I'd agree with that. :skull:

The mummy (1932). 9.2/10

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i6xNScZRP4


Now watching Ironman.

Commando (1985)

***1/2 out of *****

Think you are missing a star there, CS. :skull:

Lifeboat (1944)

Hitchcock's adaptation of a John Steinbeck bit of war time propaganda and ingeniously shot by the classic director on i would think his smallest ever set, a single lifeboat lost in the vast ocean with a disparate group of survivors including the brilliant Tallulah Bankhead as a reporter concerned with her story and how she looks more so than the predicament she finds herself, stuck in a boat with the captain of the U-Boat that sank them all in the first place, double crossing everyone to his hearts content.

Hitchcock's genius isn't in showing us the villain of the story but but in the way he slowly allows the survivors to find out in an acting tour-de-force in this tense and claustrophobic drama.

Why, is it an illegal port of Bill Olsen's edition haha, as good a reason to recommend it as any! :chainsawkill:

Ok now Inspector. Get your panties back on. There ain't nowt wrong with Bride, its a great film, but it just can't compete with the original. To me Whale's sequel is a case of overindulgence, it's probably a poor comparison i know, but it always makes me think of Sam Raimi. When hes (reasonably) restrained he makes sheer brilliance, The Evil Dead, then he lets loose a bit and goes too far, ala Evil Dead 2. Yes its a fantastic film but it just lacks the ..... (something, can't think of an appropriate word) of the original. He did the same thing with his Spiderman trilogy. Its late, I'm drinking, I'm most likely talking bollocks.

And yet you still make more sense than Dem's.....:skull::skull::skull::skull:

I much prefer Bride too. The first film is quite good but there's something lacking in it. Maybe it's because having read the book I can see a lot of the deficiencies of the adaptation. Whereas Bride is free from the same shackles that constrained the first film. It flows better, the performances are better, and Whale has a lot more freedom to explore the themes without having to worry about the Production Code censorship.

So speaketh the man whose claim to fame in life is catching..., er' no one actually..., the case is still ongoing. :spider:

Should have called himself Basil the mouse detective instead. Would have been more accurate. :devilbanana:

:pumpkin:

DANGEROUS MEN – Takes us into a realm of cinema where sheer badness gives way to total madness, and, in this case, extreme radness. Note that the last sentence only works because the director is / was known by the name of John Rad... what I'm trying to say, dewd, is that 'Dangerous Men' is really quite far from most people's idea of 'rad' and much closer to their sense of 'a film so incoherent even Godfrey Ho would piss on it'. That still makes it great in my book. Can I even summarise what it's about? Some cop guy is killed on a beach by two hoods, leaving his bereft gf with a lust for vengeance against all sleazy men. So for about an hour it plays out as a wonkily put together revenge flick which looks like it was shot in different time zones (because it was, some sequences were filmed decades apart with very detectable effects on the ageing players etc). Then it changes, and becomes some confused search for a villain who looks like a WWE reject. It all ends on a perfectly underwhelming note. 'Dangerous Men', it has to be said, is paraquat for the mind, and you will emerge from a viewing either with white light shining in your eyes or drooling and clutching a rag doll. If you were to watch a triple bill including it and its nearest blood relatives, 'Samurai Cop' and 'The Miami Connection', well I don't know what would happen but you might never be the same again. Then again, you might just feel you've watched a bunch of really badly made late eighties action flicks. If the thought of the latter turns you on, then get it now.

THE WITCH – Kind of the antithesis of the film I've just written about, 'The Witch' is a really well made, pitch perfect excursion into minds beleaguered by grief, loss and maybe the supernatural. You probably all know that it's about a family who, in exile from their New England community, take refuge in a forest in the belief that it will sustain them in isolation. Various tragedies happen, mostly befalling the kids, and the family increasingly come to believe that witchcraft is being used against them. Quite a lot of the reviews focussed on the “is this supernatural stuff really happening, or is it all psychological” aspect of 'The Witch', but in a way this is its least interesting side. What it does well is really build a sense of foreboding and sustain an ominous feeling throughout. Visually it's great, and achingly Autumnal in look and atmosphere, its imagery really piling on the sense of a morbid change in the season of the heart. Woah, that last bit was pretentious even for me. Don't get too flowery Frankie, remember Chris Finch is in there. I will say this about 'The Witch' – it's a film that needs to be watched carefully, and those expecting a pay-off every few minutes or so might be disappointed. It's slow, rewards patience, and some of it didn't really grab me even though I could see the quality, if you know what I mean. There are subtleties and little clues as to what's going on that that demand attention and immersion, so it's not really a 'just in from the pub' kind of flick. What it is is a highly atmospheric journey into the heart of the woods, where you might just find witches cavorting in the sky. Very good film which I recommend that you check out if you haven't already.

