Recent viewings

[Jack]

Kill Katie Malone (2010) - Three college friends buy a ghost on Ebay. It comes in a box. They think it's just a novelty item, but sure enough people soon start turning up dead. Anyone who causes trouble for our three friends meets a gruesome end. So they have to figure out what to do with the box of course. This was, well...lame. Nothing about it rang true. People's reactions to things didn't make sense, they'd behave one way one minute and completely differently the next, and the relationships between the characters seemed to change form close friendship to utter indifference on a scene-by-scene basis. The plot was a mess too. Everyone was quite willing to accept that something supernatural was going on, but completely unwilling to accept that the boxed ghost they bought might have something to do with it. Even though they all came to that conclusion in several previous scenes. At least there was a cute girl in it, super-sweet one minute and completely uncaring the next.  2.5/5.

[JaseSF]

The 27th Day (1957): A mysterious alien stranger from a dying world abducts five people from different parts of the world (Britain, USA, USSR, China and Germany) and gives each of them "the ultimate weapon", a small container with three capsules each capable of wiping out all human life within a 3000 mile radius from which it is deployed with no damage to anything else. Shortly thereafter the alien announces to the rest of the world that this "ultimate weapon" is out there and soon these five people and the secrets of the weapon they hold become highly sought after by those in power. The aliens figure humanity will unleash the weapons upon each other and wipe the human race out allowing them to move in and take over the Earth as their new home world. But if the five given the weapon can go 27 days without unleashing it upon the planet, humanity may very well be spared.

This thoughtful science fiction film is fascinating to watch unfold as we see fear and worldwide panic let loose in the aftermath of this "ultimate weapon" being out there. Interestingly enough, all five of the people chosen each prove heroic in their own ways in our story despite their home country and none seem to want to see this weapon used even as their governments press for knowledge of said weapon. Now in this story, the main evil is displayed as the communist dictator behind the Iron Curtain who wants to use said weapon to gain control over the entire planet. Even though the aliens are in essence experimenting with humanity here (I guess in a way testing us to prove out worth), their intentions are never portrayed as inherently bad. The lead cast proves quite likable in this one too which definitely helps with our main heroes being American newspaperman Jonathan Clark (Gene Barry), his love interest the British girl Eve Wingate (Valerie French) and the German scientist who wants to solve the mystery of the capsules for the benefit of humanity Prof. Klaus Bechner (George Voskovec). While there are aliens (who look rather like human beings) and a spaceship (actually borrowed from Earth vs. The Flying Saucers), they're never as intricately a large part of the focus here as is humanity itself and the question as to whether or not with the ultimate weapon right at the ready, will we or will we not destroy each other? Arguably deserves more recognition as one of the best science fiction films ever made. ****1/2 out of ***** stars.

"People hate because they fear, and they fear anything they don't understand... which is almost everything." - Jonathan Clark
 
Maniac (1934): Former vaudeville performer turned mad scientist assistant Don Maxwell (William Woods) uses his expertise in impersonation to aid mad doctor Meirschultz (Horace Carpenter) in his reanimating the dead experiments but soon the whole thing sends Maxwell off the deep end too and we watch as he, and seemingly a lot of the characters and animals around him, descends further and further into insanity.

This is a bad movie fan must all the way. Probably the greatest bad movie from the entire 1930s period. This just has to be seen to be believed and it's precode so it has a startling shock value factor going for it too as we see a lot of violence (every character in the film including every animal seem to get into a violent intense battle of some type or another at some point), some nudity, and lots of characters acting absolutely over the top batsh*t nutty and crazy. Several of the performances here are so hammy with such overacting I don't think any other film has since matched it in this regard. The stuff the goes on here is more akin to something you might expect to see in some modern crazy late night cartoon show. Interestingly they superimpose imagery from classic silent era films Haxan, Siegfried and Maciste in Hell over scenes featuring Maxwell to help illustrate how his inner mind is clouded with demons and it actually proves surprisingly effective in this regards. This is one of those films normal folks perhaps best avoid but for true bad movie fans, well it's an absolute must. But beware of "the gleam"! I can't give this below **** out of ***** stars (or perhaps that would more appropriately be called slimes here) for sheer entertainment value.

