Carnival of Souls (1962)

Talk about spooky! This low-budget black-and-white movie from 1962 is just that. It's not really a horror film, but more of a good old-fashioned 'scary' movie. Candace Hilligoss plays Mary Henry, a church organist that is riding with two women in a car and they accept a challenge to race across an old wooden bridge. They crash over the bridge into the water below, and three hours later (think about it) Mary Henry comes up from the water. She continues on to a new town to start her new organist job, but keeps feeling as if she is being stalked by a Ghoul Man (played by Herk Harvey, the writer and director of this great cult movie). Mary seems to have no friends, no family and just seems cut off from the rest of the world. My kind of gal! She moves into a boarding house, run by an old lady with bad nerves. Too bad Xanax wasn't around then. Her lecherous neighbor (Sidney Berger) has the hots for her, but Mary is too caught up in being stalked by the Ghoul Man to give him a tumble. Mary's condition worsens, and a few times she senses that other people can't see or hear her. She is drawn to an abandoned pavilion, and can't seem to understand why. I so want to reveal the ending, but I won't. I will say you probably won't see it coming, although there are clues to it throughout the movie. This was filmed in Kansas for a reported budget of about $30,000 and made millions on the drive-in circuit over the years. It's become one of my favorite cult movies, watch it and it just might become one of yours.

All That Heaven Allows (1955)

I can't believe that in all my years of being a movie fanatic, I've not watched this movie until now. This 1955 Technicolor masterpiece by Douglas Sirk is just the type of movie I love. Jane Wyman plays Cary Scott, a wealthy widow who is more lonely than she wants to admit. She has plenty of money, her country club social life, two grown children and a somewhat steady beau named Harvey. She becomes friends with her younger gardener, Ron Kirby (Rock Hudson). She finds herself falling in love with him, even though she knows the opposition she will face from her children and her snobby friends. She agrees to marry him, but when she tells her children they at first assume she's going to marry Harvey. They are very upset with her, and things go downhill from there. Cary tries to introduce Ron to her society friends, with a bad result. She accuses him of refusing to see her side, and they part ways. Cary begins to realize that she has made a mistake, especially after her children both leave home. Her daughter gets married, and her son goes to study in Paris for a year. She visits her doctor complaining of headaches, and he tells her she is punishing herself and advises her to marry Ron. She goes to see him, but leaves before talking to him. Ron falls off a cliff (okay, not a large one) but after finding out he is hurt, she rushes to his side, never to leave again.
Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson show in this movie that they were much more than actors, they were Movie Stars. I can only imagine what it would be like to see this great film on the big screen. I loved this movie. The Technicolor photography is crisp and the colors bright. The acting is great, Jane Wyman showing what a terrific actress she was, and Rock Hudson is really good as a man who is happy with himself, and doesn't care about money or social standing. I couldn't find anything I didn't like about this movie, it was that good. Even the fake snow looked real, ha ha. Agnes Moorehead plays Cary's best friend Sara, and although she is skeptical of Cary's relationship with Ron, she sees that her friend is truly in love. This movie is a thousand times better than most of the shit that is shown today in theaters. This is the kind of movie I will definitely watch again and again. Ah, Technicolor, you make me so happy!

Single Room Furnished (1968)

Single Room Furnished is Jayne Mansfield's last film, and to me it's her best acting. True, this a very low-budget movie, but it's not as bad as most critics say. Jayne plays three roles that are actually the same woman. The first is Johnnie, a young girl who meets Frankie at a high-school dance and soon marries him. They live in a run-down apartment building in the Bronx, the single room furnished of the title. One day Johnnie awakens to find Frankie gone, and she never sees him again. Johnnie colors her blond hair dark and assumes the identity of Mae, who becomes pregnant by a man she meets at her waitressing job. He abandons her, and her life becomes worse. In the last segment, she is Eileen, a prostitute. She returns to her single room furnished to find Billy there. He declares his love for her and wants to marry her. He is a sailor and has run away from his ship, stealing several things as he leaves. He buys Eileen a ring, and Eileen is caught up in her fantasy of her old love. She soon begins laughing at Billy, calling him 'monkey', the childhood nickname he hated. Eileen appears to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and continues laughing at Billy until he shoots himself. All of these stories are told by Pop, the caretaker at the apartment building. He tells Maria, a young girl who wants to be just like Eileen, the true story of Johnnie, Mae and Eileen, and Maria realizes Eileen is someone to be pitied, not admired. While there are a lot of scenes that drag and some seem to be added to fill out the length of the movie (Jayne died in a car crash during filming, perhaps that's why) this is still a very watchable movie that shows that Jayne Mansfield did have a good bit of acting ability. It's a shame that she never got to show more of it.

Title to Murder (2002)

I so wanted to like this movie. It stars former Brady Bunch star Maureen McCormick as Leah Farrell, a bored middle-aged title examiner in Massachusetts who stumbles onto to a murder involving some land, organized crime and an elderly lady. I always thought Maureen McCormick was a better actress than she was given credit for, but I don't think this movie helped her career any. This is truly one of the worst movies I have ever seen. But it's not her acting that is bad - quite the contrary, she's the best thing in a horrible film. It's (as usual) the script. Even Stephen Furst's (of National Lampoon's Animal House) direction is not to blame, he too makes the most out of an atrocious script. Co-starring Christopher Atkins as a deputy DA who helps Leah with her investigation into the murder, this could have been a good Lifetime-type movie. I will say that the lighting in most of the scenes reminded me or a porno movie, or a home movie at best. It's that bad. The total budget for this clunker couldn't have been much. There are several strange characters that do absolutely nothing for the plot (Leah's grandmother's bingo buddies are especially irritating) and while things pick up a bit at the ending, by then it's way too little, too late. Please someone in Hollywood, give Maureen McCormick a script worthy of her so she won't have to act in any more pieces of shit like this. She deserves better, and so do we.

