The Brits rarely let me down in the horror field, this one is certainly no exception.
The year is 1947 and Anton Diffring, best known for playing nasty nazis in many war films, is Doctor Rossitor, a plastic surgeon with extremely questionable work ethics. Seems he's botched an illegal operation with horrific results and is now "on the run".
Finding refuge in a run down circus owned by Donald Pleasance, (who gives us another simply marvelous performance, one of my favorite actors), soon Rossitor owns the circus and changes his name.
Fast forward ten years. The big top is making filthy lucre and Rossitor, now named Schuler, has taken in an entourage of former thieves and murderers and he's blackmailing every one of them. Still wanted by the police he retains his "medical" practice and kills off whomever threatens to expose or leave him.
The cast is a Euro Cult enthusiast's dream with a bevy of beautiful women in skimpy attire. The double whammy of Yvonne Monlaur, (Brides Of Dracula) and Yvonne Romain, (Curse Of The Werewolf) will knock you off your feet.
Perfect entertainment. There's even Walter Gotell (General Gogol) as a monocled gentleman.
File this one next to Michael Gough's scenery chewing Horrors Of The Black Museum for pure afternoon pop corn wasting FUN.
I was a little nervous at first about seeing a film in spanish since I normally don't watch movies that aren't in english. However, I had been hearing lots of great reviews for this film and stumbling across it at the rental store the other day, decided to give it a try. The fact that the film was in spanish actually didn't seem to matter much at all. I got all the dialogue from the subtitles and it was so well filmed that I got the idea of what was going on without even needing to understand the words. Five minutes in and I didn't even notice I was reading subtitles, was just caught up in the film, and it is a good one. I enjoyed all the fantasy elements the most and was slightly disappointed that more attention wasn't paid to them but still enjoyed the rest of the film. And oh boy, that creature with eyes in its hands..... that was quite creepy.
I Am Legend
Another enjoyable film, though that wasn't a big surprise to me since I generally enjoy anything with Will Smith. There were some creepy moments and I always got a bit of a shiver on my spine when his watch would beep signaling the arrival of night. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. It seemed very sudden to me and left me with a "is that all?" feeling. I have heard that the ending in the book is different so I may check that out sometime to see if I find that more satisfying.
I was a little nervous about this film at first because it was written and directed by Tim Robbins and he's a little to political about everything for my taste. But despite the strong political themes of this film, I found it to be a very enjoyable character piece. There were many brilliant actors in this film. I particularly liked Bill Murray, John Turturro and Emily Watson.
Colin Farrell in fine performance shocker! Seriously. I'm not joking. This is an aimable, little movie with a couple of Irish hitmen, played by Farrell and Bernard Gleeson killing time and eventually some people in Bruges. Ordered to lie low by their boss Harry (Ralph Fiennes) until he gets in touch with them, the two spend their time bickering. Gleeson wants to see the sights, while Farrell falls for a pretty Belgian girl, and makes friends with an angry dwarf who likes to get high on horse tranquilisers and predict impending race wars. Gleeson and Fiennes are both very good, but Farrell is outstanding. The scene where he tries to pick up the girl on a movie set by naming celebrity "midgets" who've killed themselves is hilarious. The cockiness he usually brings to his performances is still there, but it's tempered by regret, and a yearning quality that makes his awkward relationship with the girl more touching. (Incidentally she's played by Clemence Poesy, who was in Harry Potter and the something-or-other a couple of years back.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
John Carpenter's THEY LIVE
Not to the level of say - Halloween or Prince Of Darkness but this picture is a really guilty pleasure for me with its mixture of science fiction, Commando-esque action and mostly humor (The Piper/David alley scuffle is near classic for me).
The last Carpenter flick that I truly enjoyed hands down was In The Mouth Of Madness. In the 70s-80s, it was usually a given that horror fans would get their money's worth with his name tacked onto a project; I'd love for him to recapture some of that magic from his heyday in something new down the road.
Oh well, one can wish...
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Gripping prison break drama currently on cinema release in the UK, starring Brian 'Bourne Identity' Cox and Joseph Fiennes cast against character as a muscleman working class guy.
It's good stuff, the twist being that the actual break runs concurrently with the planning of the break, so it switches back and forth, leaving you on a cliffhanger with each scene.
