Visitors (2003)

With a good cast, Radha Mitchell, Susannah York and Dominic Purcell. Visitors, a film about an Australian woman on a round the world sail boat journey, could have been a quietly effective little horror film. Unfortunately the script gets it all wrong.

The film begins with Mitchell a good way into her epic journey and instantly plunges the viewer into a feeling of unease. Immediately you are part of her plight, then the film cuts away in flashback sequences to before the sail and her life as she prepares. The rest of the film is fragmented in the same way. Any time tension builds up it instantly dissipates via a flash back, and completely ruins the viewers journey. By the end of the film you couldn't care less if events were all in Mitchell's mind as she struggles to cope with the constant isolation or if it was all brought on by her accidentally killing a crow which landed on her yacht, her own little albatross, so to speak. Its all a shame really as Radha Mitchell is a decent actress and likable woman who carries the film almost single handed, and deserved a better thought out screenplay.

Exterminator 2 (1984)

I'd not seen either Exterminator film until this year. After loving the first one i was delighted when Shout Factory released the sequel as part of a four film set.

Unfortunately Exterminator 2 isn't a patch on its predecessor. Whereas the first film was all about Robert Ginty's antihero, too much of Exterminator 2 is taken up by Mario Van Peebles and his rather faceless gang of villains, instead of the more interesting Ginty character. In the end all this did was turn the film into another Death Wish rip off with nothing much to make it memorable.

No wonder there wasn't a third film in the series after this wasted opportunity.

Demoniacs (Blu)... Jean Rollin films always present a challenge for this viewer, and his 1974 film, about two dreamy blonde castaways set upon by a bunch of sadistic ship-wrecking pirates is a maddening uneven brew - essentially an old fashioned adventure yarn along the lines of Fritz Lang's Moonfleet, but with lashings of nudity and sex. Had Rollin been a better film maker Demoniacs might have become a truly disturbing piece of European Fantastique, but the film is ultimately undone by some amateurish performances and ham-fisted editing. Nevertheless this darkly erotic film exerts a strange power over the viewer and the striking visuals will linger with you for days afterwards. The region-free Redemption Blu looks very nice...

http://s3.amazonaws.com/auteurs_prod...jpg?1337418409

Tonights film was Who Dares Wins a film that I think perfectly captures its time. In some ways Zero Dark Thrity is similar - a very long build up to the money shot - the raid on the terrorists - which is over in a flash. "Could you do that again, it was a bit fast for me". Indeed.

Took my boy to watch Disneys Planes this afternoon. And I really enjoyed it. Much much better than Pixars Cars from which it is a spin off.

Tokyo gore police
Very, very sick and gory and has to be one of the most weird films I've seen. Really makes you think how strange the Japanese are. 6.5/10

Trick r treat

Has too be one of the best anthology horrors I've seen in a long, long time, ranks it up their with creepshow, tales from the crypt and amicus films etc. has my new favourite horror icon now, makes Freddy,Jason Myers etc look like a bunch do pussy wimps. 9.5/10. This is one that's definitely being watched again on Halloween

Now next either the hand, fade to black or this night I will possess your corpse.

Repulsion - Repulsion sits comfortably in my top ten films of all time, there are two films that have managed to frighten me as an adult, one is Lynch's 'Inland Empire' the other is 'Repulsion'. The direction is masterful and after a couple of viewings, little things take on more importance, I still think there's something 'off' in the family photo and I'm still undecided if Carole's psychosis is down to sexual repression or some kind of assault. It's just a brilliant film I'll never get tired of, I've watched it at least five times and it still unsettles.

Battlestar Galactica: Blood and Chrome (2013) Hmmm! Was there a point really!

From 1940:
My Little Chickadee :lol:
A Chump At Oxford :lol:
Tin Pan Alley a bit of toe tapping to the old songs!
Santa Fa Trail Revisionist Hollywood history!

http://www.cult-labs.com/forums/memb...tml#post359732

Keep meaning to watch 'Tokyo gore police' looks interesting.
I really like 'Trick r treat' too, one of my favourite modern films.
I have fond memories of watching 'The hand' on T.V when i was a kid, read reviews since that didn't rate it, but i still would like to pick it up sometime.:nod:
I really enjoyed 'Fade to black' myself although you never hear much about it. Lots of references to old classic films in the killers outfits and i couldn't help identifying with him being a film freak myself. ( has quite a nice Marilyn Monroe lookalike too.):woot:
As i said previously that one is my favourite Coffin Joe film but in my opinion whichever one you pick your'e on to a winner.:)

All Ladies Do It aka Così fan tutte (1992). Directed by Tinto Brass.

