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Black Moon Rising (1986) Another "super-powered vehicle" movie from the mid-80s made for teenage boys having sleepovers.

Published April 10, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Poorly Made Films Involving Poorly Planned Heists

The River Rat (1984) A clumsy but quiet southern character study that devolves into some type of road-travel-via-boat blackmail-caper when Brian Dennehy shows up.

Published April 7, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Coming of Age According To A Script, Lifetime Movie Network

Nate & Hayes (1983) Yet another unsuccessful pirate movie from the 1980s, this one co-written by John Hughes and starring Tommy Lee Jones

Published March 7, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Early-Buddy Erotica, High Concept - Poor Execution

Shooting Stars (1983) Billy Dee Williams and Parker Stevenson play actors who play detectives who get fired and become detectives.

Published March 1, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Early-Buddy Erotica

American Dream (1981) An honest and raw script about a family moving to the inner city gets chopped-up and abandoned.

Published February 28, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Coming of Age According To A Script

Waikiki (1980) An Aaron Spelling-produced pilot about a pair of private investigators in Waikiki.

Published February 24, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Early-Buddy Erotica

For Heaven’s Sake (1979) Ray Bolger (Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz) as an angel who meddles in the affairs of humans.

Published February 14, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Lifetime Movie Network, Unrealistic People Falling In Love

Bunco (1977) In 1976 Tom Selleck (sans-mustache) and Robert Urich shot a pilot for a detective series.

Published February 8, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Early-Buddy Erotica

Eroticise (1982) If you’re aroused by feathered hair, leg warmers, giant boobs, and other things that were insanely popular in 1982, then you might be aroused by this tape.

Published January 30, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Awkward 80s Instructional Tapes, NSFW

Richards Simmons and The Silver Foxes Richard Simmons and a group of elderly parents of celebrities inspire elderly parents of non-celebrities to get into shape.

Published January 25, 2014February 20, 2022by Stunt Rock in Awkward 80s Instructional Tapes

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About

The Betamax Rundown was started by failed musician and artist Stunt Rock in October of 2006, with the intent being to review and analyze a personal library of over 2100 Betamax tapes.

When not watching movies, he enjoys making artistic horseshit no one cares about.

Steve Bullyhuff is the ever-loyal proofreader and fact-checker. When not fixing drunken typos, he enjoys playing rock music.

The Betamax Rundown is updated sporadically.

Independence Day (1983) Trigger warning if your grandfather ever made you high like a tree. Independence Day (1983) Beret-clad photographer Mary Ann (Kathleen Quinlan) has lived in the same town her entire life yet still finds the energy to run around snapping photos of townspeople as she awaits an acceptance letter from a San Franciso art school, while also helping her cancer-stricken mother convalesce. We’re supposed to ignore that she’s clearly 30 and still trying to get into art school. Enormous Changes at the Last Minute (1983) Extra Ellen Barkin appreciation post. Her performance in the first segment was described as "bruised, tough and sexy" by Janet Maslin in the NYT. Accurate. Enormous Changes at the Last Minute (1983) Kevin Bacon, playing a young cabbie looking for love in the third story of this anthology film, sings a song, but it sound like it might be overdubbed. Enormous Changes at the Last Minute (1983) Uneven New York anthology full of progressive themes and likable performances. Mid-Knight Rider aka Hard Knocks (1979) Some select clips: Mid-Knight Rider aka Hard Knocks (1979) HARD RECOMMEND! This movie is insane. Somewhere there has to be a proper cut where it all works perfectly, but this seventy-seven-minute cut released on home video is wild. It’s Midnight Cowboy but quickly turns into homesteading Western before dropping into First Blood territory. Foolin' Around (1980) A young Bill Macy in his first screen role! Foolin' Around was filmed in 1978 so I'm comfortable saying this even though it was released after Somewhere In Time (1980) which is technically the first appearance of W. H. Macy. Foolin' Around (1980) For the most part, Foolin’ Around is a meandering love story filled with wacky PG-level hijinx. It feels more like a 70s-era live-action Disney movie than the post-Animal House frat comedy it was marketed as.

The World Sucks Now.