[claws]

Terror Circus (1974)

Three Showgirls on their way to Vegas take a shortcut through the desert but their radiator is shot to hell so they spent the night sleeping in the car. The next morning they are awaken by Andre - a kind and handsome stranger offering the girls to use his phone on his nearby ranch. Upon arrival they discover a group of young women in chains held captive in the barn, and that's when the nightmare begins. Andre thinks he owns a circus and the women are his circus animals.

Solid Women-in-Prison variation and most likely the inspiration for Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes (1977), as there is talk of radioactivity and for the extra thrill there's a deformed nuclear mutant stalking the desert.

The misogynistic theme is "rofl" and the captive women act insultingly stupid when they get a chance to escape. Other than that you get some good gore and surprisingly less eye-hurting 1970s fashion and kitsch as one might expect.

Underrated cheese in my opinion and first time viewing on my behalf. For some reason I always skipped on renting this film back in the 80s when it was called Barn of the Naked Dead. 3.5/5 Cheese

[FatFreddysCat]

"DinoCroc Vs. SuperGator" (2011)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEV8Fz7xpYI&feature=player_embedded
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SyFy Channel nonsense in which the two title creatures - the massive results of an illegal experiment - break out of a Hawaiian research facility and run amuck chomping on a bunch of hot chicks in bikinis. The only people who can stop them are a nerdy Government agent, a wildlife conservation officer in short shorts, and a big game hunter.

It must be noted that there was no "vs." action between the two critters till the last five minutes.

The late David Carradine earns a quick paycheck as the evil head of the corporation that created the monsters.

Not an Asylum flick, but it might as well have been, cuz it borrows their formula to a tee.

[Jack]

^ I don't think I've ever seen that one.  Just ordered it for $1.50 LOL.  The "hot chicks in bikinis", um...that didn't have anything to do with it.   

[FatFreddysCat]

^ I don't think I've ever seen that one.  Just ordered it for $1.50 LOL.  The "hot chicks in bikinis", um...that didn't have anything to do with it.  

Hope you enjoy. The eye candy quotient is quite impressive, I swear when they were making this one they must've sent out a casting call for every generic blonde in a fifty mile radius.

The chick who plays the female lead looks kinda like a low-rent Sarah Michelle Gellar, too, which is a plus. :D

[claws]

God's Bloody Acre (1975)

Four people on vacation must fight against three hillbilly brothers who are protecting "their" property that was turned into a camping site by authorities.

Backwoods bleeder with the occasional racist remark and misogynistic behavior. Very cheap production values including filler-moments of ridiculous flashbacks and two or three silly songs. Pretty much nothing happens for an hour and only the final 20 minutes deliver with Grindhouse style violence. Why this film has such a high rating at IMDb remains a mystery to me. I'll give it 3/5 - one tiny step above average.

[Vik]

Mullholland Drive
I am intrigued I guess. Some of the scenes were really tenseful and all was directed very well, but I don't at all understand what happened. If anyone has an idea, please enlighten me.

[Rev. Powell]

Mullholland Drive
I am intrigued I guess. Some of the scenes were really tenseful and all was directed very well, but I don't at all understand what happened. If anyone has an idea, please enlighten me.

This should fix your confusion: Everything You Were Afraid to Ask About ‘Mulholland Drive’.  Very interesting movie though I personally prefer it when Lynch is even more mysterious.

[Vik]

Mullholland Drive
I am intrigued I guess. Some of the scenes were really tenseful and all was directed very well, but I don't at all understand what happened. If anyone has an idea, please enlighten me.

This should fix your confusion: Everything You Were Afraid to Ask About ‘Mulholland Drive’.  Very interesting movie though I personally prefer it when Lynch is even more mysterious.

That was a very interesting analysis, thanks. This is my first Lynch film, I probably need a second viewing to fully appreciate it.

