JillClarke2 Reviews

Hitting Home (1988 TV Movie)

Better than the book

[8/10 · 14 December 2013]

Hitting Home(Obsessed) is one of those rare movies that was actually better than the book it was based on - in this case, Hit and Run. As a film, it's really effective - particularly in the fact that it leaves the viewer feeling sympathy for both the "protagonist", Dina Middleton (the mother of the kid who was killed) and the "antagonist", Owen Hughes (the guy who ran the kid over). Neither of them fit firmly into the "antagonist" or "protagonist" category - both of them do some pretty despicable things over the course of the drama.

I still remember the scene where the kid (Alex Middleton) was graphically dragged. It's shocking and surprisingly well done for a made for TV film.

My main complaint would be that the political drama regarding extradition tends to feel thrown in as opposed to a major plot point.

Well worth a watch if you can find it.

Death on the Highway (1971)

Scary but largely pointless

[26 August 2011]

A truly upsetting film based on a safety pamphlet released periodically since World War II, geared towards scaring drivers into behaving themselves. Much of the footage seems older (I'm guessing late fifties) than the release date, which doesn't mitigate the shock of what we're shown. A large number of highly graphic still photos (all retouched with extra red to highlight the blood) and some stomach churning video footage are used to illustrate what can and does go wrong on the streets and highways of America. The safety message is not as clearly made, and tends to play second fiddle to the lurid and awful imagery.

Some of the noteworthy accidents include a fiery pileup that killed or injured 16 people, one crash where a motorist was torn in half, a collision between a fuel tanker and a passenger car, a high speed collision involving a man "whose head melded with the door post", and many others involving servicemen.

For Want of a Seat Belt (1973)

Arizona Horror

[26 August 2011]

For Want of a Seatbelt was one of the later Drivers' ed scare films to be made, and surprisingly didn't come from either the HSF (makers of Signal 30), or the Reel Fellows (makers of Red Asphalt). This film starts off as a dry overview of why seat belts are important, but soon shifts to graphic pictures and descriptions of victims who weren't wearing theirs. Astonishingly, most of the victims survived, and were photographed at the hospital. It ends with the testimony of one Lanay Gore (That's her real name,I'm not kidding), who had been injured in an accident and now is fully supportive of the Seatbelts Save Lives Campaign. The dry, scientific descriptions partnered up with horrific imagery make this a particularly shocking film.

Some of the accidents include a man who was injured when he hit a horse (which then smashed both his windshield and his face. A bike rider who was hit, a van accident, and a head on collision (the one Lanay was involved in).

After Sex (2000)

Brooke Shields channels Tommy Wiseau

[3/10 · 24 February 2011]

I caught this flick late one night while I was sick with the flu. It didn't improve my outlook one bit. "After Sex" is one heckuva dreary film focusing, in its own disjointed way, on the aftershocks of intimacy. Or at least thats what it tries, and fails, to do. I have to admit that the idea of having outsiders comment on the action ala Greek Chorus is interesting, but in this case its done in such a clumsy way that it actually hurts the production.

The acting is the second weak point. The actors seemed to either be ham fisted over the top or phoning in their lines via collect call.

The end result is something akin to what you'd get if Tommy Wiseau's "The Room" met and had a baby with "The View", and then complained about it for an hour and a half.

Glass House: The Good Mother (2006 Video)

Fairly Awful

[3/10 · 4 December 2010]

All in all, Glass House: The Good Mother was a rather dull film, in spite of the coolest looking house outside of Haunted Hill. Don't get me wrong, it had potential, but week writing and some rather silly acting kept it from getting off of the starter block.

== Here there be spoilers == The plot is straight forward. A demented mother and her husband (who acted more like a vampire's thrall) like to adopt children. The problem lies in the fact that the mother (played by Angie Harmon) also likes to make them sick in order to score mommy brownie points. The film picks up between adopted child 4 and the new batch (Abby and Evan). Things go down hill fast, for both the kids and the viewers. There were some truly creepy parts, mostly focusing on Angie Harmon talking to her new pet projects in a simpering tone, or showing up at random behind Abby (something that probably terrified Jack McCoy on Law and Order).

Options to Live (1979)

Last of the Ohio Highway Safety films

[6/10 · 2 May 2009]

Options to Live was the last film put out by Dick Wayman's group, and featured footage from previous films along with some that was never seen before. While the footage culled from the earlier films is shocking in its own right, it is taken out of context and as such fails to deliver any real safety lesson. The newer footage is also quite graphic (more so than some of the previous HSF films, especially the scenes filmed outside of Ohio) and pushes an updated message. In addition to automotive safety, motorcycles are also addressed (including one scene that featured a decapitated biker). Some of the noteworthy scenes include a truck that drove off of an overpass (its driver was shown being given last rites near by), a car that crashed into a building and exploded, several accidents involving either drunk driving or speeding, and one particularly horrific accident where a motorist was partially cut in half after being ejected. Because it is a more recent film, Options to Live still has some practical use as a teaching aid. However, caution should be taken before showing it to a Drivers' ed or Defensive Driving class.