Recent viewings

[indianasmith]

The movie was pretty stupid, but the book was one of the best things Koontz has ever written!

[Mr_Vindictive]

Jeff Who Lives at Home - I really like the films that the Duplass brothers have put out.  This one was just as charming as the others.  Jeff is an early 30s stoner who lives in his mother's basement, and believes that there are cosmic ties between everyone.  He, and his brother and mother, stumble onto their own enlightening journey in the course of a day, with each story coming together with the rest at the end.  Funny, charming, heartwarming, and extremely watchable. 

Safe House - Wasn't expecting much out of this one.  Ryan Reynolds is the keeper of an FBI safe house.  Denzel Washington is an extremely wanted subject who the FBI captures and brings to said location.  The house is stormed, and the two have to escape.  Fairly standard actioner, not much to make it any different from others in the genre.  Worth the rent, but I won't be watching it again.

Chronicle - Cinema vierte quasi-superhero film.  Great acting, superb dark story line.  I've always said that if the average joe obtained super powers, he would use them for nefarious means.  This film just proved my point.  I will be buying this one at some point in the near future.

[FatFreddysCat]

The movie was pretty stupid, but the book was one of the best things Koontz has ever written!

Yeah, it's been years since I've read "Phantoms" but from what I remember of it, it was definitely one of his better works.

I dunno why but Koontz's stuff never seems to translate well to film. The TV mini series version of "Intensity" from ten or fifteen years ago was probably the best, but most of the other stuff is just crap. (ever seen "Hideaway" w/Jeff Goldbum? Ack!!)

"Phantoms" was a decent enough B-Movie, though. Probably cuz Koontz himself wrote the screenplay. Unfortunately, the director was Joe "Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers" Chapelle. :D

[Mr_Vindictive]

Yeah, it's been years since I've read "Phantoms" but from what I remember of it, it was definitely one of his better works.

I dunno why but Koontz's stuff never seems to translate well to film. The TV mini series version of "Intensity" from ten or fifteen years ago was probably the best, but most of the other stuff is just crap. (ever seen "Hideaway" w/Jeff Goldbum? Ack!!)

"Phantoms" was a decent enough B-Movie, though. Probably cuz Koontz himself wrote the screenplay. Unfortunately, the director was Joe "Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers" Chapelle. :D

Have to say....High Tension is my favorite Koontz translation so far.  LOL.  I'm surprised Alexandre Aja was not sued for that flick. 

[FatFreddysCat]

Have to say....High Tension is my favorite Koontz translation so far.  LOL.  I'm surprised Alexandre Aja was not sued for that flick. 

Yeah, that one did resemble Koontz's "Intensity" more than a little, didn't it?? Haha.

[indianasmith]

We did a triple feature at my house yeerday - rainy Saturdays were made for movies!

WRATH OF THE TITANS - Liam Neeson returns as Zeus in this mythological sendup that blends several different Greek tales together.  Hades has rebelled against his brother's rule and is threatening to release Kronos and the other titans, aided by Aries, God of War.  Perseus, son of Zeus, must help free his father from captivity in Tartarus before Kronos can drain all of Zeus' powers and release himself from prison.  A pretty decent CGI fest.

SOME GUY WHO KILLS PEOPLE: This is a little indy MASTERPIECE!  One of the best films I've seen all year, well-acted and surprisingly heart-warming.  Ken has recently been released from prison after a suicide attempt.  Now the four members of the high school basketball team that tormented and tortured him sisxteen years ago are dying offf one by one, and it is up to the sheriff - his mom's boyfriend! - to solve the crime.  But wait!  Is Ken's revenge killing spree going to be interrupted now that his 11 year old daughter has come to live with him? Can he have a normal relationship, or is he too emotionally damaged?  And is he really the killer?  This is a wonderful, quirky little film that is well worth the rental fee.  Check it out!

PINKEYE - This was part of the Asian Extreme label, but is actually an English language film with only one Asian actress.  Some guy in an asylum has developed mental powers and can force the other inmates to kill themselves or each other.  Not that terrible a B-movie, but I was very sleepy and did not catch large parts of it. I do remember a few nude scenes scattered throughout and some decent gore effects, but much of the story eluded me.  May try and re-watch it later this week.

