About ten years ago I was going through Peter Weller's filmography and came across underrated classic Shakedown. Co-starring Sam Elliott, the New York set thriller follows a lawyer and his high school buddy turned cop as they fight crooked police officers and powerful drug dealers. Writer-director James Glickenhaus and company created an atmospheric, entertaining and exciting 97 minutes that has infinite rewatchability. Shot on the grimy streets of NYC and boasting impressively practical stunts, the film oozes authenticity. Press and interviews on Glickenhaus always seemed a little light, he was from a well off family and liked expensive cars, made a series of flicks like The Exterminator, The Soldier with Ken Wahl, The Protector with Jackie Chan and McBain with Christopher Walken among others before seemingly retiring from the film business.
Thanks to action movie aficionado david j. moore, I discovered an entire treasure trove devoted to Glickenhaus, his business partner Alan Shapiro and their adventures in the film business during the go-go, foreign sales, film market, VHS, genre fueled 80's and 90's. Marco Siedelmann, Nadia Bruce-Rawlings and Stephen A. Roberts pull together the people who made it happen and lived through the era to provide a time capsule and first hand account of a revolutionary time. Through a series of interviews long and short (where did Joseph Zito have to run to?) along with photos of posters, actors, parties and legal documents, we're taken back to the time when you could make a movie for a certain price as long as the poster looked good. You hear from producers, lawyers, assistants, financiers (lending is better than investing) and actors who mainly reminisce about the familial feeling and overall fun the company had. Long hours were a no brainer but staff were provided gym memberships to keep in shape and pulled in to help out wherever necessary.
I didn't realize Shapiro-Glickenhaus touched so many films whether by financing, distributing or producing. The team rented a space above Hollywood Boulevard to watch people line up for Dolph Lundgren's big budget Red Scorpion but instead saw everyone going to Pet Cemetery instead. While not a box office smash, the film's initial VHS orders topped 100,000 copies at $50-$60 a pop! Smaller fare like Maniac Cop and Frankenhooker would live on as action and horror were the fare everyone in the states and around the world wanted to buy. There's a funny story about how a certain film had to have at least one boob, not even a pair, every 7 minutes. With the exploding VHS market and global demand for product, Shapiro-Glickenhaus became a key player at The American Film Market and Cannes, always throwing big and attention grabbing parties. If a film needed a name to attract more buyers, someone like Danny Aiello would show up for a day and collect 50 grand.
There's detours to the 90's direct to video golden age with interviews from the likes of Jalal Merhi and Cynthia Rothrock, making movies to take advantage of Canadian tax breaks and the like. Merhi recounts a screening where everyone started to leave early, not because they didn't like it but because they wanted to buy the rights immediately. As for Shakedown, it's painted as the company's shot at the big time as Universal had come in to distribute. Needing a product to release by a specific date, the $10 million film was semi-rushed but was a big success for the company. Surprisingly, Sam Elliott gets a couple of mentions for being not the nicest guy around.
The book is full of photos but with no captions there isn't a lot of context. You kind of glean what you need to from the following interview. Since the book is purely interviews, topics come and go and I wish there was a little more focus on each title than we're provided. But for anyone who grew up on 80's and 90's action or horror flicks, is a fan of Cannon, Carolco or Nu-Image, this book is for you.
As you all know, Sam Elliott is the man. The gravelly voiced dude with sweet hair and mustache from Shakedown, Road House, Tombstone, The Big Lebowski, We Were Soldiers, Hulk and many more is the epitome of cinematic cool and seems pretty chill in real life. Elliott is currently co-starring in the just released Netflix sitcom The Ranch with Ashton Kutcher, Danny Masterson and Debra Winger. I had seen a few blurbs stating that he and Winger were highlights of the comedy/drama series and several friends on Facebook seemed to be enjoying the show so we popped it on during a lazy Saturday. We were supposed to go see a few movies but after three weekends of gripping and ripping along with rainy weather, it seemed like the perfect day to kick back, eat a lot of food, drink a bit of whiskey and tear through a new series.
