Recent viewings

[claws]

Annabelle (2014)

Late 1960s: A very pregnant woman named Mia (Rosemary's Baby reference) is given a collectors doll from her husband. Soon after they almost fall victim to a home invasion, but the two crazy cult members (Manson/Tate/Polanski reference) are killed by the police. Now evil is attached to the Annabelle doll making Mia's life miserable: fiery attack by Jiffy Pop-type of popcorn, sewing needle stab attack, and spooky vinyl record player shenanigans. Things simmer down after getting rid off Annabelle but not for long. Mia must now fear for the soul of her newborn daughter as there is a demon awaiting at every corner. However, a local priest and a woman working in a bookstore provide a helping hand.

Kind of amazing this movie raked in $255m at the box office worldwide. Annabelle didn't suck but it has direct-to-DVD production values all over. Add some borderline bad acting (especially by the actress playing Mia) and you really have to wonder. Anyway, this was pretty much saved by the "demon" who shows up around one hour making things creepy and even a bit scary. 3.5/5

[JaseSF]

Touch and Go (1986): A top hockey player for the Chicago Eagles, Bobby Barbato (Michael Keaton) finds his life thrown a bit out of whack when he runs afoul of a streetwise young kid named Louis DeLeon (Ajay Naidu) who was involved in an attempt to mug him. Bringing the kid back to his down on her luck mother Denise (Maria Conchito Alonso) leads to unexpected romantic sparks flying between her and Barbato.

Personally I enjoyed this slice of 1980s romcom with a bit of the undercurrent theme of coming of age and being a man also somewhat present here. The hockey scenes are surprisingly fun and entertaining and one wishes there was a bit more of them here. The primary focus is on the romance between Bobby and Denise but there's also a major subplot involving her son Louis coming of age and the involvement of a gang of hooligans, well primarily just their leader Lupo (D.V. DeVincentis), tormenting and watching them. The acting wasn't too bad here and Alonso and Keaton make likable leads and Naidu is also less annoying a kid character than most. Not too bad but the plot goes a bit all over the place at times. ***1/4 out of ***** stars.

Fast Break (1979): A New Yorker with big dreams of being a star basketball coach, David Greene (Gabriel Kaplan) gets his big chance to coach a team at a relatively unknown small Nevada university. He puts together a team of top players he knows from the ghetto and brings them with him to Nevada to play. This odd hodge-podge of players includes a former con artist named Preacher, a pool shark nicknamed Hustler, a homeless fugitive named D.C., and a star shooter nicknamed Swish who unknown to the rest of the team is in fact a woman. Can this seeming team of underdogs be successful?

This was a surprisingly fun and entertaining 1970s sports comedy film. It definitely has its feel good moments (and some laugh out loud ones) but these characters always feel like flawed, real human beings. Kaplan shines here and gets some good lines and moments. It also has a very strong 1970s vibe working in its favor. As a fan of Welcome Back, Kotter, I found much to enjoy here as well. It should also appeal to fans of sports films about underdog teams. ***1/2 out of ***** stars.

The Hasty Heart (1949): In the aftermath of World War II, a M.A.S.H. unit lead by head nurse Sister Margaret Parker (Patricia Neal) is given a special assignment, to care for and provide friendship and support to a soldier named Cpl. Lachlan McLachlan (Richard Todd) who unknown to him has only a few weeks left to live. Parker enlists Lachlan's (nicknamed Lachie) fellow patients in helping her carry out her mission: the likable and thoughtful Yank (Ronald Reagan), the loud and lively Tommy (Howard Marion-Crawford), the friendly Kiwi (Ralph Michael), the quiet but kind Digger (John Sherman), and an African nicknamed Blossom (Orlando Martins) who speaks but one word of English. However the task will not be easy as Lachie has long been an unfriendly loner who likes to get his own way.

This film is all about human emotion, the human heart, friendship and how hard it can be to make friends for some people. This feels overly sentimental at times yet the characters feel and act like real human beings, with flaws. The characters make mistakes and don't always necessarily do the right thing. Still one gets the sense all these characters have very human hearts and each has caring and compassion for his fellow man even in the aftermath of war. Todd gives a great emotionally moving performance. Reagan plays arguably his most compassionate character, and Neal is terrific here as well. Does it get a bit wishy washy at times? Perhaps yet it works nevertheless. ***1/2 out of ***** stars.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Plastic Galaxy: The Story of Star Wars Toys" (2014)

http://youtu.be/y5dfNJVybeU
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Charming documentary about the rise and fall of the Kenner toy corporation, which went from a tiny company to an industry powerhouse thanks to the "Star Wars" license that brought forth a seemingly endless series of action figures, vehicles, and other tie-ins. Children of the '70s and '80s will have a blast going down memory lane with this one.

[lester1/2jr]

The Other Guys - Will ferrel and Marky Mark wahlburg as two desk jockey type cops  who try to come into their own by cracking a case. It starts of clunky due to the lame opening sequence with The Rock and Samuel Jackson which can't decide if it wants to be funny or serious. With that out of the way, the other weak links are Damon Wayans and Rob riggle who aren't funny. The rest takes a while to get going but ultimately Ferrel reels it all in and turns out some improvised-ish insanity that actually made me laugh a couple of times and was all in all amusing enough.

