September 24, 2001

  • Media Log: 9/24/01

    The other day I rented three movies. Over the past few nights I’ve watched ‘em.

    The Italian Job

    Pure escapism. Early Michael Caine, in a heist/car chase movie featuring three Austin Minis being driven through malls and museums and the sewer system of Milan. The Britain vs. Italy nationalism, the automotive fetishes, and the oversexed hero make this not just a guy movie, but A Guy Movie. Great ambiguous ending.

    Quatermass And The Pit

    More escapism. ‘Quatermass…’ was originally a British four-hour made-for-TV movie from 1958, shot and broadcast live. My local independent video store is cool enough to have both the original and the Hammer Studios remake, which was released in the US as ‘Five Million Years To Earth.’ I’d rented the TV version a few months back, so I got the Hammer version this time.

    An excavation crew for a new subway line find a strange metallic craft in the clay under London. Is it an unexploded V-bomb from WWII, or does it have more mysterious origins? (Yeah, actually, it could. And though other SF has posited alien origins for human ability, none are quite so creepy as this flick.)

    This movie is just about the best thing Hammer made.

    Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb

    Plus ca change, plus ca meme chose.

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