What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Daemonia]

Lakeview Terrace (2008) - Samuel L. Jackson is a cop raising two kids on his own. A mixed race couple move in next door - and Sam ain't happy. He's a racist - against white people. That is, white men with black women. It's all well realised and as things escalate it keeps the balance excellently, never overcooking things. Well worth a look.

Poltergeist (1982) - Caught this on Blu-ray and it looks absolutely stunning. A family begin experiencing poltergeist activity and their daughter is abducted by these maleveolent souls. Gripping stuff and it still holds up very well. Previous DVD incarnations looked smudgy and fuzzy, but this HD trasnfer looks brand new. Recommended.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) - Richard Dreyfuss is Roy Neary who becomes obsessed after encountering UFO's and pursues his obsession through to the dramatic finale. The Blu-ray of this is astounding and breathes new life into this classic. The disc provides all 3 versions of the film on one disc and all in HD! There's also a bonus disc. Well worth picking up.

[nekromantik]

Originally Posted by Daemonia

Book of Blood (2009) - Paranormal investigators enlist the help of a young lad with clairvoyant powers to investigate an allegedly haunted location. Things start getting a bit weird, with the young lad being attacked and subject to paranormal forces. But it quickly becomes apparent that he's faking it - or is he? Because suddenly they are confronted with a very real force and the lad finds himself as a 'book of blood' - the dead write their stories into his living flesh. This was actually very, very good and was more like an old school horror. Even the music score was reminiscent of 80's horror fare. Nice to see director John Harrison still working too. Recommended.

Yeah I enjoyed this, its not the best of the Barker adaptations but still a good movie. Was creepy too.

[Daemonia]

Heat (1995) - Caught this on Blu-ray and it still stands up as one of the best films of the 90's. The iconic scene where Pacino and DeNiro meet together on screen for the first time is pure movie magic.

The Magnificent Seven (1960) - I picked this DVD up for a quid in Poundland and thoroughly enjoyed it again. Yul Brynner is Chris, a gun for hire, who is approached by some Mexican farmers whose town is pillaged on a regular basis by a group of bandits and they want to fight back. Chris agrees to help them and rounds up another six of the best fighters he can find and they set about protecting the villagers from these bandits. Such a brilliant film with a cast you could only dream of: Yul Brunner, James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughan, Eli Wallach etc. It really is a 'magnificent' movie. One of the all-time greats.

The Matrix (1999) - I had the Matrix trilogy on Blu-ray for Christmas, so thought I'd give the first movie a spin. It looks incredible in HD, I have to admit.

Matrix Reloaded - Neo (Reeves) once more goes back into the Matrix and unravels more of its secrets. Although the weakest of the trilogy, it still packs enough entertainment into its running time to keep things interesting. The Blu-ray looks stunning, too.

Matrix Revolutions - The trilogy concludes with this real rollercoaster ride that packs more CGI into a single frame than I think I've ever seen before or since. However, it's brilliantly done and the final showdown in Zion is a cracker. Once again, the Blu-ray is flawless - the detail is incredible.

Inglourious Basterds (2009) - After the misjudged misfire that was Death Proof I had low hopes for this one. However, Tarantino has sneaked in at the last minute and crafted what is arguably the best film of the decade. The script is flawless, the performances pitch perfect - and who can resist a film that gives a nod to Hugo Stiglitz? I'm impressed that Tarantino even knows who he is. Absolutely brilliant. See it now!

The Gray Man (2009) - A very grim portrayal of Albert Fish and the police hunt to catch him. It's made even more grim by the fact that it is a true story. The film is never too graphic, but neither does it flinch from its subject matter. The 1920's and 30's are perfectly recreated on screen and the film boasts some astonishing performances. Well worth a look.

Terminator: Salvation (2009) - This time round Christian Bale is John Connor, freedom fighter for the resistance. It looks very impressive, but I got the feeling Bale was a bit miscast here. Very enjoyable nonetheless - although the central premise made me chuckle, it was like 'Why don't we just hit the 'off' button?'

Drag Me to Hell (2009)- A beleagured bank clerk refuses an old woman's request for an extension on her loan and invokes her ire and the old woman, after a brawl in a car park, curses her. The bank clerk has 3 days to save herself from this curse. I thought it was a lot of fun and competently put together by Raimi.

Mirrors (2009) - An acceptable remake of the Korean film Into the Mirror (which is obviously the better film). Kiefer Sutherland is okay-ish in the lead role, as a man who takes a nightwatchman's job at an old, abandoned building and begins to realise there's something living behind the mirrors. It's the usual American horror nonsense, but it's fairly engaging nonetheless. Not bad, but no great shakes either.

Stuck (2007) - Brandi (Mena Suvari) is driving home late one night and knocks over homeless man Thomas Bardo (Stephen Rea). Only problem is, he's stuck in her car windshield - and Brandi, terrified (and stoned on drugs) simply drives home and parks the car up in the garage, leaving Thomas badly wounded and stuck in the windshield. Rather than help, she just carries on normally and goes into work. Things quickly start unravelling, though, and Brandi starts to lose the plot more and more. Brandi is suitably callous and cold and you really get to hating her in a big way. Even more horrible is that it's based on actual events. I thought it was a one-off event, but apparently it's a common phenomenon in the US. Look it up, I found at least a dozen similar news stories from the US over the last few years.

Last House on the Left (2009) - F*ck me, that was one rough ride. For once here's a remake that most certainly does not tone down its elements. There is no shying away from the rape scene either, which is not something Hollywood often tackles head on like this (unless it stars Jodie Foster and is Oscar-worthy). This was brutal, savage and extremely confrontational. I'd even say that, as a whole, it's better than Craven's original (as was Hills Have Eyes remake IMO). If only all remakes were as good as this. Don't be put off, this is strong, potent and extremely violent. The performances all round are excellent, the plot follows a logical linear course and it's very well scripted. This is well worth your time.

The New York Ripper (1982) - I picked up the Blue Underground Blu-ray and it's a knockout disc. The HD transfer really does breathe new life into this notorious classic. The only downside was seeing the gay porn mags in such detail LOL. Surprised this disc slipped through customs, as Amazon had clearly marked on the box what was inside. Guess no-one at Customs cares anymore.

Zombies on Broadway (1945) - Two bungling PR men working for ruthless gangster Ace are given the impossible task of delivering a real zombie for when Ace's new nightspot 'The Zombie Hut' opens. So they set off to capture a real zombie and get more than they bargained for. It's mostly played for laughs but it's all good fun and Lugosi puts in a solid turn as the mysterious and cunning Dr Reynaud. Harmless entertainment and I rather enjoyed it!

Dead Snow (2009) - Good, gory zombie fum from Norway that pays homage to the likes of The Evil Dead (which is freely referenced). A group of friends go to a remote cabin in the snowy wastes of Norway and unwittingly resurrect a bunch of Nazi zombies. Cue lots of screaming, blood, guts and gore and you end up with a really fun mix. I enjoyed this far more than I thought I would. Recommended.

Hell Ride (2008) - This is either a work of utter comic genius or it's the worst film ever made - I'm still undecided! Whichever it is, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a really odd film and everyone in it seems to be wondering why they're in it, judging by their faces. Michael Madsen just wanders through the whole film with a 'What the f*ck am I doing here? What does it all mean?' look on his face. And at one point, when two other characters are having a conversation, for no apparent reason he blows across the top of his beer bottle, laughs, and says 'Look, I'm an owl.' I must confess, I laughed out loud at that. Then there's the conversation about how great the dust is. By that point I was scratching my head and yet really enjoying myself. This is a damn hard film to define. It just....'is'.

This film is so utterly bizarre I can't even properly categorize what it is. A biker movie, yes. What happens? I'm not entirely sure.

Recommended. I think...?

[Daemonia]

Gone Baby Gone (2007) - When a young girl is abducted, her family hire the services of a private investigator to locate the missing child. It soon becomes evident that the mother is far from fit to raise a child and things aren't quite what they seem. Well plotted with good all round performances. An intelligent exploration of the subject. Worth a look.

Watchmen (2009) - Hmmm....I didn't quite 'get' this at all. It's unnecessarily complicated and convoluted - to the point of almost total bewilderment, although it does tie things up at the end. I couldn't, initially, make out if they were really superheroes or not. Then a big blue man appears - and a man with a strange bandaged face. Okay, they're probably out of the ordinary. Not sure at this point what I think of it. It probably warrants another watch and I'll give it a reassessment. Right now, though, my opinion of it is very low.

War Inc (2008) - John Cusack is the specialist who handles 'delicate' political matters (ie: trained assassin) in a fictional parallel world where corporations rule the world in the place of political governments. It's a sharp satire on the futility of warring in the Middle East and the US's ridiculous attempts at Americanising foreign countries. Well worth a look.

Near Dark (1987) - Checked this out on Blu-ray and sadly the transfer is found wanting. Whilst it's admittedly better than previous DVD incarnations, it still falls short of the HD standard. Great film, poor disc.

