The Ghastly Love of Johnny X

I had the absolute pleasure of watching The Ghastly Love of Johnny X with Will Keenan the other night. In this world of mostly unoriginal garbage and reboots coming out of Hollywood, this was a very refreshing treat. It has everything you want in a movie. There's love. There's tragedy. There's comedy. There's song and dance numbers. There are plenty of crazy bad special effects. There's rambunctious youth running wild. It IS the total package. It reminded me (just a hint) of Rocky Horror and it has a lot of MST3K type moments in it. Anyway, if you are looking for something really fun - check this film out. Support the "B" movie people!!

When I saw the trailer for this over a year ago I had to watch it. Unfortunately, living in rural America, it never came to any theaters near me. When it hit Vudu for purchase I snagged it almost immediately. Anyway, here goes.

If you love campy sci-fi humor you will love this movie. The musical aspect also give a nice touch and is well done. The choreography is also top notch.

If you appreciate odes to an era gone by where campy sci-fi flicks were plentiful then you cannot go wrong with this film. When comparing this to modern flicks in the same vein, it holds up well. While Repo The Genetic Opera remains my favorite indie musical, The Ghastly Love of Johnny X holds up well. I give it a solid 9/10 stars with zero reservations.

There are a lot of issues with this oddball movie, but the first thing that should be mentioned in any review of it is the wonderful performance of De Anna Joy Brooks, who pretty much single-handedly makes this movie kind of worth watching. In a film with a serious identity crisis, she is the one person involved who seems to understand how the movie should be played, a knowledge apparently not even possessed by the director.

It's hard to know exactly what this movie is aiming for. There are elements of 50s B-movie biker flicks, Ed Wood-style train wrecks, and Broadway musicals, but there's not a sense that the director knows how to mix these together. While it has cheesy sci-fi elements, it doesn't appear to want to be a send-up of bad movies, like the brilliant The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra. The musical numbers contain some pretty good songs (notably What's Up With Johnny) but are undercut by a lack of performers who actually know how to dance (only the guy with glasses looks like he's had any training). The biker elements are neither extreme enough to be parody nor effective enough to generate much drama. The movie also suffers severe pacing problems; scenes or individual shots just go on too long, and I'd trim a half hour from the hour and 45-minute movie.

Also, the "b" movie effect they seem to be going for is undercut by really nice choreography. Yes, it's strange to fault a low-budget movie for well-framed shots and beautiful lighting, but it just underscores the sense that there is no real vision for what this movie should be.

Or I should say there would be no vision if not for Brooks. Giving a funny, sexy performance, she offers a stream of snappy patter and knowing glances that makes every moment with her on screen work. Every time she is gone, the movie turns into a muddle.

There are a few other good performances in the movie, mostly from the older, more experienced actors (I love Paul Williams' bit as a kooky talk show host). But many of the bit actors have limited acting chops, and the guy playing Johnny lacks the bigger-than-life presence needed for the role.

I hope Brooks and the cinematographer have a chance to put their talents towards a worthier project.

It has been many years since I've seen a movie as intriguing, bizarre, and fun as THE GHASTLY LOVE OF JOHNNY X, and that is the truth. This big screen spectacular is a crazy concoction, consisting of juvenile delinquents from outer space, assorted low-budget B-movie plot devices, and a cast of characters prone to bursting into song at a moment's notice. Yes, this is a comedy. In fact, it is actually a sci-fi/musical comedy with film noir thrown in for good measure, a genre (or sub-genre) with very few examples to speak of. The whole thing is beautifully photographed in black and white, and it all comes together thanks to the vision of director Paul Bunnell, who assembled a dedicated team both on and off-screen. The result is a movie overflowing with energy and good old-fashioned showmanship.

The plot revolves around Johnny X, just your average leather jacket wearing bad boy from another planet, exiled to Earth with his devoted gang, known as The Ghastly Ones. Bliss is a former girlfriend trying to escape Johnny, and Chip is the naive soda-jerk who gets involved in her plight. These roles are well played by a trio of talented and attractive young actors. De Anna Joy Brooks as Bliss delivers cutting remarks and sultry solos with equal aplomb, while Les Williams is sincere, likable and properly earnest as Chip. Will Keenan as the title character is the glue that holds the plot together, dark and brooding, with tongue firmly in cheek.

Other stars include Paul Williams as talk show host Cousin Quilty, and Reggie Bannister, as hapless concert promoter King Clayton. Creed Bratton is very effective as the outrageous and twisted Mickey O'Flynn, The Man with the Grin. Film buffs take note: This movie also includes veteran actor Kevin McCarthy's final on screen performance!

A tremendous asset to the movie is the music, an infectious blend of surf-guitar rock and Broadway show tunes. All of the songs are excellent, with my personal favorite being the sizzling "These Lips That Never Lie", performed at an old Drive-In theater. Another number - "Big Green Bug-Eyed Monster" - is exciting as well as dramatic. The musical arrangements are stylized and pleasingly retro, and I hope a soundtrack cd is forthcoming (the music is that good!).

No major flaws come to mind, although in my opinion the time period is not immediately evident. It seems to be set in the past, due to certain props, the use of vintage automobiles, and the fact that the Ghastly Ones are clearly fans of 1950s-era clothing. However, other visuals and references place the story in contemporary times. Best to assume the movie takes place in the present, just in its own special universe, and not worry too much about it!

Ultimately, the movie works thanks to the efforts of the extremely talented cast and crew, and their obvious love of the various film genres being parodied. They took a truly wacky concept and hammered out their own little cinematic masterpiece. It certainly deserves a healthy theatrical run, and I can easily see it continuing beyond that on the midnight movie circuit. THE GHASTLY LOVE OF JOHNNY X is tuneful, suspenseful, and full of genuinely funny dialogue. Above all, it is entertaining, and that is exactly what a good movie should be.

A catchy film that hearkens back to the old B&W juvenile films of the 50s and 60s. The soundtrack also reminds one of the works of Bernard Herrmann, Danny Elfman (Beetlejuice) as well as The West Side Story. I had a chance to speak to Mr. Bunnell and found him to be the real deal. Considerate and passionate about the trade, he was very gracious with his time spent with me. If you ever get the chance to screen this film at a theater, by all means, do so. Run, don't walk!