Happy New Year, Everybody!

Tomorrow afternoon I'll make another post where I mention why no film was watched last night or this afternoon; an odd weekend, I did indeed have.

Runaway Train

Runaway Train (1985)

Runtime: 111 minutes

Directed by: Andrey Konchalovskiy

Starring: Jon Voight, Eric Roberts, Rebecca De Mornay, John P. Ryan, Kyle T. Haffner

From: Cannon

I was happy to watch a great movie (which should have been watched many years ago) last night right after I discovered there are now 3,000 accounts that follow me on Letterboxd. I’ll never not be amazed at the amount of followers I have on this crazy site. This was selected mainly due to its leaving Prime at the end of the year and the rather bizarre pedigree it has. To echo others, this is a gritty macho 80’s action-thriller which managed to get two Oscar nods for its leads, was directed by a Russian who worked with Tarkovsky, was based on a screenplay by Kurosawa which was then modified in part by Mr. Blue from Reservoir Dogs (Eddie Bunker himself was a criminal in a past life) and was released by Cannon. I can’t definitely say this was the best Golan-Globus production as after all they released a Cassavetes film I haven’t viewed yet, but at least it’s one of their best.

In short, Jon Voight is a hardened criminal (how on Earth did he get so jaded?) who escapes from a brutal Alaskan prison run by a dictator of a warden; fellow prisoner Eric Roberts tags along, much to Voight’s consternation. They end up on the titular train which had the misfortune of having its conductor passing away via heart attack. Meanwhile, the warden attempts to track them down, the railroad engineers attempt to prevent disaster & also a surprise I dare not spoil. Figuratively, the train is going the wrong way down a one-way track…

What a film this is; even before they hop on a train, we see that “Daniel Trejo” is a fellow prisoner and “Tom ‘Tiny’ Lister” works at the prison. Once on the choo-choo, the viewer discovers this highly masculine film (which yeah, does have some attitudes representative of the time) is smarter than it first appears… there are extensional, philosophical moments as those animalistic prisoners experience some growth as they eventually realize their fate seems to be doomed due to the circumstances—along with how, among other things, Cannon’s stock villain John P. Ryan was so deliciously evil, he was no better than the prisoners he’s in charge of.

Voight, Roberts, Ryan, and Rebecca De Mornay all shine in their roles. People’s opinions of Voight have dimmed in recent years, but mainly due to off the screen controversies. In terms of on-screen, he can deliver great performances. I thought this even before seeing the same comment in other reviews, but both Voight and Roberts sport wacky accents, w/ the latter sounding just like and even resembling at times… Matthew McConaughey! There was some exciting action to go along with the thrills and the thought-provoking drama among the flawed characters (your opinion of Roberts’ character will change once you hear what he was once charged with) in a wonderous snowy landscape. Those that have read me long enough should realize that a Trevor Jones score which was 80’s-riffic and sounded like mimicry of Tangerine Dream at times would be glorious in my eyes—my jam.

It's a movie that could have… derailed with the blending of all those different elements. Much to my relief, the final act sealed the deal and resulted in such a high rating… one higher than expected going in. I’ll just always ponder what a Kurosawa movie in the late 60’s made in America based on his original script would have been like; it almost happened.

Suburban Sasquatch!

Suburban Sasquatch (2004)

Runtime: 100 punishing minutes

“Directed by”: Dave Wascavage

“Starring”: A bunch of people you rightfully have never heard of

From: Why was this even released to the public, exactly?

Trust me, this movie’s reputation as one of the worst in the 21st century is not unjustified. As for why I saw something so shaggy, it came via request! Some may think I would want to cuss out and damn the person who dare suggested I check out what proved to be one of the most inept motion pictures I’ve ever seen. I will not do that. After all, this person thought it was so bad it needed to be witnessed by me, an individual who has a list of Bigfoot movies they have reviewed on Letterboxd. Indeed, this is at the level of a student movie filmed on VHS camcorders made with the director’s friends in the outskirts of Philadelphia… as this has to be what actually happened. How this piffle managed to be released to the public is beyond my comprehension.

Ostensibly, the plot is that a “Native American” (actually, played by a Hispanic lady) is tasked with defeating the teleporting creature that is impervious to bullets-no, I’m not joking-while there’s also a dips--- newspaper reporter-no kidding, he pronounces “Pulitzer” as “Poolitzer”-and a “police force” which consists of two people who look far too young for the job. It can’t be forgotten that this sasquatch just doesn’t look right with a bare chest and stomach; the creature looks as if it has giant exposed breasts!

To proclaim the pacing as “lackadaisical” would be awfully charitable on my part. The storytelling, cinematography, internal logic, dialogue, characterization, and all the rest: atrocious. Only afterwards did I realize Rifftrax unleashed their magic on this movie; that would have been more tolerable although there is bragging rights in finishing this overlong 100 minute dumpster fire which was a pile of painfulness. Even shorter is Red Letter Media’s vivisection of the smelly beast. However, if you’re the type that can watch Birdemic on a constant loop…

A Hard Day

A Hard Day (Ggetuggaji Ganda) (2014)

Runtime: 110 minutes

Directed by: Kim Seong-Hun

Starring: Lee Sun-Kyun (RIP), Cho Jin-Woong, Jeong Man-Sik, Shin Jung-Geun, Shin Dong-Mi

From: A few different South Korean companies

RIP Lee Sun-Kyun. That news was quite the unpleasant surprise, then it was discovering the circumstances, including that it allegedly was tied to a South Korean crackdown on a drug scene he may have been a part of. Talk about an eye-opener. He was one of the many great pieces in Parasite as the patriarch of the Park family, but that was the only film of his I had ever experienced. This was the next most popular movie of his on Letterboxd, so that was selected. The premise also had promise, although it could have also gone wrong… which I sadly thought was the case, at least in part.

Lee played a corrupt cop who faces harsh repercussions after an accident with what appears to be a homeless man on the night of his mom’s funeral; undoubtedly, a rather miserable day. Note that because this is Korean cinema, even a film like this full of corrupt cops and other scuzzy characters, they still managed to squeeze in a cute young girl who happened to be the lead’s daughter. Now, perhaps this is my lack of understanding of a particular culture… but besides DUI’s apparently being “you have one drink, you’re F’ed as far as the law is concerned,” a police detective allegedly can beat the crap out of regular on-duty police officers in another district with not only no punishment whatsoever, but they then act subservient to him once his identity is concerned! I am still incredulous over this plot point which was early on and just set the ugly unpleasant tone which permeated through the entire picture.

