Sabotage (2014)
21% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 68 reviews)
Runtime: 109 minutes
Directed by: David Ayer
Starring: Arnold, Sam Worthington, Joe Manganiello, Terrence Howard, Mireille Enos
From: Open Road Films
I apologize for getting this review up so damn late. Things happened, such as catching up on online activities, fantasy baseball drafts, taking a road trip to see the movie, and yeah, talking about this movie elsewhere... or rather, ranting and raving about it.
I went to the Cinemark in Lakeland; it's a new joint that opened up 2 ½ months ago and I went there to see the newest Paranormal Activity movie. It's a real nice place and all their screens are real large, so why not go there to see in high quality an action thriller like this was? It did look and sound nice, at least.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “Members of an elite DEA task force find themselves being taken down one by one after they rob a drug cartel safe house.” True. They stole 10 million dollars and they were going to pick it up later from the sewers (the way of getting the money out of there involved the sewer systems! Don't ask) but it was missing, so they begin to suspect that one of them ripped off everyone else. If only they acted “elite” more often instead of coming across as buffoons most of the time...
I've watched and enjoyed movies filled with scummy characters and a lot of vulgarity. For example, Killer Joe and The Wolf of Wall Street. To borrow an idea from Harlo of the BMFCast podcast, you have to give me a reason to care in a situation like that, which those two movies did by having a very interesting story and characters you were invested in seeing what happened to them, even if the outcome was obvious. Here, this movie did not do that at all. All the members of the “elite group” were complete asstagonists who were vulgar as hell, constantly dropping F-bombs and saying disgusting things to each other... and other people, which was even worse. They were all awful repugnant human beings... even Arnold.
The local cops who you see investigate things (including Olivia Williams) are not as bad, but they also say vulgar things and at one point she swims nude, just because. The entire movie is just crass like that. Things are just ugly and unpleasant the entire time. I was amused that the crew drank bottles of Pabst Blue Ribbon, but otherwise there wasn't too much to be amused by. Unless it was played at the end of the end credits, you don't hear the Beastie Boys song of the same name. Yeah, I don't get it either.
Besides the unpleasant story full of disgusting characters and vulgarities straight out of a Rob Zombie film, you also have graphic gore. In a different sort of movie I wouldn't have really minded it. In a dark dour nasty movie like this, it just made the tone even worse and I don't even know why it was needed. It did not make for an enjoyable film experience, at least for me. I know that others enjoyed the movie despite its ugliness, but that was a deal-breaker for me, all those terrible characters who I wanted to see die.
Now, I did not despise this movie. I was still interested in the story to see how it turned out; well, it was nonsensical-which didn't help matters-but there's that and the music was fine. I gave it 1 ½ out of 5 on Letterboxd. It's just that I was as disappointed in it as I was with Escape Plan, a film many like for whatever reasons. At least there's The Last Stand.
I will return Tuesday night.
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Death Promise
Death Promise (1977)
Runtime: 96 minutes
Directed by: Robert Warmflash
Starring: Charles Bonet, Speedy Leacock, Thompson Kao Kang, Bill Louie, Bob O'Connell
From: Howard Mahler Films
This is a movie I can thank Letterboxd for discovering. Someone I follow reviewed this movie. I hadn't heard of it before so I checked out the review and it sounded like something I should see AND it was on YouTube for free so I had to watch it.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “An apartment dweller goes on a search-and-destroy mission to kill the ruthless landlords who murdered his father.” It's more than that. It's a film set in the slums of New York City (those people who love looking at New York City in the 70's, or marvel at how sleazy it used to be before it got cleaned up, they'll enjoy the time capsule that this film presents of how things looked way back when) in an awful apartment building. Several landlords who own the area in secret want to clear everyone out but an old man (O'Connell) is the de facto leader of the people leading there and refuse, which makes the landlords mad; it's never fully explained but it can be presumed that once they clear the area something will be built there which will make them a lot of cash. They kill the old man, which upsets his son, who happens to be a karate expert; he and his fellow karate expert pal Speedy are looking for revenge; their karate master Shibata (Kang)-who can be hard to make out due to his strong Japanese accent-also figures into things.
The movie is real low-budget. That has to be said right away. A few times you see the boom mic. Yet, it's directed by a guy who would end up being a post-production supervisor on feature films and documentaries, such as Capturing the Friedmans and The Cove. Some things don't make a lot of sense if you put some thought into it. Overall, though, the movie is very entertaining, both to enjoy seriously and ironically. The action is fun to watch and there are plenty of fights and other things that happen during some cool setpieces. There are some downright awesome deaths. You can laugh at such things as the awesome 1970's clothing, some of the acting, and the funky soundtrack.
The movie's definitely rough around the edges but you can see everyone tried their best to make something enjoyable for action fans and that is what they did, in my opinion, whether it's those fans enjoying it seriously or humorously... or both. What a grindhouse experience it was. There is also a surprise plot twist near the end; it was telegraphed earlier but in not the most obvious way and once you have everything explained, I thought it was a pretty cool twist and it's not one of those nonsensical ridiculous plot twists you commonly get in recent years, but instead is pretty clever, which I appreciate, especially in something like this.
I'll be back Friday night.
Runtime: 96 minutes
Directed by: Robert Warmflash
Starring: Charles Bonet, Speedy Leacock, Thompson Kao Kang, Bill Louie, Bob O'Connell
From: Howard Mahler Films
This is a movie I can thank Letterboxd for discovering. Someone I follow reviewed this movie. I hadn't heard of it before so I checked out the review and it sounded like something I should see AND it was on YouTube for free so I had to watch it.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “An apartment dweller goes on a search-and-destroy mission to kill the ruthless landlords who murdered his father.” It's more than that. It's a film set in the slums of New York City (those people who love looking at New York City in the 70's, or marvel at how sleazy it used to be before it got cleaned up, they'll enjoy the time capsule that this film presents of how things looked way back when) in an awful apartment building. Several landlords who own the area in secret want to clear everyone out but an old man (O'Connell) is the de facto leader of the people leading there and refuse, which makes the landlords mad; it's never fully explained but it can be presumed that once they clear the area something will be built there which will make them a lot of cash. They kill the old man, which upsets his son, who happens to be a karate expert; he and his fellow karate expert pal Speedy are looking for revenge; their karate master Shibata (Kang)-who can be hard to make out due to his strong Japanese accent-also figures into things.
The movie is real low-budget. That has to be said right away. A few times you see the boom mic. Yet, it's directed by a guy who would end up being a post-production supervisor on feature films and documentaries, such as Capturing the Friedmans and The Cove. Some things don't make a lot of sense if you put some thought into it. Overall, though, the movie is very entertaining, both to enjoy seriously and ironically. The action is fun to watch and there are plenty of fights and other things that happen during some cool setpieces. There are some downright awesome deaths. You can laugh at such things as the awesome 1970's clothing, some of the acting, and the funky soundtrack.
The movie's definitely rough around the edges but you can see everyone tried their best to make something enjoyable for action fans and that is what they did, in my opinion, whether it's those fans enjoying it seriously or humorously... or both. What a grindhouse experience it was. There is also a surprise plot twist near the end; it was telegraphed earlier but in not the most obvious way and once you have everything explained, I thought it was a pretty cool twist and it's not one of those nonsensical ridiculous plot twists you commonly get in recent years, but instead is pretty clever, which I appreciate, especially in something like this.
I'll be back Friday night.
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Tonight I Talk About MEGACON
Tonight I decided to be different and I'll talk about what I did this past Friday, which was going to my first-ever comic book convention (or con or whatever you want to call it). It only tangentially deals with movies but oh well. Here's what I wrote about it on my personal blog. I do call it MEGACON instead of Megacon, as that sort of name deserves to be in all caps, I say.
Friday, I did another first; I went to a comic book convention. It was at the Orange County Convention Center on I-Drive and it's known as MEGACON. The past few years I was interested to go to one of these but due to various circumstances, I couldn't do it until now. I got there not too long after it opened and it was already jam-packed and OH MY GOD. The sights I saw there were even wackier than I could have imagined. There were some classic cosplaying, such as Doctor Who (there were plenty of Doctors around), Star Wars, Star Trek, or something old like Indiana Jones and Marty McFly. Many of the videogame ones I recognized. But, just about all of the anime characters (which was many of the people there), I have NO idea as to what character they were portraying as I don't watch any anime at all, and most of those were pretty wacky-looking to me. Of course, I do have to give props to everyone who dressed up, as they all put in a lot of time and effort into their costumes; some were pretty elaborate and/or required giant props.
