which was every bit as laughably bad as I remembered it being. Packed to the point of bursting with every genre cliche you can think of, but delivered with such po-faced solemnity that you can't help but imagine the filmmakers thought they were the first people to discover them. Nearly every 'surprise' is artlessly telegraphed in advance and the only thing the gritty NYC location work brings is disappointment that it's wasted on such weak material.

Some movies are charming enough to get away with so blatantly recycling the same old same old, but this is the second time this one has rubbed me the wrong way.

Ok, this was more like it. A superior film in every conceivable way, with richly delineated characters with relatable philosophies careening through a compelling series of events. Fascinating to watch in light of our Commander -in-Chiefs off-hand comments last year about being able to shoot someone in the middle of the street and not lose his supporters.

Can't believe this didn't click with me when I first saw it, because I was fully riveted this time. Great performances all around with some especially affecting work from Heard.

My first Naschy. It stumbles in the last act and can't stick the landing which is shame because it presents a take on the Dracula myth that's something fresh enough to distinguish it from the Hammers and others. This is exactly the kind of thing some savvy studio could loosely adapt, improve and make today with great success.

The disc defaults to the dubbed English version (which is how I watched it) and buries the language set up in the extras menu.
I have a feeling the film may play better with subs so I'll forgo selling it off just yet and spin it again in a few years that way and see if it makes much of a difference.

I thought Naschy came off well as the melancholy castle owner, but was underwhelming as the full blown Count. Still there seemed to be enough potential there that I'll likely be taking a chance on the Shout Naschy set in a few months.

a digestif. Not a show to binge watch for me, but as a once in a while nightcap it leaves a charming enough impression.

I've got this show programed to close out most Saturday or Sunday nights. Always leaves me in a good mood.

Just have Grudge Song left. So far each film has been breezier, and more entertaining than the last.

I'm not usually a fan of over-the-top violence but everything is at such an operatic, comic bookish pitch, and the films so full of idiosyncratic art house flourishes, that it's impossible to not have fun with it here.

These are becoming some of my favorite exploitation films of all time.
Which makes the problems with the transfers here all the more depressing. Watching the trailers after the films just kills me. This should have been the 'definitive' set for these, but it's far from it. I'll likely end up selling the set off after finishing the last film.

It's taken me until now to watch this because at the time of the release I found out about the relationship between Bond and Blofeld which sounded like ass to me. Despite not having too much of a problem with Craig, neither of his films beyond Casino Royale have left a lingering impression the way other Bonds back in the day have. So that, coupled with a lot of middling reviews made this one easy to skip up till now.

I guess I timed it right because I actually didn't mind any of the revisionist relationships- nor any of the other relative weaknesses.

In fact, watching this while still a couple days out from seeing and processing Rogue One, I realized that making deviations to keep something fresh, while still hewing to an overarching franchise formula, is almost certain to be off putting initially.
But Craig has never really been "Ian Fleming's James Bond" anyway. This is fully Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson's composite.
So for better or worse, this is new territory and I might as well take it on it's own merits.

And speaking of those, Dave Bautistas henchman was every bit as charismatic and fun to watch as any of the classic ones. He made a hell of an impression in set pieces that were pretty well done and didn't feel too rote.
About the only real complaint I have with the movie is the musical score which seemed to telegraph every surprise beat well in advance.
Other than that, I was entertained.