1993's MATINEE is a really fun tribute to B movies all set in a small town theatre during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
John Goodman is great as B movie king Lawrence Woolsey. A master of schlock and creative presentation (think Roger Corman and those 60's horror flicks), Woolsey descends on a small town on Florida's coast with his latest film "Mant" the hilariously bad film of a man who came in contact with an ant during his dental xrays who is now transforming into a giant insect.
The films within the film are a lot of fun and really well executed with plenty of appearances by classic 50's and 60's B-movie stars like Kevin McCarthy from Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
Young Omri Katz is our lead as high school student Stan, new in town and with a father on the boats circling Cuba during the week the country teetered on the edge of nuclear war.
Director Joe Dante (Gremlins, Innerspace) has a great touch with the material and keeps it interesting, fun and nostalgic, with plenty of laughs in the mix.
The kids are really good, the story is lightweight fun and it makes for a nice little escapist treat for the whole family with plenty of hidden tidbits for movie buffs and comedy from Goodman and company.
This Matinee gets a B.
Comments