Just roll a D3... it's easier!

Maybe it's just the kind of movie you eally have to be in the mood for, but I didn't find Evil Dead 2 as good as Army of Darkness. The reason I didn't add it to my list in fact was that I turned it off 30 minues into the movie. Am I right that you have to be in the mood for it? Or does the movie get better?

I watched GODZILLA: TOKYO SOS yesterday and there was a reference to Selgio Island, a Dr. Miya and a turtle called “matamata” and then called “Kamoebas.” It was in a scene where they found a dead giant turtle on some outcropping in the sea. I was straining for references to Gamera, but they weren’t forthcoming and I didn’t understand these references.

So, later on, I started watching SPACE AMOEBA (1970, aka YOG: MONSTER FROM SPACE), an earlier Toho giant monster film, and finished it this morning. It takes place on Selgio Island, has Dr. Miya as a central character and a giant turtle initially referred to as a species called “matamata” and then referred to by its island native name, “Kamoebas.”

I love when this happens. It would have been better, though, if I’d watched SPACE AMOEBA first. That way, I would have gotten the references in TOKYO SOS right away. But who knew?

Based on the synopsys and that it's a direct sequel to the original I'd think so. I'm going with WALL-E. My youngest granddaughter (28 months) keeps going to the DVD cabinet, getting my copy and telling me "Watch Wawe, Paw". So far we've watched about half the film in 15-20 minute spurts over several days.
Then later...
I was going to to strongly suggest you watch the original. It's a great film and so is the remake. They each have something different to offer. There's nothing like the ending to the 1958 The Fly as it'll forever alter your perception of "Help me!"

I like AOD better and would say you pretty much have to be in the mood for Evil Dead 2. It *does* get better as it goes along and directly leads into AOD. The beginning is a revised recap of Evil Dead after which it starts to pick up. Without watching it again I'd say that recap is 20-30 minutes or so. It's possible you stopped right where it was starting to get better.

I've heard a lot of people saying it was a jab at Gamera anyways, as many children seeing the movie asked why Gamera was dead.

Incidentally, I decided I wanted a bigger variety of stuff to watch on tv, so for only $10 more a month I subscribed to the Blockbuster at Home package that gives me access to the Starz and Epix Channels, as well as the Blockbuster dvd rental service.

You guys are going to force me to pick up a copy of this series! I almost purchased a copy a couple of years ago when it was on sale everywhere for ~$10 but couldn't get past the possible disc issues with the DS/DL discs coupled with not liking the series much during its original airing. It's one of those I *really* wanted to like but, in spite of the "hot" women, it felt too "kidified" at the time with the robot being especially annoying. I've become more forgiving as I age... With the newly released SS versions temptation is pulling again as both seasons cost only a couple of $$ more than the earlier set.

Thanks for the info about Tron 2. I am trying to get through my unwatched pile as much as possible, so prefer that one over Wall-E at this point.

Yeah, that last scene will stick with me! I did watch the commentary of the newer Fly. I'm glad I went that route: The original straight through, the remake as commentary. I think I enjoyed it a lot more that way. The commentary was fairly dry; would it have killed David Cronenberg to not use a monotone while commenting?

The robot is still annoying.

Going back to the earlier discussion on Cyborg/Cybernetic Revolt...

In prior years those 2 items were separate checklist items. Did they just get combined on a single line and you pick one as in Cyborg (film) *or* Cybernetic Revolt (film)? I seem to recall someone mentioning they were similar and suggesting this.

I dont recall doing that this year, must have been before.

Looks like last year. I'd been looking at my old lists to avoid watching the same thing several years in a row for certain checklist items and noticed it was separate in 2010 and 2011 but didn't look at 2012 before asking. They were combined in 2012.

So then "Cyborg" is different than " Cybernetic Revolt," and my cyborg movie Robocop doesn't have to involve revolt?

OK... this is just too funny... I looked this up in last year's discussion list and *I* was the one who suggested they be combined:
Since I made the suggestion, if no one objects I'll give the ruling.

Based on my comment that "Cybernetic Revolt" is a subset of "Cyborg" they are either/or choices. Watch *either* a Cyborg film *or* a Cybernetic Revolt film.

That means you can count Robocop and not have to look for something else.

OK... I've been seeing all these posts from this person with a really odd name. I never noticed the "formerly known as" until I was looking up information about the Cyborg/Cybernetic Revolt checklist item. I see this name on the first post typically where the host begins everything. Realization sets in...

You're *Mister Peepers*!

You guys are *killing* me with the name changes... I have enough trouble keeping everyone straight without that too!

^

Took me a while to realize who he was too!

I was in high school when it originally aired, and I think I only watched the pilot. The show just seemed too goofy (even for me). I'm sure I caught an episode or two on SciFi Channel years later. Now, I can watch it, but it's one of those shows that wears out its welcome pretty fast (YMMV, of course).

Ghosts & supernatural, ergo "Fantasy"...?

EDIT: Pre-over-ruled by "downplay Horror" comments. Fair enough.

