It Goes to 11

Bikes are fun; bikes are fast; bikes are timeless, simple and beautiful. Bikes also have a universal appeal that registers with both children and adults. For these reasons and a multitude of others, filmmakers have long used bicycles for everything from basic props to eye-candy to plot vehicles for self-improvement and self-advancement. With these thoughts in mind, I’ve compiled a list of the 5 Best Bike Movies/Scenes from the 80’s. Let the spirited, nay spoked, debate begin… 5. Goonies (1985) Bikes don’t figure long in the plot here, but our unlikely heroes use their BMX’s to stage an early escape after they...

Some movie stars age gracefully. Others, not so much. (Still more don’t seem to age at all, but I digress as that’s a different conversation for a different day…) Take, for example, the supernova that used to be named Val Kilmer. He paraded before the photogs recently at some celebrity ball in Las Vegas, and, to be frank, he’s not looking so hot anymore. Judge for yourself. His bloated and blotchy appearance got us here at It Goes to 11 reminiscing about Kilmer’s celluloid contributions. The dude has scored some plum roles in his career (although, it should be noted, those have...

Loyal readers of It Goes to 11 know that we heart 1985’s Teen Wolf here at FIC. The implausible story, the inspired comedic performances, the side-splitting dialogue, the feel-good conclusion — this fine flick has it all in spades. Michael J. Fox is certainly the star of the film, but in many ways Jerry Levine’s Stiles character (pictured below) steals the show with his self-assured preening, cocky chutzpah, entrepreneurial spirit, and rich, fantastically colored wardrobe. (Shameless reminder: we sell two of his attention-grabbing tees here and here.) For a more in-depth discussion of Stiles’ cultural significance, I urge you to read this informative, expertly deconstructed piece of film criticism that I stumbled...

Hey kids. In a previous post, I asked for readers out there to send us Halloween-themed pictures (ideally, you wearing our shirts as part of your costume). Sadly, I haven’t received a single submission, which means that I will be claiming the FREE T-SHIRT that I promised to the best entry. In lieu of customer-generated pics, let me share some of my own. The good company man that I am, I took my sartorial cues straight from The 3rd Annual Found Item Clothing Halloween Costume Guide, and lived life, for one night at least, as the character Stiles from Teen Wolf. For those that haven’t...

Flying swordsmen? Chinese magic? Explosive martial arts battles? All this, plus a swaggering, wise-cracking Kurt Russell playing a parody of his popular “tough guy” character? What in God’s name is this movie? That’s what American audiences and critics thought of director John Carpenter’s Big Trouble in Little China when it hit theaters in 1986. To put it mildly, the movie tanked like an anvil pitched into a well. But in the years since, this flick has gathered the audience it deserves, and has in fact become a bona fide cult phenomenon. Fans even quote Jack Burton’s (Russell’s) lines to each other and...