Shrek 2

For the first time in over 20 years, I finally revisited Shrek 2. As mentioned in my review for Shrek a few months ago, the first sequel was witnessed on the big screen; unlike most, I didn’t love 2 as much as 1. Perhaps it was me as a young man then (now, I’m middle-aged, head full of grey hairs) but the specific reasons as to what let me down was lost long before finally revisiting the movie last night.

In 2026, I can’t explain what in the world I was thinking 22 years ago. There’s still laughs, pop culture references, lovely animation, interesting soundtrack choices (I did NOT remember that someone covered a Buzzcocks song) and further light teasing of fairy tales & their mythos as newlyweds Shrek & Fiona along w/ Donkey visit the in-laws, & we meet new memorable characters in the Fairy Godmother & Prince Charming, but of course the true highlight in newcomers is Puss in Boots. The voice acting from Antonio Banderas was top-notch, although the major stars new here (Julie Andrews, John Cleese, Rupert Everett, Jennifer Saunders, etc.) also equated themselves rather well.

Shrek 2 satirized Hollywood & its foibles in Far, Far Away; this was a further asset in my enjoyment of the film. There’s more than one fart joke but otherwise the adult humor can easily fly over the head of youngsters, making this better/more enjoyable for families & adults than too many 21st century animated pictures. This broadened the scope and gave the viewer more of what they liked about the original. Public opinion tells me that the third and fourth entries in this franchise are clearly lesser than the first two—there’s no rush for me to FINALLY see those for the first time.

Hex

Hex (Xie) (1980)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: Kuei-Chih Hung

Starring: Tanny Tien, Wang Yong, Chen Szu-Chia, Shum Lo, Lee Sau-Kei 

From: Shaw Brothers

A Shaw Brothers version of Les Diaboliques? Heck yes. Hopefully no one minds me spending the last few days viewing films from the same era. The 70’s and 80’s are something I dig, as implied or explicitly stated many times over the years. Furthermore, Arrow’s streaming platform is one that is always not viewed enough by me.

In 1919, Chun Yu is a real vile SOB; his wife’s family have experienced a downturn and she has both tuberculosis and pulmonary heart disease. He constantly physically abuses his sick wife, not to mention the maid. There’s also verbal and even sexual abuse. He’s so OOT in his awful behavior, everyone will be happy about his accidental turned on-purpose demise. The wife is haunted by the death by the death… how much this follows the model of the 1955 movie’s plot of course won’t be spoiled by me.

Disappointment will be had if you expect this to be nonstop bonkers like The Boxer’s Omen (this movie’s director also directed that) or was filled w/ gross-out gags. There are some goopy moments but the scares are more traditional. Sadly, there’s a 5 minute segment of bad “comedy” involving a pair of insufferable goofball men, one cross-eyed and the other such a sap that he pissed his pants out of fright. I was happy that only this segment featured the bad “comedy.”

The finale features the wackiness that more than a few likely prefer in their old Hong Kong horror. A female character (I won’t mention which one) suddenly appears fully nude in a row, gesticulating around as Moroder’s The Apartment-from the American Gigolo soundtrack-plays. She is then what I’ll describe as “beaten by la chancla!” Then, we get a scene “inspired” by a famous bit in 1964’s Kwaidan. Like I said, wacky.

The denouement is baffling in a bad way & is best recognized by me as not happening in my canon. Regardless, those knowing that this is a fun riff on a great movie in Les Diabloiques will go in w/ the correct expectations.

Futureworld

Futureworld (1976)

Runtime: 107 minutes

Directed by: Richard T. Heffron

Starring: Peter Fonda, Blythe Danner, Arthur Hill, John P. Ryan, Stuart Margolin

From: AIP

Viewing the sequel of the last film I watched seemed like a logical idea. 

I don’t plan on checking out the 5-episode Beyond Westworld TV show from 1980, but that may change one day years in the future. Naturally, Futureworld suffers in comparison to Westworld and Michael Crichton is missed. That said, my love of 70’s kitsch is an asset; how can I not smile at seeing pea green shag carpeting ON THE STAIRS of a two-story apartment in what was 1985 in this universe? Richard T. Heffron is at least a competent veteran director. The Prime Video description sadly gave away too much of the plot-although there was some obvious hints dropped early on that suggested where the story was headed… heck, the movie’s official posters also gave unsubtle hints as to the plot! 

Somehow, Palpa… er, I mean somehow Delos the resort reopened two years after the catastrophe presented in Westworld despite several dozen civilians dying. Spending the equivalent of almost 9 billion dollars evidently does wonders. Peter Fonda (print reporter) and Blythe Danner (TV newscaster)-who of course have a history w/ each other-are among the dignitaries invited to a preview of the new & improved Delos.

