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billmarrs
Reviews
Starship Invasions (1977)
Campy, but story details give it charm
While there's no denying the poor production value and cheap special effects (this is a B movie, after all); I feel the story behind this movie has some value. The motivation of the bad guys is well established. They are not simply evil, but are in a bit of a tight spot themselves. Also, the primary method they use to achieve their goal (a suicide ray) is rather chilling. The use of telepathic communication between the aliens was a nice touch. The cheesiness of this film can easily be embraced as enjoyable camp. It's not a great film, but I think you'll find that it sticks with you after you watch it. The story is fairly rich, with lots of details and connections filled in along the way. It truly has some meat to it. I first saw it as a kid while growing up. Now, over 25 years later, I finally tracked it down and watched it again. I'm still charmed by it.
Radium City (1987)
a chilling tale of the folly of mankind, a deadly naiveté
Though dry at times, this documentary slowly puts the pieces together on a chilling tale of the folly of mankind. Beautiful young girls are exposed to radiation, wholly unaware of the consequences. Eerie group pictures of the young women who worked at the Westclock factory, painting radioactive paint on the dials of their clocks will haunt you after you view this cautionary tale. Their happy demeanors and bright smiles mock the reality of them all dying of cancer in short order afterward. Memorable moments in the film include a description of the women clock painters using their tongues to sharpen the point of their paintbrushes (used to paint the radioactive Radium on the dials of the clocks) and a Geiger counter used over the graves of some of the dead women, clicking away madly. One is left with a sense of the duality of the US's golden age during the 1950's; both filled with wonder and joy and a deadly technological naiveté.