Roger Corman (1926–2024)

“The Gutter and the Grave” by Ed McBain is book 15 in the excellent “Hard Case Crime” series and tells the story of down-and-out, alcoholic ex-private investigator Matt Cordell, who has been seriously hitting the booze since he caught his beautiful wife Toni in bed with one of his operatives. When Johnny Bridges, a former friend from his old neighbourhood who he hasn’t seen in ten years, turns up begging for help, Matt decides to lend a helping hand just to get rid of the guy. show more Unfortunately what starts of as a quick scan of Bridges’ shop to figure out who’s stealing from the till suddenly turns into a multiple murder mystery with Cordell at its centre. Matt finds himself fighting for his life and caught between a couple of deadly femmes fatales, a set of mobsters and a violent police force. “The Gutter and the Grave” is actually a reprint of “I’m Cannon – For Hire”, published in 1958 by Gold Medal, with McBain writing under the by-line of "Curt Cannon". “The Gutter and the Grace” is McBain’s preferred version and it’s a prime slab of dark, dirty, violent noir fiction. The mystery is well handled and the writing is raw and razor sharp, with brilliantly descriptive passages and powerful, punchy dialogue, as well as a heady smattering of cool-daddy-o hipster speak. Cordell makes for an interesting anti-hero, a drunken bum and a two-fisted battler, full of caught-in-the-past self-loathing, but one who maintains his own strict code of ethics. Despite his bum status he’s still (a highly improbable) hit with the ladies, with a sexy blonde singer, a full figured brunette model, a fiery redheaded nurse and a frumpy mature widow all falling under his dishevelled spell. Although this probably isn’t amongst Ed McBain's very best, it is still a rattling good read and a vintage slice of lean, no nonsense hard-boiled noir fiction. show less

According to Roger Corman's brother Gene, "The Intruder" was the only film that exploitation King Corman ever made a loss on. It is a film with a highly developed and overt social consciousness, but unfortunately it was a commercial and critical failure. In recognition of that failure Corman never made an explicitly political film again; his approach from that time on being to deliver the exploitation goods and to leave any political or social commentary to the subtext. In many ways that is show more a real shame as " The Intruder" is a brave and powerful film that confronts the evils of racism and segregation face on. The screenplay by regular Corman collaborator Charles Beaumont (from his own novel) sees the charismatic Adam Cramer (William Shatner) arriving in a small town in the southern United States on the eve of school integration. Cramer begins insinuating himself with the townsfolk and begins delivering dangerous speeches about the dangers of integration and the need for racial segregation. His inflammatory rhetoric soon sees the situation running out of control with an angry mob taking to the streets. After Ella (Beverly Lunsford), a white schoolgirl, makes a false accusation of rape against a black student, Cramer finds the situation fast spiralling out of his control and a lynch mob taking to the streets.
The Intruder" is robust in the extreme in regard to its overall themes and pulls no punches in regard to its message. Beaumont's screenplay and Corman's economic and studied direction powerfully highlight the dangers of rhetorical political demagoguery and how that can lead to unintended and violent outcomes on the streets. It's a message with just as much political resonance today as it did when first filmed. Corman doesn't shy away from some brutal racist language, which makes the film a challenging and abrasive watch for modern, more politically correct audiences, but his approach is absolutely correct and ensures that the evils of racism are properly and appropriately illustrated. The film is shot in clean, clear black-and-white by cinematographer Taylor Byars who, along with Corman, makes excellent use of authentic locations. William Shatner delivers a first class performance as Adam Cramer which belles his reputation as a b-grade actors. Shatner is powerful, commanding and impressive, with the right mix of overblown oratory, ingratiating subtlety and poisonous charisma to give the character of Cramer the required persona.
All this makes "The Intruder" a powerful and brave statement that Roger Corman handles with great skill. His direction keeps the story taut and focused, delivering a powerful piece of polemic that gets to the heart of the appeal of politicians peddling dangerously simple answers, while at the same time it skewers the evils of racism and intolerance. This film is far from being my favourite Roger Corman film, but it is probably his best conventional film and without a doubt his most important. "The Intruder" deserves much greater and much wider recognition. show less

Roger Corman is an underground hero in the film industry, a man who made few movie of artistic merit and yet has had an incredible influence on the independent film industry, as well as cinema history in general. Though his movies were often cheap exploitation films, woodenly acted and occasionally ploddingly scripted, what really mattered was how he made them. Corman took a logical step in the 1950s that many filmmakers at the time could not even conceive: he made movies quickly, on the fly show more that expressed a personal vision and where often free of studio control. He was an independent filmmaker at a time when studios ruled with an iron fist. Because his films were schlock, it allowed him to slip under the system and basically make whatever he wanted to make. "How I Made..." is interesting as it shows how one man, making B-list movies with lurid titles, managed to have a subtle but profound effect on the film industry, both through giving young actors and filmmakers a start, distributing foreign films in the U.S. by directors such as Federico Fellini and Ingmar Bergman (which might not have otherwise made it to our shores), and by running companies that gave a working model for how to distribute films outside of the major studios. It's a necessary read for anyone interested in film history, and Corman is a pleasant narrator to boot.

(This review originally appeared on zombieunderground.net) show less

Roger Corman's last film for AIP is a psyched-out hippie satire about an escaped military gas that kills all adults over the age of 25. In the wake of the "disaster" sexy scientist Cilla (Elaine Giftos) and renegade hippie Coel (Bob Corff) meet up and head off in search of the hippie utopia. On the way they meet up with revolutionary Carlos (Ben Vereen), rock 'n' roll loving Marissa (Cindy Williams), Hooper (Bud Cort) and Coralee (Talia Shire) and six go in search of a desert pueblo where show more peace and love reigns. On the way they run into all kinds - fascist footballers, golfing bikers and a chopper-riding Edgar Allan Poe (Bruce Karcher), his Raven and girlfriend Lenore - before God himself puts in an appearance.
Written by George Armitage, the film has a meagre plot and a highly episodic structure that allows Armitage and Corman to satirise, lampoon and generally poke fun at all kinds of establishment targets. There are plenty of symbolic touches and a drugged-up dreamlike feel which works to a degree but after a while becomes a touch self-indulgent. The jokes and skits are a bit hit-and-miss with some working nicely and others falling totally flat. The opening cartoon sequence that mocks and ridicules John Wayne is brilliant and really puts the boot in to viciously satirical effect. The actors all do reasonably well, with a lot of the performances coming across as improvised, with Country Joe and the Fish popping up to provide any number of fine rocking interludes. Unfortunately the final edit of the film was mucked about with by the studio to such an extent that an infuriated Corman left AIP behind to start his own company. It would have been interesting to see what Corman's cut would have looked like, but all the same time the released film is an interesting and engaging counter-cultural piece of work. Not all of it works, but there is enough hippie inspired lunacy and biting political satire to make it an excellent snapshot of its time. And of course any film that has a goth Edgar Allan Poe riding a super-cool chopper, with a Raven on his shoulder and Lenore riding passenger has to be a film worth seeing. show less