This is a film about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). It contains: an abundance of female posteriors, lots of pubic hair, adultery, and sodomy. Yuck!

Verdict: appalling and revolting.

L.A. Confidential. (1997)

A masterpiece of modern cinema. If anyone hasn't seen it, then you're missing out.

L.A Confidential is a brilliant film adapted from a stunning novel, the whole L.A Quartet from Ellroy is just sublime. The film leaves a lot out which, if you've read the book, makes the screenplay even more impressive, the screenplay is backed up by some great performances. Crowe, Spacey and Basinger have never been better in my opinion, all three are perfect fits for 1950's L.A. Probably one of the best films of the past twenty years.

What about Guy Pearce?, haven't seen 'Confidential' for a while, but i really like him normally as an actor, he usually puts in a good performance whatever he's in. :pop2:
Has anyone seen 'The Proposition' i really like that film a lot?:nod:
Always thought he would have been good as Batman myself. :)

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Watched 'Slaughterhouse 5', an interesting film.
Billy Pilgrim has become unstuck in time.
Basically He has been abducted by aliens, taken to another planet and placed in a sealed dome as some kind of experiment and is expected to mate with an abducted female film star.( who spends most of the time she appears without much clothing.:woot: Personally i could probably live with this.);)

He also slips through time constantly to revisit earlier moments from his life, primarily the relationship with his previous wife and kids and his experiences in WW2.:crazy: I guess this must be some side effect of the abduction.
Anyway that all sounds very serious, and it is but the film also has some amusing moments.:pop2:
I read the book a long time ago but couldn't remember much apart from the above description, so for me this adaption was good.

It's a very interesting film, quite thought provoking and philosophical, i thought the main actor was good though he just seemed to observe most of the time.( which seems weird as you're watching it, but makes sense if he is slipping back into the moment because he would already be aware of the outcome.):loco:
Anyway i liked it, mainly for the juxtaposition of images and ideas, there's actually not much of the science fiction element although it does make all the pieces fit together and gives it a meaning.
Pretty good- 7/10 :)

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"Hercules Against the Moon Men" (1964)

Spaghetti Swords and Sandals epic :tongue1:
The neatly coiffured Haircurlers takes on the terrifying shuffling rock men from an old episode of "Flash Gordon and the Farting Rockets"! Thankfully repeated copying and age has leached out some of the colour otherwise Haircurlers would be too orange for the human eye, a bit like David Dickinson on steroids!

7/10 for being a proto-wrestling video starring a young David Dickinson and some bloke in a mask!:doh:

p.s. :eek: I've just noticed that the next three films are all about Haircurlers (thanks have to go to Ken Dodd and his "Ken Dodd's Big Diddy Book" for the name Haircurlers, I am not worthy to fiddle his tax-returns)!

p.p.s. If anyone knows the whereabouts of a "Ken Dodd's Big Diddy Book" could they please let me know (but only if it's cheap)!

@Troggi, that is a massive box of Sci-Fi films!.

Star Wars Phantom menace.

As bad as I remember but with wonkier CGI courtesy of Blu-ray showing it up. Jar Jar binks the racist clown character is the worst thing here, serves little purpose other than to baby talk, fall over and provide toilet humor. Next up on rotten things is Jake Loyd playing Anakin Skywalker. I know a lot of child actors are insufferable, but Loyd can't even act, he's so bloody fake its irritating. There is the occasional interesting thing in the movie like Darth Maul but overall it stinks like a bathroom the day after curry night.

Star wars Attack of the Clones.

An improvement. Hayden christiansen is less annoying than the Loyd brat but still Skywalker comes across as a petulant whiny brat and his scenes are lousy and irritating. Outside of the scenes between him and Natalie Portman the film is actually somewhat more interesting than Phantom menace. Jar Jar exposure is kept to a minimum as everyone realizes he's not the new merchandising sensation that will buy Lucas a new speedboat. Obi-wan's investigation into the bounty hunter Django Fett is actually fun, the clone troopers and the finale in the arena are fun and Christopher Lee as the villain is never a bad thing. Unlike Phantom menace I actually paused the film when I went to get a drink.


Star Wars Revenge of the Sith.

Probably the best of the three as Lucas finally begins to remember how to make movies after over two decades spent producing movies and not directing them. Decent action scenes throughout, actually gets rather dark and finally Ian Mcdirmid gets to shine as the emperor. Even less Jar Jar is a good thing, only a brief appearance from Christopher Lee is not. Neither is Vader and his infamous NOOOOOOO scene. Still, its an entertaining enough romp.


