Top Down presents Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive (aka Braindead)

August 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

This review is republished from Nick Bruno’s blog, The Rain Falls Down on Portlandtown.

Long before Peter Jackson’s involvement in all things Tolkien made him a household name along the lines of Lucas or Spielberg, the man cut his teeth practicing the art of b-grade horror and cult cinema.  Early salvos such as Bad Taste and the uniquely wicked Meet the Feebles might have prepared the few that saw them for Dead Alive (released as Braindead in Jackson’s homeland of New Zealand), but let’s be honest here, most fans in the U.S. were directed to the early works after seeing Dead Alive for the first time.

What to say of Dead Alive twenty years after its release?  Time has shown it to be among the very best of a particularly humorous breed of splattercore cinema, the equal of (or possibly even better than) Sam Raimi’s 1987 classic Evil Dead II and far above other pretenders to the throne such as Cemetary Man or even (and I know I’m gonna get some flack for this) the quite excellent Re-Animator.

The film has plenty of guffaw-inducing moments on hand, from the crazy monkey-rat creature to the famous use of a lawnmower as a weapon, but it’s also among the bloodiest of horror films.  Jackson gleefully doles out the gore like someone who just got a deep discount at the fake blood shop, enough so that it still retains the power to shock the uninitiated even as it simultaneously inspires convulsive laughter.  Oddly, the newly released, meta-rom-com Ruby Sparks (from the directors of Little Miss Sunshine) features a few choice moments from Dead Alive and, sure enough, the audience for that film recoiled when those bloody images filled the screen.

Combining the supernatural, a love story, and one hell of a Freudian obstacle (you thought Norman Bates’ mother was overbearing) to its protagonist’s happiness, Dead Alive has it all.  And whether you’ve heard it once or a thousand times, “I kick ass for the lord,” remains one of cinema’s funniest battle cries.  Dead Alive is a film that deserves to be seen again and again.  Don’t miss the chance to see it with a packed audience at Top Down.

The NW Film Center’s Top Down Rooftop Cinema series presents Dead Alive (aka Braindead) on Thursday, August 16th at 8pm.  More info available here.

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AYT #28: It’s Complicated

July 26, 2012 By 1 Comment

This week, the sad news from Colorado has us discussing the Dark Knight Rises again, and the effect that real life tragedies have on a film’s perception in the public. We connect that with our review of the new comedy The Watch, which was in the news months ago due to a title change because of a similarity to the Trayvon Martin shooting earlier this year. We continue the discussion of movies that have gone through changes because of connections to real life tragedies and some that confront these realities head on. Lastly, we discuss a strange film we caught last weekend, Possession, which is worth tracking down, and recommend you check out Take This Waltz, which is in theaters now. Lastly, we dig in to the Film Center’s latest series, Top Down, which starts tonight and runs through August.

New episodes of Adjust Your Tracking are released every Thursday, so make sure to come back and check out what Joe and Erik are discussing every week. We’d love to hear your feedback in the comments section, or feel free to email adjustyourtracking@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/adjustyourtrack. We’re on iTunes now, so make sure to subscribe to the show by clicking the link below. Also, leaving reviews and rating the show on iTunes is really helpful in getting more attention and attracting more listeners, so please do so if you like what we do. You can also stream the episode on the embedded player below.

WARNING: Explicit language is used in this podcast.

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The Palm Beach Story: Sturges Under the Stars

July 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

This review is republished from Nick Bruno’s blog, The Rain Falls Down on Portlandtown.

The NW Film Center’s annual Top Down Rooftop Cinema series gets off to a rollicking start this week with Preston Sturges’ 1942 screwball take on the romantic comedy, The Palm Beach Story.  As with most of Sturges’ output, the film locates its humor in the narrow margins of what was socially acceptable in that era; in this case, it’s an impending divorce that drives the film’s witty banter and absurd situations. [Read more...]

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AYT #27: A Trilogy Of Reviews

July 19, 2012 By 1 Comment

We’ve now seen The Dark Knight Rises, and have a lot to say about it as we deliver this week our longest review yet for the end of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy. Does it live up to the hype? We fill out the rest of the show with two more reviews of films that are much smaller, but no less deserving of your filmgoing attention. They are Beyond the Black Rainbow and Beasts of the Southern Wild. Joe and Erik try to make the case that they demand the big screen treatment despite their low budgets.

Over at the Northwest Film Center, we’re gearing up for Top Down, our outdoor rooftop movie series. It starts next Thursday July 26 with a screening of Preston Sturges’ The Palm Beach Story. We’re nearing the last six days of a kickstarter campaign for a new, larger screen, and could use your help. Any donation amount will help us reach our goal so we can bring Film Center’s devoted audience the best possible experience. Follow this link to the kickstarter campaign to donate, if you wish. As a non profit, this kind of support makes what we do possible. Thanks.

New episodes of Adjust Your Tracking are released every Thursday, so make sure to come back and check out what Joe and Erik are discussing every week. We’d love to hear your feedback in the comments section, or feel free to email adjustyourtracking@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/adjustyourtrack. We’re on iTunes now, so make sure to subscribe to the show by clicking the link below. Also, leaving reviews and rating the show on iTunes is really helpful in getting more attention and attracting more listeners, so please do so if you like what we do. You can also stream the episode on the embedded player below.

WARNING: Explicit language is used in this podcast.

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Top Down Rooftop Cinema Needs a Helping Hand

July 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

This post is republished from Nick Bruno’s blog, The Rain Falls Down on Portlandtown.

Call it a mixed blessing, if you will, but the phenomenal success of the NW Film Center’s annual Top Down rooftop cinema series has presented its organizers with a unique problem to solve.  Bottom line, the audience has outgrown the outdoor screen upon which the summertime screenings are projected.  It’s reached the point where those unlucky enough to be at the back of the crowd have to squint in order to even be able to tell that there’s a movie being projected at all.

As no doubt many of you are aware, the Film Center is a regional, non-profit media arts center, not exactly the kind of organization that tends to have much petty cash hidden away for emergencies of this variety.  Fortunately, we live in the age of crowd-funding where websites like Kickstarter or IndieGoGo allow individuals to throw down a few bones in support of the artists, organizations and causes they love.

Can you tell where we’re going with this?  Yes, Top Down needs your help to make this year’s outdoor film series an enjoyable experience for all in attendance.  They’ve got a Kickstarter campaign in progress as well as a winning season of Thursday night screenings lined-up for Portland audiences.  A donation of any size will help ensure that the NW Film Center is able to reach their goal and purchase a screen large enough for all to experience a little cinema under the stars.

And what to expect of this year’s films?  Well, as usual, it’s an eclectic mix of crowd pleasers ranging from an old favorite from the great Preston Sturges to a campy children’s entertainment starring Don Knotts.  Also on the schedule, one of local film hero Gus Van Sant’s best films and a rock and roll musical for the new millennium.  All in all, a series of events worthy of your patronage.

Here, again, is the link for the fundraising campaign, complete with details of the different rewards available for each level of support.  This link will allow you to peruse the specifics of this year’s schedule.  And, because who doesn’t love trailers, here are the coming attractions:

The NW Film Center’s Top Down rooftop cinema series kicks off on Thursday, July 26th at the Hotel deLuxe’s parking garage (located at SW 15th & Yamhill).  The opening night film is Preston Sturges’ 1942 screwball comedy The Palm Beach Story.

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