Many others will enjoy A Hard Day more than me. After all, there’s the standard thriller plot full of surprises & twists, and Lee did swell as the lead. There is a dark undercurrent of black humor, which sometimes did make me chuckle, although the biggest laugh came from his opening line; much to my astonishment, on the phone, our lead referred to someone as an ASSWIPE. That was at least better to me than all the F bombs that appeared in the subtitles.

In any event, I'm sorry that such a death occurred.

 

The Iron Claw

The Iron Claw (2023) 

88% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 160 reviews)

Runtime: 132 minutes

Directed by: Sean Durkin

Starring: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Holt McCallany, Lily James

From: A24

Well, I suppose “Inspired by a true story” and “Based on a true story” are two different things…

After two days where I revisited various pictures, it is now time to return to normal. As a pretty devout follower of (mainly) older professional wrestling, of course I had to take a journey to the cinema for the viewing of a major motion picture based on the tragic story of the Von Erich wrestling family-real name Adkisson. It’s a story I’ve known rather well for a number of years, so yes I noted when the timeline was sometimes fudged and also realized that the trailers greatly downplayed just what a sad story this would be for those that had no idea what happened to all those brothers.

One key decision made in the story’s presentation I disagree with: omitting an entire brother from the tale. Chris was the youngest of the siblings whose ultimate fate was also tear-inducing. I know, that was done as the viewer would have dealt with even more tragedy yet it stinks as due to health reasons he was the smallest of the brothers and he needed to be remembered also. After all, the first-born (Jack Jr.) was mentioned; he died as a 6 year old in 1959 after an accident. Like I said, the details presented aren’t always chronologically correct—but many of those events actually occurred. This includes what happened w/ Kerry, how he came back and was able to hide a certain detail from the public. Scouts honor that did occur despite how outrageous it may sound.

For those unfamiliar: as the movie alluded to but not always made explicitly clear, back in those days pro wrestling was a series of territories. That changed w/ the WWF breaking the rules and becoming a worldwide phenomenon, shortly after the Von Erich family became a popular fad w/ World Class Championship Wrestling of Dallas, Texas. David, Kerry, and Kevin were good-looking men who became as popular as rock stars… and like with many wrestlers in the 80’s, they partied like rock stars, drugs and all. Bad things happened to the family and I’ll leave it at that.

The patriarch of the family (wrestling name Fritz Von Erich) was quite a bit worse than portrayed in the film, if you can believe it. He forced his sons into the wrestling business, their desires be damned; among many sins, he exploited his own family’s struggles multiple times to sell tickets and the way he treated his children was rather appalling. Heck, AEW World Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman (who only appears in one scene) played Lance Von Erich, a fake cousin of the family that was used by Fritz for unpleasant reasons.

The film is centered around Kevin Adkisson, to use his birth name; he was played by Zac Efron. The film made clear the love the brothers have for each other despite their tyrannical father and a mother who was rather cold & at times uttered snide remarks. His relationship w/ his wife-to-be Pam (Lily James) was also critical for how the story was presented. The cast as a whole did a rather dandy job… that includes “Buff Willy Wonka” Jeremy Allen White as Kerry and others I won’t note as otherwise this review would be even lengthier. Aaron Dean Eisenberg as Ric Flair has been roasted by Ric Flair as his impression of a rather distinctive person just wasn’t right but that is a detail I can laugh about.

To reiterate, this is a tale full of catastrophe for the family; it’s not a feel-good movie of the year despite an uplifting ending. Judging from reviews written by those that aren’t fans, most rate this quite highly. As a fan, it was a relief this was not filled with inaccuracies or treated the tragedy in a disrespectful manner.

 

The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter

The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter (Wu Lang Ba Gua Gun) (1984)

Runtime: 100 minutes

Directed by: Lau Kar-Leung

Starring: Gordon Liu Chia-Hui, Alexander Fu Sheng, Kara Hui Ying-Hung, Lily Li, Phillip Ko

From: Shaw Brothers

The dharma wheel does indeed perpetually turn.

My schedule for the rest of 2023 is up in the air; what I am referring to is that if I don’t post any reviews for a few days, it will be because I decide to revisit certain movies without mentioning them in public. But there’s a chance that won’t happen at all, or there will just be a day without a review… in any case, it’s been awhile since I’d seen any period film from Shaw Brothers, so I went with one deemed one of their best.

It is one I and many think is at least very good even with the tragedy that one of the film’s main actors (Alexander Fu Sheng) died in a car accident before filming completed, necessitating changes to the script. In short, an entire family of brother save two are slaughtered in a beach attack done by “Barbarians”-i.e. Mongols-after someone turns on the entire country. One (Fu Sheng) goes bonkers where Gordon Liu is the other survivor and flees to a Buddhist temple.

Even late into the reign of Shaw Brothers period action films and even after all the ones I’ve seen through the years, those still manage to feel fresh with their action and stories without coming across as rehashes. The movie had the expected quality-and colorful-sets… even the one representing the beach at least possessed a unique look. It was quite the enjoyable journey--albeit a journey where Fu Sheng vanishes and Gordon’s sister Kara Hui is the one who goes on a quest to find him.

Those circumstances don’t ruin the film. After all, Liu uses a great style (also, gruesome) in his monk phase involving a pole w/o a spear and his carrying of a tied-up Hui in the finale was one of many memorable bits in an incredible finale. It was quite the melodrama with several unforgettable scenes; the tone was also a rather dark revenge tale, not to mention complex. For what is probably the last great Shaw Brothers period film, it seemed like a fitting denouement for all their revenge tales through the years.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Yes, I'm talking about the stop-motion classic from 1964 that is a perennial favorite on television around this time of year: 

Yes, this was something I watched as a kid, but hadn’t watched since I was a kid. As I hope to watch movies the next few days that simply are at least “good” regardless of any connection to the yuletide season, last night was the time for a YouTube viewing, where a user combined several Rankin-Bass specials alongside retro commercials that typically were related to Christmas or were winter-based.

