Corman's World (2011)

What makes it different from others?

The greatest movie ever made..!

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Great documentary about writer/producer/director Roger Corman who has been making low low LOW budget films since the 1950s..and always turned a profit. He also gave a lot of actors and directors their first big breaks. Mostly all of them are interviewed for this film--Peter Bogdanovich, Joe Dante, Jonathan Demme, Bruce Dern, Robert DeNiro, Peter Fonda, Pam Grier, Ron Howard, Jack Nicholson (who breaks down in tears at one point), Martin Scorsese and William Shatner. It also chronicles how his movie changed how movies were marketed, how he did risky films no one would touch and changed the face of independent filmmaking. There's also some humorous behind-the-scenes footage. My favorite parts had to him laughing while discussing "The Terror" and how his favorite film ("The Intruder") actually lost money. There's surprisingly not much footage from the films themselves. Most of it consists of interviews. It's fast and funny and I must-see for film lovers. A 10 all the way.

True Roger Corman was well before my generation and time of film viewing yet over the years I've read enough about him and watched some of the early Jack Nicholson(my favorite actor) classics to know that Corman is a Hollywood cinema legend. His films were cheap, different and off beat clearly Roger Corman did it his way. From three headed monsters, and cult challenging films of teen rebellion clearly one could say that Roger started a cultural movement. And this documentary "Corman's World:Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel" is a historical and educational look at the life and work of still one living Hollywood legend.This informative picture shows how that cheap filmmaking and hard quick work would lead Roger to make over 100 films by the year 1967 his films always low budget and cult hits would later help him start his own company New World Pictures. His independent streak was so strong he eventually branched out to drive in raw exploitation female films of the mid 1970's. Most memorable is his start when he meet Jack Nicholson in an acting class and Jack would later become a star after appearing in many of Roger's works. It's nice seeing the interviews on this documentary ranging from legends like Peter Bogdanovich, Joe Dante, Jonathan Demme, Bruce Dern, Peter Fonda, Ron Howard, Eli Roth, Quentin Tarantino, and most of all it's nice to hear the words from Jack in fact Nicholson even gets emotional when speaking about his good friend Roger. It's hard seeing Jack choked up and emotional. Still Corman still works today even though in his 80's he's not slowing down, yet as the film mentioned the births of films like "Star Wars" and "Jaws" made it even more tougher for independent film to have success, but still the underground circuit produces.Overall well worth a view as this long over due culture legend icon is now getting the respect he deserves this documentary is informative and educational a tribute to one man named Roger Corman who clearly did it his way.

-- www.Ramascreen.com --It's a Corman's World, we all just live in it! This is a docu feature that's just as rebellious as the the man himself. It gives us insight into the determination, the stubbornness, the pride, and the struggle of a filmmaker who takes chances and gambles, and is still kikin', who directly and indirectly influences independent filmmakers everywhere to be OK with and be passionate about making low budget movies as a way to stick it to the man!..Movies that has such weird titles like Little Shop Of Horrors, Monster From The Ocean Floor, or Dinoshark nowadays probably get laughed at by general audiences but did you know that those movies actually have strong fanbase?! There are some of us who can find something entertaining or artful about B-exploit horror and action flicks. And the man we need to thank for that is none other than Roger Corman. Director Alex Stapleton's documentary covers Corman's career and personal life extensively. The film works as a way to reintroduce Corman to today's generation who probably had no idea that The Fast And The Furious starring Vin Diesel was actually an updated version of Corman's old movie of the same title. The docu shows his early involvements with film industry, and it's clear from early on that even as one of the young story editors, Corman was not appreciated or credited for his contributions. So that part was more or less like a premonition of what his entire career, in the next 50 years plus, was going to be.Looking back now, the A-list celebs who at one point or another, starred in Corman's movies may be a bit embarrassed to admit that they started out that way but they themselves know that they wouldn't be where they are if it weren't for the chances that Corman took with them. The docu interviews such greats as Scorsese, De Niro, Nicholson, and Pam Grier. It's impressive how dedicated director Stapleton was to capture every Corman story possible from those who've crossed paths with or encountered him It's a 90-minute documentary but it goes by quickly because it's so engaging and you want to know more about this man named Roger Corman. Packed with archival footage of Corman's old movies, you'll laugh at how cheesy those movies were but in the back of your head, you know that you could watch these kinds of movies on a Saturday night with a huge bag of popcorn because that's the kind of occasion that those movies are made for.I now understand that 2 things kept Corman from advancing to the next level of filmmaking: Pride and bad luck. You'll see from this docu that there were opportunities that Corman could've taken but he chose not to because he was too proud and there were opportunities that almost fell on his lap but for some unknown cosmic reason, the projects went to other filmmakers and they became classic hits. I think as much as he'd like to be part of the A-list and be appreciated, he feels that low budget filmmaking is where he belongs, as painful as it is to be labeled King Of B. One interesting segment in the docu is about the arrival of Jaws and Star Wars, basically big Hollywood Studios perfecting and banking on the concepts and films that Corman had made for years before on a budget lower than $50,000. You feel sorry for the guy. I've been a Star Wars fan for as long as I could remember, but this docu feature gives me a different perspective, a different way of looking at the franchise. This docu ends with the 2009 Honorary Academy Award for Roger Corman which makes it like a cherry on top, The film is an honest portrait of persistence, you can't get a better example of a filmmaker who withstood mockery and became admired eventually.-- www.Ramascreen.com --