Eva Mendes was cute as his wife, Wahlburg is a straight man of sorts and did that well enough, and Michael keaton shows up and does an nice understated performance as the Captain. Ice T narrates and his voice acting is as bad as his regular acting. As on Law and order SVU he talks too slow. It's no Talladega nights as Damon Wyans is no Sasha Baron cohen and no one else is anyone else but it was pretty good when it got rolling anyway.

3.75 /5

[claws]

Backcountry (2014)

Young urban couple decide to go backpacking in the wilderness. Well, it was more the guy's decision, though she is willing but not super-excited about the trip. Both are sort of well prepared but kind of ignore life saving advice from a forest ranger type. Their plan to hike to a lake is interrupted by a unplanned guest, a tourist hiking guide / survivalist on his own. The couple invite him for dinner but the evening turns out more awkward than pleasant. The next day the couple find possible signs of black bear activity, and soon enough they become the prey of a territorial beast.

Based on a true story Backcountry was surprisingly decent with a few genuine nail-biting thrills and chills. Above average acting and no fluff dialogue. This all came off quite honest and real. Recommended if you like nature runs amok movies. 4/5

[Jack]

Blood Hook (1986) - so there's this big fishing contest and somebody's using a very large fishing lure to catch people and drag them into the lake, killing them. Distributed by Troma, it was as goofy and stupid as you'd expect, but oddly enough I found it kind of charming. The characters were entertaining and the whole thing was just so random and screwy it managed to be fairly amusing. 3.5/5.

http://youtu.be/4VI7ntoJNEk
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[FatFreddysCat]

"The Final Conflict" (aka "Omen III," 1981)

http://youtu.be/MEh07Der7dc
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In the third chapter of the "Omen" saga, little Damien is all grown up and is ready to receive his Satanic birthright. Unfortunately a troop of monks on an assassination mission - and a little thing called the Second Coming - stand in his way. "Final Conflict" has its moments and a young Sam Neill (later of "Jurassic Park") does a nice job as the adult Damien but it pales in comparison to the previous two "Omen" flicks.

On the other hand, "Omen III" looks like the Royal Shakespare Company compared to...

"Omen IV: The Awakening" (1991)

http://youtu.be/4TBDZPRiJ0A
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This sh*t house made-for-TV sequel (!) picks up the saga with Damien's evil now housed in the body of a little girl who is adopted out to an unsuspecting D.C. political family. If it weren't for the "Omen" tag this would be just another standard killer-kid movie and the TV budget does it no favors. I knew I was in trouble as soon as I saw the director was Dominique Othenin-Girard, who was also behind the abominable "Halloween 5." AVOID.

[JaseSF]

Alien Signs: Undeniable Evidence - The Message (2003): Colin Andrews gives a lecture on the crop circle phenomenon. He examines what he considers all the possible causes and seems to lend most support to the UFO/alien visitor theory. Really this is all speculation, there's no real outright proof aside from the usual arguments you hear on these types of presentations.  The photos of crop circles are pretty cool as was the supposed recording from within a crop circle. The rest is just a fairly dry lecture with a few chuckle worthy jokes thrown in here and there. Not much you haven't seen before if you've watched very much about this sort of thing. ** out of ***** stars.

The Winning Team (1952): A biographical dramatic presentation examining the life of star baseball pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander (as portrayed by Ronald Reagan), his relationship with wife Aimee (Doris Day), the ups and downs of his life, his trials and tribulations.

The biggest problem here is this film adaptation does not prove entirely accurate in terms of its portrayal. Some things presented are exaggerated, others are incorrect, and other things gets downplayed more than they should be. The performances given by Reagan and Day prove likable and the story is engaging but it has definitely been "Hollywood-ized" to give movie fans what studios no doubt thought people wanted to see. An entertaining film but realize you're not getting the real story here. ***1/2 out of ***** stars.

I Spy (2002): A bumbling secret agent named Alex (Owen Wilson) teams up with an arrogant star boxer named Kelly Robinson (Eddie Murphy) in hopes of locating a top secret military stealth jet, capable of invisibility, now in the hands of international arms dealer Arnold Gundars (Malcolm McDowell) who's using the upcoming boxing event as a front to gather all the plane's potential nefarious buyers.

There's very little really new in this disappointing update on the classic TV series which bears practically no resemblance to it whatsoever. Bumbling agents and spies? - done better in Pink Panther and even the Johnny English films, comedy teams in action adventure films? - done better in Lethal Weapon, Rush Hour, etc. This feels like a mix of light James Bond adventure mixed with Johnny English only more Americanized despite the cool Budapest, Hungary setting. The only positives with this one is Famke Janssen as a super hot secret agent named Rachel and one somewhat entertaining chase sequence involving Wilson & Murphy. Also the Budapest setting is nice to look at. The rest is just pretty lame and disappointing. Watch the TV series instead.  **1/2 out of ***** stars.