It can be easy to be a Scrooge and nitpick this to death. “The Abominable Snow-Monster” notably changes size a few times throughout. The non-famous songs aren’t as great as the title song or Holly Jolly Christmas. At least one big event happens suddenly. Those points duly noted, nostalgia does help in this case. It was still a charming tale where yes, plenty of elves & reindeer come off as real A-holes against Rudolph just because he has a shiny nose & Hermey (what a name, especially for an elf) because he doesn’t want to make toys and instead be a dentist. That said, there are still nice messages for the family… “don’t be a bully and pick on those that are different” is one. So is “don’t run away from your problems.” This is all presented in simple yet pleasant stop-motion animation.

Several elements from this production became iconic: Burl Ives as the snowman narrator, The Island of Misfit Toys, The Abominable Snow Monster, prospector Yukon Cornelius, and of course Rudolph himself. Now I realize why those characters are still so fondly remembered almost 60 years later. While the songs created for the show aren’t quite as classic as the old standards we also hear, all are at least good. I can’t answer if any of my nephews/one niece have watched this like I did in my childhood; hopefully they have and they were as charmed as I still am by it.

I’ll wish everyone a Merry Christmas, or at least a Happy Holidays.

Mystery of the Wax Museum

Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)

Runtime: 78 minutes

Directed by: Michael Curtiz

Starring: Lionel Atwill, Glenda Farrell, Fay Wray, Frank McHugh, Allen Vincent

From: Warner Bros.

If you hear this described as “a Christmas movie”… that is in error. Unless you consider a brief scene on New Year’s Day in a police station where there’s a small fake tree still up to count, then the film should still be best known as the original for House of Wax’s remake. The film’s leaving the Criterion Channel at the end of the year plus my having seen the similar Doctor X from the same director-Michael Curtiz-meant that it was about time I discussed the film.

Those familiar with the Vincent Price House of Wax, not too much is different. Sure, there is a plucky newspaper reporter played by Glenda Farrell and there is more humor (not all of it successful) but otherwise expect the same: a talented sculptor is horrifically burned in a fire started by his partner as an attempt at an insurance scam, he returns in a wheelchair, has proteges, and corpses are used to create new wax statues.

My preferences are that House of Wax told this story better. It doesn’t mean that I’m slagging off on this movie. After all, Farrell was charming as the reporter and it’s always nice seeing Fay Wray. Plus, Lionel Atwill was fun as the villain. The aesthetic is for certain unique: the cinematography is in two-color Technicolor. It’d take way too long to explain the process but the result was a print dominated by reds and greens. At least those were Christmas colors… no matter the season, I was still glad to have finally crossed this off the list after knowing of it for eons.

 

Tough Guys Don't Dance

Tough Guys Don’t Dance (1987)

Runtime: 110 mesmerizing minutes

Directed by: Norman Mailer

Starring: Ryan O’Neal (RIP), Isabella Rosselini, Debra Stipe, Wings Hauser, Lawrence Tierney

From: Cannon!

This isn’t the most dignified movie for me to say “RIP Ryan O’Neal”, but… I’ve only seen a few of his films, including The Driver on YouTube. Thankfully I splurged and purchased that on 4K (it was a European release). One day I’ll spin that disc; don’t expect a review of that as I already discussed that film last year & am happy w/ that review. Tough Guys Don’t Dance is one that until last night I really only knew for its polarizing reputation and Ryan’s “Oh God! Oh Man! Oh God! Oh Man!” line reading which became a meme.

Thing is, most of O’Neal’s role is underplayed; whether it was his or the director’s choice, it was the right one as everyone else is VERY outre, incredibly over the top. Think of the story as a neo-noir… on crack! The first hour is Ryan telling one hell of a story to dad Lawrence Tierney. It involves his two loves, drugs, people w/ exaggerated Southern accents, plenty of sleazy moments, bizarre dialogue that typically was of a scabrous nature, and once we’re in present times it becomes even more tawdry. It’s the sort of film where apropos of nothing, out of nowhere we suddenly discover that O’Neal has a dog… which of course dies a minute later. Yeah, I get why this has been compared to Blue Velvet, and not just because there’s Isabella Rosselini and a score from Angelo Badalamenti. However, Lynch did it all more elegantly without seeming so vulgar.

Be that as it may, I did laugh often at the spectacle that unfurled before me… sometimes intentionally, sometimes not. I haven’t read any of Norman Mailer’s books or seen his other movies; however, it was blatant he was going for a wild off the wall movie full of bold performances, and at least in that regard he succeeded. As a movie the end product has no shortage of flaws & confounding moments. No surprise then this was a Golan-Globus production, although Coppola as an executive producer was; then again, his career was in a bad way at the time.

It was difficult to formulate a rating for this entire enterprise. I guess it’ll get three stars for the trashy factor, the amount of times I laughed & whatever it was that Wings Hauser was doing which nonetheless tickled me pink. This was not the most flattering portrayal of Provincetown, Massachusetts or its real-life lore of Helltown, a lawless burgh not too far from the area a few hundred years ago which had pirates, bandits, and other rapscallions. Anyhow, this movie is more than just a random 30 second clip you saw years ago. Note that I can also acknowledge O’Neal was a tremendously-flawed person.

 

Grand Illusion

Grand Illusion (La Grande Illusion) (1937)

Runtime: 114 minutes

Directed by: Jean Renoir

Starring: Jean Gabin, Pierre Fresnay, Erich von Stroheim, Julien Carette, Dita Parlo

From: RAC

While it’s unfortunate this classic is leaving the Criterion Channel at the end of the month, their print being 540p in quality and having sickly yellow subtitles-what a relic of the DVD era, which was the last time they ever had the rights to the film-meant that after a few minutes, deciding to spend a few bucks to see my second Renoir (after La Bete Humane) on Apple TV was the right choice. Lionsgate and StudioCanal lovingly restored the movie a little more than a decade ago. Beforehand, there were no foreknowledge that there was an important scene at the conclusion set during the yuletide season, yet there it was.

It is a tale which seems deceptively simple from basic description yet is much more complex in reality. Two French airmen (one a common man, the other aristocratic) in World War I are shot down and end up in a variety of different camps. What a colorful variety of characters we meet throughout; a key theme is an anti-war message. After all, the upper class of different countries can sometimes share friends and those of more modest means can fall in love despite the language barrier. Escape attempts occur, including at a impregnable mountain fortress aptly named Wintersborn.

