It's the terrible twos! Join us for a special birthday show, with "Catman", and "Shattered: If Your Kid's On Drugs"!

Happy birthday, us!

It's been two years since we opened the doors of Horrible Movie Night, and we can't thank our fans enough. We've been having a ton of fun sharing these terrible movies, and have been thrilled to meet & laugh with you all over the last 24 months. But unlike most normal people, instead of getting you something nice, we're going to give you a couple of very awful films that we've been saving for just such a special occasion. For our birthday show, we are presenting some glorious oddballs, "Catman", and "Shattered: If Your Kid's On Drugs". Both of these are short-form pieces that we previously hadn't found a proper place for in our show. You will soon reap the benefits.

Legendary Hong Kong schlockmeister Godfrey Ho has made scores of crummy movies throughout the 80s & 90s. His favorite technique was shooting a short film, and then cutting in a totally unrelated movie to pad it out to feature-length. Lucky for us, one of his short films was 1990's "Catman", about two CIA agents trying to take down a satanic church. One agent is scratched by a radioactive cat (don't ask), and ends up with super powers. Wonderfully, "Catman" was shot with English actors, speaking English -- and dubbed again in English. It's howlingly funny, as the trailer will illustrate:

Also on the bill is 1986's "Shattered: If Your Kid's On Drugs", which was a huge hit when we debuted it at the pre-theater HMN many years ago. An hour-long anti-drug melodrama, it "stars" Burt Reynolds and Judd Nelson (who we're sure were totally court-ordered to be in it) as a Greek chorus to a story of two families struggling with children abusing drugs. As with most TV movies trying to frighten people about drug abuse, it's extremely square, and ripe for HMN-ifying. We know you guys will rise to the occasion. Dermot Mulroney (in his very first role) stars as one of the afflicted youngsters. Here's a clip:

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Saturday, September 24th, 2011

8PM (Doors 7:15PM)

The Complex Theater

6476 Santa Monica Blvd.

Hollywood, Calif., 90038

$10.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

We'll have drinks available for purchase tin the lobby, as well as baked goods. There will various surprises added as the weeks go along. You can always count on the excellent improv stylings of The Omelettes, who will on-hand to additionally razz the film. And as always, if you yell out the funniest lines of the night, you could win a birthday prize. Tickets are on sale now at the link below via PayPal. Git 'em now before they sell out!

Don't forget to stalk us on Facebook & Twitter, and tell a friend that loves bad movies (we know you have at least one). We certainly hope you'll come & help us celebrate our horrible birthday!

In horribilium,

HMN

Too horrible for HMN! Exhibit G - "Pushed Too Far"

Ever since we dug the VHS of "Pushed Too Far" from a box in a thrift shop, we at HMN wished so desperately that it was good/bad enough for our show. It's got all the right elements -- slow pace, bad acting, a token "name" actor, and by far the worst box art we've ever seen (a flying ninja over city hall, with Sheriff Lobo looking in the wrong direction), but it just isn't great/bad.

A picture-perfect town in Indiana is the setting for some unexplained attacks on local citizens. The local karate instructor is as puzzled as anyone, until his wife becomes a victim. His teachings of non-violence keep him from seeking revenge, but the killer (a psychotic former professional wrestler) steps up his game. Then, the karate instructor is, wait for it -- pushed too far.

The biggest carbuncle here is Herb Johnson, a karate champion who, natch, plays the karate champion. He was cast for his martial arts skills, not his acting, and it drags the movie down like a lead overcoat. Claude Akins, famous as the aforementioned Sheriff Lobo, looks conspicuously itchy as the (sigh) local sheriff. The fight scenes are silly, the editing is lugubrious, and the villain is hilariously cartoony.

It does have a Facebook appreciation group, quite a feat for a movie with nearly zero online reviews. You can buy the DVD directly from the makers of the film at this link. Just don't tell 'em we sent you.