Mind you, some duh! moments. Planning the break in the open plan prison with dominos illustrating how you're gonna break through various walls might seem a bit obvious! 8-) As indeed proves to be the case (that's not a spoiler really).
The final narrative trick might irritate some but it on the whole it was good to get away from the plasma and see a movie at the cinema - only £6 out in the sticks too! I might see Wanted tonight.
Not the kind of movie I usually watch, but I came across this one on TV last night as I was surfing around and as there wasn't much else on (280 channels and still nothing to watch) I decided to give it a chance.
Vince Vaughn and his band of likable losers square off against Ben Stiller in the national dodgeball tournament to try to win $50,000 so they can save their beloved gym from foreclosure.
In short, your typical low brow comedy film, complete with every cliche imaginable, tons of juvenile gags, and the usual cast of characters (ie: the responsibility shirking leader, the high school nerd, the socially repressed man complete with mail order bride, and the wanna-be pirate).
In spite of that unassuming pedigree, I did laugh a lot at this one. There's some genuinely funny scenes (including the first dodgeball match where the boys get owned by a bunch of girl scouts) and a few pretty humorous cameos (David Hasslehoff and William Shatner make some very unlikely appearances).
The main cast is all very funny (Ben Stiller makes for one very obnoxious and downright creepy workout guru), although the supporting actors are even better. Rip Torn is predictably solid as Patches O'Houlihan, a one-time dodgeball legend who's gone now to seed; he helps the boys achieve their potential through some pretty unorthodox training methods. Gary Cole (who has a real talent for delivering the most absurd lines with a perfectly straight face) and Jason Bateman (as a coked out Extreme Sports star) make for a hilarious broadcasting duo as they call the matches on ESPN 8 (how do I get that channel?).
Not the most sophisticated comedy ever made and definitely something of a guilty pleasure. The ending is also obviously predictable; but it still generated some good laughs.
Interesting Black and White drama from Lars Von Trier that bridges the gap between his styilised earlier films and his later rough and ready Dogme films. Part of the film is a mock making-of documentary in which Von Trier and co have a number of odd encounters while putting the project together. The only part of this I enjoyed was when Udo Kier turns up playing himself and gives a lengthy anecdote about his mother that causes him to start weeping, much to the discomfort of Von Trier and his producer. Interspersed with these moments is the story, a period piece about a virus spreading throughout Europe which is as eerily hypnotic as Von Trier's finest work.
Hopelessly derivative generic action flick based, I believe, on a computer game. (Edit: no it's a comic book) Dan Same would love it...
It's about a pod worker, James McAvoy of Atonement and Last King of Scotland fame, this time putting on an American accent. He hates his job, his life, his co-workers etc, then out of the blue this lush assassin (Angelina Jolie) is hauling him off into a different destiny. So far, so The Matrix but then there's the 'Come with me if you want to live' action scene where they're being chased by a nasty assassin and she's protecting him, it's also a bit Weird Science as the nerd is mooning over her, too.
It's all a bit like Hitman, the difference being the story arc. In Hitman, the asssassin is a cool deadly type who learns real feelings thanks to a girl he picks up, in Wanted it's a loser who learns to be a cool deadly type thanks to being picked up by a girl, it's reversed. I do prefer Wanted because the two leads are more charismatic and it has two outstanding action scenes.
That said, while I like McAvoy as an actor on principle I'm not sure he can really carry a film like this. I didn't care for his US accent, so far it's all a bit like Ewan McGregor when he tried to break into the States. He lacks the air of mystery or paradox. Really they may as well have cast an American actor. Jolie is terrific, I must begrudgingly admit she's a real celluloid turn-on and you don't get many of those these days. Naomi Watts, Mario Bello perhaps. Most US actresses I find are like schoolteachers - Demi Moore, Julia Roberts etc. A bit frosty.
This is a real dumb flick although it picks up towards the end. I think it needed a European director to tap into the moral abiguity of most of it. I mean, someone tells you to be an assassin and you just go with it? 8-) Also, this nerd is meant to be trained up but it seems to take place within a few weeks rather than a year or two... ?:)
Hopelessly derivative generic action flick based, I believe, on a computer game. (Edit: no it's a comic book) Dan Same would love it...