Arguably the keystone of the movie’s themes is humanism, and how even an injured German Major we briefly see in the beginning (unforgettably played by Erich von Stroheim) who is in charge of Wintersborn, that relationship is always respectful despite their countries being on opposing sides of a silly & needless war. There were no difficulty in rooting for our two leads & their fellow countryman… not to mention be fascinated by von Stroheim’s character.

The performances are all aces, from the actors I knew (Jean Gabin, von Stroheim, Pierre Fresnay) to those less familiar, such as Marcel Dalio and Dita Parlo. This stunning film-which sadly was almost lost for good during World War II as Nazi scum were naturally against it-should have been experienced by me years ago if I had any inkling it would have worked so well for me.

 

Encounter in Space

Encounter in Space (Mechte Navstrechu) (1963)

Runtime: A brisk 62 minutes

Directed by: Mikhail Karyukov, Otar Koberidze

Starring: Larisa Gordeichik, Boris Borisyonok, Koberidze, Peeter Kard, the Russian voice of Vitold Janpavlis

From: Odessa Film Studios

Now here is something completely different from me. In the past I used to discuss very obscure films… now, those moments are few and far between. On YouTube a subtitled copy has been saved in a list for literally years; the sudden urge to see this Soviet sci-fi with less than 200 ratings struck me. I’ve seen some others (not just the ones directed by Tarkovsky) that happened to have footage used for a series of Corman genre efforts, along with the wacky 70’s “kids travel in space” films Moscow-Cassiopeia/Teens in the Universe.

I’ll give examples at the end but for Encounter, some shots and the main plot point were borrowed for 1966’s Queen of Blood, which extrapolated that into John Saxon and Dennis Hopper transport an alien back to Earth who’s actually a… space vampire! Encounter’s plot is far less exciting than Blood. The two share the idea of a space ship from an alien world traveling to Earth but crashing on Mars so cosmonauts need to get their asses to Mars to try & save them. Encounter’s aliens are not only of the kindly persuasion, they are actually minor plot points in this movie filled w/o much incident.

You see, to echo a phrase from another Letterboxd review, the movie isn’t so much about the plot and characterization (although the leads are a romantic pair) but rather the visuals and the mood. They thankfully had enough of that in a threadbare story that is a bit dry even for my tastes and the music is so appropriately ethereal (well, not the two loopy songs w/ doofy lyrics that are played throughout)-like for an outer space setting that it even makes up for a real groaner of an ending. It looked great visually considering what the budget must have been-no wonder Corman tapped this resource… it embarrassed the American B-movies of the time in terms of effects-so there’s no regrets in watching this oddity that’s barely more than an hour long.

As I reviewed these films many moons ago, I’ll post the links to reviews I did of lesser-known Soviet sci-fi: 

1974’s Moscow-Cassiopeia

1974’s Teens in the Universe

1962’s Planet of Storms, i.e. Planeta Bur or several other titles. Corman managed to use footage for THREE of his sci-fi movies.

1959’s Nebo Zovyot. Corman dubbed it and released the film as Battle Beyond the Sun… after making some changes, including having COPPOLA create some incredibly vulgar monsters.

One last picture to mention: 

1989’s Hard to be a God. No, the 2013 movie wasn’t the first effort to tell that story. I need to check out that newer effort; it has to be drastically different from the ’89 movie (a product of a few different European countries besides the Soviet Union) as the end credits song is an amazing late 80’s power ballad sung in English and a supporting character is played by WERNER HERZOG, even though he did not direct the film. 

Die Hard 2 is Still Pretty Good

The new review will be posted here in full as it gives an update on a surprising event from last week & my health: 

Pardon me for revisiting another film related to the holiday season but there’s another reason this was chosen. The airport setting does relate to a sight I saw at the Wichita airport last Wednesday as I left to return home. A runway full of firetrucks, ambulances and police cars is never good yet that’s what I witnessed. From general knowledge, I know that isn’t an automatic sign of an impending tragedy or that the plane might not make it. Turns out, it was serious: once arriving home, the news broke that the United Airlines flight diverted on its route from Newark to Denver because… of an engine problem that turned into an engine fire upon landing!

Aircraft that size have fire suppression systems for engines but that is still a soil your seat sort of terrifying. Thank heavens I’ve never had a disaster of a journey any of the (rare) occasions I’ve been on aircraft. Point is, as everyone was fine there is no bad taste in sharing this little anecdote and it allowed me to discuss this film again. As I’m just about recovered from my illness that left me feeling like a bag of A-holes, this was an easy watch.

I’ve reviewed the movie before. To reiterate, it is a big dumb loud vulgar action movie (naturally, it’s from Renny Harlin. That is not meant as an insult) where it is a little bit hard to believe that the same s*** can happen to the same guy twice. Presumably, the villains would have had much more difficulty attempting to use “technology” to hijack a major airport’s air traffic control on Christmas Eve like Dulles International in Washington, D.C. There’s also a very controversial plot point that even received flack at the time.

Be that as it may, it still has plenty of famous faces (William Sadler, Franco Nero, Dennis Franz in a real Dennis Franz role, John Amos, Fred Dalton Thompson, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Art Evans), some of whom were just on the precipice of becoming much more famous, like Robert Patrick, Mark Boone Jr., & John Leguizamo.

It was for certain a movie of its time; an obvious inspiration for the plot was the Iran-Contra Affair. The full explanation is on Wikipedia but it’s yet another example of the United States government looking rather terrible due to its actions. Without being compared to its antecedent-one of the best genre examples ever made-Die Hard 2 is still a pretty solid R-rated action extravaganza where the viewer can easily root for our everyman hero as he tries to save thousands of people that could become collateral damage in an elaborate scheme to free a foreign general in custody… including his wife. I can always enjoy the movie and its uncommon airport scenario.

An Eastern Westerner

This is a 1920 Harold Lloyd short, a bit under a half hour long: 

When you felt like death warmed over yesterday, I’m lucky that I could write any sort of review today. Now, it’s less like I’m knocking on heaven’s door. It’s been months since there’s been any talk of a Harold Lloyd short; this one was selected as it was amusing to think of Lloyd in a Wild West setting. In fact, this was rather amusing.

