Recent viewings

[Oldskool138]

I picked up the 4-disk Blade Runner edition.  (The briefcase edition looks cool but I decided against it).  I can't wait to see Blade Runner with improved effects and better sound!   

[Killer Bees]

I just love British comedy (being an Aussie and all), and nobody does it better than those Young Ones boys Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmonson.  One of my faves is the Bottom series.  Richard Richard (Rik Mayall) and Eddie Hitler (Adrian Edmonson) are two complete and utter losers - scruffy, rude, violent and sad.  They live for the day when they will finally score with somebody - anybody., and their whole lives are about trying to do just that.

The series always has me laughing so hard I can't breathe.  So imagine my surprise when, the other day I discovered that they'd actually made a movie with their characters called Guest House Paradiso.  This is what I watched last night.

Guest House Paradiso has the boys running a dirty, derelict guesthouse a la Fawlty Towers, but much worse and with lower hygiene standards.  The guesthouse is situated high on a seaside cliff next to a nuclear power plant that also looks like it's seen better days.

Of course with the boys' lack of social skills, any guest brave enough or stupid enough to stay there is in for a shock!  There was one major change I noticed in that Richard Richard's last name is now Mr Twat (although he pronounces it "Thwait") but of course all the guests call him "Twat".

The supporting cast of characters is quite hilarious.  They include, but not limited to:  eAn old and senile grande dame who gets afforded their best "service" because she's rich, and the boys do everything they can to con as much money out of her as possible whilst subjecting her to the most horribly funny physical assaults.

The chef who is Eastern Europen, stinking, greasy, heavy smoker, quite possibly insane and quits early in the piece to leave the boys to run things themselves.  The head waiter who never makes an appearance but you see Richie on the phone to the local insane asylum asking if he shows up to send him back to work.

The couple with two school aged children seem normal enough, but the dad has a fetish for bondage and piercing and all manner of sex toys.

And the piece de resistance is the famous Italian movie star Gina Carbonara who ran away from her wedding to a cheating Italian playboy and is hiding out in the hotel.  Of course the boyfriend shows up and all hell breaks loose.

What these boys get up to is insane and hilariously funny.  There is much physical violence, endless sight gags, wall to wall projectile vomiting and voyeurism on a grand scale.

So if you like slapstick, random physical violence, puns, sight gags, and lots of bodily fluids in your humour, this is the movie for you.  It's definitely my next purchase.

[HappyGilmore]

Back To The Future Part 2- ***.  Great movie, with decent performances by Michael J. Fox, who plays 3 different characters, and a good performance by Christopher Lloyd.  Small appearances by Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers fame, and an early appearance by Billy Zane, who later starred in Titanic, The Phantom and other movies.

[CheezeFlixz]

Evil Dead a thon here last night.

EVIL DEAD
EVIL DEAD II
Amry of DARKNESS

[Oldskool138]

Back To The Future Part 2- ***.  Great movie, with decent performances by Michael J. Fox, who plays 3 different characters, and a good performance by Christopher Lloyd.  Small appearances by Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers fame, and an early appearance by Billy Zane, who later starred in Titanic, The Phantom and other movies.

Don't forget Demon Knight!   

[Oldskool138]

I finished watching Blade Runner (The Final Cut) yesterday.  I haven't watched it in years and I've always liked it but I really like it now.  It's one of those movies that means something different to you when you watch it at different stages of your life.

The sound mix is excellent and the remastered print makes the colors and scenery pop off the screen (even on regular DVD).  I liked the updated special effects.  No, Ridley didn't pull a Lucas by shoehorning a bunch of crap that wasn't in the original into this cut.  All he did was clean them up and subtlety enhanced them.

In the "Final Cut" the editing is tighter as some scenes are slightly shorter while others are longer.  It really helps the narrative...and yes, there are no voiceovers.

The 4-disk edition contains three (remastered) alternate cuts.

This is a must-have for your DVD collection!  Worth every penny!

TRIVIA:  The Blade Runner who is killed at the beginning is played by Morgan Paull a.k.a.- Mistretta from the Joe Don Baker opus Mitchell!   

[HappyGilmore]

Back To The Future Part 2- ***.  Great movie, with decent performances by Michael J. Fox, who plays 3 different characters, and a good performance by Christopher Lloyd.  Small appearances by Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers fame, and an early appearance by Billy Zane, who later starred in Titanic, The Phantom and other movies.

Don't forget Demon Knight!   

Demon Knight rocks.

[Torgo]

Evil Dead a thon here last night.

EVIL DEAD
EVIL DEAD II
Amry of DARKNESS

Great minds think alike apparently, I did the exact same thing last night after I got off work.

