Other Men’s Careers (DVD) – Another documentary from huge ‘Evil Dead’ fan Ryan Meade who did an absolutely perfect job with ‘Invaluable’ highlighting Tom Sullivan. As with this project he highlights Josh Becker one of the people that was also on set with Sam, Bruce, and Robert from the beginning. Josh Becker has had a very interesting career to say it best as Josh even admits “he is his own worst enemy”, good or bad. All the usual from ‘Evil Dead’ are interviewed speaking about Becker’s humble beginnings to moving to L.A. back to Michigan because he had scurvy! They cover how he hung out with Sam, Ted, Bruce, etc., discuss his writing on Xena, and his own small budget projects. But this isn’t your usual documentary that makes everything all happy, happy, joy, joy, as even Josh talks about his dark times. Josh has definitely done things his own way and other than the color being a little off at times Ryan Meade did a wonderful job of capturing Josh’s career and bringing it to light that some fans may have not known about. I have always enjoyed interacting with Mr. Becker over the years at a couple conventions and glad to see him featured in a project like this as I got give it 4 stars all the way.
Primitive War (On Demand) – For whatever reasons this wasn’t in theaters, let alone there wasn’t much ad time dedicated to this being released? For the love of Rutger Hauer: dinosaurs, Vietnam War, Jeremy Piven… how do you miss on this? Set in Vietnam 1968 where a Green Beret unit mysteriously disappears in a valley that isn’t occupied by the war taking place. A special recon team is tasked with going into the valley to find out what happened and get out. Do not engage, just report, and get a helio out. The team is all about it as they get off at doing their job but quickly know there is a lot more not being told when they arrive in the valley to find dinosaurs and a Russian experiment gone wrong that could end the world. Recon unit’s new mission becomes not only survival but stop a lunatic from continuing the experiment to see if he can end the world? Oh people this is a big old cheeseball movie with not the best of effects and a long running time but I still enjoyed finding this kind of random project being made as I give it 2 ½ stars.
Cocaine Stepdad (DVD) – The filmmaker alone should win an award for one of the best movie titles ever! Kyle is a young man (not really 12 years old but you will understand) whose mother is about to marry a super sketchy pastor. Terry, Kyle’s last stepdad is in prison and just got Kyle to come on some random lockup reality TV show. Of course Terry is just using Kyle for a prison break and it works! Now on the run Terry and Kyle begin to bond as the two do some outrageous things and eventually break down a plan to stop the marriage between Kyle’s mom and the weird gun totting generic bucket of mayo making pastor. Filmed like a reality TV show or think ‘Natural Born Killers’ with less blood but you laughing out loud a lot more at what the two do along the way in order to stop the marriage. This independent film is absolutely hilarious, sketchy as hell, and has a supreme ending that you need to witness to understand it all as I give this truly different project 3 out of 4 stars.
Amityville Apt. (Amazon) – So entry #75 into this legendary series of films as a solid cast throughout a series of stories/anthology that features evil, the devil, monsters, killer clowns, and ghosts that haunt residents of an apartment complex. The premise is the original Amityville home has burned down a few years back and someone came in to build an apartment complex. To my surprise all segments are shot well, well casted, interesting, and they all do not linger as they blend together wonderfully telling the story of this evil complex. Legit straight up a great entry into the series that I hope doesn’t get overlooked by burned out independent film fans as I give it 3 out of 4 stars.
Kim’s Video (Tubi) – An odd but super interesting documentary about a famous video store in New York City before they cleaned the city up and everything went streaming but that is only the beginning as this isn’t your ordinary documentary. The documentarian, David, who is a movie fan like a lot of us lived in New York City in the mid-90s and was a member of this legendary video store. This store had bands play inside, bootlegs of movies from all over the world, and videos of movies that were never available. The store was one of a couple that the owner Kim also owned a few dry cleaners in New York where his love of movies and his video stores became even more profitable than people could even imagines. Hell his stores would be raided by the FBI in 2003 and a week later Kim would have the shelves full again. In the early 2000s Kim seen what was coming down the pike and instead of selling off his collection that was estimated at 50000 movies he wanted to donate it to something or someone that would take care of it? This is where the story gets weird… In 2009 the collection is donated to a small city in Italy. There was a dedication, people forgot, something about mafia ties, and then this documentarian arrives in Italy to break into this storage building to find moldy tapes! The man David then comes up with a plan to steal the collection back and bring it back to the U.S. This story is wild but I love it because it is something I believe in along with the passion as I give this must see documentary about physical media 4 stars.
The Valley of Gwangi (DVD) – A late 60s B-movie that has a showman Tuck Kirby who has gotten out of the old west/carnival show stuff to sell acts to other shows trying to survive. It just so happen Tuck’s hottie ex-girl has an act no one has ever seen: a little horse that has been extinct for 50 million years but live and doing tricks while on top of a full size horse. Gypsys of course the keepers of this unknown valley where the animal was taken from have retrieved the animal. Tuck, a professor, members of a Wild West show track the gypsys down only to find themselves fighting dinosaurs. They capture one so of course it will be a great idea to take it on the road as an act? Great B-movie stuff with dinosaurs fighting each other throughout along with eating people as I give the film 2 ½ stars.
Like Tears in Rain (Amazon) – A documentary about one of my favorite actors of all time… Rutger Hauer. This project gets really in-depth of Rutger before he hit Hollywood as his wife found some old films Rutger did in the early 70s and so on. The film recounts how Rutger broke into Hollywood but he wanted it to do it his way while being himself as one celebrity puts it “Rutger just didn’t fit in as that made him stand out” at a time where that was difficult. All the things Rutger did in his early life with his wife and best friend was just amazing as he basically enjoyed hanging out with friends’ kids, to being beyond respected by actors and directors as this might make you cry at what he accomplished in life. I have always admired Rutger Hauer and if you watch this and not feel a tear come on or have a new respect for this man you do not have a soul! I loved this documentary about a man that was such a mystery too many but absolutely able to put his stamp on cinema big and small from ‘Blade Runner’ to ‘Hobo with a Shotgun’. I give this project 4 stars and so happy this dude existed!
Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews .
Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!
grossmoviereviews 
You must be logged in to post a comment.