What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Swimfan (2002)

The genre that probably isn't called 'Jilted lover turns psycho bitch from hell' is well worn. Standout's include Jessica Walter in Clint Eastwood's Play Misty for Me (1971) and Glenn Close in 1987's Fatal Attraction and now i'd add Swimfan to that list.

Plot wise the film is nothing particularly new, it's basically a high school version of the aforementioned films but in Erika Christensen it has a standout loony femme fatale as good as any. Her performance as she sets out to destroy swimming champ Jesse Bradford's life kept me on edge throughout in what was a fast moving 85 minute thriller.

Don't be put off by the 12 certificate. This is an entertaining psycho thriller.

[Dave Boy]

A WEEKEND WITH LULU (1961)

Tim (Leslie Phillips) and Deirdre (Shirley Eaton) have planned a weekend away in Folkstone. Fred (Bob Monkhouse) loans them his brothers caravan 'Lulu' which he will toe down to the coast behind his ice cream van as he intends to sell some ices on the side. Deidre's mother Florence (Irene Handl) comes along as chaperone. After taking a short cut to avoid a traffic jam, they become lost in a storm and end up on the back of a train heading for France..

Hammer Films comedy with a great cast also including Sid James and Kenneth Connor. Lively piano playing by Russ Conway is the soundtrack for the most part in this enjoyable knockaround movie.

[MrBarlow]

Graveyard Shift. 1990.

In a very old textile mill, the workers try to stop a rat infestation, only to come across something bigger in the basement of the mill.

Based on the short story by Stephen King, this one seems to be getting a bashing by critics as the worst story/adaptation, it isn't full of blood and gore as his earlier works but seems to rely on more suspense than anything else. Stephen Macht (The Monster Squad) plays the owner of the textile mill with a southern accent , every time he talked i was expecting him to come out with "the south shall rise again" don't hate me for thinking that

Brad Dourif stars as the exterminator who like the sling shot and can move and Andrew Divoff (Wishmaster) makes a small appearance. David Andrews stars as the new employee and somewhat of a reluctant hero. Maybe due to poor casting choice or direction the film was going that people seem to hate but personally i enjoyed this film, i'm sure we have our worst King's adaptation.

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[nicholasrope]

Originally Posted by MrBarlow

G.B.H. 1983.

A recently released ex-bouncer is asked to be a bouncer for a small club where the local gangsters try to take over.

One question, was this movie released to cinema or was it a made for T.V. movie? With a tagline "More brutal than The Long Good Friday" this had me intrigued. It was probably brutal back then but now this was F&*king tame. The acting was not great even though the actors have moved on to better things, the fight scenes seem so daft and very bad editing doesn't help. You can only laugh at this film now.

Attachment 224020

This was featured on the 2nd part of The Video Nasties Guide released by Nucleus Films so believe it or not this film was part of the Section 3 List.

From what I recall they did say that it was a popular film when it came out Rental wise but I saw the trailer and it looked awful. I keep on saying this but it may be a case of it being better when it was out for Rental and had nothing else to compare it to.

[MrBarlow]

Originally Posted by nicholasrope

This was featured on the 2nd part of The Video Nasties Guide released by Nucleus Films so believe it or not this film was part of the Section 3 List.

From what I recall they did say that it was a popular film when it came out Rental wise but I saw the trailer and it looked awful. I keep on saying this but it may be a case of it being better when it was out for Rental and had nothing else to compare it to.

May of been popular back then but i was..ahem years old when it came out i don't think it would be great match with The Long Good Friday. One scene involves a broken glass to the face, done POV style but don't see the after effect (nor want to), it has a few goofs in it that are easily noticed. Maybe our minds have been corrupted with other violent films over the years and we are use to seeing a lot of violence.

[nicholasrope]

Cyber Tracker

This is a 1994 Don "The Dragon" Wilson movie where he's a Secret Service Agent who is framed of a murder of a Technology Company Whistleblower by an evil owner specializing in Cybernetics. He is hunted by Cyber Trackers (Robots that act like Judge Dredd) and eventually teams up with a resistance group. This is the B-Movie equivalent of more bigger films but it's good fun. If you like your B-Movie Action films and you can find it cheap, then you'd do worse.

