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Vision Quest (1985) Awkward and horny wrestling teen stalks and beds artistic drifter

Published January 30, 2024January 31, 2024by Stunt Rock in Coming of Age According To A Script

Hard Choices (1985) Juvenile offender goes on the lam with social worker in this early-80s authentic indie.

Published January 23, 2024January 23, 2024by Stunt Rock in Unrealistic People Falling In Love

The Guaranteed Way to Pick Up Single Women (1987) This tongue-in-cheek guide to dating in the 80s is surprisingly detailed.

Published January 16, 2024January 15, 2024by Stunt Rock in Awkward 80s Instructional Tapes

Framed (1975) Sweaty and intense revenge film from the original Walking Tall crew.

Published January 2, 2024December 24, 2023by Stunt Rock in Barely Justified Revenge

Encounter With Disaster (1979) 90-minute Sunn Classics documentary featuring disaster footage.

Published May 24, 2023May 21, 2023by Stunt Rock in High Concept - Poor Execution

Distortions (1987) Widowed woman goes insane as friends try to steal a life insurance pay-out from her.

Published May 17, 2023May 18, 2023by Stunt Rock in Lifetime Movie Network, Movies For Lonely Goth Chicks

Birds of Prey (1973) Robbery-based T.V. movie that’s largely a showcase for helicopter stunts.

Published May 2, 2023May 3, 2023by Stunt Rock in Blue-Collar Heroics, Poorly Made Films Involving Poorly Planned Heists

The Check Is In The Mail (1986) Anti-capitalist plot falls flat thanks to terrible everything.

Published April 26, 2023April 26, 2023by Stunt Rock in Blue-Collar Heroics, Movies for Paranoid Liberals

3:15 (1986) Former gang member stands up to current gang members in a graffiti-covered high school.

Published April 18, 2023April 17, 2023by Stunt Rock in Dangerous Kids

Twice In A Lifetime (1985) Gene Hackman leads a blue collar divorce drama with nice touches.

Published April 11, 2023April 13, 2023by Stunt Rock in My Favorite Films, Uncategorized, Unrealistic People Falling In Love

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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.

Marathon (1980) This movie is written by men, from the perspective of men, and for consumption by men. Longing for extramarital affairs, fixation on younger women, unhappiness with a spouse, disappointment with kids - it’s all here. 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.

The World Sucks Now.