Collateral

Collateral (2004)

Runtime: 120 minutes

Directed by: Michael Mann

Starring: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, Jada Pinkett Smith, Mark Ruffalo, Peter Berg

From: Paramount/Dreamworks

Note that I decided to revisit Collateral BEFORE the Academy Awards happened this past Sunday.

There is a backstory w/ me and this movie. I hadn't seen it since a theatrical experience... in the middle of nowhere Massachusetts the day after a relative was married in Cape Cod. True story; I had unexpected free time and as a cinema was by the hotel and Collateral seemed the most appealing out of what they were showing... A big reason why I hadn't revisited the movie for discussion here and elsewhere: I more liked it then loved it. As that's an unpopular opinion, I never pulled the trigger until last night, despite several opportunities to do so. This was also a DVR watch as this was one of quite a few movies I recorded the few days earlier in March I had HBO and Cinemax channels for free. Later in the review I'll mention what it was back in '04 that made me downgrade the movie as a whole and whether or not my opinion has changed almost 18 years later. The fact that Jada Pinkett Smith has been in the news cycle since the Oscars is a big reason why this was watched last night instead of sometime in April.

Sure, the premise of an assassin having a taxi driver ferry him around to various spots in Los Angeles while the assassin murders FIVE different people does strain credulity, at least a bit. Then again, Tom Cruise's villain character Vincent isn't the most plausible in general. Then again that's just nitpicking and as I usually dig Michael Mann quite a bit, I'm willing to go on this long cab ride. For certain, Cruise and Jamie Foxx are great in their roles, along w/ their interplay w/ each other. Foxx is definitely likable while Cruise is a complex bad guy. The early digital look that Mann used did not age as bad as I feared. There are many nice shots of Los Angeles and I dug the music-whether it be the score, the soundtrack, or the jazz heard in one scene.

Unfortunately I still don't love the plot. What disappointed me at the time was that there was at least one opportunity for our hero to get the hell away from the bad guy-as in, a nice apparently viable opportunity-and yet it doesn't happen. The second time around I saw even more story-related things that I was not a fan of, which I won't spoil. Still, it's not a major deal that my opinion of this is not as strong as many others; that doesn't change my take on the greatness of Heat, Thief or Manhunter. Oh, and I should mention that the supporting cast featured people I knew in '04 (Jason Statham apparently playing his Transporter character in a cameo, Smith in a small yet memorable & critical part, Peter Berg, Bruce McGill) and those I didn't (Mark Ruffalo, Javier Bardem).

It's not a movie I regret seeing a second time; I am just pretty confident that there won't be a third.

Running Scared (The One From The 80's)

Running Scared (1986)

Runtime: 107 minutes

Directed by: Peter Hyams

Starring: Gregory Hines, Billy Crystal, Jimmy Smits, Darlanne Fluegel, Dan Hedaya

From: MGM

This is one of the movies I recorded off the DVR a few weeks ago. I only discovered last night that some of the pictures recorded were not what I was expecting due to the cable guide being wrong... I put full blame on HBO and Cinemax for that. Nothing can't be seen elsewhere and at least I feel more at ease that there isn't as much now for me to watch soon. Running Scared was something I'd seen before, albeit ages ago. I wanted to confirm that the wacky idea of Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines in a buddy cop comedy filled with R-rated language and violence still works for me... it does.

They are two police detectives-not the most plausible idea but I'm able to roll with it-in Chicago who have to deal with relationship drama and not getting along with their boss Dan Hedaya yet it's mostly them trying to bust drug kingpin Jimmy Smits. Of course it's the 80's so it's all about cocaine. The cast is certainly nice; along with the aforementioned actors there's also “Joey Pants”, Steven Bauer, Jon Gries and Darlanne Fluegel. Even if the leads aren't always ethical to the suspects by 2022 standards, that is OK as the movie has enough laughs for me even if the plot can be leisurely at times.

Thankfully there's also enough action and that is satisfying too. The shootouts are as expected yet there's also some creative setpieces involving the distinctive James R. Thompson Center building and a chase involving Chi-town's L train tracks. Several minutes are spent in Key West (I won't spoil why) and it all screams “80's excesses”. Nothing personifies that more than the soundtrack and score. Michael McDonald's Sweet Freedom is the most famous tune yet what tickles my fancy more is the title song from Fee Waybill of The Tubes fame. That is one of the most 1980's tunes I've ever heard.

While there's better buddy cop comedies out there-along with Peter Hyams pictures I enjoy more-it is still a fun time, a nice artifact from its decade.

Nights Of Cabiria

Nights of Cabiria (1957)

Runtime: 110 minutes

Directed by: Federico Fellini

Starring: Giuiletta Masina, Francois Perier, Franca Marzi, Dorian Gray, Aldo Silvani

From: Dino de Laurentiis Cinematografica/Les Films Marceau

I couldn't turn down the chance to watch one of Fellini's best for free on TCM, so Sunday night during the Oscars I watched a recording I made on the DVR earlier in the month. I heard the movie was a downer and this was not wrong. Yet...

The movie follows prostitute-the titular Cabiria-who is a positive optimistic lady despite never finding a beau to marry. After all, the opening scene has someone attempting to drown her so they could take her money. From there she's dumped on by fellow streetwalkers, random people, Johns... yet it manages not to be a miserable slog due to how well the movie was put together, the story being so compelling and Giuiletta Masina's performance as the lead being so stellar. It was easy to root for her not just for all the mistreatment she gets-mainly from men; it was because she is such a lovable down to Earth gal who does not deserve the s*** she gets.

I'd rather not say much more about the story or all the turns it takes as that would ruin much of the magic for first time viewers, as it's a journey where the lead suffers much, but there is an excellent final 10 or so minutes that ties everything together & the destination was worth the journey.

Men In Black

Men in Black (1997)

Runtime: 98 minutes

Directed by: Barry Sonnenfeld

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, Linda Fiorentino, Vincent D'Onofrio, Rip Torn

From: Columbia

I wasn't expecting to watch this late last night-let alone write a longer review than usual-but here you go...

I haven't watched the Academy Awards since 2019; the ceremony being so different last year plus not having seen most of the movies nominated in any category (even now) was why. This year, the changes they made to “increase ratings” offended me on basic principle so why bother? I actually watched another movie before this one via the DVR and that will be discussed tomorrow evening. I was expecting to talk about that now... then I got back on Twitter to see who won. Imagine my shock! All this hoopla does help obscure how I am sure many people-at least here-aren't happy with what was awarded Best Picture. For the past few days I discovered that some have a backlash against it; as that is not a motion picture I have seen there's no opinion from me on if it's an “OF COURSE the Academy would love it” scenario or something I'd actually love.

