Teen Wolf

Teen Wolf stars Michael J. Fox Family Ties, Back to the Future) as highschool spaz Scott Howard. Scott plays on the losing basketball team, is in love with super popular Pamela Wells (Lorie Griffin of Cheerleader Camp), and hangs out with ultra cool Rupert ‘Stiles’ Stilinski (Jerry Levine of Iron Eagle). Scott is slow to learn that his best friend Lisa ‘Boof’ Marconi (Susan Ursitti of Defense Play) has a crush on him.

Scott wants Pamela, the most popular girl in school. However, he has a problem; she doesn’t notice him. She has a totally jock boyfriend and knows that she is the bomb. What Scott needs is a way to stand out. How convenient that he is an heir to the family curse; turning into werewolves. Armed with a life changing transition, he finds himself big man on campus. He gets the girl, the basketball championship, and tons of respect.

Soon Scott learns that success, the girl and life as a top dog isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.  

Great lines include:

“I was hoping it (the werewolf curse) would pass you by”

“Well dad it didn’t pass me by. It landed on my face”

“Listen son. You're going to be able to do a lot of things the other guys aren't.”
“Oh yeah, like chase cars, and bite the mailman?”

Awesome sunglasses, 80’s jackets, vests and parachute pants bring Teen Wolf back to the best of times.

I give Teen Wolf 3.5 alligators for script, clothes and teen angst. The bogus soundtrack is a drawback.

Teen Wolf is rated PG

They Live

They Live

I saw John Carpenter’s They Live for the first time while stationed in Wildflecken, Germany. I watched a lot of movies back in the day. It was a good way to blow off steam at the end of a long work day when I wasn’t seeing the sights or otherwise touring the landscapes and scenes of Europe.

They Live has no famous 80’s background music. Filmed during what I call the black hole of music in 1988, I doubt if the sound track would be as good as that of Breakfast Club, St. Elmo’s Fire, or Footloose. Instead this move was tracked with the electronic sounds of old Carpenter himself. The only real pop culture was probably just the same ol’ LA scene as in most movies of the time; palm trees, cityscape and flannel shirts.

Rowdy Roddy Piper plays George Playa, a homeless man who wonders into LA looking for work. He sports a great mullet and is busting out of his cloths, wrastlin’ style. The writers ensured his first job is on a construction site where he gets a few shirtless scenes to keep the movie campy. While on the site he meets Frank a character well played by Keith David.

George and Frank don’t trust each other, but it’s clear that they should definitely resolve their issues and save the world. As the tension mounts between them, an unholy mystery is forming at the nearby church. The homeless wonderers join others at an outdoor homeless gypsy camp and become aware of the strange late night events at the church. Meanwhile, a weird hacking of the television channel is warning observers that someone is controlling them.

Out of nowhere the police come and destroy the camp, church and some suspicious characters from the church.  However in an even more campy twist, we find the parishioners are smuggling …wait for it…SUNGLASSES. After the police raid the church George goes back in and discovers a magic box of Ray Ban or Vuarnet Wayfarer knockoffs. Don those catch me kiss me shades and not only will the ladies be hunting you down, but you can actually see the aliens who are enslaving us. Oh yea, the subliminal “OBEY”, “NO INDEPENDENT THOUGHT” and “MARRY AND REPRODUCE” message are revealed in magazines, bill boards and signs.

Only after a lengthy knockdown, drag out, butt kickin’ scene do George and Keith begin to see eye to eye. In fact, George practically knocks Frank out before forcing glasses on his face to see things from his point of view.  After that the tension is gone and they can get down to a good old fashioned friendship while they save the world.

This movie is rated R and rightly so as swearing is peppered throughout. It actually makes it through 92 of 93 minutes before the first and only nude scene arrives and pretty much unexpected. Fun movie, good times, see They Live.