.EnlightenedEntertainer.com is geared toward empowering artists and entertainment professionals to walk a more purposeful and prosperous path in show business.

For those who want to keep up with all things Rydall, you can check out his personal site at DerekRydall.com.

Thanks, Derek for sharing your tales behind the scenes of Popcorn, as well as your path to your current endeavors and we wish you all the best.

Film: Rockula (1990)
Rated: PG-13
Directed by: Luca Bercovici
Written by: Luca Bercovici and Jefery Levy
Starring: Dean Cameron as Ralph LaVie
                   Toni Basil as Phoebe LaVie
                   Thomas Dolby as Stanley
                   Tawny Fere as Mona
                   Susan Tyrrell as Chuck  
                   Bo Diddly as Axman

By Count Vardulon (naturally!)

Pre-screeening memories: Rockula doesn’t exactly fit in neatly with the other movies I’ve covered for Natsukashi – they all represented formative experiences in my developing love for film, while I first saw Rockula when I was already out of my teens.

I don’t think Rockula is any less important than those films, because while those other films shaped my tastes in one way or another, Rockula is the first film I’d ever seen that seemed to have been made specifically for me.

Why does it seem that way? Simple – everyone has a unique sense of humor that values different things (wordplay, slapstick, irony) at different levels, and are generally too complex to explain in a sentence or two. If you want to gauge a person’s sense of humor, there is a simple method available – ask them what the single funniest situation possible is. While it’s not going to give you a complete understanding of that person or their humor, it’s a great first step.

If ever asked that question, I have an answer ready: The funniest thing possible is having a civil conversation with a monster. So it’s no surprise that Rockula would come in high on a list of my favorite films of all time, since it’s the story of a forlorn vampire trying to find love in the world of the Los Angeles club-rock scene.

The strange part about the movie is that, living in Canada, where the film was apparently never released, I’d never heard of it when it just sort of turned up one day. My writing partner and I had just started working together, and we had a habit of renting a few odd movies and brainstorming as we watched them. One time he came over announcing that he’d found my “favorite film that I’d never seen.” Since that’s essentially a challenge, we watched the film immediately, and I discovered that he was completely right. It wasn’t just that the movie was delightfully absurd, or the fact that I’m always impressed by original screen musicals, what captivated me most about the film was how confident it was. Almost as if the film had no idea how crazy it was. The premise is so odd that it’s nearly impossible to imagine it being presented without constant winks and nods at the audience, but there aren’t any to be found.

It’s an utterly absurd premise delivered with a completely straight face, and that’s basically my favorite type of comedic film. The fact that I had never heard of the movie before that day was proof enough that it hadn’t been a big success, but no matter how few people saw it, there was an audience for it.

This led me to believe that no matter how crazed or insane a movie might be, as long as it was made well, there would always be a group of people who would appreciate it, seek it out, and support it. With this in mind, my writing partner and I pledged to work on personal projects, eschewing tradition and trying to offer our own unique comedic vision to the world. And while that’s been a professionally disastrous decision, it’s also incredibly creatively fulfilling, and I can credit it largely to how impressed I was with Rockula.

Tragically, I was only able to see the movie that one time. The video store it was rented from went out of business soon after, and I was unable to find another copy anywhere, nor was it available on DVD. Never before had I regretted not illegally copying a videotape. It lived on in my memories, though, and in the constant references that my writing partner and I make to ‘Rapula’.

New memories with recent screening – I’d go so far as to state that every bad thing the internet has given the world has been equally weighed, if not outbalanced, by the boon that is Youtube. Essentially operating as an internet nostalgia repository, I can’t count the number of childhood memories it’s managed to refresh (although, to this day, it fails to offer the theme song from Captain Redbeard)

No, it wouldn’t be until the advent of Youtube years later that I would be able to see it again. And the film would prove to be everything I remembered it to be and more. Sure, it was full of my kind of comedy, but beyond that, I was surprised by just how well-made a movie it was. If that sounds like I’m damning it with faint praise, I don’t intend to, it’s just that so many of these ‘nostalgia’ movies turn out to have such glaring flaws that I wind up questioning my taste.

Rockula, on the other hand, succeeds at everything it sets out to do. Not only is it a wonderfully fun vampire romantic comedy, but in the part I’d completely forgotten, the songs are just great. They all fit the period and tone of the film perfectly, and are hummable in their own right. I can’t remember the last time I wanted a soundtrack this badly, but one was never released. Luckily there’s the internet, where the songs can be found in their film versions, but it’s a poor substitute for a studio soundtrack.