Created by TWO AND A HALF MEN's Jim Patterson and Don Reo, The Ranch starts at a modest (and very TV set looking) ranch in Colorado where high school sensation turned professional washout Colt Bennett (Kutcher) returns and starts helping out dad Beau (Elliott) and brother Rooster (Masterson). Son and father have lots of issues as Colt smoked, drank and screwed away every opportunity while Beau has been struggling making ends meet on the ranch for decades. Immediately the show is a strange mix of sitcom yuks and actual family/life drama with a bit of cursing thrown in that threw me off. You get bar owning mother Maggie (Winger) who is still married to and sleeping with Beau but lives on her own, to give the elder actors their own subplots. Then there's former along with current flames Abby (Elisha Cuthbert) and Heather (Kelli Goss) for Colt. The series basically hinges on Beau's old school macho man who won't accept help or consider other people's opinions and Colt's easy going and charming washout loser dynamic. Everyone in the cast does well for themselves but it's Elliott who drew me in as I would not be setting aside large chunks of time to watch Kutcher. As the cantankerous Beau, Elliott uses his gnarly voice and bitching mustache to full effect as he makes fun of modern convenience, fashion and food (Almond Milk is referred to as nut juice, Uggs are for women, etc.) and gets to say the F word a lot.
It's impossible to keep up with Netflix's original output so a semi low brow show with heart aimed at middle America starring multiple familiar faces really caught me by surprise. The show is set up like any sitcom whether it's Two and a Half Men or The Big Bang Theory with a few regular locations and the odd actual outdoor scene shot along a random side of a road. Randomly you get one episode appearances from the likes of Rex Linn (Cliffhanger), Thomas F. Wilson (Back to the Future) and Kutcher's former co-star Jon Cryer (sporting a clean bald head). All in The Ranch is an enjoyable 10 episodes where humor is usually hanging around sex jokes and guys getting hit in the nuts mixed with an unexpected amount of dialog focused on family dynamics, parenting, love and regret. Set on a ranch in Colorado, there's no jokes aimed at rural America but gives a fair glance at small town living, farming, animals, drinking and guns. You even have dinner at Cracker Barrel instead of some generic show hang out. There was actually a lot of clear but not oppressive product placement for Budweiser, Jameson, Muscle Milk, Ajax, Chips Ahoy and more which makes me wonder how much of the shows costs were covered by manufacturers. Apparently Netflix picked up the series for 20 episodes and will release the next 10 at a later date. From there we'll see if it's picked up for a second season and give the world more of what it needs, Sam Elliott being a and the man.
Had a childhood friend in town for the weekend so of course we had to Grip & Rip it up. Starting in Hollywood on St. Patrick's Day, I took him to the home of Dammaged Goods Presents, the historic Egyptian Theatre where we caught the second film of an awesomely 80's double feature of Dirty Dancing and Road House. Both star former dancer turned leading man Patrick Swayze, get it, St. Patrick's Day? The Saint of Cinema sadly passed away in 2009 but made his mark in films like The Outsiders, Red Dawn, these two flicks, Point Break and Ghost as a suave yet macho leading man. I've always loved this film since seeing it as a kid. I mean come on it's basically a modern day western with boobs, booze and bust ups galore. Throw in a rocking soundtrack and plenty of what the crap moments like a blind singer, monster truck destroying a car dealer, sweaty tai chi, rough sex, bad guy wearing a razor on his boot, mullets on top of mullets, ripping a guy's throat out and Sam Elliott's pubes.