Sad to say a few times I did smell some pretty bad body odor, which lives up (or down) to the stereotype. I hope that during the weekend where I understand MANY more people were there, that body odor didn't hang in the air but that's a distinct possibility. I actually shouldn't make fun of most cosplayers like that, as I am sure only a small segment of them have an issue with showering. After all, at least 6 random people complimented me on an XFL shirt I dug out and wore that's vintage from when I bought it in 2002 from a Spencer's Gifts when it was on clearance for only like 4 bucks. I can only imagine the sort of attention I would have gotten if I had dressed up in any sort of outfit; it's easy to see why those people would want to dress up and get showered with compliments for their duds.
As much of the items there weren't for me (I just don't care about anime or comic books, and I don't really care for hentai, which was actually on one table), I spent a lot of time just walking about and looking at everyone's outfit. I ate dinner there; they offered up chicken fingers and fries and as I ate it, it was not too great, and I later paid the price for eating that food!
There were people around I knew who I didn't see (I discovered this later), but I did see some people I know and it was nice to talk to them, even if it was only for about a minute or two. It was certainly a different environment for me, all those “unique” people milling about, and a rare case of me NOT being one of the oddest individuals around!
I will return tomorrow night.
Friday, I did another first; I went to a comic book convention. It was at the Orange County Convention Center on I-Drive and it's known as MEGACON. The past few years I was interested to go to one of these but due to various circumstances, I couldn't do it until now. I got there not too long after it opened and it was already jam-packed and OH MY GOD. The sights I saw there were even wackier than I could have imagined. There were some classic cosplaying, such as Doctor Who (there were plenty of Doctors around), Star Wars, Star Trek, or something old like Indiana Jones and Marty McFly. Many of the videogame ones I recognized. But, just about all of the anime characters (which was many of the people there), I have NO idea as to what character they were portraying as I don't watch any anime at all, and most of those were pretty wacky-looking to me. Of course, I do have to give props to everyone who dressed up, as they all put in a lot of time and effort into their costumes; some were pretty elaborate and/or required giant props.
Sad to say a few times I did smell some pretty bad body odor, which lives up (or down) to the stereotype. I hope that during the weekend where I understand MANY more people were there, that body odor didn't hang in the air but that's a distinct possibility. I actually shouldn't make fun of most cosplayers like that, as I am sure only a small segment of them have an issue with showering. After all, at least 6 random people complimented me on an XFL shirt I dug out and wore that's vintage from when I bought it in 2002 from a Spencer's Gifts when it was on clearance for only like 4 bucks. I can only imagine the sort of attention I would have gotten if I had dressed up in any sort of outfit; it's easy to see why those people would want to dress up and get showered with compliments for their duds.
As much of the items there weren't for me (I just don't care about anime or comic books, and I don't really care for hentai, which was actually on one table), I spent a lot of time just walking about and looking at everyone's outfit. I ate dinner there; they offered up chicken fingers and fries and as I ate it, it was not too great, and I later paid the price for eating that food!
There were people around I knew who I didn't see (I discovered this later), but I did see some people I know and it was nice to talk to them, even if it was only for about a minute or two. It was certainly a different environment for me, all those “unique” people milling about, and a rare case of me NOT being one of the oddest individuals around!
I will return tomorrow night.
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Girls Nite Out
Girls Nite Out (made in 1982 but not released until 1984)
Runtime: 96 minutes
Directed by: Robert Deubel
Starring: Julia Montgomery, James Carroll, Rutanya Alda, Lauren-Marie Taylor, Hal Holbrook (!)
From: Concepts Unlimited
Here is a really random 80's slasher I stumbled across while looking at various links on the IMDb. I came across this movie, which I hadn't heard of, but what got my attention is that it starred Betty Childs from Revenge of the Nerds, a rather cute girl from the second Friday the 13th (Taylor), and the killer... he kills people while wearing a bear costume from the college's sports team where the movie is set! Yes, a mascot killer. I HAD to see it, and I was greatly amused once I found it in the bowels of the Internet.
To steal the plot from the IMDb: “A killer, wearing a dancing bear suit, stalks a variety of cheerleaders during an all-night scavenger hunt at a remote Ohio college.” To elaborate, the movie is set around a men's basketball team at a remote Ohio college, and it involves such things as the campus radio station (and the DJ being a magnificent middle-aged man with a great mustache), a costume party, & an old photograph. As right now the big college basketball tournament is going on right now (commonly nicknamed March Madness), it was perfect I found this when I did.
As for why an established actor like Hal Holbrook is in a random 80's slasher, his son is in the film, so there you go. The coach of the team was played by the late Al McGuire. Yes, the famous college basketball coach turned college basketball announcer for NBC Sports then CBS Sports throughout the 80's and 90's. That was inspired casting, although his screentime is like 2 to 3 minutes total.
The movie starts off and after some odd music you see a murder then you're off to a basketball game, with a guy in the crowd that looks EXACTLY like Ludacris, no exaggerating. The scene is set to some oldies-sounding song, which is appropriate as the movie is full of actual oldies songs from the 60's, such as some from The Lovin' Spoonful, Ohio Express and other bubblegum pop, and Tommy James & The Shondells. I presume that back then paying to use those songs wasn't so expensive. After the game, the cheerleaders of Taylor's character and Montgomery's character about how Taylor is bangin' some guy and apparently it was great because she said “it hurts when I sit down!” Julia mentions how “He's your cousin!” and Lauren-Marie replies, “SECOND cousin!” Really. Wow.
Speaking of wow, how the bear suit looks. It looks like a regular bear suit but with paper eyes & tongue and an awful blonde curly wig. Look at this link for the picture of the bear and try not to laugh.
As for the actual movie, due to the entertainment value I'll rate it as average. Really, there's amusing things and I did not mind at first the movie taking its time introducing everyone as there are plenty of wacky characters, some of which are asstagonists but not of the aggravating kind. I was able to laugh at their terribleness and how they did such things as act way over the top or cheat on their significant others. Unfortunately some of them vanish out of nowhere, and at times the pacing just seems totally off.
While the killer's M.O is unique and they use steak knives for claws, the kills are sadly of the “meh” kind and seem to be hampered by a low budget; maybe they spent too much cash on all those golden oldies... I won't reveal any details about the killer except that it was surprising to me. It was also creepy, but... it seems like the movie stopped rather than had a proper ending, which was disappointing. I guess there's a reason this is a forgotten slasher despite its wacky concept.
I shall return on Tuesday night.
Runtime: 96 minutes
Directed by: Robert Deubel
Starring: Julia Montgomery, James Carroll, Rutanya Alda, Lauren-Marie Taylor, Hal Holbrook (!)
From: Concepts Unlimited
Here is a really random 80's slasher I stumbled across while looking at various links on the IMDb. I came across this movie, which I hadn't heard of, but what got my attention is that it starred Betty Childs from Revenge of the Nerds, a rather cute girl from the second Friday the 13th (Taylor), and the killer... he kills people while wearing a bear costume from the college's sports team where the movie is set! Yes, a mascot killer. I HAD to see it, and I was greatly amused once I found it in the bowels of the Internet.
To steal the plot from the IMDb: “A killer, wearing a dancing bear suit, stalks a variety of cheerleaders during an all-night scavenger hunt at a remote Ohio college.” To elaborate, the movie is set around a men's basketball team at a remote Ohio college, and it involves such things as the campus radio station (and the DJ being a magnificent middle-aged man with a great mustache), a costume party, & an old photograph. As right now the big college basketball tournament is going on right now (commonly nicknamed March Madness), it was perfect I found this when I did.
As for why an established actor like Hal Holbrook is in a random 80's slasher, his son is in the film, so there you go. The coach of the team was played by the late Al McGuire. Yes, the famous college basketball coach turned college basketball announcer for NBC Sports then CBS Sports throughout the 80's and 90's. That was inspired casting, although his screentime is like 2 to 3 minutes total.
The movie starts off and after some odd music you see a murder then you're off to a basketball game, with a guy in the crowd that looks EXACTLY like Ludacris, no exaggerating. The scene is set to some oldies-sounding song, which is appropriate as the movie is full of actual oldies songs from the 60's, such as some from The Lovin' Spoonful, Ohio Express and other bubblegum pop, and Tommy James & The Shondells. I presume that back then paying to use those songs wasn't so expensive. After the game, the cheerleaders of Taylor's character and Montgomery's character about how Taylor is bangin' some guy and apparently it was great because she said “it hurts when I sit down!” Julia mentions how “He's your cousin!” and Lauren-Marie replies, “SECOND cousin!” Really. Wow.
Speaking of wow, how the bear suit looks. It looks like a regular bear suit but with paper eyes & tongue and an awful blonde curly wig. Look at this link for the picture of the bear and try not to laugh.
As for the actual movie, due to the entertainment value I'll rate it as average. Really, there's amusing things and I did not mind at first the movie taking its time introducing everyone as there are plenty of wacky characters, some of which are asstagonists but not of the aggravating kind. I was able to laugh at their terribleness and how they did such things as act way over the top or cheat on their significant others. Unfortunately some of them vanish out of nowhere, and at times the pacing just seems totally off.
