Spider-Man 2

Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Runtime: 127 minutes

Directed by: Sam Raimi

Starring: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Alfred Molina, James Franco, J.K. Simmons

From: Columbia

Seeing the movie for the first time on the big screen was rather delightful. What I mean is: it had never been watched by me before last night, as shocking as that admission will be for many. It’s my ambivalence towards comic book movies in general (and yes, comic books), not a dislike for Marvel or preferring DC instead. Yet, this is the most beloved Spider-Man movie-live action, that is-and the source for several memes. As I returned to Disney Springs and the same large auditorium as last Wednesday for the first Spider-Man, even more people attended; the hottest ticket in town, it was.

Right away, I can admit that there was more “comic book silliness” present, for better and for worse. Another science experiment gone wrong creates another supervillain? I could really be pedantic about some things… I’d feel grumpier than J. Jonah Jameson by doing so, so better not. Instead, all the positives. It was quite easy to root for Peter Parker, what with him being put through the wringer in the first half: struggling with his busy workload, unable to pay the rent, his faltering powers, etc. When there was humor not all of it landed but it wasn’t dreadful & constant like what started in the MCU and from what little I’ve seen, infected the DC Universe also. It was nice to see Peter seriously deal with his problems and in the standout dramatic scene, reveal an important bit of information to Aunt May that he’s bottled up for the past two years.

Doc Ock wasn’t seen as often as expected; that was OK as Parker’s drama kept me invested (you could say the film... spun a web that ensnared me) and the heel did shine when on screen. One of the most memorable scenes involved Ock; yes, it was when Raimi flexed his horror muscles. As the performances, score, and overall spectacle were all improved, I understand why Spider-Man 2 is so beloved when in addition Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst were great as Peter and Mary Jane. During the final act, all the moments that you’d expect to get applause received just that from my audience; this includes “the big kiss” and the cameo from a guy who I learned from reviews of the previous film is a DILF to some!

How much further I’ll go on the journey of Sony showing all their Spider-Man spectaculars… that is uncertain as of now. I imagine Spider-Man 3 would be a hoot for a variety of reasons but even the decision to see that next week is unresolved in my mind. Today, I am delighted that Spider-Man 2 wasn’t a letdown.

All Dogs Go to Heaven

All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989)

Runtime: 84 minutes

Directed by: Don Bluth

Starring: Various famous voices, including Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise, Vic Tayback and Charles Nelson Reilly

From: United Artists

A movie I only saw once, and theatrically… 35 years ago. As a child of the 80’s and 90’s it was natural that some (but not all) of Don Bluth’s films were viewed. Recently I realized that none of his movies had ever been experienced by me as an adult. Mainly due to it being on Prime-meaning free for me as a Prime member-and the bonus that there was the theatrical experience at the age of 8 made it an easy choice. Of course, the fact that it was never rented by me subsequently is a sign that I wasn’t a fan back then. The exact reasons why are lost to the sands of time; why I didn’t like it now, that can be articulated.

There was only a few faint memories of Dogs in the ensuing 35 years; the 1939 Louisiana setting was a surprise in of itself. Charlie B. Barkin and Itchy Itchiford-no, these are real names-break out of prison; unbeknownst to them, their business partner CARFACE (a reference I did not get when I was 8) who runs a gambling palace. Car arranges for Charlie’s death but in Heaven he steals his celestial pocket watch-a phrase you’ll never see me use again; at least it’s a logical metaphor-and returns to Earth for revenge. I recalled nothing of that plot point, nor the plot point that they meet Anne-Marie, an orphan girl who can talk to animals and the info she hears is used for betting on sporting events involving said animals.

It is weird/dark when the plot is explained to you; the dark aspect didn’t bother me now and likely didn’t back in 1989. What bothered me in 2024: both Charlie and Itchy treat adorable Anne-Marie quite poorly, and for far too long. I’ll be doggone if I can enjoy the two protagonists act like total A-holes. There are several songs, most of which had lyrics best described as “poor pastiches of Broadway tunes” & the plot at times left me befuddled. Once Charlie returns to Earth, he proclaims that he wants to lay low as no one knows he isn’t deceased and he can get sweet, sweet revenge. This is done by… being seen out in public while earning money from gambling then opening a competing club known as… Charlie’s Place?! 

Then, there’s the Big Lipped Alligator Moment, a trope named after a particular scene from this movie—the people who coined the phrase I’m not a fan of AND it shouldn’t have been named after the bizarre musical number involving a random reptile as the alligator does appear later but it’s a character shoehorned in just for a convenient save and it’s a phenomenon that happens sometime in cinema.

