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Post by The Kevstaaa on Feb 7, 2022 23:35:20 GMT -5
#57 - Werewolves Within (Showtime)
*1st Viewing
I had a really good time with this. It wasn't quite as funny as I hoped but the mystery at the center of it all was well done and the outcome wasn't obvious. It was also boosted by a pretty fun cast. [***½]
#58 - Jackass (Paramount+)
*3rd Viewing
Rewatching these before going to see the fourth installment and this is still a ton of fun. [***½]
#59 - 30 for 30: Kings Ransom (ESPN+)
*1st Viewing
Interesting but somewhat of a disappointment. The actual tidbits of the trade and Gretzky's life/career are intriguing but Peter Berg's decision to film his interview with Gretzky while golfing was odd as it led to some lulls in the story. [***]
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Feb 8, 2022 4:25:25 GMT -5
American Nightmare (1983) - Entertainingly sleazy Canadian slasher that probably had a financial backer who really must have insisted on a lot of nudity, since for the first half hour of so there is nudity every five minutes (including the first scene) then it manages to go 10 minutes between nudity a couple of times (but that doesn't last), the kills for the most aren't quite up to a film like say New York Ripper but are still memorable though it misses a chance to kill one of the victims with a particular weapon as it seems all set up for her to be killed that way. Some films like this I should grade on a curve but I enjoyed it very much (***)
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Post by EoE: Well There's Your Problem on Feb 8, 2022 10:46:19 GMT -5
#1. Jackass Forever (first in-cinema movie for me in six years)
…It delivers what it promises. *shrug*
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Post by Viking Hall on Feb 8, 2022 14:52:25 GMT -5
A bit of a catch up post of my late January into early February views.
9. The Vampire Circus (1972) - Yet more seventies Hammer action, this time the sometimes saucy, sometimes downright sleazy Vampire Circus. Not particularly well reviewed at the time, this one has gained more of an audience in later life, thanks in no small part to its willingness to delve into the psychedelic and weird. It definitely excels in the moments when it does really go off the rails, the lurid colours and hypnotic camera effects really lend itself to the story, but unfortunately, like a lot of Hammer films, the pace does slow in parts, which doesn't help this one at all. All in all a fun watch though, and one that I definitely recommend to anyone who likes their horror a little bit on the strange side. ***
10. Jaws (1975) - It's Jaws, everyone's seen Jaws, right? Well here's the weird thing, when I sat down and watched it this time, it occurred to me that I may have never seen Jaws in one entire cut, but have rather dropped in and out of it whenever it has had one of its numerous television airings. Well, now I have, and well... it's Jaws, it's great! Some iconic performances, some even more iconic shots and the most famous mechanical shark of all time make it the quintessential creature feature. ****
11. Hocus Pocus (1993) - I have now had two Girlfriends through the years, who both adore this film and as a total disclaimer, I have to say, if it wasn't for them, I probably would have never seen Hocus Pocus. However, while it will never be a personal favourite, I can definitely see the appeal and it does a brilliant job of ticking all the boxes that you require from a big budget nineties PG movie. Does exactly what you want it to do, and a whole lot better than many other films of the era. ***
12. Countess Dracula (1971) - Back onto the seventies Hammer with Countess Dracula, one of the companies more forgotten efforts, starring the brilliant but heavily disguised Ingrid Pitt. More of a period drama loosely based on Hungarian Countess, Elizabeth Bathory than a straight up horror movie I found this one a little bit bland, which considering its subject matter, is quite the feat. It has its moments, and Ingrid Pitt is clearly trying to make the best of it, but to be quite frank, it's just not very good and at times, downright boring. **