Directed by Rowdy Herrington and written by R. Lance Hill and Hilary Henkin, Road House was produced by the legendary Joel Silver who set out to the make the greatest Drive-In/B-Movie in history. And guess what, he succeeded! Behind the camera you have staples like composer Michael Kamen (Die Hard, Lethal Weapon), cinematographer Dean Cundey (Back to the Future) and a terrific cast wrangled by Jackie Burch (Predator). Swayze is legendary bouncer/cooler Dalton, a fighting philosopher with a degree from NYU who somehow manages to clean up dive bars making $500 a night but never winning a fight, in a spiritual sense. He's called in to tame The Double Deuce in Jasper, Missouri where he runs into local businessman and leader Brad Wesley (Ben Gazzara) along with his band of thugs that includes Marshall R. Teague (The Rock), Terry Funk (Over the Top) and Anthony De Longis (Masters of the Universe). He also meets and knocks boots with local Doc (Kelly Lynch), the blondest, tannest ER doctor you've ever seen. At just under two hours, I forgot how much action was in this film. There's something like 9 fights here choreographed by kickboxing icon Benny Urquidez along with plenty of explosions and gunplay. And that Swayze is shirtless and smoking a cigarette for nearly the entire runtime.
About an hour in, Sam Elliot shows up as Wade Garrett, aging but still the best bouncer in the game. With his gravely voice, lean physique and mangy yet spectacular hair, Elliot's Garrett is a Got Damme cinematic role model who punches a guy in the dick to get Dalton out of trouble before trying to get his adopted little brother to leave town before things go too far with Wesley. Anyone who doesn't like top knots needs to watch this flick and check out Elliott pulling his hair back before mixing it up. After years of supporting roles in successful films, Road House was meant to be Swayze's star vehicle to the big time. Budgeted at around $17 million, the film would gross a respectable $30 million in 1989 and offer up a more female friendly action hero compared to emerging every-man Bruce Willis, insane Mel Gibson and the superhero one man armies of Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Jean-Claude Van Damme was still starring in low budget hits like Kickboxer and Cyborg while the CAA and Warner Brothers backed Steven Seagal was about to break out with Hard to Kill. Constant airings on cable would catapult Road House into a cult classic that ensured high ratings and a milestone title in the vast filmographies of all involved.
To introduce the film and hype Saturday's co-presentation of Silent Rage with Cinematic Void, we gave out a copy of the hit soundtrack featuring the Jeff Healy band and two songs sung by Swayze. The question? What film did Swayze drop out of co-starring opposite Sylvester Stallone to headline Road House? Tango & Cash!
After experiencing the random good times of The Ranch Restaurant in Anaheim, I couldn't help but think it was like a modern version of 1989 classic Road House. While I own the awesome flick on VHS, regular and special edition DVD, Netflix was there for me and has it streaming. The tale of one Dalton (Patrick Swayze), "the best damn cooler in the business", a philosophizing, karate fighting guy who cleans up ornery bars and makes a cool $500 a night with $5,000 up front. He's enlisted to clean up the Double Deuce in Jasper, Missouri where blood and eyeballs are swept up every night. Training the staff to handle any situation without losing their cool, Dalton soon runs into Brad Wesley (Ben Gazzara), the local top dog and man in charge complete with army of monster truck driving, knife boot wearing, store terrorizing, former convict thugs. Outgunned, Dalton's long haired, gravelly voiced, chopper riding mentor Wade Garrett shows up to lend a helping and punching hand, played by mutha fudging Sam Elliott.
While Rowdy Herrington's Road House was a Patrick Swayze starring vehicle following the massive success of Dirty Dancing, Elliott's Garrett is just too Damme cool. The lanky and usually mustached actor has come to represent an iconic image of the American West thanks to roles in Tombstone, The Big Lebowski and a slew of TNT westerns; Elliott himself has stated numerous times that he's most recognized for Road House. And why shouldn't he be? He's awesome! From his mangy hair and scruff to his limp reflecting a wild life while being the voice of reason without preaching, Garrett is one of action cinemas most interesting characters. Garrett fills in some of Dalton's back story, (he'd fallen in love with a married woman who didn't mention a husband, a husband who put a gun in Dalton's face then got his throat ripped out) and encourages Dalton to leave town because he doesn't want to see his little brother/son/friend get hurt or killed. Elliott gives David Lee Henry and Hilary Henkin's script a cool and easy going gravitas, making lines like "cut it the fuck loose" and "I ain't gonna show you my dick" into memorable exchanges 20 some years later while giving each confrontational scene a light hearted segue because he wants a beer.
