4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films is just what it says it is, 4 (or more) shots from 4 (or more) of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films lets the visuals do the talking.
Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to the great director Allison Anders! It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Allison Anders Films
Border Radio (1987, dir by Allison Anders, Dean Lent, and Kurt Voss, DP: Dean Lent)
Gas Food Lodging (1992, dir by Allison Anders, DP: Dean Lent)
Mi Vida Loca (1993, dir by Allison Anders, DP: Rodrigo Garcia)
Grace Of My Heart (1996, dir by Allison Anders, DP: Jean-Yves Escoffier)
Sometimes, on twitter (or whatever it’s called nowadays), people will just become fixated with something. Yesterday, it was this music video for a song called When The Going Gets Tough, The Tough Gets Going. I lost track of how many times I saw this video shared on Saturday.
So, I figured, why not share it here as well?
This music video was made to promote the 1985 film, The Jewel of the Nile. Along with Billy Ocean, the stars of the film — Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito, and Michael Douglas — also appear in this video. Was Danny really playing the saxophone? No, he was not. Apparently, in the UK, this video was briefly banned because Danny was not a member of the Musicians’ Union and his miming of the sax solo went against the rules.
The UK banning something because an American broke a rule? Wow, that’s so unlike them!
As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly live tweets on twitter. I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and I am one of the five hosts of #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We tweet our way through it.
Tonight, for #ScarySocial, I will be hosting a true classic, Dario Argento’s Tenebrae!
If you want to join us on Saturday night, just hop onto twitter, start the film at 9 pm et, and use the #ScarySocial hashtag! The film is available on Prime and Tubi! I’ll be there co-hosting and I imagine some other members of the TSL Crew will be there as well. It’s a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy!
My dad grew up in the Ouachita Mountains of central Arkansas. Some folks would surely call them hills, and they’d probably be right, because I come from a family of hillbillies. And there’s no place I like to go back to more often than those hills in Perry County, Arkansas. It’s probably been 35 years ago now that dad found a beautiful patch of land in the Ouachita National Forest that runs along the South Fourche River, just a few miles from where he spent his summers with his Grandpa and Grandma Crain, mostly working their farm, but also fishing and hunting anytime he could. This started a journey of patience when dad went to the county courthouse, found out who owned the property (an older lady who lived out of state), and wrote his first letter to see if she was interested in selling. She responded to that first letter and said that she was saving the property for her children to have as an inheritance. A few years later, dad wrote again. Still not interested, the lady kindly turned down dad’s offer and thanked him for his interest. Fast forward a few years later, about 8 years after dad’s first letter, and a man contacted my dad this time. It was the lady’s son, who had found my dad’s letters as he was going through his mother’s house after she had passed away. He wanted to sell, and dad made him an offer that he couldn’t refuse. Now owning the land of his dreams, dad and mom proceeded to build a cabin. When I say they built the cabin, I don’t mean that they hired someone else to build the cabin, I mean that they built the cabin from the ground up. For the longest time, the only power they had was the generator that he brought with him to the location. Now fast forward 25 years later, and it’s the place we have spent all of our holidays together for the last couple of decades. It’s truly my happy place, the place I go when I need to disconnect from the stresses of life and reconnect with my wife, my family, and nature itself. I took this picture a few feet off of the back deck a few moments ago.
My wife and I will spend this weekend sipping coffee off the back deck, listening to the sounds of the river rolling by, and then watching movies when the sun goes down. I’ll go see my brother this morning, who owns the local convenience store in the area, and I’ll work his cash register as he makes the best fried bologna sandwiches in central Arkansas. My brother bought the store five years ago, continuing a family tradition that started in 1940 when our great grandparents bought the store. It’s been in our family ever since. One of the coolest experiences in my life took place at the store a few months ago. The store has the perfect, old-timey, backwoods country store look, something even Hollywood noticed. In early August, the store was used as a filming location for a movie with major Hollywood talent. For a guy who’s been obsessed with movies since we got our first VCR in the 80’s, I asked my brother if my wife and I could come over and watch them film. I spent the day watching them film, visiting with a producer, visiting with the director, even taking a picture or two with the actors filming that day. It was truly one of the most awe-inspiring days of my life. My wife and I were able to get the picture below on that day. I can’t lie, the beauty of my wife is probably what allowed this to happen!
Have a wonderful weekend, my friends. I hope all of you get to spend part of it in your own happy place.
In 1941’s Sullivan’s Travels, Joel McCrea plays a filmmaker who disguises himself as a transient so that he can experience what’s really going on outside of Hollywood. Veronica Lake plays “the Girl,” who ends up sharing his journey.
In today’s scene that I love, McCrea and Lake meet for the first time.