While the killer's M.O is unique and they use steak knives for claws, the kills are sadly of the “meh” kind and seem to be hampered by a low budget; maybe they spent too much cash on all those golden oldies... I won't reveal any details about the killer except that it was surprising to me. It was also creepy, but... it seems like the movie stopped rather than had a proper ending, which was disappointing. I guess there's a reason this is a forgotten slasher despite its wacky concept.
I shall return on Tuesday night.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Return Of The One-Armed Swordsman
Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (Du Bei Dao Wang) (1969)
Runtime: 106 minutes
Directed by: Cheh Chang
Starring: Jimmy Wang Yu, Lisa Chiao Chiao, Feng Tien, Essie Lin Chia, Lei Cheng
From: Shaw Brothers
I was able to find this movie for a viewing so I decided to check it out, as I really enjoyed the first one and it made sense to see the sequel. To steal the plot description from Letterboxd:
"The notorious “One-Armed Swordsman” who has spent the last two years retired from the martial world as a simple farmer with his wife. Of course this idyllic life is about to be sliced to ribbons by (director) Chang’s wicked imagination. He concocts a savory setup when he introduces, not one, but eight unique villains known as the Eight Kings of Swords and their sword-wielding entourage for Wang Yu to eventually chop his way through."
The rest of this review is from Letterboxd, but expanded upon a bit. I will return Sunday night.
While there's some pretty preposterous/ridiculous moments and sometimes I went, "Hey, wait a minute...", it doesn't really matter when this is so entertaining and you have a bunch of people in a clan trying to match the badassery of their new leader Jimmy Wang Yu as they have to wipe out the eight wacky villains who are trying to rule everything and have such unique aspects as... dudes who wield giant circular blades, people with sickles, a shotgun/sword, and the best of all, a lovely dame who is actually psychotic and wields a bunch of blades. It's like a videogame in how they progress through different levels and deal with different bad guys on each level.
This is definitely the bloodiest Shaw Brothers movie I've seen; you get to view a lot of red, and even some blood spurting out like it's a Lone Wolf and Cub film. People get run straight through with a sword often and sometimes they keep on fighting; that's what I meant by them trying to be a badass like the title character.
Besides the action and setpieces, you have the title character still trying to avoid the martial arts world and he doesn't really want to be their new leader; he would much rather be a simple farmer. I found that again to be an interesting aspect.
I am thankful this was not a typical disappointing sequel.
Runtime: 106 minutes
Directed by: Cheh Chang
Starring: Jimmy Wang Yu, Lisa Chiao Chiao, Feng Tien, Essie Lin Chia, Lei Cheng
From: Shaw Brothers
I was able to find this movie for a viewing so I decided to check it out, as I really enjoyed the first one and it made sense to see the sequel. To steal the plot description from Letterboxd:
"The notorious “One-Armed Swordsman” who has spent the last two years retired from the martial world as a simple farmer with his wife. Of course this idyllic life is about to be sliced to ribbons by (director) Chang’s wicked imagination. He concocts a savory setup when he introduces, not one, but eight unique villains known as the Eight Kings of Swords and their sword-wielding entourage for Wang Yu to eventually chop his way through."
The rest of this review is from Letterboxd, but expanded upon a bit. I will return Sunday night.
While there's some pretty preposterous/ridiculous moments and sometimes I went, "Hey, wait a minute...", it doesn't really matter when this is so entertaining and you have a bunch of people in a clan trying to match the badassery of their new leader Jimmy Wang Yu as they have to wipe out the eight wacky villains who are trying to rule everything and have such unique aspects as... dudes who wield giant circular blades, people with sickles, a shotgun/sword, and the best of all, a lovely dame who is actually psychotic and wields a bunch of blades. It's like a videogame in how they progress through different levels and deal with different bad guys on each level.
This is definitely the bloodiest Shaw Brothers movie I've seen; you get to view a lot of red, and even some blood spurting out like it's a Lone Wolf and Cub film. People get run straight through with a sword often and sometimes they keep on fighting; that's what I meant by them trying to be a badass like the title character.
Besides the action and setpieces, you have the title character still trying to avoid the martial arts world and he doesn't really want to be their new leader; he would much rather be a simple farmer. I found that again to be an interesting aspect.
I am thankful this was not a typical disappointing sequel.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
A Slight Change In Schedule
I won't go into details; just know it won't be until after midnight that I finish a review of what I want to watch, so I might as well take my time & I won't be posting a review until tomorrow afternoon. Sorry for the slight change, but things happen sometimes.
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
The One-Armed Swordsman
The One-Armed Swordsman (Dubei Dao) (1967)
Runtime: 111 minutes
Directed by: Cheh Chang
Starring: Jimmy Wang Yu, Lisa Chiao Chiao, Tien Feng, Angela Pan, Tang Ti
From: Shaw Brothers
I recently realized it has been awhile since I've seen a Shaw Brothers movie. That and someone complimenting a list I've put together on Letterboxd of all the Shaw Brothers movies I have watched, made me want to see another one. I picked this one out, as I was able to watch it at a secret site I won't reveal here, and it's one of their more highly regarded films.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “An evil gang attacks the Chi school of Golden Sword Kung Fu. One student sacrifices his life to save his teacher and his school, his dying wish is that his son be taken in as a student. Young Fang Kang grows up in the school and treasures his father's broken sword and the memory of his father's sacrifice. The other students (including the teacher's daughter) resent him and try to drive him away. The teacher's daughter challenges him to a fight and when he refuses she becomes enraged and recklessly chops off his arm! He retreats, broken and bloody, and is found by a young poor girl (Xiao Man) living alone who nurses him back to health. Meanwhile, the evil gang who originally attacked the Golden Sword school develops a weapon that renders the Golden Sword useless and starts killing off all of the schools students."
Needless to say, Fang Kang (Wang Yu, who I only knew before from the awesome The Man From Hong Kong) has to decide whether to help his teacher and his fellow students or listen to his new lady Xiao Man (who has connections to the martial arts world also) and leave that dangerous world and become a farmer with her. That makes it stand out-the story arc-and makes the movie interesting.
It's not hard to see why Wang Yu became a big star in the Hong Kong film world. He made you believe he was one-limbed and he could kick a lot of ass despite only having the use of his left arm.
That, the story, many of the characters being memorable and very colorful and the settings portrayed make me say this is a quality film and no wonder it's highly thought of. The first part of the movie is set during winter (i.e. snow) and that setting is real well-done. An important scene is set during a light snowfall and that made it awesome as you have no trouble thinking that they are outdoors filming in snowy weather.
I'll return tomorrow night.
Runtime: 111 minutes
Directed by: Cheh Chang
Starring: Jimmy Wang Yu, Lisa Chiao Chiao, Tien Feng, Angela Pan, Tang Ti
From: Shaw Brothers
I recently realized it has been awhile since I've seen a Shaw Brothers movie. That and someone complimenting a list I've put together on Letterboxd of all the Shaw Brothers movies I have watched, made me want to see another one. I picked this one out, as I was able to watch it at a secret site I won't reveal here, and it's one of their more highly regarded films.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “An evil gang attacks the Chi school of Golden Sword Kung Fu. One student sacrifices his life to save his teacher and his school, his dying wish is that his son be taken in as a student. Young Fang Kang grows up in the school and treasures his father's broken sword and the memory of his father's sacrifice. The other students (including the teacher's daughter) resent him and try to drive him away. The teacher's daughter challenges him to a fight and when he refuses she becomes enraged and recklessly chops off his arm! He retreats, broken and bloody, and is found by a young poor girl (Xiao Man) living alone who nurses him back to health. Meanwhile, the evil gang who originally attacked the Golden Sword school develops a weapon that renders the Golden Sword useless and starts killing off all of the schools students."
Needless to say, Fang Kang (Wang Yu, who I only knew before from the awesome The Man From Hong Kong) has to decide whether to help his teacher and his fellow students or listen to his new lady Xiao Man (who has connections to the martial arts world also) and leave that dangerous world and become a farmer with her. That makes it stand out-the story arc-and makes the movie interesting.
It's not hard to see why Wang Yu became a big star in the Hong Kong film world. He made you believe he was one-limbed and he could kick a lot of ass despite only having the use of his left arm.
That, the story, many of the characters being memorable and very colorful and the settings portrayed make me say this is a quality film and no wonder it's highly thought of. The first part of the movie is set during winter (i.e. snow) and that setting is real well-done. An important scene is set during a light snowfall and that made it awesome as you have no trouble thinking that they are outdoors filming in snowy weather.
I'll return tomorrow night.
