Drive-In Double Features Part Three
Drive-In Double Features #3
My wife and I recently got back to the drive-in for a retro 80’s horror double feature of Christine (1983) and Fright Night (1985). It was a wonderful night, with the windows down and a nice breeze blowing and the smell of fresh popped popcorn wafting in the air. The rearview mirror showed Ghostbusters (1984) and The Karate Kid (1984) on the screen behind us. Popcorn, soda and peanut M&Ms, it was like going back in time for four hours, back to the summer of 1985. The magic of the drive-in! So grab your snacks and find some flicks and let the drive-in double feature begin.
Big Bizarre-O Science Fiction Show
A Boy and His Dog (1975) & Brazil (1985)
We start the show with A Boy and His Dog. In the not too distant world of 2024, the world is a ravaged wasteland after World War IV. Young Vic (Don Johnson) walks the world and has adventures with his dog, who he can communicate with telepathically. It is based on the book by Harlan Ellison, which is also available on Hoopla here: https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/11652973. Then, Terry Gillian’s sci-fi satire Brazil will take you on a magnificent journey of mistaken identity in a madcap adventure that is still considered one of the most stunning films ever made.
Killer-Creature-Chiller-Thrillers
Cat’s Eye (1985) & Open Water 3: Cage Dive (2017)
Cat’s Eye adapts three stories by Stephen King and starts off with cameos by Cujo and King’s killer car Christine. Stories involve a mob-run clinic that helps people stop smoking, a man who loses a bet and ends up on a building’s ledge and a Troll terrorizing a little girl. Open Water 3: Cage Dive sees the found footage shark series focus on a trio of friends making an audition tape for a reality TV series and ending up in shark infested waters. Is it wrong to root for the sharks?
Hard Hitting Action Show
Three the Hard Way (1974) & Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold (1975)
Action stars Jim Brown, Fred Williamson and Jim Kelly bust heads to stop terrorists from poisoning the country’s water supply in Three the Hard Way. Then, when her friends Matthew and Melvin Johnson go missing while on undercover duty in Hong Kong, Cleopatra Jones (Tamara Dobson) hits the scene like an atomic bomb in Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold. Non-stop action. (The soundtrack for Three the Hard Way is available on Hoopla here: https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/10889590.)
80’s Teen Comedies
Tomboy (1985) & Screwball Hotel (9188)
In Tomboy we meet Tomasina “Tomboy” Boyd (Betsy Russell), a female stock car racer who challenges her male rival to a win-all race. In Screwball Hotel, three goofy friends drop out of military school and take jobs at a failing hotel. They help raise money to keep the hotel running in sketchy ways that were only ever utilized in 80’s Teen Comedies.
The Shudder-N-Shake Edge of Your Seat Suspense Show
Blow Out (1981) & The History of Violence (2005)
Up first, John Travolta is a sound man working on a cheap slasher movie who records a politically motivated assassination. The “Liberty Bell Strangler” is hot on his trail to obtain the recording and tie up all lose ends in Blow Out. It is one of writer/director Brian De Palma’s best. In The History of Violence, Viggo Mortensen goes from mild mannered citizen to vigilante hero and the attention brings a dark secret from his past that puts his family in danger. From director David Cronenberg. (Trivia: The History of Violence was the last major film released on the VHS home video format before the format was deemed obsolete in 2005.)
Nicolas Cage Goes Nutzoid!
Vampire’s Kiss (1988) & Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
After meeting a strange woman who bites his neck, Cage believes he’s turning into a vampire in Vampire’s Kiss. He terrorizes his poor secretary Alva and at one point eats a live cockroach. Question: Is there any torture Nic Cage won’t endure for his art? Answer: Heck no! Next is the picture that put Oscar gold on his mantel, Leaving Las Vegas. Here, Cage is a successful screenwriter who loses everything due to his drinking. He moves to Las Vegas with the goal of drinking himself to death. If you ever had any doubt of about Cage’s real talent, Leaving Las Vegas should convince you otherwise.
Cult Dramas
54 (1998) & Adventureland (2009)
It’s the groovy ‘70s and Club 54 is the hottest night spot in town. 54 delves into all the sex, drugs and disco of the era. Mike Myers is club owner Steve Rabell and Ryan Phillippe a young man working in this oasis of excess. Then fast-forward to the 80’s, 1987 to be exact, where a recent graduate has to forego his planned summer European trip to work at the local amusement park in Adventureland. The great cast includes Kristin Wiig, Bill Hader, Martin Starr and Ryan Reynolds. The 80’s wasn’t always flashy colors, neon lights and Rubik’s cubes. It is equal parts funny and bittersweet. I really cherish this movie. (Adventureland’s amazing soundtrack is available from Hoopla here: https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/12192451.)
