Grandmother’s House (1988) Are grandpa and grandma murderous cannibals, or is something even weirder going on? Not too terrible teen-centered thriller. TIL: In 1 Kings, Asa booted his bubbe Maacah from her job as queen mother for making an obscene image of the goddess Asherah.
Dad Rock Diary: Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth (1980) Minimalist post-punk. Negative space isn't just for painting. Laudable Lyrics: Think the world lies at the top of your legs, and you only live when you are in bed, then you are not in this world, the world is your head.
Asylum (1972) Another Amicus horror anthology, but who needs originality when you have Peter Cushing, Patrick Magee, and Hebert Lom. TIL: Despite all the hoopla, an 18-month investigation into the Irish Catholic run Magdalene asylum found ZERO evidence of abuse. The media sucks.
Funny Book Philosophy: West Coast Avengers 018 (1987)
Meatball Machine (2005) Warring parasitic E.T.'s use humans as cyborg tanks. Did they legalize drugs in Japan and just not tell anyone? TIL: Unlike in Scorsese's Silence, most 17th century Japanese Christians didn't renounce their faith, leading to the bloody Shimabara Rebellion.
One Sheet Words of Wisdom: Black Samurai (1977) “A punch should stay like a treasure in the sleeve. It should not be used indiscriminately.” – Chotoku Kyan
Blue Vengeance (1989) Psycho offs members of his favorite metal band because they grew old and sold out. Sure, we've all thought about it, but you don't actually do it. TIL: Benedict XVI himself hated rock music, but the Church itself leaves listening to individual discernment.
Sing A New Song: Nick Cave & Warren Ellis - Carnage (2021) Being old, disgruntled, and locked down with a Flannery O'Connor book has done wonders for Cave's writing. Laudable Lyrics: A time is coming, a time is nigh for the kingdom in the sky. We're all coming home in a while.
Stay Out of the F**king Attic (2020) Ex-cons trying to make good as movers goof up and don't stay out of the attic. Okay diversion for "punch a Nazi" horror fans. TIL: Believing no one to be the sum total of their worst act, the Church calls for rehabilitation over punishment.
Dad Rock Diary: Cat Stevens - Catch Bull at Four (1972) The lyrics seem for darker seasons, but like most Stevens music, this feels right on a spring morning. Bonus points for Latin. Laudable Lyrics: Don't ever look behind at the work you've done, for your work has just begun.
Gamera vs. Jiger (1970) Alien meets Fantastic Voyage as the titanic terrapin faces a foe who injects eggs into his body. Icky idea for a kid's flick. TIL: Born into the Mohawk Turtle Clan, Bl. Kateri Tekakwitha naturally has the little leatherbacks as part of her iconography.
Still Voices - Yummy (2019) "You've got to get out and pray to the sky to appreciate the sunshine; otherwise you're just a lizard standing there with the sun shining on you." - Ken Kesey
Spring (2014) Spiritually adrift guy meets the love of his life but... she has a condition. If you only watch one Lovecraftian body horror/love story, this should absolutely be it. TIL: The vow to honor someone in sickness and in health is not a contract, but a binding covenant.
Dad Rock Diary: Mountain - Nantucket Sleighride (1971) A bit heavy on the Cream, but that's not necessarily a bad thing when you're hungering for a taste of some old school guitar rock. Laudable Lyrics: Angels, tired angels, tired down inside their shoes, all wanting grace.
Night of the Ghouls (1959) Tor and the other Ed Wood irregulars return in this semi-sequel to Bride Of The Monster. You know what to expect. TIL: Sorry true ghouls, but nowhere in Ad Resurgendum cum Christo, the Church's instructions on handling the dead, is eating them allowed.
Still Voices - The Shadow of the Cat (1961) “Your house will always be blessed with love, laughter, and friendship if you have a cat.” - Lewis Carroll
Cemetery of Terror (1985) Dumb-butt teenagers summon the dead. Unsurprisingly, they regret it. Mexican mishmash of horror genres is mindless fun. TIL: Whether it was a demon or actually Samuel's ghost the Witch of Endor summoned for Saul, doing so went badly for the king.
Demon of Paradise (1987) Man-fish mauls vacationers at island resort. Wants to be Jaws 2 of the Black Lagoon, but just can't work up the energy. TIL: The Eastern Orthodox believe Heaven has different levels, with Paradise being the lowest. The Catholic Church does not teach this.
Dad Rock Diary: Little Feat - Feats Don't Fail Me Now (1974) You can definitely hear the Zappa influence on Lowell George in this chronicle of Southern vice. Possibly the band's tightest album. Laudable Lyrics: There's whiskey and bad cocaine, poison get you just the same.