[lester1/2jr]

Motor Home Massacre- epic. Man, this is the best movie I've seen since maybe Troll 2. It reminded me most of all of the 80's, when movies were fun instead of annoying. It's not fully retro, there's s tiny bit of Scream type sarcasm but very little wink wink sort of "we're above this" type foolishness.

The plot is dumb: a bunch of old as hell teenagers go on a camping trip in a 70's era moible home one of them has. This is funny: when they get to the park they are told there was a murder on the grounds and...they can't leave!!  There is no Constitution of the United States or common sense in this America, if that is where it takes place.


There are two very pretty girls on the trip, the blonde in particular is both extremely pretty and well proportioned and even passably charismatic as well. the brunette is also hot but the blonde is something else. the guys are more or less funny,especially the jock /a***ole guy. on the one hand it's completely and totally ridiculous and low budget and a joke, on the other hand it's a great time. 5/5

[FatFreddysCat]

"Black Swan" (2011)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jaI1XOB-bs&feature=player_embedded
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Natalie Portman is a tightly wound ballerina who slowly starts to unravel as she prepares to play the lead in a production of "Swan Lake."

Artsy, weird, disturbing, dark as hell little flick is an odd combination of backstage/showbiz drama with hints of "Carrie" and even a little "Suspiria."

Strange but I dug it

[Rev. Powell]

THE BRIDE OF FRANK (1996):  An old man with a speech impediment kills people he encounters.  It starts off with a child molester crushing a young girl's head under a tire and it's a comedy. That's all you need to know.  0.5/5.

[JaseSF]

The Whole Nine Yards (2000): A struggling dentist named Nicholas "Oz" Oseranky (Matthew Perry), who basically has the wife (Rosanna Arquette) from Hell, discovers his new next door neighbor is in actuality a notorious former mob hitman turned informant named Jimmy "The Tulip" Tudeski (Bruce Willis). Before he knows what's happening, "Oz" finds himself unwittingly drawn into the world of crime as the mob wants Jimmy dead, Jimmy wants mob boss Janni (Kevin Pollak) dead as well as his wife Cynthia (Natasha Henstridge) whom "Oz" ends up getting involved with as well. So basically the whole film involves characters gunning for one another in more ways than one.

Actually this was pretty consistently entertaining and remained amusing and involving throughout with some good comedy bits provided by Perry and Willis playing things more straight. At times, it does prove a bit hard to feel sympathetic for some of the characters we're supposed to because well, they're killers. Henstridge and Amanda Peet, who plays "Oz"'s dental assistant Jill St. Claire provide the eye candy with Henstridge being the more classic style femme fatale at least in appearance and St. Claire being a more modern take of a woman with a surprise or two up her sleeve. Michael Clarke Duncan also proves memorable here as a more comedic take on the gangster heavy. Pretty solid effort for a dark comedy/parody of a mobster/hitman movie. ***1/2 out of ***** stars.

The Whole Ten Yards (2004): Sequel to The Whole Nine Yards catches up with our cast from the last film who this time run afoul of recently released from prison Hungarian Mob boss Lazlo (Kevin Pollak) who wants revenge on Jimmy for the death of his son and kidnaps Cynthia hoping that by doing so, Oz will lead Lazlo right to Jimmy.

While not quite as well-written or consistent as the first film, this movie still provides some hilarious moments the best of which involve the relationships between Jimmy and Oz and Jimmy and Jill. The comedy comes from the confusion and mix-ups between characters who misinterpret and sometimes misled one another. Henstridge isn't as well utilized in this film as in the previous movie and the film does feature a lot of bungling henchmen which becomes rather overdone and redundant after a time. This is nowhere near as clever as the first film and is more an outright goofy comedy that just happens to involve the mob and hitmen. It's still good but slightly disappointing as a followup. Best of all is the interaction between Perry and Willis in their roles. *** out of ***** stars.

[FatFreddysCat]

"From Russia With Love" (1963)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJaqZkQrWCg&feature=player_embedded
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The second James Bond adventure lands 007 in Istanbul, where the evil SPECTRE uses both him and a lovely Russian defector as pawns in order to steal a top secret decoding machine. As usual, lotsa action, cool spy gadgets 'n' babes are the order of the day.