TheMovieman

Dawn of the Dead (1978) — Been a while since I last watched this one, but with the new 4K UHD out, decided to give it another watch going with the Extended Cut. Still very well made with some great zombie effects and really liked the characters, Peter (Ken Foree), especially. I'm not a big fan of the zombie horror genre but this is one of the exceptions. ****/*****

Goonies85

Venom - I just find this movie interesting. I love Tom Hardy, but this was just a bizarre movie...and I wouldn't say it's bad...I actually kind of like it. It's just a weird movie that I'm surprised got made. And I like Michelle Williams (I think that's who it was) and I love the guy from Veep (I can't remember his name but I think he's super-talented and I hope he has a great career cause he deserves it). This movie surprised me...

Miracle at St. Anna - I'm kind of hit or miss when it comes to Spike Lee, but when he hits it, he f**king hits it. And I can't believe why this didn't get better reviews when it was released. I thought the movie was tremendous and touching and just awesome. Like, if you take away the first opening 20-25 minutes of Saving Private Ryan, I'd say this is the better war movie. I know that's not a popular opinion but I don't care. Saving Private Ryan gets pretty sappy at points and I absolutely hate the beginning and the ending that's kinda "currently placed", with Damon's character as an old man crying. I just don't buy that and don't like that...But this movie, wow. I think it's amazing...And actually, as much as I love Do The Right Thing, 25th Hour, Inside Job, etc...this might be my favorite Spike Lee movie. And, also, the commentary track is great. Even if I disagree with Spike Lee at times, he's always, always such an interesting character. Like, if somehow the NBA could make it so that they had a feed that just showed Spike Lee on the sidelines at Knicks games, I would be so down with getting that, cause he's hilarious when he's at NBA games. Anyway, that's my two cents...But I already got a delivery service that's going to pick up the Jungle Fever Blu-ray cause I've always wanted to watch it and given the current pandemic, I just need more shit to watch and keep me occupied, especially as the bank continues to threaten me and say they're going to evict me...They can try but it aint gonna look good if they kick someone out of their house right before Christmas...So f**k them...And yes, I'm in a sour mood...Haha...But I hope everyone is doing well...

Goonies85

The Extended Cut is my favorite. The European Cut is interesting but doesn't quite match the quality of the Extended Cut. I'm still hoping to get a 4K TV and player soon cause I'm dying to watch the movie in super hi-def, even though I thought the last Blu-Ray looked pretty decent...

JeffTheAlpaca

it might have been a Redbox exclusive?

It was on Epix during a free trail so no big loss. Olga was kicking and getting her ass kicked in that movie.

JeffTheAlpaca

It was on Starz

I thought it was funny and written and directed by J Lee who has worked in a lot of Seth Mcfarlane projects.

mwbmis

Lilies of the Field - Poitier won his first Oscar playing this migrant handyman enlisted to build a church by transplanted German nuns in the American Southwest. While simplistic, it is an entertaining feel good story. One assumes a real life avatar for the Poitier character would have more challenging time traveling on his own during 1960s America. (Blu-ray)

JeffTheAlpaca

Not a huge Eminem fan but it was ok.

I forgot Michael Shannon was the dude banging Kim Bassinger and Anthony Mackie was the rival rapper both in early 2002 roles before they blew up.

JeffTheAlpaca

I saw this on TCM.

I never saw a movie in a theater with 5,000 seats or a palace type setting. It must have been something back in the day when these were popular.

I wonder in a few decades will they have a doc on the end of multiplexes and theaters in general?

TheMovieman

Not sure, I got the Blu-ray for review some months back.

