Category: Cult

This is Spinal Tap

This is Spinal Tap VHS cover art. Movie starring Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Rob Reiner, June Chadwick, Bruno Kirby, Tony Hendra. With Ed Begley Jr., Fran Drescher, Fred Willard, Anjelica Huston, Howard Hesseman, Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, Paul Shaffer. Directed by Rob Reiner. 1984.

This is Spinal Tap on VHS. Starring Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Rob Reiner, June Chadwick, Bruno Kirby, Tony Hendra. With Ed Begley Jr., Fran Drescher, Fred Willard, Anjelica Huston, Howard Hesseman, Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, Paul Shaffer. Directed by Rob Reiner. 1984.

From the box:
This videocassette contains previously unreleased theatrical material:
The explosively familiar “Hell Hole” video (as seen on MTV)! Plus “Heavy Metal Memories,” the unforgettable greatest-hits commercial that could not be suppressed!

You’ll never be able to watch a rock group seriously again after experiencing this hilarious comedy about a supposed heavy-metal band called Spinal Tap. Once upon a time they had a pretty big hit song. Now, nearly two decades later, Spinal Tap still clings to some glint of their lost glory as they embark on an accident-plagued tour across America. In Cleveland, the group gets lost underneath the stage. In Washington, they’re accidentally booked at an Air Force formal dance. And in a Chicago record store, no one shows up to get their autographs. It’s the “rockumentary” parody that’ll leave you cheering. Directed with great wit and affection by Rob Reiner.

From left to right, Spinal Tap is: Nigel Tufnel, Derek Smalls, David St. Hubbins, Mick Shrimpton, Viv Savage.
From left to right, Spinal Tap is: Nigel Tufnel, Derek Smalls, David St. Hubbins, Mick Shrimpton, Viv Savage.

DVD Upgrade: This Is Spinal Tap (The Criterion Collection)

The Follow-up: Return of Spinal Tap

Even More Spinal Tap: Back from the Dead

Fire and Ice

Fire and Ice VHS cover art. Animated movie starring Randy Norton, Cynthia Leake, Steve Sandor, Sean Hannon, Leo Gordon, William Ostrander. Directed by Ralph Bakshi. Produced by Ralph Bakshi and Frank Frazetta. 1983.

Fire and Ice on VHS. Starring Randy Norton, Cynthia Leake, Steve Sandor, Sean Hannon, Leo Gordon, William Ostrander. Directed by Ralph Bakshi. Produced by Ralph Bakshi and Frank Frazetta. 1983.

From the box:

A Masterpiece Of Fantasy And Illustration

Fire and Ice, an animated adventure film, is the work of the imaginations of Ralph Bakshi and Frank Frazetta, masters of fantasy and illustration. A tiny village is destroyed by a surging glacier, which serves as the deadly domain for the evil Ice Lord, Nekron. The only survivor is a young warrior, Larn, who vows to avenge this act of destruction! The evil continues, however, as Nekron’s palace of ice heads straight towards Fire Keep, the great fortress ruled by the good King Jarol. When Jarol’s beautiful daughter, Teegra, is abducted by Nekron’s subhuman ape-like creatures, Larn begins a daring search for her. What results is a tense battle between good and evil, surrounded by the mystical elements of the ancient past!

DVD Upgrade: Fire and Ice (Two-Disc Limited Edition)

Something Weird Video Presents Hey Folks! — It’s Intermission Time

Something Weird Video Presents Hey Folks -- It's Intermission Time

From the box:

A barrage of wacky intermission shorts from moviehouses and drive-ins of the 50’s and 60’s!

