Strangers Vhs
Friday, August 19th, 2011
Slava Tsukerman’s Liquid Sky (1982)
I can safely say that in my 30 years of filmgoing experience, I’ve never run across anything similar to Slava Tsukerman’s 1983 cult sci-fi opus Liquid Sky. Filmed on a $500,000 budget in New York City by an entirely Russian production team, the film became an instant favorite in Boston, New York and Washington DC and played filmhouses constantly in these three metropolitan areas and grossed just over $3,000,000 — not bad for such an avant-garde production. Until Liquid Sky’s release in 1999 on DVD, its Media VHS release was a pricey and highly sought after collector’s item — in fact, I shelled out $40 for it in 1998 after years of wanting to see it. I can definitely say that I’ve always been glad I did!
Liquid Sky’s out of this world storyline revolves around heroin-addicted punk fashion model Margaret (Anne Carlisle), who lives with her tough-as-nails drug-dealing girlfriend Adrian (Paula Sheppard) in a swank New York City penthouse. One day a UFO the size of a dinner plate lands from the sky atop the lesbian couple’s lair, and as we soon discover from German scientist Johann (Otto Von Wernherr), who’s been tracking the UFO from afar, the invisible aliens within the flying object are hungry for opiates — which they find in generous supply in Margaret and Adrian’s apartment. Moreover to that, the aliens have a taste for a chemical — which is similar to an opiate in bond structure — that is produced in the human brain during orgasm, and with the swinging lifestyles that Margaret and Adrian lead, the hungry space critters aren’t hungry for long. Of course, they have to kill whoever’s climaxing when they extract via remote control the coveted neurotransmitters. When sexually numb Margaret discovers for herself what’s going on, she lures her enemies to the apartment and induces them to cum, and in effect feeds them to the invisible creatures parked atop her roof.
Anne Carlisle (from Desperately Seeking Susan and Larry Cohen’s Perfect Strangers) is breathtaking in her dual role as male and female heroin addicts Jimmy (another fashion model) and Margaret, two troubled look-alike characters who despise each other intensely. As a side note, Carlisle penned a 1987 novel based on the film and also titled Liquid Sky, which is well worth checking out for fans of the film — if they can find it. Paula Sheppard of Alice, Sweet Alice fame eminates hatred and malice from every pore of her body as smack-dealing punk poetess Adrian, who sports a bizarre black headpiece that resembles a diaphragm and belts out unctuous rhymes at the club. It’s a shame that both actresses have since retired from the industry. Much of the rest of the acting is quite amateur, but it gets the job done and doesn’t detract much from the film when its at its worst. Russian emigre Slava Tsukerman, who served as director, co-writer and helped compose the indescribable score, has stuck mostly to making documentaries in his home country since Liquid Sky, so it’s unlikely we’ll ever see anything similar to this exhiliratingly weird film in the future.
Liquid Sky was highly critically acclaimed upon its release, winning jury prizes at the Brussels International Film Festival, Cartagena Film Festival, Montreal World Film Festival, and the Sydney Film Festival in Australia. It has also generated mostly positive reviews from a surprising number of high-profile, mainstream critics including Leonard Maltin, Mick Martin and Marsha Porter, who admired the film’s brave originality and dazzling imagery. Liquid Sky has one of the most surrealistically catchy synthesizer scores I’ve ever had the pleasure of hearing, and like the film itself seems totally off-key and otherworldly at first but quickly grows on the adventurous viewer. The film is a true time capsule of the early ’80s New York punk wave and drug counterculture and has a distinct atmosphere similar to Susan Seidelman’s Smithereens, only with a science-fiction twist. The movie can be described as a “downer” (much like the opiates that figure into the film’s plot) due to the tragic, self-loathing, drug-addled characters and sordid situations they find themselves involved in, but there’s an undercurrent of sardonic humor that makes the proceedings seem quite fascinating as opposed to strictly grueling or depressing.
Liquid Sky is unquestionably one of the strangest projects ever filmed. Many critics consider its release a turning point in the history of indie cinema, and the film is now deservedly regarded as a cult classic and has a legion of dedicated fans. As one such follower, I wholeheartedly rate Liquid Sky a 9 of 10 and recommend it to all serious avant-garde film buffs.
