Roger Corman directed some truly commendable films in his day, and Shame may be one of his crowning achievements. The director may be most well known for his proficiency at churning out schlocky B movies with cheap monster costumes, cute girls in their underwear and Z grade scripts, but he found time now and then to really put his heart and soul into creating more personal, meaningful films in between all the more marketable drive-in flicks. Put Shame on your queue next time you sign into your movie download service.
The film is remarkably brave, focusing on racial hatred and tension in the south. This may not sound like a big deal, and civil rights movement films have since become a genre. However, you have to consider... It's easy to make a movie about tolerance in the 1990's, filming on Hollywood sets designed to look like towns in Georgia and Alabama. Corman actually took his crew to a small southern town at the start of the movement. It's not hyperbolic at all to say that he really risked his life for this movie, as he and his team received death threats.
The real star of the film is William Shatner as a villainous political agent. He's currently working for a segregationist running for office, and he moves into this town with one purpose in mind: Stir up racially motivated violence. It's a dark, disturbing character, and Shatner is incredible in the role. He usually plays the sort of roles that play off of his boyish charm and good looks, his uniquely friendly sense of machismo and his humor. To see this reversed in this early role is something like seeing Henry Fonda as the villain in Once Upon a Time in the West.
The idea of casting Shatner as a vile, disgusting villain may have been inspired by the charisma of Adolf Hitler: You need a charming man to sell evil ideas.
The final shots of the film were literally grabbed on the run. The shots used at the start of the film were actually recorded while the police were literally, physically closing in and chasing Corman out of town, forcing him to hurry up and wrap the shoot, throw all the equipment in the trucks, and get the heck out of there.
Corman may have his lifetime achievement Oscar by the time you read this. It's about time. Corman's reputation as a schlockmeister has always seemed to invalidate the immense contributions he's made to the world of American film.
Corman primarily made his name producing and directing schlocky monster movies, girly flicks and so on, but he also directed some real classics, and launched the careers of many cinematic legends, including Jack Nicholson, Martin Scorsese and Dennis Hopper. His studio taught many young actors, writers and directors the ropes, showing them how to produce a good movie on a limited budget and schedule, and he truly was one of the key figures in shaping the world of the modern American cinema.
If you haven't really given Corman his day in court yet, watch Shame, and then check out X: The Man With The X-Ray Eyes. By creating low-profile B flicks on low budgets, Corman was able to get away with pretty much anything by simply flying under the radar and making every film as a low-risk investment, opening up several doors for creativity and the ability to deal with sensitive issues.
The film is remarkably brave, focusing on racial hatred and tension in the south. This may not sound like a big deal, and civil rights movement films have since become a genre. However, you have to consider... It's easy to make a movie about tolerance in the 1990's, filming on Hollywood sets designed to look like towns in Georgia and Alabama. Corman actually took his crew to a small southern town at the start of the movement. It's not hyperbolic at all to say that he really risked his life for this movie, as he and his team received death threats.
The real star of the film is William Shatner as a villainous political agent. He's currently working for a segregationist running for office, and he moves into this town with one purpose in mind: Stir up racially motivated violence. It's a dark, disturbing character, and Shatner is incredible in the role. He usually plays the sort of roles that play off of his boyish charm and good looks, his uniquely friendly sense of machismo and his humor. To see this reversed in this early role is something like seeing Henry Fonda as the villain in Once Upon a Time in the West.
The idea of casting Shatner as a vile, disgusting villain may have been inspired by the charisma of Adolf Hitler: You need a charming man to sell evil ideas.
The final shots of the film were literally grabbed on the run. The shots used at the start of the film were actually recorded while the police were literally, physically closing in and chasing Corman out of town, forcing him to hurry up and wrap the shoot, throw all the equipment in the trucks, and get the heck out of there.
Corman may have his lifetime achievement Oscar by the time you read this. It's about time. Corman's reputation as a schlockmeister has always seemed to invalidate the immense contributions he's made to the world of American film.
Corman primarily made his name producing and directing schlocky monster movies, girly flicks and so on, but he also directed some real classics, and launched the careers of many cinematic legends, including Jack Nicholson, Martin Scorsese and Dennis Hopper. His studio taught many young actors, writers and directors the ropes, showing them how to produce a good movie on a limited budget and schedule, and he truly was one of the key figures in shaping the world of the modern American cinema.
If you haven't really given Corman his day in court yet, watch Shame, and then check out X: The Man With The X-Ray Eyes. By creating low-profile B flicks on low budgets, Corman was able to get away with pretty much anything by simply flying under the radar and making every film as a low-risk investment, opening up several doors for creativity and the ability to deal with sensitive issues.
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