Movie Review - Teen Witch

All Louise wanted was to get Brad’s attention… and luckily for her she’s a descendant of Salem Witches!

Another movie my best friend sent me to borrow (for the purposes of 8o’s rewind post/content of course) and what’s so sad is that until I rewatched it the only part I could vividly remember was the Top That rap segment.  Louise is the typical teenage girl at school who isn’t popular, has the worst life, never gets the hot guys, and everything always goes wrong for her.  All of this changes when she realizes she’s actually a witch and has powers… and then to keep the plot going, she starts setting out to make herself be as popular as she wants to be.  I know, the write up of the plot makes it sound bad but remember; it’s an 80’s movie!  Quite frankly, as basic as the plot is (and yeah, you can follow point a to point b with just what I’ve said and guess what happens at the end… maybe), I’m glad to have rewatched it because it was very enjoyable.

It’s got the basic romance and teen angsty elements that most of the films of that time had, it’s got witches and spells and spells gone wrong… and 80’s clothes, style, and music.  What’s not to want to see there?  I leave you with not only the official movie trailer (and Lord, 80’s trailers were so baaaad) and the clip of the afforementioned Top That rap scene.  Check it out sometime!

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Movie Review - The Worst Witch

Mwahahaha… I LOVED this movie growing up!

Long before Harry Potter, there was Mildred Hubble, the star character of the 1987 film The Worst Witch (played by Fairuza Balk).   Granted the movie was more for kids with a plot that only went as high as standards dictated main stream kid movies should get, but it’s a fun movie that even my kids today enjoyed watching.

I used to wait impatiently for Halloween and try to catch this on TV.  My best friend got to catch it repeatedely on HBO but I?  Alas, I only managed to catch it maybe twice in entirety in my entire childhood so getting to borrow it from her has really been a treat!  The movie follows the crazy hijinks of Mildred Hubble, who is (as the title suggests) the worst witch at  her witch school, who is harrassed by her teacher Miss Hardbroom (played by Diana Rigg).  This movie also stars the illustrious Tim Curry as the Grand Wizard… who I give you a clip of singing his main song in the film.

A final jewel in this film, it stars Charlotte Rae of the Facts of Life fame who plays both the Headmistress of the school and her evil twin sister who’s out to try and reclaim what she feels is her rightful place as Headmistress of the school.  I’d give the ending away but… I’d rather you check it out.

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RIP Michael Jackson

I had some other fun movie reviews ready but I figured this was better to start.

Growing up, I was all about Thriller by Michael Jackson.  Who wasn’t about at least one of his songs in the 80’s?  I’ve met a few who claimed to not be but myself?  No, that was the best memories of Michael for me.  I even had a poster (I know, who didn’t, yadda yadda) that I kept hung up on my wall of the man.  I find myself thinking back not on his scandals today once I heard the news of his passing, but of the great creativity and inspiration his music brought to the music industry and even to me during that lovely decade we discuss here.

I post a clip of his live performance from Japan of Billie Jean in 1987 because I adore artists who are just as good live as they are on their CD with their polished publications.

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25th Anniversary of Purple Rain

25 years ago from 2009, the Purple One came on scene and blew our minds with on the most creative, beautifully brilliant and long lasting works of art of the 1980’s.

He went crazy and told us “I would die 4 U” all under the purple rain. He had the Revolution but did you know that he did the following instruments: Guitars, bass guitar, keyboards, piano, vocals.

At the time there was a rivalry between Prince and MJ but if you want to go with raw musical talent you just have to go with Prince because he can do so much.

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Conan the Barbarian Remake

found on riskybusiness blog

Roland Kickinger will be taking the role as Conan in the Nu Image/Millineum film Conan the Barbarian, a remake of the 80’s classic. This Kickinger guy is like a replica of the governator. He’s an Austrian born body builder turned actor, he played the T800 in Terminator Salvation and now he’s Conan. Wow.

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Yamato (aka new Star Blazers movie) trailer

If the movie is as boring as the trailer, then I think I won’t even grab it in the $1.00 VHS section of Good Will. I guess Yoshinobu Nishizaki got a hold of the rights to make the movie. I got all excited until I saw the trailer.

Here is the Star Blazers I remember:

Yes, the music has cheese all over it! Yes, the animation is bad! But notice how stuff is actually happening! Characters are doing things, the Yamato is blasting foolz! It has excitement that pulls you in.

Star Blazers is the first anime I remember watching. That was in the early to mid 1980’s. I recall being really, really interested in the characters. It was like a space soap opera for kids. The battle ship in space, Yamato was pretty damn slick.

But the new stuff is Yamato. A Japanese flick that looks as boring as hell. But hey I’ve been wrong before, man.