Even I can’t deny the flaws in logic, the preponderance of scenes set in the basement of a factory, the focus on the two leads after the opening act featured other characters in several different lands. There’s no character as menacing as The Gunslinger in Westworld, who many have accurately noted was a proto T-800, nor will you be reminded of Jurassic Park. Be that as it may, the 70’s sets and color schemes did some of the heavy lifting for me, as did the score from a returning Fred Karlin. Some of the sets were fancy, there’s hologram chess that reminded me of the scene in A New Hope, and there’s other wacky ideas present of life in this alternate 80’s. I also dug rogue employee Hank and his old model android lackey Clark. 

Heck, there’s even the first usage of CGI in this movie & even odder, this of all movies was apparently the first American movie to be wide-released in China, in 1979. Early CG in movies I know only a few things about… the latter, nothing is known about but both are rabbit holes that could possibly explored one day in the future.

In any event, I happened to enjoy this movie and its relaxed pacing; many don’t but I won’t fault them for finding the picture “dull” or even somnambulistic. The most WTF scene by far: Yul Brynner returned as the Gunslinger, albeit for only one like three minutes, in a moment shoehorned in which bears no relation to the rest of the plot. Danner has a dream inspired by the final few scenes in 2001: A Space Odyssey which involve the Gunslinger in increasingly bizarre moments; what a way for Brynner to end his career in either the last or next-to-last movie he filmed.

Westworld

Westworld (1973)

Runtime: An economical 88 minutes

Directed by: Michael Crichton

Starring: Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Yul Brynner, Norman Bartold,  Alan Oppenheimer

From: MGM

In another later than posting for me, my plans for Wednesday changed so another rare phenomenon occurred: posting a review for a movie less than an hour after viewing. Finally tackling Westworld wasn’t a bad Plan B. Considering the movie was famous enough to inspire a prestigious HBO show that had a first season most loved and subsequent seasons that had a more polarizing reception… about time for me & a famous effort from a decade whose cinema I typically enjoy.

Through cultural osmosis, for years I’ve known of Westworld’s plot; this allowed me to write a decent amount of this review even before checking out the picture on Turner Classic Movies. Long ago I learned this concerned human-presenting androids in the theme park Delos that has three lands (Western, Roman, Medieval Europe; what I didn’t know was that this (according to Wiki, at least) was in the far-flung future of… 1983. For those concerned about AI, the malfunctioning and their subsequent murderous streak won’t assuage those fears. 

My opinion of a film that I should have viewed & reviewed many years ago: I had a very good time. A simple yet effective storytelling trick was used: Richard Benjamin is a nervous lawyer visiting for the first time while James Brolin (sadly w/o facial hair but still delivering a quality performance) is a veteran to the experience, explaining Delos, answering questions and offering encouragement on how to interact w/ the androids. Arguably, the best way to dump exposition and explain the world to the viewer as well.

I do understand why the idea was turned into a TV show; it’d be a great adult amusement to cosplay in a historical era and live out fantasies, including that of a badass hero. You can also have sex with the androids! It’s also wholly believable those machines would malfunction. Heck, while not related, when the plot point was mentioned that humanity “hadn’t perfected the hands” of the androids, of course I thought of AI and its issue w/ hands.

Westworld was quite enjoyable; of course I’d be fond of the early 70’s computer tech and witnessing the 1973 version of a screensaver. However, I was most captivated by the full, complete story that was satisfying despite the length of only 88 minutes. While I’d be curious to see the in-world explanation for how this was all created, but that was extraneous information for the story presented here. What we got was incredibly economical.

Much of the focus is on Benjamin and Brolin. At first, the former was kind of a dweeb but it wasn’t long before he was an enjoyable protagonist to follow. I’d never actually seen a Benjamin movie in full before. After the first two acts, Yul Brynner’s Gunslinger character (dressed like his character from The Magnificent Seven deliberately) becomes integral to the story. Further assets included the strong directing from Michael Crichton, some rad moments of cinematography from Gene Polito that sadly is missing from modern film and the vivid score from Fred Karlin which was more than just the expected Western score in the appropriate area.

As sometimes proclaimed by me, what a fool I was for not viewing the movie much sooner. Who knows if I’ll ever bother w/ just the first season of the Westworld TV show; despite its more lukewarm reputation, the 1976 sequel flick Futureworld is still on the table for me.

J.D.'s Revenge

J.D.'s Revenge (1976)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Arthur Marks

Starring: Glynn Turman, Louis Gossett, Jr., Joan Pringle, Carl D. Crudup, Fred Pinkard

From: AIP 

In this late night (at least by my standards of posting reviews on Letterboxd) posting, I discuss a film that has nothing to do with J.D. Vance. Rather, J.D.’s Revenge is a blaxploitation horror film I’ve known of for years and was happy to watch once it was added to Shudder. With any luck this won’t be the only Black nor the only horror during the month of February.

The opening is set in 1942 New Orleans; a woman is killed and Lou Gossett, Jr. (w/ hair) is present. The rest is set in modern times. A hypnotism stage act allows for the titular J.D. Walker to possess the body of Ike (portrayed well by Glynn Turman), a budding law school student who drives a cab. For a long while, the two souls fight over Ike’s body; don’t expect the titular revenge to happen until late in the proceedings. Until then, we get to see Lou as a charismatic preacher (who I scoffed at playing someone in his 50’s… until learning he was almost 40 during filming. Whoops!), his brother and in addition, Ike’s girlfriend, who unfortunately is abused more than once by the persona of J.D., including sexually.