Monday, March 17, 2014
Cold Steel
Cold Steel (1987)
Runtime: 91 minutes
Directed by: Dorothy Ann Puzo (yes, her father IS Mario Puzo)
Starring: Brad Davis, Jonathan Banks, Sharon Stone, Adam Ant
From: Cinetel Films
Here's a random movie I found out about from a few people on a messageboard. It was a "so bad it's good" sort of thing. Once again much of this review is from Letterboxd but I've expanded upon it. It's another movie I discovered online, nevermind how or where.
Directed by a woman, this thriller with action elements is about a loose cannon cop (Brad Davis) who is looking for revenge after an old friend turned enemy (Jonathan Banks) kills his dad. Loose Cannon doesn't seem that devastated by pops dying, but alas...
Oh, and due to a nasty throat injury Banks-known as ICEMAN-speaks with a talkbox voice as if he's Ned from South Park, to steal a phrase. Iceman's partner... Adam Ant! There's also Sharon Stone as-shock of shocks-a femme fatale. And, there's the real-life Popeye Doyle (Eddie Egan) as a lieutenant.
I don't want to make fun of someone who had AIDS at the time and likely got it due to his drug use, but Davis did not look well in the film. He looked old and strung out, to be honest. It's unfortunate, as he got acclaim as the lead of Midnight Express. However, he (as a bisexual) decided to take some homosexual roles and with how times were back then... that and his drug problem definitely had a negative impact on his career.
The movie is pretty bad... in a way you can enjoy laughing at. I'll list some bullet points:
* There's a wacky speeding cop car scene which starts off the picture & it involves jumping over a train, for what proves to be silly reasons, not to mention being a possible danger to the public.
* Iceman and Adam Ant have a rather homoerotic relationship. But, there are also homoerotic relationships with other characters.
* Phrases such as "C'mon, squirt!" and "I'm so horny, I'd f*** a toad!" are uttered. The former is more innocuous than it sounds.
* The partner of Brad Davis is only known as COOKIE and vending machines give him problems. He shoots one with a .45 with a silencer to get sodas!
* The soundtrack is mostly either 80's ballads, smokey sax for the scenes of romance between Davis and Stone, or songs that describe what you see on the screen.
* There's also a car chase that happens in the middle of the film and it looks like something straight out of Hal Needham with all the wackiness that happens, including cars destroying buildings and other structures on a local racecourse and vehicles that explode for no reason.
* Someone's killed with a poisonous fish.
* The finale is rather goofy, to say the least. A mask is used for a special effect and it doesn't look good.
There's definitely more but I don't want to give everything away. I have no idea how those people found this movie... if you can find it and you enjoy laughing at wacky/silly/sh*tty 80's films, then you might as well watch it, as I did enjoy seeing this after having heard about it months ago.
I will return tomorrow night.
Runtime: 91 minutes
Directed by: Dorothy Ann Puzo (yes, her father IS Mario Puzo)
Starring: Brad Davis, Jonathan Banks, Sharon Stone, Adam Ant
From: Cinetel Films
Here's a random movie I found out about from a few people on a messageboard. It was a "so bad it's good" sort of thing. Once again much of this review is from Letterboxd but I've expanded upon it. It's another movie I discovered online, nevermind how or where.
Directed by a woman, this thriller with action elements is about a loose cannon cop (Brad Davis) who is looking for revenge after an old friend turned enemy (Jonathan Banks) kills his dad. Loose Cannon doesn't seem that devastated by pops dying, but alas...
Oh, and due to a nasty throat injury Banks-known as ICEMAN-speaks with a talkbox voice as if he's Ned from South Park, to steal a phrase. Iceman's partner... Adam Ant! There's also Sharon Stone as-shock of shocks-a femme fatale. And, there's the real-life Popeye Doyle (Eddie Egan) as a lieutenant.
I don't want to make fun of someone who had AIDS at the time and likely got it due to his drug use, but Davis did not look well in the film. He looked old and strung out, to be honest. It's unfortunate, as he got acclaim as the lead of Midnight Express. However, he (as a bisexual) decided to take some homosexual roles and with how times were back then... that and his drug problem definitely had a negative impact on his career.
The movie is pretty bad... in a way you can enjoy laughing at. I'll list some bullet points:
* There's a wacky speeding cop car scene which starts off the picture & it involves jumping over a train, for what proves to be silly reasons, not to mention being a possible danger to the public.
* Iceman and Adam Ant have a rather homoerotic relationship. But, there are also homoerotic relationships with other characters.
* Phrases such as "C'mon, squirt!" and "I'm so horny, I'd f*** a toad!" are uttered. The former is more innocuous than it sounds.
* The partner of Brad Davis is only known as COOKIE and vending machines give him problems. He shoots one with a .45 with a silencer to get sodas!
* The soundtrack is mostly either 80's ballads, smokey sax for the scenes of romance between Davis and Stone, or songs that describe what you see on the screen.
* There's also a car chase that happens in the middle of the film and it looks like something straight out of Hal Needham with all the wackiness that happens, including cars destroying buildings and other structures on a local racecourse and vehicles that explode for no reason.
* Someone's killed with a poisonous fish.
* The finale is rather goofy, to say the least. A mask is used for a special effect and it doesn't look good.
There's definitely more but I don't want to give everything away. I have no idea how those people found this movie... if you can find it and you enjoy laughing at wacky/silly/sh*tty 80's films, then you might as well watch it, as I did enjoy seeing this after having heard about it months ago.
I will return tomorrow night.
Friday, March 14, 2014
I'm Still On A Break
By the time I return on Monday night, I should have seen something new to talk about (likely not St. Patrick's Day themed), but I actually haven't watched any films since this past Monday. I needed a short break, you know. I'll likely also see something I've seen before during the weekend, to put something new on Letterboxd.
Monday, March 10, 2014
I'm Rewatching Old Movies... For Now
I've decided that for at least the next few days, I'll be watching films I have seen before and reviewed here. I figured I would do it for Letterboxd to either greatly expand on reviews that I first put up and were way short (I watched the first American Pie and later tonight I'll be talking about that there) or I hadn't done before. For example, on TCM I saw Strangers on a Train, a movie I've seen before and reviewed here.
I'll return on Friday night.
I'll return on Friday night.
Saturday, March 8, 2014
Cobra Thunderbolt
Cobra Thunderbolt (1984)
Runtime: 89 minutes
Directed by: Tanong Srichua
Starring: Sorapong Chatree, Rapeetran Kornsakul, Krung Srivilai, Siriporn Lamsoontron
From: Saha Mongol
Here's another review where a lot of it is copied and pasted from my Letterboxd review, with additional information added here. This is a super obscure Thai film I found on a site called Rare Lust, which sounds dirtier than it actually is. It's a site filled with links to downloads of real obscure films. I picked it out due to its title, the fact that there are several posters of it out there and all are 80's-riffic awesome, and the description.
To write up the plot description myself: This is about an armored vehicle known as the Cobra Thunderbolt. It is designed by an ex soldier in a wheelchair known as COLONEL DAVE. He has a daughter known as LIEUTENANT MOLLY. A private army and weapons dealers are both looking for the blueprints for the vehicle and they're willing to kidnap the mom/wife of the family to do so.
Now, onto the part I copied on over from Letterboxd.
I discovered this film then "acquired" a copy of it from the bowels of the Internet. I had to see it after seeing the title, looking at the poster, then finding out it's from Thailand. There was a copy online but it vanished just recently. Don't ask how I know but it seems to be a common thing for Russians to dub movies by having one dude translate the dialogue over the audio of the movie. Really. So, the YouTube copy was an English dub of a Thai movie with Japanese subtitles and a Russian was speaking over it. Crazy.
As I found out, it wasn't just in recent years that Thailand has produced crazy wacky action movies. This is one of them. While there are some slow spots and there is ineptitude all around, I rate it as such due to pure entertainment value.
If you enjoy low-budget zany action films from the 80's then this is worth seeing. If you enjoy the likes of Miami Connection, Order of the Black Eagle, Action USA, or 80's movies also from Southeast Asia such as The Stabilizer (which is even crazier and better than this) or various Filipino programmers, then you'll likely also enjoy this.
The movie contains the following:
* A vehicle (where you get the title of the film) that reminded me of the one from Damnation Alley.
* Hilariously bad dubbing. That was a good part of its charm to me.
* Plenty of gratuitous explosions and general carnage during the action scenes, including a gas station blowing the F up. Also, plenty of gratuitous dirtbike wheelies.
* A guy whose name is either Dick Simone or Dick S'more (he's a convict but he's supposed to be one of the good guys despite having escaped from jail and helps out Dave and Molly) drives the title vehicle while wearing an Oakland Raiders football helmet, just because.
* A dirtbike stunt that obviously went wrong (I presume it was supposed to clear all the cars; it fell a little short and the stuntman crashed and burned) and yet they left it in.
* A random Snoopy poster is seen in a newspaper's headquarters. I do not know why either.
* Molly uses a JETPACK as if she's James Bond.
* An incredible 80's synth soundtrack. It was great, even if it got repetitive at times.
