Top 25 B movies ever by hughff

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

Top 25 B movies ever

POSTED BY: HUGHFF
UPDATED: Saturday, November 18, 2006 11:13
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Friday, November 17, 2006 3:07 PM

Empire - an Australian movie review mag with populist leanings - nominated the above in June this year. (If this has already been posted, my apologies. I haven't mentioned it before because I don't get the mag. However I was looking at a copy in the waiting room...)

Their criteria were:
1. Genre film
2. No A-list names at time of release
3. Well below average budget
4. Ironic/knowing B movie spirit
Bonus points for cult appeal, cult hero cameos and influence on later B movies.

This is the list (How many do you love?):
25 Land that time forgot 1975
24 It came from outer space 1953
23 Eskimo Nell 1975
22 7th Voyage of Sinbad 1958
21 Braindead 1992 (Go Kiwi!)
20 Gun Crazy 1949
19 Disney's True Life Adventures 1949-60
18 Open Water 2003
17 I was a teen age werewolf 1957
16 Alligator 1980
15 Flash Gordon serials 1936-40
14 Cube 1997
13 Duel 1971
12 Detour 1945
11 Frogs 1972
10 A bucket of blood 1959 (I LOVE this one!)
9 Q - Winged Serpent 1982 (the only one that I actually saw at the cinema)

8 SERENITY

7 Future cop 1985
6 Repo man 1984
5 Piranha 1978
4 Adventures of buckaroo banzai across the 8th dimension 1984
3 Evil Dead 1981
2 Kiss me deadly 1955
1 Assault on precinct 13 1976

They also nominated A movies with B movie pretentions: A bout de Souffle; Tremors; Pitch Black; 8 legged freaks; Sky captain and the world of complete tedium starring the patron saint of dull Jude Law.

The full Serenity entry reads:

Serenity (2005)
B-Team: Joss Whedon (director), Nathan Fillon, Summer Glau, Gina Torres
Sure, Serenity may seem like an A-flick but look closer: its best known cast member is a low key British thespian (Chiwetel Ejiofor) - playing the bad guy. It's a sci-fi western with horror tinges. And it was made on a budget that would cover most A-films' sandwiches, with a no-name cast from a failed TV series. Cut through the witty dialogue and well-rounded characters and you'll see the letter B. Whedon's adoptable catch-phrases and expert stroytelling largely make up for the lack of truly awe-inspiring space spectacle and the cult of Browncoat fans provides the final proof that this is a superior B-movie rather than a true A-list blockbuster.

Apologies for any typos made transcribing that.

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www.nbhs.school.nz - my work

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Friday, November 17, 2006 3:19 PM

BROWNCOATJIM

Only a few arguments:

Duel doesn't count, it was a Steven Speilberg movie (technically), and Dennis Weaver was an A-list actor at the time.

Assault on Precinct 13 was a John Carpenter movie (A-list movie maker).

i loved Alligator, especially when the kid jumped off the diving board!

My list would be largely populated with the names Godzilla and Gamera, though.

Simon: "Were there any Feds?"
mal: "No, no Feds, just an honest brawl between folk."

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Friday, November 17, 2006 3:27 PM

HUGHFF

Duel and Assault were both first movies by their directors, as was Braindead (Peter Jackson!!!! clear a-lister). Helen Hunt was in Future Cop (aka Trancers in the US). The criterion was no-name at the time of release.

Denis Weaver is trickier but he was a tv actor rather than a true A-lister, I suspect is the reasoning.

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www.nbhs.school.nz - my work

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Friday, November 17, 2006 3:34 PM

BROWNCOATJIM

ahhh, time of release.....got me there.....I'm still gonna hold out on the Dennis Weaver thing!

Simon: "Were there any Feds?"
mal: "No, no Feds, just an honest brawl between folk."

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Friday, November 17, 2006 3:37 PM

YINYANG

You were busy trying to get yourself lit on fire. It happens.

I'm trying to decide if I should be insulted by the description or glad it made number eight...

---
"What the world needs now is love, sweet love - it's the only thing that there's just too little of. What the world needs now is love, sweet love. No, not just for some, but for everyone."

http://richlabonte.net/tvvote

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Friday, November 17, 2006 3:56 PM

TRAVELER

Well of course I'm a Flash Gordon fan. Would not call those seriels "B" movies. More like "C-". But Buster Crabbe got his start there and moved on to Tarzan. Now were really talking epic.

Traveler

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Friday, November 17, 2006 4:02 PM

PIRATECAT

Yes on this web site you do have 1st amendment rights even if your from the land down under. But I do have to respectivily disagree. On this so called B movie list I do not see the names Boris Karloff or Old no 40 President Ronald Reagan. You cannot be taken seriously as a B movie without them starring in it. And god forbid you leave Mothra and Godzilla out of it.
Excuse me what would Walker Texas Ranger say. I think this list is actually drive in movies not the same class. Let me tell about Serenity this my friends is to movies as the Beatles White Album is to music it will change everthing. Bedtime for Bonzo is true B movie classic.

Yes try not to faint I've read a poem.

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Friday, November 17, 2006 5:13 PM

HUGHFF

Not my list. However, by their criteria, I do think Serenity qualifies.

I have two issues with what you say:
I do not believe it is the White Album of cinema - it will not change the world in any way and it's not as good as the brillliant tv series it sprung from. Which, as they pointed out, did fail to draw the punters (I know - Fox to blame.)

And I DO NOT (and have never) felt that being a B movie meant being a bad movie. I can name you 101 A movies that were absolute crap. Serenity's a good movie and a B movie. I like that.

www.cpfc.org - my life
www.nbhs.school.nz - my work

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Friday, November 17, 2006 5:39 PM

DAVESHAYNE

No Russ Meyer or Roger Corman films? This list has absolutely no credibility.

