hanshotfirst1138

I'll do these all at once, I've seen over the last few months:

Pitch Black- Saying a movie is "a good Alien ripoff is the very definition of faint praise, but in this case, it's actually a hell of a compliment. A terrific B-movie with the heart of a classic John Carpenter flick, David Twohy's sci-fi thriller is an effective sci-fi horror flick with elements of many genre movies past, but it hinges on a terrific high-concept premise and a role that perfectly utilizes Vin Diesel's monosyllabic presence. A great premise, a sexy heroine, good monsters, nice FX work, and superb nighttime cinematography from Mad Max DP David Eggby. Good stuff, and a nice reminder that B-movie isn't quite dead yet.

The Chronicles of Riddick- A woefully misguided sequel to Pitch Black that tried to turn the whole thing into a big Star Wars-style space opera, but the thin screenplay doesn't work when you stretch something so confined onto a wider canvas. Lots of already dated FX, a bunch of furious action scenes which don't really work, and a bunch of babbling about a mythology that doesn't make much sense. A well-designed but turgid misfire.

Riddick- A back-to-basics return to form for the franchise that probably shouldn't be a franchise, this gets things back to the B-movie high-concept roots. A bunch of foul-mouthed space mercenaries land on a planet with Riddick and a bunch of monsters, much chaos ensues. Surprisingly scrappy fun, and throwback to the 80s when these flick were R-rated.

A Perfect Getaway- Another Twohy flick, once again hinging on a nice high concept. Good performances, but one the film turns its cards over, it basically becomes another violent slasher flick. Still, Twohy has that proper B-movie swagger, and there's fun to be had.

The Arrival- If you can get past the fact that they've cast a surprisingly effective Charlie Sheen as an astronomer and some rather glaring plot holes, this is another fun Twohy B-movie, which really makes the most of a limited budget and pulpy premise. Got it for free in SD registering for Ultraviolet.

Tell No One- Rather mediocre French thriller from a pulpy Harlan Coben novel that got glowing reviews. If it was in English, I don't think it would've. Apart from some sexual frankness that you wouldn't find a in a movie on this side of the pond, it's not hugely different from a run-of-the-mill thriller here. OK, and good performances, but the comparisons to Hitchcock are a little baffling.

Henry V- Kenneth Branagh's extraordinarily confident directorial debut, with the young actor in his prime. Easily one of the best films of Shakespeare, and probably the most fully-realized of all of his Bard adaptions, without some of the Hollywood casting which would show up later. Robust, exciting, and accessible, great stuff.

Ocean's Eleven- Sleek, cool, laid-back, star-powered, old-fashioned heist movie from Steven Soderberg. A very lightweight movie by design, but very light on its feet, and lots of fun, the stars are obviously having a blast, and you can't blame them, and you should too.

printerati

Love (2011) on Netflix. I'm not an Angels & Airwaves fan and knew nothing of their involvement with this film, but I quite enjoyed the soundtrack, and some of the visuals and effects are astounding considering its estimated $500K budget. The story is another matter, unfortunately. It borrows heavily from Moon, 2001, and The Fountain without being anywhere near as intelligent or cohesive as any of them, and it often lacked a proper sense of desperation as well. I suppose it's worth watching once (and, considering its shorter runtime, it's not a huge investment), but unlike its influences, it really isn't deep enough to warrant a second viewing.

Okay, the female Russian astronaut is worth a second viewing.

Why So Blu?

Elysium

Paul_SD

The Conjuring-
Very excited to see this after all the great buzz, but after a promising start it became very obvious and frankly cornball.
As soon as we saw I knew all hope was lost and the film was going to be less eerie and more evil dead style over the top antics

riotinmyskull

PRISONERS - 4.5/5

what a wonderful surprise. rarely do i get to watch a film that i know very little about. i kept seeing this pop up on people's best of 2013 lists so i decided to check it out without watching a trailer. just a great, dense film steeped in dread. this is almost on par with SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and SEVEN in regards to police procedural/cat and mouse flicks. excellent cast, beautifully shot and an ending that leaves just enough ambiguity that i couldn't help but smirk once the credits rolled. seriously, go see this or blind buy it when it comes out later this month. MUD, GRAVITY and this film will likely be my top 3 for the year.

asianxcore

Hard Revenge Milly (2008): At 45 minutes long, it doesn't overstay it's welcome. It's fun and has great FX work by Yoshihiro Nishimura.

Hard Revenge Milly: Blood Battle (2009): The film is almost twice as long as it's predecessor and at times it does drag. Yoshihiro Nishimura's crazy FX work is great here as well as the introduction of some fun characters.

asianxcore

Sharknado (2013): Absolutely hilarious. I could have done without some of the melodrama, but it was worth it for all those hilarious death scenes.

asianxcore

Grotesque (2009)

Giles

since last Wednesday:


'Dear Mr. Watterson'


'Frozen' (3D)


'Twice Born'


'Like Father, Like Son'

islandclaws

The Battery (2012)

Or, How Half of Mumford & Sons Survived the Zombie Apocalypse. There were some good moments scattered throughout, but too much of a focus on long, languid takes accompanied by folksy, annoying hipster music. Still, considering how overdone zombie films are right now, this was at least a breath of fresh air in most respects.

asianxcore

Gravity (2013)

I'm absolutely relieved that this film wasn't all hype. Easily the most claustrophobic I've felt viewing a film since Rodrigo Cortés' film 'Buried' (2010). This film will definitely be on my end of the year list.

hanshotfirst1138

Mud- Matthew McConaughey vehicle continues his career resurrection. Hugely atmospheric slice of Southern Gothic with good performances, but a little slow-moving.

