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American Scary
“Our show was so cheap that I would buy inflat
able dolls at the porno shop, and it was like an extra
actor,” says Karen “Stella” Scioli in this unexpected
ly touching homage to the bygone era of the late-
night horror movie host. The documentary,
composed entirely of interviews with former and
current horror hosts interlaced with vintage clips,
traces the phenomenon from its inception in the ’50s
with Zacherley and Vampira, through the ’80s hey
day of Stella, Joe Bob Briggs and Elvira, to its scrap
py resurgence and survival in the age of cable access
and the Internet. “Nobody stopped us, so we were the
kids in the candy store," says Bob Billbrough, aka
Hives the Butler. “We got away with murder.” Opens
July 7 at Hollywood Theatre. A-
—Tony LeTigre
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Best of the Northwest
The Northwest Film Center screens highlights
from the 33rd Northwest Film &. Video Festival
7:30 p.m. July 12 and 9:15 p.m. July 14. One of the
highlights is “Scaredycat," a 13-minute documentary
by gay Portland director Andrew Blubaugh (“Hello,
Thanks"). One night in September 2004, a gang of
five men attacked Blubaugh as he crossed the Steel
Bridge. Although impaired by fear, some racial prej
udice and a lifelong bout with obsessive-compulsive
disorder, he contacted his assailants in jail to try to
make sense of the situation. Even with the expert
input of a Portland lawyer and a Portland State
University psychology professor, some of the findings
are a little simplistic. Still, the skillful combination of
interviews, dramatic re-enactments and animated
sequences makes for compelling viewing. B +
—Stephen Blair
Boy Culture
This woefully pedestrian film vacillates between
heartwarming and funny to stereotypical, annoying
and downright stupid with frightening speed. “X” is
a hustler living in Seattle with a skanky twink and
a newly out man entering his own phase of
sluthood. Boy Culture quickly goes to the most
predictable place possible: explor
ing the limitations of X’s lifestyle
and his desire to move into a more
emotionally fulfilling relationship
with his roommate. X’s existen
tial crisis is brought to a head by
a new john, whom he calls “the
Geezer,” an elderly gentleman
who only wants to talk.
The film has moments of
tenderness and humor, but these
are promptly washed away by the
banality of the script and the
limitations of the cast. Observa
tional humor about gay life has its
laugh-out-loud moments. How
ever, the characters, as interesting
as they might be, are unlikely to
be anyone you actually know—
unless you know high-priced
hustlers on Ducatis with enough
cash to keep a house boy in tow.
The only significant female
character, a poor caricature of
a lesbian, does little but exclaim
in profanity.
X’s roommate melodrama
begins to wear thin after the first
is
more humor and more of a feel of returning to its
comic book roots, F4: Rise is an enjoyable diversion
for an evening. B
—Andy Mangels
half-hour. Geezer’s tale of his lifelong lover, teased
out over the entirety of the film, is far more titillat
ing and debauched than the uninspired, Real
World-style retread of the old “I’m in love with my
roommate” tale. Still, even X’s interactions with
the Geezer seem tacked-on and prefabricated. The
film has trouble making any move without
telegraphing it an hour in advance.
Opening July 13 at Cinema 21, Boy Culture
celebrates the most childish aspects of the contem
porary gay male. While the three roommates form
a family, the depth of their relationship is short-
circuited by dialogue culled from prime time soap
operas. The standard-issue melodramatic conclu
sion with all the factory settings attempts at
redemption and personal growth, but it’s all too
little, too late. The film is not without its merits,
but if you need something to put on in the back
ground while making out, stick with your Queer as
Folk DVDs. C-
—Nick Pell
Anyone who grew up in a small family that
struggled to stay alive and thrive in a tough world
will find this beautiful and human film very affect
ing. Brenda Blethyn, in a vulnerable and victorious
performance, portrays a single mom with a diva
complex who works days as a cook and piano
teacher while moonlighting as a bawdy comedian
on the lowered-expectations circuit. Her overween
ing love has a crippling effect (literally, in one case)
on the independence of her two sons. Dwights
boldly spotlights and humanizes people who many
urban snobs would dismiss, and its occasional
trailer-park moments are more than made up for by
its honest and awkward tenderness. A-
—TL
Evening
Live Free or Die Hard
Based on the novel by Susan Minot, adapted by
Michael Cunningham (The Hours) and directed by
Lajos Koltai (Being Julia), this timeless romantic
drama is an extraordinary family affair about
memories, secrets, love and life with a stellar cast of
multigenerational actresses (Vanessa Redgrave and
daughter Natasha Richardson, Meryl Streep and
daughter Mamie Gummer). Deeply moving, great
dialogue, beautiful cinematography. A +
—Yvonne P. Behrens
John McClane (Bruce Willis) is still alive and
kicking! The fourth installment of the Die Hard
series is as breathtaking as the first one in 1988.
Len Wiseman (Underworld) directs this action-
packed thriller about an Internet-based terrorist
organization that’s trying to shut down all systems
in the United States, and McClane is again in the
wrong place at the wrong time. The movie keeps
you on the edge of your seats, and the humor is
just right. A
Introducing the Dwights
—YPB
Fantastic Four:
Rise of the Silver Surfer
A Mighty Heart
Although I’m one of those who was mildly
entertained by the first Fantastic Four film, this
second outing is a definite improvement. Although
it features more of the same—including hot Chris
Evans shirtless again as Human Torch and vapid
Jessica Alba in horrid makeup and bad contacts/wig
as Invisible Girl—it’s really the Silver Surfer who
steals the show. With pumped-up special effects,
You never know what to expect from Michael
Winterbottom, the British director who tackles
everything from Thomas Hardy adaptations (Jude)
to graphic sex films (9 Songs). His latest is a gritty—
although awkwardly sentimental at times—
docudrama about the kidnapping and beheading
of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in
Pakistan in early 2002. Thankfully, Winterbottom