After what happened, how could I not watch something from Will Smith? He and his wife I never had any real opinion on; their kids seem like real weirdos but then again I know now not to insult anyone in his family! Otherwise I won't share my opinion on his reaction and if the joke was “OK” for someone afflicted w/ alopecia. It's not any dislike that has only made me see a few of Will's movies in my life. Not reviewed on the site is Bad Boys—something I'd rather not revisit for the first time since '96. I remembered it as being only OK at the time and as my opinion of the director since then has gone from “who is he?” to “he's the Antichrist of filmmaking”, I'd rather not. Instead what was selected is something that I know will astonish many when I say that it's a first time watch. There's never been the desire to until now... and hell, I have been on the MIB ride at Universal Studios in Orlando.

Of course I knew some things beforehand due to that ride and cultural osmosis. Smith was an NYPD cop who after a run-in with an alien is recruited by Tommy Lee Jones to join the secret organization that monitors alien activity on Earth. Yes I did know of the Neuralizer and Frank the Pug-for a long time now, in fact. Me not having nostalgia for this might be why I don't rate this as highly as many others on Letterboxd. That's not a slight and in fact if this was something I first saw as a 16 year old it might be something I look back fondly on. For certain, in 2022 this property being based on a Marvel comic... it might as well be in the MCU. After all, the world is threatened and there are jokes... at least here the humor did not seem out of place although it was not a movie I thought was uproariously funny. Not surprisingly to me, it was the subtle jokes (like the bit involving the lemonade) that most tickled my funny bone.

All that said, it's not a movie I regret watching after a quarter century. There was plenty of talent involved with this and they managed to create an interesting world that would be slick entertainment for the masses... and all based on the bizarre real life folk tale of men in black (whether they be human or aliens) tied into flying saucer sightings. Big Willie Style's charisma was obvious & he made for a wacky team with the grumpy-both in character and real life-Tommy Lee Jones. Then there's the supporting players; I won't address all those rumors as to why Linda Fiorentino left Hollywood then soon after acting all together... except that she “being difficult to work with” may be poppycock and I hope what actually happened isn't a tragic Hollywood tale. Hopefully she's been fine since then...

Anyhow, this is a movie where aside from some of the CG it hasn't aged too poorly. From hearsay I do know to avoid all the sequels unless I wanted to have a bad night... even worse than what Chris Rock experienced last night.

Ratsasan

Ratsasan (2018)

Runtime: 145 minutes

Directed by: Ram Kumar... what a name

Starring: Vishnu Vishal, Amala Paul, Radha Ravi, Sangili Murugan, Munishkanth

From: Axess Film Factory

I usually dig Indian movies... unfortunately this is an exception. There's plenty available on streaming for films from that part of the world. At least there's some resources to try and whittle down the vast selection; besides Letterboxd there's a special section on IMDb which solely lists the highest rated films overall then by several languages. As this Tamil language picture has high marks that's what I selected.

It sounded like a straightforward, serious tale where a wannabe filmmaker turned novice police officer (it was a family favor where he got the job) starts investigating a serial killer targeting high school girls. Unfortunately, the editing at times was too frenetic-especially in the first act, where it just about gave me a headache-and even this managed to include a few comedic moments. Note that this movie also had a subplot involving pedophilia!

This is not all bad; the 145 minute version I saw (there are differing reports on how long this actually was; other places I've seen 170 minutes so is the copy available for streaming cut down?) wasn't terrible; just disappointing considering most enjoyed this quite a bit more than me. It's just that the movie is also rather absurd in terms of villain and motivation. There is a twist and affliction that if done in an English language horror/thriller film before it was too obscure for anyone to know about. That alone was fine but it becomes just ludicrous; it's not like the movie was Malignant, which you aren't supposed to take seriously... I'll just shrug my shoulders and hopefully watch more Indian cinema soon. In the past I've noted more than once that I should do it and it doesn't happen-this time I should try and live up to my promise.

Satan's Sadists

Satan's Sadists (1969)

Runtime: 87 minutes

Directed by: Al Adamson

Starring: Russ Tamblyn, Gary Kent, Jacqulin Cole, John “Bud” Cardos, Robert Dix

From: Independent-International Pictures

Before I get to the meat of the review, two points have to be addressed:

1) It is probable that I won't see as many foreign films this month as expected. Considering that I watch movies from all over the world the other 11 months of the year, it is not something I should sweat.

2) As sometimes occurs, it was a comment on a messageboard that served as a germ for an idea. Someone mentioned that they were not a fan of the 1978 movie Death Dimension; I hadn't seen it even though it stars quite the trio of Jim Kelly, Harold Sakata and George Lazenby. It then made me realize that despite knowing of Al Adamson for many years now, I actually haven't seen any of his motion pictures before. I knew more about his gruesome murder than what he did behind the camera. 

It made me realize that this was something I should fix even if his work was cheap B-movies of varying quality. Perhaps I was the right market for Severin's well-regarded box set of his filmography that came out in 2020. As is, that was a limited release so that's not a purchase I can make unless I wanted to literally spend hundreds of dollars for it. Instead, it's to the backwaters of the Internet due to most of his work not being legally available for streaming... This was selected, mainly due to some of the praise I have seen for it. While the movie was not something I loved like some do, it was still fine overall.

A small gang of bikers do some vile things to a young couple in the opening, then harass some innocent folk at a tiny diner attached to a Chevron gas station in the middle of the California desert. Unluckily for them, one of the innocent folk is a young Vietnam vet. Things escalate & various people are now tramping around this barren desert wasteland. My first impression of the gang was that while they had some mean moments in a movie w/ a nasty streak running throughout, they are also goofballs who have petty squabbles. Kind of odd for a gang of ruffians that wear swastikas and other related symbols. Also, for a biker movie this sometimes... spins its wheels.

All that said, this was still a good time overall; the potent moments do still sting. Russ Tamblyn as the lead was a nice get; the acting was a mixed bag but he was a standout there. I don't know what to make of later directors playing two of the bikers: John “Bud” Cardos and Greydon Clark. I once met Clark at an event in Orlando and if I had seen this beforehand the topic of his acting career would have been broached. The groovy flower child era music and a strong final act meant that I don't regret picking this movie first... perhaps I shouldn't phrase it that way as I don't plan on seeing everything that Adamson has done, not by any means. Even fans say that some of his schlock was rather rotten. Instead, once in awhile one of his motion pictures will be given a spin by myself.

Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare

Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare (Yokai Daisenso) (1968)

Runtime: 78 minutes

Directed by: Yoshiyuki Kuroda

Starring: Yoshihiko Aoyama, Hideki Hanamura, Chikara Hashimoto, Hiromi Inoue, Mari Kanda

From: Daiei

What a weird, wacky good time this was. Back during Halloween season 2020, A few months ago I saw & reviewed Yokai Monsters: 100 Monsters. While fine I knew from hearsay that not only would its sequel have more creatures, but most found it to be superior. After last night, I discovered they were correct.