Lloyd is a “young scamp” who causes trouble in New York City by being an irresponsible rich boy so Daddy sends him out West to shape up. There, he runs afoul of TIGER LIP TOMKINS, the evil SOB that controls the town of Piute Pass and holds hostage the father of a new love interest, played by his later real-life wife Mildred Davis.

There are some quality gags and hilarious intertitles. The whole product from beginning to end isn’t my favorite but think of that as high praise for his filmography rather than my knocking this. Jokes involve a barrel, a horse and a lasso; it uses the setting, as you can see. As for one of the most prominent images advertising the short is a phalanx of guns pointed by unseen individuals at Lloyd’s head… whether or not this was the first instance, it is hilarious that the same idea was used almost 100 years later for one of the most popular John Wick: Chapter 2 posters.

I Discuss Sly

Yes, the documentary about Stallone that was released on Netflix relatively recently.

Today is a good day to catch up on the one movie I saw in Kansas which I haven’t reviewed yet and instead waited for the right time. I arrived back in Florida late last night; my current status is less than 100% as three pre-teen nephews are germ factories. Hopefully I can nip up and feel better in a few days. Since Sly came out recently on Netflix, I was intrigued. While they were made by different teams, comparisons with the documentary Arnold are natural. Both cover 80’s icons as their life story is told… both were inspired by old Hercules movies seen in their childhoods, had relationship issues as an adult, and cruel, harsh fathers.

While the Arnold Schwarzenegger documentary is divided into 3 parts (that was a natural division due to the life he had) and is over 3 hours long, Sly is only half that length. Would I have liked more information & insight on Stallone? Sure. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t satisfied with what was presented; it was a standard chronological presentation where Sly’s rough childhood was presented along with the lack of success early in his career (for some reason, his adult movie The Party at Kitty and Stud’s wasn’t mentioned, although safe for work footage from it was shown) before Rocky became a gigantic hit.

Like in Arnold, the lead was honest in admitting his faults, including regrets over not spending more time w/ his family. This includes his late son Sage; I’ve heard various rumors about that relationship… who knows what is true. “I hope they were never estranged” is about all I can say. Some friends (including Arnold) and family (mainly, brother Frank) gave their comments throughout. There weren’t too many revelations for me and the presentation isn’t revolutionary. That said, I was still happy to have experienced Sly and the high rating is possibly in part due to my liking his movies since I was young. Or perhaps it’s because there is a poignant moment involving Sly’s dad on his deathbed.

47 Meters Down

47 Meters Down (2017)

Runtime: 89 minutes

Directed by: Johannes Roberts

Starring: Mainly, Mandy Moore and Claire Holt

From: Many different companies; this includes two unfortunate executive producers, as mentioned below

So, I saw this despite knowing what the big plot twist was. I won't dive into details about the twist (which I didn't even know was a thing until long after this was released) except that if I did, I'd spoil something else. My viewing this in Kansas came about because my sister also receives a variety of movie channels via her cable package. This was on a Starz channel, and in fact was watched on demand this afternoon.

It has a simple yet promising premise: sisters Claire Holt and Mandy Moore are on vacation in Mexico. The latter is dealing w/ a bad breakup. I'd ask why anyone would dump Mandy Moore, but look at the scumbag behavior of her ex-husband Ryan Adams, or the awful things he did to other women... Be that as it may, Holt is the bolder and braver of the two, while Moore was more apprehensive yet to me more logical in thinking it's not a prudent decision to dive in a shark cage attached to a rickety old boat just because a pair of two cute men asked them to. There is in fact an accident and they're stuck 47 meters down—points at the screen like I'm Rick Dalton.

The plot twist is one I don't love personally; that was the least of the movie's problems. There are too many instances of the sisters telling the viewer obvious information we can see with our own eyes. There are some jump scares and actually decent scare scenes; that wasn't enough as even if this was shot decently (if confused spatially) the movie just isn't as exciting as it should be. The whole enterprise felt dull too often and it's a shame; this is not even The Shallows, which shares some similarities. Regrettably, the biggest scare came from... the opening credits, which stated "Executive Producers: Bob Weinstein & Harvey Weinstein.

Then again, I didn't hate the movie as it has its moments and the two lead ladies do their best. Perhaps 47 Meters Down: Uncaged will be more entertaining due to its apparent goofier nature.

The Great Muppet Caper

The Great Muppet Caper (1981)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: Jim Henson

Starring: The usual Muppets, plus Charles Grodin, Diana Rigg, & some cameos

From: ITC Entertainment

It wasn't the plan to review this today, but it fit my schedule best plus a Letterboxd mutual asked me which Muppet movie was the best. As I haven't even seen a new one in 30 years and this was one that was only in my childhood... don't expect any discussion of the other movies in the franchise until way in the future, yet as it was also on Disney+ and who knows when I'll subscribe on my own...

Even as a kid, I did not love the movie. The amount of times it broke the fourth wall and the way it was done didn't charm my socks off; and even now that opinion stands. As I can directly compare this w/ The Muppet Movie, it isn't as funny or charming, and the songs aren't as great—although The First Time It Happens is part of a delightful Busby Berkeley-inspired musical number. Plus, it's until nearly the middle point where we get much of the two big human stars: Diana Rigg and Charles Grodin as siblings where the latter wants to steal his sister's jewels.

While the laughs were more sporadic for me and some segments were real flops, overall there still were some guffaws from me, Rigg & Grodin were highlights and there is more than one Berkeley-inspired musical number. Heck, there were some nice cameos and even more impressive flexing from Jim Henson in having the Muppets perform impressively aside from the general magic in bringing them to life. Plus, where else will you see Peter Ustinov share a scene w/ Oscar the Grouch?

 

The Muppet Movie

The Muppet Movie (1979)

Runtime: 95 incredibly charming minutes

Directed by: James Frawley

Starring: The usual Muppet performers plus Charles Durning, Austin Pendleton and an amazing amount of cameos

From: ITC Films

This might as well have been a first time watch for me; for certain it was something I experienced via VHS as a small child more than once but it has to be at least 30 years since the last viewing. Only tiny fragments were left in my mind by the time I pressed “play” on Disney+. I will have some time while on vacation in Kansas as my nephews are all still in school and it seems like a good usage of my time.

