smellysocks12 Reviews

Bird Box: Barcelona (2023)

The concept is not for me

[2/10 · 8 December 2023]

I was not a huge fan of the first movie but this one was even worse. The entire concept of covering your eyes because you may see an invisible monster that causes you to kill yourself sucks. It was probably good for the budget because all you need is a leaf blower and some ketchup for the blood instead of expensive suits and wound artists. Not a single moment of the movie I felt like continuing watching it. The Spanish language also doesn't help in getting immersed with the storyline but that may be a personal preference and not an issue with the movie as is. All in all not my type of movie.........

Army of the Dead (2021)

Intelligent zombies and a lot of dumb action

[5/10 · 8 December 2023]

Zombies should be dumb, slow and ugly. Here at least some of the zombies are intelligent, fast and wearing lingerie. And there is one main nemesis, the boss zombie. Very much like Resident Evil 3, which was the main reason why Resident Evil 2 was the better edition. If you are a zombie movie purist, stay away as far as you can. If you park the fact that it is a zombie movie, it is actually quite entertaining and well made. It is a real Hollywood popcorn movie. There are some parts in it that could have been shortened. Overall worth watching if you don't want to think a lot and just be entertained.

Black Summer (2019–2021)

Entertaining yet unfinished

[5/10 · 1 October 2023]

Black summer is a tv show about zombies but nothing like TWD. Where the latter is about complex stories and character building Black Summer is quick paced with little time for story telling. It is basically people on the run for fast moving zombies and other survivors who are either weak or hostile. There are a couple of slower episodes during season 2 but they are exceptions to the rule. For what it is, it is extremely well made with very tense and believable scenes. The action is very fluid and never boring. I may have given an 8 score, but because it seems to have been cancelled I don't want to rate it higher. It was good entertainment but it sucks we will never know how it would have ended.

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023)

Great Japan zombie combo

[9/10 · 4 August 2023]

Zombie movies are a guilty pleasure of mine, especially the more silly kind. More often than not they are cheap and poorly executed, but this one is great, fitting right in between Peter Jackson's Braindead, Shaun of the Dead, Black Sheep and Dead Snow. Don't expect it to be too scary or gory, but I don't feel it was needed. By the way I love Japan as well and it was great to see so many spots I visited in real life, kabukicho, don quijote, asakusa and more. The link of zombies to Japanese salary man perspective is also one I haven't seen before. The production value is also really good. Hope there will be sequels although this one will be difficult to top.

The Final Girls (2015)

Not that scary, not that funny

[4/10 · 23 January 2021]

I am a fan of horror movies that don't take itself too seriously and tend towards the comedy genre. Braindead, Shaun of the dead, black sheep, reanimator, cabin in the woods and even killer tomatoes all great. This movie was just meh. Not scary, not gross, no laughing out loud moments and just a couple of ha's. Perhaps it is more funny to film geeks or people working in the film industry due to references to genre cliches. However I am not one of them. I must admit the movie is pleasant to the eye with nice lighting effects and nice colour grading.

It Chapter Two (2019)

Not a fan of the sequel

[4/10 · 29 September 2019]

I liked the first movie. Although definitely entertaining at certain points, the sequel feels like an excuse for presenting the viewer with some random scary/gross CGI animations that didn't make it to the first cut. The storyline is not very coherent and predictable. I liked the build up during the first hour. After two hours through I was hoping to see the ending credits soon but had to sit through another hour after that. This included the final fight which was totally ridiculous and brought the movie from a 6 to 4 stars for me.

Zombeavers (2014)

Yes, the movie is bad...

[6/10 · 30 May 2015]

.... But although it is a bad movie, that is what you could expect with a title like Zombeavers. We have seen all kinds of animals killing people in recent B-movie outings and zombeavers are new on the block. Original concept? Definitely. Execution? Acceptable. It is not the gory hilarious roller coaster that Peter Jackson brought to you with Braindead, it is not as cleverly silly as Black Sheep, not does is have the production value and dry humor of Shaun of the dead, Nevertheless, I did enjoy watching it on overall with a group of friends. Especially the final 15 minutes made it worth it. This makes it a better alternative from others in the genre, like Lesbian Vampire Killers and all the recent spin- offs of Sharknado, which I also consider a bad movie with some nice moments towards the ending. When expecting a lot of nudity, keep in mind that the beaver part of the name mostly relates to the animal and that sexual content is mostly limited to dialogs. Summarizing it, the movie will not win an Oscar, the special effects are quite nice and if the title appeals to you definitely consider watching it, but don't forget about the alternatives mentioned above.