Everybody has there own opinion:
The way the article is written just sounds like sour grapes. What else did he expect from a Star Blazers movie? Wild Star looks too clean cut? He never had facial hair, and his hair is still long and messy. Suit redesign? It’s not redesigned much. The story was always about the Yamato saving the day, using the wave motion gun to destroy the enemy. I don’t want a soap opera between Wild Star and Nova with some mild fighting cut in. I think this is going to be good. – Kronos6948

Yamato Lego

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The Classic Atari and Other 80’s Goodies

Oh man, if I ever get money for one, I’m so buying a new one.

I know, I know; they sell those little joystics you plug into the tv that has the classic games programmed in but no.  That’s not the Atari system I grew up with, damn it!  I remember all the good games like Pacman, Spy vs Spy, Spellunker, and the dreaded Frogger.  I spent many a night dreaming about pixel frogs hopping across streets only to get smashed by logging trucks because I wasn’t fast enough with the button pushing.

Poor Frogger.

But the real question is… who here reading remembers Prodigy’s email and online services?

My dad was always on the cutting edge, always getting the newest computers and gadgets and being one of the first to get Prodigy’s online service was no different for him.  I remember using up the 12 or 15 emails we had free every month sending notes to my cousin back home and then charging up about 25.00 worth of e-cards (I swear I thought they were free, seriously).  It was no AOL by any means, but it was internet service and for a lazy person like me who doesn’t like to deal with envelopes and stamps, it opened my eyes to a new world…

… one I’m sitting in right now as I write a blog post.

One final note of random 80’s goodness?  I leave you with Samantha Fox.  I know you’ve heard of her.  She doesn’t really have much to do with Atari or Prodigy’s email services from back in the day, but she’s 80’s music and well… I don’t need an excuse to share

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80’s Music - Remade (part 2)

I like my writing partners post so much that I had to re-visit her idea of 80s Music Remade.

I got a few songs that are 80s remakes that I really like:

Land of Confusion - Genesis - This was was a good song with a great video. Remember. It had a bunch of caricature hand puppets singing. Disturbed remade this song and did a great job. This is not something you’d expect them to do which (for me) made me an even bigger fan of the group.

Shout - Tear for Fears - Sometimes artist will do things that I think is so amazing that I get inspired, jealous and teary eyed at the awesomeness of what they have created. Shout is one of those songs and Tears for Fears is one of those groups (Everybody Wants to Rule the World -one of my all time favorite songs). And then came Shout 2000 on Disturb’s album The Sickness. WOW. Its so good that I don’t hear the same song when I listen to the original. Shout 2000 is playful, angry, aggressive with all the power and meaning of Tears for Fears.. it is good.. dare I say.. better than the original?

*dang they are cute.
Cruel Summer - Bananarama - This is one of those songs that I didn’t appreciate in the 80s, but now, in retrospect, seems to frame the essence of the 80s like MC Hammer pants.. (ok baaaad analogy). Its a catchy song looking back. It was remade by Ace of Base and I must say the did a fantastic job. Disclaimer: I am not, I repeat NOT a fan of Ace of Base. My future ex-wife likes Ace of Base (and Wilson “FUCKING” Philips! Wilson. m&*ther fuc*. Philips! There is just no excuse for that kind of bastard-tastic filth (yeah, Websters I made up a new word it is an adverb bitches). But I digress. Ace of Base. Cruel Summer. Good song.

Tainted Love - The Soft Cell - This is actually a cover of a 1964 Soul song. The original song was done by soul singer Gloria Jones in 1964.
But it was the British group Soft Cell that gave it world renowned 80s greatness.

And then came Marylin Manson in all her/his/its demented infamy. Marylin covered the 80s version of Tainted Love (which makes it a cover of a cover). Manson raped it, turned it out and made “Tainted Love” into an obscene curse phrase.. its awesome. And the video is like Thug gothic porn straight out an urbanized Necronocomicon Bible. It is sick in every since of the word.

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80’s Music - Remade

Just a quick list of a few of my favorite 80’s songs with a good remake I’ve heard throughout my years on the planet growing up (or growing old, take your pick).

1.Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) - Eurythmics  - I’m not even going to pretend that, as a child, the video made any sense whatsoever to me (but I tried to figure it out on several occasions).  Annie Lennox’s voice is divine, though, and the electronic beat most associated with this decade worked extremely well as a package deal.  As far as remakes go, Marilyn Manson composed a killer remake of this song that took it from the realm of mystical into the land of creepy and sinister (as he is wont to do).

