Hollywoodland, City Council, Blood Bath

HALLOWEEN MOVIE FEST

Possibly inspired by the German expressionism pioneers, the drive-in movie “Blood Bath” is a very pretentious American International effort and worth a view.  A beach scene in this vampire thriller is styled after a Dali painting.

I almost stopped the DVD but said this is crazy enough to be entertaining.  Stars William Campbell and Sandra Knight.  It is in the Comet Channel rotation this month.

REAL ESTATE DILEMA

BLOOMINGTON — Nathan Coulter, my candidate for city council, last night at the forum admitted that he got backing from the real estate lobby to help in his campaign.  If you aren’t attending forums for city councils and school boards, start going now.

I have a long standing distaste for real estate agents and developers who hold public office because they don’t represent social justice issues.  This dates to my days as an Idaho Statesman local government reporter when I wrote an editorial saying the city should name a housewife to the Planning Commission because the architects and developers were setting the agenda.

In defense of Coulter he is campaigning for more responsive government and recognizes that “voices are not being heard.”  So let’s hope that the real estate endorsement is all “eyewash.”

Veteran council member Jack Baloga said the city should increase mailings of it’s newsletter from quarterly to monthly and I think that is a huge waste of tax payer dollars.  Information is now available on the city’s website.  

We need fresh ideas in city government and the candidate for the east side Peter Martin is exciting.  He agrees with me that plans for a new community center should be made with neighboring cities because there is a regional need for this facility.  Martin is a man to watch in Minnesota politics.

Shower down your take on local government. 

LOS ANGELES NOIR

One of the best of the new film noir is the 2006 “Hollywoodland” where Adrian Brody, Ben Afffleck and Diane Lane all give memorable performances.  Like “Sunset Boulevard,” this is a dark tale of desperate living in the Southland and no good comes from the struggle to survive.  

Did Superman TV star George Reeve commit suicide or was he murdered?  The question becomes irrelevant in this tale of deceit and disappointment.

PALACE THEATER REBORN IN ST. PAUL

 

MOVIE HOUSE GHOSTS

The poster from this 1953 B horror movie must have been discovered at the Palace Theater by workers during the remodeling.  To go to the Palace is like digging up a grave — a chilling experience.  See the poster across from the bar in the lobby.

PALACE IS PITCH PERFECT

Even in nosebleed last balcony, the acoustics were perfect for Prairie Home Companion radio show live.  I don’t know how much of the younger audience for PHC appreciated that out of the ruins has come an artifact of a bygone era of vaudeville and much more.

SEE THE STAGE FROM THE LOBBY

The wall separating the auditorium from the lobby has been torn down, so beyond the huge bar you can see the stage and main floor at the Palace.  Emily King and Serena Brook were standout singers Saturday night at the Prairie Home show with MC Chris Thile who is a suitable replacement for Gary with blue grass and folk music prominently showcased.

BEAST IN MANHATTAN

Besides Trump another beast caused havoc in Manhattan in the 1953 scifi thriller “Beast from 20,000 Fathoms” with special effects by Ray Harryhausen.

About 20 minutes into this B&W epic, the beast nibbles on a lighthouse but you have to wait until the last 20 minutes of the movie where New York City residents, including a blind man, are trampled by the merciless dinosaur aroused from his/her sleep by the atomic bomb.

Rick Notch says “Them,” which is on the same disc, is a better film. 

FEELING ANTSY

Our casual acceptance of atomic bombs results in payback of biblical proportions in the 1954 thriller “Them!” where gigantic pantry ants devour people and buildings in Southern California.  

Edmund Gwen (Miracle on 34th St.) is the scientist who provides the narrative on the why and wherefore of the ant explosion while Fess Parker (Daniel Boone) plays a local gone loco over the bug epidemic.

Warner Bros. is the distributor which marks the transition from classic movies to drive in trash for the major Hollywood studios.  They don’t make ‘em like that anymore even with CGI.