Film, like any artistic medium, varies wildly in quality. But even though a movie might not be good in the conventional sense, that doesn’t mean it can’t be entertaining. These movies circle right back around to being “so bad, they’re good.”
If there is anyone out there who has a passion for these gems of cinematic garbage, it is Randal Black. After a long hiatus, he is bringing back his brainchild, Grindflicks, to introduce a new audience to these trashy treasures.
Black has been a Fargo resident for about 30 years. He used to proofread and write music-related articles for our very own High Plains Reader. In 2006, he started as a volunteer DJ for Radio Free Fargo, something he is still doing 20 years later with his radio show “Radio Red-E” at 5 p.m. on Mondays.
“My love of music is only equal to my love of movies,” said Black. “I had an uncle who was really into sci-fi and action movies, and he would drag me along to watch stuff like ‘Krull,’ ‘Ice Pirates’ and ‘Buckaroo Banzai.’ As I grew up, my love for movies broadened significantly. I was really into David Lynch and the indie movie scene during the 1990s; Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Richard Linklater, Todd Haynes and, of course, Quentin Tarantino were some of my go-to filmmakers. When I got into my late 20s, I started watching a lot of early John Waters films. It was at this same time that I was also introduced to the wonderful world of underground and grindhouse cinema.”
Grindflicks had its origins in a tumultuous time in Black’s life. In 2010, he had recently gotten divorced. He went on a road trip out to California to visit family and clear his head. On the way back, he spent a night in Portland, Oregon. As fate would have it, the Hollywood Theatre was showing vintage grindhouse trailers that same night. As he sat in the theater and listened to the other people laugh, he had an epiphany — “I could do this same thing in Fargo.” As soon as Black got back to Fargo, he immediately started putting together his own trailer showcase.
“I had some very interesting meetings with the Fargo Theatre early on,” he said. “Eventually they took a chance on me, and I held my first event on November 15, 2010. The name Grindflicks hadn’t even been created yet. We had a great turnout — about 230 people — and that just fueled the fire to do more events.”
Black listed several events as highlights of Grindflicks’ history. Between 2010 and 2016, Grindflicks hosted ten events at the Fargo Theatre. The Spring of 2011 saw a second grindhouse trailers showcase. That fall was the first Horrorfest, a showcase of horror movie trailers, the classic silent film “Nosferatu” with live organ music and a rare public appearance from horror host Madd Frank. After being inspired by a similar screening in Minneapolis, Black partnered with the local Toys for Tots organization in 2014 to host a charity screening of the infamous “Star Wars Holiday Special,” an event that brought in about 450 people and raised over $1,600 for the non-profit organization.
There were also several Grindflicks screenings at The Aquarium. Occasionally these movie screenings had themed activities, like a co-ed arm wrestling tournament after a screening of Sylvester Stallone’s arm-wrestling movie “Over the Top.” One of Black’s personal favorites was a screening of the bizarre horror film about a killer bed called “Death Bed: The Bed That Eats” at the Sanctuary Event Center in 2017. He was able to work with Beds by Design through a mutual friend to make a “death bed” for audience members to take photos with after the film. In 2018, Grindflicks held a “Turkish Movie Showcase,” which showed edited clips from several 70s and 80s Turkish “mockbusters” (knockoff versions of major Hollywood films created due to the Turkish film industry refusing to pay the rights for American blockbusters). WDAY even showed up to interview Black about a screening of “Troll 2” at a packed Troll Lounge in 2018.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic came along and profoundly affected the entire live entertainment ecosystem, Grindflicks included. At first, it came back strong in 2021. The Found Footage Festival came back to Fargo for the first time in seven years and the infamous bad movie masterpiece, “The Room,” screened with one of the starring actors Greg Sestero as a special guest.
However, COVID numbers started to rise dramatically again in September 2021. When Grindflicks hosted a Blaxploitation film month in February 2022 at The Aquarium, the attendance was spotty.
“We kind of laid low and surveyed the culture,” said Black. “People were finally stepping back into public events, but you could still feel a bit of hesitation, especially in those first couple of months.”
In fall 2022, Grindflicks hosted the return of Horrorfest for the first time in five years. It featured special guests Greg Sestero of “The Room” and George Hardy of “Troll 2,” who had recently starred in a schlocky creature feature called “CYST.”
“We had a decent turnout, but 2022 really put a strain on me mentally and financially,” Black said. “It just didn’t make sense to create any future Grindflicks events. It was a bit heartbreaking, but I’m shark-minded so I just kept moving forward.”
Jump forward three years. Now it’s 2025.
“I remember having a lot of people coming up to me and asking if I was ever going to do any more Grindflicks events,” he said. “At that time, I had no offers and nothing in mind. But it just kept happening over and over again. Then in late winter/early spring, the amazing Mr. B (Brent Brandt) convinced me that it was high time to bring “The Room” back to Fargo. Greg Sestero was excited about coming back as well. I listened and I went back to work. But I didn’t feel like it was the perfect time to return until — out of the blue — a friend who works at The Northern Cabaret reached out to me and asked if I was still doing Grindflicks events. Mind you, this was before we even publicly announced “The Room.” That was the moment I knew this was the perfect time to return.”
With that, Grindflicks is hosting its first movie night in four years in the basement of The Northern Cabaret (a.k.a. The Bomb Shelter).
“At first, the idea of showing movies in the basement of a strip club seemed completely absurd, but then I quickly had the realization that Grindhouse cinema began in strip tease clubs and Burlesque houses,” Black said. “Grindflicks showing movies below The Northern felt like we were going back to the roots, in a way.”
On Friday, September 25, Grindflicks is hosting a free event called “Total Action Cinema.”
“There is a treasure trove of wonderfully cheesy action movies from the 1980s and 1990s,” Black explained. “I felt like those films would fit nicely in a bar setting. This is the first time we are trying the ‘Mystery Movie’ approach, as we intend for these Movie Nights to be more like social gatherings than movie screenings. Are we going to be showing cheesy old movie trailers? Of course. Are we going to be showing highly entertaining trash cinema? You know it! But we want it to really focus on an incredible shared experience and to offer a unique entertainment option for the community. Those have always been the top priorities in Grindflicks. That’s why it was very important to host these as free events now. There’s no risk involved for the audience. Come down, hang out and see what we have to offer. Hopefully you’ll have a great time and will want to come back the next time we host a screening.”
For those who are interested in finding out more, Grindflicks can be found on Facebook. Fans can be added to an e-mail list at [email protected].
IF YOU GO:
Grindflicks: Total Action Cinema
Friday, September 25, 8 p.m., 21+
The Bomb Shelter, 325 10th St. N., Fargo (Below The Northern Cabaret)