2.Blue Monday - New Order  - Let’s face it; New Order just owned when it came to capturing a sound and taking it to a new level.  The lyrics to Blue Monday were as awesome then as they are today, and the song’s meaning just really worked excellently with the completely electronic music and vocals.  Obviously, the best remake I’ve heard of this song (and the only remake I’ve had the pleasure of hearing of this song) is by a band called Orgy, and the remake was featured in the Not Another Teen Movie soundtrack.  Their revamped style of the song stayed in the same vein as the original (aesthetic electronics) but their lead vocalist brought a bit more emotion to the lyrics and really put another spin on a classic, in my opinion.

3.Billie Jean - Michael Jackson   -  Yeah, there had to be a Michael Jackson song on this list somewhere.  I grew up on the Thriller album (but how many of us didn’t?) and Billie Jean was one of my favorites.  I didn’t quite get the lyrics back then (I was 5 or 6 when the song came out, after all), but I remembered that catchy pop beat that Michael had a knack for.  There’s actually two remakes I have to recommend here.  The first was done by Chris Cornell, where he took the original and gave it a slowed down, sultry tempo.  The second was David Cook’s take on the Chris Cornell version that he performed during his run on the seventh season of American Idol (I can’t recommend anything David’s done enough, he’s hot).

4.Call Me - Blondie  -  Man, this song was so my jam growing up.  I missed it when it came out in 1980 ( I was 2, cut me some slack), but once I discovered it a few years later I couldn’t get enough of it.  It’s peppy, comes with its own seductive undertones, and have you listened to the lyrics?  Dirty, s’all I’m saying.  Remakes?  Well I just recently found one by a group called  In This Moment that captured the original style of the song while still bringing in their own style, swapping electric synthesizers for electric guitars covering the riffs and breaks in singing.

5.Personal Jesus - Depeche Mode  -  This song helped me kick off the dogmatic ties that kept me from writing freely growing up and helped me delve into those little crevaces of the mind we’re encouraged to ignore.  I can’t recommend this song highly enough to own, use, abuse, commit debauchery to, etc.  The remake I have in mind should go without saying; Marilyn Manson’s cover of this song was wonderful.  He stayed in the footsteps of Depeche Mode, only tweaking and adding to the song to infuse his own style into it.  Masterful remake if I’ve ever heard one.

Short list, I know, but I like to keep my list of approved remakes (in regards to music) short, sweet, and to the point.  But there’s five for you to check out.  Enjoy ‘em!  I know I do, and frequently.

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Ode To Optimus Prime

So the second installment in the Transformers revamps is almost upon us.  Are you psyched about it?  I know I am (IMAX here I come, baby).  Back when I was growing up, I was always drawn to the leader figures in the shows I watched and Optimus Prime is the leader I always remember the most fondly.  Thanks to the FCC lifting that pesky regulation in the 80’s that prohibited the production of cartoons that promoted toy lines, we all got to witness the first installments of the Transformers animated cartoon series.  Oh and how I, as a little girl longing for something with substance, rejoyced watching these robots kick Decepticon tail every week. I even conned my parents into buying me the Optimus Prime toy.  They gave me strange looks as I passed up Barbies with frilly dresses for my Mack truck Autobot but they didn’t understand.  I think my mother still shakes her head at my hobbies, habits, and addictions but that’s a story for another time.

Optimus Prime, though… what a leader he was.  He always looked out for the humans of Earth (something I have to commend the movie makers of today for keeping in his character) and was always ready to put his life on the line to keep his own people safe.  When the first Transformers movie came out I was ecstatic!  Well… I was ecstatic up until Optimus Prime died in the line of duty.  I seriously think the rest of the movie was a bit of a blur to me for years, having to watch Hot Rod take the mantle in this perpetrated production that was supposed to be a passing on of the mantle.

Sorry, Rodimus Prime fans; I seriously have no love for that particular leader in the Transformers franchise.

When the first Transformers movie hit the big screen, I was there on opening night, watching in awe as Optimus Prime re-appeared in all his awesome glory (and good Lord can Steve Jablonsky compose the best music ever, complete with a chorus of angelic singers heralding the way for the best leader in cartoon history).  Once that movie hit DVD I watched it over and over (and over) again in a patented addictive fashion.  I still have much love for the series’s origins, those wonderful 80’s cartoons of my youth, but to see my childhood favorites get full CG renderings that are awe inspiring in their own right gave me hope for possible 80’s franchises remaking their special creations to enjoy in a whole new light.

But yes, I’ll be going to see Transformers 2 when it hits and I’ll be taking my family with me.  I’ll be hoping that Optimus makes it through another movie and hoping to never see Hot Rod hit the big screen.  When that time comes, I might have to watch through parted fingers and hope my poor childhood hero doesn’t meet a similar fate again.   Just remember, boys and girls, where your fandoms came from, and remember to root for Optimus Prime when he makes his second big screen appearance!

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