Change Your Image
cliffking
Reviews
Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D. (1990)
Joeseph Campbell-esque metaphor on Society: A Smash of a Hit!
There are few artistic achievements that our race as a whole have produced, especially in the field of motion picture, that truly resonate within our psyche, leaving us profoundly altered. This film, Sgt. Kabuki Man, NYPD, is one of those achievements. It is a pure lancet of truth and hope that slices through the gossamar chains of society's current state of disrepair, a beacon in the fog for lost souls to reclaim there lives. Using the classic Joeseph Campbell idea of 'hero' and 'quest', this novel script shows that anyone, even one as societally dominated and oppressed as the protagonist Harry Griswold, possess the ability to totally revamp their lives into something meaningful and worthwhile. And indeed, it is the brilliantly woven script (by freshman writer Robert Koffey) that keeps the plot taunt and titillating, steeped in rich metaphors and symbolism. For example, during the initial kabuki transformation sequence after the goons have shot up the theater and the explosions have gone off, the main character can be seen frenching an old guy and then eating some worms. This is a perfect microcosm for the greater ideas that directors Michael Hurtz and Lloyd Kaufman feel we need to come to grips with in our own lives- suffer embarrassment and pain to feel redemption. Thank you, noble angels. I only hope your genius-work finds a receptive audience in the vapid teenage wasteland of suburban America.
Sleepaway Camp III: Teenage Wasteland (1989)
Sleep Away Camp 3: A Meaningless Tangent
This motion picture is a beguiling attempt at deliberately altering a series from its once proud and intrinsically valuable beginnings into a banal end. The first movie in the series, Sleep Away Camp, was so much more than this half baked slasher knockoff. It possessed better camera work, character development, passable acting, and most importantly a sense of intrigue and mystery. Couple that with one of the "most shocking" endings of all time and a powerful motion picture is produced. Everything that made that movie "great" though is truly lacking here. From scene one we know who the killer is. Her motives are non-existent, and the Kubric-esquire flashback sequence to the second crappy movie is the only attempt at serious development. I admit that she does beast a chick with a lawnmower- there is some deeper, core human emotion that is truly satiated by that. However, God knows that that is not enough. Instead of any sense of escalating lunacy we are left with the sense of something missing. Too bad