Away We Go (2009)

Sometimes, I'm just so right about a movie. I had a feeling I would love this movie, and I did. I loved Maya Rudolph on SNL, and I had a feeling she would be great in a dramatic role, and she is. She plays Verona, who lives with her boyfriend, Burt (John Krasinki). At the beginning of the movie, she discovers she's pregnant, and the rest of the movie is about Burt and Verona trying to find a good (not perfect, but good) place to raise their child. Verona's parents are dead (we never find out how they died, only that they died when she was 22, I was guessing a car accident) and Burt's ditzy parents (the great Catherine O'hara and Jeff Daniels) are moving to Belgium. Burt and Verona visit relatives (her sister, his brother) former co-workers, college friends and his 'cousin' before winding up at Verona's childhood home, which she still co-owns with her sister. This movie isn't perfect, but it's better than the majority of shit out of DVD today. Burt and Verona are a smart, sweet couple who truly want to be good parents. They worry that they might turn out like the majority of parents (that you and I) see all of the time: not really bad parents, but not very good ones, either. There are some truly funny parts, but to me this was more of a drama than a comedy. Either way, I really enjoyed watching it. Both the leads give outstanding performances, and the rest of the cast is good as well. This is an unpredictable movie, in that the characters act like real people and not stereotypes. I loved it that in most of the scenes Verona is driving, even though she is six months pregnant (but looks as if she is about to give birth). I got the feeling watching this movie that Burt and Verona would turn to be super-parents, who put the needs of their child above their own. If only more parents would do that. This is a great, not well-known 'slice of life' movie that is not be missed.

Come Back to the 5 and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean

This is the type of movie that has 'cult movie' written all over it. To say that I truly love this movie is a HUGE understatement. I first caught it on cable in the late 80s and instantly fell in love with it. This is such a bizarre, but well-written, acted and directed film that it couldn't help but become a favorite of cult movie fans. Everyone in the movie gives a great performance and I'm surprised that this movie didn't any Academy Award nominations. Members of a James Dean fan club in McCarthy, Texas reunite on September 30, 1975 for the 20th anniversary of his death. There's Cissy (a WONDERFUL performance by Cher), the town sexpot who has always bragged about her big boobs, but is hiding the secret that she lost them to cancer and now wears falsies. Mona (the unique and always worth watching Sandy Dennis), the shy, strange girl who claims James Dean fathered her son when she was an extra in Giant, and finally Joanne (played to perfection by Karen Black), who left town years ago as Joe and has undergone quite a change - a sex change! Other members of the club are Stella Mae (Marta Heflin) and Edna Louise (played by future Oscar winner Kathy Bates). Juanita (Sudie Bond) is the owner and manager of the town's Woolworth's 5 and Dime. Mona's son is referred to several times but is never seen. The women talk about their lives and reminisce about James Dean. Several scenes are shown in flashback, but the odd thing is that in the flashback scenes, the actors look exactly the same and the scenes in the present. But somehow it works. The dialog is so good in this movie, some of it I actually have used in my life. At one point, Mona tells Cissy that she feels something for James Dean so deep inside of her that can't get the words to come out that express how she feels. I know I feel that way a lot, about various things in my life. My love of movies like this being one! There's practically no action, but a lot of interesting, meaningful conversation in this great movie. By the end of the movie, I think a lot of viewers will feel kind of tired because some of the scenes are so emotionally wrenching. I can honestly say that is one of my favorite films of all-time, and I could watch it over and over. I do know that I have probably watched this movie over 100 times. The final few seconds of the movie (which I won't reveal) are just so poignant. I think the theme of this movie may be that some things that happen in life are so meaningful, there should be a way to keep them with us forever. But, alas, there isn't. Please, if you love movies, and especially if you love cult movies, go rent this and watch it. It's an absolutely wonderful example of film-making at its best.

Return to Macon County (1975)

Return to Macon County was made in 1975 and is a sequel to the previous year's Macon County Line, which is another of my favorite films. This one was also written and directed by Richard Compton. Then unknowns Nick Nolte (as Bo) and Don Johnson (as Harley) play best friends heading to California to race their car. Harley is the mechanic and Bo is the driver. Their plans take a detour when they meet Junelle (future soap star Robin Mattson), a waitress with a good heart but definitely in her own world. Junelle accidentally spills food on a customer and Bo goes to her rescue. Bo and Harley attempt to leave the diner before the police arrive, but find Junelle (with suitcase in hand) wanting to leave with them. They reluctantly take her along and they are soon on the run from the police after Junelle tries to force store owners to give her money (I think that's called robbery) so Bo and Harley can use it for their entry fee at the drag race when they all get to California. The tension grows between the two friends as they realize that Junelle is coming between them. One police officer, Sgt. Whittaker, makes it his personal mission to catch the trio, with tragic results. The movie ends with Bo and Harley on foot, discussing how they build their next race car.

I don't think this movie has nearly the cult following of MCL, but in its own way it is a great movie. Sure, the plot is a little far-fetched, but it has some good scenes. Not long after the boys meet Junelle, the three stop in the woods and while Harley goes to town, Bo and Junelle hang around a ruins of a house and talk. It's one of the best parts of the movie. I also like the way Junelle leaves Bo when she realizes that they are just too different to stay together. She catches a ride with a guy in a convertible and as the car is pulling away, Bo starts to run after her (possibly regretting her leaving). I think Return to Macon County is actually a better movie than Macon County Line in a lot of ways. It is definitely work a look as an example of a good low-budget, little-known film.