[claws]

Mania (1986)

Horror-Thriller anthology made for TV filmed in Canada from the same guys who gave us Prom Night (1980). Oddly enough, this was nominated for best feature at the acclaimed Berlin International Film Festival in 1986  Not saying it didn't deserve it but yeah, color me surprised. Story 1 is about a guy cheating on his fiance with a prostitute. The call girl is murdered outside his house and he is the only witness. Since he is about to get married he denies seeing or knowing anything. Meanwhile the killer is trying to frame the witness, and when the cheater ends up in court he is in for one big surprise. Story 2: married couple buys watchdog because of burglaries in the neighborhood, but the husband has a dog phobia. When the wife leaves for a few days the husband is confronted with his worst fears. Story 3: young mother must deal with demands from the kidnapper of her little daughter. Story 4: after a night out in a bar a man rescues a woman from a killer in the subway. Both barely escape and seek shelter at his house, but the killer is still lurking about. While waiting on the cops things start to get even more intense.
Solid, and each story comes with a neat little twist. 3.5/5

[lester1/2jr]

Dear Zachery (2003) - documentary about a friend of the filmmakers who was murdered. It's sort of like a Dateline episode mixed with alot of people talking about  their friend and what he meant to them.  it's self indulgent on the part of the filmaker to an extent but it does add some context to the story. Like the thin blue line and other docs, it's also an activist message as well, chronicling the inanity of Canada and Newfoundland's laws regarding the safety of children when the parents are clearly a danger to them. 4/5 

[Mr_Vindictive]

Dear Zachery (2003) - documentary about a friend of the filmmakers who was murdered. It's sort of like a Dateline episode mixed with alot of people talking about  their friend and what he meant to them.  it's self indulgent on the part of the filmaker to an extent but it does add some context to the story. Like the thin blue line and other docs, it's also an activist message as well, chronicling the inanity of Canada and Newfoundland's laws regarding the safety of children when the parents are clearly a danger to them. 4/5 

I'm not too much of a man to say this:  that film put me into absolute tears.  As if the core event wasn't tragic enough, that ending....it just killed me.  I cannot tell you of any other film that has pulled that sort of response from me, at least not on the level that this one did.  Fantastic documentary.  Brutal, touching and heartbreaking.

[Venomx73]

Night of the Comet (1984) seen it a bunch of times... I still like it.

[JaseSF]

Summer Rental (1985): An overworked air traffic controller named Jack Chester (John Candy) reluctantly agrees to take a holiday vacation with his family to Citrus Cove, Florida where he runs afoul of a local obnoxious snob/sailing champion Captain Al Pellet (Richard Crenna).

This was alright. It has some decent laughs here and there but cannot seem to make up its mind whether to be raunchy comedy or family film so ends up instead being a kind of weird mesh-up of the two but the raunchiness is kept pretty low profile in the end and the family moments help provide many of this film's bright spots. Lots of familiar faces in this film doesn't hurt it any either what with Rip Torn as the Barnacle restaurant owner/would-be pirate, John Larroquette as a local the family befriends, Kerri Green of "Goonies" fame as daughter Jennifer to name a few but there's other familiar faces too. Still all in all, this remains pretty average fare but it's alright for something to watch on a rainy day. **3/4 out of ***** stars.

Licence To Kill (1989): Secret agent 007 James Bond (Timothy Dalton) is suspended from MI6 when he sets out on a personal vendetta against a Latin American drug kingpin named Sanchez (Robert Davi) after Sanchez targets a number of his friends including Felix Leiter (David Hedison), Leiter's newlywed wife Della (Priscilla Barnes) and others close to him.

