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SerpicoJones
Reviews
Wolf (1994)
Underrated! Truly underrated!
First time I saw Wolf more than ten years ago. I barely remembered anything more than Jack Nicholson's supercool performance. So, it was nice rediscover.
If you take Wolf as a serious horror film you probably get huge disappointment. But if you take it more like a satire about back- stabbing-ass-kissing-sweet-revenge world we live in today, then you'll probably get huge enjoyment out of this.
The story about strife between the two co-workers in the publishing house is cleverly mixed with the werewolf story. The dialog is witty and there are many cool quotable lines (I've been offered a choice between no job and a job no one would want.)
As a pure horror film Wolf fails because it goes maybe too melodramatic at times and there isn't much shocking moments in it. Though the Gothic views over nocturnal New York were very classic horror moves. But as a satire Wolf works almost perfectly. And Wolf is one of the few movies that leave some questions unsolved but I feel satisfied about it (usually I want all the answers in the end).
Overall, Wolf is enjoyable drama but not so much of the horror film.
My World Dies Screaming (1958)
My World Dies Screaming Under the Terror in the Haunted House
I saw this under the title Terror in the Haunted House. I didn't know anything about this movie and I didn't bother to look up any information about it. So, I presumed it could be some creepy ghost story like The Haunted. But nevertheless I didn't have to disappoint. Well, maybe a little bit because I learned what is the Psycho-Rama and subliminal message in the film.
The story first seems simple but as more the movie grows the more peculiar and more complex it goes. It has so much plot twists that even M. Night Shyamalan would be envious. The film builds up the tension and pace so fast that the ending seems to comes too abruptly. And I will go that far and call this movie little bit Hitchcockian.
But remind, this is more a suspense-thriller than a horror film. Otherwise it would have been decent movie but those ridiculous subliminal messages(?). Why were they needed anyway?
Overall My World Dies Screaming is nice entertaining B-flick with great performances.
Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)
My first Buster Keaton experience!
After watching Steamboat Bill, Jr. the only word you can think about is - amazing. After the week you'll think, what was the film about, but you never cant forget those magnificent stunts performed by Buster Keaton.
Steamboat Bill, Jr. was the first ever Buster Keaton movie I saw. I'm usually quite skeptical when I decide to watch silent film. Only silent before Bill I had seen was The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. I liked that one also. But I'm afraid silent films might be too boring and they are out dated too much. But Steamboat Bill, Jr. managed to convince me that they are not boring at all (at least Buster Keaton's movies). Now I feel that I have to go through all the Buster's movies.
The film starts bit slow but with the scene in the hat shop where Buster plays straight into the camera the film starts building the pace until the extreme climax in the storm. Brilliantly timed stunts that you can't see in the modern cinema anymore (unfortunately), heartwarming father- son relationship and comedy. And the stunts amazed me the most. You can watch all the modern action films but all you can see is CGI. Steamboat Bill, Jr. is all in flesh. And when you think all those neck breaking stunts Buster performed you never want to see any Transformers or Resident Evil ever.
Steamboat Bill, Jr. is really the film that changed my life. It did something to me that only Jackie Chan has managed to do before.
Clementine (2004)
Quite a mess
As a fan of Asian (especially Korean) movies I just had to look this up. Korean martial arts movie with Steven Seagal! How cool is that, huh? Well, not much. The film itself seemed do not know what it wanted to be.
It starts like some gangster/cop action drama. The protagonist, as an ex-fighter and martial artist, takes out punch of criminals in illegal casino. He retires from police and we see heartwarming relationship between him and his adorable daughter. Then the gangsters force the protagonist to fight again. Then we see one poorly directed and edited cage fight scene. The daughter cries. Then comes some woman who appears to be the biological mother of the girl. More drama follows and the girl cries again. The daughter gets kidnapped just to force the father to fight one more time but this time his opponent is unbeatable cage fight master (Steven Seagal). Another fight scene. The girl cries again (it becomes annoying). Then comes Steven Seagal and says something meaningful. The girl stops crying (finally). Happy end!
Steven Seagal's part is quite brief and we can't see him much in the final fight either. The drama parts between the Korean actors were played out pretty well and the story around the girl was rather interesting and quite enjoyable.
It would have been much better movie as a simple drama without those poor action sequences. And maybe if the father would have been played by Steven Seagal. The premise: An American Taekwondo champion living in Korea with his seven year old daughter and then the supposedly dead mother comes up. That would have been cool!
M - Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder (1931)
Magnificent Murder Mystery
Irving Thalberg assembled his writers and directors for a screening of M and told them that they need to make films like this that are innovative, meaningful and commercially successful. Todays Hollywood studio bosses must make same thing maybe then we can start to see quality dramas and thrillers again.
Fritz Lang's M is absolute masterpiece and groundbreaking achievement in cinema. It is definitely one of the most powerful serial killer movies of all time. There aren't many films nowadays that are as creepy and thrilling as M (David Fincher's Zodiac is the one that comes to mind at first).
The moment when the killer meets with his next victim Elsie gives a better creeps than any average horror film. And then when Elise's mother gets news that her daughter has been murdered you get that powerless and helpless feeling. Fritz Lang knows how to play with the emotions of the viewers.
Peter Lorre is superb and creepy. No wonder people started to think that he was a child molester in real life too. Specially touching is his last speech in front of the self-appointed court where the main "judge" was killer himself. What an irony!
