The joys of a B movie

I must warn you I am a keen movie junkie and the only thing stops me from going to the cinema weekly or even monthly is the plain cost. I have to wait for dvd or tv release. That said I used to study media to a high level so  I learned the benifit of watching the unusal or different film. I am not really into art house movies, but I have aquired a taste for B horror movies both UK and USA versions. The old hammer horror and studio classics from the states like the The Fog and The Swarm.

After much deliberation I have realised why I like them so much and it has nothing to do with the wafer thin story lines and out dated special affects. Its because they have something lacking from modern films, a cast list that is unachievable nowadays.In the old days most actors where under contract to one film company or another and would be leased or sold to another, a bit like modern footballers but with a lesser pay cheque. What used to happen was if an actor was one short on his years contract number of films or they were trying to push a new actor into the limelight, they would be cast to make up numbers in these B rated films. For instance The Swarm bosts a cast including Henry Fonda, Michael Caine, Katherine Ross and Richard Chamberline, to some of my readers these names mean nothing, to those who were able to remeber back to the 60's and 70's you will understand the calibre of these names.

The same happened in England with the hammer horror films, and the competitiors it created. I have watched films with Peter Cushing along side Vincent Price or Christopher Lee, and then Tom Baker, with Anna Massey and Terry Thomas, again all well known British actors past and present. Some of the stories where very shallow, but the was often a little gem among them a story that is well thought out and could have made an A listed film.

What is more upsetting is the fact these kind of films can no longer be made, apart from the fact that we don't have a b reel film before the main show anymore, we no longer have the studio system in place. Just making a normal film cost tens of millions to make so there is little budget for smaller throw away films. Because A list actors command millions to make a film, something like the great disaster films of the 70's are just too expensive to cast with the same level of actors.

I am not saying actors are greedy or the studio system was perfect, but could there not be a happy medium. So we can get a variety of films rather than just the blockbusters. Star Wars was as near to perfect as you could get. It was made on a smaller budget than some of its conteptory films, by keeping the casting costs low and instead giving the actors percentage of the profits and merchadise. The actors at the time laughed about it thinking they were on minual wage, but they had the last laugh Star Wards was in the top 5 grossing till 2000 along with the 2 follow ups

We moan about the bonuses we give bankers, because it is probably the wrong pay insentive for that job, but for the film and probably tv industry I feel it would be a better pay system. Apart from keeping egos in check it would lower the production costs of some of these films opening up more room for smaller light hearted films to be made. I for one would enjoy the return of these mini classics and it would make me more inclined to go to the cinema is we got a double feature for our money.

We are in a time of recession, and history proves during those time cheap entertainment is popular. During WW2 it was the one of the peaks of the cinema, prior to films it was the old time variety and music hall. Yes we have DVDs and at times some quality tv, but it would be a good time to start this revival, if anyone is listening.