The World's End (2013)

Great movie with a twist

[9/10 · 30 July 2013]

I went to see this movie on a holiday in Edinburgh with zero expectations. Having seen and enjoyed Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Paul I knew it was going to be fun. However, I did not see any trailers or read anything about the plot beforehand which really added to the overall experience. I recommend anyone considering to see this movie to do the same. At first, it seems to be a low-budget, British version of the Hangover. Do not worry, it is not. The movie is bizarre, awkward, but most importantly of all a lot of fun. The movie ranks amongst some of the most pleasant surprises of this year for me. The movie is highly original and full of surprises.

Monster Brawl (2011)

Crappy monsters, even worse brawls..

[1/10 · 7 July 2012]

When i bought this movie on bluray i knew i was buying a bad movie. It is called monster brawl, so that cant be good.

What i did expect is entertainment value. It also does not have that. The movie plays like an episode of pro wrestling, with an introduction of each fighter and then followed by the actual fight.

The intros are of low entertainment value, but they are better acted than the fights itself. The movie is about the fights, but it is just plain silly. Bad wwf moves performed by zombies, with some use of special effects that are not spectacular or convincing.

If you like fights i suggest you watch any ufc tournament. If you like monsters, watch a monster movie. Braindead if you like zombies, blade if you like vampires or the mummy if you like mummies. Just don't be tricked into buying this movie, a waste of time and the plastic the bluray was made of.

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

Inglourious Rubbish

[5/10 · 29 November 2009]

This movie makes it obvious that Quentin Tarantino has a very narrow vision when it comes to creating movies. His interests are American low-lifes, violence and film-making. He is very aware that people hailed his movies for the clever dialogs, so of course he adds those as well. Picture this, now we take all of the ingredients above and turn it into a German WWII movie. Whereas the genre-bending style of Kill Bill was quite successful, in this case it is a complete failure. Most of the dialogues are just clever to be clever and have the overhand in the entire movie. Quentin already went overboard with dialogs in Death Proof, boring the viewer to death and partly saving the movie with the great final 15 minutes. I won't explain how much the movie fails in creating a realistic picture of WWII, as that was obviously not the purpose of the movie. The theme hardly adds anything to the story, except for the fact that killing nazi's is a tagline that Quentin has probably been wanting to use for a while. Overall the movie does have its moments in which it is entertaining, but overall it is more boring than entertaining. Of course the movie gets high ratings because it was made by Tarantino. As a big fan of his previous work I wonder how so many people lose their ability to see that this movie just isn't up to par with classics like Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. Please Tarantino, stick to the US of A with the theme of your next movies and use the clever dialogs/situations when they are appropriate.

Star Trek (2009)

Great movie, also for non-fanatics

[9/10 · 20 May 2009]

I have never considered myself to be a Star Trek fan. As a matter of fact I actually never understood the big deal about the slow paced, static television series that is apparently loved by many "Trekkies" all over the world. In the sci-fi genre the Star Wars series was always considered to be superior by me, because of its sense of humor, great action scenes and in my opinion more likable species and characters. Having heard good things about this movie, I still went to see it with some friends who are more into Star Trek and I was pleasantly surprised. There is a lot of action, humor and special effects to go around and the environment looks better than it has ever been. This all did not go at the expense of a good story. I liked the plot and while not overly complex, the story is complex enough to keep me interested. Having seen this movie I am enthusiastic for a new star trek movie by JJ Abrams.

Fuego (2007)

Watching grass grow is more entertaining...

[1/10 · 18 January 2009]

I bought this movie because it was on Blu-ray and for only 8 bucks in the discount bin. It looks like a decent B-action movie when looking at the cover, but it is so crappy it doesn't fit in the alphabet. It is claimed to be a Latin James Bond movie, and while I am not that impressed by James Bond (with Casino Royale being an exception), this is an insult to those series.

This movie looks more like a failed student project. Uninspiring storyline, worse acting than in the average soap series, terrible action scenes, laughable special effects, not one interesting line in dialogs. This is the first movie I have seen which I can't think of anything positive. Even the "hot" babes in this movie look like they were recruited from the methadone clinic. If I was David Carradine I wouldn't have wanted to be affiliated with this movie at all. I guess he needed money and performing fellatio was the other alternative, that's the only reasonable explanation for his cooperation.

If you can find this movie for a steal, don't buy it. If someone offers it for free you can use it as a beer coaster, but don't watch it unless someone pays you to do so.