There's more but I don't want to give everything away. You'll know by now if this is up your alley or if you should avoid.
I shall return on Monday night.
Runtime: 89 minutes
Directed by: Tanong Srichua
Starring: Sorapong Chatree, Rapeetran Kornsakul, Krung Srivilai, Siriporn Lamsoontron
From: Saha Mongol
Here's another review where a lot of it is copied and pasted from my Letterboxd review, with additional information added here. This is a super obscure Thai film I found on a site called Rare Lust, which sounds dirtier than it actually is. It's a site filled with links to downloads of real obscure films. I picked it out due to its title, the fact that there are several posters of it out there and all are 80's-riffic awesome, and the description.
To write up the plot description myself: This is about an armored vehicle known as the Cobra Thunderbolt. It is designed by an ex soldier in a wheelchair known as COLONEL DAVE. He has a daughter known as LIEUTENANT MOLLY. A private army and weapons dealers are both looking for the blueprints for the vehicle and they're willing to kidnap the mom/wife of the family to do so.
Now, onto the part I copied on over from Letterboxd.
I discovered this film then "acquired" a copy of it from the bowels of the Internet. I had to see it after seeing the title, looking at the poster, then finding out it's from Thailand. There was a copy online but it vanished just recently. Don't ask how I know but it seems to be a common thing for Russians to dub movies by having one dude translate the dialogue over the audio of the movie. Really. So, the YouTube copy was an English dub of a Thai movie with Japanese subtitles and a Russian was speaking over it. Crazy.
As I found out, it wasn't just in recent years that Thailand has produced crazy wacky action movies. This is one of them. While there are some slow spots and there is ineptitude all around, I rate it as such due to pure entertainment value.
If you enjoy low-budget zany action films from the 80's then this is worth seeing. If you enjoy the likes of Miami Connection, Order of the Black Eagle, Action USA, or 80's movies also from Southeast Asia such as The Stabilizer (which is even crazier and better than this) or various Filipino programmers, then you'll likely also enjoy this.
The movie contains the following:
* A vehicle (where you get the title of the film) that reminded me of the one from Damnation Alley.
* Hilariously bad dubbing. That was a good part of its charm to me.
* Plenty of gratuitous explosions and general carnage during the action scenes, including a gas station blowing the F up. Also, plenty of gratuitous dirtbike wheelies.
* A guy whose name is either Dick Simone or Dick S'more (he's a convict but he's supposed to be one of the good guys despite having escaped from jail and helps out Dave and Molly) drives the title vehicle while wearing an Oakland Raiders football helmet, just because.
* A dirtbike stunt that obviously went wrong (I presume it was supposed to clear all the cars; it fell a little short and the stuntman crashed and burned) and yet they left it in.
* A random Snoopy poster is seen in a newspaper's headquarters. I do not know why either.
* Molly uses a JETPACK as if she's James Bond.
* An incredible 80's synth soundtrack. It was great, even if it got repetitive at times.
There's more but I don't want to give everything away. You'll know by now if this is up your alley or if you should avoid.
I shall return on Monday night.
Friday, March 7, 2014
My Top 11 Films Of 2013
Finally, in the early part of 2014 here is my best 11 movies of 2013. You can click on the titles for each movie to read my original review for it.
11 Nebraska. The movie is a quite entertaining drama with plenty of comedy. I was always interested in this black and white indy movie and it was nice to see it with a large crowd.
10 The Last Stand. I know this polarizes people but I am in the camp that really enjoyed it. While this wasn't the director's previous action movie (The Good, The Bad, The Weird), this is still a lot of fun, with sweet action, nice setpieces, and humorous moments... even with Johnny Knoxville.
9 Behind the Candelabra. This is an HBO movie I watched on YouTube. It is a wacky entertaining true story of Liberace and his longtime gay lover.
8 Pain & Gain. This is a movie I am surprised I am rating this high due to my opinion of the director's usual work. But, with style and plenty of twisted humor, I had a blast with it.
7 You're Next. This is a movie I am surprised I am rating this high due to my opinion of the director's usual work. But, with style and plenty of twisted humor, I had a blast with it.
6 Captain Phillips. Paul Greengrass is another director I don't actively seek out (mainly due to how he films this movie) but he did a great job here. Also great was the performances all around, especially from Hanks.
5 The Conjuring. This did live up to all the hype I had heard. It really was that good as entertainment, a thriller, and a horror film. Things are done right and it's no cheap jump scares BS. There are plenty of legit scares and creepy moments.
4 Furious 6. I know that this one and Fast Five are really ridiculous, but Goddamn if they aren't a blast to watch, especially on the big screen. They're no-brainer action movies done right. Sure, if you think about it, the ending and its 32 mile or so runway (yes, someone did the math) is real stupid. Who cares, though!?
3 Pacific Rim. I know this is a polarizing film and some actually hate it. I don't get it. While you can squabble about some things, overall it is a blast to watch, with colorful characters and situation, a bitchin' world, and awesome battles between giant monsters and giant robots.
2 The Wolf of Wall Street. I understand why some would be turned off by this, given how it's so vulgar, loud, and in your face. However, I was greatly entertained by it... and sometimes horrified too by what that drug-crazed loon Jordan Belfort would do. It was done in a way that worked and a method that only Scorsese could pull off. I was relieved I enjoyed it as much as I did.
1 Gravity. Now having seen it twice, I am now certain this is my movie of 2013. From the way it looked to the very long shots, the suspense and the performances, it was all tremendous. Seeing someone I know on Facebook say the movie was “boring”, and some of his friends (none of whom I know) agreed with him... that made me very sad. Then again, I rarely agree with him when it comes to movies. Not to be an ass but I think his tastes are awful so I really shouldn't be surprised he didn't like an awesome film like this.
Hopefully everyone found this to be an interesting list. I'll return tomorrow night and the movie I plan on watching is one of those hilarious wacky action motion pictures from the 80's.
11 Nebraska. The movie is a quite entertaining drama with plenty of comedy. I was always interested in this black and white indy movie and it was nice to see it with a large crowd.
10 The Last Stand. I know this polarizes people but I am in the camp that really enjoyed it. While this wasn't the director's previous action movie (The Good, The Bad, The Weird), this is still a lot of fun, with sweet action, nice setpieces, and humorous moments... even with Johnny Knoxville.
9 Behind the Candelabra. This is an HBO movie I watched on YouTube. It is a wacky entertaining true story of Liberace and his longtime gay lover.
8 Pain & Gain. This is a movie I am surprised I am rating this high due to my opinion of the director's usual work. But, with style and plenty of twisted humor, I had a blast with it.
7 You're Next. This is a movie I am surprised I am rating this high due to my opinion of the director's usual work. But, with style and plenty of twisted humor, I had a blast with it.
6 Captain Phillips. Paul Greengrass is another director I don't actively seek out (mainly due to how he films this movie) but he did a great job here. Also great was the performances all around, especially from Hanks.
5 The Conjuring. This did live up to all the hype I had heard. It really was that good as entertainment, a thriller, and a horror film. Things are done right and it's no cheap jump scares BS. There are plenty of legit scares and creepy moments.
4 Furious 6. I know that this one and Fast Five are really ridiculous, but Goddamn if they aren't a blast to watch, especially on the big screen. They're no-brainer action movies done right. Sure, if you think about it, the ending and its 32 mile or so runway (yes, someone did the math) is real stupid. Who cares, though!?
3 Pacific Rim. I know this is a polarizing film and some actually hate it. I don't get it. While you can squabble about some things, overall it is a blast to watch, with colorful characters and situation, a bitchin' world, and awesome battles between giant monsters and giant robots.
2 The Wolf of Wall Street. I understand why some would be turned off by this, given how it's so vulgar, loud, and in your face. However, I was greatly entertained by it... and sometimes horrified too by what that drug-crazed loon Jordan Belfort would do. It was done in a way that worked and a method that only Scorsese could pull off. I was relieved I enjoyed it as much as I did.
1 Gravity. Now having seen it twice, I am now certain this is my movie of 2013. From the way it looked to the very long shots, the suspense and the performances, it was all tremendous. Seeing someone I know on Facebook say the movie was “boring”, and some of his friends (none of whom I know) agreed with him... that made me very sad. Then again, I rarely agree with him when it comes to movies. Not to be an ass but I think his tastes are awful so I really shouldn't be surprised he didn't like an awesome film like this.
Hopefully everyone found this to be an interesting list. I'll return tomorrow night and the movie I plan on watching is one of those hilarious wacky action motion pictures from the 80's.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Stalingrad
Stalingrad (2013)
48% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 62 reviews)
Runtime: 131 minutes
Directed by: Fedor Bondarchuk
Starring: Mariya Smolnikova, Yanina Studlina, Pyotr Fyodorov, Thomas Kreschmann
From: Art Pictures Studio/Non-Stop Productions
I will presume that most people in the United States don't know this is a popular Russian 3D film from last year that shockingly was released this past Friday on a little over 300 IMAX screens across the United States for one week and a lot of the traffic it does get is from people seeing it on the marquee once they get to the theatre and once they're told by the ticket seller what it's all about, they take a chance on it. I know I haven't seen any advertising for it and I stumbled across it even being a thing while looking up theatre listings on AMC's website.