At last. Someone like me who watched the film as a hauntingly beautiful supernatural horror that demands your attention rather than a metaphor for a load of uninteresting bollocks.

Dangerous Men was one of the lucky contestants on RedLetterMedia's Best of the Worst...

Thought it'd be quite well received on the Labs. It works equally well as a literal rendering of the supernatural or as a metaphor for, erm, something to with grief and awakening an shit or something. I actually quite liked the fact that it's indeterminate.

There's no doubt it's a bad, bad movie, but so entertaining. Have you seen it? If not, you should. The likes of 'Cyclone' are puny by comparison, 'Dangerous Men' is a whole mountain of bilge.

I did as well. However when you read some reviews on here,:chainsawkill: people seem to concentrate on the puberty metaphors rather than the brilliance of the supernatural themes.

Haven't seen it yet but after seeing RLM's reaction to it (they even had a flow chart to try and keep track of characters and their relationship with each other - they failed), I really wanted to. However, with money being tight, I decided not to import a bad film. Plus, there was also the fact that it is extremely difficult to get a group of friends to watch it with me.

Man, if you watch 'Dangerous Men' in any sort of company, let's face it you're going to LOSE friends...

I also loved it and think it's a damn shame that the British release does not have a commentary, whereas the US one does. I'm going to wait until the price drops a little and it's easier to import and then pick up the American BD.

:pound:

I recently imported the Canadian steelbook (which is a thing of beauty) and came to about £15 including postage from Amazon.ca.

I will be watching it for the first time sometime later this month - when the mood feels more 'witchy' - and am really looking forward to it.

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

I watched this for the very first time last night. Jon Voight stars as a Texan who has a gift with the ladies, thinking he'll find a rich woman to live with he sets off to New York as a hustler. He soon comes across the snaky Ratzo Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman) a fellow down n' out who rips him off but they soon become friends.

As the end credits rolled i was left in an unusual frame of mind, similar to when i first saw Easy Rider, a film from that very same year. I don't know if it was the similarities in characters being basically two outcasts looking out for one another in a hostile world or maybe the music - Harry Nilsson's Everybody's Talkin' could have been lifted direct from Easy Rider or just the general feel that director John Schlesinger gives the film which gave me laughs, joy, despair and basically everything a film can do. Most likely all these things combined.

No matter the reason i think Midnight Cowboy will be a film i return to with steady frequency as there's a lot to take in and more than meets the eye on a first viewing.

Ironman 7.7/10

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hYlB38asDY


The Mummy (1959) 8/10

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTnkLTRR6v8

A firm favourite of mine. Quite haunting... something to do with the ambiguity of the main character and the strangeness of late sixties / early seventies NY (second hand, I'm not Lou Reed or something). There's something unsettling about it that went down well at 0300 on summer nights.

Oddly that was the time i was watching. It was haunting and unsettling but also quite beautiful too. As i mentioned it gave me the same vibes as Easy Rider which is now a top 10 film of mine.

I'm another fan of Midnight Cowboy, a film which is both haunting and uplifting. There is something about the sleaze of 42nd Street and the accompanying prostitution, the grime of Ratso's abode and his health condition, which is unspecified but probably HIV/AIDS, but the way Ratso and Joe try and make the best of the situation and the compassion between the two men which is ultimately endearing and beautiful.

Body Parts (1991)

*** out of *****

The first reported case of AIDS in the US wasn't until 1981, a recent forensic study narrowed down the first actual case to 1968, but Schlesinger wouldn't of had any idea about the disease and the novel was written in 1965.

In the book Ratso dies of Pneumonia because of his living conditions.

That's a good point – I'd forgotten about her recent – relatively speaking – AIDS is. When watching the film, I'd always assumed Ratso died because his immune system was heavily compromised by HIV or AIDS, hence the reason he succumbed to pneumonia.

Blood Father (2016)

***1/2 out of *****

The Tournament. It's a fun movie and i lolled straight away that it is set in Middlesbrough - that must be a first! Some mighty body detonations throughout and it actually reminded me of the remake of Deathrace 2000 with the Stath. Although it's a good detach your brain actioner, the central premise upon which the plot is based is deeply deeply flawed.



