What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Frankie Teardrop]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

That's the second glowing review for Pearl i've seen on here. i watched and enjoyed X last Christmas so plan on seeing Pearl on Blu this Christmas.

I'm not what you'd call a fan of the Elm Street series so perhaps not the best judge but i think Freddy's Revenge is more enjoyable than the majority of the other films. Miles better than 4, 5 and 6 and also better than the third.

It's funny, I've never bothered much with 'Elm Street' either. I've seen the first and third a few times, but at most only ever caught glimpses of the others. Same goes for most of the other big franchises, barring the 'Friday 13th' 'retrospective' I did recently. They all seemed to epitomise something I didn't like (at the time) about eighties horror, what I thought of as crass commercialism. I had quite a rarefied view back then, which I've since managed to overcome whilst still remaining as pretentious as humanly possible of course ha ha. Well, you've read my reviews. Anyway, 'Elm Street' was a particular bête noir, but I saw the box set going for fifteen quid recently and thought 'sod it'. So I shall watch them all, even the painful later entries which I'll probably damn myself by quite liking.
Speaking of...

[Frankie Teardrop]

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS – Commonly thought of as the best of the series after the original, ‘Dream Warriors’ arrived at the peak of the eighties horror moment. It bears all the hallmarks of the mid to late decade – rowdy special effects set pieces, rock video aesthetics (lots of gelled lighting etc), lengthy dream sequences, comedic lightness over grindhouse squalor. Freddie is in his element as a kind of degenerate MC, but if the wisecracks flow at least they’re not insufferable, and even lend a bit of zest to this tale of ‘kids ganging together to defeat the menace’ (another eighties trope). The performances of the likes of Langenkamp and Arquette are good, and John Saxon returns as burned out cop dad. I always enjoy dipping back into this one, it never sets me alight but it’s a prime example of where horror was at in its day.

SUBURBAN SASQUATCH – A mad ‘classic’ of late SOV from 2004, probably around the time the term was becoming meaningless with the advent of cheap hi-def. Not that there’s anything remotely hi-def about ‘Suburban Sasquatch’. The film itself is perhaps not unlike its namesake, lurching from scene to scene with complete disregard for human sense-making capability, leaving behind nothing but the wreckage and an audience haunted by questions it can’t answer. Flying rubber limbs pile on top of vision quest segues. ‘Birdemic’ level CGI will make you retch. The dialogue is the best, a mumbled library of mystical non sequiturs and banality. I like bigfoot’s random malevolence and its powers of teleportation. If you want the basics, it’s about a Native American hunter and a feeble journalist who stalk Sasquatch as it murders people in the forest near a new housing development. But it is so, so much more. A monument to outsider vision.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Watched a few minutes of the wonderful film Brooklyn on BBC1 HD. What a stunning picture.

I'll be upgrading my dvd to Blu-ray very soon.

It's a great film, one I saw at the cinema and, after buying the Blu-ray release, have watched several times since then.

Saoirse Ronan is sublime in the lead role, helped by Nick Hornby's deft script and a fine supporting cast including Domhnall Gleeson, Jim Broadbent, Emery Cohen, and Julie Walters.

It looks really good in HD, with that 1080p picture showing off the location shooting and extremely convincing period design.

[MrBarlow]

Wyvern. 2009.

After global warning melts the ice caps, a prehistoric creature known as a Wyvern awakens and attacks a small Alaskan town.

We got a made for TV movie about a mixed creature that we have a character telling the tale about it half way through. Don S. Davis in his last role as the old army colonel who the townsfolk think he is loopy. Barry Corbin is the old hillbilly who is eventually believed that he saw something in the sky and Nick Chinlund as the local trucker dealing with the loss of a family member. Given the budget, the effects of the creature are decent except the explosion which is CGI and very daft, it this was a decent film. The pacing is good and kept going and never got dull or boring. Most of the kills are offscreen and we see the after effect. I'd happily return to this one.

p193819_p_v8_aa.jpg

[Justin101]

After all of this talk of Brooklyn I decided I was actually going to watch it instead of just thinking about watching it. I loved it, just what I needed this morning. It made me cry, it made motion angrily at the screen, I also laughed quite a bit, there is some great dialogue in this!

It's on iPlayer for the next 28 days if anyone else wants to watch a love story in 50's New York.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Justin101

After all of this talk of Brooklyn I decided I was actually going to watch it instead of just thinking about watching it. I loved it, just what I needed this morning. It made me cry, it made motion angrily at the screen, I also laughed quite a bit, there is some great dialogue in this!

It's on iPlayer for the next 28 days if anyone else wants to watch a love story in 50's New York.

I'm pleased you enjoyed it, Justin.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Justin101

After all of this talk of Brooklyn I decided I was actually going to watch it instead of just thinking about watching it. I loved it, just what I needed this morning. It made me cry, it made motion angrily at the screen, I also laughed quite a bit, there is some great dialogue in this!

It's on iPlayer for the next 28 days if anyone else wants to watch a love story in 50's New York.

Really happy that you loved it, Justin. A terrific film.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by MrBarlow

Wyvern. 2009.

After global warning melts the ice caps, a prehistoric creature known as a Wyvern awakens and attacks a small Alaskan town.

We got a made for TV movie about a mixed creature that we have a character telling the tale about it half way through. Don S. Davis in his last role as the old army colonel who the townsfolk think he is loopy. Barry Corbin is the old hillbilly who is eventually believed that he saw something in the sky and Nick Chinlund as the local trucker dealing with the loss of a family member. Given the budget, the effects of the creature are decent except the explosion which is CGI and very daft, it this was a decent film. The pacing is good and kept going and never got dull or boring. Most of the kills are offscreen and we see the after effect. I'd happily return to this one.

Attachment 247084

I have this on dvd. A highly entertaining film with good special effects. Seen it a few times.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Frankie Teardrop

SUBURBAN SASQUATCH – A mad ‘classic’ of late SOV from 2004, probably around the time the term was becoming meaningless with the advent of cheap hi-def. Not that there’s anything remotely hi-def about ‘Suburban Sasquatch’. The film itself is perhaps not unlike its namesake, lurching from scene to scene with complete disregard for human sense-making capability, leaving behind nothing but the wreckage and an audience haunted by questions it can’t answer. Flying rubber limbs pile on top of vision quest segues. ‘Birdemic’ level CGI will make you retch. The dialogue is the best, a mumbled library of mystical non sequiturs and banality. I like bigfoot’s random malevolence and its powers of teleportation. If you want the basics, it’s about a Native American hunter and a feeble journalist who stalk Sasquatch as it murders people in the forest near a new housing development. But it is so, so much more. A monument to outsider vision.

I'm now hoping i can't find one of the many fifty movie box sets i have this on seeing as i'm dying to put myself through it again.

Edit - Unbelievable. One was literally about 10 cm behind the chair i'm currently sat it.

100mins? You cannot be serious!

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Head Hunter (2018)

In medieval times a fierce warrior collects the heads of beasts that terrorize a nearby kingdom waiting for the one that killed his daughter.

There's a lot going for this low budget film. It looks gorgeous. Shot entirely in forest locations the cinematography is lovely and it looks a million dollars however there's only so many times i can watch the hunter thrust some creatures head onto a spike from a fight we haven't been witness to before it becomes tedious.

The narrative isn't helped by there only being a single person in the entire film and a total lack of dialogue. Couldn't he have talked to himself a bit? I simply didn't feel anything whilst watching other than how beautiful it looked.

Whilst The Head Hunter is aesthetically brilliant it's minimalism in it's story telling really let it down for me. A movie of what could have been i think.