:v I love Hitman because it's a terrific film, not because it's based on a computer game.
I don't really want to see this film. I love Angelina Jolie but watching the trailer, I get the sense that this is probably a film which I should wait until it is on DVD to see.
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
Michael Haneke's US remake of his German movie. I got the point the first time around, and Haneke is a tiresome bore.
Why would you bother to see it, considering all the other films you could see?
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
Michael Haneke's US remake of his German movie. I got the point the first time around, and Haneke is a tiresome bore.
Why would you bother to see it, considering all the other films you could see?
sings: "And he's seen it ten times or more..."
Shoot 'em up
Sick, daft, preposterous fun with Clive Owen as a carrot-crunching shootist left literally holding the baby after coming to the aid of a pregnant woman about to be offed in a dark alley.
Someone on this board said this was the most fun they'd had since Grindhouse and it's certainly best approached that way. Owen's character is on the run from a bunch of hitmen who he lays waste like Andrex, he then ropes in a lactating Russian hooker to help out while Paul Giametti (from Sideways) hunts them down. Giametti is terrific as Owen's chief nemesis, his delivery of the line "Oh, you're a rascally rabbit!" I will long treasure.
I should have realised earlier that Owen is the Bugs Bunny character while Giametti is meant to be Elmer Fudd. This is an out and out comedy, the problem being that at first it really isn't that funny. Tarantino can do that sleazy, ironic 70s style but this still has one foot in the Die Hard era, where the action is intense and has a strong moral compass. It's not as pretentious as Wanted but after the opening, where the mom gets a bullet in the forehead just after delivery, the humour was understandably kind of lost on me for the first half hour or so.
Wall-E - This is Pixar at their pure genius best. An extremly inventive, warm and funny movie. I keep thinking at some point Pixar will lay an egg, but they never disappoint. This is a story of two robots that fall in love, sounds corny I know, but this is no Kung Fu Panda, this is cinematic genius. To have two robots that essentially do not speak convey their feeling and thoughts in actions and eye/body movement is creative filmmaking.
The crowd was made up of adults, college students and kids and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I would recommend this film for the whole family.
Before the feature Pixar has a little comedy cartoon about a magician and his rabbit which was very funny.
Lazily soporific German sexploitation film from the Seventies. Superbly lush cinematography and chic fashions - all white bikinis and huge Jackie O sunglasses.
Sadly it is a very boring film, surely the last thing you want from this kind of thing? It begins unsettlingly with some lovely shots of Istanbul (more scenic than Cluj-Napoca I suppose) that make you realise they didn't do much with the city in From Russia With Love. However, the plot is very drear - a pouty brunette infiltrates the thoughts of a blonde with all the determination of Posh Spice schmoozing the wife of a Hollywood A-list, and lures her to a nearby island, spikes her drink and seduces her in tasteful lesbo frenzy, then sends her back baffled to her dull boyfriend. This goes on and on, with no real variation or picking up the pace.
A jowley Dennis Price, he of Kind Hearts and Coronets fame pops up as some kind of occult shrink, but badly dubbed as it's all in German. Oh what a falling off there was.
"This is where we leave you Mr Bond."
Roger Moore 1927-2017
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
edited June 2008
GHOST STORY
This used to creep me out alot when I was younger but as time went by, I've regrettably felt the urge that this should be remade to follow the Peter Straub (from which the film is adapted) novel more faithfully.
A great cast and premise but it could've been better. And when I mean better, I mean creepier. Still a decent two and a half star scare. B-)
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Didn't get that one. At all. If it's a comedy, it's way off key; if not, likewise. As I said when I reviewed it some months ago, I'm totally willing to accept that I'm simply too thick to pick up the intelligence being transmitted at Shoot 'Em Up's frequency. At any rate, I'm certainly grateful I didn't pay full freight in the cinema for that one.
This is the first Clive Owen film I haven't enjoyed at all. Still, the music was great B-)
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Wanted - A very strange movie that puts action before brains. Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy and Morgan Freeman star in this film that tells the story of an everyday loser (McAvoy) who unknowingly is the son of a famous assasin. Apparently assasin skills can be passed along through genes because McAvoy literally shoots the wings off a fly the first time he fires a gun. So much of this movie is just so unbelievbable that it takes away from some of the good action scenes. Wait for the DVD.
