Ufos, Sex und Monster - Das wilde Kino des Roger Corman

If you are my age or perhaps a bit older, than there's an excellent chance you've seen several of Roger Corman's films. If you are a young whippersnapper, then perhaps you haven't. Regardless, he is an important man who all people who consider themselves to be cinemaphiles should know, as his track record of successful movies is unique. While he rarely had a decent budget, again and again, he managed to squeeze as much into the film as he could--and usually made them very entertaining. Some of the films are patently silly--such as his 1950s horror films--yet they are usually entertaining. Some of them are socially significant--and yet they are usually entertaining. The bottom line is that the films he produced or directed are NEVER dull. Bad, often...but dull, never!

This film is a tribute to the man and his films. You'll see a lot of his actors and directors from years past (mostly not all that famous, but Jack Nicholson and Ron Howard are interviewed as well) as well as his wife--who helped produce many of his films. In addition, there are LOTS of clips. Overall, a very well made tribute film--one that infuses the viewer with enthusiasm for his work. Lovingly made, the part that surprised me the best was seeing Nicholson tear up when talking about the man! Well worth seeing and a must for any film student, as they could learn from his tight-fisted example!

By the way, of all the clips they showed, the best of these films must be "The Intruder" (with William Shatner). Surprisingly, this is one of the only one of almost 400 films Corman made that LOST money!!

Believe it or not... I have watched the documentary feature on life and works of this man with smiles and tears throughout. Smiles at my realization how crazily, madly, and fiercely independent Mr. Roger Corman has proudly been and how fascinating his ups and downs in his film life must have been. The man's integrity and strength deserve admiration at all levels. It can never be easy to go against an establishment for decades and to remain self-fulfilled, commercially successful, and happily married. Worse, the very establishment or Hollywood itself has to succumb when it unanimously gives him an Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement. Tears at a life of man denied his rightful place for a very, very long time. He gives birth to the likes of Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, Jonathan Demme, Jack Nicholson, and the almost endless list of names in the 285 films he makes, and yet the father has been treated almost as an embarrassment by the children because most of his works are of exploiting nature. I find it greatly unfair and very sad. It is true that Mr. Corman himself may never have craved for meaningless glory and praises, but can't we be a little stronger and award courage and human free spirits as opposed to those bricks in the wall? I think it is appropriate for Jack Nicholson to cry during the interview because, I believe, of such hard truth. In fact, this film shows several people who look back and rediscover, after all, their deep love and gratitude to Roger Corman. It is amusing to see many of these film celebrities cracking, smilingly while doing it, at a mere mention of Mr. Corman's name, as if they feel slightly ashamed of failing early on to realize his genuine values, personal goodness and morality code, and the real contribution of him to their very lives. They almost think of him now as a father whom they disgust, ridicule, and make fun of in their previous lives. Now they know all too well from whom they obtain their secrets of success. Roger Corman is a wonderful subject matter of this wonderful, and unpretentious, film about a man who is strictly his own among the devious crowd.

A documentary on DIY producer/director Roger Corman and his alternative approach to making movies in Hollywood.

As a fan of horror, science fiction and cult films, the name Roger Corman is legendary in my home. I have watched and reviewed countless of his works, and interviewed more than a handful of his colleagues. To say he is the biggest influence in the history of modern cinema is an exaggeration, but not by much.

What I found most interesting about this documentary was that it covered so much that I did not know. I was aware of Corman's connection to Scorsese, Nicholson and Demme. I knew about James Cameron (who is practically ignored here for some reason). But I did not know about Shatner and "Intruder"... and indirectly the "Twilight Zone"?

This is a must-see for all fans of horror, science fiction, and film history in general.

definitely enjoyed the DVD however if you are looking at it to try and come up with some good ideas for which old school grindhouse movies to watch then it might not offer a whole lot of suggestions. What it does do however is offer a very informative view on how roger corman came to be. Its more of a biography concerning his film career opposed to concentrating on his filmography. I'd say i developed more of a respect for roger corman after seeing how he struggled and pulled all his resources together to slowly build up his huge body of work, especially after my respect for him seemed to be recently faltering do his garbage additions to the sci fi channel (im looking at you sharktopus). With that said i did come away with a few new movies to add to my watch list ie, wild angels, big bird cage(i know i know i should have seen this by now), bloody mama, and the trip. All in all it was very informative and entertaining and held my attention throughout. Nothing much in the way of special features though, i guess the whole movie is basically one big special feature.

Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel (2011)

**** (out of 4)

Exceptionally well-made and entertaining documentary taking a look at the career of Roger Corman, the man who turned out some of the cheapest but most successful films out there but perhaps more importantly are the number of talented people he gave jobs to. You can see how much Corman done for others just by seeing the number of people who turned out to be interviewed for this film. Just a few of the names include Jack Nicholson, Martin Scorsese, Joe Dante, David Carradine, Ron Howard, Peter Bogdanovich, Robert DeNiro, Paul W.S. Anderson, Gene Corman, Jonathan Hale, Dick Miller, John Sayles, Bob Burns, Jonathan Demme, William Shatner, Polly Platt, Peter Fonda, Bruce Dern, Pam Grier and others. Considering how many films Corman has been involved with over the decades it's really amazing how much they got into this 90-minute movie. The documentary is broken into various periods including Corman's directing years, the "young" talent taking over, the exploitation of the 70s, JAWS and STAR WARS killing business and then the home video market. Fans of Corman and all the filmmakers he discovered are really going to enjoy all of the stories here. When I heard they were making a documentary on Corman I was a little worried that they wouldn't be able to capture everything but the filmmakers actually do that. I was really shocked at how much information they crammed into the picture and it was great hearing from so many people that you don't normally get to hear from. With this I'm really thinking of Nicholson who simply doesn't do many interviews. He talks about his first film THE CRY BABY KILLER, makes fun of THE TERROR and eventually breaks down when talking about what Corman means to him. Even Bogdanovich finally talks about his early work including Corman buying a Russian movie and then hiring him as "director" to add a few scenes with women. There are countless clips shown throughout the movie and by the time it's over you really want to go out and rent all of them to enjoy all over again. CORMAN'S WORLD: EXPLOITS OF A Hollywood REBEL is an excellent look at low-budget filmmaking and the man who pretty much invented his own genre.