13. Lust for a Vampire (1971) - It's guess what? More seventies Hammer! This one is a loose sequel to the previously reviewed Vampire Lovers, and the second in the Hammer Karnstein trilogy. Again, another one that lacked many of Hammer's A-Listers, this one ramped up the sex to gain an audience making up for its lack of stars with an abundance of topless beauties and setting them against the backdrop of an all girls school in the 1800's. It's certainly not the companies best, and not quite as good as Vampire Lovers, but it's pure seventies excess and unashamed bawdiness makes it a fun watch and one I'd happily revisit in the future. Shout out to Mike Raven for his casting due to the fact entirely that he looked a bit like Christopher Lee too. ***
14. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) - I sort of feel about Raiders of the Lost Ark the same way as I do about Back to the Future. I know it's great, and it's undoubtedly an icon of the era, but I can never bring myself to love it, or its sequels for that matter. Hadn't seen it in many years, but had fun watching it, but not enough fun to already know that it'll probably be many years until I see it again. ***1/2
15. A Better Tomorrow (1986) - I love me some Hong Kong cinema, but haven't seen enough of John Woo or Chow Yun Fat's back catalogue, so this seemed like a good film to watch. Although made on a small budget and released with little to no fanfare, A Better Tomorrow would go on to break Hong Kong box office records and would later be credited for being the film that changed everything in terms of Hong Kong Action movies. I had a lot of fun with this one, but at the same time you could definitely tell it was the prototype for what Woo and Hong Kong as an industry would do later. The story was strong and the performances emotive, but the film (as you would expect) came alive during the action scenes which were really what made it such a good watch. An incredibly stylish film as well which shows off why Hong Kong was such a great movie backdrop at that point. Looking forward to checking out the sequel and the prequel which were produced following this ones Box Office success. ***1/2
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,168
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Post by agent817 on Feb 8, 2022 23:45:35 GMT -5
13. Last Action Hero - Watched this on Netflix. After watching the review of this on Hack the Movies recently, it gave me the itch to watch this. It had been a long time since I had last watched it but I often caught bits and pieces of it, or watched clips of it on YouTube here and there in the past. Because I watched the whole thing for the first time in many years, I have to say that I appreciate the film a lot more than ever, which is saying something because this movie has gained a cult following throughout the years as it wasn't appreciated much nearly three decades ago.
Going in, I knew what I was getting. One thing that makes this film work is that Arnold Braunschweigher, excuse me, I mean Arnold Schwarzenegger was willing to make fun of himself. I think a lot of people back in the 1990s didn't quite understand that this movie was mostly a self-aware parody of action movies with a lot of tropes that were present in action movies from the 1980s and up to that point, the early-1990s. I found myself busting up at a lot of the ridiculousness, like the scene with the ice cream truck for example. I felt that the movie lost steam a bit once it got to the final act in the real world. It still had its entertainment value, though. Another gripe I had was that it was a little too long, but aside from that, it was still a fun film.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Feb 9, 2022 0:13:36 GMT -5
#60 - Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Blu-Ray)
*2nd Viewing
There are still some issues with pacing and the severe lack of Margot Robbie but this is still a blast. it gets wild in the best way late and I could watch Leo and Brad Pitt play off each other for hours. [****½]
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,168
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Post by agent817 on Feb 9, 2022 1:34:58 GMT -5
14. The Lovebirds (2020) - Watched this on Netflix. After watching Last Action Hero, I was in the mood for another movie, but nothing too long and looked under "more like this." I saw this and I remembered seeing trailers for this film two years ago and it was supposed to be released in theaters, but then Covid happened. So I thought, "why not?"