There are compliments that can be granted, including the lovely animation throughout. It was a fine voice cast with various familiar names, led by Burt Reynolds & Dom DeLuise. I did laugh that the canine voiced by Charles Nelson Reilly wore a pair of Charles Nelson Reilly glasses. Judith Barsi voice Anne-Marie; it was a posthumous role and the reason why she passed away at the age of 10: too tragic for me to mention here. The score itself was at least fine.

Even if I don’t have the nostalgic love for the movie that many do, I’ll still give credit to Bluth for breaking away from Disney during its moribund days and finding success on his own. It has even been argued that this success in the 80’s led to Disney getting its act together and led to the Disney Renaissance. Perhaps, as he was the biggest competitor and for certain I know Miyazaki’s rise also was an influence. Heck, starting with The Little Mermaid there were several Broadway-like tunes included per film… in the future, I’ll review more Bluth movies & hopefully give them more flattering reviews.

King Solomon's Mines (The 30's Version)

King Solomon’s Mines (1937)

Runtime: 80 minutes

Directed by: Robert Stevenson… and Geoffrey Barkas

Starring: Paul Robeson, Cedric Hardwicke, Roland Young, John Loder, Anna Lee

From: Gaumont British Picture Corporation

I’m fulfilling requests here and clearing space off the DVR. Last summer I saw and reviewed the 1950 King Solomon’s Mines, which was a favorite of my late mother. It was a tale I enjoyed; long before that I saw the cheesy movie of the same name from the 80’s which I didn’t enjoy as much. More than one person brought this up as a movie to see; in addition, the film starring the great Black entertainer Paul Robeson was another draw, so when this played on TCM a few weeks ago, it was recorded. By my standards of waiting months to year to watch something I’m in possession of or recorded… I wasted nary a minute.

From other reviews, I understand that for as entertaining as the ’50 movie was, this rendition was more accurate to the H. Rider Haggard book in having a Black hero, portrayed here by Robeson. I do wish the print looked brighter/better. That said, as the movie was feared lost for years… it’s the familiar tale of a young lady’s father looking for a diamond mine and vanishing. Young lady Kathy O’Brien and a group of people (including Robeson and Allan Quartermain… yes, this is one of those adaptations that call him that instead of Quatermain) go through the desert, climb some mountains, etc. while Paul sings some songs as the producers probably felt obliged to when they cast a famous singer.

In hindsight, this should have been watched on April 8th; you see, a key plot point involves a solar eclipse… regrettably, the first two acts felt rather drab and this was compounded by (IMO) a Quartermain that was not only a wet blanket, but not that thrilling either. The blame isn’t being put on the shoulders of Cedric Hardwicke, who brought this version of Allan to life. It was a relief then that the focus was more on the fiery Kathy (portrayed by Anna Lee) than Quartermain.

The first two acts are best described by me as “drab.” Thankfully, business picked up in the final act between time spent w/ an African tribe-as stereotypical as they may be and the climax in the caves… action beats throughout that act that could be quite thrilling at times. The cast as a whole is fine but truthfully, Robeson is the highlight and elevates this B movie. The 1985 Cannon movie is more memorable due to campiness and the 1950 picture is the best overall but at least Old Paul got a plum role in an adventure flick.

 

Assassin of Youth

Assassin of Youth (1937… or 1938)

Runtime: 73 minutes

Directed by: Elmer Clifton

Starring: Luana Walters, Arthur Gardner, Dorothy Short, Earl Dwire, Fern Emmett

From: BCM Roadshow Pictures

Yes, I watched this anti-marijuana propaganda film on the night of 420 lol. Years ago I reviewed both Reefer Madness (known on Letterboxd as its original title, Tell Your Children) and Marihuana, each from 1936. They were exploitation movies marketed as “educational”-which was how they did not fall under the standards of the Hays Code-and were played in roadshows across the country. I had never seen the other 30’s weed movie Assassin of Youth until last night. While the reasons concerning the criminalization of marijuana in the 1930’s are rather unsavory (no accident that all three movies have the “troubled youth” listening to-gasp-jazz music), the films are still OOT nonsense and thus, quite amusing.