It is a simple yet effective origin story for the Muppets; Kermit is spotted singing The Rainbow Connection in the swamp by agent Dom DeLuise, who shows him an ad in Variety that frogs are wanted in Hollywood. He soon meets Fozzie Bear at a sleazy bar run by James Coburn, and off we are on a pleasant set-up of road movies where the duo meet Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and all the other famous Muppets while trying to avoid Charles Durning and his dim-witted sidekick Austin Pendleton as the former has a chain of frog leg restaurants & he wants Kermit as their spokesman.

I probably thought the film was fine as a kid; as an adult, it is more appreciated. Some of the funniest moments were ones that must have flown over my head as a little tyke. There's actually a nice scene where everyone's down and Kermit talks to himself about feeling disappointed in their failures, but everyone still “believed in the dream.” There were some nice serious moments to go alongside the wackiness of the shaggy 70's band Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem & getting to meet all the different Muppets throughout the journey. That's not even counting the cameos from a panoply of different actors... besides the names already mentioned, there's everyone from Milton Berle, Elliott Gould, & Steve Martin to Madeline Kahn-who sounds exactly like Lili Von Shtupp and fricking Orson Welles. Where else will you see Bob Hope for a minute then thirty seconds later, a minute of Richard Pryor?

The lovely little songs from Paul Williams are a key component in making the viewer enjoy a tale where the fourth wall is broken occasionally but that never comes off as cloying or irritating. As the magic that allowed for the Muppets to appear “real” is still an illusion that isn't broken, that further made me enveloped in this world where Kermit the Frog riding a bicycle was literally done as a flex by Jim Henson... and it's still a great flex.

An Update

Right now I am in Kansas; I landed here last night. There was no movies during the weekend but there will be multiple reviews tomorrow. Friday afternoon I saw Die Hard at a cinema; it wasn't the first time for me but it will forever be an awesome experience.

13 Days in France

This is a 1968 Olympic film of the Winter Games that year in Grenoble, France: 

It’s been more than two years since I’ve seen an Olympic film; thus, it needs to be said that in the past I watched a few of those via the Criterion Channel (as the Criterion Collection released 100 Years of Olympic Films: 1912-2012) and I at least liked most of them even if they were all quite different through the years as visual documentation of the events that occur in the Summer and Winter Olympics. Yet, because I’m me I stopped watching those. The fact that many are at best ambivalent about such a niche category should be irrelevant to me, after all.

I do prefer the dry and perhaps cornball straightforward Olympic movies where there is a narrator and the big moments/results are presented. Kon Ichikawa’s Tokyo Olympiad is great as while it is on the arty side in presentation, the important information is provided. 13 Days in France… it is lighthearted and it’s a random snapshot of various scenes filmed throughout; don’t expect to see much if any results provided and in fact, the only names you’ll know are the two that gave the biggest star-making performances: figure skater Peggy Fleming and skier Jean-Claude Killy. At least their popularity was presented; the presentation including songs created for the film… that was a curious decision, as was other bizarre interludes.

The reason why it still gets a 3 star rating? The footage is still shot well and there are some wild moments, such as a POV shot of someone downhill skiing or a figure skater spinning in circles. Furthermore, the soundtrack was rather good, whether it be the score or even those wacky tunes. Others like this more than me, so YMMV if you ever have the urge. There is another documentary on the Grenoble games-Snows of Grenoble-which may be more to my liking; one day I’ll discuss that here.

The Abyss

The Abyss (1989)

Runtime: I saw the 171 minute special edition

Directed by: James Cameron

Starring: Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, Leo Burmester, Todd Graff

From: 20^th Century Fox

It was in fact a wise decision to finally see The Abyss for the first time 4K restored on a Dolby Cinema screen. As a teenager when I first became acquainted w/ the films of James Cameron and thought they were great, Abyss was never one I got around to. For reasons that probably won’t ever be made public, this alone with True Lies never made the jump into the HD era, at least for purchase/rental on disc or streaming. Thus, the reason why it took until now for me to write about this movie. As an advertisement for the upcoming UHD release of this in March (alongside True Lies), this played in cinemas for one night only. The fact that it was in a Dolby Cinema at AMC for me was even better.

It was only afterwards that the phrase “Cameron’s Interstellar” I saw in a mutual’s review suddenly resonated with me. The Abyss was more sentimental and touching than expected; some may not be on board for the direction this takes in the final half hour or so… could be deemed “cornball” by them? Perhaps. However, even through the silliest moments I was always on board in this tale of a SEAL team being sent to an underwater drilling platform where they are required to team up to find a submarine that sunk after it encountered a mysterious aquatic object of unknown origin.

Even I can admit that the way Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio was treated at times in the film was at best of its time and at worst rather sexist—several occasions she’s referred to as a “bitch” solely due to her being estranged from drilling team leader husband Ed Harris. What played was the almost 3 hour long Special Edition, which was still at times disjointed. I’d say that the movie’s fears of tensions escalating between the United States & the Russians was dated due to lingering memories despite the Cold War winding down in ’89, but well…

The movie feels epic, and not just due to its 171 minute length. It is a blockbuster from the past where big events happen, someone’s sanity decreases for a litany of reasons, there’s the wonder of the unknown creatures present in the ocean, the feelings the lead characters have for each other changes, there’s disaster, death, heartbreak… I did enjoy this trek that was taken, presented with plenty of practical effects and a great Alan Silvestri score. However, the by-product of actually filming the movie in an underwater setting was…

The giant submarine in the room that needs to be addressed: long before I saw The Abyss, its tortuous production history was known by me. Both Ed Harris & Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (the clear highlights of the film, in terms of acting craft) broke down due to emotional turmoil, and allegedly after almost drowning, Harris punched Cameron in the face! Others almost perished due to filming in the water, including Cameron himself. Harris will never talk about the movie in public—yep, it was that bad a production. Thankfully (for me), it’s a movie I still think is very good despite not liking how the director behaves on set sometimes and everyone going through a maelstrom to create the film.