Not surprisingly, after it leaves theatres tonight it'll likely make around 800,000 dollars at the box office and that's with IMAX 3D prices. The fact that this Russian film was released here when many Americans are pissed at Russia in general (I'll leave it at that to avoid talking about world politics here) couldn't have helped either. Talk about rotten timing for Sony, who put it out in the United States. It was quite the risk for Sony to put out a Russian film in Russian and German that's subtitled and I figured I should give them a few bucks as that may help them continue to do things like release these random foreign movies, whether it be this or the awesome The Raid: Redemption or The Raid sequel, which is out later in the month and I am REALLY looking forward to it.
To take the plot description from Letterboxd: "Drama set in 1942, during one of the most important battles of World War II, which stopped the progress of Nazi forces and turned the tide of war in favor of the Allies. The Soviet army mounts a counter-attack on the Nazi forces that occupy half of Stalingrad on the other side of the Volga, but the operation to cross the river is unsuccessful. A few soldiers who managed to get to the other side take refuge in a house on the bank of Volga. Here they find a girl who didn’t escape when the Germans came. While the whole might of the German army descends onto them, the heroes of Stalingrad experience love, loss, joy and the sense of ultimate freedom that can only be felt by those about to die."
Yep, much of the movie is either spent at the house with a handful of Russian soldiers and an attractive young 18 year old girl who stays around just because (Smolnikova) and you also sometimes spend times with a German soldier and the camp he's in and he has a Russian girl who he holds against her will. He is played by Kreschmann, a German actor who was in the likes of King Kong, Blade II and Wanted and you'd likely recognize him. He also has what I understand will be a decent role in next year's Avengers movie.
This movie does have quite a bit of melodrama, which is OK with me. You have the guys fighting over the young girl, because they're men. You find out about their background, and I know why people wouldn't care for that or seeing the relationship with the German and his girl, or that this looks at the huge battle on a small personal scale. I was fine with it.
What you care the most about with this... the action scenes and the effects. I say that they look real nice, especially considering the budget was estimated at what would be 30 million American dollars, a fraction of the bloated budget most Hollywood blockbusters are these days. The sound was LOUD and it sounded real good too. You see the expected war violence with physical fights, gun battles, and a lot of shit exploding and things being on fire. It was bitchin' to see in IMAX 3D. A lot of it was filmed on actual sets, which was appreciated by me.
Overall, I did enjoy this movie and I am glad I am one of the few who saw it this week. It's comparable to American action movies, both good and bad. At least Russia can do it too and put on fine entertainment. It was a hit in its home country and elsewhere, at least.
Oh, and I almost forgot: the movie is framed at the beginning and end by a Russian rescue team in Fukushima, Japan after the nuclear disaster and they help some trapped Germans. Really. I heard about this beforehand so I wasn't shocked or befuddled by how the movie began.
I will return tomorrow night.
48% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 62 reviews)
Runtime: 131 minutes
Directed by: Fedor Bondarchuk
Starring: Mariya Smolnikova, Yanina Studlina, Pyotr Fyodorov, Thomas Kreschmann
From: Art Pictures Studio/Non-Stop Productions
I will presume that most people in the United States don't know this is a popular Russian 3D film from last year that shockingly was released this past Friday on a little over 300 IMAX screens across the United States for one week and a lot of the traffic it does get is from people seeing it on the marquee once they get to the theatre and once they're told by the ticket seller what it's all about, they take a chance on it. I know I haven't seen any advertising for it and I stumbled across it even being a thing while looking up theatre listings on AMC's website.
Not surprisingly, after it leaves theatres tonight it'll likely make around 800,000 dollars at the box office and that's with IMAX 3D prices. The fact that this Russian film was released here when many Americans are pissed at Russia in general (I'll leave it at that to avoid talking about world politics here) couldn't have helped either. Talk about rotten timing for Sony, who put it out in the United States. It was quite the risk for Sony to put out a Russian film in Russian and German that's subtitled and I figured I should give them a few bucks as that may help them continue to do things like release these random foreign movies, whether it be this or the awesome The Raid: Redemption or The Raid sequel, which is out later in the month and I am REALLY looking forward to it.
To take the plot description from Letterboxd: "Drama set in 1942, during one of the most important battles of World War II, which stopped the progress of Nazi forces and turned the tide of war in favor of the Allies. The Soviet army mounts a counter-attack on the Nazi forces that occupy half of Stalingrad on the other side of the Volga, but the operation to cross the river is unsuccessful. A few soldiers who managed to get to the other side take refuge in a house on the bank of Volga. Here they find a girl who didn’t escape when the Germans came. While the whole might of the German army descends onto them, the heroes of Stalingrad experience love, loss, joy and the sense of ultimate freedom that can only be felt by those about to die."
Yep, much of the movie is either spent at the house with a handful of Russian soldiers and an attractive young 18 year old girl who stays around just because (Smolnikova) and you also sometimes spend times with a German soldier and the camp he's in and he has a Russian girl who he holds against her will. He is played by Kreschmann, a German actor who was in the likes of King Kong, Blade II and Wanted and you'd likely recognize him. He also has what I understand will be a decent role in next year's Avengers movie.
This movie does have quite a bit of melodrama, which is OK with me. You have the guys fighting over the young girl, because they're men. You find out about their background, and I know why people wouldn't care for that or seeing the relationship with the German and his girl, or that this looks at the huge battle on a small personal scale. I was fine with it.
What you care the most about with this... the action scenes and the effects. I say that they look real nice, especially considering the budget was estimated at what would be 30 million American dollars, a fraction of the bloated budget most Hollywood blockbusters are these days. The sound was LOUD and it sounded real good too. You see the expected war violence with physical fights, gun battles, and a lot of shit exploding and things being on fire. It was bitchin' to see in IMAX 3D. A lot of it was filmed on actual sets, which was appreciated by me.
Overall, I did enjoy this movie and I am glad I am one of the few who saw it this week. It's comparable to American action movies, both good and bad. At least Russia can do it too and put on fine entertainment. It was a hit in its home country and elsewhere, at least.
Oh, and I almost forgot: the movie is framed at the beginning and end by a Russian rescue team in Fukushima, Japan after the nuclear disaster and they help some trapped Germans. Really. I heard about this beforehand so I wasn't shocked or befuddled by how the movie began.
I will return tomorrow night.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Captain Phillips/American Hustle
Captain Phillips (2013)
93% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 235 reviews)
Runtime: 134 minutes
Directed by: Paul Greengrass
Starring: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Faysal Ahmed, Mahat A. Ali
From: Columbia Pictures
American Hustle (2013)
93% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 241 reviews)
Runtime: 138 minutes
Directed by: David O. Russell (no relation, I swear)
Starring: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner
From: Columbia Pictures
Tonight, I close out talking about the movie marathon I had on Saturday by talking about the two more mainstream films I saw for the first time. First, Captain Phillips.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “Captain Phillips is a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container ship Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. It is - through director Paul Greengrass's distinctive lens - simultaneously a pulse-pounding thriller, and a complex portrait of the myriad effects of globalization. The film focuses on the relationship between the Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (two time Academy Award®-winner Tom Hanks), and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi), who takes him hostage. Phillips and Muse are set on an unstoppable collision course when Muse and his crew target Phillips' unarmed ship; in the ensuing standoff, 145 miles off the Somali coast, both men will find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control.”
I have to say first that while I remember hearing about the case as it happened (it was the first act of piracy against an American ship since the early 19th century) but I knew little of the details. That allowed for me to be engrossed in the story as I did not know what would happen next. I know that not everything in the movie was 100% factual, but I figured that beforehand.
I'll be honest and say that I usually don't seek out the films of Paul Greengrass. His trademark of shaky-cam way too quick editing BS is NOT for me, as I've mentioned many times before. But, if that was present in the movie, I didn't even notice it. That should say a lot about how this tale is told and how interesting it was for me. The newbie actors were great as the villains (while Abdi apparently is broke as of today, he did deserve the Oscar nomination he got) and I'd say that Hanks also deserved a nomination, which he didn't get but he was great as the title character. As others have noted, the final 10 or so minutes you see the Captain on screen... that was a tremendous bit of acting, and I'll leave it at that.
This is a very intense sale with a lot of suspense (part of the film is the crew of the ship hiding out from the pirates, and all that ensued) and you also get empathy... even from the villains, who come across as pawns in a bigger game. This will be on my Top 10 list of 2013 (coming out in a few days, or that's the plan), for sure.
