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8
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8 |
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10
= Highest Rating |
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Guest
Review by Lyle
Horowitz |
His
career in cinema began in 1919. His first credited acting role
was in 1920's The Deadlier Sex.
Many genre buffs consider the silent horror film The
Bells (1926) as his first important film appearance.
There is no disputing the performance that made him a star:
playing the Monster (or what he liked to refer to as "The Creature")
in James Whale's 1931 horror classic, Frankenstein.
Following this he appeared in such films as The
Mummy, The Old Dark House,
The Ghoul, The
Black Cat, The Bride of Frankenstein,
Son of Frankenstein, The
Body Snatcher, and The Comedy
of Terrors.
The
actor is Boris Karloff, an icon of the Golden Age of Fantastic
Cinema. By the
1960s, Karloff, in his seventies and plagued by health problems,
was being offered less credible roles. People were turning their
attention to the increasingly more lurid fare being offered
at their local theaters than the 'old-fashioned' pictures he
typically appeared in. It seemed there was no more room for
someone like Karloff in horror films anymore — a fact cleverly
incorporated into his last American feature, Targets.
(People like to forget those awful Mexican movies he starred
in before his passing.) Though it was a commercial failure when
first released, novice filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich crafted a
terrific low budget film that still resonates today.
The movie opens with elderly film actor Byron
Orlock (played by Karloff) sitting in a screening room watching
the latest picture he's made. (Footage from Roger Corman's The
Terror, featuring Karloff, Jack Nicholson and Dick Miller,
is used as Orlock's 'movie'.) Up and coming young director Sammy
(Bogdanovich, essentially playing himself) is also there, interested
in casting Orlock in his next film. Orlock, however, is planning
to retire from the industry. After making genre film after genre
film, he's become bored and tired of it. Sammy assures him that
the project isn't a horror film, that he'll be working against
type. Orlock believes he isn't scary anymore — his cachet with
audiences is gone — and that the horrors of the real world are
far worse than anything in the spooky movies he's starred in.
At the same time, in a nearby California town, we're introduced
to Bobby Thompson (Tim O'Kelly), a clean-cut young man in his
20s. Though outwardly quite normal he is mentally disturbed.
He lives in a house with his wife and his parents; they're an
all-American, white suburban conservative family. The next morning,
for no specific reason, Bobby mentally snaps. Without warning
he picks up a pistol, shooting to death his wife, his mother
and a delivery boy from the grocery store. What follows is a
murder spree. Bobby takes a sniper rifle to the top of a water
tower overlooking the highway and opens fire on unsuspecting
motorists like targets in a carnival shooting gallery. Making
a panicky getaway from the scene in his car, Bobby later spots
a drive-in theater, its marquee stating that horror icon Byron
Orlock will be making his last public appearance during a showing
of his new film there. Bobby pulls into the drive-in, his vehicle
holding an arsenal of weapons. The lot is filling up with patrons
when Orlock and entourage arrive. As night falls, he secrets
himself in an ideal sniper perch behind the big screen...
Targets signifies
the beginning and end of many things. It's a career swan-song
for Karloff. His portrayal of Byron Orlock is excellent, mainly
because Byron Orlock IS Boris Karloff. It marks a very impressive
debut by Peter Bogdanovich, who would later go on to direct
the critical and commercial successes The
Last Picture Show and Paper Moon.
In pseudo-documentary style, statements are made on the ultimate
banality of evil and the prevalence of gun violence in America
but without being preachy of detracting from the suspense. What's
truly remarkable about the film is that it only took five days
to shoot.
Targets
is a disturbing, economical thriller which pays homage to the
great Boris Karloff in an unusual but satisfying way.
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The
film is presented in its original widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1.
The print looks superb, with very little grain. The picture is
a little dark but overall the video is excellent. The audio used
is the film's original mono mix, sounding crisp and clear. Optional
English subtitles are also included. Surprisingly, there are extras
on this bargain priced disc. In a video introduction by Peter
Bogdanovich the director talks about the making of the film, how
it came to be, the involvement of Roger Corman, working with Karloff
and the true story behind Tim O'Kelly's character. (The template
was ex-Marine Charles Whitman, who murdered 14 people at the University
of Texas during a sniper-style killing spree in 1966.) There's
also an audio commentary by Bogdanovich which is very informative,
basically covering the same ground as the introduction but in
greater detail. The theatrical trailer is not included but bits
of it can be seen in the introduction piece.
For
$9.98 (or even as low at $5.99 in some stores) Targets
is a must-buy for Karloff fans or anyone who wants to see a genuinely
suspenseful, well-made thriller. 9/26/03 |
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