Fight choreographer Benny "The Jet" Urquidez studied each actor's physical movements and fashioned their fighting styles after animals. Swayze was a cat, villain Jimmy (Marshall Teague) was a mongoose while Elliott's Garrett was a bear who lumbered, scraped and tore through his opponents. Swayze showcased his dancer's background and flexibility with kicks high, low and spinning galore while Elliott did more straight punching and kneeing. Surprisingly, Elliott did not enjoy the gratuitous violence and sexism of the modern day western where women were basically there to get naked or cry while fight scenes still pack a violent punch all these years later with stabbings, broken limbs, bodies flying through windows and more than a few grisly deaths. Super producer Joel Silver set out to make the greatest Drive-In Movie of all time and had originally approached Elliott for the villain role, which he turned down before signing on to play the mentor.
Budgeted at a healthy $15 million bucks, Road House earned nearly $6 million dollars opening weekend back in May of '89. A $30 million gross wasn't bad but was less than half of Dirty Dancing's. The film was not lauded for it's violence and depiction of women and is seen as a bit of a guilty pleasure or camp classic. Road House was a big hit on video then cable where programmers used the title to boost rating at any given moment. I must have seen it on TBS as a kid and have always loved the film for being so macho, ridiculous and entertaining while keeping a straight face. There's already a ton of action in the piece but apparently the original cut ran nearly three and a half hours. Now there's a rough cut I'd love to see. While fans mention Road House when they meet Elliott, he never played a similar role to Wade Garrett again, mostly sticking to military or sheriff types in Tombstone, We Were Soldiers, Hulk and many TV movie westerns. A remake of Road House was announced a couple years ago with Fast and Furious director Rob Cohen slated to helm. Now if we could just get a Wade Garrett origins spin off...
After Saturday's show we headed out into Anaheim to do a little exploring. A friend had told us about the Packing District in downtown, where refurbished historic structures were now home to modern restaurants and live music along with a view of Disneyland's fireworks. After a day of walking the expo, the place was just too much of a scene reminiscent of a crowded mall food court and we had to bail. Up the street was the Promenade but again, had only some frou frou and fancy looking joints hocking organic junk food or oysters. We're simple folk, The Lazy Dog Cafe suits us fine so Yelp helped me find The Ranch Restaurant and off we went. I'm glad the Packing District didn't work out, otherwise we would have never had such a randomly good time at The Ranch. Pulling up to an office building, we were greeted by the sight of two different establishments, the Restaurant and the Saloon. Not looking to break the bank on a steak, we were there to check out the bar. Security was surprisingly heavy and asked if I was carrying any knives or weapons which caught me extremely off guard.
Inside the place was dark and constructed from wood. There was a $5 cover charge but we soon learned that a band was playing. Sidling up to the bar we watched as an instructor took patrons through basic line dancing and there were more than a few folks wearing Stetsons and cowboy boots. I didn't feel too out of place though as there were several Asians and Mexicans around. The staff was excellent; funny, attentive and cordial, cracking jokes at people who couldn't handle their beer and complimenting me on my awesome Captain America shirt. I still couldn't get over the locale as we were in Anaheim, former home of Orange groves, for a Disney convention, sitting in the bottom of a Class A office building that housed a Saloon where people were wearing cowboy gear and line dancing. The live band was solid and I couldn't help but think I'd stumbled into a modern version of Patrick Swayze and Sam Elliot classic, Road House. The film was shot in Anaheim back in the 80's even. I was hoping the band would play one song from the movie (Jeff Healy Band, Bob Seger, Cruzados) to cement our surreal evening but it was fun watching people dance, chatting with locals and hearing the band play.
The Ranch is famous for their 3lb Bone-In Rib Chop, that's the meat weight minus fat and bone so the whole thing is close to 5lbs! Photos of the meal are ridiculous and I was sad no one around us was taking the challenge. Our Prime Rib sammich and Chicken Tenders were really good though. As were our Jameson cockatils. Several of my Orange County friends commented that they loved the joint so I'm glad we randomly chose so well. See you down the road, mijo.
