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Matinee

post #1 of 22
5/4/04 at 7:53am
Thread Starter 
Since I was in a "summer day nostalgia trip", I watched this on Sunday.

I love this movie. One of my favorite Joe Dante movies next to The 'burbs.

There's so much in this movie that is great: John Goodman as the William Castle type showman director...

Dick Miller and John Sayles as the shake down con men under Goodman's employ...

The always welcome Robert Picardo...

The glory days of 50's monster movies in the theatres...

The Shook Up Shopping Cart...

The love for the genre, the tributes to classic and Atomic Age monster movies...

Plus, the kids were not annoying, and many of them were very good in the movie...

and...

MANT!

The movie within a movie scenes are hysterical! And many scenes of the Mant! movie feature actors who were really in 50's monster movies.

Joe Dante has made some very odd movies (Looney Tunes) and some true classics (The Howling, Piranah), but this loving tribute to the better, innocent days of cinema is one of his best.

If you haven't seen this movie yet, do yourself a favor and check it out.

It will make you remember the wonder you felt when you discovered these movies for the first time.
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post #2 of 22
5/4/04 at 8:24am

Re: Matinee

i saw this film ages ago, i remeber liking it.

i like the '3D' effects they use.

my favourite dante is still gremlins 1 and 2 and innerspace.
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post #3 of 22
5/4/04 at 9:12am
That is an EXCELLENT movie...and I hope I can find it on DVD. One of the cheap companies released it, but I haven't been able to find it.
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post #4 of 22
5/4/04 at 9:49am
This is a movie that I keep meaning to see. I remember when it was first released I wanted to go see it, but no one I knew would go with me because of the bad reviews they'd read [I was too young to realize going to the movies alone is ok.] Keep seeing it for rent but just haven't bothered with it; I guess I should.
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post #5 of 22
5/4/04 at 10:12am
I had a friend who worked on "Matinee" in South Florida/Key West. The movie itself didn't live up to my expectations, but I haven't seen it for a while and may need to revisit it.
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post #6 of 22
5/4/04 at 10:23am
Nothing but love for this movie. The kid storylines haven't aged well, but the intent behind the movie is still fantastic and John Goodman is superb.

The dialogue in MANT! is brilliance - especially the way the dentist/scientist explains all the big words to the woman.
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post #7 of 22
5/4/04 at 10:28am
Quote:
Originally posted by AndyL.
I had a friend who worked on "Matinee" in South Florida/Key West. The movie itself didn't live up to my expectations, but I haven't seen it for a while and may need to revisit it.
I was disappointed too. I have only seen it the once when it initially came out. The MANT stuff was great as was the William Castle stuff. But the young kid love stuff was lame and the comparision between the fun fear of a horror film and the national terror of the Cuban Missle Crisis was mishandled.
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post #8 of 22
5/4/04 at 10:32am
Quote:
Originally posted by Gus Bjork
...the comparision between the fun fear of a horror film and the national terror of the Cuban Missle Crisis was mishandled.
I disagree. I think by contrasting the dying days of the classic B-movie against the real-life escalation of imminent nuclear death Dante actually makes a simplified, yet valid, point.

Fictional scares have played a vital role in society, from the Brothers Grimm to radioactive giant ants, allowing us to vent our real-life anxieties in a medium where we know that good will triumph. And at the time the movie is set, that equation was shifting and cynicism entered our real - and cinematic - lives.

It's hardly profound stuff, but I wouldn't call it mishandled.
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post #9 of 22
5/4/04 at 11:21am
Quote:
Originally posted by Countess Anna loves Aussie Dracula
That is an EXCELLENT movie...and I hope I can find it on DVD. One of the cheap companies released it, but I haven't been able to find it.
It was released by Goodtimes, through their Universal agreement, but is OOP.

And yes, it's glorious. MANT! is how a atomic age parody should be.
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post #10 of 22
5/4/04 at 11:35am
If you liked "Matinee", be sure to see "Popcorn" which has similar themes and is a superior film.
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post #11 of 22
5/4/04 at 12:07pm
My favorite scene was where they made it look like a nuclear bomb went off. The rest of the movie? Meh. It seemed like they we're trying to kill too many birds with one stone.
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post #12 of 22
5/4/04 at 12:31pm
Thread Starter 
I think that the Cuban Missle Crisis was handled well because this is basically the world as seen through the kid's eyes.

They didn't know too much, and the movie reflects that by having it be an ominous threat in the background that the audience can identify with.

The line when the kid tells his mother not to worry, and she rolls her eyes and says, "Don't worry...right." sums it up.

This was an innocent time for kids, despite all the world's problems.

That's why the romances play a central role and not the threat of nuclear war.

I will say that now, looking back, the romance angle and some of the kid's stuff does seem dated, but dated in a 1950's sensibility, and I think that Dante purposely did that.
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post #13 of 22
5/4/04 at 12:34pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally posted by AndyL.
If you liked "Matinee", be sure to see "Popcorn" which has similar themes and is a superior film.
Popcorn is such a great movie, but it's ultimately a slasher movie in disguise.

It also used the "old stlye" film gimmicks as just that - gimmicks put in the fore front. Matinee showed a time when those gimmicks were common place.

But Popcorn is a fun little movie. And it has Tom Villard's best performance, next to the show he was on with Teri Copley.
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post #14 of 22
5/4/04 at 1:41pm
Naomi Watts has a very brief scene in this movie, I believe.
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post #15 of 22
5/4/04 at 1:46pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally posted by Countess Anna loves Aussie Dracula
Naomi Watts has a very brief scene in this movie, I believe.
If I remember correctly, she was in the movie within the movie "The Shook Up Shopping Cart."
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post #16 of 22
5/4/04 at 1:49pm
Yup, and Joey Fatone is one of the guys in a crowd scene (Really hard to pick out, though!).
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post #17 of 22
5/4/04 at 3:01pm

Re: Matinee

Quote:
Originally posted by thedudeabides
The always welcome Robert Picardo...
Why do I always think Patrick Stewart when I see this name?
I think I have some crossed-neurons...
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post #18 of 22
5/4/04 at 4:43pm
Dude, you nailed all the reasons why this movie is so great. I treasure my dvd and yeah, it's a great summer afternoon, first nice day weather movie. And all other times too.

Also, as I've been working at movie theatres, whether it's been ushering, projection or managing for the last 10 years, I love all the theatre stuff....esp Goodman's speach to the theatre staff before the show. Yeah, this is pure Dante genius.
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post #19 of 22
5/5/04 at 7:39am
Thread Starter 
Goodman's speech is great, and it's priceless how he starts to give the exact same speech to Harvey Starkweather, and Cathy Moriarty calls him out on it.

The movie really shows Goodman being the master businessman/promoter who is down on his luck.

A great movie all around!
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post #20 of 22
5/5/04 at 7:39am
Thread Starter 
I still say they should have given the team of John Sayles and Dick Miller their own spin off movie.
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post #21 of 22
5/5/04 at 2:07pm
After seeing this thread yesterday, I felt compelled to watch the DVD again. I forgot how much I LOVE this movie!

And I agree completely that Dick Miller and John Sayles make a terrific team. And I've always thought Cathy Moriarty was cool... not given enough to do in the movie, though. I do laugh everytime the Scientist Guy pauses to explain the big words to her. Good stuff.
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post #22 of 22
5/6/04 at 8:10am
Thread Starter 
Anna was right.

I watched this again last night in fast forward, and I do believe that is Joey Fat One.

Awwwwwwww man!
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