So what went wrong?

I think the simple answer is no one was around to suggest changes to Lucas and he had enough money to put whatever brain farts came to the surface without anyone saying "sorry George, this idea is actually pretty shit" or "no George, those characters come across as racist caricatures" The original Star wars was shot on a tight budget by a young director who could actually listen to people and was constrained by a tight budget. Hell, look at what he did to the originals when he had the budget and the ability to go back over them in the film making Photoshop studio. After watching the Animated Clone wars series and seeing what the setting could be like without the bearded clams interference it makes me wish he had simply handed his notes to a director like Lawrence Kasdan and said go to work, meanwhile using that insane amount of money he has to start a fund to finance and distribute low budget independent films. I seriously don't think he should be let near a film as director or writer ever again.

It's a good thing Disney bought Star wars.

I thought it was distinctly mediocre without any of the attention to detail, engaging central characters or emotional impact of the Pixar films. I think Cars is probably the weakest Pixar film but it's head and shoulders above Planes which just doesn't have the Pixar magic.

I think much of what you said also applies to Quentin Tarantino, who began making films with a small budget but now has almost unlimited funds and without anyone to tell him to stop acting in his own films and, in the case of Inglorious Basterds and Django Unchained, they are far too long.

Most definitely. QT has become entirely self-indulgent. That said his films are still (relatively) low cost budget-wise and I still find them entertaining. Certainly a more 'professional' film-maker would cut them down and be way more ruthless in the editing suite but for me at least I still find his films entertaining and don't mind him being self indulgent.

Hell i'd also level the same charges at Stanley Kubrick, eyes wide shut is probably the most self indulgent and over long of his films but I still keep coming back to it time and time again. he basically got carte blanche to do whatever the hell he wanted and it shows.

I could even level the same accusations at P.T Anderson. Magnolia and there will be blood for me both fit the same criticism.

God knows how long it will take me take get through the five similar box sets I have!

That, and the fact that the films didn't need to exist in the first place. The story of Anakin's turn to the dark side works better if you don't see it as far as I'm concerned and these prequels (as many others) are guilty of over-explaining everything and tying everything up in neat little coincidences. Plus, there's a severe lack of dramatic tension since the outcome of everything is already known. "Oh, Yoda is fighting Christoper Lee! Whoever will win? My bets on the little green dude who features in the subsequent films". The prequels do get progressively better but the third one is still a turd.

This, and the fact that the Star Wars films were a one off (three off) cultural phenomenon which somehow captured the hearts and minds of the world. There was a certain magic to them that could never be reproduced twenty years later.

The same goes for the Indiana Jones films.

That's because he filmed the moon landings for NASA! After that Kubrick could do no wrong!! :cool:

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - American remake

Well, I say I watched it. I think I lasted about 50 minutes before I turned it off (just after the anal rape scene)

All I can say is...'I'm glad this was remade because I'm too lazy to read films, and I love remakes where all the complex issues are spelled out in BIG LETTERS so I don't have to figure anything out myself!!!!'

Note - This is irony. I hate remakes which give everything on a plate, without the viewer having to work and figure things out

The hand

Can see why it gets a bad rap, but enjoyed it. 6.5/10

This night I will possess your corpse

Fantastic even better than at midnight I will take your souls, amazing imagery with a unique style and the scene where he gets dragged to hell is a surreal and psychodalic masterpeice. 10/10

Dr terrors house of horrors.

Nothing more than I can say than 9.5/10

Up next Is The Haunting (1963)

Dude, let us know what you think of The Haunting. I'm dying to see it again after reading The Haunting of Hill House a few weeks ago. A real creepy read...

Will do, just started enjoying it but some of the actings a bit amateurish and hammy!

Unforgiven
 

Unforgiven

http://www.cult-labs.com/forums/atta...orgiven-3-.jpg

Yeah, great line, great film, and along with High Plains Drifter, my favourite Clint Eastwood-directed Western. Damn how come I don't have this on Blu ? Must make amends there...

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chop socky
 

Your either locked in a basement chained to your dvd or your training to be a ninja?

PLACE BEYOND THE PINES-Superb.

DARK SKIES-So so.

I was in the mood for some Kung Fu but i got a little carried away.

I have been wanting to see this since i first seen the trailer ages ago. I like the sounds of Superb sounds good ;)

Not a fast moving film by any means,but cracking performances from Goslin and Cooper.

I liked PINES too - it's a great film, one of the best of the year so far.

Thats the key right there.