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Picked this up on Blu-ray and it looks stunning. No need to recount the Dracula tale here, as we're all familiar with it. The transfer on this Blu-ray is outstanding, the detail it reveals is incredible - and coupled with a booming, higher bitrate 5.1 audio track. Nicely done. A great Blu-ray of a very guilty pleasure.

Stephen King's It (1990) - A group of childhood friends reunite as adults to defeat their old foe, the evil clown Pennywise. It's a pretty decent film aside from a lacklustre, crap ending that's over before it's begun. This deserved a more exciting final showdown, instead we get some shoddy stop-motion monster and a lame attack on the creature. Overall very enjoyable - but boy did that ending need some work!

Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans (2009) - The law of diminishing returns is at work here. The title says it all really - after years of being held as slaves by the vampires the Lycans rise up against their masters to liberate themselves. It's a total CGI fest and not unenjoyable, but it lacked something. It didn't hold my interest as it should have done. The short running time helped matters, I was glad it wasn't a drawn out affair. Not bad, but not brilliant either.

[pedromonkey]

Originally Posted by Daemonia

Hell Ride (2008) - This is either a work of utter comic genius or it's the worst film ever made - I'm still undecided! Whichever it is, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a really odd film and everyone in it seems to be wondering why they're in it, judging by their faces. Michael Madsen just wanders through the whole film with a 'What the f*ck am I doing here? What does it all mean?' look on his face. And at one point, when two other characters are having a conversation, for no apparent reason he blows across the top of his beer bottle, laughs, and says 'Look, I'm an owl.' I must confess, I laughed out loud at that. Then there's the conversation about how great the dust is. By that point I was scratching my head and yet really enjoying myself. This is a damn hard film to define. It just....'is'.

This film is so utterly bizarre I can't even properly categorize what it is. A biker movie, yes. What happens? I'm not entirely sure.

Recommended. I think...?

i was a bit pissed off at this film, it annoyed me because i think it is an exceptionally well shot film, with a fantastic soundtrack but it all came down to Larry Bishop, the man can't act, he can direct, but the movie was only made so he could have sex with incredibly hot women that in real life i guess would never get a shot with, this film was a vanity project for bishop and made purely to increase this prick's Ego.

And It does'nt surprise me that Tarantino knows who Hugo Stiglitz is because the man would put any of us to shame over movie knowlage, well maybe not Vincenzo.

[Daemonia]

Originally Posted by pedromonkey

i was a bit pissed off at this film, it annoyed me because i think it is an exceptionally well shot film, with a fantastic soundtrack but it all came down to Larry Bishop, the man can't act, he can direct, but the movie was only made so he could have sex with incredibly hot women that in real life i guess would never get a shot with, this film was a vanity project for bishop and made purely to increase this prick's Ego.

And It does'nt surprise me that Tarantino knows who Hugo Stiglitz is because the man would put any of us to shame over movie knowlage, well maybe not Vincenzo.

I saw it completely differently. I saw it as having its tongue firmly in its cheek. Bishop I thought was perfectly outlandish and played his role well, I thought. Still, different strokes for different folks - I found it highly entertaining and I think in years to come it may well gain something of a cult following. I enjoyed it, anyway. But we're all different.

And I very much doubt he actually had sex with any of the women in the film. I took that as all being part of the joke, anyway.

[nekromantik]

Just seen Left Bank, a horror from Belgium.
Very werid and odd film, some of the things in it will make you think WTF!!
Overall, quite moody and atmospheric movie, was good and different but might take more viewings to like it properly. At the moment still trying to get my head around it.

[eNoize]

A few days ago, I finally got around to seeing the remake of The Wizard of Gore. Being a huge Herschell Gordon Lewis fan, I was very skeptical, but it turned out decent. And while I thoroughly enjoyed the roles of Crispin Glover and Jeffrey Combs, I feel the ending is a bit off and unsatisfying.

Anyone else seen it yet?

[nekromantik]

Originally Posted by eNoize

A few days ago, I finally got around to seeing the remake of The Wizard of Gore. Being a huge Herschell Gordon Lewis fan, I was very skeptical, but it turned out decent. And while I thoroughly enjoyed the roles of Crispin Glover and Jeffrey Combs, I feel the ending is a bit off and unsatisfying.

Anyone else seen it yet?

I saw it a while back and thought it was quite boring and didnt like it at all.
Not seen the original but it just bored me to hell.

[BioZombie]

Just finished watching Darkman. I can't belive I haven't got round to watching this before. It's just fantastic. Its so well shot and the effects are top notch. The whole film has a fantastic macrbe atmosphere, which is helped out alot by Danny Elfmans score.

I think this is now my favourite Sam Raimi film after Evil Dead II

Are any of the sequels worth watching?