A cast that does a fine job despite the circumstances (whether it be the more familiar faces like Harris, Mary Elizabeth or Michael Biehn or the less so familiar, like Todd Graff and Kimberly Scott) and a movie with a message that is undoubtedly on the nose yet is still a message worth hearing… flaws noted, I still prefer this to the safe, homogenized flavorless blockbusters that Hollywood in general has produced for at least the past decade now. I’m happy that this was my first experience with The Abyss, however long overdue it was for me.

 

Spaced Invaders

Spaced Invaders (1990)

Runtime: 100 minutes

Directed by: Patrick Read Johnson

Starring: Douglass Barr, Royal Dano, Ariana Richards, J.J. Anderson, Gregg Berger

From: Touchstone

Hi, my name is Blair Russell, and I saw Spaced Invaders on the big screen back in 1990. After watching some serious, downbeat films as of late, it was time for much lighter entertainment; also, early last evening I randomly found an HD copy of this on YouTube (I know, I know) so that’s what was selected. Note that I never saw the film again on VHS after the one theatrical viewing; that is perhaps a sign of what my opinion was as a kid… I really remembered nothing at all. Why Mom chose to take me and my two younger sisters to this is quite the mystery, but it’s something I can laugh about now.

One possible reaction I had back in ’90: WTF was that? The premise of the movie’s actually a nice idea: what if actual Martians hear a rebroadcast of the 1938 Orson Welles radio dramatization of War of the Worlds and decide to land on Earth as they believe the broadcast is of legitimate events & their brethren are attacking the planet? Of course, it was a family comedy made by Disney subsidiary Touchstone so it’s only a small ship of few particularly stupid aliens who are little green men and because it’s Halloween, people first think they are children in costume. To demonstrate the age group this is geared towards, some of the aliens sound like “70’s versions of Jack Nicholson, Dr. Strangelove and General Patton” and to make Alien Jack blatant as a parody, he wears sunglasses and a Lakers t-shirt… see what I mean when I say this is weird? I knew of the late 80’s TV show War of the Worlds at the time-but where beforehand would I have known of the Welles radio play as a 9 year old?

The movie is rather dumb, juvenile, and silly—in addition there’s a subplot where an evil land developer (is there any other kind?) who wants to take over the struggling farms in the small Illinois town of Big Bean-more on that at the end-so there’s a lot going on. As flawed as the movie is (full of stereotypes and humor that doesn’t always land) I can’t stay too mad at it. After all, there are plenty of charming practical effects, Royal Dano playing a farmer that wasn’t too dissimilar to his role in Killer Klowns from Outer Space and a young Ariana Richards as the lead child. When another 1990 theatrical experience was GHOST DAD, how inoffensive this was is fine when Ghost Dad was not only terrible, but also had adult themes not really suited for kids.

Spaced Invaders is set in a fictitious Podunk Illinois town. While I grew up in Belvidere, Illinois (a small city) it still had a Podunk feel… plenty of farms and I’m sure if an alien ship landed in Belvidere, there would be “beer-bellies running around in the dark w/ shotguns” as depicted in the film! Come to think of it, perhaps Big Bean is located close by Haddonfield…

Godzilla Minus One

Godzilla Minus One (Gojira -1.0) (2023)

96% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 85 reviews)

Runtime: 125 minutes

Directed by: Takashi Yamazaki

Starring: Ryunosuke Kamaki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetake Yoshioka

From: Toho

Is this the best Godzilla film ever? There’s always recency bias-not to mention my own biases-but I will explain why my rating is so high. Many of the films in the franchise have been seen by me, and some have put a strong focus on the human characters… to varying success. In this film, they nailed that aspect just about perfectly. I’ll try to be on the vague side as I went into this rather blind (only knowing the setting was right after World War II) and I presumed it would be like the original Gojira in the movie’s themes blatantly based on Japan’s guilt about the war combined with fear of nuclear weapons… which this was.

The focus is only on a few characters; one in particular goes through a LOT—it was an arduous journey for him. Like in Shin Godzilla, a random group of people have to work together to defeat a foe; unlike in Shin, it is not a satire inspired by the Fukushima disaster. Minus One is a far more sober piece that revolves around such themes as survivor’s guilt, fear, and PTSD. It doesn’t mean that Godzilla’s path of destruction is anything less than satisfactory.

In fact, when we do see G appear, it is a terrifying event; the amount of devastation it causes each time is rather cataclysmic. The effects look great for an alleged budget of only 15 million bucks-I’m sure there are many nebulous reasons why movies made in America are so darn expensive and/or CG on its own is so pricey. No matter the reasons, it makes too many of the modern Hollywood movies look bad in comparison… that’s not entirely the fault of those effects houses, but let’s avoid a heated debate over a topic I should learn more about beforehand.

The movie has its share of bleak, depressing moments; Japan after the war was devastated & we see characters who can barely survive as they live in ruins. At the same time, through the whole ordeal I became quite sympathetic to the plight of the main characters and henceforth was delighted when they and others got together (despite various issues they may have had in the past) to try and defeat a seemingly unstoppable enemy against all odds.

Admittedly, there was more than one “hey, wait a minute now” moment. This did not ruin the experience when I was so enveloped in the plot and in a rare moment for the franchise, actually felt rather emotional at times for the leads. It is in fact a Hollywood blockbuster of yore; I phrase it that way as most modern blockbusters are just sterile and cold, if not crap the bed terrible. If you’re a franchise fan, this is a must, especially if you can attend a screening at your local cinema.

 

I Revisit Sabotage

I'm referring to the 1936 Hitchcock movie, not the David Ayer disaster: 

Listen up y’all, it’s Sabotage… a new review of the film that was needed because perhaps a second impression would be better and the original review from 2014 was rather lackluster in hindsight. The Criterion Channel added a new collection of Hitchcock movies; many I had seen before (& I’m happy with those reviews) but revisits probably will happen that won’t be noted online as I’m happy with those original opinions I wrote years ago. As it’s been too long since one of his movies has been discussed by me, a link to my list of Hitchcock reviews is here for those curious. In short, most of the movies by the Master of Suspense I think are at least good, and some are 4 ½ or 5 stars.

It is tragic for me to say then that this movie is still one I don’t love as much as others--which has been the trend with the last few I’ve seen, but alas. Unbeknownst to Sylvia Sidney, her husband happens to be working with terrorists who cause havoc across London, because… well, that’s a MacGuffin. That husband Karl needs money as running a movie house isn’t enough to pay all the bills; after all, there’s also Sidney’s little brother Stevie, still a child. As Karl is undercover doing that bidding for the villains, so is someone from Scotland Yard undercover investigating the dastardly heels.

