Topic: Something I love about Joe Dante films

The Burbs, Piranha, The Howling, Explorers, and Gremlins.  They are basically all homage films.  Piranha makes references to Black Lagoon and of course more importantly Jaws.  In both the Burbs, and Explorers, Dante uses the television to set the mood.  One scene where Hanks is flipping through the TV and he basically surfs through like 5 horror films, and then Explorers Eathan Hawke is just a huge fan of 50s Sci Fi so there are a bunch of references there.  Dante pays his homage with the transformation/sex scene in the Howling, and then of course Gremlins is his ode to monster films.  The way Dante sets up the mood by using old movies is just brilliant though.  Great for atmosphere.  Watching the Burbs right now and the scene with Feldman talking about The Sentinel is just one of my favorite horror/comedy scenes ever...

Dante doesn't get much talk around here, though I'm sure there are plenty Dante fans on this site.  Another thing I notice about Dante is literally all 5 of these films he uses fog to help set the mood....gotta love the 80s

Last edited by PrinceofDarkness (2012-08-16 17:35:19)

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

I'm definitely consider myself a Dante fan but I have to be in a certain mood to watch his films. Out of the Joe Dante films I've seen I would have to say Gremlins if my favorite, followed by The Howling.

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

I'm a Dante fan.  But a big reason you don't hear a lot of talk about him among genre fans is that he really hasn't done a great many straight horror flicks.  Not that that's a bad thing; it just means he's diverse.

Some of my favorite Dante flicks:

The Howling
Twilight Zone: The Movie (though he only directed one segment)
Matinee (loving homage to William Castle)
Innerspace (one of Martin Short's funnier lead performances)

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

I really should stay in more haha. I love the Gremlins but I can't say I remember any of te others. I'm pretty sure I've seen Pirahna but not 100% sure on that.

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

LoudLon wrote:

I'm a Dante fan.  But a big reason you don't hear a lot of talk about him among genre fans is that he really hasn't done a great many straight horror flicks.  Not that that's a bad thing; it just means he's diverse.

Some of my favorite Dante flicks:

The Howling
Twilight Zone: The Movie (though he only directed one segment)
Matinee (loving homage to William Castle)
Innerspace (one of Martin Short's funnier lead performances)

Good call on the Twilight Zone the Movie.  I just put it in for the Dante segment and it is fucking great so far.  The spielberg segment about put me to sleep.

I actually have not seen Matinee or Innerspace, but The Howling, The Burbs, Piranha, Gremlins, and his segment in the Twilight Zone Movie, as well as his segment in Twilight Zone season 1 were all horror, even though there was a lot of comedy involved.  But yea as you said, definitely diverse though most of  his movies are horror.

  • wolfman1959
  • He doesn't fart. He's a rocket powered sex machine
  • Offline

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

i love "Gremlins" extremly funny! i also like " piranha" and " The Howling" although it didn't seem as good to me when i saw it recently whereas " Amercian Werewolf In London" still stood up by and large. also as Lon said " Matinee" is a nice little film.
and i hate that fucking spambot!!! i thought it is supposed to happen occaisionally? it happens to me every fucking time! grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! mad

Last edited by wolfman1959 (2012-08-18 13:32:11)

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

I'm also a fan of him. One of his most underrated movies that I really like is small soldiers.

Re: Something I love about Joe Dante films

yea I haven't seen that since it first came out.  I was about 12 and of course knew nothing about movies or Joe Dante.  From what I remember though, it doesn't excite me too much.  Then again knowing that it's Dante, there is a chance I would appreciate it a ton more now...A good chance.