M might seem bit slow or outdated (hey, the film is 70 year old, not many film from that era couldn't stand in time that well) for younger people who are used to modern and flashy Hollywood but still, it's a strong movie and must see for every serial killer movie fan because this is the film that started everything.
Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957)
This movie is made because of you stupid minds. Stupid! Stupid!
I finally had a chance to see Ed Wood's classic masterpiece Plan 9 and what a movie it was. This film is textbook example how to not write a script and execute movie. This film is so so so so bad that it even can't be good. Many critics have been noting Plan 9 as the worst movie ever made and they even might be right. But I loved every bit of this piece.
Acting was as horrible as you can expect. Maybe only Gregory Walcott tried to do something similar with acting. And Bela Lugosi... All scenes with him seemed so random and accidental like he was lost on the set and was looking his way out but Wood used the chance and captured him on the film. Unintentional comedy that was.
Also this film features the greatest worst dialog ever. - Inspector Clay is dead, murdered, and somebody is responsible. - The saucers are up there. The graveyard is out there. But I'll be locked safely in there. - Visits? That would indicate visitors. - A flying saucer? You mean the kind from up there? / Yeah, either that or it's counterpart. Movie filled quotable lines. And the funniest part of the dialog was that it didn't make any sense whatsoever.
Overall I got more laughs from Plan 9 than from one of the greatest comedy classics "Some Like It Hot" (that was exaggeration). Anyway this Ed Wood's magnum opus is must see for every film fan.
Scarlet Street (1945)
Pure Noir!
A film about human nature. A film about how things usually doesn't work out. Compelling, enthralling, never predictable and filled with dark humor, this Fritz Lang's masterpiece is must see.
A middle aged sad and spiritually lonely banker with miserable marriage saves a girl from the mugger. After the small conversation the girl understands that his Savior is a rich painter. The poor banker wants to meet her again and the girl's fiancée tries to find a way how to slowly extort the money from the banker. And all this deceiving can begin.
And you can never think how things are going onwards. This is the movie that todays filmmakers have to take as an example how to build up an interesting plot. No way you can predict what happens next and even if you see one step ahead then the bigger surprise will be the next one.
Fritz Lang nails it all. Edward G. Robinson is terrific in the role of banker Chris. So is Rosalind Ivan as his nagging wife.
Scarlet Street must have on of the most horrifying endings of all time. Beside the creeps it gives you (that many horror films fail to do) it has an message to tell: you can never get away with anything!
The Hitch-Hiker (1953)
The gun belonged to the man. The car might have been yours...
As a sucker for oldies and film-noir I searched for this Ida Lupino's classic, almost masterpiece thriller. I'm saying almost masterpiece only because supposedly it had much darker ending than the final film. The Hitch-Hiker is fast paced suspense film that reminds me that movies aren't like they used to be. The tense scenes in the car have the claustrophobic feeling. You see, no you feel helplessness of the two protagonist under the terror of the psychopath. And those empty desert roads only deepens the feel.
Acting was top class as all the three main actors did superb job. William Talman's Emmett Myers is definitely one of the most terrifying villains in the movie history.
Many critics acclaim that The Hitch-Hiker is the best film Lupino has ever directed. I might even agree with them. It's real shame that she directed only six movies.
Date Bait (1960)
Forbidden love
I accidentally stumbled on this rarely seen movie and it was pleasant surprise. Almost like finding a hidden gem. The story was rather silly and naive but still interesting enough to engage you to screen. A girl from wealthy family is in love to lower class boy and there are many obstacles standing on their way. Girl's parents aren't much supportive and then there is obsessive drug addict who is desperately in love of the girl. And mix into a pair of brutal but funny gangsters and you get quite intriguing little movie. Nice mixture of classical love story and crime film.
The acting wasn't cheesy. Another reason to be pleasantly surprised. Specially I liked Richard Gering as drug addictive Brad. Don't wait anything Oscar worthy though but I already know you won't.
Date Bait is nice small JD film and I was personally more entertained than watching Transformers. But it's just me. I am a sucker for old movies.
The Dukes of Hazzard (2005)
Fun! Fun! Fun!
Lot of car chases - check! Crazy stunts - check! Supercool Burt Reynolds - check! Jessica Simpson in bikinis - check!
What did you expect when you first went to see "The Dukes of Hazzard"? Were you waiting another visual masterpiece with greatest story ever told? No! So why the complaints? I think people went way too far to name this film as "worst movie of the year". Can there be a such thing?
I have to admit I haven't seen the original TV series so I there I can't make any comparisons. But I have to admit that the remake was fun movie. Yes it had a stupid plot and screenplay was basically missing but it was great form of brainless entertainment and that what I was looking for that night. You can't read Kafka or watch Bergman all the time. Sometimes you just have to take a little break and switch off your brain so you could enjoy those over the top car stunts, simple jokes (that many were pretty hilarious even on the level of "quality comedy") and Jessica Simpson in bikinis (you have to admit that she was an eye candy). In this film you can't criticize directing or acting. Car chase scenes were pretty well made and Seann William Scott and Johnny Knoxville were both terrific as the Duke cousins.
I like to call myself a film snob but I sometimes can enjoy peaces like "The Dukes of Hazzard" and enjoy them good. Movies like this brings up that little boy in me (the boy who remembers "Smokey and the Bandit" and all the other cool car chase films) who still likes fast cool cars. I believe that this little boy lives in every grown man and man who can't enjoy even a small bit from this movie is probably forgotten his childhood.
Yes, I go that far to give this decent 6 out of 10.