In this corner, myself and my staff and our friends have decided to include reviews of other people's movies (in other
words, films we had no hand in making).
What type of films do we review, and how do we select what films to review? It takes me back to the Yellow Ape mission
statement - to provide the world with 'Movies for the Midnight Hour.'
Way back when - the 70's and 80's to be exact - there was a phenomenon in cinema known as 'the midnight movie'.
In the pre-DVD, pre-VCR days when cable TV was a new idea most people didn't have or know that much about, there
was a cultural phenomenon whereby local movie theaters - the ones that families would flock to at 2PM, 4PM, 6PM,
8PM, and 10PM to see mainstream family fare like "Mr. Mom," "National Lampoon's Vacation," "9 to 5," and even "Star
Wars" - would show a different film on Friday and Saturday nights at the witching hour.
Suddenly, as the clock strikes twelve the celluloid vampires - untarnished by the convenience of video - would saunter
in to enjoy their favorite offbeat films spanning all genres. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," "Night of the Living
Dead," "Kentucky Fried Movie," "Heavy Metal," "Blade Runner," "The Song Remains The Same," "Flesh Gordon,"
"Scanners," "The Groove Tube," "The Blues Brothers," "Frankenhooker," "Woodstock," "Mr. Mike's Mondo Video,"
and Three Stooges Festivals would unspool and the neighborhood family theater was suddenly transformed into a cult
film paradise where film fans got together to laugh, scream, and often engage in various forms of participation.
Well, all good things must come to an end and as VCRs (which begot DVDs) made it easy for fans to collect and
screen their favorite wacky movies in their homes at any time they choose, the midnight show has gone the way of the
dinosaur. Apart from a few downtown Manhattan movie houses and maybe a few college campuses or tiny indie
theaters the midnight movie is a thing of the past.
As a filmmaker, I've always strived to make movies that I believe would fit in comfortably with films like those listed
above. Films that in a different time could have perhaps found an audience with the midnight movie crowd. So, in
creating a movie review page, the criteria is simply to review, recommend (or not recommend) films along the same
lines. If it's the sort of thing the local movie house might have put on as a midnight show after they were done with the
day's scheduled screenings of "Absence of Malice" (had it come out back in 1981) than we'll review it.
Thank you for not smoking and enjoy the show!
Jim Haggerty
President
Yellow Ape Productions, Inc.
words, films we had no hand in making).
What type of films do we review, and how do we select what films to review? It takes me back to the Yellow Ape mission
statement - to provide the world with 'Movies for the Midnight Hour.'
Way back when - the 70's and 80's to be exact - there was a phenomenon in cinema known as 'the midnight movie'.
In the pre-DVD, pre-VCR days when cable TV was a new idea most people didn't have or know that much about, there
was a cultural phenomenon whereby local movie theaters - the ones that families would flock to at 2PM, 4PM, 6PM,
8PM, and 10PM to see mainstream family fare like "Mr. Mom," "National Lampoon's Vacation," "9 to 5," and even "Star
Wars" - would show a different film on Friday and Saturday nights at the witching hour.
Suddenly, as the clock strikes twelve the celluloid vampires - untarnished by the convenience of video - would saunter
in to enjoy their favorite offbeat films spanning all genres. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," "Night of the Living
Dead," "Kentucky Fried Movie," "Heavy Metal," "Blade Runner," "The Song Remains The Same," "Flesh Gordon,"
"Scanners," "The Groove Tube," "The Blues Brothers," "Frankenhooker," "Woodstock," "Mr. Mike's Mondo Video,"
and Three Stooges Festivals would unspool and the neighborhood family theater was suddenly transformed into a cult
film paradise where film fans got together to laugh, scream, and often engage in various forms of participation.
Well, all good things must come to an end and as VCRs (which begot DVDs) made it easy for fans to collect and
screen their favorite wacky movies in their homes at any time they choose, the midnight show has gone the way of the
dinosaur. Apart from a few downtown Manhattan movie houses and maybe a few college campuses or tiny indie
theaters the midnight movie is a thing of the past.
As a filmmaker, I've always strived to make movies that I believe would fit in comfortably with films like those listed
above. Films that in a different time could have perhaps found an audience with the midnight movie crowd. So, in
creating a movie review page, the criteria is simply to review, recommend (or not recommend) films along the same
lines. If it's the sort of thing the local movie house might have put on as a midnight show after they were done with the
day's scheduled screenings of "Absence of Malice" (had it come out back in 1981) than we'll review it.
Thank you for not smoking and enjoy the show!
Jim Haggerty
President
Yellow Ape Productions, Inc.
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