Episode 116 - Alien Contamination (1980)

An early Cannon horror movie we were unable to cover until recently, Alien Contamination (or just "Contamination" depending on where you live) was in many ways the last hurrah of an older breed of creepy adventure flick. It's much different than the more 1980s flavor that even early stabs of the genre like Schizoid, New Year's Evil, and Hospital Massacre / X-Ray, were. To be honest, this does help it stand out a little more, especially in the chilling early scenes.

Despite the Italian led direction and effects, the film is much too slow for its own good, lingering too long on things it doesn't need to. When it works it works, but as a whole its a bit too ropey and inconsistent to be a successful experiment.

Nonetheless, it remains an interesting try at an early attempt in the genre for Cannon Films. They didn't make anything else remotely like it.

JD's Score: 2/5

Randy's Score: 2/5

Up Next: Samurai Cop!

Episode 115 - The Graduates of Malibu High / The Young Warriors (1983)

One of the movies we missed the first go around, The Graduates of Malibu High (or The Young Warriors) was a bizarre attempt at a genre mash-up. This was a try at stirring Death Wish and Animal House together into a gumbo of the kind that hadn't been made before. It is surprisingly ambitious.

Unfortunately, despite having many good points, it is stifled by bad pacing and incongruous genre elements that are jarring to what each half of the movie wants to be. It isn't a total loss, and deserves the cult audience it has, but we did have to dock it points for fumbling crucial elements that could have been done better with tighter editing. Nonetheless, it isn't a half bad watch. We talk about it more in depth in the above episode.

JD's Score: 2/5

Randy's Score: 2/5

Up Next: Alien Contamination!

Episode 114 - Alien from L.A. (1988) [Revisited]

We are back once again with another re-watch of an old Cannon flick. This time we decided to pick the 1988 subterranean comedy, Alien from L.A., straight from Albert Pyun.

This one is more than a bit infamous as we covered in the last episode on it. However, watching it now has changed our opinions on it a good deal. What was once one of the worst has actually turned out to be a lot more fun and lot less obnoxious than we remember. Perhaps time heals all wounds, but it really is better the second time around.

Find out how in today's episode!

JD's Score: 3/5

Randy's Score: 3/5

Up next: The Young Warriors!

Non-Cannon ~ Episode 88 - Tammy & the T-Rex (1994)

Now here is a movie we had trouble defining. It's a bizarre comedy and horror mash-up filmed in a short period, giving you exactly the problems with the movie that you'd think. From tonal issues to baffling plot turns, Tammy & the T-Rex has it all.

There is also not quite anything like it. For a movie that could only be made in the early '90s, it fulfills a lot of the tropes you'd expect it would. Despite everything, it somehow manages to remain engaging the entire way through.

Our full opinions can be heard in the episode above!

Randy's Score: 3/5

JD's Score: 3/5

Up Next: Alien from L.A.!

Episode 113 - Dangerously Close (1986)

Once again we went back to cover a movie we missed the first time. In this case it is Cannon Cruisers favorite Albert Pyun, and his third film Dangerously Close. This one is about a school "neighborhood watch" type group going a bit mad with power.

This one is a bit different from the usual Pyun fare, being oddly coherent and down to earth. However, this also keeps it from having that weird factor a lot of his other films do. Despite that, it's not a bad watch. Just not the most memorable movie.

Randy's Score: 2/5

JD's Score: 3/5

Up Next: Tammy & the T-Rex!

Episode 112 - Death Warrant (1990)

You might be doing a double take at the inclusion of this film. Wasn't Death Warrant an MGM film? Well, actually, not really. Originally titled Dusted, this movie was made by Cannon Films but held up due to the company going bankrupt at the time. Though it was released by MGM, it is actually a Cannon movie.

That said, it's not quite what you'd expect from a Van Damme flick, being more of an eerie and surreal prison movie with spikes of action here and there. Eventually, however, Death Warrant culminates in a finale worthy of both Van Damme and Cannon. You definitely won't find another movie quite like it in either of their oeuvres.

Randy's Score: 3/5

JD's Score: 4/5

Up Next: Dangerously Close!

Episode 111 - The Naked Cage (1986)

Here's an obscure one we missed from 1986. It's the women prison movie, The Naked Cage. This is more or less what you expect, except with a bit of a Cannon edge to it. If you've watched any of their action or horror movies, I think you know where this is going.

That said, it isn't quite manic enough to impress, despite enough going for it to drag it out of pure middle of the road entertainment. Hard to fully recommend, but it does hold together as a story. If even just barely.

Randy's Score: 3/5

JD's Score: 3/5

Up Next: Death Warrant!