About the Author
Thank you so much for taking the time to visit my review of Liquid Sky, which can also be found at its original page http://liquidsky82.blogspot.com. Please visit my profile at http://www.blogger.com/profile/17200139233458760872 for my other in-depth reviews of classic horror films!
Original VHS Opening: Never Talk To Strangers (UK Retail Tape Part 1 of 2)
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Never Talk to Strangers (VHS, 1996, Closed Captioned) $1.99 |
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Talking to Strangers (a film by Rob Tregenza) (VHS) $46.95 |
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Don’t Talk to Strangers Dont (VHS, 1995) Shanna Reed $3.98 |
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Don’t Talk to Strangers (VHS, 1995) Pierce Brosnan! RARE! $3.59 |
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Never Talk to Strangers (1996, VHS) $4.99 |
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THE COMFORT OF STRANGERS VHS 1990 NATASHA RICHARDSON $8.99 |
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Between Strangers (VHS, 2004) Gérard Depardieu $1.98 |
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Intimate Strangers (BRAND New VHS, 2004) Sandrine Bonnaire $5.99 |
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INTIMATE STRANGERS vhs SANDRINE BONNAIRE new FABRICE LU $8.89 |
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Strangers on a Train (VHS, 2000, Hollywood Version) Alfred Hitchcock – Chandler $2.00 |
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Winnie the Pooh Too Smart for Strangers VHS RARE DISNEY $24.00 |
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Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers Disappearing Honey VHS $9.99 |
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THE TRIALS OF LIFE – Talking To Strangers — Family-VHS $0.99 |
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Strangers (VHS, 1993) rental box bogo special see details $0.99 |
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STRANGERS IN THE CITY ROBERT GENTILE CAMILO DELGADO VHS $10.00 |
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House of Strangers (VHS,1949) USED,B&W,101 MINS. $24.95 |
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The Business of Strangers [VHS] Stockard Channing, Julia Stiles, Patrick Stettne $3.87 |
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PERFECT STRANGERS VHS ANNE CARLISLE NEW SEALED $2.20 |
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STRANGERS ON A TRAIN HITCHCOCK!! BRITISH VERSION! FARLEY GRANGER VHS $5.49 |
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Strangers in Good Company VHS Movie Tape Mary Meigs, Beth Webber Years best flim $4.01 |
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Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport (VHS, 2001) $8.50 |
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NEW VHS Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train: Farley Granger Roman R Walker $9.99 |
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VHS: MIDNIGHT STRANGERS…ANNA FONSOU..UNRATED & RARE $29.77 |
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Strangers in Good Company [VHS] .. Cinematographer-Dav $7.37 |
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Don’t Talk to Strangers (VHS, 1995) $1.99 |
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THE BUSINESS OF STRANGERS (VHS,2002) JULIA STILES $2.59 |
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House of Strangers (VHS, 1990) Edward G. Robinson, Susan Hayward $8.00 |
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Between Strangers (2004, VHS) $4.99 |
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Trials of Life – Talking to Strangers (VHS, 1993) $1.99 |
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Into the Arms of Strangers VHS BRAND NEW VIDEO $10.50 |
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Never Talk to Strangers [VHS] Rebecca De Mornay, Antonio Bande Peter Hall 1989 $7.39 |
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In the Custody of Strangers (VHS) – BRAND NEW RARE OOP $39.97 |
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INTIMATE STRANGERS Sally Struthers Larry Hagman Tyne Daly Dennis Weaver VHS $26.99 |
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Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter (VHS, 1989) $10.00 |
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The Berenstain Bears: Learn About Strangers & The Disappearing Honey [VHS] Beren $4.55 |
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Lovers and other Strangers VHS Beatrice Arthur Gig Young Michael Brandon $19.99 |
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Strangers on Train VHS Alfred Hitchcock Granger Walker $9.12 |
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Strangers in Good Company VHS Cissy Medd $8.67 |
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Snow’s Strangers & Brothers 6 tapes VHS Anthon Hopkins $20.90 |
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Perfect Strangers (VHS) Anne Carlisle RARE $10.84 |
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Perfect Strangers VHS Rachael Blake Sam Neill $9.69 |
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Intimate Strangers VHS Fabrice Luchini $8.62 |
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Strangers & Brothers (6 VHS SET, 2000) ANTHONY HOPKINS $29.95 |
