The teenage son of a navy sailor newly stationed in Key West gets some excitement with his friends when a small-time film producer comes to town to premiere a kitschy horror film during the ... Read allThe teenage son of a navy sailor newly stationed in Key West gets some excitement with his friends when a small-time film producer comes to town to premiere a kitschy horror film during the Cuban Missile Crisis.The teenage son of a navy sailor newly stationed in Key West gets some excitement with his friends when a small-time film producer comes to town to premiere a kitschy horror film during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
- Awards
- 1 win total
- Dennis Loomis
- (as Jesse Lee)
Featured reviews
I think this was intended to be a vehicle for John Goodman as the B-movie "impresario" Lawrence Woolsey (great casting!), with Cathy Moriarty also excellently cast as the jaded B-movie starlet and Woolsey's companion. Simon Fenton plays a young, wide-eyed, horror movie addict who is also a military kid, whose father has just been assigned to the naval blockade around Cuba. The cast also includes Dick Miller from the Gremlin series, and many other B-movies since the 1950's including the original Shop of Horrors.
Matinee is quirky, and the "movie within a movie," called "Mant" (half man, half ant), is about a silly accidental "mutation" of a man into a rather large insect The movie contains a good sampling of all the plot devices (on screen and off screen) used in these sorts of movies. The now-hilarious atomic horrors depicted in "Mant" are juxtaposed against the real-life horrors of the nuclear missile crisis, with interesting effect.
Matinee also offers a lot of not-so-subtle counterpoints between the atmosphere and common wisdom of the era (anybody remember Civil Defense drills? Bomb shelters? The "four" basic food groups?), and its stark comparison to what we know/think today. When this movie was made, the cold war was just over, and a look back to the pervasive feel throughout the 50's and 60's and its worrying about the "bomb" and anti-commie lingo makes the people of this era look supremely paranoid and silly, until one thinks about how even this has changed since the movie was made (think post 9-11: who's silly and paranoid now?).
The movie is enjoyable on many levels, although I feel the comparisons between the 60's and "today" could have been made a bit more subtle. As a counterpoint, my wife, who was never a fan of the horror movie genre, dislikes this movie--she also disliked "Ed Wood" for the same reason.
All in all, it's a wonderful movie that I'm glad to have in my VHS collection.
The Strand Theatre, where the `action' takes place, has a big Milk Duds ad over the snack bar. Hmm . . . sounds like an idea to me!
This film portrait of the 1960's schlock entertainer Woolsey (as portrayed by John Goodman) continues to be his best film role. Goodman who is now one of the spokes people for Duncan Donuts (quickly putting Starbucks out of business), is perfect for the role of Woolsey. He is surrounded by a lot of old time talent & some younger folks who manage to put over an active film story.
Two coups of this are the film within a film setting which is employed successfully with the cutting between them being made smoothly without losing the plot line and the melding of some old timers into the film in support. William Schallert is used very effectively in the MANT film within the film. Jesse White is just as effective as the guy who is trying to evaluate Woolsey's show.
The film is a send up of lots of themes from Civil Defense, to the Missile Crisis, to movies in general, to sci-fi 1950's films, to spoofing life itself. There are even spoofs of characters within the film including a broad send-up of two Liberal Parents and their attitude towards raising their daughter.
This film is loaded with everything including the theater sign which has now failed, "Fight Pay TV". If you like John Goodman, this is his best role to date outside of Dan on Roseanne, a must see film for the Goodman fan.
Did you know
- TriviaFor "Mant", the movie-within-the-movie, Joe Dante cast actors who had appeared in 1950s-era science fiction movies. These included Kevin McCarthy, Robert Cornthwaite, and William Schallert.
- GoofsThe Aurora model kit of "The Mummy" seen in Gene and Dennis' room was manufactured in 1963, one year after the movie takes place.
- Quotes
Gene Loomis: Y'know, it's hard to believe you're a grown-up.
Ruth Corday: No kidding.
Lawrence Woolsey: You think grown-ups know what they're doing? That's just a hustle, kid. Grown-ups are making it up as they go along, just like you. You remember that, and you'll do fine.
- Crazy creditsAfter the credits are complete, there is a quick snippet from "MANT" with the Cathy Moriarty character pining, "Oh, Bill".
- ConnectionsFeatured in Siskel & Ebert: Matinee/Alive/Body of Evidence/Sniper (1993)
- SoundtracksThe Lion Sleeps Tonight
Written by Hugo Peretti, Albert Stanton, George David Weiss & Luigi Creatore
(based on a song by Solomon Linda and Paul Campbell)
Performed by The Tokens
Courtesy of the RCA Records label of BMG Music
- How long is Matinee?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $13,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $9,532,895
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $3,601,015
- Jan 31, 1993
- Gross worldwide
- $9,532,895
- Runtime
- 1h 39m(99 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1(original & negative ratio)