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The Criterion Channel’s at its best when October rolls around, consistently engaging in the strongest horror line-ups of any streamer. 2024 will bring more than a few iterations of their spooky programming: “Horror F/X” highlights the best effects-based scares through the likes of Romero, Cronenberg, Lynch, Tobe Hooper, James Whale; “Witches” does what it says on the tin (and inside the tin is the underrated Italian anthology film featuring Clint Eastwood cuckolded by Batman); “Japanese Horror” runs the gamut of classics; a Stephen King series puts John Carpenter and The Lawnmower Man on equal playing ground; October’s Criterion Editions are Rosemary’s Baby, Night of the Hunter, Häxan; a made-for-tv duo includes Carpenter’s underrated Someone’s Watching Me!; meanwhile, The Wailing and The Babadook stream alongside a collection of Cronenberg and Stephanie Rothman titles.

Otherwise, Winona Ryder and Raúl Juliá are given retrospectives, as are filmmakers Arthur J. Bressan Jr. and Lionel Rogosin.

Above: Debra Winger and James Hong in Black Widow.For two years, I sent e-mails back and forth with legendary character actor James Hong trying to set-up this interview. Invariably, something would always waylay us: shooting on a film, pre-production on another, or we’d agree to chat on the phone to set the finer details of time and place, then life would get in the way (for one—or both—of us). It’s nobody’s fault, really. The man, he works. But, finally, late on a Monday afternoon in February of this year—Presidents’ Day—we met to speak at length. Five days later, Hong turned 91.We originally met nearly a decade before, following a screening of a ribald, late seventies sex comedy entitled—unapologetically—Teen Lust (1979), which Hong directed. In spite of its disreputable sub-genre, it read to me as a salacious send-up of suburbia and a surreal,...

The director of Over The Edge and The Accused takes us on a journey through some of his favorite movies.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

The Student Teachers (1973)

Night Call Nurses (1972)

White Line Fever (1975)

Truck Turner (1974)

Heart Like A Wheel (1983)

The Accused (1988)

Over The Edge (1979)

Modern Times (1936)

City Lights (1931)

Manhattan (1979)

Some Like It Hot (1959)

The Apartment (1960)

North By Northwest (1959)

Moon Pilot (1962)

Mr. Billion (1977)

White Heat (1949)

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

The Three Musketeers (1973)

The Four Musketeers (1974)

Superman (1978)

Superman II (1980)

The Three Musketeers (1948)

Shane (1953)

The 400 Blows (1959)

8 ½ (1963)

Fellini Satyricon (1969)

Richard (1972)

Millhouse (1971)

The Projectionist (1970)

El Dorado (1966)

The Shootist (1976)

Woodstock (1970)

Payback (1999)

A Hard Day’s Night (1964)

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962)

Billy Liar (1963)

Ford Vs Ferrari (2019)

The Wild Bunch (1969)

The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970)

Bad Girls (1994)

Masters of the Universe (1987)

Giant (1956)

The More The Merrier (1943)

The Graduate (1967)

The Victors (1963)

…And Justice For All (1979)

Citizen Kane (1941)

An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn...

With the release of Arrow Video’s The Annihilators, read film historian and author Chris Poggiali’s introduction into New World Pictures – Roger Corman’s now legendary cult movie production company that brought it to life….

When Roger Corman cut the ribbon on New World Pictures in May of 1970, he was in the right place at the right time with the right idea in mind for his latest business venture: a production and distribution company that would provide a training ground for young filmmakers eager to get into the business. Less than a year after the release of Easy Rider, every studio in town was trying to duplicate its success by seeking out independent filmmakers with an eye on the youth market and all things counterculture. This was the height of the New Hollywood era, which Corman himself had helped usher in with his trailblazing 1966 smash The Wild Angels. Mostly known as a producer-director,...

The incredible producer Gale Anne Hurd will be honored for her many accomplishments in film and television at this year's Etheria Film Night. Also in today's Highlights: Head Count trailer and release details and new casting details for Spirit Reckoning.