For its rather short length, this movie isn't so bad. It's only an hour and 27 minutes (including credits) and it really goes by. I felt that Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani had good chemistry. They worked well together and you felt that they were a couple. It's a plot that you have seen before and some of the elements were predictable, especially with the main plot talking about the titular couple breaking up and guess what happens at the end. But for what it's worth, it's a film that you could probably use to pass nearly an hour and a half and it won't feel like a waste. I wasn't bored by this film. I found it entertaining.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Feb 9, 2022 23:09:02 GMT -5
#61 - Rocky IV (HBO Max)
*2nd Viewing
The one Rocky movie I had actually previously seen. It's pretty wild and is basically full of sweet montages, great music, and a dope final fight. I can't ask for much more. [***½]
#62 - Jackass Number Two (Paramount+)
*2nd Viewing
I still hold up that this is my least favorite official Jackass movie. It has the usual fun I expect from the cast but many of the stunts didn't make me laugh all that much. Also, they kept oddly cutting away from them too soon, which was disappointing. [***]
#62 - Jackass 2.5 (Paramount+)
*2nd Viewing
Okay, this one is actually my least favorite. It feels like a slightly lesser version of part two. [**½]
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Feb 10, 2022 2:38:45 GMT -5
Murder By Phone (aka Bells) (1981) - after watching American Nightmare on my recommendations there was another Canadian horror. The murder by phone part is literal, it doesn't come to life rather somebody sends signals down the phone to the local soul who answers it and there heads begin to convulse and blood starts coming out of them, it's an enjoyable horror that manages to make the deaths different enough. The very end as the main character (played by Richard Chamberlain) laughing after telling a joke and ending on a freeze frame, so it felt like a sitcom there. Enjoyable (**1/2)
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Feb 10, 2022 23:13:28 GMT -5
#64 - Jackass 3 (Blu-Ray)
*3rd Viewing
The best installment of the franchise to this point. It was still funny as hell on rewatch and I remember seeing it originally. It was one of the best times I've ever had with friends in the theater and the 3D was better than most bigger budget movies. [****]
#65 - Do The Right Thing (Peacock)
*1st Viewing
I always heard good things about it and it lived up to the hype. Just seeing the people interact in New York made me nostalgic for my hometown. Some of the characters feel a bit too stereotypical but there are laughs, emotional moments, and a climax featuring some major racial tension that feels all too relevant today. [****½]
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Post by burdette25159 on Feb 11, 2022 3:31:27 GMT -5
2:The Running Man (1987) ****
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Feb 11, 2022 3:47:33 GMT -5
The Day The Earth Caught Fire (1961) - This could my favourite film I've watched so far this year, at first sight it seems like it could be typical British Sci-Fi of that era (not that it's a bad thing at all), but this at times often feels like you are watching different genres blend well together, like when Edward Judd is trying to woo Janet Munro, the chemistry is off the charts, the dialogue sparking you feel like you could be watching a romantic comedy before we find ourselves in a newsroom drama and so on. I can't speak for what genre fans would get out of this like I would do but I loved it! (*****)
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Feb 11, 2022 14:49:53 GMT -5
I Want You Back (2022) – I'll be honest I was completely biased going into this because I absolutely adore Jenny Slate (even though she is the wooooooooooorst), her presence in a film alone is likely for it to make it onto my watch list, this movie dropped today on Amazon Prime just in time for Valentine's Day, and though the initial plot seemed a little been there done that (two recently dumped people, bond and agree to try and split up the new relationship of the other person, so they can maybe win them back), you quickly get the feel for the characters and you are invested in the story and the characters journeys, Slate and Charlie Day are great in the leads and the supporting cast (the dumpers and there new partners) add to the film too, there is also a neat subplot with Slate and a 7th grader that could have been a film of it's own. I really liked this a lot and don't believe it was because of bias (****)
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Feb 11, 2022 21:47:31 GMT -5
#66 - I Want You Back (Prime)
*1st Viewing
I had such a great time with this. It does fall into many expected rom-com tropes but it gets a boost from having strong writing and fantastic chemistry between the always likable Jenny Slate and Charlie Day. [***½]
#67 - Jackass 3.5 (Paramount)
*1st Viewing
I totally thought I had seen this one before but apparently not. It wasn't as good as Jackass 3 but was better than 2 and 2.5. [***½]
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Post by bibboid on Feb 12, 2022 0:50:54 GMT -5
13. tick, tick…BOOM!
A musical about the composer of “Rent” when he was trying to get his first show produced. It is an odd mix of a story about a play interspersed with scenes of a play telling the story of a play. Sound confusing? Well it is. It is also really well done.
