Into forgotten movies from the 70's?

[-=RTFR666=-]

Here's a list, mainly films from the late 70s and early 80s, that I have watched in recent months. Anyone good or bad memories from this list?


Trilogy of Terror (1975)
Three bizarre horror stories all of which star Karen Black in four different roles playing tormented women.
Karen Black, Robert Burton, John Karlen

Awww, yeah! the final scene of the segment with the little voodoo doll creature with pointy teeth is a classic - the best of the three

How about THESE - IIRC, both were made-for TV Movies of the Week:

Gargoyles (1972) - With Cornel Wilde, Jennifer Salt, Grayson Hall (from Dark Shadows), Bernie Casey (as the head Gargoyle!)

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (1973) - With Kim Darby

... and ditto for me re: Time After Time - lot of great quotes in this movie.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080025/quotes

[oilersfan]

Stunt Rock (1978). Australian stuntman travels to LA where he meets up with Sorcery, a band which heavily features magic in their stage shows. Described once by an acquaintance of mind as 'It's like Jackass meets Uriah Heep'. Perhaps it should be forgotten...

[dropforge]

^TCM showed that once. It was a hoot!

[oilersfan]

Yeah, I think it's been on TCM a couple of times since it was released on DVD a few years ago. That's how I was introduced to it. It immediately became among the movies most devoid of plot that I've ever seen, and that's coming from a minor MST3K junkie.

[dropforge]

desmodus rotundus

Don't close the circle!!!

I wish they would show this on cable again. I know it won't get a BluRay treatment. I have a VHS to DVD transfer. Took me back to watching this in the theater in 1979! My brother and I would watch this whenever it was on cable. To this day we recite dialogue from this flick.

Amazon, right? It finally got a legit DVD release as part of a 4-fer, which I saw at Walfart. Like an idiot, I put off buying it.

Here's one of those DVD transfer jobs I picked up on Amazon. Now THIS is a forgotten classic!

[Lopez]

Somewhere in Time, 1980 - Christopher Reeve is a writer in Chicago who uses self-hypnosis to go back in time to find the actress whose very old portrait hangs in a grand hotel - Jane Seymour, Christopher Plummer.

One of my favorite time travel movies, though I must admit it's a bit sappy and can be a tear jerker. Richard Matheson did the screen play based on his book Bid Time Return. One of the very few movies I liked better than the book. Matheson himself is in the movie briefly as the "astonished man." In the beginning of the movie, Chris Reeves as a playwright is given a watch by an old lady, his love interest in the past. When he goes into the past to meet her, he gives her the watch. Where did the watch come from? In the movie and the book, Matheson pays homage to Jack Finney, probably the premier time-travel story writer, as the professor who teaches the playwright his technique of time travel.

[PeterG]

I love sappy tear jerkers though. They also serve a purpose.

[dropforge]

Here's a list, mainly films from the late 70s and early 80s, that I have watched in recent months. Anyone good or bad memories from this list?


Trilogy of Terror (1975)
Three bizarre horror stories all of which star Karen Black in four different roles playing tormented women.
Karen Black, Robert Burton, John Karlen

I LOVE '70s horror, and I LOVE horror anthology films.

Car Wash (1976)
A day in the life of the employees at a Los Angeles car wash.
Franklyn Ajaye, Darrow Igus, Richard Pryor

One of my favorite '70s comedies. Henry Kingi and Pepe Serna are hilarious in this. This movie also marks Tim Thomerson's film debut.

Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
The isolated inhabitants of an abandoned police station are under attack by the overwhelming numbers of a seemingly unstoppable street gang.
Austin Stoker, Darwin Joston, Laurie Zimmer

Another f-ing winnah! A Carpenter atmo classic with a great synth score. And Laurie Zimmer (I believe she played the female cop) was hawt.

Over the Edge (1979)
A group of bored teenagers rebel against authority in the community of New Granada after the death of one of their own.
Matt Dillon, Vincent Spano, Michael Eric Kramer, Pamela Ludwig

Great movie. Definitely could more some more exposure.

Nightwing (1979)
Killer bats plague an Indian reservation in New Mexico.
Nick Mancuso, David Warner, Kathryn Harrold

I saw this in the theater, and I watched it many, many times on cable and network TV as a kid. I need to score a copy of this again. I also read the novel, which has some interesting stuff that didn't make it into the movie.

The Warriors (1979)
In 1979 a charismatic leader summons the street gangs of New York City in a bid to take it over. When he is killed, The Warriors are falsely blamed and now must fight their way home while every other gang is hunting them down to kill them.
Michael Beck, James Remar, Dorsey Wright

Despite what people want to believe, this film has aged quite well. The cast, direction and cinematography are awesome, IMO. (Walter Hill directed 48Hrs a few years later, and seriously, it doesn't look as good.) The expanded soundtrack remaster (with the full instrumental score by Barry DeVorzon) was an auto-buy.

The Exterminator (1980)
A man's best friend is killed on the streets of New York. The man (Robert Ginty) then transforms into a violent killer, turning New York into a great war zone and Christopher George is the only one to stop him.
Robert Ginty, Samantha Eggar, Christopher George

"Oh, if you're lying...I'll be back!" (Cameron ripped that off for The Terminator, which became Ahnuld's signature line.)

