Tag Archives: 1984

When 80s paranoia pop funk meets mental 80s horror

Well it made me laugh anyway. Some bright spark (YouTuber MrsFreddyMercury) has cut bits of the late Ken Russell’s barking mad 1986 horror Gothic to the sounds of Rockwell’s cheesy 1984 hit ‘Somebody’s Watching Me’. When Rockwell starts doing his silly “everyman” voice and Gabriel Byrne whips out his quill, it’s pretty much a perfect storm of ridiculousness. It gets even better when Rockwell pipes (is it supposed to be an English accent?): “When I’m in the SHAR (shower) and I’m afraid to wash my HAR (hair)!” and MrsFreddyMercury cuts to a shot of Julian Sands flapping about in the SHAR (shower). Anyway, I’ve written too much on this already. Just watch:

For a more thorough appraisal of the film, head over to this article on great blog Cinemart.

“And, em, what it’s pertaining?”

When things get a bit busy in Permanent Plastic Helmet land, I tend to just post clips of things that i enjoy. This is no exception. Here’s Bronson Pinchot’s hilarious cameo as unspecifically European art-dealer Serge in 1984’s Beverly Hills Cop. If Pinchot’s performance leaves you wanting more, try this great interview over at The A.V. Club in which the underrated comic actor lays into Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington, and Bette Midler!

This Must Be The Place (Merry Christmas)

PPH is signing off for Christmas and will return shortly after with a full and frank multi-part roundup of the year’s cinematic highs and lows. I’ve already put together a 2011 Top 5 for Cinemart (a great site run by critic, blogger and all-round good guy Martyn Conterio) – you can check my choices out HERE.

So Merry Christmas everybody, and to see you in, here’s (for my money, at least) the high point of the greatest concert film there’s ever been. Talking Heads perform ‘This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)’ in Jonathan Demme’s 1984 masterpiece Stop Making Sense. It’s just beautiful. Enjoy: