The Hitcher Second Sight 4K
Rutger Hauer, C Thomas Howell. Directed by Robert Harmon. 1986
A would-be Samaritan picks up a hitchhiker and soon discovers the man is a relentless serial killer.

For the first ten minutes of "The Hitcher" on 4k, as Jim Halsey drives through a nighttime storm toward his fateful meeting with John Ryder, the HDR kicks in and the picture quality is very dark, with only a few flashes of light. As the disc goes on the picture quality improves greatly. I would hardly describe it as a top-notch transfer, but with it being Second Sight I'm sure it's as good as they could get.

The disc is packed with interesting supplements that examine the film from any number of angles. There's a commentary track (one of four) where an academic who focuses on Gender Politics breaks down the often-discussed Homoerotic aspects of the story, while in a separate interview screenwriter Eric Red states that he never intended "The Hitcher" to be interpreted that way. In another discussion Rutger Hauer explains his character as more of a supernatural presence, while Robert Harmon saw him strictly as a mortal man, though led by Fate to meet Jim Halsey. C. Thomas Howell provides his own look at the making of the film, but it's more of a performance than an interview.

It's good to have "The Hitcher" back on home video after all these years in a premium format. Rutger Hauer as John Ryder is a Horror Icon, and he still remains a fascinating character. Robert Harmon and Eric Red were aiming for a Horror/Action hybrid, and I forgotten how much vehicular mayhem goes on in the movie. And after all these years I still remain split about the fate of Jennifer Jason Leigh.

LOTR: The Two Towers - Extended Edition - rewatch

Joker: Folie a Deux Warner Brothers
Joaquin Phoenix. Directed by Todd Phillips 2024
Struggling with his dual identity, failed comedian Arthur Fleck meets the love of his life, Harley Quinn, while incarcerated at Arkham State Hospital.

For the moment "Joker: Folie a Deux" is a certified disaster, with terrible reviews, an incredibly low audience score, and cataclysmic box office returns. Though the film continues the themes of the first film, it just doesn't deliver "The Joker" that people wanted. Phoenix's "Arthur Fleck" continues to be a delusional sad sack and "Harley Quinn" just might be a fraud who is using Fleck for the thrill of his infamy. It's a sad, dreary story by design that doesn't add much to what the first film gave you. Perhaps if the story were more of a dark satire like Oliver Stone's "Natural Born Killers" with Joker and Harley on a murderous rampage it might be more attractive. It certainly would have been more fun.

But that's not the story Todd Phillips wants to tell, which is Arthur Fleck learning to abandon his "Joker" identity and take responsibility for his actions. He gets there, but it's a long and muddled journey. The focus could have been a lot tighter and the running time a bit shorter. Using Musical Fantasy sequences to represent Fleck's delusions is an interesting notion that could have brought the film to life, but Phillips needed to fully commit to it, perhaps using original songs that really commented on the characters and their state of mind.

I have my interpretation of the ending, and it's certain to turn a lot of people off. In part, it can be taken as a criticism of Fandom, or at least the part of the audience that Todd Phillips doesn't like. It's really not a new sentiment. I can't really recommend "Joker: Folie a Duex", but I don't feel it destroys the character or diminishes the quality of the original "Joker".

The Vault - thriller/horror about a bank heist that goes wrong when supernatural things start to happen. It's an interesting concept, but the execution here leaves much to be desired and the little reveal at the end was very cliche.

Aliens - a classic for good reason. I watched the special edition from the Quadrilogy bluray set that I bought twelve years ago. This version adds a little more in the beginning with Ripley recovering from being found in deep freeze after the events of the first movie, and an extra scene or two showing the colonists (including Newt's family) just before they encounter the xenomorphs. It's a little jarring since I'm not used to watching those scenes--having seen the theatrical version a dozen times--but they do give a little more background for the characters.

Seven…what a fucking great movie. Fincher, Freeman and Pitt. So good!

American Beauty…another perennial darling. Just great performances. No matter what Spacey did, which I believe to be true, is still or was a great actor and his movies prove it. His early ones were highly great and a due Oscar for Usual Suspects, I think. And, this ofc.

1990

I own this on Blu-ray and got it for $8 on Amazon.

How come all of Big Boy Caprice's minions all look like they are wearing the makeup from the doctors on the Eye of the Beholder episode from the Twilight Zone?

Mumbles has to be one of Dustin Hoffman's most annoying characters ever.

2019

Amazon Prime


"Charlie (Dane Cook) is a desperate father who steals a million-dollar painting from Anton, a shady art dealer. He flees to the California desert with his rebellious teenage son, Leo (Levi Miller) but when Anton and his henchman come seeking revenge, the situation explodes into violence and suddenly Charlie is not the only one whose days may be numbered."

It was only 1 hr and 25 minutes or less which I need on a Sat these days.


The ending was kind of ridiculous

2023

Starz

"A manipulative contractor terrorizes a housewife and a twisted battle of wits with deliciously unexpected results."

Francesca Eastwood is hot AF but this is a waste of time.