Didn't get that one. At all. If it's a comedy, it's way off key; if not, likewise.
It took me a while to get, esp with the opening. To me it's like a Bugs Bunny or Roadrunner cartoon, or those Tom and Jerry episode where Tom is left in the house with the baby and has to ensure nothing happens to it while all hell breaks loose around him... these cartoons are never shown on telly these days, they were excellent fillers when I was growing up.
The humour is very deadpan "Put the bunny back in the box" humour, in fact Nic Cage would have been a shoe-in for this at one point. Must admit they should have had someone more obviously humorous as a leading man ie a young Michael Caine type.
Wanted is v similar to Shoot em Up except quite pretentious in comparison.
I finally saw Cloverfield. I'd heard that some people in the theaters got motion sickness from watching the shaky hand-held camerawork, and I can believe it--I had to put the DVD player on pause and take a Maalox because my stomach got so queasy. I can't imagine seeing that on a huge screen! As for the movie. . .OK as far as giant-monster-stomping-New-York movies go, though I found the characters to be a bunch of whiny twenty-something yuppies. I didn't think I was supposed to root for the monster. . .
Vox clamantis in deserto
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
To me it's like a Bugs Bunny or Roadrunner cartoon, or those Tom and Jerry episode where Tom is left in the house with the baby and has to ensure nothing happens to it while all hell breaks loose around him... these cartoons are never shown on telly these days, they were excellent fillers when I was growing up.
The Warner Bros. cartoons---and MGM's Tom and Jerry---are works of comic genius, and IMO whomever excreted Shoot 'Em Up isn't worthy to shine their creators' shoes. Mixing humour and extreme viscera is a delicate and risky thing, and this one struck me as blindingly ham-fisted. For an example of such a thing done right, I'd look to Hot Fuzz.
Still, though, just as there's someone for everyone, there's clearly an audience for every film.
I like Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti, and adore Ms. Bellucci, but I won't waste any more of my life watching that particular film again.
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
"Get Smart"
Every year on my birthday, I go to the cinema. This year, I took my sons to watch the reincarnation of Maxwell Smart---Agent 86 of Control, and his lovely sidekick Agent 99...
I had no illusions going in about whether they could match the original TV show for wit and sheer charm---that would be impossible---and I've really grown weary of Hollywood's seemingly endless capacity for retreading classic TV shows, in lieu of hiring writers with fresh ideas :v
This version of Get Smart is really more of an action comedy, with Bond-like set pieces and appropriately huge fireball explosions, and a running time of nearly two full hours. Wisely, the filmmakers didn't try to copy the TV show; rather than an out-and-out idiot, their Maxwell Smart is actually a brilliant analyst with a savant-like grasp of detail and the minutiae of intelligence...but he's failed the agent exam seven times ) In this film, he finally gets his chance...
The performances vary: Anne Hathaway is great (and irresistible :x :x :x ) as Agent 99. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is very good as Agent 23. Terence Stamp makes a great Bond-style villain...and WWE's "The Great Khali"---all 7'2", and 400+ pounds of him---is a picture-perfect ripoff of a Bond-style 'Jaws' henchman...
...right down to the blatant theft of MR's skydiving sequence! And the parallels don't end there, as he ultimately turns and helps the good guys.
Alan Arkin's considerable comedic skills, however, are wasted on his portrayal of "The Chief." This is a script problem, though, and not a performance issue. He delivers what he's given.
But here's the thing: This movie is FUNNY---with moments of physical comedy unseen on the big screen since Peter Sellers passed away---and Steve Carell's tour de force turn as Agent 86 is brilliant. I counted three complete, gut-busting laughs that continued well after the scene was over...and in fact, two days later I still suddenly laugh out loud. If you like to laugh, you should see this film.
It's not the TV show---in fact, in some ways it falls short---but it is very, very, very funny in places. And that's all I ask of a comedy.
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Lazily soporific German sexploitation film from the Seventies. Superbly lush cinematography and chic fashions - all white bikinis and huge Jackie O sunglasses.
