Today’s song of the day was not specifically written for the Kill Bill soundtrack but that’s still the film that I’ll always associate it with. Here to help us celebrate Quentin Tarantino’s birthday, it’s Tomoyasu Hotei and Battle Without Honor or Humanity.
With today being Quentin Tarantino’s birthday, I almost feel like I have no choice but to pick this scene from the explosive finale of Once Upon A Time In Hollywood as my scene that I love for the day.
When this film, there was a lot of controversy by Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) using a flame thrower to set a hippie on fire in his swimming pool. Never mind that the hippie in question (played by future Oscar-winner Mikey Madison) was specifically in Rick’s bungalow to try to kill him. On twitter, there were cries about how this scene proved that Tarantino misogynist. On TV Tropes, someone actually wrote, “You have to feel a little sorry for the hippie at the end….”
No, actually, you don’t have to feel sorry for her in the least. In this scene, Madison is playing Susan Atkins, a.k.a. Sadie Mae Glutz. In real life, Susan Atkins was the most enthusiastic of Charles Manson’s band of hippie killers. She was the one who personally stabbed Sharon Tate to death while Sharon, 8 and a half months pregnant at the time, begged for the life of her baby. I won’t quote what Atkins said to Sharon while killing her but you can find it in any of the books written about the case. How do we know what Atkins said? Because she bragged about it in prison. She didn’t show a shred of remorse until after she realized she was going to spend the rest of her life in prison, which is when she suddenly decided she was born again and started claiming she was brainwashed. In real life, Sharon Tate, only 26 years old, died in 1969. Susan Atkins lived to be 61, saved just because the Supreme Court temporarily suspended the death penalty in the 70s.
So, as far as I’m concerned, turn those flames up, Rick. In Tarantino’s world, Sharon lived and had her baby. If the choice is between Tarantino’s alternate reality or the world in which Atkins spent 40 years having her food and housing paid for by the same California taxpayers that she wanted to kill, I know which one I’m going with.
4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!
Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy 62nd birthday to director/screenwriter/cultural institution, Quentin Tarantino!
Here are….
4 Shots From 4 Quentin Tarantino Films
Reservoir Dogs (1992, dir by Quentin Tarantino, DP: Andrzej Sekuła)
Pulp Fiction (1994, dir by Quentin Tarantino, DP: Andrzej Sekuła)
Inglourious Basterds (2009, dir by Quentin Tarantino, DP: Robert Richardson)
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (2019, dir by Quentin Tarantino, DP: Robert Richardson)
With today’s music video of the day, we wish a happy 62nd birthday to Quentin Tarantino.
Enjoy!
Monsters will not be reviewed tonight so that we may bring you this very special presentation of 1983’s Have You Ever Been Ashamed Of Your Parents?
Yes, my retro television reviews will return next week but, until then, enjoy this blast from the past. In this hour-long presentation, Fran Davies (Kari Michaelson) is upset when her mother (Marion Ross) takes a summer job working as a maid for a rich family. At first, Fran thinks that Andrea (Jennifer Jason Leigh), the daughter of her mother’s employer, is a stuck-up snob but she soon learns that Andrea is instead painfully shy and that she has parents who are rich but unloving. Meanwhile, Fran’s parents are …. well, I wouldn’t call them poor. The film acts as if they’re poor but, from all indications, they appear to be comfortably middle class. The point is that they’re not rich but they are loving.
This is worth watching for Jennifer Jason Leigh’s performance as Andrea, a character to whom I could relate. It’s not easy being both shy and beautiful. Fans of great character actors will also be happy to see James Karen, playing Andrea’s father.
Now, without further ado, here is Have You Ever Been Ashamed Of Your Parents?
Today would have been James Caan’s 85 birthday so today’s scene that I love comes from one of Caan’s best-known films, The Godfather.
This scene features Caan’s Sonny Corleone in all of his glory, congratulating Michael on his broken jaw and getting on Tom Hagen’s nerves. Robert Duvall and James Caan were close friends in real life and that friendship definitely comes through in their performances as Tom and Sonny.
4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!
Today would have been Tennessee Williams’s 114th birthday! It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Tennessee Williams Films
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951, dir by Elia Kazan, DP: Harry Stradling)
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958, dir by Richard Brooks, DP: William Daniels)
Suddenly, Last Summer (1959, dir by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, DP: Jack Hildyard)
Boom! (dir by Joseph Losey, DP: Douglas Slocombe)
“The Love Boat will not be reviewed tonight so that we might bring you this special presentation….”
My Retro Television Reviews, including my reviews of The Love Boat, will return next week. For now, let’s enjoy a blast from the past. First aired in 1973, Don’t Call me Mama Anymore was the second television special to feature Cass Elliott. Like the first one, it was essentially a pilot for a weekly variety show. This special was a far better showcase for Cass Elliott and it actually led to her getting a show for the 1974 season. Unfortunately, Cass passed away in London before filming began.
For now, here is Don’t Call Me Mama Anymore, featuring Cass Elliott, Joel Grey, Michelle Phillips, and Dick Van Dyke.
I’ve never been much for camping.
I’ve probably mentioned this before. I’ve certainly reviewed enough films about deadly campgrounds and fatal walks through the woods that there’s no way that I haven’t talk about camping in the past. It’s just not for me. Even though I grew up largely in the country and I tend to think of myself today as being a country girl in the city, I have to admit that staying out in the wilderness has never appealed to me. I don’t like bugs. I don’t like the threat of wild animals suddenly appearing out of nowhere. I’ve seen enough horror movies to know that I should run if I ever see a guy walking through the woods while wearing a hockey mask. (Not that it would do any good, of course. I’m such a klutz that there’s no way I wouldn’t trip over a stick or something.) The fact of the matter is that I find the wilderness to be very creepy. The dark shadows, the feeling of being surrounded by trees that tower of above me, the isolation of it all …. nope, not for me!
The Black-Eyed Children, an upcoming horror from from director Jozsef Gallai, does a very good job of capturing just how creepy being alone in the wilderness can be. Kata Kuna stars as Claire, a young psychology major who is totally excited to have gotten a job as a counselor at St. Beatrice, a camp for children with special needs. Claire wants to make the world a better place and this seems like a wonderful opportunity to do so. (Honestly, I hate camping but if you told me that doing so would make life better for a child who hasn’t been given much in the world, I would be the first to head down to the sporting goods store and buy a tent.) However, when Claire enters the woods and finds herself at St. Beatrice, it’s not at all what she was expecting to find.
The camp appears to be totally deserted. The children who were supposed to be there are gone. The other counselors who were presumably employed there have disappeared. Claire walks through the camp, checking cabins and searching for an explanation. Finding the files on the kids who were supposed to be at camp, Claire starts dialing phone numbers and what she discovers shocks her. And no, I’m not going to tell you what she discovers. The Black-Eyed Children is scheduled for a late 2025 release so you can watch it then and find out the secret of St. Beatrice.
The Black-Eyed Children is a found footage film. Luckily, Jozsef Gallai is one of the best when it comes to working with the found footage genre and the film is full of creepy and atmospheric imagery. St. Beatrice and the woods surrounding it all give off a vibe of steady menace, leaving the viewer frightened about what might jump out of the shadows. Kata Kuna does a great job as Claire and what she discovers at St. Beatrice will leave you feeling uneasy, especially if you know about the urban legend that gives this film its name. Clocking in at 70 minutes, The Black-Eyed Children is an effective and creepy horror film. It’ll definitely keep you out of the woods.
I’m not exactly a country music fan but I am a Texan and I feel like this song and video could be taking place in my back yard.
Enjoy!
Through the Shattered Lens