Ribbit!

 

 (imdb)

FROGS-1972-Photographer Pickett Smith (Sam Elliot) is nearly run down in his boat by beer guzzling speed boat riding Clint Crockett (Adam Roarke) and his sister Karen (Joan Van Ark). They invite Smith to their granddaddy's estate that's being overrun by frogs. Gramps (Ray Milland), is a self-righteous SOB who seems bothered by his whole family. While exploring the island, Smith finds the dead body of a worker. The frogs seem to be taking over. Snakes and salamanders too. A particularly gruesome scene is the death of gramps' flaky butterfly collecting sister-in-law Iris (Hollis Irving) by leeches. Her husband is done in by a crocodile. 

Although there is death and aggressive animals all around, Gramps wants to continue with the 4th of July festivities. Everyone is eventually killed except for Smith, Karen and grandkids. Gramps regrets his decision to stay behind. The frogs don't kill anyone (despite the famous movie poster) but it seems like they are in charge.

This eco-horror from AIP is mostly talk with a death thrown in once in a while. The ecology and "nature fights back" themes were very popular in the 1970's. Director George McCowan worked mainly in TV but also directed THE MAGNIFCENT SEVEN RIDE! the same year as FROGS. He later made THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME (1979).

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Ghost Rider

GHOST RIDER-2007-This adaptation of the Marvel comic isn't very good. It takes forever to get started and when it finally does it's pretty incoherent. 

Nicolas Cage (who I've been told took his last name from comic book hero Luke Cage) is Johnny Blaze, a daredevil motorcycle stuntman who sells his soul to the devil (Peter Fonda, sounding a lot like David Carradine) to save his father who dies anyway. Eventually his head turns into flaming skull and he fights crime and three evil riders. Not learning from the mistakes of Ang Lee's THE HULK, some genius thought it would be good to bring in Sam Elliot to growl out the legend. Eva Mendes is equally unfortunate as Blaze's reporter/long lost love. 

This was not director/screenwriter Mark Steven Johnson's first encounter with a Marvel superhero. He'd previously messed up...I mean made DAREDEVIL with Ben Affleck. Still the movie did well enough to spawn a sequel in 2011, GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE.

The real deal!

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