Sadly it is a very boring film, surely the last thing you want from this kind of thing? It begins unsettlingly with some lovely shots of Istanbul (more scenic than Cluj-Napoca I suppose) that make you realise they didn't do much with the city in From Russia With Love. However, the plot is very drear - a pouty brunette infiltrates the thoughts of a blonde with all the determination of Posh Spice schmoozing the wife of a Hollywood A-list, and lures her to a nearby island, spikes her drink and seduces her in tasteful lesbo frenzy, then sends her back baffled to her dull boyfriend. This goes on and on, with no real variation or picking up the pace.
A jowley Dennis Price, he of Kind Hearts and Coronets fame pops up as some kind of occult shrink, but badly dubbed as it's all in German. Oh what a falling off there was.
Welcome to the world of Jess Franco. You may never be the same again.
I saw this at the cinemas a few days ago. This is a romantic comedy/drama that is directed by and stars Julie Delpy. In it she and her character's boyfriend spend two days in Paris where their relationship runs into some trouble.
I liked this film alot. Although it is directed literally to an extreme (the narrator mentions something; we see it, she mentions something else; we see that), I really enjoyed the film. Delpy's character is pretty sweet, but is also utterly fearless when it comes to minor matters such as racism. Adam Goldberg, who plays her boyfriend, is also terrific.
I actually saw this film as a double feature, as I had wanted to see the first film shown (Before The Devil Knows You're Dead which I loved), however I found Two Days In Paris to be quite a pleasant surprise. I don't think it's a great romantic comedy/drama, but I do think it has alot of terrific things going for it, and I would defititely recommend it. {[]
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
Why not? I saw it by myself, but I don't see what would prevent me from seeing it with my parents? ?:)
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
Copious references to condoms and semi-pornographic art by the Dad, refs to seedy adulterous behaviour... mind you, maybe that's a normal Saturday night Down Under... )
Copious references to condoms and semi-pornographic art by the Dad, refs to seedy adulterous behaviour... mind you, maybe that's a normal Saturday night Down Under... )
) I had forgotten about that. My parents aren't hippies, but I wouldn't have a problem seeing it with them. Earlier this year, for example, I saw Lady Chatterley with my mother. ;% If I can see that with my mother, I should be able to see Two Days In Paris with her. :v
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
Comments
The Brits rarely let me down in the horror field, this one is certainly no exception.
The year is 1947 and Anton Diffring, best known for playing nasty nazis in many war films, is Doctor Rossitor, a plastic surgeon with extremely questionable work ethics. Seems he's botched an illegal operation with horrific results and is now "on the run".
Finding refuge in a run down circus owned by Donald Pleasance, (who gives us another simply marvelous performance, one of my favorite actors), soon Rossitor owns the circus and changes his name.
Fast forward ten years. The big top is making filthy lucre and Rossitor, now named Schuler, has taken in an entourage of former thieves and murderers and he's blackmailing every one of them. Still wanted by the police he retains his "medical" practice and kills off whomever threatens to expose or leave him.
The cast is a Euro Cult enthusiast's dream with a bevy of beautiful women in skimpy attire. The double whammy of Yvonne Monlaur, (Brides Of Dracula) and Yvonne Romain, (Curse Of The Werewolf) will knock you off your feet.
Perfect entertainment. There's even Walter Gotell (General Gogol) as a monocled gentleman.
File this one next to Michael Gough's scenery chewing Horrors Of The Black Museum for pure afternoon pop corn wasting FUN.
I was a little nervous at first about seeing a film in spanish since I normally don't watch movies that aren't in english. However, I had been hearing lots of great reviews for this film and stumbling across it at the rental store the other day, decided to give it a try. The fact that the film was in spanish actually didn't seem to matter much at all. I got all the dialogue from the subtitles and it was so well filmed that I got the idea of what was going on without even needing to understand the words. Five minutes in and I didn't even notice I was reading subtitles, was just caught up in the film, and it is a good one. I enjoyed all the fantasy elements the most and was slightly disappointed that more attention wasn't paid to them but still enjoyed the rest of the film. And oh boy, that creature with eyes in its hands..... that was quite creepy.