This time in feudal Japan, the monsters are the antiheroes as they have to work with some humans in a house to combat quite the villain: a vampiric demon from Babylon that was freed accidentally by dumbass archaeologists. This demon can take the appearance of their victims which results in a Lord Magistrate being impersonated. As I said back this past October: For years I've known that Japanese folklore has spirits and monsters known as yokai; they can look like animals but there are also critters that look like inanimate objects, which is why we get the incredible image of a sentient umbrella who has two arms, one leg, and at times a giant tongue that licks the mentally handicap adult it befriends. Ahhh, Japan... there is also a woman who has a Stretch Armstrong neck.” They are here along with others too bizarre to elaborate upon. This includes a water imp and a monster best described as “I'm sure James Wan has seen Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare before” and not elaborate on why I am pretty confident in this belief.

While having a more mischievous tone than the first, there are still serious moments and the demon still commits some heinous acts; I wasn't expecting this to be the second film in a row w/ a dog death but I was mistaken. Overall it is pretty strange watching distinctive creatures team up and are aided in part by humans do battle against an abomination straight from Hell; no wonder Miike's The Great Yokai War was partially inspired by this movie. Mix in an odd creepy score and this was quite "only in Japan" motion picture.

Lake Of The Dead

Lake of the Dead (De Dodes Tjern) (1958)

Runtime: 76 minutes

Directed by: Kare Bergstrom

Starring: Erling Lindahl, Bjorg Engh, Henny Moan, Andre Bjerk, Georg Richter

From: Norsk Film

Back during Halloween season 2020, I saw the Norwegian movie Lake of Death; that 2019 picture was rather dull & flaccid, not to mention predictable. At the time I noted it was a remake of of a movie from the late 50's I hadn't seen before. Well, because it's on Shudder I had the chance to discover that indeed the original film is quite a bit better.

It does not star young adults playing the role of young adults. Rather, it's characters who are middle aged like me that go off for vacation to a cabin in the woods as it's owned by the brother (Bjorn; not Ulvaeus) of a girl in the party. When they get there, the brother is gone, his dog is dead (you do briefly see its corpse, for those that are passionately against the dog dying) and much of the movie is spent with these adults conversating as to what's the cause of the oddities & scares that are happening. You see, the lake has a hell of a lore attached to it: a killer who has a peg leg and a one-legged immortal crow!

It's more about the dialogue than the scares; much to the movie's credit the talk was all engaging to me and what creepy moments occur are effective. Could it be paranoia that is driving everyone's fears or is there actually a ghost and undead crow? The fact that all the characters are different and thus they all have varying interpretations of the same data points was of interest to a dork like me. So was the creepy as hell score. While much of the movie was spent in a cabin, the lake setting was quite scenic. With the right expectations it is more likely you'll have as good of a time as I did.

Oh, and this is a rare example where the star of the movie was primarily an author and the movie's plot was based on a novel he wrote. Andre Bjerke's prose was primarily centered around psychologist Kai Bugge so why not have him be in the movie but not play Bugge? Instead he was a key supporting character and considering it's his own acting credit, he was good.

Earthquake

Earthquake (1974)

Runtime: 122 minutes

Directed by: Mark Robson

Starring: An all-star cast I list below

From: Universal

If you ever wanted to see Walter Matthau dressed like a 70's pimp... years ago I saw one scene of the movie and it was of Matthau in a bar wearing from the waist up an astounding red and white ensemble, complete w/ bright red hat. It was so absurd I guffawed out loud; don't ask me why it was just last night that I saw the movie in full. Incidentally, Walter did the movie for free as he was friends w/ the producer; he was credited as Walter Matuschanskayasky which actually started the rumor that it was his legit surname! For the record, the name on his birth certificate was Walter Jake Matthow.

As Airport was a big hit for Universal, naturally they wanted to have another disaster movie; a real life San Francisco earthquake in '71 provided the inspiration. Mario Puzo's original script languished for a bit until The Poseidon Adventure was a success; that gave the studio the boot in the ass for this to be made. I understand that the script they filmed w/ was far different than what was first written. As is, the first 50 minutes is full of melodrama as all the various characters are introduced to the audience. The main plot is the first world problem of how Charlton Heston is unhappily married to a real shrew of a woman (Ava Garner) but he's more interested in Genevieve Bujold, who is at least not a wet blanket. The other famous faces including Richard Roundtree (sans mustache but still a badass), young giant-haired Victoria Principal, George Kennedy as a loose cannon cop, Marjoe Gortner, Lorne Greene as Garner's father-which strains credulity as Greene wasn't even 8 years older than Garner-Lloyd Nolan, Barry Sullivan, Pedro Armendariz, Jr., Jesse Vint and Alan Vint.

Once the titular event happens, thankfully we finally go to town and besides the utter destruction of Los Angeles that happens-”war zone” sounds like a crass term to use in 2022 but that is the best comparison to make-the main characters start interacting with each other, heroic acts are seen, and not everyone survives by the time the end credits roll. If only I could have seen this theatrically back in '74... I say that due to the then-new Sensurround system that Universal only used a few times. It was basically an early version of a subwoofer that literally shook some auditoriums to the point of minor damage... can't imagine why it didn't take off. Even if it has most of the disaster movie cliches, I was entertained enough by the carnage, stirred enough by all the heroes stepping up to the plate and laughed enough at Walter Matuschanskayasky's character-even it became preposterous by the end-to have liked this overall.

Hamlet

Hamlet (1948)

Runtime: 155 minutes

Directed by: Laurence Olivier

Starring: Olivier, Jean Simmons, John Laurie, Esmond Knight, Anthony Quayle

From: Two Cities Films

Sometimes I do watch “serious cinema”. Sure, it's fun to watch genre efforts, silly comedies or sleazy trash. But sometimes I should check out Oscar winners based on Shakespeare. As Hamlet is the longest play from Sir William it's not one I ever read in high school (or anywhere else, for that matter) or seen it in plays; thus, I am not offended that this has to be truncated as it's “only” 2 ½ hours long while another popular adaptation (the '96 version from Kenneth Branagh) is the full play and thus 4 hours long. The version presented here condenses the tale well-enough for me.

Presumably, most will be familiar w/ the basic story of how Hamlet's father was murdered by his uncle and thus the uncle is now the king of Denmark, and how pops apparently comes back as a ghost & tells his son the story/wants him to gain revenge. Heck, many will be familiar w/ various lines of dialogue that have been quoted for literally centuries by now. Thus, I won't dwell on that. Instead, I'll mention that it's a fascinating tale & the enduring popularity of the plot is not a surprise. Director/star Laurence Olivier brought this world to screen with great skill in front and behind the camera. Between the cast (everyone in the main cast deliver quality performances) & the sets, it was a world I was enraptured with. In addition, whenever the ghost appears, it naturally happens when it is dark, foggy and atmospheric.

The Shakespearean dialogue is not always easy for most people to follow along with, but that will of course be the case for all period adaptations. As long as you can accept that (or heck, if you are a huge fan of the playwright) then it's worth a spin, even if to decide for yourself if you are able to accept a partial version of the story. As an aside, what a lineup of actors this had, even if some are only extras or otherwise have bit parts: Olivier, Jean Simmons, Anthony Quayle, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, John Gielgud, Desmond Llewelyn, and Patrick Macnee.

Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum

Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum (Gon-Ji-Am) (2018)

Runtime: 94 minutes

Directed by: Jung Bum-shik

Starring: Wi Ha-jun, Park Ji-hyun, Oh Ah-yeon, Moon Ye-won, Park Sung-hoon

From: Several South Korean companies

As someone who is always down for the bashing of YouTube “content creators”... paragraphs could be spent on this opinion or why most if not all the most popular channels are absolutely worthless to me-but I won't. Instead I'll mention that I was glad this was done here—one of a few Korean movies I could have selected on Shudder. This was chosen despite the found footage motif (I've seen plenty of bad ones) due to the nice ratings on Letterboxd. As typical for this subgenre, there's a kernel of truth to what is covered. There is a Gonjiam Asylum in South Korea filled with legend and as referenced in the movie it actually was mentioned in a CNN article. Of course, most of that folklore is overblown or downright false; that doesn't mean the yarns spun around the place aren't creepy as hell.

The setup sounds cliché... which it is. A YouTube channel that visits haunted places finally does a livestream at the fabled location. Some time is spent getting to know the crew then they sneak to the property, set up the equipment, you discover that “it's all about the YouTube ad money”, someone's secretly an A-hole, and all the rest. Furthermore, there are few surprises along the way & some bits that certainly looked like less than subtle allusions to famous found footage moments.

Be that as it may, Gonjiam is one of the better subgenre examples I've seen; it is far more than the lazy garbage that has littered the found footage scene since right after it became a fad. Besides the creepy vibe that starts as soon as they reach the building, the lighting alone that creates shadows sets the mood as personally, it had me on edge. Then there's some scares which were new to me that worked pretty well... nevermind a GREAT one in the third act that multiple people have praised. Even if you long ago grew tired of found footage, this may be worth a shot. Heck, if you love the concept of irritating jackasses on YouTube look bad...

Gimme Shelter

Yes, I am referring to the 1970 documentary: 

If you ever wanted to see the 1960's die on camera...

This is a documentary I've seen before—albeit that was around 15 years ago. When the Criterion Channel added this and other legendary concert films to their service this month, it was an easy decision for me to experience this again and realize if it was as powerful a documentation of a great band AND a tragic concert experience... in fact, it was.

From looking at a random review on Letterboxd, it's a reminder that some will have no idea what happened at the Altamont Free Concert, an event that tried to be “Woodstock West” but that one day event at a speedway in Northern California featuring The Rolling Stones, Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young (who weren't shown in the documentary), Jefferson Airplane, Santana, country/rock act The Flying Burrito Brothers, and what was going to be The Grateful Dead but they decided “nah” due to the ugly vibe of the estimated 300,000 there. Unlike what seemed like a genial crowd at Woodstock, this was far uglier. Then again, hiring bikers (The Hell's Angels!) to provide security was not a great idea even if they'd done it at much smaller concerts before. Of course there'd be fights, people injured and an incident involving serious weapons which was one hell of a symbolic end of the cheerful flower power 1960's-the concert was December 6, 1969-and perhaps was a sign that while the 70's was awesome in terms of entertainment and style, there also would be plenty of unrest & misery for many. For those that don't know the story and do wish to see this, I won't elaborate. Many sites on the Internet are available for those that want to do a deep dive on the subject. It is sobering to see someone distinctive in the crowd (wearing a lime green suit)

Knowing that something bad would happen, there's an air of dread that hangs over the proceedings as in between the footage of the Stones performing in New York City, recording songs for what would be their awesome album Sticky Fingers & in general hanging out, there's the kerfuffle surrounding this big free concert changing locations twice, the second at almost literally the last minute. It seemed like a recipe for disaster... that said the movie was not a miserable 90 minutes. As The Rolling Stones is one of my favorite bands, it was nice to see them both on & off stage. Those live performances are a treat-although due to circumstances they weren't at the best when at the speedway. Briefly seeing some other acts (like Ike & Tina Turner, who opened for the Stones in NYC) was a sweet bonus. It's a nice documentary on a legendary rock band during what may have been their creative peak... which also served as a cultural artifact and literally prevented someone from being jailed possibly for life. It was also a creative idea to have the band watch some of the footage that was shot already, especially the key moment at Altamont.

By the by, I did see the Stones perform live, in Tampa during the month of October, 2005. That was a great experience. They have come to the area since, but due to the ticket costs & them mostly performing the same songs I heard them do in '05, I am satisfied experiencing them just once. I'm glad that was done long before Charlie Watts passed away last August; seeing him here did make me feel a bit melancholy.

I Revisited Stunt Rock

 A good time, it still is. My original review of that (from 9 years ago) is here.

A History Of Violence

A History of Violence (2005)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: David Cronenberg

Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, Ashton Holmes, William Hurt (RIP)

From: New Line Cinema

If it's not appropriate to say “RIP William Hurt”, then I'll wish a happy belated 69th birthday to David Cronenberg. I put it that way as while Hurt was a great actor and while I've only talked here about the movies I've seen of his... there is a big caveat. As was trending on Twitter Sunday night, there was the accusations that ex-girlfriend Marlee Matlin made back in the day. According to her, not only was he abusive, but he did something pretty vile late one night while heavily intoxicated. Even though he later apologized for his behavior and there sadly are many entertainers that have done vile things in their lives, I'm still all “dammit” concerning this situation.

While David Cronenberg has made some messed-up movies that contain disturbing content (this has some rather graphic moments), the man himself I've never heard anything that would cause people to “cancel” him. Thus, I'll say “happy birthday” to the man that turned 69 (nice) three days ago. Speaking of 69... but no spoilers.

Turns out, Hurt only has a small yet pivotal role in this picture; what a the memorable-if improbable at times-story and thank heavens Viggo Mortensen & Maria Bello delivered w/ quality performances. They plays parents in a bucolic small Indiana town full of friendly good folk-from my childhood growing up in the Midwest I know this to be true. They are nice people too—although they could also be referred to as “squares”. It's an upheaval when two murderous bastards on a killing spree end up in town and once they stop at the family diner & threaten death, Viggo turns into John Wick. When a few members of the Irish Mob show up, could he possibly be a retired mob hitman who's assumed a new identity long ago?

BTW, I had no idea this featured the Irish Mob; it was not my intent to imply a cruel dig on St. Patrick's Day! After all, a small part of my heritage is Irish.

Small quibbles aside, it was quite the compelling story which is punctuated by some rather gruesome moments (not a surprise given the title of the film) and while we don't see how Ed Harris lost his eye, the incident is described and yikes. The lead family being such nice folks and the town being so quaint made the invasion of bad guys all the more jarring & even heartbreaking. As already mentioned, the lead performances being so good was a huge asset in making this deceptively straightforward film from the director such a rewarding journey. The tight 96 minute runtime was appreciated by me, even if I wouldn't have minded a subplot or two being fleshed out. A quiet opening which concludes with a major jolt-an example of how well this handled suspense scenes-and an excellent wordless ending help cement my opinion that this was very good. Later in the year I'll watch the other Mortensen/Cronenberg collaboration in full; just by happenstance the only scene from that I've watched before is the most infamous one... you know what I mean.

