Bobby Carroll's Movie Diary

Joe Dante directs Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern and Carrie Fisher in this dark comedy about a group of neighbours who become obsessed with the mysterious weirdos who have just moved into the cul-de-sac.

This one never hooked me as a kid. It is well made but not quite as funny or as scary as I needed it to be. These days Rick Ducommun’s constant irritating presence really grates with me. Shame as The ‘Burbs is Dante and Hanks so should be exactly my thing. I’m giving it a generous pass as it really has all the key ingredients to be one of my favourites even though I have given it a fair few chances.

6

Perfect Double Bill: Matinee (1993)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/ and my own Substack https://substack.com/@edinburghlaughterbulletin

Matthew Bright directs Reese Witherspoon, Kiefer Sutherland and Brooke Shields in this US indie that warps the fairy tale “Little Red Riding Hood” into a Jerry Springer / National Enquirer odyssey.

Scrappy and deranged. This was the first movie I noticed Reese Witherspoon in and she is the anti-Tracy Flick here. It is a really high energy, ballsy lead turn. I kinda wish she still seeked out material with this level of edge. Kiefer is equally good as the big bad wolf. A Ted Bundy inspired monster who grows more grotesque with every appearance. Small portion though. It ain’t a perfect movie. Some of the best moments are in the girl’s reformatory which is a detour from the main hook. But it has a DTV rebel energy that recalls Corman and Meyers without the leering male gaze. This goes for troubling over salacious and is all the better for it.

7

Perfect Double Bill: Freeway 2: Confessions Of A Trick Baby (1999)

Michael Caton-Jones directs Liam Neeson, Jessica Lange and Tim Roth in this Scottish historical adventure.

Dour and damp. Can’t decide whether it is a romp or a tragedy. Pulls away in distracting directions. Tim Roth’s delicious bastard of a villain and some Braveheart-level spikes of violent gore save it. I went to see this originally with my Dad at the multiplex but we are and always will be a Mad Mel house.

6

Perfect Double Bill: Michael Collins (1996)

You can follow me on Letterboxd here https://letterboxd.com/ValVerdeNights/

Spike Lee directs Maxine McNair, Chris McNair and Helen Pegues in this documentary covering the murder of four African-American girls (Addie Mae Collins, Carol Denise McNair, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Rosamond Robertson) in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama on September 15, 1963.

Very sad. Lee gives generous screen time to painting a portrait of each of the children and the inexhaustible grief that follows their horrific deaths. There are some disturbing images in the home stretch that punctuate the message but make this a very tough watch. Don’t let that PG rating fool ya.

7

Perfect Double Bill: Get On The Bus (1996)

George Roy Hill directs Robert Redford, Paul Newman and Robert Shaw in this pure period long con movie.

So relaxed it might as well be horizontal and all the cooler for it. Three elegantly cast star turns, lush depression era locations and styles plus one genuine shock. This is exactly what I want from a Sunday afternoon consuming star vehicle. Just let them juice off each other. Shaw inches it in my book. A prime example of the lost art of grand Hollywood entertainment. De-de-duh-da-doh-dah… RIP Sundance.

9

Perfect Double Bill: Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/ and my own Substack https://substack.com/@edinburghlaughterbulletin

Derek Cianfrance directs Channing Tatum, Kirsten Dunst and Peter Dinklage in this strange but true romance about a charismatic criminal who, while on the run from the police, hides in a hidden space of a toy store and finds love.

An absolute charmer. Capra meets true crime. Sweeter than it is tough. Tatum and Dunst have instant, palpable chemistry together. They should do a whole series of romance flicks like this. Yes, please.

7

Perfect Double Bill: The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

Benny Safdie directs Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt and Ryan Bader in this true story from the early days of the UFC.

Three super strong lead performances. The Rock has never pushed himself like this. His portrayal of Mark Kerr is complex and unvarnished. Blunt is stellar as always. There is a little hidden tell about their mutually toxic relationship. She only ever wears monotone, he thinks she loves colours. Two people living a lie about each other. But the actual surprise is non-actor Ryan Bader. A former MMA star who you root for as everything falls apart with his friend. Safdie makes a Cassavetes / Leigh “actor’s movie” with a A-List stars and first timers. We watched this at an open air cinema in Greece and the weather took a swerve towards Baltic just as the first act started ramping up. So this viewing was a bit of a shivering grind personally and still it shone.

7

Perfect Double Bill: Beyond The Mat (1999)

You can follow me on Letterboxd here https://letterboxd.com/ValVerdeNights/

Paul Thomas Anderson directs Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn and Teyana Taylor in this soap / revolutionary action movie.

He is a cinematic genius so expectations are always sky high. PTA tends to marinate with me over time. The first bite is always a first step with him. Natalie would argue Sean Penn’s hideous Colonel Lockjaw is the main character here and she may have a point. He wants something, has drive, a quest and takes action. Everyone else is a quitter disrupted by his wake of right wing bully boy horny malignant chaos. Penn’s performance is hilarious and chilling. Top villain. The code speak phone call, the third act multistrand chase, anything with Benicio Del Toro’s sensei. Yeah, yeah! Looking forward to watching again and seeing how I truly feel about this. Glad Anderson has finally managed to tame a Pynchon adaptation.

8

Perfect Double Bill: Inherent Vice (2014)

Stephen Poliakoff directs Saskia Reeves, Clive Owen and Alan Rickman in this erotic drama where a brother and sister start an ill advised affair with each other.

Feels very par for the course for this pre Four Weddings / Trainspotting era of British cinema. Funded by telly, dreary and with just enough forbidden nudity to keep you watching. If you can get past the criminal kink then this has some strong sex scenes. Everyone’s performances are a little too oblique but they look nice. Has its moments beyond the taboo bonking.

6

Perfect Double Bill: The Cement Garden (1993)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/ and my own Substack https://substack.com/@edinburghlaughterbulletin

William Webb directs Richard Hatch, Shawn Weatherly and Leif Garrett in this erotic thriller where a rich brother and sister are crazed killers who stalk a phone sex chat line.

Starts very strong with nudity and incestuous psychos. Then it assumes you have blown your load and doesn’t do much else but hangout in nightclub parking lots. There is a Nancy Drew style babysitter who goes from potential victim to Leo Getz. We care far more about her and the shameless baddies than the cop and psychologist who get the spotlight. Hits its contractual runtime and ends abruptly with a whimper. Shaft turns up for one day’s filming.

4

Perfect Double Bill: The Banker (1989)