I Am Legend
Another enjoyable film, though that wasn't a big surprise to me since I generally enjoy anything with Will Smith. There were some creepy moments and I always got a bit of a shiver on my spine when his watch would beep signaling the arrival of night. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. It seemed very sudden to me and left me with a "is that all?" feeling. I have heard that the ending in the book is different so I may check that out sometime to see if I find that more satisfying.
I was a little nervous about this film at first because it was written and directed by Tim Robbins and he's a little to political about everything for my taste. But despite the strong political themes of this film, I found it to be a very enjoyable character piece. There were many brilliant actors in this film. I particularly liked Bill Murray, John Turturro and Emily Watson.
Colin Farrell in fine performance shocker! Seriously. I'm not joking. This is an aimable, little movie with a couple of Irish hitmen, played by Farrell and Bernard Gleeson killing time and eventually some people in Bruges. Ordered to lie low by their boss Harry (Ralph Fiennes) until he gets in touch with them, the two spend their time bickering. Gleeson wants to see the sights, while Farrell falls for a pretty Belgian girl, and makes friends with an angry dwarf who likes to get high on horse tranquilisers and predict impending race wars. Gleeson and Fiennes are both very good, but Farrell is outstanding. The scene where he tries to pick up the girl on a movie set by naming celebrity "midgets" who've killed themselves is hilarious. The cockiness he usually brings to his performances is still there, but it's tempered by regret, and a yearning quality that makes his awkward relationship with the girl more touching. (Incidentally she's played by Clemence Poesy, who was in Harry Potter and the something-or-other a couple of years back.
Not to the level of say - Halloween or Prince Of Darkness but this picture is a really guilty pleasure for me with its mixture of science fiction, Commando-esque action and mostly humor (The Piper/David alley scuffle is near classic for me).
The last Carpenter flick that I truly enjoyed hands down was In The Mouth Of Madness. In the 70s-80s, it was usually a given that horror fans would get their money's worth with his name tacked onto a project; I'd love for him to recapture some of that magic from his heyday in something new down the road.
Oh well, one can wish...
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Gripping prison break drama currently on cinema release in the UK, starring Brian 'Bourne Identity' Cox and Joseph Fiennes cast against character as a muscleman working class guy.
It's good stuff, the twist being that the actual break runs concurrently with the planning of the break, so it switches back and forth, leaving you on a cliffhanger with each scene.
Mind you, some duh! moments. Planning the break in the open plan prison with dominos illustrating how you're gonna break through various walls might seem a bit obvious! 8-) As indeed proves to be the case (that's not a spoiler really).
The final narrative trick might irritate some but it on the whole it was good to get away from the plasma and see a movie at the cinema - only £6 out in the sticks too! I might see Wanted tonight.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Not the kind of movie I usually watch, but I came across this one on TV last night as I was surfing around and as there wasn't much else on (280 channels and still nothing to watch) I decided to give it a chance.
Vince Vaughn and his band of likable losers square off against Ben Stiller in the national dodgeball tournament to try to win $50,000 so they can save their beloved gym from foreclosure.
In short, your typical low brow comedy film, complete with every cliche imaginable, tons of juvenile gags, and the usual cast of characters (ie: the responsibility shirking leader, the high school nerd, the socially repressed man complete with mail order bride, and the wanna-be pirate).
In spite of that unassuming pedigree, I did laugh a lot at this one. There's some genuinely funny scenes (including the first dodgeball match where the boys get owned by a bunch of girl scouts) and a few pretty humorous cameos (David Hasslehoff and William Shatner make some very unlikely appearances).
The main cast is all very funny (Ben Stiller makes for one very obnoxious and downright creepy workout guru), although the supporting actors are even better. Rip Torn is predictably solid as Patches O'Houlihan, a one-time dodgeball legend who's gone now to seed; he helps the boys achieve their potential through some pretty unorthodox training methods. Gary Cole (who has a real talent for delivering the most absurd lines with a perfectly straight face) and Jason Bateman (as a coked out Extreme Sports star) make for a hilarious broadcasting duo as they call the matches on ESPN 8 (how do I get that channel?).
Not the most sophisticated comedy ever made and definitely something of a guilty pleasure. The ending is also obviously predictable; but it still generated some good laughs.