Ignore that fatal flaw and its good brainless fun.

K-SHOP – A young economics grad inherits his dad's take away and decides, out of duty or grief, to take on the mantle of kebab facilitator for the drunken hordes of Bournemouth. He's sickened by what he finds in the provinces – binge drinkers puking in the street with their knobs out, metaphorically and otherwise. A night out in Bournemouth might be like a night out anywhere else, but, out there on the front line with racist abuse shouted in his face into the small hours, this guy is reaching the end of his tether... something's gotta give. After a young chav takes a step too far, K-guy connects with his inner Sweeney Todd and reaches for the cleaver... 'K-Shop' is a really interesting film. For a start, it brings one particular corner of English malaise, namely the whole city centre hen do binge drink tragedy thing, to the silver screen (well, the direct-to-DVD screen) when hitherto it had only been glimpsed in documentaries about Newcastle and Blackpool. It combines this fixation on English slime with harsh, gory slasher-cum-Travis Bickle type antics. Down at heel Brit realism and graphic gore, that's my thing. And 'K-Shop', during its overlong runtime, really does deliver something quite compelling for the first hour or so. Then it slips up. Characters are introduced to provide relationship interests, 'human angles' and social themes when pathos and critique were already well in the mix. Two films emerge – one, a vicious slasher doused in sleaze with a socio-political edge, the other a kind of channel four-esque tale of young marginalised people trying to get by and relate in a harsh economic climate. Theoretically that could be fine, but the 'horror' aspect here is driven and dynamic, whereas the 'drama' element is bland and slows things down. The cynical part of me wonders which film the director really wanted to make, but sticking them together in this way was a refreshingly odd choice at least. As well, certain quarters have portrayed 'K-Shop' as being anti-working class in its depiction of unbridled end-of-the-week passions, although the use of this in the film is opportunistic rather than moralistic, it seems to me. Oh well. The whole is well made with good performances, and pacing issues only start to emerge when the film takes a nap and decides to go 'Eastenders'. As it stands, 'K-Shop' is an interesting debut that excites and infuriates at the same time. At its best it has the vibe of a contemporary Pete Walker film about it, that mix of exploitation, dour Britishness and ambiguous social commentary. I'd definitely give it a watch as it's very different in tone and execution to the usual DVD fodder out there, and I'm curious as to what the makers do next.

You perhaps miss the plot device that these nutters want to kill each other for money. Ian Somerhalder was lapping it up for example. So yes play by the rules.

I'd seen this on web stores and found the idea intriguing. However the overlong run time and drama, Eastenders like elements, you mention really puts me off.

There are a few new releases from the past six months i'd like to check out. This was one.

Hate EE with a passion, its like a who can shout the loudest and longest competition each week .

The Invisible Man, 1933, 8/10


https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.ne...a/15819953.gif

Scream Park (2014)

The workers of a fun fair, closing down due to lack of funds, decide to stage an all night party in the grounds. Unbeknown to them the fair's owner (Doug Bradley) unleashes a pair of masked killers on the group in a bid to keep the park open through notoriety.

The films' plot was given away on the back of the box. It might have made a nice twist had we not known the fun fair's owner was behind it all. However even this plot spoiler wouldn't have saved a disappointing modern slasher.

The film does a lot of good things. The empty fun fair made for a good location and some of the gore was grossly well done. The soundtrack featuring unknown industrial and death metal bands was also rather tasty. However the acting was hit and miss, unfortunately all but Bradley and the two leads were at times amateurish. It didn't help that the microphones didn't seem well positioned at times as one person spoke clearly and others seem muffled, fortunately this only happened a couple of times, but it smacks of being under funded when it can't be rectified.

To sum up, Scream Park was a good idea let down by lack of budget or i suspect the creativity to get round budgetary issues.

I didn't miss anything mate.



Anyhoo, fun movie that for me, was flawed. It's ok, i'll let you like it more than me! :doorscare:

Yes, that sums it up. Enjoyable violent fun.

It's still worth seeing, as the horror and the grossness of underbelly UK win out over the attempts to sanitise. The latter probably loom larger in my head than they do in the actual film, really, and reflect my inability to tolerate feelings of unfulfillment once my expectations have tasted blood. For me, it was more a case of - if they'd cut it down to eighty minutes and stuck with the grime without foresaking the social comment, then it would've been a total hit. As it is, it's far from 'meh' and way better than 75% of the shit I sit through.