DVD & BLU RAY REVIEWS
Reviews by JAIME PINA
Tunnel Vision
MVD Rewind Collection
Released in 1976 and coming after The Groove Tube while predating The Kentucky Fried Movie, the common thread with these films was that they all consisted of adult oriented comedy skits strung together for theatrical release. While it may seem that all of these films follow the blueprint established by Monty Python’s And Now For Something Completely Different from 1971, Tunnel Vision differs from these in that instead of random sketches there is actually a reasoning behind the sketches.
A television network owner appears before a Senate hearing on the grounds that his network, after going to the Supreme Court to win the right to broadcast, is on trial for the lewd content of his programming. After the establishing sequence of the man facing off against Howard Hesseman as the Senator, the film proceeds with the random sketches satirizing TV shows and commercials. Out of the four films, And Now For Something Completely Different and The Kentucky Fried Movie have stood the test of time because of the clever nature of the material and the high standards the writers stuck to. Directed by Neil Israel who was responsible for writing Police Academy and Look Who’s Talking, Too it’s not like he grew into sophisticated comedy except for his credit on Real Genius. Part of the fun of watching the film is the occasionally funny bits but mainly spotting a huge number of stars before they were famous. John Candy, Joe Flaherty, Lorraine Newman, Gerrit Graham and many others pop up and maybe wish this film was buried due to the astounding amount of politically incorrect, racist and sexist humor on display. Hey, they were young and needed the money! Some of the bits are truly funny, but a good amount is failed shock humor. I don’t have anything against offensive humor, but it needs to be funny for me to laugh. As an artifact of 70’s humor and baby pictures of a lot of people who would guide it in the future, this film is worth a watch. As with all MVD Rewind Collection releases, this comes in a mock VHS rental slipcase and includes a film poster and reversable cover.
Terminus
MVD Rewind Collection
Released in 1987, this German/French production is a very strange and perhaps overly ambitious project that may not connect with the casual viewer. However, fans of offbeat cinema will find it a bit confusing but also intriguing with production design that appears low budget on one hand but also quite successful in many regards. If this film did indeed have a low budget, it looks like every bit of dough went toward trying to make something happen here. In a way it reminds me of David Lynch’s Dune. you really enjoy parts of it and admire its goals, but it doesn’t quite cross the finish line.
Taking place in a dystopian future, fan favorite Karen Allen (Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Animal House, The Wanderers) appears as a driver in a truck with an onboard computer called Monster who sounds like a voice straight out of Fred Williamson or Pam Grier blaxploitation film. She is tasked with delivering the truck to a spot where she will get a prize made up of gold. Something goes wrong and she ends up getting her truck taken from her and she meets “Stump” (, a man with a steel hand and it is up to him to make sure the mission is completed.
Now there are two versions of the film included on this disc. The US version clocking in at 1 hour 23 minutes and a director’s cut in French including an extra 30 minutes. The French version is the way to go as the story makes more sense and the computer voice is different and less annoying/distracting. While Karen Allen appears to be sleepwalking through her role, while Johnny Hallyday turns in a fine performance and Jurgen Prochnow is his usual cold, calculating self. As with all MVD Rewind releases the disc comes in a mock VHS rental box and contains a movie poster.