Tag: vinegar syndrome

Dolly Dearest (1991)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays my dear, and dearest, Enemaniacs!

Now, I’ll admit that B-Movie Enema isn’t that good at celebrating other holidays outside of Halloween. That’s so easy with the type of stuff we cover around these parts. In the past, I have touched upon Christmas and New Year’s. I’m trying. But these holidays are rough to go much further, especially for Christmas, because, before long, I’m going to be starting to run into a lot of movies that a lot of people have already talked about.

But when it comes to Christmas, let’s face it… It’s all about the gifts, right? And when it comes to gifts and Christmas, kids love toys. Many times over, at least once upon a time, little girls would get some sort of large, realistic looking, and EXTREMELY creepy, doll. That’s the angle here, folks. This week, I’m going to dig into 1991’s Dolly Dearest!

Continue reading “Dolly Dearest (1991)” →

Steel and Lace (1991)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

Third review in a week? That’s right! This is one of those years where we get a regular B-Movie Enema review, followed by a Halloween special review, and then, just a couple days later, it’s back to the regular Friday release day!

For this first Friday in November, it’s time to start digging into some of the backlog I’ve accumulated. Most of what’s coming for the rest of 2022 will be made up of movies that I’ve been wanting to get around to, watch, or just write about for some time. So we start by one of the many movies I’ve bought from one of the regular Vinegar Syndrome sales that occur each year, 1991’s Steel and Lace.

Continue reading “Steel and Lace (1991)” →

Alien from L.A. (1988)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

From Bill Rebane last week to Albert Pyun this week.

Welcome to another B-Movie Enema article – the 328th if we’re counting, and… I do. This week, we’re going back to good ol’ Cannon Films to peel back some layers on a peculiar little sci-fi film from the late 80s – Alien from L.A. Now, why is it peculiar? Well, it’s because it doesn’t take itself very seriously. It’s almost a comedy in how our lead character, Wanda Saknussem (what kind of name is that?!?), acts with a nasally, dorky voice. But it’s played by the mega-hot Kathy Ireland, so isn’t that funny?!?

But, more to the point, it’s, yes, an ALIEN from Los Angeles that Ireland is playing, but not in the sense you’d think. No, she doesn’t go to outer space or accidentally stow away on a spaceship or anything like that. She actually gets into the center of the Earth and finds an underground civilization that isn’t too far off from what we have up here. It’s more like when you call someone who immigrates from another country an alien. So, yeah, it is a little different than we normally see, but it kind of makes it a much more interesting and subtle Cannon movie.

Continue reading “Alien from L.A. (1988)” →

Blood Harvest (1987)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

This week’s B-Movie Enema feature is one I’ve wanted to do for a while. Maybe more accurately, the film’s director is a guy I’ve wanted to feature for some time. This week, I’ll be getting into 1987’s Blood Harvest.

Without a doubt, the chief thing that will gain attention will be the fact that this stars the very eclectic novelty musician Tiny Tim. We’ll be getting to Tiny Tim momentarily. However, I would argue that this might just be the most interesting of all the films directed by Wisconsinite Bill Rebane.

Continue reading “Blood Harvest (1987)” →

Wonder Women (1973)

Published on by Geoff Arbuckle2 Comments

Aw man… This week’s B-Movie Enema is a bit of a treat. Now, normally, you’d probably think, especially if you know me or read many of these stupid posts I make, you might think I’d make some sort of joke that I’m watching Wonder Woman and talk all about comic books and how much of a fuckin’ nerd I am, only for it to stop cold, me pretend to have a conversation with the voices in my head or my B-Movie Enema: The Series co-star Nurse Disembaudee or whatever.

You know, this blog’s equivalent to a movie preview’s record scratch sound effect when a dumb joke happens.

But no… There’s more awesome to talk about that shouldn’t get ruined by that dumb gag I often do. Instead, we’re going to get right to the awesomeness that is 1973’s Wonder Women. This stars two big time folks in the forms of Nancy Kwan and Ross Hagen. But also there are a couple other recognizable folks I’ve talked about in the past.

Continue reading “Wonder Women (1973)” →

The Candy Snatchers (1973)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

Welcome to the 299th B-Movie Enema article!

This week, we have something that isn’t too common a thing around these parts – a movie loosely based on a real life event. The Candy Snatchers is a 1973 exploitation cult classic about a trio of kidnappers who snag a girl and ultimately bury her alive while waiting for their ransom to be paid. We’ll go into more about the actual movie in just a moment. First, I want to talk about the real world connection this movie has.

In 1968, college student Barbara Mackle was sick during the 1968 flu pandemic at a motel in Georgia waiting for her mother to pick her up so she could care for her at the family home in Florida. Someone knocked on the door of the motel wearing a policeman’s cap. This man claimed her boyfriend (and later husband), was in a terrible car accident and was injured. Mackle let the “officer” in, but it was actually Gary Krist and accomplice Ruth Eisemann-Schier (posing as a man). The couple kidnapped Mackle and buried her in a ventilated box outside Duluth, Georgia while they attempted to collect ransom. After three days of being buried alive, Mackle was recovered after Krist left a tip with vague directions on how to find her. Aside from pretty bad dehydration, Mackle was alive and went on to show no other ill effects of being kidnapped. Krist and Eisemann-Shier were both arrested later, Esimann-Schier was deported to her native Honduras after spending 4 years in prison and Krist spent the next 40+ years in and out of prison.

While there is much more to learn about the Barbara Mackle kidnapping, one more item of note, Ruth Eisemann-Schier was the first woman to ever appear on the FBI’s Top 10 Most Wanted list.

Continue reading “The Candy Snatchers (1973)” →

Olivia (1983)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

Last week, we talked about an Italian actor-turned-director’s film, this week, we have a German actor who turned into a rather notable director.

1983’s Olivia comes to us from Ulli Lommel. Lommel was an actor in the 60s. In fact, one of his earliest films was one of Russ Meyer’s – Fanny Hill. But he would work many times over with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, who was a particularly controversial filmmaker himself. Fassbinder made a lot of avant garde films and passed away young due to a drug overdose. However, Lommel produced a 1970 movie of Fassbinder’s called Whity a surreal western about a mixed race servant who kills the family he works for and runs away with his prostitute lover. Whity won many awards in the German equivalent of the Oscars.

By the end of the 70s, Lommel moved to America to make American movies permanently. By 1980, he jumped into the slasher craze with The Boogeyman. While the reviews were mixed, and there were many comparisons made to John Carpenter’s Halloween, the movie was a huge success. It was banned in the United Kingdom as a Video Nasty, and was later re-evaluated as a movie that seems to utilize a lot of Lommel’s own fears he had as a child. Boogeyman II was released a few years later. Like the infamous Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2, the sequel uses many flashbacks to the first to help fill its runtime. Boogeyman II is pretty much unilaterally disliked.

Continue reading “Olivia (1983)” →

Penitentiary II (1982)

Published on by Geoff ArbuckleLeave a comment

Let’s go back to the story of Martel “Too Sweet” Gordone for this week’s new B-Movie Enema.

Some time ago, I covered the first story in Too Sweet’s trilogy. This week, we pick up where the last left off with Penitentiary II. As seen at the end of the first film, Too Sweet won the prison boxing tournament and was released. However, there’s a bit of a caveat with that freedom as we’ll see in this week’s sequel.

As with the first, Penitentiary II is written and directed by activist and leading member of the L.A. Rebellion, Jamaa Fanaka. Fanaka would ultimately make three films in the saga of Too Sweet Gordone. However, this film has a couple other notable actors appearing in it.

Continue reading “Penitentiary II (1982)” →