Without warning I picked up Tuesday morning's St. Pete. Times, and opened up page 1B of the Metro/State section (which covers entertainment - the first section I look at), only to find a small article about the death of "Halloween" co-writer Debra Hill. It hit hard. I've seen Ms. Hill on various interviews (usually spotlighting "Halloween"), and she seemed like the girl-next-door, and the friendliest of persons. Debra Hill was one of the great ones. A true horror hero/movie maverick who, with her then-boyfriend John Carpenter, helped usher in an era of genre films (along with 77's "Star Wars") which reigned the movie screens until 1986. As a lover of horror, it was easy and appropriate to cheer on Ms. Hill and Carpenter as they bucked the odds, making "Halloween" the biggest indie film success of the era (until "The Blair Witch Project" and "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding" came along in the late '90s).
Interesting to note that Debra Hill was born in Haddonfield, New Jersey, which Halloween fans will note is the name of Michael Myers' (fictional) hometown in Illinois. Did anyone ever notice in "Halloween 2" that MM walks past houses with Bird of Paradise plants in the yard? Didn't know they grew in Illinois! So much for California mimicking the Midwest!
Debra Hill contributed immeasurably to the genres of horror and sci-fi. My God, just look at her resume; it reads like the story of every Crazed Fanboy's life who grew up in the late '70s/early '80s: "Halloween" (1978, producer), "The Fog" (1980, producer), "Escape from New York" (1981, producer), "Halloween 2" (1981, producer), "Halloween III: Season of the Witch" (1982, producer), "The Dead Zone" (1983, producer), "Escape from L.A." (1996, producer), "The Fog" (2005, producer; remake). In honor of Ms. Hill, let's agree to forget the duds: "Head Office", "Clue", "Adventures in Babysitting", and "Big Top Pee Wee".
Ms. Hill will be sorely missed by this Crazed Fanboy and others of like mind. Thanks for the memories.
Movies Are Becoming Television
"Back in my day..." as my complaining rant begins, going to the movies meant you were typically going to see things you couldn't on the boob tube: nudity, cursing, gore, violence, mondo, action, etc. Nowadays, it seems like movies are nothing more than extended TV shows. Generic entertainment for the most generic of people:
 "The Pacifier": An overtly calculated attempt to maneuver Vin Diesel's career to the family-friendly crowd. I guess the studios figure if they can lure in the nuclear family, it's better selling four tickets at a shot than two. Let's hope Cecil B. Demented feels the urge to track down every existing print of this "recommended for all audiences" drek and takes a flame thrower to them. |
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"Hitch" - A big comedy with big TV names in it. Mainstream comedy is best relegated to the boob tube. |
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"Because of Winn-Dixie" - Yet another family film that belongs on the Hallmark Channel. |
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"Are We There Yet?" - Another movie that looks like a (*groan*) family sitcom. |
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"Million Dollar Baby", "The Aviator", "Son of the Mask" - Are these really worth plunking down $8 for?!? |
...and coming soon: "Robots", yet another herky-jerky visual feast with A-list talent voicing lame jokes.
I can't even see a horror film without it being a "supernatural thriller"!
MegaCon 2005 Photo - Debbie Rochon and Andy
Here's a photo of Scream Queen Debbie Rochon and myself that I wasn't able to deliver to Nole for last week's Oddservations. Enjoy!
"Oddservations" is ©2005 by Andy Lalino. The Oddservations banner is a creation of Andy Lalino. All other graphics are creations of Nolan B. Canova. All contents of Nolan's Pop Culture Review are ©2005 by Nolan B. Canova.