Etheria Film Night and Inspiration Award Details: "Etheria Film Night is proud to present the 2019 Official Lineup of Shorts on Saturday, June 29. Eight Short Films will be screened at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, CA followed by a Q&A with directors in attendance conducted by Rebekah McKendry (Blumhouse’s Shock Waves Podcast). The 2019 Inspiration Award will be presented to producer Gale Anne Hurd at the live ceremony by legendary filmmaker Roger Corman. The 2019 Stephanie Rothman Fellowship winner will be announced.

Etheria Film Night is the world’s most respected annual showcase of genre films directed by women for an audience including producers, managers, showrunners, distributors, and genre fans. Past...

When you think of Turner Classic Movies, the cinephile haven, you probably wouldn’t imagine that Rob Reiner’s delightful 1989 comedy, When Harry Met Sally… would be the opening night attraction and key art representative for the 10th Annual TCM Classic Film Festival, now taking place through Sunday night at the Tcl Grauman’s Chinese and Egyptian theatres. But indeed the times they are a-changin’ and 30 years after its release (which I was around to cover) Reiner’s film with its Oscar-nominated screenplay by the late great Nora Ephron is furthering TCM’s definition of a “Classic.”

When I recently spoke to Festival Director Genevieve McGillicuddy she acknowledged it is a more contemporary choice than the previous openers for the TCM fest, but thinks it is entirely appropriate. “Really, you know that film even when it came out in 1989 was certainly clearly a nod to romantic comedies of the past.

The lineup of the ten shorts set to debut at Etheria Film Night 2018 have been released as well as a stellar list of guests and the recipient of the 2018 Inspiration Award. Also in today's Highlights: Film Independent at Lacma's Night of the Living Dead Bring the Noise event, a look at the Distorted trailer, new Luz photos, first details for The Haunting of Mia Moss, and The Hollow Child's theatrical release.

Etheria Film Night 2018: Press Release: "(Hollywood, CA – May 9, 2018) Etheria Film Night (www.etheriafilmnight.com) is proud to present the 2018 Official Lineup of Shorts on Saturday, June 16. Ten Short Films will be screened at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, CA followed by a Q&A with directors Maria Alice Arida (“Instinct”), Devi Snively (“Bride of Frankie”), Naledi Jackson (“The Drop In”), Mac Montero ("The Agency"), Anca Vlasan (“C U Later Tuesday”), Cidney Hue (“Ovum”), Jocelyn Stamat (“Laboratory...

February is known as Women in Horror Month, when the spotlight is put on female filmmakers working inside our favorite genre, and many horror sites run pieces about movies directed by women. And that’s great! But there’s no reason why that spotlight should be limited to only one month, particularly when there are so many brilliant and talented female filmmakers working in the genre. Why not use this October to hit up these titles on Shudder and get to know some of the most exciting female voices in horror right now?

Prevenge (2016, dir. Alice Lowe) Alice Lowe writes, directs, and stars in this darkly comic, twisted fantasy about a woman who is very, very pregnant (Lowe herself was pregnant during shooting) and goes on a killing spree when her unborn baby talks to her and tells her to take revenge for a past tragedy. The film never fully transcends its gimmick,...

What’s in a name? With a title like The Student Nurses, one conjures up lavish images of scantily clad nurses in what is ostensibly a soft-core adult film posing as a camp-filled ‘70s exploitation picture. Think Candy Stripe Nurses with all of its “keep abreast of the medical world” tagline glory. However, while you wouldn’t be totally wrong about the amount of nudity the picture offers, director Stephanie Rothman turns what could be just another Roger Corman-produced T-and-a fest into a drama of shocking depth and nuance.

Newly restored by the Academy Film Archives as well as the Women’s Film Preservation Fund and Cinema Conservancy, Rothman’s film is in a week-long run at the Metrograph Theater in New York City, and is one of the most entrancing exploitation picture you’ll ever see. The film sounds like your standard exploitation picture based on its premise.

Since any New York cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.

Museum of the Moving Image

“See It Big! Jack Fisk” celebrates one of cinema’s greatest production designers. The first weekend brings four Malick features, Mulholland Dr., Carrie, and There Will Be Blood.

A collection of the Muppets‘ appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson will be presented this Sunday.

Metrograph

A retrospective of the...

