Cult-Tastic: Memories And Movies

Atlas (1961)

The Pit And The Pendulum (1961)

The Intruder (1962)

The Terror (1963) 

Von Richtfothen And Brown (1971)

The Student Nurses  (1971)

Night Call Nurses (1972)

Young Nurses (1973)

A Cry In The Wild (1990) /// 

Atlas (1961) Far more entertaining than the final film is the background behind Roger Corman's adventure in Greece to realize a sword and sandals epic. Budget gone, extras minimal, script thrown out. The miracle is an almost cohesive story in colorful locations.

The Pit And The Pendulum (1961) With a literate script, opulent sets and heady widescreen photography, Corman's gothic Poe is a gloriously unhinged tale of guilt, expertly directed and featuring a towering Vincent Price as well as the horrific titular torture device.

The Intruder (1962) Blistering, cautionary tale of fiery William Shatner's invasive racist arriving in a southern town to incite hatred and violence against the proposals of school integration. Unrelenting and single-minded, Corman's visual and dramatic control is compelling.

The Terror (1963) What started as two day shoot using sets from The Raven became a piecemeal production directed by Roger Corman, Francis Ford Coppola, Monte Hellman, Jack Hill and even star Jack Nicholson. Boris Karloff features in a fascinating mess.

Von Richtfothen And Brown (1971) Handsomely mounted World War I tale of rival pilots, the German Red Baron and his eventual Canadian nemesis. The dogfights are excitingly realized and Roger Corman directs with style, as well as providing a piercing anti-war intelligence.

The Student Nurses (1971) At first glance a superficial romantic drama told with a rough feel and periodic nudity, events also touch on 70s social issues, both personal and political, including abortion rights. Unconvincing characters and narrative either provocative or amateurish.

Night Call Nurses (1972) / Young Nurses (1973) With the template now set, the few narrative strands become less about social issues and more concerned with the visceral. Increasingly outlandish and dispiriting, a strange series of films never to be rebooted.

A Cry In The Wild (1990) After a plane crash lands in the Canadian Rockies, a teen must find a way to survive bears. Attractively shot with a low-key sense of realism, it lacks real character development and danger, though success as family entertainment meant three spin-offs.

Cult-Tastic: Survival

Battle Of Blood Island (1960)

The Big Doll House (1971) 

The Big Bird Cage (1972) 

Avalanche (1978) 

Jackson County Jail (1978) Ultraviolet (1992)

After Shock (aka Quake) (1993)

Fire Over Afghanistan (2003) /// 

Battle Of Blood Island (1960) After a clumsily shot (and tacked on) opening beach massacre, an involving if minor survival tale on a remote island during World War II as two US navy survivors fight nature and enemy. Joel Rapp directs a blunt Philip Roth short story with a surprise ending.

The Big Doll House (1971) Launching the dynamic Pam Grier and women in prison films of the 70s, Jack Hill directs a sadistic, propulsive tale, which revels in mistreating its female cast before empowering them with a violent escape. Torture, showers, food and mud fights dominate.

The Big Bird Cage (1972) Follow-up to Doll House that replays most of the story beats, but allows for a looser style to accentuates the comedy, especially between Pam Grier and Sid Haig, and opens up more expansive visuals. Relentlessly unsubtle, cynically designed.

Avalanche (1978) Roger Corman comes late to the disaster genre but adds nothing fresh as a motley bunch gather for a Colorado ski resort opening, melodramas interrupted by the titular event. Rock Hudson and Mia Farrow are lost amid poor VFX, though end sequence build suspense.

Jackson County Jail (1978) Escaping an unhappy marriage, a hopeful Yvette Mimieux finds herself abused by backroads America and on the run with cynical criminal Tommy Lee Jones. A tight script performed and directed with gritty verve, as well as a grim social critique.

Ultraviolet (1992) Inspired by a vacation in Death Valley, Roger Corman conceived the idea of a couple terrorized by a maniac. Unfortunately, narrative thrills are stretched to breaking point, even as filmmaking smartly creates claustrophobia in open landscapes.

After Shock (aka Quake) (1993) During the 1989 San Francisco earthquake, Roger Corman sent a crew to get through security and grab footage. Though the story of demented neighbor Steve Railsback terrorizing neighbor Erika Anderson was an afterthought, it's quite an effective little thriller.

Fire Over Afghanistan (2003) Shot in Bulgaria with a story Roger Corman originally conceived with Robert Towne, budget and narrative stretched to breaking point as haunted Blackhawk pilot and gutsy journalist crash and fight for survival. Visually and emotionally flat.