Sally Kirkland stars as Monica Martel, a sexy but aging Hollywood actress who’s in lust for, and obsessed with, her boy toy, Eric Cline (Andrew Stevens). When Monica is given a chance for a big comeback, she uses her pull to get Eric the leading man role. Still, the producer Crocker Scott (Anthony Franciosa) insists that the film contain a lot of sexy scenes and Monica isn’t exactly in her prime anymore. Needing this big break, director Stephen Ross (Chick Vennera) hires a model of visual perfection, the lovely Lisa Shane (Sherrie Rose), to serve as a body double for Monica on the production. Soon Eric and Lisa are having a hot affair while Monica is being left out in the cold. Not one to accept being the odd woman out, Monica hires a private investigator to track the oversexed young lovers. When Lisa’s car blows up, luckily for us viewers she isn’t in it at the time, you can’t help but wonder if Monica has decided nobody will make a fool of her again. Not so fast though when Detective Robert Fenich (Richard Lynch) shows up on the scene carrying a serious grudge against Eric… something to do with a murderous event that occurred in San Francisco a few years earlier. It’s not easy to determine who’s hateful and who’s just horny in this sizzler from Director David A. Prior.
This was my first viewing of the 1992 erotic thriller, DOUBLE THREAT, but I’ve seen plenty of movies like it before. I was a teenager when the erotic thriller became a staple at the video store. Actor Andrew Stevens, who had starred with my hero Charles Bronson in the films DEATH HUNT (1981) and TEN TO MIDNIGHT (1983) became a star of the genre with his roles in the NIGHT EYES and SCORNED series. I remember talking my mom into letting me rent NIGHT EYES (1990) because “the guy from 10 TO MIDNIGHT is in it.” Needless to say, she wasn’t happy when the “erotic” part of the erotic thriller started, and we never finished the film. To be completely honest, outside of the budget differences and the overall talent on display, a film like DOUBLE THREAT isn’t that much different than a movie like BASIC INSTINCT (1992), which I’m sure served as an inspiration when you consider that both films came out in 1992. There is a scene where Andrew Stevens walks into a club and sees Sherrie Rose dancing provocatively that reminded me of the corresponding scene in BASIC INSTINCT with Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone. And when it’s all said and done, the plots of these types of films are all pretty ridiculous. This one’s a real doozy, and looking back there are ample clues, but I somehow didn’t figure out the big twist at the end.
I must say that Sally Kirkland and Sherrie Rose, separated in age by 25 years, are both extremely appealing in DOUBLE THREAT as the actress on the comeback trail and her beautiful young body double. This is the first time I’ve watched one of these straight-to-video erotic thrillers in a long, long, time, so I may just need to revisit a few more just for old times’ sake! Besides the sexy ladies, this specific film intrigues me due to the presence of Andrew Stevens as the ladies’ man whose motives aren’t completely clear until later in the film. A consistent presence in Charles Bronson films of the early 80’s, Stevens has had quite the career as an actor, director, and producer, almost exclusively in low budget fare like this. He’s a good-looking guy and a pretty good actor, and I’m always glad to see him involved in a production. He’s recently written and directed a documentary about his mother called STELLA STEVENS: THE LAST STARLET (2025) that I have on my watch-list. Honestly, the full cast of DOUBLE THREAT is pretty stacked, with actors like Rychard Lynch (INVASION USA), Gary Swanson (VICE SQUAD), and Anthony Franciosa (TENEBRAE) all bringing some additional class to the proceedings in their various roles.
At the end of the day, you fall in one of three categories when it comes to a movie like DOUBLE THREAT: you’re the kind of person who wants to watch a low budget erotic thriller; you’re the kind of person who says that you don’t want to watch a low budget erotic thriller, but then you watch one anyway; or you’re the kind of person who truly doesn’t want to watch a low budget erotic thriller. In my case, there’s a certain nostalgia that I associate with these types of video store genre films that were a dime a dozen in my youth. As silly as it all is, I must admit that I enjoyed DOUBLE THREAT and proudly fall in the first category!
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, we celebrate the birth of one of my favorite Golden Age actresses, Veronica Lake! It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Veronica Lake Films
Sullivan’s Travels (1941, dir by Preston Sturges, DP: John Seitz)
This Gun For Hire (1942, dir by Frank Tuttle, DP: John Seitz)
I Married A Witch (1942, dir by Rene Clair, DP: Ted Tetzlaff)
The Blue Dahlia (1946, dir George Marshall, DP: Lionel Lindon)
“There’s no way to get hurt in here, just enjoy yourself.” — John Blane
Michael Crichton’s Westworld (1973) is a pioneering sci-fi thriller that uniquely melds futuristic technology with classic Western motifs to explore the dark side of immersive fantasy. The film is set in Delos, a high-tech amusement park divided into three themed worlds—Roman, Medieval, and Western—where guests can live out their fantasies with lifelike androids programmed to serve them. The story focuses on friends Peter Martin (Richard Benjamin) and John Blaine (James Brolin), who embark on a vacation to Westworld, only to find the androids malfunctioning with deadly consequences.