Despite my not loving the movie (possibly because there are many Hitch pictures I do love), that doesn’t make Sabotage bad, or even worse, comparable to the atrocious David Ayer Sabotage. It’s always nice seeing Sylvia Sidney, after all; there are also some nice suspense sequences, especially one that leads to the film’s most controversial moment. It’s a narrative decision I’m not offended by—audiences at the time were, though. There were other narrative decisions I didn’t necessarily love, although it did not turn the entire head of lettuce brown, to reference an insignificant plot point. I wish we could have gotten to know more about the majority of the leads.

There are still several memorable characters & the movie still works despite its small scale where much of the action takes place at a movie house. Having seen a decent amount of Hitch’s British beginnings, this is still one of the better ones; you’d be surprised at how bad some of them are.

Season of the Witch

Season of the Witch (1973)

Runtime: 105 minutes; that’s the cut I saw, anyhow

Directed by: George A. Romero

Starring: Jan White, Raymond Laine, Ann Muffly, Joedda McClain, Bill Thunhurst

From: The Latent Image

No, I won’t be going through a run of George A. Romero films. Rather, the impetus behind viewing this a night after Knightriders… I mentioned Season of the Witch as (based on hearsay) possibly being even stranger than Knightriders. IMO, it is. To clarify right away, the film was watched on Arrow’s streaming service—and it was the 104 minute extended cut. I’ve heard different explanations for why there were several versions under several different names (the title on the print was Jack’s Wife, and it was also released as HUNGRY WIVES as some bizarre attempt to make people think this was sexploitation, which it isn’t in any cut) before coming out as Season of the Watch after Dawn of the Dead in a re-release. A 90 minute version was restored in 4K and well, the added footage was clearly not, so that made identification obvious.

As for my ultimate opinion of Witch… “weird” and “odd” are the words that come to mind. It’s not even “good,” “bad,” or even “indifferent”—the movie was just weird. After all, it was Romero learning about both feminism and witchcraft; deciding to incorporate them both… why not? As with George A.’s most famous films, social commentary is a-plenty. A middle-aged woman (named Joan Mitchell who hilariously is sometimes referred to casually as Joanie; Joni Mitchell had already found fame by this point) who has a lout of a husband (Jack) always away on business and a carefree 19 year old daughter is also suffering from the banality of suburban ennui (to borrow more than one phrase). Joanie randomly hears about witchcraft; after a LOT of discussion over how she and her galpal Shirley are miserable as aging ladies, Mitchell decides to take the plunge.

There is not that much witchcraft on display, and don’t expect anything supernatural. The story is more about Joanie attempting to take agency of her life and finally find happiness again. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any frightening moments; there are various nightmare sequences, including an extended one in the opening scene. Unfortunately, the movie didn’t grab me like it did for many others on Letterboxd. It’s no fault of Jan White, who portrayed Joan Mitchell; she was swell as the housewife who had to run the gamut of emotions. Now was it the at times masterful editing by Romero or the 70’s electronic score from Steve Gorn. Speaking of that decade, between the décor and the clothing, the gaudy, brightly-colored looks greatly amused me.

Even if the film didn’t blow me away, its oddity and how it was about an unhappy middle-aged woman becoming a feminist and gaining confidence in the process will be noted by me. Sure, there were some questionable decisions on her part, but… to close this out, yes the audience does hear Donovan’s Season of the Witch. That’s a better title for the film than Jack’s Wife and especially Hungry Wives.

 

Knightriders

Knightriders (1981)

Runtime: 147 minutes

Directed by: George A. Romero

Starring: Ed Harris, Gary Lahti, Tom Savini, Amy Ingersoll, Patricia Tallman

From: United Film Distribution Company/Laurel Productions

Right before this left the Criterion Channel I deemed it most opportune to finally watch… well, it may not be the oddest film in his filmography (I know his Hungry Wives/Season of the Witch has been described as “unclassifiable”) but any movie almost 2 ½ hours centered around a Renaissance troupe who performs in random fields all across Pennsylvania where the mounts are not horses but rather motorcycles… that is a unique premise even in 2023. Admittedly, cycles instead of horses will be PETA and the less extremist nutjob animal lovers happy.

In all honesty, the setting isn’t the most important aspect of the film. Sure, the low-budget outlaw nature of their operation causes conflict w/ law enforcement; that said, any group of people presenting a production where there’s conflict between the disparate people that tended to be misfits could have worked. Ed Harris is their leader as the literal and figurative King of the act. He does some foolhardy things to try and prove himself and make the act not a cheesy thing on bike; that naturally upsets the regular riders, not to mention his lady.

Unfortunately, the film has some rather peculiar moments; just why exactly do they let random biker dumbasses (including a Nazi) dick around on the field after the tournament concludes, anyhow? Also, yeah the length can be a little much at times. Yet, despite that, a King who isn’t always a likable chap, and some dodgy acting, the movie definitely… well, it’s odd. It’s a movie I wish could have been liked more by me, yet there are still merits. For one thing, I now know why this was in a collection of films featuring gay characters; one is a lesbian and there’s also a man who is questioning if he is a homosexual.

For all its flaws, at least there was interest in seeing those colorful characters interacting w/ each other and trying to deal with drama. The one character I’ll recall the most was Merlin, the troupe doctor played by Brother Blue. Wikipedia can offer more of an explanation but what a fascinating person he was—a literal storyteller and street performer in Boston who unsurprisingly was successful at offering philosophical advice mainly to Harris’s character but also others. It was also wild to see Tom Savini as an actor w/ a huge role; he was fine when it comes to performance. In addition, when the viewer sees motorcycle action, it is thrilling.

Overall, this downbeat movie (again, it is straight out of the 70’s despite its ’81 release) does work better for some people; there was a messageboard interaction today where I saw someone comment that this was popular in the early days of cable. If you saw the movie back then but never since-which was the scenario w/ that poster-it might be a revisit at the risk of ruining good childhood memories. Those that see the movie for the first time ever or the first time in decades: the opening several minutes are shot REALLY soft; that was for a stylistic reason rather than a reflection of the entire film’s look.