Review of The Wizard of Speed and Time (1979) by Scott C — 19 Jul 2008

One of the Best Films of All Time! If you're one of the lucky few to have seen this under-rated masterpiece, you'll know what I mean when I say it's truly one of the most breathtaking.

Fantasy/adventure films ever made. It is also (along with 'Ed Wood' & 'American Movie') one of the best films about movie making. I fear that Mike Jittlov (the film's director, star, editor and special effects man) will never make another film again, because the battle to get this monster made was so draining. It took 5 years and it shows. His battle-scarred fingerprints are over every inch of this thing. While Hollywood hasn't come out and admitted Mr. Jittlov's influence, it's definitely there. Mike once told me a story about a young Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell making the journey to his home to screen him a little flick called 'Evil Dead' back in the early 80s. They hadn't hit it big yet, but wanted to meet one of their heroes. If you look at all of the special effects sequences in Raimi's films, they have a very Jittlovian quality to them. The animation in 'Evil Dead 2' and 'Darkman' springs to mind. I'd bet good money that Robert Rodriguez has seen this a few times as well. This movie is such a classic, I wish someone with some clout and guts would re-release it on a deluxe version DVD. Please, Mr. Tarantino...give it the 'Rolling Thunder' treatment!!!!!!