Glen or Glenda?

Glen or Glenda? The movie that Edward D Wood Jr. felt so strong about he cast himself in the lead (for now obvious reasons). Ed Wood is possibly the most notorious director of the last century; my personal opinion is that he’s not the worst. The heart of his material pushes past the technically inept exterior that’s projected on the screen. There are plenty of other directors out there that lack the technical skill like wood does, but also lack his heart.


"Here, it looks better on you"

Glen or Glenda? Is the telling of two tales of men who enjoy women’s clothing, one not as extreme as the other. In Glen’s tale we learn about transvestites and how they function in society. We learn of his dilemma in whether he should tell his fiancée Barbara about his “condition”. In typical Wood fashion there is a LOT of filler and the story presented is very thin. He deftly adds footage of Bela Lugosi as an overseer of sorts, which are easily the best parts of the film.


“PULL THE STRINGS, PULL THE STRINGS”

The second story is that of Allen who we discover is a “pseudo-hermaphrodite”. For him the only is a sex change, which if you know anything about what this story was originally supposed to be about, this was meant to be the A story. Wood bangs out this story in less than 10 minutes and finds his way back to Glen storyline that he obviously finds more appealing (it allows him to wear more angora). The film features many Wood regulars like Bela Lugosi (well past the prime of his Dracula days), Delores Fuller (who was involved with Wood), Lyle Talbot (future body stand in for Lugosi after he dies) and of course Daniel Davis (Wood Himself).


See, told ya

All in all Glen or Glenda? is a fun look into the mind of a transvestite delivered by a man who knows the subject well. Better to watch with like-minded friends.

6 out of 10

Invasion! - Canadians Can Be Funny Too

Invasion! (AKA invasion) (AKA Top of the food chain) (AKA Welcome to Exceptional Vista) - I love it when movies have a dozen titles!

“A genetically engineered band of devil worshiping serial killers or a Sasquatch type thing? I don’t like the sound of that” - Dr. Lamonte

There’s a reason why there are no Canadian TV networks broadcasting in America. The Canadians have a unique sense of humor, to say the least. Invasion! Is a pretty decent representation of this sense of humor, dry as the mojave and delivered in the best deadpan found on the planet outside of Britain. It’s not a bad movie (far from it!), but I don’t think I would recommend it to anyone out of fear they wouldn’t get it. Imagine a slightly more sanitized version of Sam Raimi or early Peter Jackson films.


Would you like to perform the copulatory act?

Dr. Lamonte (Campbell Scott) is an atomic scientist on vacation. While visiting Small Town, Anywhere (named Exceptional Vista) he discovers locals who are not quite right in the head as well as signs of some kind of beast killing people. Turns out that the cause of the insanity amongst the townsfolk is due to a local “nut accident” forcing all the normals to evacuate the town. The ones who stayed were crazy as a loon. The one seemingly regular girl who stuck around is Sandy Fawkes (played by the captivating Fiona Loewi), though she does has an odd affinity for her brother Guy (Tom Everett Scott of an American Werewolf fame), get it! Guy Fawkes! Remember Remember the fifth of November, clearly a joke of greater cultural significance to the Canadians. They discover a sinister plot by aliens to farm humans as food and it’s up to the doctor to fix everything, none of these other "nuts" are up to the task.


Campbell Scott

The jokes are sophomoric and the effects are very low budget, but it seems like this is all done very much on purpose. The movie is a lot of fun and the ending, which I won’t ruin for you, is expected. The movie couldn’t realistically end any other way. You’ll know what I mean when you watch…Invasion!


Fiona Loewi

7 out of 10

9 out of 10 for Fiona