[Zeuhlmate]

Quiet Days in Cliche (1970)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfpW1U1csFM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z43WqlEX1o0

[selmer]

A few of my favourite budget films share a theme:

Time After Time, 1979 - which has H.G. Wells (Malcolm McDowell) chasing Jack the Ripper/Stevenson (the ever creepy David Warner) into the 20th century. Jack had used Wells' time machine to escape to the future. Amy (Mary Steenburgen) guides Wells around a20th C. US city...can't remember if it was NYC or SF. I remember a classic exchange though, when Amy asks Wells where he ate lunch or where he had been, and he says "Oh, I found this charming Scottish restaurant down the street, McDonalds"

Somewhere in Time, 1980 - Christopher Reeve is a writer in Chicago who uses self-hypnosis to go back in time to find the actress whose very old portrait hangs in a grand hotel - Jane Seymour, Christopher Plummer.

Biggles, 1986 - WWI fighter pilot James "Biggles" Bigglesworth (Neil Dickson) and 1980s businessman Jim Ferguson (Alex Hyde-White) discover that they can time travel to each other's eras. They try to stop the Germans from changing the outcome of WWI. And Peter Cushing plays an Air Ministry SOE type.

I found Time After Time to be very poor. I expected much more from it. I think it was directed by Nicholas Meyer who also made The Wrath Of Khan which in my opinion is a far superior film in every respect (no matter how different they could be).

On the other hand, Biggles is an exciting little flick with some interesting locations and a fascinating electronic/synth soundtrack. A fairly unusual film as well. There's something unique about it.

[selmer]

For me, it's both 70s and 80s.

The year/decade a film is made, however, says very little really. It is all about the production, screenplay, subject, cast, director etc. For example, all of Richard Curtis's romcoms could have been filmed in the same year, as they are all very similar, all have that same feel good factor, all lightweight and fluffy and good clean family fun

About Time, 2013
The Boat that Rocked, 2009
Bridget Jones - The Edge of Reason, 2004
Love Actually, 2003
Bridget Jones Diary, 2001
Notting Hill, 1999
Four Weddings and a Funeral, 1994

I think it makes a lot of difference when the film was made. Sometimes there is a huge difference in two aspects - the score and the visuals. I think it's very obvious for those who watch a lot of films that Ruthless People, To Live And Die In La or Blade Runner were all made in the 80's. The score is the most obvious indicator and there are so many visual clues as well. I could agree about the other aspects though.

[Zeuhlmate]

Punishment Park (1971)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punishment_Park
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suh2r2ojP3I

[oilersfan]

Anybody into the nunsploitation films which had their peak in the 70s? Among my favorites is Japan's 'School of the Holy Beast' (1974). The cinematography compensates for what some might consider to be the lewdness and 'cheapness' of the typical plot lines of these films.

[Guitarplyrjvb]

How about "The Sentinel"?! Burgess Meredith and the nun guarding the gates of Hell from an inconspicuous NY brownstone. That one creeped the daylights out of me!

[Gruno]

Burnt Offerings (1976) -- this just popped into my head. I haven't watched this one in a couple of decades.

[Sonia_Mota]

One cannot talk about 70's movies and go without mentioning, Clockwork Orange, Monty Python - Holy Grail and also Life of Brian also Superman, Rocky, The Godfather, oh yes and Taxi Driver

[Sonia_Mota]

Angelina Jolie's dad, I forgot his name right now, made a movie called The Champ, it was a great movie when I first saw it, now it's a bit dated and I know the story already but at the time it made me cry that stupid ending.

[Sonia_Mota]

Dirty Harry! I still remember that scene him looking inside the window at couple being frisky with each other, the guy got angry and wanted to spank him until the other officer told him that Clint was a Cop

[-=RTFR666=-]

Sonia, respectfully, the thread discusses forgotten titles of the 70s, not favorite titles of the 70s. Everything you cite so far, while commendable, are hardly obscure...

[Sonia_Mota]

Sonia, respectfully, the thread discusses forgotten titles of the 70s, not favorite titles of the 70s. Everything you cite so far, while commendable, are hardly obscure...

Aha! I see, RTF666 is Clock Work Orange not obscure? Or do you mean Indie Movies? Have patience with me please

[oilersfan]

Aha! I see, RTF666 is Clock Work Orange not obscure? Or do you mean Indie Movies? Have patience with me please

I would argue anything directed by Kubrick would probably not be considered obscure.

[Sonia_Mota]

I would argue anything directed by Kubrick would probably not be considered obscure.

Ah ok bah, I can't think of anything else for a foreigner is a tad obscure but ok yes you are probably right, oilerfan

[-=RTFR666=-]

I would argue anything directed by Kubrick would probably not be considered obscure.

...and I'm sure the resident P-E anal retentives will take me to task for stating this off the top of my head, but IIRC Clockwork Orange's infamous rape scene brought about a high profile and controversy to the film that has endured for decades...so, as Oilersfan states, definitely not obscure...

[Sonia_Mota]

...and I'm sure the resident P-E anal retentives will take me to task for stating this off the top of my head, but IIRC Clockwork Orange's infamous rape scene brought about a high profile and controversy to the film that has endured for decades...so, as Oilersfan states, definitely not obscure...

After the 60's everything went downhill really, google now made it worse in wanting to censor nipples and all. Hey I am not condoning rape or anything like that at all but it's a movie, an integral part of that movie.
Websites depending on google promotion pay even have to sensor the likes of i.e. Roxy Music album Country Life

[Sonia_Mota]

Is Rocky Horror Show obscure enough for this forum?