Interesting Black and White drama from Lars Von Trier that bridges the gap between his styilised earlier films and his later rough and ready Dogme films. Part of the film is a mock making-of documentary in which Von Trier and co have a number of odd encounters while putting the project together. The only part of this I enjoyed was when Udo Kier turns up playing himself and gives a lengthy anecdote about his mother that causes him to start weeping, much to the discomfort of Von Trier and his producer. Interspersed with these moments is the story, a period piece about a virus spreading throughout Europe which is as eerily hypnotic as Von Trier's finest work.
Hopelessly derivative generic action flick based, I believe, on a computer game. (Edit: no it's a comic book) Dan Same would love it...
It's about a pod worker, James McAvoy of Atonement and Last King of Scotland fame, this time putting on an American accent. He hates his job, his life, his co-workers etc, then out of the blue this lush assassin (Angelina Jolie) is hauling him off into a different destiny. So far, so The Matrix but then there's the 'Come with me if you want to live' action scene where they're being chased by a nasty assassin and she's protecting him, it's also a bit Weird Science as the nerd is mooning over her, too.
It's all a bit like Hitman, the difference being the story arc. In Hitman, the asssassin is a cool deadly type who learns real feelings thanks to a girl he picks up, in Wanted it's a loser who learns to be a cool deadly type thanks to being picked up by a girl, it's reversed. I do prefer Wanted because the two leads are more charismatic and it has two outstanding action scenes.
That said, while I like McAvoy as an actor on principle I'm not sure he can really carry a film like this. I didn't care for his US accent, so far it's all a bit like Ewan McGregor when he tried to break into the States. He lacks the air of mystery or paradox. Really they may as well have cast an American actor. Jolie is terrific, I must begrudgingly admit she's a real celluloid turn-on and you don't get many of those these days. Naomi Watts, Mario Bello perhaps. Most US actresses I find are like schoolteachers - Demi Moore, Julia Roberts etc. A bit frosty.
This is a real dumb flick although it picks up towards the end. I think it needed a European director to tap into the moral abiguity of most of it. I mean, someone tells you to be an assassin and you just go with it? 8-) Also, this nerd is meant to be trained up but it seems to take place within a few weeks rather than a year or two... ?:)
Roger Moore 1927-2017
I don't really want to see this film. I love Angelina Jolie but watching the trailer, I get the sense that this is probably a film which I should wait until it is on DVD to see.
Michael Haneke's US remake of his German movie. I got the point the first time around, and Haneke is a tiresome bore.
sings: "And he's seen it ten times or more..."
Shoot 'em up
Sick, daft, preposterous fun with Clive Owen as a carrot-crunching shootist left literally holding the baby after coming to the aid of a pregnant woman about to be offed in a dark alley.
Someone on this board said this was the most fun they'd had since Grindhouse and it's certainly best approached that way. Owen's character is on the run from a bunch of hitmen who he lays waste like Andrex, he then ropes in a lactating Russian hooker to help out while Paul Giametti (from Sideways) hunts them down. Giametti is terrific as Owen's chief nemesis, his delivery of the line "Oh, you're a rascally rabbit!" I will long treasure.
I should have realised earlier that Owen is the Bugs Bunny character while Giametti is meant to be Elmer Fudd. This is an out and out comedy, the problem being that at first it really isn't that funny. Tarantino can do that sleazy, ironic 70s style but this still has one foot in the Die Hard era, where the action is intense and has a strong moral compass. It's not as pretentious as Wanted but after the opening, where the mom gets a bullet in the forehead just after delivery, the humour was understandably kind of lost on me for the first half hour or so.
Some Casino Royale-like end credits.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
The crowd was made up of adults, college students and kids and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I would recommend this film for the whole family.
Before the feature Pixar has a little comedy cartoon about a magician and his rabbit which was very funny.
Vampyros Lesbos
Lazily soporific German sexploitation film from the Seventies. Superbly lush cinematography and chic fashions - all white bikinis and huge Jackie O sunglasses.
Sadly it is a very boring film, surely the last thing you want from this kind of thing? It begins unsettlingly with some lovely shots of Istanbul (more scenic than Cluj-Napoca I suppose) that make you realise they didn't do much with the city in From Russia With Love. However, the plot is very drear - a pouty brunette infiltrates the thoughts of a blonde with all the determination of Posh Spice schmoozing the wife of a Hollywood A-list, and lures her to a nearby island, spikes her drink and seduces her in tasteful lesbo frenzy, then sends her back baffled to her dull boyfriend. This goes on and on, with no real variation or picking up the pace.