Now, onto American Hustle, which I won't say as much flowery things about. To steal the plot description from Letterboxd: "A fictional film set in the alluring world of one of the most stunning scandals to rock our nation, American Hustle tells the story of brilliant con man Irving Rosenfeld, who along with his equally cunning and seductive partner Sydney Prosser, is forced to work for a wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia that's as dangerous as it is enchanting. Carmine Polito is the mayor of Camden, the passionate, volatile, New Jersey political operator caught between the con-artists and Feds. Irving's unpredictable wife Rosalyn could be the one to pull the thread that brings the entire world crashing down."
The rest of this review is taken from my Letterboxd review. Note that this is only barely based on the real life Abscam operation done by the FBI, done by the director who once called Lily Tomlin "a c*nt". You can read about Abscam on Wikipedia or other places. As for the next time I'll be back, it'll be Thursday night.
How do I put this best... I don't usually seek out the films of David O. Russell (no relation). Besides how he does movies, the way that he treats the talent who work for him... a HUGE turn-off for me.
Still, I tried to give this a fair chance, despite the backlash that came out after receiving a whole lot of praise. Well, I have to agree with the backlash. Right away, seeing a bunch of awful characters treating each other horribly gave me pause but I was hoping that I would end up finding them very interesting and fun to watch despite them being morally repugnant. After all, I enjoy films like The Wolf of Wall Street and Goodfellas and those have characters you'd never call heroes.
However, by the end I was turned off by this long rambling mess of a movie; I would have much rather preferred reading the actual events of the Abscam operation rather than this wannabe Scorsese thing that only barely is based on that real-life situation.
Sure, the 70's setting was cool and I enjoyed the soundtrack and the outfits (especially most of the shirts that Amy Adams wore...) but when you can't stand any of the characters and they love to ramble on incessantly and the way they act is nonsensical, I am not going to enjoy this and all the awards this has won is just baffling to me. I absolutely do not understand it.
I can tell you that I could NOT stand the character that Jennifer Lawrence played. Besides it being miscast, in real life I can't stand Lawrence and her fake dumb act... or maybe it's a legit dumb thing, I don't know... point is, that was such a grating character no matter who would have played her and I don't care if that was supposed to be how she came across, it was a huge turn-off and I groaned whenever she popped back up in the story.
I have to say, after this movie it'll likely be a long time before I feel like checking out the work of the director who happens to share the same surname with me.
93% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 235 reviews)
Runtime: 134 minutes
Directed by: Paul Greengrass
Starring: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Faysal Ahmed, Mahat A. Ali
From: Columbia Pictures
American Hustle (2013)
93% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 241 reviews)
Runtime: 138 minutes
Directed by: David O. Russell (no relation, I swear)
Starring: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner
From: Columbia Pictures
Tonight, I close out talking about the movie marathon I had on Saturday by talking about the two more mainstream films I saw for the first time. First, Captain Phillips.
To steal the plot description from the IMDb: “Captain Phillips is a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container ship Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. It is - through director Paul Greengrass's distinctive lens - simultaneously a pulse-pounding thriller, and a complex portrait of the myriad effects of globalization. The film focuses on the relationship between the Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (two time Academy Award®-winner Tom Hanks), and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi), who takes him hostage. Phillips and Muse are set on an unstoppable collision course when Muse and his crew target Phillips' unarmed ship; in the ensuing standoff, 145 miles off the Somali coast, both men will find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control.”
I have to say first that while I remember hearing about the case as it happened (it was the first act of piracy against an American ship since the early 19th century) but I knew little of the details. That allowed for me to be engrossed in the story as I did not know what would happen next. I know that not everything in the movie was 100% factual, but I figured that beforehand.
I'll be honest and say that I usually don't seek out the films of Paul Greengrass. His trademark of shaky-cam way too quick editing BS is NOT for me, as I've mentioned many times before. But, if that was present in the movie, I didn't even notice it. That should say a lot about how this tale is told and how interesting it was for me. The newbie actors were great as the villains (while Abdi apparently is broke as of today, he did deserve the Oscar nomination he got) and I'd say that Hanks also deserved a nomination, which he didn't get but he was great as the title character. As others have noted, the final 10 or so minutes you see the Captain on screen... that was a tremendous bit of acting, and I'll leave it at that.
This is a very intense sale with a lot of suspense (part of the film is the crew of the ship hiding out from the pirates, and all that ensued) and you also get empathy... even from the villains, who come across as pawns in a bigger game. This will be on my Top 10 list of 2013 (coming out in a few days, or that's the plan), for sure.
Now, onto American Hustle, which I won't say as much flowery things about. To steal the plot description from Letterboxd: "A fictional film set in the alluring world of one of the most stunning scandals to rock our nation, American Hustle tells the story of brilliant con man Irving Rosenfeld, who along with his equally cunning and seductive partner Sydney Prosser, is forced to work for a wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia that's as dangerous as it is enchanting. Carmine Polito is the mayor of Camden, the passionate, volatile, New Jersey political operator caught between the con-artists and Feds. Irving's unpredictable wife Rosalyn could be the one to pull the thread that brings the entire world crashing down."
The rest of this review is taken from my Letterboxd review. Note that this is only barely based on the real life Abscam operation done by the FBI, done by the director who once called Lily Tomlin "a c*nt". You can read about Abscam on Wikipedia or other places. As for the next time I'll be back, it'll be Thursday night.
How do I put this best... I don't usually seek out the films of David O. Russell (no relation). Besides how he does movies, the way that he treats the talent who work for him... a HUGE turn-off for me.
Still, I tried to give this a fair chance, despite the backlash that came out after receiving a whole lot of praise. Well, I have to agree with the backlash. Right away, seeing a bunch of awful characters treating each other horribly gave me pause but I was hoping that I would end up finding them very interesting and fun to watch despite them being morally repugnant. After all, I enjoy films like The Wolf of Wall Street and Goodfellas and those have characters you'd never call heroes.
However, by the end I was turned off by this long rambling mess of a movie; I would have much rather preferred reading the actual events of the Abscam operation rather than this wannabe Scorsese thing that only barely is based on that real-life situation.
Sure, the 70's setting was cool and I enjoyed the soundtrack and the outfits (especially most of the shirts that Amy Adams wore...) but when you can't stand any of the characters and they love to ramble on incessantly and the way they act is nonsensical, I am not going to enjoy this and all the awards this has won is just baffling to me. I absolutely do not understand it.
I can tell you that I could NOT stand the character that Jennifer Lawrence played. Besides it being miscast, in real life I can't stand Lawrence and her fake dumb act... or maybe it's a legit dumb thing, I don't know... point is, that was such a grating character no matter who would have played her and I don't care if that was supposed to be how she came across, it was a huge turn-off and I groaned whenever she popped back up in the story.
I have to say, after this movie it'll likely be a long time before I feel like checking out the work of the director who happens to share the same surname with me.
Monday, March 3, 2014
Nebraska/Her
Nebraska (2013)
92% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 209 reviews)
Runtime: 115 minutes
Directed by: Alexander Payne
Starring: Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Bob Odenkirk, June Squibb, Stacy Keach
From: Paramount Vantage
Her (2013)
94% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 220 reviews)
Runtime: 126 minutes
Directed by: Spike Jonze
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, the voice of Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Chris Pratt
From: Warner Brothers
Tonight, I decided to talk about the two independent movies I saw during Saturday's marathon. Tomorrow night it's the more commercial films I'll review; it'll be the two I hadn't seen already. I'll talk about Nebraska first.
Via the IMDb, here's the plot to Nebraska: “An aging, booze-addled father makes the trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim a million-dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize.” Of course it's about more than that. A lot of the runtime is spent in a random rural town in Nebraska that the father and his wife Kate (Squibb) grew up in; they get to meet up with family and friends they hadn't seen in a long time. The father is insistent that he did win a milllion dollars even if everyone else realizes that those things are a giant scam; you know, it's like Publisher's Clearing House.
Overall, this black and white film was quite entertaining. It's a drama but there are plenty of humorous moments. Dern's character-Woody-is a lifelong alcoholic and there's natural friction between him and his son (Forte, who does a nice job in a mostly dramatic role even though he's mainly a comedy actor) due to his troubles and him being an irascible person. Woody and his wife Kate often argue with each other but they still love each other; you know how it is. I'd say that Dern and Squibb both deserved their nominations. He did a great job portraying that alcoholic character who often stumbles around and does wacky things. She also did a great job playing a woman who seems to be cranky often and at times she can be someone vulgar who likes to curse, but she's a nice gal overall...
The (fictional) Nebraska town was a very small town and it looked run-down and downright depressing at times, with various businesses closed down. The people there (most of whom you see are older people; it is nice that there are movies out there that mostly consist of those up there in age and those actors can get work) try to make it by but they seem to be doing decently, all things considered. However, with Woody telling everyone that he's a millionaire, there is drama with his young cousins (one of whom is best known for being Buzz from the Home Alone movies!) and also from an old buddy (Stacy Keach).