Edit: Sorry there is a Corman but still no Russ shows a distinct lack of B movie knowledge.

David

"Not completely as well as the series of Firefly..." - From a review of Serenity at amazon.de

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Friday, November 17, 2006 6:13 PM

MARTIANWAY

Before I start yattering about whether Serenity's an A-movie or a B-movie, I want to know what the accepted definition for a B-movie is. I've heard everything from "a god-awful movie" (Eight-Legged Freaks) to "a flick with no budget" (Saw) to "a movie with a cast of no-name actors" (Hard Candy) to "something really campy" (Batman and Robin) to "a combination of any two, three, or all of the above".

So what's the definition being used here?

"And you can't stop me by gettin' all...bendy..."

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Friday, November 17, 2006 6:57 PM

TRAVELER

You could could put all the published movie critics in the world together and they would all have a different definition for a "B" movie. Try to define Rock and Roll. Does Buddy Holly and the Kiss belong in the same room. But they are both called Rock and Roll. I for one don't think you can pin it down. I noticed the Flash Gordon serials listed and I would not consider them a movie. But there they are. And as I said earlier, I would not rate them as high as a "B" movie. So you can bounce this ball all over the court and still not find the answer.

Traveler

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Friday, November 17, 2006 7:09 PM

HUGHFF

No Hammer horrors either: if the Karnstein trilogy can't make, it's not a fun list.

However, MartianWay, in the very first post I gave their criteria and, measured against it, it's not a bad list. Worth discussing at least, right?

www.cpfc.org - my life
www.nbhs.school.nz - my work

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Friday, November 17, 2006 7:44 PM

REGINAROADIE

When it comes to rock music, there are so many variations and subgenres and sub-subgenres that a person could spend their entire life listening to them and never get tired.

There. Got that off my chest. Now onto the topic at hand. The following are the ones I've seen and whether or not I agree or disagree with them.

24 It came from outer space 1953 - Totally. Caught it on Turner Classic Movies night before my birthday and loved every minute of it. A true B movie if there ever was one.

22 7th Voyage of Sinbad 1958 - Saw it. Guess it could be considered one. Never really got into it.

18 Open Water 2003 - I wouldn't label this as a B movie. This is a straight up indie horror that I'm surprised never really caught on.

14 Cube 1997 - Love this flick. Probably the closest thing in recent times to an episode of the classic Twilight Zone. This is great science fiction period. And extra brownie points for it being from Canada. This and LAST NIGHT proves we can make better sci-fi movies than most of the world.

13 Duel 1971 - This was actually a TV movie, not a B movie. Great flick, but should be out of the list because it was made for TV initially.

8 SERENITY - Definitly a B spirit. And all the more press to the BDM. But the fact that it has a 40 million price tag should disqualify it. And who says the space battles were lackluster?

6 Repo man 1984 - Yep. Not to big a fan of it.

4 Adventures of buckaroo banzai across the 8th dimension 1984 - Oh yes. Definitly. Just for the title itself.

3 Evil Dead 1981 - The is a capital B movie. Personally liked ARMY OF DARKNESS more. All of them were true B movies.

1 Assault on precinct 13 1976 - I guess you could call it that. I just call it a kickass movie.

I noticed someone mentioned TREMORS. The fact that it had Kevin Bacon in it shouldn't disqualify it from the list. That is a true B movie if there ever was one.

As for glaring omissions, what about any Ed Wood movies. I'm guessing there more Z pictures than B pictures, but still... And no ROCKY HORROR? That to me is the biggest heresy. That is without a doubt the most famous B movie ever. It's the STAR WARS of B and cult movies. Or any of the Ralph Bakshi animated movies. They were the closest thing to animated B movies.

**************************************************
"We have five million Cybermen. How many are you?"
"Four"
You would destroy the Cybermen with four Daleks?"
"We would destroy the Cybermen with ONE Dalek. You are superior in only one respect."
"What is that?"
"You are better at dying."

Trash talk between a Cyberman and a Dalek. It doesn't get any better than that.

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Friday, November 17, 2006 7:51 PM

HUGHFF

Oh yeah - Rocky Horror!

It's just a jump to the left...

www.cpfc.org - my life
www.nbhs.school.nz - my work

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Saturday, November 18, 2006 4:05 AM

KANEMAN

B movies?
Why has no-one posted anything from the king of B movies....Bruce Campbell?

*edit*
I see Evil Dead

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Saturday, November 18, 2006 4:19 AM

JWHEDONADDICT

B or A-list...I truly do not care. Serenity was created with more heart than just about any so-called blockbuster out there. It has far more depth and integrity and characters that just about anyone can relate to (like you don't already know!). I love what I love and to hell with the rest, is what I say.

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Saturday, November 18, 2006 11:13 AM

TRAVELER

Hello reginaroadie:

You see my point. Rock and Roll is a place where the doors are wide open and musicians and composers are free to express their own style. I feel this is true with what is known as "B" movies. Just by reading the previous posts I see names of producers, directors, and actors who have created their particular style. But there plenty more styles that have evolved. Soom actually attract big name stars, because of the challenge of doing something new and different. So even if a movie has a "A" listed actor, the movie itself may be off the main stream of conventional films.

I will name some I consider "B", but I am sure others would disagree. "Memento", "Kill Bill", and "Thin Red Line" are the most recent that I would place in this catagory. Not because of budget or talent, but because they broke the mold of the stamped out genre that fills our theaters today. And "Serenity" is part of that.

Traveler

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