Directors MORE DIRECTORS CHECKLIST SERIES - Volume #216 - THE FILMS OF JACK HILL (1 Viewer)

[Brook K]

Rate 'em, Rank 'em, Review 'em, whatever

Volume #216 - Jack Hill

Sorceress (1982) (as Brian Stuart)
Switchblade Sisters (1975)
The Swinging Cheerleaders (1974)
Foxy Brown (1974)
Coffy (1973)
The Big Bird Cage (1972)
The Big Doll House (1971)
The Incredible Invasion (1971) (US scenes)
... aka Alien Terror (USA)
... aka Sinister Invasion
Isle of the Snake People (1971) (US scenes)
... aka Isle of the Living Dead
... aka Snake People
Me, a Groupie (1970) (uncredited)
... aka Higher and Higher (USA)
The Winner (1969)
... aka Pit Stop (USA: video title)
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968)
... aka Attack of the Liver Eaters
... aka Cannibal Orgy, or the Maddest Story Ever Told
... aka Spider Baby (USA: short title)
... aka The Liver Eaters
The Fear Chamber (1968) (US scenes)
... aka Chamber of Fear
... aka The Torture Chamber (video title)
... aka Torture Zone
House of Evil (1968) (US scenes)
... aka Dance of Death
... aka Macabre Serenade
Blood Bath (1966)
... aka Track of the Vampire (USA: TV title)
Mondo Keyhole (1966)
Portrait in Terror (1965) (as Rados Novakovic)
The Terror (1963) (uncredited)
... aka Lady of the Shadows
... aka The Castle of Terror
... aka The Haunting (USA: TV title)
The Playgirls and the Bellboy (1962) (new footage)
... aka The Bellboy and the Playgirls
The Wasp Woman (1960) (uncredited)
... aka Insect Woman
... aka The Bee Girl
The Host (1960)

 

[george kaplan]

JACK HILL

Seen: 1
Like: 0
Own: 0

Rank order:

The Wasp Woman (1960) (uncredited)
... aka Insect Woman
... aka The Bee Girl


While far from the worst film ever made in my opinion, it's certainly one of the worst made and worst acted (which still makes it a lot better than many well acted and well made films that...well you know).

 

[Bill McA]

Sorceress (1982)
Switchblade Sisters (1975) :star: :star:
The Swinging Cheerleaders (1974) :star: :star:
Foxy Brown (1974) :star: :star: :star:
Coffy (1973) :star: :star: :star:
The Big Bird Cage (1972) :star: :star: :star:
The Big Doll House (1971) :star: :star: :star:
The Incredible Invasion (1971) (US scenes)
Isle of the Snake People (1971) (US scenes)
Me, a Groupie (1970) (uncredited)
The Winner (1969)
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968) :star: :star: :star: (Own the DVD)
The Fear Chamber (1968) (US scenes)
House of Evil (1968) (US scenes)
Blood Bath (1966) :star: :star:
Mondo Keyhole (1966)
Portrait in Terror (1965) (as Rados Novakovic)
The Terror (1963) :star: :star:
The Playgirls and the Bellboy (1962) :star:
The Wasp Woman (1960) :star: :star: (Used to own the LD)
The Host (1960)

Seen 10
Own 1

 

[Brook K]

You knew he was coming, and what better day to present Hill then the opening day of The Devil's Rejects starring Hill's favorite actor and collaborator, the incomparable Sid Haig.

Hill started out making cheapie horror films and then went on to create some of the classics of the exploitation genres while working for Roger Corman and then AIP. He delivers the requisite sex and action on a budget required of the genre's, but his films are also funny, witty, and take time out to present his characters as truly human, rather than as devices to take off their clothes or kill each other.

1. Coffy - A (A nurse takes the law into her own hands after pimps string out her sister. Starring Pam Grier in a powerful performance, she uses intelligence and sex appeal as much as strength to gain her vengenance, but Hill also allows us to see the enormous psychological toll that killing and other actions take on Coffy)
2. The Big Doll House - A (Hill created the "women in prison" genre with this enormous independent financial hit. Featuring Pam Grier, Roberta Collins, and the comic relief of Sid Haig, the film delivers action and plenty of sex, but again Hill takes the time to deliver human characters experiencing addiction, the effects of imprisonment, psychological and sexual subjugation, and hopelessness. The overall dour tone of the film also sets it apart from its many imitators.)
3. Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told - A- (Impressive low budget horror film about a family who ages in reverse, which has the effect of unhinging their minds leading to a penchant for cannabalism. Featuring an outstanding performance by Lon Chaney, Jr (who reportedly was so taken with the part that he sobered up during shooting), and Sid Haig in a bizarre, demented role as one of the family members, it's a pity that this film isn't better known, even in cult horror circles.)
4. The Big Bird Cage - A- (Much like James Whale did in creating Bride of Frankenstein, here Hill decides to spoof the genre he created. While the plot is somewhat similar, only this time Pam Grier is a revolutionary trying to bust into the prison rather than get out, Hill replaces the darker tone of the original with an absurd, comic one.)
5. Foxy Brown - B+ (Studio interference would not allow Hill to make the film he wanted to as a sequel to Coffy. Instead this is the sort of film that the term "blaxsploitation" brings to mind. However once again Pam Grier elevates it beyond the common and turns a so-so plot into something worth watching. This was also one of the most financially successful of the blaxsploitation films.)
6. Switchblade Sisters - B (While I think Tarantino is off his rocker in describing this film as the best screen version of Othello's Iago, this zany chick gang flick is still a lot of fun. Again Hill elevates the film by giving his characters real motivations and personality, though his cast is nowhere close to the quality of his previous films and is undermined somewhat because of this.)