This was something of an action thrill ride that rarely lets up from beginning to end. It's a very entertaining film full of exciting stunts performed by Bond against his enemies. Bond has a number of allies in this one including Pam Bouvier (Carey Lowell), an ex-Army pilot and CIA informant, the always helpful Q (Desmond Llewelyn), and charter boat owner and friend of Felix Leiter named Sharkey (Frank Macrae) while Sanchez's girlfriend Lupe Lamora (Talisa Soto) eventually seems to develop a soft spot for Bond as well. Sanchez too has a stable of crafty and vicious villains in his employ including Milton Krest (Anthony Zerbe), Dario (Benicio del Toro), Colonel Heller (Don Stroud). At times Dalton's Bond actually seems vulnerable and in need of help and at others he seems almost superheroic. Regardless this is a great Bond adventure filled with thrills and a few chills involving sharks, jumps on to airplanes, underwater thrills, a giant shredder and gasoline trucks filled with cocaine. Cary Lowell is also absolutely stunning in this one and is without a doubt one of the most memorable Bond girls of all time. I'd give this one **** out of ***** stars.

[Rev. Powell]

NO MORE EXCUSES (1968): Robert Downey Sr.'s underground comedy has several interwoven strands, including a time-traveling Civil War soldier lost in Manhattan, a man advocating clothing animals for decency's sake, and documentary footage of young New Yorkers discussing the singles bar scene. If the movie is about anything other than how crazy the late 1960s were, you won't pick up on it, but it's an occasionally interesting time capsule with some vintage psychedelic tunes to help pass the time. 2/5.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" (1964)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gXY3kuDvSU

An insane U.S. general directs his bombers to attack the Soviet Union in Stanley Kubrick's cold-war black comedy, and the U.S. president (Peter Sellers, in one of three roles) and his generals have to figure out how to stop Doomsday before it's too late.

As usual for Kubrick, it's weird and quirky on purpose but still a fun watch. Sellers is great as usual, as are George C. Scott as a Commie-hatin' general and Slim Pickens as a redneck pilot.

Useless trivial note, Tesla's video for "Modern Day Cowboy" uses a ton of clips from this movie.

[JaseSF]

The Blob (1958): Steve Andrews (Steve McQueen) and girlfriend Jane Martin (Aneta Corsaut) are the only witnesses to a new horror terrorizing their small town of Phoenixville, Pennyslvania - a constantly growing mass that consumes everybody in its path - a red terror called the Blob! Now they just have to convince the doubting police and the rest of town that they are all in dire danger.

This is an enjoyable sci-fi classic that takes a somewhat unique approach in terms of its alien threat, a threat that is seemingly unstoppable. Everything featuring the Blob is great including its attacks at the hospital, the hardware store, the theater and the diner. McQueen and Corsaut also make likable leads even if it's hard to believe they're still teenagers here (which pretty much goes for every "teenager" in this film) and it does seem to take too long before the reality of the Blob becomes readily apparent. Nevertheless this is an enjoyable ride with an exciting finale at the diner. ***1/2 out of ***** stars.

It Came From Beneath the Sea (1955): a giant mutant octopus attacks San Francisco and threatens the safety of every nation along the Pacific Ocean. The U.S. Navy and its nuclear submarine Commander Pete Mathews (Kenneth Tobey) working with top scientists in the marine biology field, namely Dr. John Carter (Donald Curtis) and Dr. Leslie Joyce (Faith Domergue) set out to find a means to end this menace.

This is an enjoyable little film featuring a monster attacking a major city as was common in this era. The special FX which were most likely quite wondrous in their time are provided by the one and only Ray Harryhausen and Harryhausen manages to give the Octopus personality despite the fact we mainly see only its giant tentacles for most of the film's running time. Lots of memorable moments here including the Octopus sinking a shipping vessel, attacking Golden Gate Bridge and a Ferry Building. The final showdown between Mathews & Carter and the Octopus at the end was an exciting conclusion too. Faith Domergue provides an interesting distraction throughout the film as a feminist scientist yet one who is seemingly wooed by the somewhat old-fashioned manly square jawed take charge submarine commander played by Tobey (who's seems a natural to play such a role). While the film seems a bit progressive in some ways with regards to Domergue's character, it never does really let her get as fully into the action as you'd almost expect her character to demand. Enjoyable and fun to watch, I'm not surprised this film was something of a box office success in its era. *** out of ***** stars.

[lester1/2jr]

Mr Vindictive- I was also not prepared for that. that review there is a little cold I wrote it quickly just trying to describe it. The judge lady talking about how the woman wasn't a threat because her rage was "specific not general" was insane.