Recent Viewings, Part 2

[lester1/2jr]

Ghosts of Hiroshima (2022) - much more ambitious than usual found footage sort of thing here. A guy who runs a "popular youtube account" comes up with a wacky way to review a new camera: by going to Hiroshima, Japan and checking out a house he has somehow inherited there. How does a white guy from California inherit a house in Japan? It's very complicated and in fact I don't understand it.

Yet he does, and when he gets there he meets a hot real estate agent. Things are definitely looking up, but not for long as the title would indicate. Without giving too much away: this is kind of a mess but has some scary stuff too. If you're a found footage buff it's an easy rec because its so different yet contains many of the conventions of the genre. for others, it may seem a little too artsy and political for a horror film. The director to his credit, just goes for it, contradictions and unexplained plot stuff and all.

4.5/ 5

[Rev. Powell]

THE JANES: A network of women in pre-Roe Chicago risk their freedom to obtain illegal abortions for the desperate who answer their flyer: "Pregnant? Don't want to be? Call Jane." Earnest but unexceptionally-structured talking heads doc that (perhaps unfairly) feels rushed out to capitalize on the Dobbs decision. Will go over well with the choir. There's also fictionalized re-enactment of the same story out, "Call Jane." 2.5/5

[indianasmith]

CHAINSAW CHEERLEADER CHICKS (2018) 
OK, I like bad movies, obviously, or I wouldn't be here.
I'm all in favor of ill-fitting monster costumes, bad special effects, crappy CGI, gratuitous nudity, cheesy dialogue, and cheaply done gore.  Bad movies - at least MOST bad movies -are fun, silly, and often more creative than the slickly packaged, politically correct, mega-budget productions Hollywood dishes up at the theater.
But some bad movies aren't even entertaining.   They're just AWFUL.  This was one of those.  Horribly dialogue badly delivered, NO PLOT WHATSOEVER, extremely slow pacing, no gore, no nudity, no suspense, just - nothing to make it fun or interesting.  It was so bad, in fact, that my wife and I just sat and laughed out loud through the second half of the movie (she joined me halfway through).  We just shook our heads in disbelief at how awful it was.  I mean, NOAH'S SHARK at least had some semblance of a plot.  FAMILY PROPERTY: BACKWOODS HILLBILLY MASSACRE had gore and some action.  THE BLOOD SHED had gore aplenty, and was so silly you couldn't help but laugh at it.  But this abomination was just dreadfully slow, dull, and disappointing from start to finish - so much so that I somehow wound up laughing my butt off at it before it was done.  So, if you're a glutton for punishment, check this one out.  Misery loves company, right?   1/5

[Alex]

The Block Island Sound.

I've been looking for a new creature feature movie to watch for a while now. Just one where some monster runs about. Not a slasher. Anyway, this turned out not to be what I was looking for. It is a very slow burn, I guess thriller more than horror? Fair enough performances, but I suspect it is just too slow-moving for most people and perhaps a slightly more concrete resolution. The budget seems to have been high enough to make the film without any glaring holes.

[Alex]

The Cleanse.

One of the guys from The Big Bang Theory (Leonard?) plays a nerdy guy (surprise, surprise), who joins a program designed to clear out his personal demons. He goes off to an exclusive retreat hoping to get a hot girl who is an actress (really not straying far away here so far).

It has a very "A Cure For Wellness" vibe to it so far.

[Alex]

Nobody Sleeps In The Woods Tonight.

A Polish movie. Basically a fairly standard slasher. Some boobs and some kills lifted straight out of other movies (the sleeping bag scene in the Friday the 13th series for example). Not totally terrible.

[Morpheus, the unwoke.]

The bay.

A good horror movie with found footage elements, a believable plot and great atmosphere.

Patlabor 2 the movie.

Anime, patlabor means 'patrol labor'. Labors are big robots people drive, the police use them for patrolling labot related crime, so patlabor.

The film deals with issues of terrorism, the why of it, how people believe it's right, how people fight it and what happens when it goes big. Not really a kid movie, grown-ups can like it too.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Purple Rain" (1984)
A rock musician (Prince) tries to keep his band together while dealing with his abusive father, his budding romance with the new girl in town (Apollonia) and competition from a rival act that's gunning for his nightly performance slot at a local club.
Prince's film debut/vanity project is essentially a feature length music video -- it doesn't have much plot, and the acting is negligible. However, the concert sequences are cool as hell (especially the rockin' rendition of "Let's Go Crazy" that opens the movie), and Apollonia is serious eye candy. This was my first time ever seeing "Purple Rain," which I guess is odd for a child of the '80s. I doubt I'll ever watch it again, but I didn't feel like I'd wasted my time, and now I can cross it off the list. Your mileage may vary depending on your level of Prince fan-hood.