Just as watching the film on Youtube is a poor substitute for being able to buy this movie on DVD. Look on any shelf in the DVD section of a electronics store (that’s where people buy DVDs now, right?) and you’ll see a few dozen movies that aren’t as entertaining or as high quality as Rockula. There’s no excuse for this movie not being out there, and I’m officially making it my quest to get this movie released on DVD. I’m not really sure what form that quest is going to take, but I’m very passionate about it. Which makes this the second time I’ve been inspired by Rockula. Can there be a better grounds for recommending a film?

Also, Rapula name-checks William Saffire. If you were ever looking for the definition of ‘reaching for a rhyme’, that’s it.

Download Natsukashi’s ‘Rockula’ podcast with writer/director Luca Bercovici

or rock out right here with our little on-site player:

Our featured guest: Luca Bercovici

Luca is the mad genius who put the rock in Rockula as its writer and director. The multi-talented artist got his first cinematic break with Demi Moore in the 3-D horror flick Parasite. As a writer, Luca began in 1984, crafting the first of the Ghoulies films. The film was the highest-grossing independent film of 1985 and, like the Ghoulies themselves, went on to multiply three sequels.

After Rockula fell victim to the changing hands of studios in 1988 and unjustly fell off the radar, Luca went on to direct the thriller Dark Tide, and then revisited the horror genre with The Granny with Stella Stevens. Luca continued to alternate in front of and behind the camera, starring in mainstream fare such as American Flyers, Clean and Sober, K2 and Drop Zone, while helming The Chain, Convict 762 and Luck of the Draw.

Luca now splits his time between the states and Budapest, Hungary, where he serves as Head of Production for Raleigh Film Budapest.

He has some exciting news of future projects (hint: Mickey Rourke reprising a beloved role) which he divulges to the Natsukashi listeners and we thank Luca for recounting his time spent creating the cult film that is begging for a DVD release, Rockula.

For those interested, you can view Rockula chopped up into nine parts on Youtube. The first segment is below. If you have an interest in getting this film a proper DVD release, drop us a line and we will make sure it gets in the proper hands.

Crank up the speakers and enjoy…

Film: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (PG-13)
Directed by: Fran Rubel Kuzui
Written by: Joss Whedon
Starring: Kristy Swanson as Buffy
                   Luke Perry as Pike
                   Donald Sutherland as Merrick
                   Paul Reubens as Amilyn
                   Rutger Hauer as Lothos

By Action Flick Chick

One of the first things I remembered from Buffy the Vampire Slayer was that vampires were getting their asses kicked and I freakin’ loved it. It was an added bonus that all of the damage was being done by a highly capable female. That was the cherry on top of the pile of dead vampires. This flick is the first movie I saw that had a lead female role doing all the butt kicking and saving the day, which is another reason why it stands out to me even after all these years. She wasn’t the damsel in distress needing to be saved. Luke Perry was the damsel needing saved this time, and I loved it.

I wanted to be like Buffy, a strong female saving all the men from vampires. Of course, my skill and coordination at the time had other ideas, but I was still a little sad when I never got to try to protect my school from the undead. Oh well. Other than that, I didn’t remember much else from the movie.

There was one scene that stuck with me throughout the years, though. It was at the end where Buffy is at the dance. The vampires are trying to come in and, naturally, suck everybody’s blood. Everyone is screaming in terror, even the boys, when Buffy grabs a bag of stakes, the frilly part of her dress gets ripped off and she goes outside to face the vampires alone. That scene is the embodiment of the Buffy character for me. She wasn’t afraid, she was on an vampire ass-kicking mission and everyone else was content to hide behind her. What more can you ask for?

New memories: After watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer again, it was somewhat different from what I remembered as a little kid. So it was not nearly as full of action as I thought it was; however, it was a lot more focused on empowering women that I’d ever realized. For instance, there’s a part where a guy grabs Buffy’s butt in the hallway at school and she totally takes him to the floor and tells him to not ever do that again. He was shaking in his awful 90’s sweater. How many times has this happened in a movie and the woman wasn’t able to do anything about it? There were a lot of little things like that that I really enjoyed this time around.

Overall, even though this flick is not as full of action as I remembered, it’s got so many other aspects that keeps it on my list of favorite movies.