Future Shock (1994) Psychiatrist uses VR to induce therapeutic nightmares. Anything with Bill Paxton as a sociopathic roommate is worth a watch. TIL: According to The World Psychiatric Association an awareness of religious beliefs is necessary for understanding the whole patient.
One Sheet Words of Wisdom: The Nest (1980) "Nature, the ultimate pragmatist, doggedly searches for something that works. But as the cockroach demonstrates, what works best in nature does not always appeal to us.” - Mark Kurlansky
Sweet Smell of Success (1957) Reporter hires gossip monger to ruin his sister's engagement. Pitch black, but not untrue, take on the power of the press. TIL: The oft quoted L'Osservatore Romano is not the Vatican's official newspaper. That would be the gazette Acta Sanctae Sedis.
Still Voices - Ant-Man (2015) "All good work is done the way ants do things: little by little." - Lafcadio Hearn
Dam Sharks! (2016) It ain't beavers building dams made out of people. Take it or leave it entry in the "pick a random word, add bad CGI sharks" series from SyFy. TIL: Job 28 praises man's achievements, including dam construction, but points out it's all useless without wisdom.
Dad Rock Diary: J.K. & Co. - Suddenly One Summer (1968) 15-year old wunderkind tripping in Canada cuts a hazy psychedelic concept-classic about drug addiction. Definitely worth a spin. Laudable Lyrics: Come with me, buddy, now. Fold your hands down and bow your heads.
Boss Level (2021) Time looped soldier battles assassins to save his family and the world. Assumes you know the tropes and just gets straight to the fun. TIL: No evidence for it, but some wonder if Purgatory consists of time loops of our sins we must correct in order to move on.
Still Voices - Zaat (1971) "If it weren't for the fact that the TV set and the refrigerator are so far apart, some of us wouldn't get any exercise at all." - Joey Adams
Curse of Evil (1982) Bonkers Lovecraftian tale from The Shaw Brothers features a family cursed with rapey relatives, rapey demons, and (mercifully) non-rapey frogs. TIL: OT punishment for rape ranged from lifelong care for the victim to the death penalty. It was never condoned.
Dad Rock Diary: Dr. Feelgood - Down by the Jetty (1975) Just want a soundtrack for getting plastered at a pub? Have we got the band for you. Laudable Lyrics: The air is filled with poison, the sea is thick with grease. Somewhere in this hell on earth I'll surely get some peace.
Time to sneak one more tune into the Jukebox Hero Hymnal, and what better song for an Easter Sunday than Sweathog’s Hallelujah.
Sweathog was a lot more Southern and soulful than your typical San Francisco band, but alas, Hallelujah was their only Top 40 hit. Still, it was popular enough to get them on the road with some major acts including, oddly enough, Black Sabbath. You have to wonder what Sabbath fans made of lyrics like these…
I used to look at life In a shade of gray Til I found some satisfaction In the things you say You took me in your hands And like a piece of clay You made me a man, now I'm proud to say Hallelujah, hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah
I'd wake up in the morning And I'd wanna cry 'Cause all my needed answers Were just passing by My feelings getting stronger Each and every day Lord, now that I've got you All I wanna say Hallelujah, hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah
Oh sure, this could be interpreted as a simple love song, but the hallelujah is kind of a giveaway, isn’t it?
Hallelujah, which basically means “Praise God,” is the old Hebrew version of the word alleluia we use more often in the Church these days. Well, most of the time anyway. While the Alleluia is typically sung at mass just before the gospel reading, during Lent it’s removed to emphasize the penitential nature of the season. Instead of singing with the angels, we acknowledge our sins and practice repentance. That way, we make ourselves ready to once again be worthy of worshiping God as the angels do.
And after six long weeks of Lent, that day finally comes during the Easter vigil, and what a sense of relief it is. After all, as Saint Augustine said, "We are an Easter people, and Alleluia is our song." It just feels odd when it’s not there during Lent. Which is sort of the point, right?
Two on a Guillotine (1965) Heiress must last a week in a mansion to earn her inheritance. Okay, but honestly, Dean Jones and Connie Stevens just don't scream horror. TIL: In 1794, anti-Catholic Robespierre sent 14 Carmelite nuns to the guillotine. They sang all the way there.
Still Voices - M*A*S*H (1970) "Evidently one cannot look for long at the Last Supper without ceasing to study it as a composition, and beginning to speak of it as a drama. It is the most literary of all great pictures." - Kenneth Clark
