Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films

A documentary love letter to the golden of exploitation cinema and the output of Cannon Films, the cut-price studio that challenged Hollywood.

Following his history of Ozsploitation (Not Quite Hollywood) and riotous celebration of Filipino B-movies (Machete Maidens Unleashed!), Mark Hartley returns with his latest love letter to exploitation cinema. Purchased by Israeli movie moguls Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus in 1979, The Cannon Group became an unexpected major player in Hollywood over the decade that followed, thanks to the infamous duo’s distinctive brand of cheap and cheerful action/exploitation films.

From the asinine thrills of Chuck Norris’ Vietnam vehicle Missing In Action to the morally bankrupt Death Wish franchise, with a spot of break-dancing and alien invasion thrown in for good measure, Cannon’s output was loathed by critics but adored by the public. Treating low-brow classics with the respect they deserve, Hartley’s documentary shines an affectionate light on a studio determined to give audiences exactly what they wanted.