Bizarrely, 2014 saw not one but two full-length feature documentaries released detailing the meteoric rise and ignominious demise of 1980s schlock juggernaut Cannon Films.
The first, which was directed by Israeli filmmaker Hila Medalia, was called THE GO-GO BOYS, and was apparently a taster of sorts for those who had previously known little about the subject matter. Next came tonight’s documentary ELECTRIC BOOGALOO: THE WILD, UNTOLD STORY OF CANNON FILMS, a far darker and more eccentric beast that makes for a damn fine watch.
Bizarrely, 2014 saw not one but two full-length feature documentaries released detailing the meteoric rise and ignominious demise of 1980s schlock juggernaut Cannon Films.
The first, which was directed by Israeli filmmaker Hila Medalia, was called THE GO-GO BOYS, and was apparently a taster of sorts for those who had previously known little about the subject matter. Next came tonight’s documentary ELECTRIC BOOGALOO: THE WILD, UNTOLD STORY OF CANNON FILMS, a far darker and more eccentric beast that makes for a damn fine watch.
From acclaimed cult film documentarian Mark Hartley (NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD, MACHETE MAIDENS UNLEASHED), ELECTRIC BOOGALOO centres around the story of two movie-obsessed immigrant cousins, Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, who in pursuit of the "American dream" founded an indie studio – Cannon - that would produce over 120 exploitation films from 1979-1989. They launched the careers of numerous big name action stars including Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, as well as elevating that of Charles Bronson with the release of the legendary DEATH WISH (which my dad actually took me to see as a very young child, but that’s another story!).
Wildly eclectic and most definitely eccentric, Golan and Globus also produced work by such cinematic luminaries as Franco Zeffirelli, John Cassavetes and Barbet Schroeder. With relentless energy and the thickest skins in the business, the cousins turned a renegade movie outfit into a major Hollywood powerhouse with plenty of ups and downs along the way. The two movie-obsessed cousins had a passion for cinema that changed the way movies were made and marketed, yet this same passion ultimately led to the demise of the company they built together.
As he did with his previous documentary NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD: THE WILD, UNTOLD STORY OF OZPLOITATION!, Australia-based director Hartley compiles a carefully curated collection of Cannon film clips to help tell the saga. I love this aspect of the documentary in particular for its fun, nostalgic feel, and it had me wanting to re-watch some absolute classics all over again (an inside summer this may well be). While the aforementioned THE GO-GO BOYS (rumoured to have been commissioned by Golan and Globus as a pre-emptive strike against Hartley’s film) offered more of a broad overview of the film company’s rise and fall, ELECTRIC BOOGALOO delves a little deeper, including a film-by-film case study of Cannon’s highs and lows.
It also has some brilliant cameos and outrageous anecdotes about the cousins and their infamous modus operandi, which makes for one hell of a ride. To use a well-worn but highly applicable cliché – they just don’t make ‘em like this anymore… which could possibly be a good thing! As one critic quite perfectly put it, ELECTRIC BOOGALOO is “a romp through the insalubrious depths of the straight-to-video bin of your local 1980s video rental establishment”, and what a romp it is. Highly recommend.