It's a nice film where you do have such things as character arcs as father and son do get to know each other better and their relationship does change. It was pretty cool seeing it on the big screen with a crowd that laughed at the funny moments. Me, I enjoyed how you briefly heard the Foghat song Fool for the City because hey, it's Foghat. And, I enjoyed how Stacy Keach did karaoke; it was as funny as you'd expect hearing that golden voice of his sing.
Now, onto Her...
To steal the plot description from the IMDb, but shortened by me: "Theodore is a lonely man in the final stages of his divorce. When he's not working as a letter writer, his down time is spent playing video games and occasionally hanging out with friends. He decides to purchase the new OS1, which is advertised as the world's first artificially intelligent operating system, "It's not just an operating system, it's a consciousness," the ad states. Theodore quickly finds himself drawn in with Samantha, the voice behind his OS1. As they start spending time together they grow closer and closer and eventually find themselves in love. Having fallen in love with his OS, Theodore finds himself dealing with feelings of both great joy and doubt...”
I'll be honest here... what little I've seen of Spike Jonze when it comes to feature films, he is just not for me. I thought that Being John Malkovich was more strange than anything else. Here, Her had quality performances, a visual style unlike most others, unique insights, and additional things... yet, there was something there that was distancing myself from loving the movie. Sure, I enjoyed Olivia Wilde's brief role and how I thought she looked hotter here than she ever had before. But, you know what I mean.
Maybe it was the overwhelming quirkiness and/or maybe it was other things. It's just that I did not love this movie like many others have. I rate it as a little above average; it's not a 5 star classic to me. I couldn't tell you why all the men in the movie dressed funny in this “near-future” film where it looked like the Japanese or Chinese have a huge influence on Los Angeles, at least judging by street signs.
I wish I could have enjoyed it like others did; oh well... there was laughter at various times. Sometimes it was rather uproarious and other times it was of the nervous kind, which is understandable, with what strange shit you see in this movie, to put it bluntly. One lady in the crowd couldn't stop giggling for at least a minute straight, and I'm not sure what it was that broke her. I remember it was before the movie winded down and I thought it ended in a silly and not that satisfying way. Maybe it was just me, though.
I shall return tomorrow night.
92% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 209 reviews)
Runtime: 115 minutes
Directed by: Alexander Payne
Starring: Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Bob Odenkirk, June Squibb, Stacy Keach
From: Paramount Vantage
Her (2013)
94% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 220 reviews)
Runtime: 126 minutes
Directed by: Spike Jonze
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, the voice of Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Chris Pratt
From: Warner Brothers
Tonight, I decided to talk about the two independent movies I saw during Saturday's marathon. Tomorrow night it's the more commercial films I'll review; it'll be the two I hadn't seen already. I'll talk about Nebraska first.
Via the IMDb, here's the plot to Nebraska: “An aging, booze-addled father makes the trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim a million-dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize.” Of course it's about more than that. A lot of the runtime is spent in a random rural town in Nebraska that the father and his wife Kate (Squibb) grew up in; they get to meet up with family and friends they hadn't seen in a long time. The father is insistent that he did win a milllion dollars even if everyone else realizes that those things are a giant scam; you know, it's like Publisher's Clearing House.
Overall, this black and white film was quite entertaining. It's a drama but there are plenty of humorous moments. Dern's character-Woody-is a lifelong alcoholic and there's natural friction between him and his son (Forte, who does a nice job in a mostly dramatic role even though he's mainly a comedy actor) due to his troubles and him being an irascible person. Woody and his wife Kate often argue with each other but they still love each other; you know how it is. I'd say that Dern and Squibb both deserved their nominations. He did a great job portraying that alcoholic character who often stumbles around and does wacky things. She also did a great job playing a woman who seems to be cranky often and at times she can be someone vulgar who likes to curse, but she's a nice gal overall...
The (fictional) Nebraska town was a very small town and it looked run-down and downright depressing at times, with various businesses closed down. The people there (most of whom you see are older people; it is nice that there are movies out there that mostly consist of those up there in age and those actors can get work) try to make it by but they seem to be doing decently, all things considered. However, with Woody telling everyone that he's a millionaire, there is drama with his young cousins (one of whom is best known for being Buzz from the Home Alone movies!) and also from an old buddy (Stacy Keach).
It's a nice film where you do have such things as character arcs as father and son do get to know each other better and their relationship does change. It was pretty cool seeing it on the big screen with a crowd that laughed at the funny moments. Me, I enjoyed how you briefly heard the Foghat song Fool for the City because hey, it's Foghat. And, I enjoyed how Stacy Keach did karaoke; it was as funny as you'd expect hearing that golden voice of his sing.
Now, onto Her...
To steal the plot description from the IMDb, but shortened by me: "Theodore is a lonely man in the final stages of his divorce. When he's not working as a letter writer, his down time is spent playing video games and occasionally hanging out with friends. He decides to purchase the new OS1, which is advertised as the world's first artificially intelligent operating system, "It's not just an operating system, it's a consciousness," the ad states. Theodore quickly finds himself drawn in with Samantha, the voice behind his OS1. As they start spending time together they grow closer and closer and eventually find themselves in love. Having fallen in love with his OS, Theodore finds himself dealing with feelings of both great joy and doubt...”
I'll be honest here... what little I've seen of Spike Jonze when it comes to feature films, he is just not for me. I thought that Being John Malkovich was more strange than anything else. Here, Her had quality performances, a visual style unlike most others, unique insights, and additional things... yet, there was something there that was distancing myself from loving the movie. Sure, I enjoyed Olivia Wilde's brief role and how I thought she looked hotter here than she ever had before. But, you know what I mean.
Maybe it was the overwhelming quirkiness and/or maybe it was other things. It's just that I did not love this movie like many others have. I rate it as a little above average; it's not a 5 star classic to me. I couldn't tell you why all the men in the movie dressed funny in this “near-future” film where it looked like the Japanese or Chinese have a huge influence on Los Angeles, at least judging by street signs.
I wish I could have enjoyed it like others did; oh well... there was laughter at various times. Sometimes it was rather uproarious and other times it was of the nervous kind, which is understandable, with what strange shit you see in this movie, to put it bluntly. One lady in the crowd couldn't stop giggling for at least a minute straight, and I'm not sure what it was that broke her. I remember it was before the movie winded down and I thought it ended in a silly and not that satisfying way. Maybe it was just me, though.
I shall return tomorrow night.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
A Recap Of Yesterday
I am changing things up and tonight before the Oscars begin (which I'll have on mute and I'll sort of pay attention to it) I wanted to post a little thing where I talked about seeing 5 films on the big screen in a 12 hour period. Tomorrow night I'll write about Nebraska and Her and Tuesday night was Captain Phillips and American Hustle. There is a reason why I'm doing it that way, which I'll explain tomorrow night.
I went to the AMC Theatres at Downtown Disney to check it out. You got a lanyard to wear so between the movies you could go outside to eat, smoke a cigarette, or what have you. I could have done without the asstagonist who MC'ed things between the films and acted like a loud loathsome lout while yelling and screaming nonsense in between giving out goofy prizes for trivia where basically it was the person who could look up the answer fastest on their smartphone... yes, I ended up avoiding the auditorium when he was in it.
I had no idea what the attendance would be but it was far more popular than I would have suspected. It was cool that what I'd guess would be at least 200 people could view a small independent like Nebraska alongside something more popular like Captain Phillips. It was a real mix of people and thankfully there were little problems with how people acted while viewing the movies. I have had problems in the past with rude inconsiderate A-holes at a movie theatre but aside from the MC there was no issues.
I am thinking that at the end of the week I will finally have up my list of the Best Movies of 2013. The list now seems complete. And, I'll be back tomorrow night.
I went to the AMC Theatres at Downtown Disney to check it out. You got a lanyard to wear so between the movies you could go outside to eat, smoke a cigarette, or what have you. I could have done without the asstagonist who MC'ed things between the films and acted like a loud loathsome lout while yelling and screaming nonsense in between giving out goofy prizes for trivia where basically it was the person who could look up the answer fastest on their smartphone... yes, I ended up avoiding the auditorium when he was in it.
I had no idea what the attendance would be but it was far more popular than I would have suspected. It was cool that what I'd guess would be at least 200 people could view a small independent like Nebraska alongside something more popular like Captain Phillips. It was a real mix of people and thankfully there were little problems with how people acted while viewing the movies. I have had problems in the past with rude inconsiderate A-holes at a movie theatre but aside from the MC there was no issues.
I am thinking that at the end of the week I will finally have up my list of the Best Movies of 2013. The list now seems complete. And, I'll be back tomorrow night.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)