And Olga was great, shame the villain, at least the one who was in charge in the parking garage, was a wuss and couldn't take him as a serious threat. IIRC, the actor was one of the kids in the Chronicles of Narnia.

mwbmis

The Mystery of D.B. Cooper - I was interested in this subject, but by the time this documentary ended I wasn't really interested any longer. (HBO Max)

The Trial of the Chicago 7 - I wasn't very familiar with the story of this trial so Sorkin's silly ending aside I did enjoy this movie. (Netflix)

Shakedown - Peter Weller and Sam Elliott take on corrupt cops in this late 80s action movie. At least I think it was an action movie. It also felt like a spoof at times. Either way it wasn't very good. (VUDU)

JANK

Terminator: Dark Fate - Enjoyed it very much. Good reboot! Linda & Arnold did very well.

JeffTheAlpaca

Not the most uplifting story but great performances by the entire cast.

Nice to see Kate Winslet again after a long break.

mwbmis

Arizona - Danny McBride stars as a volatile man who accidentally kills his real estate agent. Things escalate from there. While it is definitely dark enough, it just wasn't funny enough for me. (HBO Max)

Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead - Haven't seen this in a long while. It's slight, but mildly entertaining. (HBO Max)

JANK

Onward (Disney/Pixar): A good romp adventure about brothers

Cellar Door

The Little Mermaid - Never did see this one before. It came out when I was a teenager and not into Disney movies at the time. It's fun and moves right along. I think the romance should have been developed a bit more. Ursula was a good, old-school Disney villain.

TheMovieman

Honest Thief (2020) — Third rate thriller, with a messy plot (along with bad dialogue), is made a little worthwhile thanks to Liam Neeson. Nothing terribly memorable including the action scenes which was pretty average, however it's a satisfying enough if only as a one-time viewing. Will say, at least it is better than Taken 3... ***/*****

mwbmis

Justice League - I hadn't seen this since the theaters. I don't think it's a bad movie; parts of it are pretty entertaining, but they are definitely trying to cram a much longer movie into this run time, and Steppenwolf as presented is just not remotely interesting. I also question the idea of giving Gadot a lot of exposition scenes. I think she's great as WW, but that doesn't really seem to be playing to her strengths. (MA)

Blood Simple - First Coen Bros. movie is a bit more serious in tone than the films they would become known for. The main thread of the movie involves a wife, her slightly dimwitted lover, her angry husband, and a shady private eye, but I think the movie works more atmospherically then it does concentrating on the plot. (HBO Max)

Time Warrior

CRY OF THE WEREWOLF (1944)

Columbia Pictures did not really embrace the horror genre in the 1940s in the way that Universal, and to a lesser extent, RKO did. They did produce Return of the Vampire (1943) which proved a good showcase for Bela Lugosi in one of his few on-screen vampire roles and a had a couple of eerie scenes as well as a very talkative tormented werewolf.

Cry of the Werewolf is one of the very few other explorations in horror the studio attempted and it notably avoids the tormented werewolf trope of Lon Chaney and instead encases the lycanthrope lineage in the women of an extended family of gypsies. This provides for some interesting if historically dubious extrapolation of the history and plight of gypsy people in the United States. Though presented as very much the villains from the earliest scenes the gypsy community is well delineated with much discussion of their burial practices and annual ceremonies (how much of this is historically accurate I cannot attest.)

The werewolf itself is a large dog, not even a wolf, with rubber band around its snout to make it snarl and bare its teeth constantly. It is shot well as its shadow it cast through the corridors of the underground vault of a funeral parlour, the film’s most effective scene, echoing stalking sequences from the Val Lewton Cat-People (1942).

As with many studio films of the period only the core cast is listed, in this instance five people, though there are many other supporting players in speaking parts who go uncredited. Of particular note is John Abbott as the museum guide. He has one of those wonderful voices that is intimate but full of clarity and he must have been an exceptional speaker of verse. The fate of his character is disturbing, unexpected and very well played. His equal is Fritz Leiber who has an almost spiritual air, a cadence that could almost be of another world. He is superb in small roles in Phantom of the Opera (1943) as Franz Liszt and Angel on My Shoulder (1946) as the dead chemist who poisoned his young and unfaithful wife. Here he gets to provide extended exposition but does so in an unforced, natural manner. Good performances are also in evidence from Osa Masson and Nina Foch.