Tilbury

Tilbury (1987)

Runtime: 57 minutes

Directed by: Vioar Vikingsson

Starring: Robert Arnfinnsson, Helga Bernhard, Kristjian Franklin Magnuss, Karl August Ulfsson

From: Icelandic Television

The Shudder description was not lying; the film does feature someone “spontaneously vomiting green butter”.

This was not the movie I was planning on seeing last night but due to fatigue I went with something short-only 57 minutes in length-and available on Shudder due to it being part of the Severin Films boxset All Our Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror. The plot description that Shudder has made this sound strange as s--- and well, it is.

The setting is 1940 Iceland; because Germany occupied Denmark-which ruled over the territory at the time-the British decided to occupy Iceland. Judging by this production made for Icelandic television, they did not appreciate the UK ruling their roost. Despite the television roots, this has some bloody moments, not to mention weird ones... and boobs! This revolves around local folklore in the area. The tiibury was a creature used by witches; some steps are taken to create this creature that steals milk from cows. Projectile vomiting green butter like it was Linda Blair in The Exorcist: don't ask me if that's canon to the legend. Anyhow, the tiibury is disguised as a British officer, even though it looks rather bizarre as a human being.

Then again, this whole thing is bizarre, including the annoying acting from the lead male whose girlfriend he thinks is having an affair with a British officer. There are weird dreams, green foggy lighting, a teat on someone's leg... honestly, I wouldn't expect anything more or less from the country that gave us Bjork. While more strange than great, I can't say I wasn't bored by the tale that unfurled in front of me. In addition, what a first Icelandic movie for me, although eventually later this year or even years later I'll see more.

Hive

Hive (2021)

Runtime: 84 minutes

Directed by: Blerta Basholli

Starring: Yllka Gashi, Cun Lajci, Aurita Agushi, Kumrije Hoxha, Adriana Matoshi

From: Film companies from Kosovo, Albania, The Republic of North Macedonia & Switzerland

This is for all the UK people that will finally have the opportunity to watch this movie later in March. At Sundance last year it was the first movie to win the big three prizes at the festival-if you're especially cynical you wonder if both the critics and fans at said festival were “being woke” by selecting a movie concerning women fighting against the patriarchy and the true story origins... the ratings on Letterboxd aren't as over the moon although there have been many occasions where even us dorks on this site don't agree with the effusive praise lavished on certain movies.

But I don't want the tone to be negative on a movie I rate as “very good” when there are plenty that did not like it as much. Oh, and I know that me mentioning Kosovo as one of the countries is controversial as only half the members of the United Nations even recognize Kosovo as a country. I really know little about the topic to have an opinion if Serbia should still rule that area or not; as the movie is set during the Kosovo War of 1998-1999, the setting is a small village located on land claimed by Kosovo and the crux of the plot revolves around lead character Fahrijie's husband having gone missing & presumed dead... I'll recognize them at least for the purposes of this review.

Plus, I haven't seen much in the way of cinema from Serbia, Kosovo, Albania or the Republic of North Macedonia. This was not the cheeriest tale; after all, it's about rampant sexism in that small village where if any woman even so much as receives a driver's license, she's viewed suspiciously and negatively by the men. Imagine the struggle Farhije has to endure: her husband possibly dead, having to manage her hubby's honey farm, her teen daughter acting like a typical teen daughter, an old dad that doesn't get around so well anymore, and having to convince the other women around to join together for an entrepreneurial opportunity. There's even a sexual assault. Much to my relief this wasn't 84 minutes of misery; there are charming and heartwarming moments also. The interesting story was well-told and it was one heck of a lead performance from Yllka Gashi.

In the United States Hive was recently added to the Criterion Channel; speaking of “being woke”, I am sure some would levy that charge against that service. Considering some of the material they have available for a limited time, sure... then again they have so much available to select from, there's a surfeit of selections no matter what's added or subtracted each month. Anyhow, I do understand some of the criticisms I've heard but the overall story and the powerful lead performance won me over.

Raw Deal

Raw Deal (1986)

Runtime: 106 minutes

Directed by: John Irvin

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kathryn Harrold, Sam Wanamaker, Paul Shenar, Darren McGavin

From: DeLaurentiis Entertainment Group

I always like to gain murderous revenge to the strains of The Rolling Stones.

For the past few days and ending tonight, my cable provider has offered all the HBO and Cinemax channels for free. The DVR has received a workout during those days, although most of what I have recorded won't be watched until at least sometime in April. However, this was seen live late last night. I'm always down for 80's Arnold, even if this was far from his best or most entertaining movie during the decade.

It's a simple tale where Arnold is a former FBI agent who is asked to do a mission “off the books” to bust up the Chicago mob. As he's in an unhappy marriage he seemed all too eager to romance an attractive blonde as part of his undercover act... the end product is fine although the story isn't always told in the most exciting, logical or clear fashion.

Thank heavens then that Arnold has his charm. While delivering acres of dialogue isn't exactly his strength I can't complain about his performance. There at least was some hilarity for me. For example, him deciding to gun down the bad guys during an exciting bullet-filled finale that is started off by his placing a Rolling Stones cassette in his Buick and the killing starts w/ their most famous tune (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction. Or, the amazing 80's music you hear throughout. Or the other destruction that happens. Or how the opening seems like it was directed by Hal Needham: to the sounds of a country song by Ricky Skaggs is a wacky chase where Arnold in a Jeep is chasing after a motorcycle through a collection of different settings in a small North Carolina town.

While there are “better” Schwarzenegger pictures I still need to revisit and discuss here, this at least was something nice to watch for free last night.

Nightmares Come At Night

Nightmares Come at Night (1970)

Runtime: 85 LONG minutes

Directed by: Jesus (Jess) Franco

Starring: Diana Lorys, Paul Muller, Jack Taylor, Colette Jack, Soledad Miranda

From: Prodif Ets./Vaduz

^^Insert gif of Christian Bale & Kermit the Frog nodding in agreement at each other^^

Yes, I mainly watched this due to its billing as coming from the tiny country of Liechtenstein-heck if I know if anything was actually filmed in Liechtenstein-and the hilarity of its title. Furthermore, it's somehow the first Jesus (Jess) Franco I've ever seen. While I did not care for this movie, as Franco has almost 200 (!) titles to his credit on Letterboxd, I'll choose something in the future which presumably will be more my speed. Nightmares Come at Night gave me the initial impression that Franco was something who as a director was a horny man who loved naked women & lesbians, but I know he has to be more than that.

This was two unfinished Franco films combined together (rather obviously) into a finished product that was a cure for insomnia. The first had a young brunette woman (Anna) who was seduced by a blonde and they have a toxic relationship; furthermore, the brunette starts having dreams where she's murdering people. A doctor tells Anna those fantasies aren't real but is he trustworthy? Then, there's a totally shoehorned in subplot which comprises of only a few minutes of footage where cult favorite Soledad Miranda and a random dude wish to rob the house of the first couple as they apparently have riches... like I said, it feeling like a natural part of the plot does not occur.