2023

Showtime

"Jeanne uses her charms and intelligence to climb the social ladder step by step and she becomes one of the favorites of King Louis XV and falls madly in love"

Nice sets and costumes but not really fun to watch

2023

Hulu

"Travelling salesman Cliff is drowning under the weight of providing for his family and finds himself on a dangerous path after a chance encounter with a colleague who has a dark past. "

I wanted to like this but was lost and did not really care for it.

Kit Harrington was pretty good however.

In A Violent Nature - kinda boring with some unforgettable kills.

Showtime

2024

"A man's life collapses when his mistress is found dead in his pool. Terrified of the consequences and desperate to protect his family, he conceals the truth, triggering a chaotic night that threatens to unravel his perfect life."

Freddie Prinze Jr now with grey hair

He was a producer so this was ticket to get back into movies?

Ending was really stupid.

Galaxy Of Terror (1981)

in a word - UGH

Oddity AMC+/Shudder 4K
Carolyn Bracken. Directed by Damian McCarthy. 2024
A psychic medium attempts to uncover the truth behind her sister's murder at the site of the crime.

"Oddity" definitely has its moments. The camerawork creates a genuinely creepy atmosphere, and the director pulls off a couple of good jump scares. However, the plot is as two-dimensional as an old EC Horror Comic like "Tales from the Crypt". I understand that it's a film involving The Supernatural, but when you lay out the story "Oddity" hands you, it's a bit of a stretch.

Dear God, what a ridiculous (and incredibly dull) movie. Was surprised at how terrible this was. Taking a vow of chastity silence here ... the less said the better.

Saturday Night Sony
Gabriel LaBelle. Directed by Jason Reitman. 2024
At 11:30pm on October 11, 1975, a ferocious troupe of young comedians and writers changed television - and culture - forever. Saturday Night is based on the true story of what happened behind the scenes in the 90 minutes leading up to the first broadcast of Saturday Night Live.

I remember watching the first episode of "Saturday Night" in 1975, wondering what it was exactly, and never guessing that it would become an institution, which was what it was originally there to make fun of. This is one of my favorite films this year, and a wonderful blast of nostalgia for an old guy like me. Jason Reitman recreates what must have been the energy that took place on that fateful night; the camera never stops moving and the film is wall-to-wall dialogue, most of it edgy and dryly humorous. It features a terrific cast who do a nice job of embodying the featured players and those behind the scenes. Particular kudos to Cory Michael Smith as Chevy Chase and Dylan O'Brien as Dan Aykroyd. I'm sure most of the stories and characterizations are true based on books and articles I've read, though they may have been compressed or moved around to fit into the film's timeline. I really hated to see this one end.

THE POPE'S EXORCIST

Russell Crowe is back!

In A Violent Nature AMC+/Shudder 4K
Ry Barrett. Directed by Chris Nash. 2024
When a locket is removed from a collapsed fire tower in the woods that entombs the rotting corpse of Johnny, a vengeful spirit spurred on by a horrific 70-year old crime, his body is resurrected and becomes hellbent on retrieving it.

I've always had a slight attraction to "Slasher Films", even though most are pretty awful. I would often find myself find myself thinking about how I would have written or directed the movie I'm watching if I had the means. I was intrigued by "In A Violent Nature" because it promised a stylized approach to the genre; it certainly wasn't because of the title, which sounds grammatically clunky. Chris Nash imagines a Friday the 13th movie from the point-of-view of Jason (here his supernatural killer is "Johnny") rather than the kids he will stalk and kill. Armed with this conceit there are scenes of Johnny walking, and walking and walking through the woods, slowly encountering his victims, with their voices barely audible until he's right on top of them. A lot of it is strangely compelling even as it deliberately tests your patience.

The film is also about extreme violence and prosthetic effects. Very much like Damian Leone's "Terrifier" films, "In A Violent Nature" serves up heaps of gore in a very cruel fashion (Johnny whacks one character's body with an axe over forty times by my count, mostly offscreen, thank you). I'm a little ambivalent about that. I don't mind gore and wish the "Jason" films were available in their unrated form, but this goes so far that it bothered me on some level.

Dogman Universal
Caleb Landry Jones. Directed by Luc Besson. 2023
A boy, bruised by life, finds his salvation through the love of his dogs.

I was a bit concerned. "Dogman" got terrible reviews, did poor business, and Universal just dumped it on a disc, no slipcover, no extras, no digital copy. "Dogman" is essentially a Fantasy about a physically handicapped man with a tragic backstory who becomes a drag performer and uses trained dogs to commit high-end robberies. It's Comic Book nonsense, -an Independent Comic Book, I suppose -but nonsense none the less. And, you know what, much to my surprise I genuinely enjoyed it. It's far from Luc Besson's best work, but he tells this oddball story with a lot of style.

2014


"In Boston, a bipolar individual (Mark Ruffalo) takes over sole responsibility for his two spirited daughters while his wife (Zoe Saldana) attends graduate school in New York."

I own this

$13 well spent at Amazon.


Ruffalo on the Marc Maron podcast said this was one of his favorite roles and should have gotten a Oscar for it.