Download the Buffy the Vampire Slayer podcast here

or unearth out media player and listen on the site:

Our featured guests: Dennis Murphy, Hank Carlson

Dennis Murphy: Dennis has produced features and television for over 20 years. Fans of this site might recognize such titles as Friday the 13th Part 2 (with our buddy, Stu Charno!), Re-Animator, Dolls, Powder and Blind Fury among others.

On television he served as producer for the pilot episode of a little hospital drama known as ER, as well as the long-running family drama Wildfire.

He has shot all over the U.S. including New Mexico, California, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Arizona, Texas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Nevada, Washington, Connecticut, Florida, Puerto Rico and New York. Outside of the U.S., he has shot in Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain and Italy.

He is a member of the Directors’ Guild of America (as Unit Production Manager and Director).

Awards include the Humanitas Award for “Wildflower”, the George Peabody Award, Norman Felton Producer of the Year Award, and an Emmy nomination for “E.R.” (the pilot episode).

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Hank Carlson: Hank was the man who literally added bite to all the background characters in Buffy, as we was responsible for vamp-ing up the cast at a lightning speed. It is a skill he has honed over the years in various independent films, such as Doppelganger with Drew Barrymore, Mindwarp with Bruce Campbell, Jigsaw, and has several other works wrapped and ready for a distribution deal (including Wicked Wood, pictured).

Carlson’s prowess for prosthetics took his career on a different trajectory of late. To find out just what it is, I guess you will have to listen to the podcast, now, won’t you?

A big Natsukashi thanks to both Buffy backers who returned to the set in their mind and recalled their time making the film that started an industry.

Film: ‘Tremors (1990)
Rated: PG-13
Directed by: Ron Underwood
Written by: S. S. Wilson, Brent Maddock
Starring: Kevin Bacon as Val McKee
                   Fred Wardas Earl Bassett
                   Michael Grossas Burt Gummer
                   Reba McEntire as Heather Gummer
                   Charlotte Stewartas Nancy Sterngood

By Action Flick Chick

Pre-screening memories:  I love, love, loved Tremors as a little kid. It had everything a girl could want in a movie: big monsters eating people and then people turning the tides and blowing up the monsters. Awesome! It did scare me just a tiny bit… enough that if I had to go outside I would make sure to run to the destination and get off the ground as soon as I could. I didn’t reallybelieve that Graboids existed but I wasn’t going to take any chances… y’know, just in case.

New Memories: Tremorsholds up very well over time. Partly because they didn’t use all that CGI back then and partly because the acting is all so good. I mean, I really believe all the actors in this film. There is not one person who you think, “Hmm, that person’s not so great.” Even the kids who populate Perfection are good. And, since the Graboids were man-made and not CGI, they look great even today, and not cheesy or outdated. So, after watching Tremors again, I still love this movie. This is hands-down my favorite movie to watch over and over and over again.

(Ed. note: We would like to welcome Action Flick Chick to the podcast and look forward to future contributions from this intrepid blogger as she recalls films that made her the action-lovin’ gal she is today.)

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Download the ‘Tremors’ with Charlotte Stewart podcast

Or dig a little deeper and listen to it right here:

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Our featured guest: Charlotte Stewart

During the course of the Tremorsfilm trilogy, Charlotte went from mousy mommy to a Graboid-killin’ machine who saves the day. Charlotte’s career also mirrored this spectrum, playing the schoolmarm Ms. Beadle on Little House on the Prairie for five years while also playing mother to a mutated, reptilian-like ”skinned goat” in the cult classic David Lynch film, Eraserhead.

She would again work with the director in his series  Twin Peaks and continued to act in both film and television.

Charlotte also hung with such musical icons as Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Jim Morrison back in the day. Does she hide some heretofore unexplored musical talent? You’ll just have to hear the podcast to find out…

It may be under construction right now, but you can check out some exciting things at Charlotte’s site, LiquidButterfly.com, where she will features some of her own fashionable creations (with proceeds going to fight breast cancer).

Thank you,Charlotte, from the gang here at Natsukashi, for heading back to Perfection with us for gabbin’ about Graboids.

By: Eric Filipkowski

Pre-viewing thoughts: Ah, the 1980’s. Where the bad guys were bad and the good guys always had a snappy comeback.