While it has a nice Bruno Nicolai score, too much of this was just dreadfully dull. Anna used to be an exotic dancer in Zagreb (as you do) and her stage show was known for being drawn-out affairs... what a metaphor for the film. I need more than extended scenes of tedium, women making out and clumsy “is it a dream?” logic to entertain me. Franco remade this twice (!) as The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff and Alone Against Terror; perhaps I'd prefer those. The movie was obscure for many years before the print was found and subsequently restored-plenty did and do get more out of this than I did.

Man With A Movie Camera

Last night I saw another silent. This one is a Letterboxd favorite (or "fav" to speak like the kids now) that's a 1929 picture from the Soviet Union: 

Somehow, it seems more poignant to watch this famous experimental Soviet silent short now; not only does it show life in Moscow, but also in Kyiv and Odesa... to clarify I do NOT support Putin's plan to once again unify Russia w/ Ukraine. With real life out of the way, I can mention that of course it was Letterboxd that I heard of this oddity years ago. Experimental pictures are typically not my thing so this explains the long delay in even giving the sub 70 minute movie a chance.

Turns out, it was such a vibrant and lively thing with all the camera and visual tricks used by director Dziga Vertov that it deserves such a high rating. Split screens, jump cuts, the movie sped up or slowed down, Dutch angles, freeze frames, tracking shots, and even a split screen tracking shot at one point... it is so wild that a few times you see the filmmakers film a scene then that scene is shown from their perspective. What must have Soviet audiences thought when they saw something so alien for the time? For certain this seems decades ahead of its time, and apparently that's how long it took people to accept this.

It is a look at life in the area, whether it be a panoply of different jobs that were held by the citizens, to something more casual such as a magician entertaining little children. As expected for a piece of art that was purely visual and featured no words spoken & the only text on screen was an opening scene explanation, the movie is better seen than described. Besides, others on Letterboxd have written better reviews of this than I ever could. If you don't care for “experimental movies” either, that should not preclude you from at least giving this a chance.

The Scarecrow

Last night I saw a quick short and unsurprisingly for something starring Buster Keaton, I rate it highly: 

Whenever I don't have the time or inclination to watch anything feature length, I should more often what I did last night and check out some sort of short. In this case it was one from Buster Keaton I hadn't seen and the 18 minute length was perfect.

This is set on a tiny farm (which suspiciously looks to be on the outskirts of Los Angeles...) and the two bros who lives there are Keaton and a portly fellow played by Joe Roberts. After various sight gags in the farmhouse, the two feud over another farmer's daughter; as Sybil Seely is cute, it's understandable. Appearance-wise, think 1920's Milana Vayntrub. From there come many laughs involving a terrier dog-played by the real life dog of Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, who was to star in this but those infamous legal troubles had already began-and Sybil's dad, played by Keaton's real life father. The pooch was well-trained; I mean, he could even climb a ladder. And yes, there was a gag involving the titular item, not to mention the Keaton hallmark of "a chase on foot".

Come to think of it I need to see more shorts from the likes of Buster, Chaplin, Harold Lloyd, Laurel & Hardy, and acts that are less famous in modern times but probably would provide plenty of chuckles from me. This ending on a solid note means that The Scarecrow was very good overall, and-barring those who don't like silents in general-even those without a brain can probably at least like this...

The Last Matinee

The Last Matinee (Al Morir La Matinee) (2020)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Maximiliano Contenti

Starring: Luciana Grasso, Julieta Spinelli, Franco Duran, Pedro Duarte, Ricardo Islas

From: An absurd number of production companies from Uruguay, Argentina and Mexico

Not even Uruguayan Brooke Shields can make me say that this was a good movie.

For awhile now I've known of this movie; after all, a retro horror flick inspired by giallos and the setting of the black gloved killer being an old movie theatre in 1993--of course that will get buzz from the likes of Bloody Disgusting-of course, they were the ones who helped release it in the United States. The fact that this comes from Uruguay of all countries and that made it perfect for this month. Unfortunately, this doesn't come close to being as awesome as Demons... and is not as good as many of the actual giallos I've viewed before.

In 1993 Montevideo, a black gloved killer who has a fixation on eyeballs (at least this was familiar w/ the genre) roams around a sparsely populated cinema showing some wacky movie about Frankenstein's monster-something directed IRL by the actor playing the killer. Sure, it has synth music and some colorful lights-as you'd expect from a retro genre example. Regrettably, most of the characters you see are loathsome A-holes... people I couldn't stand and did not even enjoy seeing suffer a gruesome demise. The lead girl-running the projector by herself on this night so that her ill father can receive a break-and a young boy are both cool. Other than that—it's full of irritating dumbasses who I quickly rejected and all the conversations between them (yes, while a movie's playing) made me really not like the first half.

The second half is more tolerable once the deaths start happening but it was not enough to save this for me. Of course, many people enjoyed this more than I did so YMMV. The gore did look nice at least; plus there were some laughs. One of the A-holes said that a random girl looked like Brooke Shields. Once you see her—eh, not quite. “ Uruguayan Sarah Hyland” is not the perfect comparison yet is at least more accurate. Also, someone receives “a hand shandy” over his blue jeans, leading to the expected messy result! That's for those that giggle over such things-like myself...

Agent 505-Death Trap Beirut

Agent 505-Death Trap Beirut (Agent 505-Todesfalle Beirut) (1966)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Manfred R. Kohler

Starring: Frederick Stafford, Genevieve Cluny, Chris Howland, Willy Birgel, Renate Ewert

From: A few companies in West Germany, Italy, France, and Lebanon

I would love to dine at a place known as CHEZ POPEYE.

Via a random YouTube channel I just stumbled across that has a lot of obscure movies from the past (mainly from Europe) it was time to see a Eurospy movie, a genre that was white-hot over there for a few years after the first Bond films were white-hot successes. As I've only seen a few of those before and all were at least amusing, the need to see another one was strong. There was no lack of choice on that channel-and many had incredible titles-yet this was chosen due to the Lebanon setting and my recognizing the star-Frederick Stafford. Most likely will have only seen him in Hitchcock's Topaz, a film I like more than most. Unlike the serious spy he played there, this was one of the roles where he was a stereotypical Connery Bond... making some quips, being more concerned w/ getting laid than investigating in a brisk manner, etc.

A sheikh who only has four fingers on one hand has an insidious scheme to kill everyone in Beirut. Of course it's an over the top scheme and of course the general idea may sound tired at first. While not a must-see, at least I was amused by the expected tropes. I'm not referring to the sexism; what I mean is the gadgets, the bizarre ways of killing someone that someones succeed, the exotic locations (Beirut and the area at least looked lovely in the mid 60's; this includes the restaurants*), the double-crosses, people undercover, etc.