Hail! Hail! King of the B's Cannes favourite 'Corman's World' is a heart-warming portrait of one of the true greats of American independent cinema, the champion of outlaws, freaks and fools and the master of the macabre. All the more touching as numerous interviews and testimonies paint a picture of a curious man indeed: not a dark twisted soul but a warm and genteel man with a wonderfully warped and fertile imagination. What's more astonishing is the dazzlingly array of aspiring filmmakers and actors he mentored during the 60's and 70's. Reading like a Who's Who's of the golden age of the American auteur, Peter Bogdanovich, Peter Fonda, Martin Scorsese, Jonathan Demme, Ron Howard, Robert De Niro and David Carradine, amongst many others, all pay tribute here, including a tearful Jack Nicholson.Beginning in the 50's as a story analyst at 20th Century Fox, Corman moved into writing, eventually selling scripts to fund his own productions for the burgeoning American Independent Pictures. His debut 'Monster From the Ocean Floor' in 1954 was the start of a prolific production output, with increasing forays into directing, notably 'Little Shop of Horrors' shot in only 2 days! Corman really made his mark in the 60's. A series of classic Edgar Allan Poe adaptations featuring the splendidly cast Vincent Price define his legacy but the maverick Corman was often making use of down time and vacant sets to pursue other projects during this period. Most notable was the 1963 piece of Gothic absurd-ism, 'The Terror', using sets from 'The Raven'. Proceeding with barely plot, nor script, a shoe string cast including Nicholson and an ageing Boris Karloff, the disparate visions of four different directors contributed to this chaotic opus, including a young Francis Ford Coppola and even Nicholson, who recalls this curious episode.The 60's also saw critical acclaim for Corman, tackling themes such as racism in the segregated south in 'The Intruder' and counter culture movements in the 'The Wild Angels' and 'The Trip' but the 70's heralded changes for Corman and he looks back on this era with a hint of melancholy. With the release of 'Jaws' and then 'Star Wars' the big studios finally caught up with the B's. Schlock horror from the deep and invaders from space were now big budget and Corman was once more an outsider and destined for the straight-to-video market in the coming decade but before taking a back seat, Corman's masterstroke was to spot the black comedy of the rubber shark and raise the stakes with 'Piranha' in 1978.The denouement sees Corman still active today, well into his eighties, on the set of the self-explanatory gore-fest 'Dinoshark'. His output has barely abated since the 70's but he takes an increasingly hands-off executive role these days. He remains ever philosophical, contented and visibly touched by the receipt of an honorary Academy Award in 2009. His calm and collected bizarre genius is deeply uplifting and I'd recommend anyone take a trip into Corman's World.