Recent Viewings, Part 2

[FatFreddysCat]

"The Producers" (1967)

A down-on-his-luck theatrical producer (Zero Mostel) and his accountant (Gene Wilder) concoct what they think is the perfect get-rich-quick scheme: produce a Broadway show so terrible that it flops on opening night, then run off to Rio with their investors' money. However, their production -- a pro-Nazi musical called "Springtime For Hitler" -- becomes an unexpected hit, leading to panic and mayhem behind the scenes.
Mel Brooks wrote and made his directorial debut with this slapstick showbiz comedy classic. Brooks later adapted it as a legit Broadway musical in the 1990s, which was then re-made as a new film with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in the 2000s.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Get Crazy" (1983)

The stage manager (Daniel Stern) of a Los Angeles concert venue struggles to mount the theater's annual New Year's Eve rock show, despite constant interference from musicians and their egos, unruly audience members, and a crooked real-estate mogul who wants to put the theater out of business so he can knock it down and put up a skyscraper.
A chaotic slapstick rock n roll comedy directed by Allan "Rock N Roll High School" Arkush, allegedly based on things he witnessed as an employee of New York's Fillmore East concert hall in the 70s. The cast is full of familiar faces like Mary Woronov and Paul Bartel, Malcolm McDowell, Ed Begley Jr., Stacey "Halloween III" Nelkin, and real-life rockers Lou Reed and Lee Ving of Fear. Funny stuff with a rockin' soundtrack!

[M.10rda]

^^^ THE PRODUCERS is my favorite Mel Brooks joint.

HOKUM (2026):
From the writer/director of last year's very good ODDITY, who is creating his own cottage industry for celtic/folk-adjacent horror. Adam Scott quite shockingly plays a big jerk named "Ohm Bauman"  who has some spooky misadventures at an old hotel in Ireland. After watching THE WHISPER MAN and SEVERANCE and now this in the past few months, I guess I have to start referring to Adam Scott as "credible star of dark psychological horror/thrillers" instead of "loathsome unfunny ferret-faced Drag King Anna Kendrick". I mean he's still kind of loathsome and unfunny in his latter-day work, but because it's horror/thrillers instead of comedy that isn't really a problem.

Much of HOKUM is a one-hander following "Ohm" in a couple of confined locations. It particularly reminded me of horror video games, moreso even than the RESIDENT EVIL reboot, as Ohm has to find missing items, solve puzzles, make creative use of random objects, etc. I honestly don't hate the influence of the adventure/horror gaming genre on younger filmmakers - it provides some different beats than old school Horror flicks. HOKUM will also remind viewers of fellow hotel-horrors THE SHINING and 1408. I didn't like it as much as Kubrick's SHINING or even as much as ODDITY, and I didn't find it too scary, yet it was sufficiently spooky for Halloween-weekend viewing and has a bit more on its mind than a lot of genre films. Madame 10rda liked it more than I did.    3.5/5

[FatFreddysCat]

"Justice League: The New Frontier" (2007)
Set in the late 1950s amidst the Space Race and the beginnings of the Cold War, the "old guard" of DC's superheroes (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman) teams up with a new generation of crusaders (Green Lantern, the Martian Manhunter, and the new Flash) to defend Earth against an ancient intelligence that wants to erase humanity from the planet.
Based on the graphic novel by the late Darwyn Cooke, this DC Animated Universe flick has a cool, retro art style and voice work by such notables as Kyle McLachlan, Brooke Shields, David Boreanaz, and more. Neat stuff for fans of the Silver Age of comics.

[indianasmith]

SEVERE INJURIES (2003) - OK, this one is right down there with the worst movies I've watched this year, like CATNADO and NOAH'S SHARK.  Shot with a hand held camcorder, this thing is cheap, boring, and stupid all at the same time.  An aspiring slasher tried to kill a sorority house full of exceptionally vapid college students, but winds up in a rivalry with another aspiring killer.  Cameo by Lloyd Kaufman.
AVOID!!!  1/5