everday is halloween!

chopping mall [1986]

now for some '80s cheese!  this pic has become a comfort movie.  like mom's meatloaf.  whenever i need a dose of calm i watch this film, in bits & pieces, or in its entirety.  how the hell can i explain that?  i can't.  but for the synth score, the adequate acting, the mis en scene (in a SoCal shopping mall, might even be the same mall that other '80s flicks were set, like Valley Girl [1983] & Fast Time at Ridgemont Hgh [1982].  my brother & i visited that mall in the late '80s, the Sherman Oaks Galleria.  it looked so cool onscreen.  a place where dreams & desires are met.  at any rate, it was just a mall.  very 1970s decor & vibe.  c'est la vie!

the gist is this:  murder bots are brought to this mall to patrol & protect the mall afterhours.  this is a Roger Corman production.  indeed, Corman movie posters adorn almost every inch of the walls of this mall.  so we have Corman regulars like Paul Bartel & Mary Woronov, as mr. & mrs. bland, hamming it up in the first few minutes of this movie.  later we are treated to the great character actor, & Corman regular, Dick Miller, as a hapless janitor who is greased by one of these murder bots.  

does this shit make sense?  it's not supposed to!  directed by b-movie stalwart jim wynorski this flick is fast-paced, dumb & fun.  the final girl is kelli maroney [who?] she is better known as one of the cheerleaders in Fast Times at Ridgemont High.  maroney does more than a fare job against these robot killlers.  but the fun is watching this movie as a time capsule of days gone by.  malls no longer have hardware stores where survivors can find weapons, ammunition, & fuel.  malls no longer have pet stores with live animals in them.  malls no longer have smoke shops where you can buy tobacco.  malls are no longer the apotheosis of capitalism, a place where you can find anything & everything your heart desires.

still, there are murder bots. or the worry of them.  which is kind of prescient to today's worries of AI & drones.  but don't believe that this is a visionary flick.  it is not.  rather it is a cheapie exploitation flick intent on cashing in on the straight-to-video market.  still, i said this is a mom's meatloaf movie to me & i meant it.  watching this movie is like settling in to bed with your best comforter & pillow while your cats stretch out beside you.  for a horror movie?  yes, indeed.  just like The Spooky Season where one can feel like he or she or they is home again.

if that is not the highest praise i don't know how to praise!

boo!