Daniel Boone (1936): In 1775, heroic American frontier leader Daniel Boone (George O' Brien) attempts to lead a group of settlers to a new home in Kentucky, in territory traditionally held by the Indians. Standing in the way of his success is a villainous white renegade/leader of a pack of Indians named Simon Girty (John Carradine), and the efforts of one Stephen Marlowe (Ralph Forbes) who plots and schemes his own plans for this new land.

This one is pretty forgettable aside from Carradine's villainous performance. The story does drag on at points and the Indian attack sequence seems to go on and on forever. O'Brien does his best in the heroic Boone role and gets a few moments to shine. Black actor Clarence Muse has a memorable role in this one too. Heather Angel seems to me a bit miscast as Boone's love interest here. Not as good as I'd hoped but still enjoyable on some levels. . Surprisingly high amount of death in this one too. **1/2 out of ***** stars.

[Kooshmeister]

Watched the 1931 version of Dracula for the very first time. Yes, I know, it's shameful I didn't see it until now. I'm also currently watching the Spanish version which I like a lot.

[lester1/2jr]

An Awkward Sexual Adventure (2012) - How many indy rom coms do you watch? answer: not very many. This one is pretty good. As clever as it was though, it couldn't help but run into the cliches of the genre: the moments of indecision, hooker with a heart of gold, one dimensional b***hy gf, "I'll teach you how to get chicks" best friend, etc. There were no decapitations or extended kung fu sequences so pardon me if I struggle to make sense of it here.

A guy has a gf who he has a terrible relationship with but he doesn't understand that. He has no perspective and while its falling apart he thinks it just needs a little tuning up. Oh also the movie is Canadian. he lives in Winnipeg and he takes a trip to Toronto and thats where all the stuff happens. I guess Toronto is a big city and Winnipeg is a small one who knew. His friend and a stripper he meets try to help him become more of a ladies man. The stripper, played by some Canadian woman, is excellent and somehow breathes life into this well, well worn cliche of the super nice sex worker. It's a rom com and there are comedy jokes. mostly of the mildly cerebral caucasian variety we have come to expect from independent cinema across the decades. Jew-y you might say if you were being ineloquent. (That is to say: good. )

I certainly know nothing about rom coms but this had some good tension, the acting and general tone wasn't too Canadian and the story and characters while not mind blowingly original (a geeky guy and a worldly stripper find they have basic humanity in common holy s**t who saw that coming) were imparted with unique traits by the actors. not overly explicit or any kind of National Lampoon type thing though they kind of sell it that way.

4/5 good movie, it doesn't rise to the level of like a really awesome comedy like Beverly Hills Cop or something I mean it's just like a low budget thing but i liked it

[Jack]

Blood Tracks (1985) - a hair metal band and their groupies go to a cabin in the mountains to shoot a video, but there's an abandoned factory nearby where a family has been living cut off from civilization for the last 40 years, and they've gotten rather animalistic. They don't like strangers. At all. This wasn't very good, the complete lack of character development meant I couldn't care less if everybody died, and the killers weren't very scary. The last half hour took place in the factory where it was so dark I couldn't really see much. I think one guy took a hatchet to the forehead but then later woke up and was okay? Anyhow, 2/5.

Attack of the Beast Creatures (1985) - so these shipwreck survivors wash up on an island and get attacked by beast creatures



EEK! They're as funny as hobgoblins really, with the actors holding them up to themselves and screaming. Characters were passable, action was slow but comical, and the whole thing was played 100% straight. It was mildly amusing. 2.5/5.

[Jack]

Final Exam (1981) - there's a killer on a college campus. I didn't like this at all, it's more like the lousiest frat "comedy" ever made than a slasher. Characters were mostly unlikable and I was happy to see them killed off. 1.5/5.

[Rev. Powell]

WARNING FROM SPACE (1956): A bunch of aliens want to contact humanity to warn them of an approaching asteroid, but because they look like giant starfish no one takes them seriously until they assume the form of high-jumping tennis-playing amnesiac pop idols. Not as much fun as my synopsis suggests; it's actually dull, badly paced, and full of recycled sci-fi ideas.  1.5/5.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Turtle Power: The Definitive History of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (2014)

http://youtu.be/6qbymj_yAfo
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Entertaining documentary that covers the Ninja Turtle craze from its humble beginnings as a self published black & white comic book to a TV, film and merchandising powerhouse that is still going strong decades later. A fun trip down memory lane for aging comic nerds and children of the 80s/90s in general.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Enter the Ninja" (1981)

http://youtu.be/9f70sKbqr3g
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Cannon Films honcho Menahem Golan himself directed this chop-socky cheez classic. A Westerner freshly trained in the art of the ninja (Franco Nero) heads to the Philippines, where he helps his friend protect his plantation from some gangsters. After Nero kicks their asses a bunch of times the bad guys hire a ninja of their own which leads to a sweet ninja-on-ninja showdown. Needless to say this is badly dated, campy, silly stuff but the stunt work is still pretty impressive.