Magic Mike- Matthew McConaughey and Channing Tatum, both in roles tailor-made for them. Soderberg blends his usual intelligent social commentary with a thoroughly familiar, almost cliched storyline to surprising effect. Tatum proves very amicable, and McConaughey has a great time as the sleazebag strip club owner who sells sex and fantasy with a colossal ego. Not exactly subject matter in which I had a vested interest, but interesting.

Killer Joe- Another Matthew McConaughey vehicle, this one from fallen 70s aeuter William Friedkin. At age 78, Friedkin remains ever the provocateur, and the movie pushes the envelope and is anarchic and unruly in the best ways. Sadly, it feels more like a freak show-I watch the black comedy car accident with perverse interest, but the black humor in the more vulgar moments feels very ill-judged, and the characters are kind of repugnant. It's the kind of thing you with with interest but not necessarily involvement, at least it was for me. Great performances though, McConaughey's charisma is twisted into something darker and more malevolent. Shot digitally, Caleb Deschanel is a superb DOP, and the film is stunning looking, but doesn't quite have the atmosphere of Mud, even if it's more lurid. Maybe the baking heat is just an easier thing to convey on grainy celluloid than on crisp digital. I still think the grainy 16mm of Hooper's original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is the closest I've ever come to smelling a movie. Speaking of which...

The Devil's Rejects- Rob Zombie's sadistic throwback to the 70s horror movies he loves has it down stylistically. None of the trendy and shiny cinematography, annoying digital FX, and rapid-fire editing of newer remakes, it's shot on grain Super 16 with a 70s southern rock soundtrack. The whole movie is cast with exploitation icons and feels wonderfully ragged and dirty. Sadly, Zombie doesn't appear to have absorbed any of the underlying social context of the movies he loves, so his homage feels empty, just a parade of stylized sadism with no center. You could argue there's a subtext of becoming monstrous fighting monsters, but it's awful thin. The cast are all having a sleazy great time though, a terrifying Sid Haig, a gleefully profane Bill Mosley, and a hilariously redneck William Forsythe as an Elvis-loving sheriff. "I'm sure your knowledge of bullshit is limitless!"

stvn1974

Raiders Of The Lost Ark: Still a masterpiece after all these years. 5/5

Temple Of Doom: I like it a lot more now than I did in the past. 3/5

Last Crusade: Not a masterpiece like Raiders but just as much fun. 4/5

Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull: I put the BD in the player sat down, lifted the remote to hit play but could n't do it. Still a piece of shit. 0/5 even though I guess I didn't actually watch it. Still a piece of shit.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Cut: I really enjoy it more each time I watch it and never feel like it is too long. Bring on Desolation Of Smaug on Friday. 4.5/5

asianxcore

Thanatomorphose (2012)

Émile Beaudry is solid and so is the FX work. Unfortunately that's all that is good here. The story is almost non-existent and the pace really drags in the 100 minute run time.

OldBoy

Prince Avalanche...fine performances, but weird and a little slow.
The Kings of Summer...good little coming of age story. little different. not great, but pleasurable.

iNCREDiPiNOY

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Premiere IMAX 3D with High Frame Rate - 3/5 - I fell asleep throughout the film and I don't know what happen at the end.

Lone Survivor - 3/5 - Highly recommended, based on true story.

JimRochester

Bad Ass A Danny Trejo Death Wish revenge movie 2/5

Hazel Motes

The Avengers-Joss Whedon 3/5
Assault on Precinct 13-John Carpenter 4/5
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire-Francis Lawrence 3.5/5
Old School-Todd Phillips 3.5/5
Dutch-Peter Faiman 3.5/5
E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial-Steven Spielberg 5/5
Too Late Blues-John Cassevetes 4.5/5
Une Femme Mariee-Jean-Luc Godard 3.5/5
Barry Lyndon-Stanley Kubrick 4.5/5
My Blueberry Nights-Wong Kar Wai 3.5/5

asianxcore

Terrifier (2011)

A fun and fucked up way to spend 20 minutes!

asianxcore

The 9th Circle (2008)

inri222

3 Americas - 3/5

After the death of her aunt, a rebellious teenager from Boston is sent to live with her grandmother in Argentina. Her arrival triggers a clash of cultures between the Americanized teen who barely speaks Spanish and her Anti-American grandmother.

inri222

Stalker - 5/5

Three men head to a forbidden place which was once believed to be inhabited by advanced life forms called The Zone.
One of many masterpieces (and one of the greatest films ever made) by Andrei Tarkovsky.

devilshalo

hanshotfirst1138

Is the Zombie STD thing going to become a new subgenre now?

STZ? The Fucking Dead ?

asianxcore

I wouldn't call it a new sub-genre. It fits in quite well with the 'Body Horror' sub-genre, which is far from new.