"12 Monkeys" (1995)
A time traveler (Bruce Willis) from the post-apocalyptic future is sent back to the 1990s to figure out the source of a virus that will eventually kill 99 percent of the human population. Naturally, the authorities in the 90s just think he's crazy and lock him up in an institution, till a doctor finds his story plausible enough to help him in his quest.
Terry Gilliam of "Monty Python" fame directed this bleak, dystopian sci-fi/action flick with lots of twists and turns, and great performances from Willis and Madeline Stowe as the doctor/love interest. Watch for a young Brad Pitt in a supporting role as one of Willis' fellow asylum inmates.

"Darkman" (1990)
A decade before he took on "Spider-Man," Sam "Evil Dead" Raimi directed this slick superhero flick based on his own character creation, who's kinda like a cross between Batman, The Shadow, and the Phantom of the Opera. After he's horribly disfigured by mobsters, a doctor (Liam Neeson) embarks on a mission of vengeance against the men who destroyed his life. Fast paced, action packed stuff with a pinch of horror. An underrated flick that spawned two direct-to-video sequels.

[indianasmith]

Saturday Double Feature:

MUTANT VAMPIRES FROM NEPTUNE - Another Tubi TV bit of shlock, but a lot more fun than last night's snooze fest.  Two couples (plus the obligatory book nerd little sister) go to spend the weekend at a cabin in the woods, and run afoul of a goofy looking vampire creature that just crash landed on a UFO. The remarkably unlikable cast of characters get drunk, get nude, and get killed in the mayhem that follows.  An enjoyable, by the numbers cheese fest! 3.5/5

TERROR TRIP - A group of horror fans start a reality show where they visit places where iconic horror films were made, and stage screenings of the original films at the locality.  The show is a big hit, until they visit the site of a terrifying indie film shot in Poland, and run afoul of organ harvesters.  This one is quite well acted and genuinely gritty and terrifying at times. 4/5

[Rev. Powell]

ALL THAT BREATHES: Two brothers run a bird-rescue hospital in Delhi, against a backdrop of ecological decay and political turmoil. A somewhat dry and even depressing documentary, but with a spiritual sensibility of following a path of empathy and kindness in an increasingly dystopian world. 3/5.

[indianasmith]

BAD BLOOD (2016) A teenage girl coming home from college is assaulted by a strange creature; now when the moon becomes full she undergoes a horrifying transformation into a half-human, half-amphibian monstrosity that lives only to kill.  In other words, a were-frog!
OK, this sounds like a silly premise, but it's actually a pretty decent twist on the whole werewolf genre. 
Definitely worth the watch!  (Free on Prime)  4/5

[Morpheus, the unwoke.]

Mutant chronicles.

For a low budget movie based on a wargame this had a powerhouse cast lead by Ron Perleman and Thomas Jane.  It was low budget but had some work put into it that resulted in a very dark, moody,  atmospheric film with elements of steampunk, dieselpunk, horror,  scifi and apocalypse style films all in play.

[Rev. Powell]

THE QUIET GIRL: A troubled, neglected girl from a poor, large Irish farming family goes to spend the summer with distant relatives, and briefly thrives. A slow, modest, and poetic movie that dangerously flirts with turning over-sentimental, but ultimately delivers a strong emotional payoff. Everyone speaks mostly in Irish (which is a bit of a dying language but would have been more prevalent in 1981, when this is set), with a little English sprinkled in. Almost certainly won't be to people around here's taste--it's not really my kind of movie, either--but it is high-quality in its genre. 3.5/5.

[Alex]

Nobody Sleeps In The Wood Tonight 2.

The creatures from the first film return along with the final girl. Some local cops have arrested everyone still alive (other than an old guy who accidentally shot a kid, which seems like a bit of an error of judgement).

[Gabriel Knight]

LIMITLESS (2011)

A mysterious pill that enables the user to access 100% of his brain's abilities transforms a struggling writer into a financial wizard, but it also puts him in a new world with many dangers.

While the concept is kinda silly from start, since that myth of "we only use 10% of our brain" has been proved wrong a long time ago, it's interesting nevertheless. The problem is that the main character seem to act like an idiot for most of the movie, he definitely doesn't act like a super smart person. Why would he get in touch with a shark loan and forget to pay? Why didn't he secured a steady supply of the pill right away, instead of depending on the dealer? Why would he get in touch with shady characters at all, when he can do anything by himself?

My biggest gripe is that they don't really explore what a man that smart could do. Instead of finding cures for diseases, new forms of energy, or discoveries we can't even imagine, he just bang chicks and gets into the stock market. Apparently the pill gave him intelligence but not imagination.

Anyway, apart from these flaws, and a terrible feel-good ending that makes no sense, the movie is entertaining enough, and it's well acted. It also has some crazy camera effects that make you feel like you're on the pill also, which is nicely done.

My vote is 7, check it out.