Assassin of Youth is the sloppiest and most confused of the trio (no small feat) yet still had some golden moments. Good girl Joan is set to inherit a chunk of change from her deceased grandmother… as long as she follows the moral turpitude clause in the will. Her awful cousin tries to ruin her reputation so SHE would get the dough instead. She has her own girl gang of troublemakers-you probably don’t want to worship them as “girl bosses,” though-including Dorothy Short, who played good girl Mary in Reefer Madness. Meanwhile, a reporter goes undercover to investigate Joan.

As poor as the entire production is and overshadowed in campy charm compared to Reefer Madness or Marihuana-not to mention overlong with the apparently full 73 minute cut I saw on YouTube-there are still moments to mention. The effects of pot are more realistic—no maniacally pounding away on a piano by someone who looked as if they ingested bath salts, as immortalized in Reefer Madness. I’m not sure about the “group of people at a party act like kangaroos and other animals”, but the blankly staring off into space then the homeowner hosting the shindig almost leaving the party along w/ everyone else… that is believable stoner behavior. That said, there are still claims that someone “addicted to pot” has “become psychotic,” it’s led to murders/suicides and Joan’s sister attempts to stab the 1938 version of Mia Goth w/ a knife…

However, the highlight character was a catty old gossiping hen of a woman w/ the surname FRISBEE. She was delightfully an awful person as she rode around on her scooter & literally cackled at Joan’s downfall. I was overjoyed whenever she appeared. Overall, the other marijuana propaganda films are better but was still happy to cross this off the list. Next time, a movie from this era which isn’t smutty trash.

Phase IV

Phase IV (1974)

Runtime: 84 minutes

Directed by: Saul Bass

Starring: Nigel Davenport, Michael Murphy, Lynne Frederick, Alan Gifford, Robert Henderson

From: Paramount

A movie you might not like if you have trypophobia…then again, the movie’s original poster (not the one I'm using on Letterboxd right now) at least presents that warning in visual form and there's only one moment which will disturb you if you have that phobia. 

One nice aspect of 2024 is that I’ve already seen a few films I’ve been meaning to for literally years now, cult classic Phase IV included. The theatrical version of the picture (why I’m making the distinction will be elaborated upon at the end) is in the Criterion Channel collection Surreal Nature Films for obvious reasons--between the awesome 70’s synth score from Brian Gascoigne and some trippy visuals. I understand why the movie flopped at the box office even with 70’s crowds as even half a century later this is rather weird and arch… that said, it’s a shame that legendary graphic designer Saul Bass only got the chance to direct this one movie.

After all, the film is about ants becoming hyper-intelligent after an eclipse-like event (in hindsight, this should have been seen about two weeks ago…) and a pair of scientists reside in a sealed Arizona dome to study them. Hilariously, it’s outside the town of… Paradise City. No, the grass isn’t green but there is a pretty young lady… Lynne Frederick—I’ve mentioned her before: final wife of Peter Sellers, incredibly controversial due to her alleged “gold digger” mindset and how MANY did not like her for whatever reasons. I won’t defend her-her Wikipedia page doesn’t paint the most flattering picture anyhow.

Back to the ants; they have a hive mind, it’s quite the challenge. Nigel Davenport is Hubbs, who becomes obsessed as if the enemy is his Moby Dick while Lesko (Ernest, not Matthew) specializes in Game Theory so he attempts to decipher their “language” by correlating their noises to their movements. The film sounds like total B-movie in plot and execution, yet it is also cerebral in an increasingly unsympathetic Hubbs and the focus on macrophotography of the ants scheming to troll the scientists. It is a cold, austere film (despite the desert exteriors) yet all the attributes listed already plus some killer sound design made this odd journey worth it by the end. Of course, it’s ironic that this movie did not feature either memorable opening or closing credits, but alas…

I referred to which cut I saw as naturally there was a longer preview version before it was edited down for release. None other than Vinegar Syndrome in a 4K release pieced together what was available to include the theatrical and a longer version, the latter on a Blu disc. This includes an ending that was a few minutes longer… and many degrees more bizarre. I saw that online; literally, someone recorded a theatrical presentation of that scene with their phone.

For those that celebrate 4:20, the common version of Phase IV can still be enjoyed while you’re totally baked.

 

Jailer

Jailer (2023)

Runtime: 166 long minutes

Directed by: Nelson Dilipkumar

Starring: Rajinikanth, Vinayakan, Ramya Krishnan, Vasanth Ravi, Yogi Babu

From: Sun Pictures

Perhaps something got lost in translation...

I hate to do this; besides not viewing enough Indian movies for the at least dozen Letterboxd mutuals from that part of the world, but too often I've selected modern efforts that don't exactly jive with me. It's not easy to track down those movies between various different platforms, they sometimes vanish without warning, then trying to determine what could be to my esoteric tastes... still, I should try to choose better.