It’s hard to argue with the programming behind the newest art house theater making cinephiles across the country wish they lived in New York City. Opening earlier this month in the Big Apple, The Metrograph has instantly become one of the new hotspots in NYC, with everything ranging from a film like Carol being presented in gorgeous 35mm to a new, week-long run of legendary cult classic from unsung director Stephanie Rothman, The Student Nurses. However, it’s their first major retrospective that has film nerds buzzing.

Marking the first career-spanning retrospective for the director in over a decade, The Metrograph is launching, this week, a lengthy dive into the career of filmmaker Jean Eustache. Much of French cinema history revolves around the New Wave filmmakers ranging from Jean-Luc Godard to Agnes Varda, but with names like Chantal Akerman and Philippe Garrel marking the heights of the filmmakers just a generation removed,...

During a moment of high drama in the very special cult item The Student Nurses, which runs in a restored version at the new Metrograph in New York’s Lower East Side for one week beginning March 11, a pretty young woman rudely dumps her frustrated doctor boyfriend in plain sight of the sexy roommates she trains with at a large La hospital. On his way out, just before wishing a corny “Peace!” to the other vixens, who are seated side by side on the living room couch, he keeps the scene from wandering into the expected emotional terrain by lamenting to […]...

Each weekend we highlight the best repertory programming that New York City has to offer, and it’s about to get even better. Opening on February 19th at 7 Ludlow Street on the Lower East Side is Metrograph, the city’s newest indie movie theater. Sporting two screens, they’ve announced their first slate, which includes retrospectives for Fassbinder, Wiseman, Eustache, and more, special programs such as an ode to the moviegoing experience, and new independent features that we’ve admired on the festival circuit (including Afternoon, Office 3D, and Measure of a Man).

Artistic and Programming Director Jacob Perlin says in a press release, “Jean Eustache in a Rocky t-shirt. This is the image we had in mind while making this first calendar. Great cinema is there, wherever you can find it. The dismissed film now recognized as a classic, the forgotten box-office hit newly resurrected, the high and the low,...

Here’s another installment featuring Joe Dante’s reviews from his stint as a critic for Film Bulletin circa 1969-1974. Our thanks to Video Watchdog and Tim Lucas for his editorial embellishments!

Nurses‑make‑out saga is passable fodder for drive‑ins, with mild nudity values for ogling by the soft‑core male contingent. Rating: R.

This sequel to the recent and fairly successful The Student Nurses again mixes TV soap opera plotting, youth clichés and sex, but this time out the formula fizzles. Exuding a general aura of familiarity, the dreary New World Pictures release will have to settle for lower‑berth dual billing in those situations where its forerunner paid off. Best prospects are in drive‑in slottings. The writing‑directing chores herein were entrusted to George Armitage, a Roger Corman protégé (he wrote Gas‑S‑S) making his directorial bow. Apart from one or two mild attempts at parodying the genre,...

Roger Corman is a Hollywood legend. The Oscar-winning producer might be the single-most prolific filmmaker ever with over 300 movies to his name. Along the way, he provided a big break to Martin Scorsese, James Cameron, Jack Nicholson and many others. His "cheap and fast" approach to sci-fi, horror and action has given us timeless cult classics like "The Little Shop of Horrors," "Death Race 2000," "Caged Heat" and "Galaxy of Terror." However, Corman is hoping to top himself yet again with his first 3D movie, "Attack of the 50 Foot Cheerleader." The film is about young cheerleading-hopeful Cassie Stratton (Jena Sims), who's so desperate to excel at the sport she subjects herself to a radical new drug that is supposed to increase her athletic abilities. Naturally, it all goes disastrously wrong and Cassie grows to gigantic proportions. If that wasn't bad enough, her mean girl rival, Brittany (Olivia Alexander), steals the formula,...

Director: Steve Carver; Cirio H. Santiago

Screenplay: John William Corrington and Joyce Hooper Corrington; Miller Drake; Howard R. Cohen

Starring: Pam Greir, Margaret Markov, Pat Anderson, Lenore Kasdorf, Lyllah Torena, Ken Metcalfe, Vic Diaz, Lindsay Bloom and Tara Strohmeier; with appearances by Dick Miller and Mary Woronov

To misquote Jack Nicholson, Roger Corman released so many movies, it's no surprise some real stinkers got into theaters. And the recent Shout! Factory Roger Corman Cult Classics release, Lethal Ladies 2 Collection, is intent on proving that statement. The two-dvd set includes a single-disc presentation of The Arena, and a second disc with the double feature of Fly Me and Cover Girl Models.