I’ve never met a ski instructor in my entire life, but thanks to Ski Patrol,I hate all those rich jerks… with their cocky, entitled, attitudes, their frosted blonde hair and their fuscia, day-glo sweaters! You think you’re better than me?!

I’m honestly not sure what to expect from this movie. When I was a kid, we had an 8mm camcorder and my brother and I figured out that we could tape movies we rented at the video store using the rca inputs. This was one of those movies, so realistically, I’ve probably seen this movie 20-30 times, though not once in the last 15 years.

I mean, it’s just one example in a long line of “Animal House on <x>” movies that were so popular in the 80’s; this one being “Animal House on Skis“, of course.

It’s got to be cheesy, right?

I came into this thinking I was gonna blow this thing to pieces with my Hollywood Hipster irony bazooka, but the more I dwell on it, the more I start to think that I actually like this movie.

In a non-ironic way!

I mean, here are some highlights that come to mind:

• Some rich white guys frame the lone Mexican ski patroller (George Lopez, in one of his first roles) for shoplifting in a hardware store. They tell the owner that they think “the ethnic fellow” is pulling a “Frito Bandito number”.
• There’s a scene with an obese woman of ambiguous sexual orientation taking a dump with her pants around her ankles when the bathroom door gets blown off.
• The ski patrollers roofie a tweener (a guy who’s really short but not quite a midget) and when he’s passed out, they stick him in a slightly scaled down, exact replica of his bedroom, to trick him into thinking he’s grown into a giant over night. Then, when his head bursts out of a Santa’s Village house they’ve stuck him in, they all laugh and take pictures.

I mean, that’s funny, right?

Sure, there’s some awful parts, too. Most of these revolve around the black guy from Punky Brewster and his magic powered, yet super cheap-looking karaoke machine that we’re supposed to believe has enough power to have an outdoor concert to, complete with sing-along, ski jumping exhibition, lip-syncing and dancing. But not everybody hates that stuff as much as I do.

If that’s not enough, it’s got Martin Mull, Ray Walston and the guy who created Freaks and Geekswho’s not Judd Apatow!

At the very least, I think this experience will have shown me that I should have an open mind.

Post-viewing impressions:

Well, my sneaking suspicion was right! I love “Ski Patrol“!

Sure, the middle drags a bit, but the only real fault with this movie is timing.

It is a quintessential 1980’s movie that just happened to come out right at the end of the 1980’s. I really believe that’s why this thing isn’t a bigger hit. You can’t even buy it on DVD, unless you get a DVD copy of a VHS tape, complete with tracking issues, like I did. (Thanks, Rob!)

Plus, I think my mom threw out all my old 8mm tapes!

Everything I thought was going to be funny was, plus there was a whole bunch of stuff I forgot.

The farting dog. The runaway wiener shack. The small tree that whacks unsuspecting skiers in the nuts.

And how could I not remember the stereotypical Japanese tourists taking rapid-fire pictures with their cameras! That could have been the next “Dong, where is my automobile?” if not for the fact that this movie was released at a time where people wanted things like moral ambiguity, tough decisions and realistic, emotional reactions to actual problems. What’s funny about that? Well, just watch something like “Reality Bites” and I’ll tell you what: NOTHING.

Instead, you have a movie rife with cliches, casual racism and slapstick comedy. All the stuff you find now in a hit show like Family Guy.

So, while you might find this movie dated, I say it’s actually ahead of it’s time and that’s why I give it my famouse, patented thing that I just made up: 7 comedy snowmobiles out of 8.

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Download the podcast here: ‘Ski Patrol’ with Roger Rose
Or stay right here and have a listen:

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Our featured guest: Roger Rose
As the star of Ski Patrol, Roger had many memories to share about the making of this film, but Roger also dips into his long career in show business, including his past roles in front of and behind the camera. Though you may have missed his role here or in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, chances are pretty good you have heard his voicework on television. In both animated shows (in which he has reached god-like  status is geek culture for a reoccurring role in The Tick) or in countless commericals and trailers for both film and tv, Roger has been omnipresent. His love for animation and comics has spilled over into producing Comic Book: The Movie:

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Our featured contributor: Eric Filipkowski
Actor, writer, comic, cartoonist and blogger extraordinaire, Eric can be found at his home at Hollywood Phony as well as various other web and television endeavors. We are extremely excited to have Eric reflect on his cinematic memories here at Natsukashi.


