Queen Bettie: The Notorious Gretchen Mol

Gretchen Mol is splendid to behold in every stage of dress or undress. Todd McCarthy, Variety As an actor, how do you play one of the world’s great icons and do it even the tiniest bit of justice? This is a question Gretchen Mol must’ve wrestled with when she took on the monumental challenge of … Continue reading Queen Bettie: The Notorious Gretchen Mol →

Bad Girls We Love: Serleena from Men in Black II

I’ve never been particularly enamored with the Men in Black films. I like the first one, but my appreciation for it never rose to the level of love. I realize this puts me in the minority, but I would probably enjoy the MIB movies more if they made one important casting change. I’ll freely admit … Continue reading Bad Girls We Love: Serleena from Men in Black II →

Lost and Found: Revolver

Few actors have ever commanded the screen with as much intensity as English actor Oliver Reed. For a long time growing up, I knew him mostly as “Uncle” Frank, from Ken Russell’s bonkers film adaptation of The Who’s Tommy (1975). Reed was mesmerizing in a performance that’s both menacing and hilarious. Over the years I’ve … Continue reading Lost and Found: Revolver →

Random Image Dump #8: Showgirls-Era Elizabeth Berkley Edition

We’re big fans of Nomi Malone here at the Starfire Lounge. Sure, she tore through the place like a demonic hurricane from hell when she stripped, er, danced here, but that display of raw power only made us fall a little more in love with her. Nomi is a Starfire Lounge Hall of Famer, for … Continue reading Random Image Dump #8: Showgirls-Era Elizabeth Berkley Edition →

Play Ball

Before the Super Bowl I waxed nostalgic about growing up watching football with my father and how the sport doesn’t hold a lot of appeal to me since he passed away. The same holds true for “America’s pastime,” baseball. In 1951, Marilyn Monroe, know as “the Blonde Bombshell” batted a stellar .327 with 28 home … Continue reading Play Ball →

Bad Girls We Love: Machine Gun Woman

The titular Machine Gun Woman of Ernesto Díaz Espinoza’s 2012 Chilean action-comedy Bring Me the Head of the Machine Gun Woman (with a title that riffs off Sam Peckinpah’s 1974 cult classic Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia) is not actually the villain of the film. Sure, she does things like shoot people with … Continue reading Bad Girls We Love: Machine Gun Woman →

Baby Pfeiffer, Baby Fran, and the Hollywood Knights

What was the elevator pitch for The Hollywood Knights (1980)? “It’s American Graffiti meets Animal House, only twice as silly and half as fun!” Sold! I don’t care how inferior it is to those films, though. I have a major soft spot for this one. Overall, it’s a frivolous and fluffy affair, a crass teen … Continue reading Baby Pfeiffer, Baby Fran, and the Hollywood Knights →