Death Proof (2007)

Only watch this if you are a boredom-proof Tarantino fanatic.

[5/10 · 11 August 2008]

The concept of stuntman Mike killing ladies with a car is actually quite hilarious. The name Tarantino credited as the director really makes this a highly anticipated movie. Well, be prepared to be disappointed. Sure, there are a couple of 'cool' scenes in the movie, but overall it is a steaming turd. Tarantino's movies are known for their large amount of witty, rude dialogs. As a matter of fact, that is what made those movies great. This movie also has many dialogs in it, but here they just kill the entire movie. The first 45 minutes are filled with a never ending stream of jibber jabber, while nothing happens in between. Besides that, the conversations are not even clever nor is there any storyline to it. While watching it, I really got the feeling that this movie was actually a non-funny Tarantino-movie-parody. However, I tend to believe that Tarantino simply used some leftover dialogs which were written for, but not used in, his other movies. When something actually does happen the movie is quite amusing, but never great. If Quentin would have cut the crap, there would have been about 30 minutes of entertaining material left. Compared to the other part of the Grindhouse experience, Planet Terror, this movie falls short in every area. While Planet Terror was so over the top with action and bizarre events, this movie just leaves you waiting for something to happen. A movie like Kill Bill was entertaining, but already showed some signs of the fact that Tarantino's ego got so inflated that it gets in the way of his ability to create another classic movie. By the time he got to making this, his head seems to be so far up his own behind, that he can hardly entertain me anymore. I don't know whether I am still looking forward to whatever he will come up with next...

Cloverfield (2008)

Awesome, just awesome!

[10/10 · 24 February 2008]

Cloverfield is nothing like your average Hollywood movie. Entirely filmed from the perspective of a (shaky) handy-cam, one would not expect a very visually attractive movie. This movie proves that this assumption would be so damn wrong. The story starts at a yuppie party, but then crap hits the fan. And when I mean crap hits the fan, it really does hit the fan hard. Cloverfield is a very intense movie and the first person view really makes you feel like you are in the middle of something that you would try to avoid in real life. It has been a long time ago that I sat through a movie with clenched fists and my jaw on the floor most of the time, but this movie managed to do so. Nevertheless the movie still has its funny moments, which are timed right, so it does not take away from the tension. I could say much more about this movie, but it is really something you should see for yourself. Get the tickets now!

Black Sheep (2006)

Great idea, execution could have been better

[8/10 · 24 February 2008]

My attention was drawn to this movie when I saw the cover of the DVD in an electronics store. Upon closer inspection I knew I had to get this movie, as the distributor claims it to be in the same category as Peter Jackson's Braindead. Braindead being my all-time favorite disgusting comedy it was a no-brainer to me (pun intended) to buy this movie. The concept of murderous sheep is hilarious in itself, which made me like the movie before I even watched it. However, now I have seen it I am a little disappointed in the execution of the idea. Sure, the movie is funny and has a lot of laughs, but it is not as much over the top and funny as Braindead. When explicitly referring to the similarity to that movie, I can't help but make a comparison. Black sheep gives me the idea that the writers were trying too hard for it to be funny. The 'hippy chick' named Experience also really annoyed me, as her karma chi babbling seems to be drawn straight from corny sitcoms such as Friends. Like this example there are several other too simple or missed jokes which the movie could have done without. Fans of the genre horror comedies should still watch this movie, as good entries in the genre are scarce. However, this movie has to recognize the likes of 'Braindead' and 'Shaun of the dead' as its superiors. I would rank this movie at about the same level as I would rank 'Army of darkness' and 'Idle hands', which are also great but not classics.

The Simpsons Movie (2007)

More Simpsons!

[7/10 · 6 September 2007]

Simpsons the Movie could not have been named any better than this, because it is exactly like the Simpsons we all know and love from the legendary cartoon show on TV, only longer. While this is a great thing and will surely please fans of the series -as one should not tinker with a successful formula- longer is not always better. I am not saying that the movie is bad, not at all, as I enjoyed watching it very much. However, as it is a movie in the theater I somehow expected it to be at least slightly better than the TV-show, which it is not. There are some great jokes in this movie, brought to you with the typical wittiness and silliness we know from the TV-series, but the actual story-line could not really hold my attention throughout the movie's entire 90 minutes. The Simpsons has never been big on storyline, which is perfectly fine for a TV-episode, but here the attempt to create a storyline was not that successful. Nevertheless this is the Simpsons and if you expected it to have an Oscar-winning storyline you did not pay enough attention watching the show on television.