Look! Up on the screen! It’s a monster! It’s a nuclear accident! It’s… it’s… it’s a pizza?
Used to be, back in the old days, moviehouses and drive-in theaters (remember them?) would show more than one film each evening. And between features, audiences were shown short films to keep them occupied. They entertained, they advertised, and, sometimes by accident, they even appalled.
Something Weird Video’s Hey, Folks! It’s Intermission Time! is a loving tribute to those cute little films of yore that have, with the passing of time, become the stuff of cinematic lore.
This two-hour collection features a barrage of intermission shorts from the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. If you grew up in any of those decades, you’re sure to get a healthy dose of nostalgia taking them all in on this program.
Included here are items that will not only interest movie fans, but social historians as well. Witness, for example, a 1950’s clip urging theater patrons to “save standard time and stop daylight savings time by writing to your newspaper editor.” The clip suggests “just follow the sun.” Then there’s the anti-TV number that illustrates the tiny dimensions of a television screen, especially when compared to a huge movie screen. It’s a telling reminder of how fearful the movie industry was of the burgeoning TV “giant” in the ’50s.
As evidenced on this tape, the drive-ins of yesteryear were as much a place to pig-out as make out… or watch a movie. Scores of short films display the “scrumptious delights” awaiting Passion Pit patrons at the snack bar. There’s yummy hamburgers! Actually, most look like grilled Brillo Pads. Appetizing hot dogs. Is there something wrong with the projector or do weenies always look some strange shade of green in drive-in movie ads? Spicy California Pizza. Appears to be something else. Perhaps a creature from another galaxy?
Strangely enough, one of the between-show segments features two crudely-drawn crooks robbing a house. A perfect scenario for keeping families comfortable while they are miles from home enjoying an evening at their favorite drive-in theater! — Irv Slifkin

DVD Upgrade: Something Weird Video Presents Hey Folks — It’s Intermission Time

RIP Mike Vraney, founder of Something Weird Video: Daily Grindhouse Obit

No Holds Barred

No Holds Barred VHS cover art. Movie starring Hulk Hogan, Joan Severance, Kurt Fuller, Tommy 'Tiny' Lister, Mark Pellegrino, Jesse Ventura. Directed by Thomas J. Wright. 1989.

No Holds Barred on VHS. Starring Hulk Hogan, Joan Severance, Kurt Fuller, Tommy ‘Tiny’ Lister, Mark Pellegrino, Jesse Ventura. Directed by Thomas J. Wright. 1989.

From the box:

He’s rough, and he’s tough — he’s the one-and-only Hulk Hogan, the international wrestling superhero and star of the action-packed adventure No Holds Barred!

Loaded with red-hot excitement and plenty of heart-pounding battles, the film features Hulk Hogan in his first starring role as “Rip”, a larger-than-life wrestling champ who’s been flooring some of the biggest bad guys ever to rock ’em and sock ’em in the ring. It’s not long before Rip’s unstoppable success catches the eye of unscrupulous television executive Tom Brell who sets out to use the champ to boost his sinking ratings.

The strong but sensitive Rip soon finds himself caught in a web of danger and intrigue when Brell tries to goad him into battling a monstrous killer named “Zeus” (Tiny Lister) on the air. The fight’s a “no go” until Brell sics his thugs on Rip’s beautiful girlfriend Samantha (Joan Severance), and has Zeus savagely attack his brother Randy. Now enraged, Rip goes after the brutal Zeus in a relentless battle of brawn where anything goes and there are No Holds Barred.

Get a ringside seat for non-stop fun and excitement when you see your favorite gladiator Hulk Hogan shine in the spotlight and go for the gold!

(The Long Awaited) DVD Upgrade: No Holds Barred

Cool World

Cool World VHS cover art. Movie starring Gabriel Byrne, Kim Basinger, Brad Pitt. With Michele Abrams, Deirdre O'Connell. Directed by Ralph Bakshi. 1992.

Cool World on VHS. Starring Gabriel Byrne, Kim Basinger, Brad Pitt. With Michele Abrams, Deirdre O’Connell. Directed by Ralph Bakshi. 1992.

From the box:

When ex-con cartoonist Jack Deebs (Gabriel Byrne) was behind bars he found escape by creating Cool World, a cartoon series featuring a voluptuous vixen named Holli Would.

But the ‘toonsmith becomes a prisoner of his own fantasies when Holli pulls Jack into Cool World with a scheme to seduce him and bring herself to life. A hard-boiled detective (Brad Pitt)–the only other human in Cool World–cautions Jack with the law: ‘Noids (humans) don’t have sex with doodles (cartoons).

The flesh proves weaker than ink, however, as Holli takes human form (Kim Basinger) in Las Vegas, starting a trans-universal chase that threatens the destruction of both worlds.

DVD Upgrade: Cool World

Play The Game 90s Style: Cool World – Nintendo Super NES

Read About Bakshi: Unfiltered: The Complete Ralph Bakshi (The Force Behind Fritz the Cat, Mighty Mouse, Cool World, and The Lord of the Rings)