One of Westworld’s greatest strengths lies in its compelling premise. The concept of a theme park filled with near-human robots designed for guests’ amusement feels both visionary and deeply relevant even decades later. It touches on early concerns about the dangers of AI, the ethics of escapism, and how technology could spiral out of control. The film’s gradual shift from playful adventure to tense horror keeps the viewer engaged, illustrating how quickly paradise can turn into a nightmare. Yul Brynner’s portrayal of the robotic Gunslinger is especially memorable, embodying a calm yet unstoppable menace that has echoed through decades of genre cinema. His near-silent, mechanical stalking of the protagonists in the film’s thrilling climax defines the archetype of the relentless android assassin.
Technologically, Westworld was groundbreaking for its era. It featured some of the first uses of computer-generated imagery to simulate the Gunslinger’s “robot vision,” providing a novel and eerie perspective that laid the groundwork for the visual language of future sci-fi films. The movie’s restrained approach to horror and suspense—which leans heavily on atmosphere and tension rather than gore—remains effective. The juxtaposition of idyllic fantasy and mechanical terror gives Westworld a unique texture that feels both nostalgic and fresh.
However, the film is not without flaws. Its pacing is uneven—while the first half indulges in leisurely world-building and character interactions, it can feel slow and unfocused, weighing down the narrative momentum. The characters, particularly Peter and John, are somewhat archetypal and underdeveloped, serving more as audience surrogates than fully fleshed-out individuals. This limits emotional investment in their plight, which could have deepened the film’s impact. Some dialogue and scenes feel dated or clichéd, something Crichton himself acknowledged by deliberately shooting certain sequences as cinematic clichés to evoke a stylized old-movie atmosphere.
The tonal shift from lighthearted theme-park romp to suspenseful thriller, while intriguing, feels abrupt and uneven in spots. The horror elements emerge forcefully in the second half but are preceded by a comparatively slow start that may test some viewers’ patience. The film’s logic around the park’s safety and the androids’ malfunctioning is also inconsistent—what begins as programmed fantasy behavior suddenly becomes lethal with little explanation or foreshadowing. These plot holes can detract from the immersion if one is seeking tightly reasoned sci-fi.
World-building is another area where Westworld shows its age; the other park zones like Romanworld and Medievalworld are barely touched on, serving more as exotic backdrops than dynamic settings. The film lightly explores AI ethics and humanity’s hubris but refrains from delving deeply into philosophical questions, which later adaptations and works inspired by the film would expand upon more thoroughly. The 1970s social attitudes reflected in the cast and scenarios can also feel outmoded to modern sensibilities.
Despite these issues, Westworld remains a cult classic and a fascinating artifact of sci-fi cinema history. Its influence is enormous, seeding ideas that blossomed into franchises like The Terminator, Jurassic Park, and the HBO Westworld series. It stands as Michael Crichton’s directorial debut and an early example of a film grappling with human-machine interaction and the consequences of technological spectacle.
Westworld is a smart, ambitious blend of sci-fi, Western, and horror that captivates with its high-concept premise, pioneering visuals, and iconic villainy. While its uneven pacing, thin character development, and occasional logical gaps reveal its age, these flaws do little to diminish its charm and significance. For genre fans, it’s an essential watch—both as a suspenseful thriller and a creative blueprint for many modern tales of technology run amok. It’s a film that showcases the thrilling promise and lurking threat of immersive fantasy, wrapped in the dust and desolation of the Wild West.
As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly watch parties. On Twitter, I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday and I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday. On Mastodon, I am one of the five hosts of #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We tweet our way through it.
Tonight, at 10 pm et, I will be hosting #FridayNightFlix! The movie? 1982’s Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid!
If you want to join us this Friday, just hop onto twitter, find Legend on Prime, start the movie at 10 pm et, and use the #FridayNightFlix hashtag! I’ll be there happily tweeting. It’s a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy.
The final scenes of Inception have haunted me ever since I first watched them. Imagine living your entire life and then waking up.
Does the top fall over or does it keep spinning forever? I think it was wobbling before the scene cut out but who can say for sure. The important thing is that Dom is no longer watching it. Instead, he’s made peace with his life, whatever it may be.
Through the Shattered Lens 