Trading Places

This is the classic Eddie Murphy and Dan Ackroyd 80's Comedy where 2 which Stockbrokers bet on whether 2 people can cope if they swapped lives. This is the 1st time I've seen it and quite enjoyed it. Must say however I was a bit shocked by part of the scene on the Train which I'm sure wouldn't have happened if it was filmed now.

Planet Terror

Part of The Great Grindhouse project which didn't do as well as first thought. This was the Zombie part and it wasn't bad, it was nice and gory but the scratches on the film got a bit grating for me (Yes I know that's what it was like back then)

I remember a comment saying that people don't pay all that money to go to the Cinema to see scratches and lines (Even it was intentional)

Olympus Has Fallen

Gerard Butler is a Secret Service Agent who is a one man army when Korean Terrorists take over the White House. A bit of a throwback to the straight up no-brainer Action movies that were adored in the late 80's-Early 90's and this wouldn't be out of place if it was released back then. The storming of the White House was exhilarating.

[nicholasrope]

Originally Posted by MrBarlow

May of been popular back then but i was..ahem years old when it came out i don't think it would be great match with The Long Good Friday. One scene involves a broken glass to the face, done POV style but don't see the after effect (nor want to), it has a few goofs in it that are easily noticed. Maybe our minds have been corrupted with other violent films over the years and we are use to seeing a lot of violence.

I agree

[MrBarlow]

Weekend at Bernie's. 1989.

Two guys try to make out their murdered boss is still alive during a weekend party and elude the hitman who is trying to finish him off.

One decent black humor comedy to finish off the 80s, at a party you can't pretend nobody is dead but always a joy when someone is passed out drunk and this film springs to mind with others to imitate it. Andrew McCarthy and Johnathan Silverman play the unlucky duo who find their boss Bernie played by Terry Kiser dead. What makes it more funny is the islanders don't realize he is dead and keep calling him. Don Calfa plays the hitman who thinks he done the job then slowly looses his mind. Certainly recommended.

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[MrBarlow]

Sid and Nancy. 1986.

Biography tale of bassist id Vicious and his relationship with girlfriend Nancy Spungen.

This is one ride of self destruct, or as Johnny Rotten once said "The only thing they got right about this film was the name". Gary Oldman's performance as the bassist Sid is quite amazing, intriguing and scary as he slips into the heroin addiction and Chloe Webb's take on Nancy is unpredictable. It does show the high's of being on tour, singing, having a laugh to the downside of having little money and coming off a high with the sweats and tempers flaring up. Roger Deakins did a great job with the cinematography, even upto the end with New York being in the background and clouds filling the sky as if it were a cloud were to be over Sid.

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[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Deepwater Horizon (2016) ★★★★

A story set on the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

I'm a big fan of Peter Berg's films and his approach to stories based on true events – I've yet to see Mile 22 – and consider this as good as, or better than The Kingdom, Lone Survivor, and Patriots' Day. It's an extremely loud film, it should be loud because of the on-screen events, which is great demo material for anyone with a Dolby Atmos set up, and a thoroughly engrossing watch which isn't diminished by repeated viewings.

Midsommar (2019) ★★★★★

Several friends travel to Sweden to study as anthropologists a summer festival that is held every ninety years in the remote hometown of one of them. What begins as a dream vacation in a place where the sun never sets, gradually turns into a dark nightmare as the mysterious inhabitants invite them to participate in their disturbing festive activities.

Watched the Director's Cut and loved it just as much as the theatrical version I watched at the cinema. Even though I feel I need to watch both versions several times to fully appreciate everything in the film, I consider this to be a modern day masterpiece.

The Water Diviner (2014) ★★★

In 1919, Australian farmer Joshua Connor travels to Turkey to discover the fate of his three sons, reported missing in action. Holding on to hope, Joshua must travel across the war-torn landscape to find the truth and his own peace.

Despite some questionable CGI and slow motion, this is a fine directorial effort from Russell Crowe, and a film where he is an engaging presence in front of the camera. Olga Kurylenko is surprisingly convincing as a Turkish widow, and something of a love interest for Crowe's bereaved Cooper, but I was surprised (and not in a good way) there was a brief history lesson of the Ottoman Empire without a single mention of the Armenian genocide, a glaring omission from the screenplay.

It's an engaging and well acted film with some extremely good combat scenes, but a film which could have been much better.