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Feb 12, 2022 3:38:17 GMT -5
Space Jam - A New Legacy (2021) - after watching 2 films in a row I really dug, I clearly needed to be brought back down to earth. Like, I haven't got a particularly affection for the original movie but it was fun, this was sadly lacking and just feels like it should well... more fun, Bugs and LeBron going through different Warner properties to round up the Looney Tunes gang should be great but it's just flat, same as all the meta and fourth wall breaking, nothing sums up the movie more for me when Bugs is trying to convince Lola to join up again and her reply is "been there, done that" (*)
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Feb 12, 2022 10:47:28 GMT -5
Rancho Notorious (1952) - Western that feels like it pushes the boundaries of censorship at the time - I don't know why but women riding men like horses in a race inside of a saloon (all fully clothed of course) seems a little salacious - maybe it's my mind putting something there, this is a decent western from Fritz Lang with a sparkling performance from Marlene Dietrich, while I liked the score, the songs actively detracted from the movie but overall didn't stop me from digging this (***)
The Initiation (1984) - slasher with Daphne Zuniga (who gets a introducing credit) that probably spends a little too long to get going (like an hour) but is enjoyable once it gets to the mall properly in it's last third and the characters are pretty enjoyable - which is always a plus in a slasher movie - with a fun ending (that you might see coming) I've seen way worse 80's slashers (** - **1/2, I can't decide)
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Post by BlackoutCreature on Feb 12, 2022 22:17:46 GMT -5
14. Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020) 15. Muppets from Space (1999)Finally tracked down what is probably the least remembered theatrical Muppet movie. The plot of this is best described as "Gonzo thinks he's an alien, stuff happens, Gonzo discovers he is an alien". Honestly, none of the antics that fill out the movie are all that interesting or imaginative. It only has one musical number of any note and it's pretty forgettable. There's also this weird scene where Clifford and Pepe hit on Katie Holmes, and I know that Katie Holmes was in her 20's at the time, but damn if she didn't look like she was 14 years old in this and the whole thing came off creepy. The story seems really stretched out having a really hard time justifying its relatively modest 87 minute runtime. It's no wonder the Henson family had to sell the rights to the Muppets a year later.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Feb 12, 2022 23:44:18 GMT -5
#68 - Jackass Forever (Theater)
*1st Viewing
That was a goddamn blast. I laughed so hard in the theater. It's probably only slightly behind part three for my favorite. [****]
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,168
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Post by agent817 on Feb 13, 2022 1:41:49 GMT -5
15. Bangkok Dangerous (2008) - Watched it on Blu Ray. I had gotten this from the library sometime last month and renewed it recently. Now that I've watched it, before I get into my review, let me just say that I remembered seeing listings of the original version from 2000 on Showtime back in the late-2000s and was a bit interested, and then came when I went to the theater around that same time and saw a cardboard display for this film. I had no idea that a remake had been made, especially one with Nicolas Cage, which doesn't bother me in the slightest as he could make a bad movie more entertaining with his hammy acting. I also must add that I had heard that this movie bombed, and this was during that slump period during the late-2000s to early-2010s with Nicolas Cage being in some flops and some hits like Ghost Rider and Kick-Ass. I think the final nail in the coffin was the second Ghost Rider film, which came out in 2012. Then he started doing straight-to-video movies.
With all of that being said, I must say that this film was rather dull and mundane, but I didn't find it to be a complete waste of time. Let me break it down like this. Nick Cage wasn't really the problem here. The plot itself is something you've seen before, with an assassin living by a code, but then meets someone who becomes an apprentice of some sort to him, which wasn't a bad subplot. However, there was a romantic subplot that could have been left out and it wouldn't have made much of a difference. With this film being more than an hour and a half long, I wonder if the romantic subplot was only in to pad out the run-time. In some ways, I could understand why it was left in as it did show something that was relevant to the plot, or at least something to do with the main character. I know that back when it came out, this film was sold as a straight-up action movie, but sometimes the trailers make things seem one way compared to how it actually is. I'm not saying it didn't have an interesting premise with its attempt to be gritty, because I understand that the original Thai version is supposed to be gritty. Hell, the cinematography gave it that feel.
On the plus side, however, it was interesting to see the shots of Bangkok and its atmosphere. The action was fine, especially the gondola chase scene and the climactic shootout that took place. I also didn't mind the scenes with Cage's character and the apprentice because it added an interesting plotline for some character development.
But overall, I would say that I didn't hate the movie, but I wasn't that into it, either. I had heard that the original Thai version is good. Maybe it's time I check it out.
One more thing, not meant for spoilers, but I noticed that there was an alternate ending. In some ways it could have been a good way to close out the film, but I could see why the final cut ending up with the conclusion that it had.
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