Electric Boogaloo
Cannon fodder
Release Date: 13 July
2015 | 18 | Blu- ray/ DVD Director: Mark Hartley Interviewees: Tobe Hooper, Luigi Cozzi, Bo Derek, Pete Walker, Just Jaeckin, Franco Nero
Subtitled The
Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films, this enjoyable documentary concerns the studio that brought you the loveably ropey ’ 80s likes of Lifeforce, Masters Of The Universe, Superman IV, and many more.
Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus were the pair behind the outfit. “They treated you like a favourite child or were mean and made you fear for your career,” one of the scores of interviewees recalls. Others say the producers were reckless outlaws with no scruples, and their output had a very basic function: “There were cinemas out there that needed to be filled with something and that’s what they did.” One labels Golan “Jabba the Hutt”.
This gives you an idea of the film’s main theme: movie types moaning about how awful Golan and Globus were. But, then, it wasn’t them gambling their money or doing the deals and taking daily risks. To be fair, director Mark Hartley notes that the duo also gave opportunities to arthouse directors like John Cassavetes and Franco Zeffirelli. Zeffirelli says they were the best producers he ever worked for.
A highly watchable breakneck succession of anecdotes – ones concerning Sharon Stone and Sylvia Kristel are especially juicy – Electric Boogaloo gives you lots of grins followed by the uncontrollable urge to go and watch some of the featured movies. Job done. Extras: None. Russell Lewin At the original test screening of 1989 JeanClaude Van Damme vehicle Cyborg, just one in a hundred of the audience liked it!