Stafford looks the part as a suave secret agent, so no surprise he was later in a few OSS 117 pictures. Even with some rather implausible moments and bits I thought were silly at best, overall this was a pleasant hour and a half diversion. There was enough competent action, an impressive helicopter stunt & a nice jazzy Morricone score to leave me feeling satisfied.

* The movie has some fake restaurants/clubs known as The Red Cockatoo and The Green Elephant; an establishing shot shows a real life eatery actually known as Chez Popeye, with Popeye the Sailor Man on the sign. If only they had a scene in there.

Yes, Madam!

Yes ,Madam! (Huang Jia She Jie) (1985)

Runtime: 93 minutes

Directed by: Corey Yuen

Starring: Michelle Yeoh, Cynthia Rothrock, John Sham, Hoi Mang, Tsui Hark

From: D & B Films Co. Ltd.

Better than you suspect a movie to be that has three important characters named ASPIRIN, STREPSIL & PANADOL

Recently I realized I needed to see more 80's Hong Kong movies and instead of something from the typically reliable Shaw Brothers, why not the first movie in what was a successful few years in the region for Cynthia Rothrock? It's definitely an 80's movie from HK... meaning that there are a few genres present, slapstick comedy in this case. As this is an incredibly violent picture where many people fly back many feet after being blasted with a big gun, three silly characters named after medicine may sound inappropriate for a tale involving bad guys looking for an important piece of microfilm, yet it manages to work.

In this case, opportunistic thieves (the medicine trio) steal items from a murdered man, one item in particular that microfilm. This is investigated by both a HK cop-Michelle Yeoh-and a detective from Scotland Yard-Rothrock. Both know how to kick ass and beat up many bastards, so it was indeed a good time with all the martial arts action and other action beats.... usually creative too. Panadol being played by Tsui Hark did help in that regard. Thankfully for me all the goofy characters (two of which I haven't mentioned yet were Yeoh's fellow police officers) were either inoffensively juvenile or were actually pretty amusing. Plus, one henchman looked like the inspiration for Dustin Hoffman in Hook...

This is largely what I expected (at first, the two leads don't exactly get along due to their different methods of doing their job, wacky 80's music, a lot of broken glass) but me and many others-even if they don't like all those elements-will be satisfied by all the violence and how well it was done.

Murders In The Zoo

Murders in the Zoo (1933)

Runtime: 62 minutes

Directed by: A. Edward Sutherland

Starring: Charles Ruggles playing an irritating role, Lionel Atwill, Gail Patrick, Randolph Scott, Kathleen Burke

From: Paramount

Part of a collection seemingly curated just for me. Specifically, this month on the Criterion Channel they added a 20 movie collection known as Pre-Code Paramount, a title that is self-explanatory. As I had actually already seen two of the films in the past, this is something I'll explore as long as it's available. Murders in the Zoo is something I've known of for years; after all, who can forget hearing that there's a Pre-Code picture which opens w/ a man getting his mouth sewn shut?

Lionel Atwill plays a zoologist who is insanely jealous of the attention that his pretty wife Evelyn (Gail Patrick, who by appearance was the Marion Cotillard of the 1930's) receives from men, whether his suspicions are correct or not. He is happy to kill those suspected suitors in grisly fashion that happens to involve zoo animals. Much to the movie's detriment was Charles Ruggles in his role as Peter Yates... no, not the famed director but rather an alcoholic man who was hired as the publicity director for the local municipal zoo. It was more the character's fault than the actor's that Yates was an irritating buffoon. I wouldn't have minded more of Randolph Scott and Gail Patrick as the zoo's laboratory doctor and his assistant who are also a married couple to be.

Thankfully there's only a few scenes of that doofus character so that does not completely tank the picture. The nasty moments involving snakes and alligators are still present and are pretty potent even before the Hays Code became a thing. What a real SOB Atwill played, which added to the macabre fun of this. Even with its flaws this was an unforgettable experience and not a film I am disappointed w/ after finally getting to check it out. After all, I received the surprise that during this time, you could imply that you soiled your pants! In the final act, Yates is almost bit by a mamba; after that experience, he asked Patrick's character if she knew a good laundry service in town. Admittedly, if I suddenly discovered there was a poisonous snake only a foot away from me, my pants would be soiled also.

 

The Mongolian Connection

The Mongolian Connection (2019)

Runtime: 90 minutes

Directed by: Drew Thomas

Starring: Amarsaikhan Baljinnyam, Kaiwi Lyman, Sanjar Madi, Zhandos Aibassov, Tsetsegee Byamba

From: A few companies... in Mongolia and Kazakhstan

Not bad for a movie I only discovered a few hours before watching it on Friday night. For much of Saturday I was tied up with an activity that I'll mention in a review later this month of a movie related to the activity in question. But back to this motion picture: it had a title that was amusing, was done by a director named Drew Thomas who I will presume is an American, and had a plot that reminded me of the Ridley Scott Black Rain, of all things. It is a production of studios in Mongolia and Kazakhstan with most of the movie being set & filmed in the former. While not actually the first movie I've seen that was filmed in the country (that honor goes to a 2015 movie called The Doll which I am sure is a better riff on The Monkey's Paw than Wish Upon even if I've never seen Wish Upon myself and The Doll is only OK) and it features plenty of English dialogue, it's not a motion picture I regret giving a shot to.

Like with Black Rain, a troubled member of law enforcement (in this case, the FBI) has to transport a criminal across the Pacific Ocean back to his home country but things go awry. After that it does differ quite a bit from the Scott movie; this involves a criminal who is targeted and features two elements which will make most on Letterboxd go, “Uh, huh...” in a sassy tone: not only are there corrupt police officers, the lead villain is... a Russian. Insert your own pithy comments if you wish. There's some humor and yep it is hit or miss; one running gag is that for reasons unknown to me, Mongolia has both left hand drive and right hand drive vehicles.

It was a movie obviously designed for the West (there's even a mid-credits AND after credits scene) and nothing makes this a must-see. However, it was a fine watch and the same goes for the action scenes, whether they be brawls or shootouts. The story has various twists & turns and as there is a LOT of crap in all genres on Amazon thank heavens it had more to offer than just a look at a country I don't know that much about, let alone seen photos or video of. Besides, this movie has an amazing moment involving the FBI agent, who is named Wade Dalton and he's no John Dalton from Road House... or Rick Dalton for that manner. He's addicted to pills, which is a common problem-at least in the United States. That apparently isn't his only issue... you see, he takes pills for anxiety... as in his DOG'S anxiety pills! WTF?

 

Rituals

Rituals (1977)

Runtime: 99 minutes

Directed by: Peter Carter

Starring: Hal Holbrook, Lawrence Dane, Robin Gammell, Ken James, Gary Reineke

From: Astral Bellevue Pathe

What a grim slice of Canuxploitation this was.

I've seen plenty of movies from Canada through the years; as this is on Shudder and it's a film I've heard a decent amount of buzz on, it was worth a viewing. Hal Halbrook as the lead also intrigued. The first act was rather amusing to me-the opening scene had the 5 protagonists (all doctors) discuss possibly open a specialized clinic... the punchline is that the clinic is for PENIS ENLARGEMENT SURGERY. From there is a hilarious airplane pilot we unfortunately see for only a few minutes and at the remote Northern Ontario woods that the quintet are at for a week of fishing, one of them brought alone a blowup doll!