In the end this is very much a second feature of the period but directed with some skill and attention to small details of performance and production. For that reason it manages to endure far better than many of its peers.

mwbmis

Big Hero 6 - Still think this pretty entertaining. (Disney+)

The Ladykillers (1955) - I had never seen the original. The problem is that while I do think it is a better movie, the Coen Bros remake hit most of the same notes so there weren't really any surprises watching the original. (iTunes)

Batman vs. Two-Face - This sequel to Return of the Caped Crusaders features Adam West's final Batman portrayal. This time they are challenged by a villain that was never featured in the 1960s TV show. This is much in line with the TV show and the previous film so your enjoyment level probably depends on your feelings about that TV show. West, Ward, and Newmar return to reprise their roles, but I particularly enjoyed Lee Meriwether's little cameo. (VUDU)

Nick Danger

35 Up. The fifth installment of the documentary series which checks in on a group of people every seven years. Everyone was doing better at age 35 than they were at age 28. Most of them have young children, and it's life-changing. Their parents are starting to die.

The three working class women are all single moms. The upper class people are all in lovely houses with good marriages. One guy has mental health problems. In 28 Up he was shown as unable to keep a job or make a friend, having serious difficulty talking to the interviewer, and living in a camper in the wilderness. He got a lot of feedback from viewers that they envied his freedom. He's doing somewhat better in this edition.

I'm afraid that if we binge on this series we'll get surfeited. I'm spacing them out. In a few months, we'll watch 42 Up.

TheMovieman

Vigilante (1983) — Not a great revenge thriller but does feature two wonderful performances from Robert Forster and Fred Williamson. Some okay action in the third act though just when it felt like the revenge portion was just going into high gear, the movie seemed to abruptly end. Doesn't really match up with Death Wish but still a decent entry into the genre. ***¼/*****

Time Warrior

DANGEROUS PARTNERS (1945)

A real surprise that showed the advantages of coming across a film completely cold with no knowledge of its plot or reputation. A random discovery on You Tube on a wet afternoon that proved exhilaratingly different.

Starting in the immediate aftermath of a horrendous plane crash a surviving couple consisting of a greedy, soulless wife (Signe Hasso) and her frightened husband (John Warburton) seek to rob an unconscious man and discover details of seemingly disparate people with legal wills promising large sums of money to a man with the wonderful name of Albert Richard Kingby (played by Edmund Gwenn.)

A series of attempts are made to illicitly obtain the money, one resulting in the death of Warburton’s character. Hasso continues dispassionately on with her aims, now in the company of a very corrupt lawyer played by James Craig. Their criminal enterprise continues with little concern for anyone else until dramatic revelations give them pause to think about the true nature of criminality.

An unusual production for MGM of the period this crime thriller lacks the usual polish that the biggest of studios could provide and appears little rough edged at times, perhaps an illustration of the directorial input of Edward L Cahn who spent a career knocking out B films in under a week (some, like It! The Terror From Beyond Space are genuinely extraordinary.) The normally artsy photography of Karl Freund is here mostly point and shoot though the plane crash aftermath is wonderfully handled.

What it also benefits from is very good performances. Signe Hasso uses her strong accent as an effective shield and presents a special patina of evil contrasted with the Edmund Gwenn, generally the player of affable, ingenous characters here is effective as the quintessence of wickedness. The sequence where a character is tortured for information is played quite convincingly and there is a real dark edge to proceedings.

My summary is that this is a solid outing with enough plot surprises and deviations to make it interesting throughout. All credit as well for the careful script and the very strong performances. Notable supporting players such as King Baggot (star of the early silent goes uncredited) whilst Grant Withers and Stephen McNally are sterling additions.

JeffTheAlpaca

It was ok though not as great as it was hyped to be

JeffTheAlpaca

It still holds up though would not watch it every year so it can still be kind of fresh and a new experience

JeffTheAlpaca

Not a huge fan of the animated movie and this was not that much better.

The acting was really bad.