7. The Swinging Cheerleaders - B- (Has Hill's humanistic touches that are the main reason I'm such a big fan, but some of the main actors are porn level and the rest of the cast isn't much better, some of the dialogue is flat out terrible, the script has all sorts of inconsistencies, and these deficiencies cause some of the comedy scenes to come off as more cheezy than zany fun.)

Own: 4 (I should buy Spider Baby)

I don't think most of his earlier movies are available, though maybe that's a good thing since according to everyone here The Wasp Woman is utter crap.

 

[SteveGon]

Don't think I've seen any, though I wouldn't mind seeing the movies with Grier. One of these days I'll get around to them.

 

[Kirk Tsai]

Seen Coffy, have Foxy Brown on deck.

 

[Jim_K]

Ratings out of :star: :star: :star: :star:


[SIZE= 14px]JACK HILL (1933 - )[/SIZE]


Sorceress (1982)
Switchblade Sisters (1975) :star: :star: 1/2
The Swinging Cheerleaders (1974)
Foxy Brown (1974) :star: :star: :star:
Coffy (1973) :star: :star: :star:
The Big Bird Cage (1972) :star: :star: 1/2
The Big Doll House (1971) :star: :star:
The Incredible Invasion (1971)
Isle of the Snake People (1971) :star:
Me, a Groupie (1970)
Pit Stop (1969) :star: :star: 1/2
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968) :star: :star: 1/2
The Fear Chamber (1968) :star:
House of Evil (1968) :star:
Blood Bath (1966)
Mondo Keyhole (1966)
Portrait in Terror (1965)
The Terror (1963) :star: 1/2
The Playgirls and the Bellboy (1962)
The Wasp Woman (1960) :star:
The Host (1960)

 

[Brook K]

I'm going out of town tomorrow so there won't be any entries. I'll be back Sunday.

 

[Michael Elliott]

All we need now is a checklist for Jess Franco, Al Adamson and Jerry Warren. Hill's certainly way above these guys but there have been some pretty bad films from the guy.

Foxy Brown (1974) :star::star::star:
The Big Doll House (1971) :star::star:
The Incredible Invasion (1971) BOMB
Isle of the Snake People (1971) 1/2:star:
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968) :star::star:1/2
The Fear Chamber (1968) BOMB
House of Evil (1968) BOMB
The Terror (1963) :star::star:1/2
The Wasp Woman (1960) :star:1/2

INVASION, CHAMBER, EVIL and SNAKE PEOPLE are the four Mexican films, which Hill shot with Boris Karloff. All are equally bad, although the Karloff footage isn't too bad.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Foxy Brown (1974) ***
Coffy (1973) **
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968) ***
The Fear Chamber (1968) (US scenes) *
Track of the Vampire *
Mondo Keyhole (1966) BOMB
The Terror (1963) **

 

[Bill McA]

UPDATED:

Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968) :star: :star: :star: (Own the DVD)


Seen 10
Own 1

 

[Jim_K]

Updated Master list...............................

 

[ScottLloyd]

I enjoy his films and own all of the ones below. For some reason they all have a similar score for the most part. Good, not great, but not awful either. Hmmmm.

Switchblade Sisters (1975) ***
The Swinging Cheerleaders (1974) ***
Foxy Brown (1974) ***
Coffy (1973) ***
The Big Bird Cage (1972) ***
The Big Doll House (1971) ***
The Winner (1969)
... aka Pit Stop (USA: video title) **.5
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968) ****
The Terror (1963) (uncredited) **

 

Jack Hill

Foxy Brown (1974)
Coffy (1973) +++++
The Big Bird Cage (1972)
The Big Doll House (1971)
The Incredible Invasion (1971) (US scenes)
Isle of the Snake People (1971) (US scenes)
Me, a Groupie (1970) (uncredited)
The Winner (1969)
Spider Baby, or The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968)
The Fear Chamber (1968) (US scenes)
House of Evil (1968) (US scenes)
Blood Bath (1966)
Mondo Keyhole (1966)
The Playgirls and the Bellboy (1962) (new footage)
The Wasp Woman (1960) (uncredited)

 

[Jim_K]

Update:

The Fear Chamber (1968)

 

[Brook K]

Updated:


The Swinging Cheerleaders - B- (Has Hill's humanistic touches that are the main reason I'm such a big fan, but some of the main actors are porn level and the rest of the cast isn't much better, some of the dialogue is flat out terrible, the script has all sorts of inconsistencies, and these deficiencies cause some of the comedy scenes to come off as more cheezy than zany fun.)