Yeah, this features no shortage of 70’s sleaze. Early on, a double-date occurs… at a topless bar. The N word is uttered often. J.D is great at sex; no, really, that’s a plot point! For some today, seeing women be abused (which happens more than typical in Revenge) is a bridge too far. That’s understandable to me-such titillation is a product of a bygone era, and many blaxploitation films don’t portray women well, or have them abused.

Thankfully-for me, at least-the usual blaxploitation bravado was present and that amused me. Always nice is a funky score, which in this case was from Robert Prince; aside from plenty of work in TV and cinema, he also released some jazz albums. If the sleazier elements aren’t a turn-off, this blaxploitation horror effort is worth a look. The two leads are a key component as to why.

 

633 Squadron

633 Squadron (1964)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Walter Grauman

Starring: Cliff Robertson, George Chakiris, Maria Perschy, Harry Andrews, Donald Houston

From: Mirisch Films

I swear, it’s a coincidence this is my second Cliff Robertson film in a row; I was surprised when his name was the first to appear in the opening credits. My main reasons for checking this out: I hadn’t seen a war picture in awhile, and many Star Wars fans know that one of the inspirations for the trench run at the end of A New Hope was acknowledged to be this film, along with The Dam Busters. Thankfully, this did not have any unfortunate names for a black dog… I only saw Top Gun: Maverick one time but from my memory, suspicions are high that this inspired that as well.

While this was purportedly based on real RAF operations, this tale of the UK military in 1944 bombing a Nazi factory in Norway that produces rocket fuel is fictional. Not as much time practicing this run was presented as I expected. Instead, time was spent with the crew that Robertson is the commander of. Unlike the evil President he portrayed in Escape from L.A., that commander role is one where he is cynical concerning war itself but he has love for his squad & the feeling is reciprocated; there’s great camaraderie. 

This focus was to make a death (or is it deaths?) of the squad more impactful. There is a hint of romance w/ a pretty Norwegian lady who is the sister of the Norwegian resistance leader who the RAF is collaborating w/ on this mission.

The movie isn’t the best in its genre and is not a must-see unless you’re a huge Star Wars fan. Be that as it may, 633 Squadron still has exciting action beats, especially the aerial sequences. The effects were good, at least for their era. The performances were fine in general; Harry Andrews was the only other actor I recognized. Fine drama was present throughout. Another key aspect: the rousing score from Ron Goodwin; that also stirred the emotions, including the finale.

633 Squadron was a nice film to view during the task of (hopefully) checking out many different genres during the month of February.

 

Escape from L.A.

Escape from L.A. (1996)

Runtime: 101 minutes

Directed by: John Carpenter

Starring: Kurt Russell and many famous faces, usually in small roles

From: Paramount

Escape from L.A plays different in 2026 than it did the last time I watched this movie many years ago. I could be asking for trouble pointing this out, but in the opening minutes, we learn that Los Angeles has become an island after a massive earthquake, and it’s a place to “send undesirables” by the “United States Police Force” because we have a fascist President who changed the Constitution to declare himself Commander-in-Chief for life & wants a moral America… right or wrong, many people will think of 2026 in the United States… and this feeling actually continues throughout the movie via other moments.

In the past, I was annoyed at how similar this was compared to Escape from New York. That’s still a valid point. Hotshot Snake Plissken visits another lawless wasteland to retrieve someone (or something) the government wants, he meets wacky characters, etc. This does have silly moments; Carpenter let his love of basketball tell him that it was a great idea to have that sport be part of a big sporting scene in front of a crowd when it was just absurd. The CG has famously aged poorly, especially during another absurd scene… Snake and Peter Fonda surfing! The graphics can at least be laughed at.

That said, the movie was like a campier version of New York and I can’t complain that the sequel was a carbon copy. Entertainment was to be had, buttressed by a great cast full of familiar faces-even if many appeared for only a few minutes. Besides Kurt Russell (no relation, sadly) it was nice to see larger roles for the likes of Stacy Keach, Steve Buscemi, and Cliff Robertson. At least in the United States, of course this is by far the most famous movie of European star Georges Corraface; he did a fine job, even if the actor of Greek ancestry was portraying a Peruvian. A.J. Langer was also memorable as the President’s rebellious daughter; did you know that she’s been married for two decades to a British Earl, albeit they’re separated now?

The action was fun, I was never bored, and of course the score from Carpenter & Shirley Walker (a rare female composer of the time) was quite rad. As messy as the movie is and New York is better, there’s something to be said for a wacky, fun adventure with personality from a great director. While some won’t like the reminders of modern life, I’ll look at the other side of the coin and appreciate how this compares favorably to the films we get now. A bold ending I’ll presume we won’t get in modern Hollywood for what was a big release at the time: yet another reason to appreciate Escape from L.A.