I guess I can see that. I was just so impressed by Garfield and Stone that I didn't mind the re-tread - after all, it's a vitally important origin story. Potentially, even, THE most important origin of any superhero - few other superheroes have the "bad" event reasonably be their fault...

Actually, I didn't like some of the changes between the Raimi origin - close to the comics - and the Webb origin. But what was done so well (and subtly) was that Uncle Ben's death was so pointless, so lonely and so avoidable. That's important. It's not grand and defining, it's meaningless and guilt-inducing.

(And those origin beats you identify are broadly "superhero" beats rather than Spider-man ones...!)

The character of Bruce Wayne fluctuates between overblown playboy and dull rich guy depending on author and plot needs... Batman's lack of Bruce underscored quite how far Bruce buried himself in order to honour his parents by becoming the Batman - which, of course, does not honour their memory at all. Nicholson's Joker for me is both a high and a low point depending on mood. But that Joker's methods are in some respects darker that Nolan's villains'.

I've watched (well, "watched") it twice in the past year, and I barely remember it...

And the point about cramming half a dozen books into one short film was well made, too.

My thoughts almost-exactly.. So now I'm thinking I need to re-watch Spider-man and make sure I'm not misremembering my thoughts...!

With all the comments here, I need to re-add that to my list of things to prioritise. When - if - I have money.

Since I'll need to get this sometime, too... can you expand a bit on "DS/DL" and "SS" for the tired and non-understanding, please..?

Clearly need to watch these again - I didn't remember the first of your surprises being a surprise.

Hmmm... I see your logic, but I think I would still argue that "everyone knows that". I honestly can't imagine anyone having heard of Star Wars and not knowing that - and although it's possible to conceive of people watching the first three without knowing much about the saga, it seems like a very tiny subset that would be interested enough to watch them and not knowledgeable enough to know that.

True. That's maybe a better point, but I would counter with the thought that they will seem dated compared to NOW, not as compared with the other three.

That's good. I like that order and logic - treating the new films as an extended flashback is also quite a good, almost-polite way of saying they don't really matter and aren't up to much. They're just memories and background and filler.

But Natalie Portman, Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor are in that film, so it's worth watching. Plus, isn't it the only one with BRIAN BLESSED...?

DS/DL = double sided/dual layer
SS = single sided

Some people have reported some/many errors with various Universal DS/DL discs. So far, I've been one of the lucky ones who hasn't run into any issues with any of mine.

I have the DS/DL discs, and only one of them had problems. In shipping a piece of the plastic holder broke and got under the second disc, scratching it up quite a bit. Thankfully, I was able to have it buffed at Hastings, and it was good to go on my crappy BD with only two skips. The first skipped material I had already seen in the later clip episode, and the other skipped about five seconds of a scene. My computer played it without problem.

I did finished Buck Rogers a few days ago, and now I'm sad there are no more new episodes to watch. The second season was very hit and miss for me. I commend the creators for trying to get away from the formulaic nature of the first season, but some of the episodes were just awful. The one that springs to mind is 2.10, "Shgoratchx!" which has our intrepid heroes happening onto a deserted freighter inhabited by unstable bombs and some of the most annoying characters ever! It didn't help that it came right after "The Satry", a meandering, boring mess of an episode. A couple episodes later, the team returns to Earth, and I was sad that none of the dropped characters made appearances.

The series ends on a high note with "The Dorian Secret" which does make the leads look a bit stupid as well as self-righteous. But there are lots of interesting elements that make it a fun way for the series to end. Quite honestly, I think the characters (even watered-down-Deering) had a lot more mileage and could have at least finished out a full season.

Two years ago, I bought the box set containing all eleven episodes of the anime sci-fi series, EDEN OF THE EAST (2009). I finally watched the first three episodes yesterday. It's about a young Japanese guy whose memories have been erased and all he has is a high-tech cellphone that pays for everything and connects him to a "concierge" named Juiz who gets him whatever he needs. He finds himself suddenly outside the White House, naked, with only the cellphone and a gun. He manages to elude the police and gets help from a Japanese student who's on her way back to Japan, which has been hit by inexplicable missile attacks. She had visited New York and has lots of pix she took of NYC landmarks, including the Freedom Tower, the first time I've seen this new landmark represented on film. Back in Japan, the guy, Akira, figures out his last address and it turns out to be a closed shopping mall and he just happens to have the key to get in.

It has the potential to be a true mind-tripping anime series, like "Gantz," "Serial Experiments Lain," and "Boogiepop Phantom," but we'll see as it develops. What I especially like is the frequent stream of movie references. When the two enter the empty, abandoned shopping mall, he says, "It's like something out of 'Dawn of the Dead.'" He also makes references to TAXI DRIVER and CINEMA PARADISO, among other films. When she requests a film to be shown in the mall's theater, she asks for "that French film about the dolphin and the diver" and they show something called THE COLD BLUE, with animated clips from it, although I think they mean Luc Besson's THE BIG BLUE.

If you still haven't watched it yet, read this before you do http://www.cracked.com/article_18967...anings_p2.html