A jowley Dennis Price, he of Kind Hearts and Coronets fame pops up as some kind of occult shrink, but badly dubbed as it's all in German. Oh what a falling off there was.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
This used to creep me out alot when I was younger but as time went by, I've regrettably felt the urge that this should be remade to follow the Peter Straub (from which the film is adapted) novel more faithfully.
A great cast and premise but it could've been better. And when I mean better, I mean creepier. Still a decent two and a half star scare. B-)
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Didn't get that one. At all. If it's a comedy, it's way off key; if not, likewise. As I said when I reviewed it some months ago, I'm totally willing to accept that I'm simply too thick to pick up the intelligence being transmitted at Shoot 'Em Up's frequency. At any rate, I'm certainly grateful I didn't pay full freight in the cinema for that one.
This is the first Clive Owen film I haven't enjoyed at all. Still, the music was great B-)
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Roger Moore 1927-2017
The Warner Bros. cartoons---and MGM's Tom and Jerry---are works of comic genius, and IMO whomever excreted Shoot 'Em Up isn't worthy to shine their creators' shoes. Mixing humour and extreme viscera is a delicate and risky thing, and this one struck me as blindingly ham-fisted. For an example of such a thing done right, I'd look to Hot Fuzz.
Still, though, just as there's someone for everyone, there's clearly an audience for every film.
I like Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti, and adore Ms. Bellucci, but I won't waste any more of my life watching that particular film again.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Every year on my birthday, I go to the cinema. This year, I took my sons to watch the reincarnation of Maxwell Smart---Agent 86 of Control, and his lovely sidekick Agent 99...
I had no illusions going in about whether they could match the original TV show for wit and sheer charm---that would be impossible---and I've really grown weary of Hollywood's seemingly endless capacity for retreading classic TV shows, in lieu of hiring writers with fresh ideas :v
This version of Get Smart is really more of an action comedy, with Bond-like set pieces and appropriately huge fireball explosions, and a running time of nearly two full hours. Wisely, the filmmakers didn't try to copy the TV show; rather than an out-and-out idiot, their Maxwell Smart is actually a brilliant analyst with a savant-like grasp of detail and the minutiae of intelligence...but he's failed the agent exam seven times
The performances vary: Anne Hathaway is great (and irresistible :x :x :x ) as Agent 99. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is very good as Agent 23. Terence Stamp makes a great Bond-style villain...and WWE's "The Great Khali"---all 7'2", and 400+ pounds of him---is a picture-perfect ripoff of a Bond-style 'Jaws' henchman...
Alan Arkin's considerable comedic skills, however, are wasted on his portrayal of "The Chief." This is a script problem, though, and not a performance issue. He delivers what he's given.
But here's the thing: This movie is FUNNY---with moments of physical comedy unseen on the big screen since Peter Sellers passed away---and Steve Carell's tour de force turn as Agent 86 is brilliant. I counted three complete, gut-busting laughs that continued well after the scene was over...and in fact, two days later I still suddenly laugh out loud. If you like to laugh, you should see this film.
It's not the TV show---in fact, in some ways it falls short---but it is very, very, very funny in places. And that's all I ask of a comedy.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I saw this at the cinemas a few days ago. This is a romantic comedy/drama that is directed by and stars Julie Delpy. In it she and her character's boyfriend spend two days in Paris where their relationship runs into some trouble.
I liked this film alot. Although it is directed literally to an extreme (the narrator mentions something; we see it, she mentions something else; we see that), I really enjoyed the film. Delpy's character is pretty sweet, but is also utterly fearless when it comes to minor matters such as racism.
I actually saw this film as a double feature, as I had wanted to see the first film shown (Before The Devil Knows You're Dead which I loved), however I found Two Days In Paris to be quite a pleasant surprise. I don't think it's a great romantic comedy/drama, but I do think it has alot of terrific things going for it, and I would defititely recommend it. {[]
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Roger Moore 1927-2017