The premise sounded promising. The film starred Tamil language legend/superstar Rajinikanth as a former jailer who has a police officer son and an incredibly irritating grandson who loves having a YouTube show with 96 followers. Boy, the “humor” in this “dark comedy” more often than not really didn't jive with me. After all, the beginning of the film (after disclaimers about cigarettes, booze, and drunk driving) shows the main villain dunk three henchmen in sulfuric acid (?!) after one of them is a turncoat... then we get the irritating grandson and awkward comedy, which this is full of despite the brutal opening which also features two of the men being hit in the head with hammers! WTF? Like in some other movies from that country, there are small warnings displayed at the bottom whenever a character drinks or smokes. In this case, just seeing cigarettes is implied to be more offensive to the viewer then seeing people bashed with hammers then dipped in acid!

There was about a 20 minute stretch in the opening act which was rather dire. After that, it improved but too many of the characters (including the lead) I didn't really enjoy so it took the hilariously convoluted plot and some catchy songs to even keep me watching through the almost 3 hour runtime. I've now learned that when it comes to this part of the world, apparently I need to choose either the classic cinema from decades past or the modern movies that are hysterically, bombastically over the top like RRR. For now, I'll shrug my shoulders & move on.

Spider-Man

Spider-Man (2002)

Runtime: 121 minutes

Directed by: Sam Raimi

Starring: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, James Franco, Cliff Robertson

From: Columbia

Will people be offended when I say that I hadn’t seen this movie in more than 20 years? If not, then you probably will when I say that I’ve never viewed the other Raimi Spider-Man movies! As there are many new Letterboxd followers since my last review of a comic book film… I’ve never been a big fan of the genre so I’ve only bothered w/ some of them. This film was only tackled back in the day (at home, and only one time) because it featured Macho Man Randy Savage-jacked as heck; sadly, it did not shock me that he passed away years later due to a heart attack-for a few minutes. As Sony brought this back to cinemas for once an evening showings, it seemed like a nice way for the second viewing… and to finally discuss this here.

As someone mainly looking from the outside in at the genre and am ambivalent about many of those films, even I am tired of cinematic universes and even worse, the metaverse. Thus, the film’s origin story tale which was simple and just had one villain: refreshing. Not needing to read pages of notes or viewing several films and episodes of a few streaming shows to fully understand the plot-a relief. Peter Parker is bitten by a radioactive spider & becomes Spider-Man while doing battle against the Green Goblin while a relationship w/ Mary Jane Watson develops.

Yes, there were moments I’ll describe as “comic book silliness” which is undoubtedly my biases. That noted, I was still happy to have revisited this movie on the big screen. Peter Parker as presented was easy to root for: despite acting like a typical teenager at times, he was still a picked-on nerd who still acted human-not to mention awkward-despite developing those super-powers and wanted to help people. The rest of the characters were also enjoyable for what they were, including literal girl next door Watson and Norman Osborn, who proved you shouldn’t test unproven performance-enhancing drugs on yourself. The CG wasn’t 100% flawless but mostly worked. What always worked: the vibrant score from Danny Elfman.

Perhaps I would not rate this as highly if it wasn’t for the theatrical experience. It was in a large auditorium where many of the seats were filled. Thank heavens the crowd was well-behaved. Besides the rapturous applause heard at the end and laughter during the funny moments, the biggest reactions came from the director credit and… J. Jonah Jameson’s first appearance. I imagine he had more time on screen in the sequels; even I have seen the meme of his uproarious laughter in the second film.

What I really appreciated in this picture: the lack of MCU nonstop “humor” which usually was just stupid instead of funny and undercut even the serious dramatic scenes. Instead, there was some laughs which for the most part were at least worthy of a chuckle while the serious moments (deaths, someone injured to the point of an extended hospital stay) weren’t ruined by a quip. In hindsight, waiting until this unexpected opportunity for a big theatrical experience for me to finally discuss a movie I only remembered fragments of. 

Next week is Spider-Man 2. I know some would be AGHAST if that is never experienced by me period. Yeah, the week after that is… Spider-Man 3. Because it’s the Internet, “Emo Peter Parker” and his “dancing” was viewed in clips a long time ago. Then again, in 2024 when Madame Web was crapped out, 3 might not be so bad now. From Fandango, I know the rest of the Spidey franchise will be shown in the upcoming weeks. Who knows how much of that journey I'll take.