The best film in the collection, 1974's The Arena (aka Naked Warriors), is little more than a retelling of Spartacus with women as gladiators. Corman decided it was the perfect vehicle for Pam Grier and Margaret Markov, following their successful...

Beginning with The Student Nurses in 1970 and culminating with The Candy Stripe Nurses in ’74, these softcore sex films appealed to a broad audience and helped start an entire subgenre: the young nympho professionals. Thanks to the boxoffice success of The Student Nurses, (the first title ever released by New World Pictures), films surrounding the sexual exploits of stewardesses, teachers and every other female-dominated occupation became ubiquitous throughout the decade.

What set the Corman Nurse titles apart from the rest was the surprising social and political commentary that was often intertwined within the sexual escapades. Indeed, several of the nurse films touched upon such weighty issues as abortion, civil rights, pollution, drug addiction and group therapy. Corman was a shrewd businessman and knew what kind of hot button topics would appeal to the young exploitation audience.

He would essentially give young filmmakers free reign with the script, as long as they delivered certain non-negotiable elements.

As you may or may not have noted in the rush of Fantastic Fest event news, Roger Corman and Julie Corman will be at Fantastic Fest to accept a Lifetime Achievement Award. This is a huge deal for the fest and an equally huge deal for me personally. The Cormans’ principles of efficiency and respect for audiences have always guided me in my own work. We all have our personal heroes. I’ve always admired Roger and Julie Corman beyond measure. They may just be the couple who saved movies for us all. In the ’60s and ’70s Hollywood was a bloated, stunted giant. It was grossly inefficient, nepotistic and it had lost its connection with audiences. Corman sized up the situation, mustered up whatever small amount of money he could and started making his own movies. They were very cheap – but you could bet that every dollar he spent ended up on the screen.

Director Stephanie Rothman Presents

The Student Nurses (9:45 at the Ritz)

Group Marriage (Midnight at the Ritz)

Click links to buy tickets.

In the ’60s and ’70s, many fine directors got their start with Roger Corman’s microbudget operation: Coppola, Scorsese, Demme, Joe Dante, Ron Howard, Stephanie Rothman… Wait, what’s her name doing in there? Well, that’s the beginning of a long story and one that she tells best. Fortunately for us, she’ll be here on Wednesday to tell it. For many of her male counterparts it was a hop, skip and a jump to bigger things, for Stephanie Rothman, the drive-in was the end of the line. So a promising career died on the vine. The company best known for Women In Prison and biker movies gave her a shot but big Hollywood wasn’t interested in women directors so she moved on to other things.

The Alamo Guide

for April 8th, 2010

You guys, this weekend is Bonkers! We have packed it full of fun, I don’t know how you’re gonna schedule all this fun! The Indiana Jones Trilogy (yes, trilogy) Feast is 100% sold out at this point, so if you’re going to that, your Sunday is already tied up! If not, however, one of our favorite cult actresses, Susan Tyrrell is returning to the Alamo after she was here last at our Colorado St. closing night festivities! Susu will be in attendance at the screening of Forbidden Zone and then moving over to The Highball where her artwork, Susan Tyrrell’S Eyesores will be displayed and The Octopus Project will be dropping some amazing music! An event not to be missed for sure. But! If you just can’t bear to drive to S. Lamar, and would really rather be downtown, we...

By Steve Pond

The man behind “Monster from the Ocean Floor,” "Women in Cages," “Attack of the Crab Monsters,” "The Student Nurses," “Stakeout on Dope Street,” “Big Bad Mama” and “Sorority House Massacre” is now an Academy Award winner.

And Francis Coppola, Martin Scorsese, Jack Nicholson, Jonathan Demme and a lot of other notable Academy members wouldn’t have it any other way.

Roger Corman, who for decades ran an astonishingly prolific low-budget movie factory and gave early bre...