Hail To The King, Baby
This Sunday is Bruce Campbell’s birthday. Our own Case Writes will be reviewing Bruce’s two autobiographies on that day. Here’s a few films you can watch while celebrating.
Sadly, the first three Evil Dead films are not streaming anywhere for free this weekend. However, Bubba Ho-Tep (2002), which features Bruce as a nursing home resident who may or may not actually be Elvis Presley, is available on Tubi. This is definitely Bruce’s best non-Ash performance and there’s actually something very touching about the idea of an elderly and forgotten Elvis teaming up with John F. Kennedy (Ossie Davis) to battle an ancient mummy. There’s a lot of humor to be found in this film but there’s also a definite strain of melancholy and Bruce gives a truly moving performance as someone who you’ll want to believe in. The film is on Tubi.
Maniac Cop (1988) is nowhere near as good as the Evil Dead films or Bubba Ho-Tep but it does give audiences a chance to see Bruce giving a relatively “serious” performance as a policeman who is accused of a murder that was actually committed by a hulking zombie cop. Not only does this film feature Bruce Campbell but it’s also got Tom Atkins, William Smith, Richard Roundtree, and Robert Z’Dar. If nothing else, this film is a tribute to exploitation canniness. Director William Lustig and screenwriter Larry Cohen understood that the idea of dangerous cop would remain compelling one long after the film’s initial release and, as such, Maniac Cop retains a definite cult appeal. The film is on Tubi.
Sadly, Bruce Campbell is killed off rather early in Maniac Cop 2 (1990). That’s a shame because the second film is a lot better than the first one. Robert Davi plays the detective who won’t be pushed around while Robert Z’Dar takes the maniac cop’s search for revenge to a whole other level. Leo Rossi is memorably unhinged. Personally, I would have liked to have seen Bruce try to take a chainsaw to the Maniac Cop but it was not be. Maniac Cop 2 can be viewed on Tubi.
Finally, The Woods (2006) is a sadly underrated horror film, one the features Bruce in a supporting role as a loving dad. Agnes Bruckner give a wonderful performance in the lead role, investigating her mysterious school and taking way too much abuse just because she has red hair. Hey, I’ve been there! I’m just happy that “fire crotch” didn’t catch on the way that “Gingers have no soul” did. (Seriously, the redheads have no soul thing was funny when South Park did it but everyone else needs to shut up about it.) The Woods is an atmospheric horror film from Lucky McKee and one that I would recommend even if it wasn’t Bruce Campbell’s birthday. View it on Tubi.
Pleasures, Guilty And Otherwise
Seriously, if I had to suggest one non-Bruce Campbell movie to you for this weekend, it would be my favorite Lifetime film, True Confessions of a Go-Go Girl (2008). Chelsea Hobbs plays a recent college graduate who realizes that she can either waste more of her life in law school or she can just make a bunch of money by being a …. GO-GO GIRL! The use of the anachronistic term “go-go girl” really does get to the charm of this movie, which manages to be both enjoyably trashy and quaintly old-fashioned at the same time. Hobbs discovers that she loves to dance and that men love to watch her dance. Her wimpy boyfriend freaks out when Hobbs goes from being a meek “good” girl to an aggressive temptress. The film is at its best when its embracing the decadence and the melodrama. On stage, Hobbs is empowered and I was all about that. Of course, Hobbs has to using hard drugs and learn a lesson because that’s the way these films go. Still, this one is a lot of fun and it features Corbin Bernsen doing his somewhat sleazy father figure thing. Find this film on Prime.
The Perfect Teacher (2010) is also available on Prime and you need to watch it because it features my favorite line of all time. “I can be your dream …. or I can be your NIGHTMARE!” This is another perfect Lifetime film and it can be viewed here!
The Wrong Cheerleader (2019) is one of the best of Lifetime’s wonderfully over-the-top “Wrong” film, featuring Degrassi’s Cristine Prosperi and, of course, Vivica A. Fox. “Looks like he messed with the wrong cheerleader.” Hell yeah! It’s on YouTube. (I have a feeling that if I ever hire someone incompetent, Vivica A. Fox will show up at my door and say, “Girl, looks like you hired the wrong landscaping crew.”)
The Babysitter’s Seduction (1996) was not originally made for Lifetime but it definitely found a home there. Keri Russell is the innocent babysitter. Stephen Collins is the handsome but sleazy guy who seduces her and then tries to frame her for killing his wife. This film’s twists was probably more effective back when Stephen Collins was still best-known as Rev. Camden as opposed to being known for …. other things. But it’s still a top-notch example of embracing the melodrama. It can be viewed on Tubi.
From the best Lifetime films, let’s now consider the best SyFy films. Jersey Shore Shark Attack (2010) not only features Tony Sirico, Paul Sorvino, and Jack Scalia but it also features characters with names like Nooki, TC, and Paulie Balzac dealing with killer sharks in New Jersey. Joey Fatone appears as himself and is promptly eaten. Of the many shark films to have been produced by the Asylum, this is definitely one of the best. It’s on Tubi!
Directed by actor Bruce Davison, Bigfoot (2012) not only features the title character but it also includes Danny Bonaduce, Barry Williams, and Sherilyn Fenn amongst the cast. Alice Cooper plays himself and meets a less-than-heroic end. This Asylum film is a true classic. It’s on Tubi!
Through the Shattered Lens 