COLORS (1988)

"Fucking vato psycho loco, homes."

Los Angeles, California. A newer cop (Sean Penn) is teamed up with a veteran cop (Robert Duvall).  Together they protect the citizens of Los Angeles by breaking all kinds of laws and doing pretty much anything they want.  Including spray painting a teenager in the face and watching an unarmed (naked) man get shot in the back.  By time the film was over I wasn't sure if they had actually done anything productive or were just another participant in the gang war.  Maybe that was the point of the story.

As far as older police/street gang movies go, COLORS is extremely dated...but honestly, it was dated the day it came out.  I don't think Damon Wayans A capella rapping "checkin' out slobs / that is our job...G ridin in the van / with my main man" could've ever be taken seriously.  Dated or not, COLORS is still an entertaining watch for fans of 1980's crime films.

Medium pace, uneven direction (by Dennis Hopper of all people), tons of familiar faces, lots of cool Los Angeles locations (including the rebel hideout from V: THE FINAL BATTLE and a bad ass movie theater showing AMERICAN NINJA 2: THE CONFRONTATION, DIRTY WAR and STREET SMART!), zero big awesome action scenes, vintage cars, vintage clothes, solid acting, interesting variety of music (including Los Lobos, War, Ice-T, Eric B & Rakim, Big Daddy Kane and others), a few quick drive-bys, Damon Wayans air humping a large stuffed rabbit doll, unsatisfying ending, multiple continuity errors, quick nudity, a brief Candyman sighting and some truly thought-provoking dialogue.  Including this memorable exchange...

Gang member: "Well, fuck you man.  I don't wanna stop nothing!"
Cop: "Hey, fuck you.  You little stupid fucking asshole."
Gang member: "Well, fuck you back man!"

That's a fucking Hallmark moment right there.  Or maybe I should quote the guy from I'M GONNA GIT YOU SUCKA: "The man's a Shakespeare!" Anyway, COLORS. Good movie and kind of original for its time, but it doesn't hold up to some of the street gang classics that would come just a few years later.

[Update 08/31/2021: Watching 1973's ROBIN HOOD on Disney+ as I edit older reviews and the Sheriff of Nottingham just sang the line "They call me a slob, but I do my job."  That's very similar to the line Damon Wayans rapped in this film.  Guess it's a small world after all.]

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2 (1986)

"Dog will hunt!  Dog will hunt!"

The police never caught the Sawyer clan after the killings in the original film (maybe because they changed their name from Slaughter to Sawyer?), so now, over a decade later, we're told the killings have been happening off and on ever since.  Alright, whatever, that seems kinda unbelievable but I'll go with it.  TCM2 opens with with a slaughter being caught on audio tape due to a call-in radio show.  The uncle (Dennis Hopper) of Sally and Franklin Hardesty from TCM uses the tape as a way to locate the Sawyer clan's hideout and unleash some righteous vengeance.

Following up on the greatest horror movie of all time is no easy task.  So, I'm guessing, Tobe Hooper decided to go the way-over-the-top route instead of trying to make another serious film.  And I'm cool with that cause TCM2 is a fun trip.  Numerous memorable lines ("It's a dog-eat-dog world and from where I sit there just ain't enough damn dogs!"), some balls out quirky performances, gore, awesome bright colours, Tobe Hooper cameo, solid camerawork, impressive special effects (especially the Grandpa makeup effects) and that radio station scare scene...holy fook!  I actually watch this film a few times a year. It's a lot of fun and the chainsaw shopping scene makes me daydream what it would have been like if David Lynch made a TCM reboot back in the 1980's.

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2 might rough around the edges (and the ending scene looks to be altered/cropped from the original version I remember on VHS when I was a little girl), but it does add some interesting insight into the Sawyer family history.  Required viewing for any horror fan.

Part 1 - The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Part 3 - Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)
Remake/sequel - Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994)
Reboot 1 - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
Reboot prequel - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)
Reboot sequel to original - Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)
Prequel - Leatherface (2017)
Direct sequel to original - Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)

Funny behind the scenes photo of the Sawyer family.

It's good to see that the "Cattle Truck Driver" from the original film (Ed Guinn on the left) survived and seems to be living a happy life.