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Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers On A Train British Ver VHS $20.00 |
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READING RAINBOW Stay Away Junkyard strangers VHS Tricia Tusa PBS $40.00 |
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Perfect Strangers (VHS) Anne Carlisle Brad Rijn $1.88 |
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NEW SEALED! Intimate Strangers VHS (2004 promo) Patrice Leconte, Fabrice Luchini $9.99 |
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The Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers VHS NEW OOP $6.40 |
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THE BERENSTAIN BEARS-LEARN ABOUT STRANGERS VHS $4.99 |
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National Geographic Video – Hawaii: Strangers in Paradise (VHS, 1998) $5.95 |
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INTIMATE STRANGERS Sally Struthers Larry Hagman Tyne Daly Dennis Weaver VHS $26.99 |
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Used VHS Strangers in Good Company $4.99 |
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Into the Arms of Strangers Stories Kindertransport VHS $4.90 |
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Strangers (VHS, 1993) Linda Fiorentino, Timothy Hutton. $5.19 |
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STRANGERS ON A TRAIN VHS $3.75 |
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A World of Strangers (VHS, 1993) $10.50 |
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CAREFUL WITH STRANGERS instructional VHS Disney safety On the Alert $24.99 |
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Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport [VHS] [2000], Good VH $16.95 |
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VHS: Lovers & Other Strangers, Cy Howard. Good Cond.: Beatrice Arthur, Bonnie Be $3.95 |
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Strangers (VHS, 1993) Linda Fiorentino RARE $39.99 |
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National Geographic, Hawaii: Strangers in Paradise VHS $2.99 |
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The Comfort of Strangers (VHS, 1991) $14.73 |
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Into the Arms of Strangers VHS SEALED! $9.99 |
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All The Kind Strangers VHS Stacy Keach, John Savage $39.99 |
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Never Talk to Strangers (1996, VHS) $2.41 |
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PERFECT STRANGERS [VHS 1985] NEW,FACTORY SEALED,C-91 MN $34.50 |
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The Business of Strangers VHS in Hard Case $1.29 |
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Strangers on a Train (VHS,1951, Warner Brothers Cla… $14.95 |
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BELOVED STRANGERS documentary VHS Alzheimer’s victims $30.00 |
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NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS VHS VIDEO 1996 $4.79 |
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Lovers and Other Strangers VHS Plays Well! $5.99 |
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VHS: HOUSE OF STRANGERS…..EDWARD G. ROBINSON-SUSAN HAYWARD~ $7.77 |
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Trials of Life: Talking to Strangers [VHS], Good VHS, David Attenborough, Michae $2.60 |
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Between Strangers [VHS] Sophia Loren, Malcolm Mcdowell R (Restricted) 2004-01- $3.87 |
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STRANGER’S KISS Peter Coyote killer’s strangers 83 VHS $19.94 |
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Strangers on a Train (Hollywood Version) [VHS] by $5.98 |
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VHS: INTO THE ARMS OF STRANGERS…KINDERTRANSPORT $4.77 |
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VHS Perfect Strangers (2003) [VHS]Sam Neill, Rachel Blake $5.58 |
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RED LIGHT GREEN LIGHT strangers safety kids VHS $9.99 |
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Lovers & Other Strangers [VHS] by Gig Young, Bea Arthu $4.99 |
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Never Talk to Strangers (VHS, 1996, Closed Captioned) $4.00 |
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Strangers on a Train vhs 1992 Alfred Hitchcock Time Life video Farley Granger $15.50 |
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THE STRANGERS VHS SHANA BETZ MATT MARTIN EROTIC HORROR $1.10 |
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THE BUSINESS OF STRANGERS (2002) VHS *LN* $2.95 |
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Strangers (VHS, 1993) Brand New Sealed $9.95 |
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STRANGERS IN PARADISE VHS OOP ULLI LOMMEL CULT MUSICAL $24.00 |
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The Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers (VHS) USED $3.75 |
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Strangers on a Train – VHS – BRAND NEW FACTORY SEALED $6.99 |
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Never Talk to Strangers [VHS] Rebecca De Mornay, Antonio Bande Peter Hall 1989 $7.39 |
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FRIENDS & STRANGERS VHS AVOID DANGEROUS PEOPLE & PLACES $1.52 |