The Puck Stops Here: Hockey Madness
Goon (2011) & Mr. & Mrs. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story (2013)
Sean William Scott is a bouncer turned hockey star when he leads his team to glory by way of excessive aggressive play on the ice in Goon. More hockey thrills follow with Mr. & Mrs. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story, about Gordie Howe returning to the game at the age of 44 in 1973. (Made for TV, this sports biopic first aired under the title Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story.)
Weird-O-Rama
Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966) and Reefer Madness (1936)
Lost travelers stumble upon a cult and have to deal with the cult leader and his very strange servant Torgo in Manos: The Hands of Fate. I’ve watched this film several times and I can tell you nothing else about it. It is like a weird spell the movie puts on me, forcing me to forget is as soon as it is over. Reefer Madness follows and is a cautionary tale about the dangers of reefer cigarettes. Movie depicts pathetic users strung out on “The Pot.”
The Super “What Did I Just Watch?” Double Feature
Wolfcop (2014) & Another Wolfcop (2018)
We first meet our loveable loser, Officer Lou Garou, who gets cursed with lycanthropy which actually turns him into a great cop in Wolfcop. He fights corruption and witchcraft in a small Canadian town. In Another Wolfcop, Officer Garou snorts some moon-dust for super powers and battles the evil owner of a brewery who wants to use his beer to take over the people of earth. Kevin Smith plays the town mayor. Definitely not for the kids, these are super crazy horror/action/gross-out comedies for when you’re really in the mood for “something different.”
I hope you’re enjoying the wide variety of materials made available through Hoopla. If you come by the library for additional materials, we continue to add new titles to our DVD/Bluray collection when we are able. Titles recently added to our collection at the Madison branch include:
Action/Fantasy:
Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) - Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) – Labyrinth (1986) – Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985- Mad Max 3) – The Road Warrior (1982- Mad Max 2- combo DVD and Bluray) – Romancing the Stone (1984) – Scarface (1983- with Al Pacino) - You Know My Name (1999- with Sam Elliott) – Young Guns (1988)
Classics:
The Brass Bottle (1964- with Barbra Eden) – Houseboat (1958) – How Sweet It Is! (1968) – Niagara (1953- with Marilyn Monroe)
Comedies:
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) – Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey (1991) - Can’t Hardly Wait (1998) – Madea Goes to Jail (2006) – Paradise (2013) - Sixteen Candles (1984) – Super Troopers (2001) - Tyler Perry’s Boo 2! A Madea Halloween (2017) – Waiting (2005) – War of the Roses (1989) – Weird Science (1985)
Drama/Mystery:
All the Right Moves (1983 with Tom Cruise) – Dances with Wolves (1990) - Leave No Trace (2018) - Manhunter (1986- first film with Hannibal Lecter) - The Outsiders (1983) - Serena (2014- with Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence) – Soul Food (1997) – Steel Magnolias (1989) – Two-Minute Warning (1976- with Charlton Heston)
Science Fiction/Horror:
The Craft (1996) – Stephen King’s The Dead Zone (1983) – Event Horizon (1997) – Gremlins (1984) – Gremlins 2 : The Next Batch (1990) – Hannibal (2001) – Hannibal Rising (2007) - House at the End of the Street (2012- with Jennifer Lawrence) – Practical Magic (1998) - Psycho II (1983)/Psycho III (1986)/Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990)- This 2-Disc/3-movie set counts as one check-out) – The Puppet Masters (1994- based on the novel by Robert A. Heinlein) – Silence of the Lambs (1991) - Stargate Ark of Truth (2008) – Stargate Continuum (2008) – Star Wars (1977) – Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) – Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983) and the 2-Disc 4 Movie Marathon: Post-Apocalyptic Collection. Includes: Children of Men (2006), Doomsday (2008), Skyline (2010) and Waterworld (1995). (This 2-Disc/4-movie set counts as one check-out.)
Any of these movies can be put on hold and picked up at any branch within the HMCPL system. Go to www.hmpcl.org for more information or to search our catalog for more titles.