What a turn it takes once the boots of all five are stolen one night. From there, the person or persons involved systematically trolls the group by F'ing with them and resulting in the group dynamic breaking down. There's plenty of yelling from everyone but it's understandable when they are picked off one by one in such a remote area and it was shown in the first act that there was conflict in the group even before things turn sour. Admittedly, there was a slow stretch or two for me and mix in how bleak this gets... thankfully this was still a fascinating watch seeing how each member of the group reacts psychologically to this trauma.

The cast as a whole was fine although unsurprisingly it was Holbrook that stood out the most as the lead. Naturally, the natural beauty of Northern Ontario was lovely to look at. Comparisons to such movies as Deliverance and Just Before Dawn are expected, although this is certainly different from both. This quintet is put through the wringer so it's not light viewing-yet there's no regrets for me as this wasn't so oppressively dour or miserable that it was as grueling a journey for the viewer as it was for the characters.

 

Riders of Justice

Riders of Justice (Retfaedighend Ryttere) (2020)

Runtime: 116 minutes

Directed by: Anders Thomas Jensen

Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Andrea Heick Gadeberg, Lars Brygmann, Nicolas Bro

From: Several companies from Denmark, Sweden, and Finland

I wish I could have loved this like everyone else does...

Even if I am starting this a little later than expected, I am happy to once again unofficially participate in this yearly Letterboxd challenge. I won't watch 31 foreign pictures like those officially doing it but I always enjoy looking at the list of others, not to mention getting a push into checking out a wide variety of films from around the world. A requirement of the official challenge is to see something from Denmark and as I've heard many strong accolades for Riders of Justice, it seemed like the opportune time for me.

Regrettably, I didn't really like this movie. A dark comedy concerning a grumpy dad and moody teenage daughter losing their wife/mother to a tragic accident-only to have stat geeks convince them otherwise—at least to me that sounds rather odd and a clash of tones. Still, I saw this open-minded. Unfortunately, the dad was just an ass and I never warmed up to him... the dorks were more annoying than anything else which leads to a big problem I had: the humor was more “miss” than “hit” for me. Plus, Mads and those dorks teaming up was rather contrived.

The movie is not completely dire as there is violence and many punks dying, along with some moments that were amusing. But the “shocking” non sequitors that were allegedly done to be “controversial” or “edgy” elicited sighs from me instead of belly laughs and I had issues w/ the story in general which I can't get into as it's major spoiler territory. It was serious when it came to grief and how life is between a father and child when the mom passes away-unfortunately I know the feeling even though the deaths were far different as was the dynamic between parent and kid. Having “jokes” in the same movie as that sounded odd and that was not the right mix for me. I wish this wasn't so disappointing for me but I won't lie to the people of Letterboxd and I'll just be happy in knowing that some of the foreign films I see this month I'll enjoy much more than this.

 

I Saw The Godfather Theatrically

It wasn't the first time but getting to view it in a Dolby Cinema at an AMC Theatres was a delight. Of course the movie will look and sound marvelous in its upcoming 4K disc release. I don't need to give another review on how it's one of the best movies of all time so instead I'll mention the bad dinner I had right beforehand: 

Here's some advice: the Splitsville that's literally across the sidewalk from the cineplex used to be pretty good, despite the high cost of the food. I went there a decent amount of times over the years and never really had a problem. Last night I returned there for the first time in many months-now I have to swear off that place forever. The service was so bad I had to wave people over multiple times to the spot at the bar I was at just to get the most basic necessities of food & drink. If that wasn't bad enough, the chicken tenders I ordered came out in less than 5 minutes, as if it came straight out the microwave... I left an appropriate tip for the service I received (meaning minuscule) and I am happy to inform everyone never to give that place their patronage.

The Farmer

The Farmer (1977)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: David Berlatsky

Starring: Gary Conway, Angel Tompkins, Michael Dante, George Memmoli, Timothy Scott

From: Columbia

Oh, what a backstory this movie has.

What I was going to see yesterday for discussion today did not occur; it's a long story but it was because someone unexpectedly came over for the night. Because of circumstances beyond their control they (someone who doesn't live in the area) needed a place to crash and as I did not want to be out for much of the time they'd be there... plans changed. At least this arrived in the mail earlier yesterday.

For awhile now I've known of this movie, released on a limited basis by Columbia in '77 but for some reason it never received an official home video release until literally a few weeks ago. It was mentioned on the Lost Media wiki due to Code Red going far enough in the process of putting it out way back in '06 that they included the trailer on a few DVD's they put out at the time. Then nothing happened for years. Suddenly-and this I somehow missed out on at the time-for a few days in November '21, someone on YouTube uploaded a VHS taping of when the film briefly was on pay cable way back when... they got that taping from eBay. It was taken down but not before someone YouTube ripped the file and put it on Internet Archive, where it can still be found. However, the quality is as poor as expected from a VHS copy probably recorded at least 40 years ago. Suddenly, not that long after Scorpion Releasing announced they were putting it out, and the Blu came out only 3 months after the YouTube kerfuffle... it's all very strange to me and the questions I have about it likely will never be answered.

All of this said-and the disc purchased because who knows when or if it will be legally streamed anywhere-what is The Farmer? What's it all about? Well, it is a 70's revenge thriller surrounding a poor Georgia soldier just returning home from World War II who tries to make a go of it on his late father's small ranch but runs into problems. This includes a drunk guy crashing his car right by him and that subsequently introduced him to “The Outfit”, so oh s***. Bad things happen (including a sexual assault) so this causes the titular farmer to get suitably angry and sweet, sweet revenge he gets. Our hero

While this is not as good as Rolling Thunder and-as others have noted-there's a scene involving a marching band which OBVIOUSLY looked 70's instead of the 1945 setting (you see someone in the background wearing shorts and those period high stripey socks!) overall this was pretty good. It definitely has a 70's drama/thriller vibe, from its serious nature and methodical pacing which always intrigued... to bloody violence in the final act and vicious bad guys that use such weapons as acid. The crew of character actors present-Gary Conway, Angel Tompkins, Michael Dante, George Memmoli, etc.-definitely was an asset; I enjoyed the Hugo Montenegro score even though I'm not 100% sure what to think of funky 70's music being used for a movie set in the 1940's.

Those that enjoy movies like Rolling Thunder may feel like it is worth the shot to pay for the Blu disc; the Scorpion Releasing release contained no errors (something I unfortunately have to mention after all the news of disc problems in the past year) and while it is scant on special features, at least it looks and sounds quite good. The trailer compares the movie to Taxi Driver, Easy Rider and Five Easy Pieces... while not a perfect apples to apples thing and The Farmer doesn't rise to those heights, I am glad this apparently finally got an official release because of a random person's eBay purchase and subsequent YouTube upload.