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Title: Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991)
Rated: R
Directed by: Simon Wincer
Written by: Don Michael Paul
Starring: Mickey Rourke as Harley Davidson
                   Don Johnson as The Marlboro Man
                   Daniel Baldwin as Alexander
                   Vanessa Williams as Lulu Daniels
                  Tom Sizemore as Chance Wilder
                   Jordan Lund as ‘The Stagecoach Driver’
Tagline: “When the going gets tough…the tough take the law into their own hands”

By Rob R.

Pre-screening memories: The ’50s had their Brando and Dean, the ’60s had their McQueen, the ’70s had Burt Reynolds, Clint Eastwood, and, to a lesser extent, Chuck Norris (sorry, Norris nerds).

But once the ’80s bounced in, things changed. It was tough for a young lad on the scrawny side to envision himself as any particular big-screen action star. All of the big box-office heroes inflated to such bulbous sizes, there were no legal ways to replicate their physique. And besides, I really did not want the veins in my forearms to resemble garden hoses under my skin.

Schwarzenegger, Stallone, Van Damme, Bosworth. These monsters of muscle paraded across the big screen like Macy’s Day floats. And for a kid who could barely hold a tether, it was all rather disheartening. It’s not to say that I did not enjoy these films, it’s just that I could never envision that my scrawny sack of skin could ever inflate to their levels of heroics.  (Sure, I had Dr. Jones and his archaeological adventures, but there were only three films of his released over the entire decade!)

These guys were loud and proud. All seething sinew and bulging biceps. Where were the svelte rebels? Where was the smoky mystique and normal physique of James Dean? The ornery playfulness of Reynolds? The normal human build of McQueen?

There was an actor emerging in this decade who seemed to rumble in like my cinematic savior. I first caught Mickey Rourke on HBO during a broadcast of Rumble Fish as the tortured Motorcycle Boy. He had but a few whispered lines, but each one mattered: “Blind terror in a fight can easily pass for courage.”

Yes, I thought. That’s me! I’m blinded by terror in fights! If he threw in a line about wetting one’s shorts, it would have fit to a ‘T.’

I loyally followed Rourke as the years progressed, though most of his films I had to sneak in late-night viewings of, like 9 ½ Weeks and Angel Heart. This was the guy responsible for the on-screen deflowering of the eldest Cosby kid! I’m sorry, but you do not get much cooler for a child of the era.

I can honestly say that I learned about international relations and poetry through his next films, Barfly, based on the life of street poet Charles Bukowski and his IRA assassin in A Prayer for the Dying. My devotion remained as his box-office dropped: the criminally underrated Homeboy (which he co-wrote, and featuring a killer Eric Clapton soundtrack), Walter Hill’s lovably grimy Johnny Handsome, the minor-but effective Desperate Hours, the sun-drenched sexcapades of  Wild Orchid (OK, perhaps even I cannot defend that one, but it still convinced me to buy the sexy soundtrack in the hopes that merely playing the CD for girls might get me laid. It didn’t.).

But for many, Rourke’s big-screen kiss-off was his role in Harley Davidson and Marlboro Man, which teamed him with Sonny Crockett.. er, Don Johnson in this wildly erratic mash-up of science-fiction, western, buddy flicks and motorcycle genres.

And for all the TNT Roadhouse devotees, you can have your Zen-spouting mullet master, give me Rourke and Johnson zipping down a desert highway on a hog and roughing up a gaggle of clichés dressed as bar patrons any day. I would call this a guilty pleasure, but I don’t even feel that guilty about my love for this film.

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Our featured guest: Jordan Lund: Star of stage and screens both big and small, Mr. Lund had one of the film’s most memorable lines (you’ll have to listen to the podcast to hear what that was!). Roles include such projects as Lonesome Dove, Doc Hollywood, The American President, Law and Order, Firefly, ER, and The Bucket List, among many, many others. We were very fortunate to snag Mr. Lund to join us for this episode and please visit his site, as well as go check him out on stage in California in Circus Theatricals’ presentation of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, February 21 through April 26 at the Odyssey Theater in Los Angeles. (You can get tickets here.)

Mr. Lund has many a story to share about the filming of Harley Davidson, as well as reflections of some of his other memorable screen roles. Thanks, Mr. Lund, for your time and tales. We welcome you back any time you wish to join us!

You can hear us all hit the open road right here, or shift down a little on the throttle and listen to the podcast below.