Here's how I rate them individually on a B movie grading scale:

THE EVIL DEAD *** out of ****
EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN   ***1/2 out of  ****
ARMY OF DARKNESS (theatrical cut)  ***1/2 out of ****

[Killer Bees]

I watched Dark City last night (Kiefer Sutherland, John Hurt, Rufus Sewell, Jennifer Connelly).

I really liked this movie. Dark, atmospheric, put me in mind of Sin City a lot.  Good premise, well acted, even though Jennifer Connelly isn't one of my favourites.   The aliens were interesting and creepy, especially the little kid. Decent special effects which were well done, but Kiefer's character annoyed me a little with the constant sharp intakes of breath.  Still, it suited his character.

Overall a 4 stars out of 5.

[JaseSF]

Maniac (1934)

A film every true bad movie film fanatic should experience in their lifetime. This is one of the best examples of unintentional hiliarity I've ever seen. It's way over the top performances feel like something you might see at a local play, a bad local play. A mad doctor's assistant is threatened into using his impersonation skills to aid in said mad doctor's diabolical plans of creating life after death. Eventually when the assistant fails, the mad doctor sets his sights on him as his next victim! What happens after that is even crazier. This movie has an unbelievable cat eyeball eating seqeunce, a fight between two people armed with hypodermic needles and even more insanity. It's certainly far from being a dull 51 minutes. Recommended mainly to bad movie lovers, I'd give this 5 slimes. However, for normal folks, I'd be hard pressed to give it more than ** out ***** and I'm only giving it that because it holds one's attention and manages to be quite shocking. I can only imagine how freaky it was in its time.

Metropolis (1927)

Well I watched both the altered version contained in the Horror Movies 50 pack and the Restored Version the last couple days. Clearly the restored version is a much more complete and superior version of the film. The restoration is beautifully done from what remaining elements they could find. The film is still missing a quarter of the original footage but text has been added to explain what was going on in these missing seqeunces. In the restored version, Rotwang becomes a much more interesting and complex villain and his motivations are finally sufficiently explained whereas in the altered version he's little more than Joh Frederson's lackey. In the restored version, he's in actuality a villainous rival of Frederson. This makes one better appreciate the performance given by Rudolf Klein-Rogge in the role. The only element in the altered version I liked better is I felt they slowed down Freder's emotional reactions to the worker's plight which perhaps helped better get across his compassion. Metropolis is one of those films that is a wonder to behold and the restored 75th anniversary version does keep the action moving more briskly. There's always something interesting and fascinating on screen and the sets and special effects are still wondrous today let alone how they must have come across in 1927. ***** out of ***** for the restored version. ***1/2 out of ***** for the altered one.

[Rev. Powell]

Maniac (1934)

A film every true bad movie film fanatic should experience in their lifetime. This is one of the best examples of unintentional hiliarity I've ever seen. It's way over the top performances feel like something you might see at a local play, a bad local play. A mad doctor's assistant is threatened into using his impersonation skills to aid in said mad doctor's diabolical plans of creating life after death. Eventually when the assistant fails, the mad doctor sets his sights on him as his next victim! What happens after that is even crazier. This movie has an unbelievable cat eyeball eating seqeunce, a fight between two people armed with hypodermic needles and even more insanity. It's certainly far from being a dull 51 minutes. Recommended mainly to bad movie lovers, I'd give this 5 slimes. However, for normal folks, I'd be hard pressed to give it more than ** out ***** and I'm only giving it that because it holds one's attention and manages to be quite shocking. I can only imagine how freaky it was in its time.

Seconded.  I was amazed at this.  Not only is the plot insane (there's even more crazy stuff Jase left out), but it features every species of bad acting known to man, from maniacal scenery munching to reading the lines off a cue card.  Every bad movie fan owes it to themselves track down a copy.  If all that's not enough to get you excited, it even has B&W boobies!

[CheezeFlixz]

Great minds think alike apparently, I did the exact same thing last night after I got off work.

Here's how I rate them individually on a B movie grading scale:

THE EVIL DEAD *** out of ****
EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN   ***1/2 out of  ****
ARMY OF DARKNESS (theatrical cut)  ***1/2 out of ****

I'd agree with those rating. I guess it's about my 20th or 30th viewing of these classics.

I ordered a bunch of box sets from Full Moon, can't wait to get those.

Tonight feast of bad cinema is Murder Party.

[HappyGilmore]

Alvin and The Chipmunks- Surprisingly, a very funny, sweet movie.  Much better than I expected.  A bit better than the Scooby Doo movies.  I guess about equal to Garfield, although I didn't see all of Garfield to judge.  Reccomended.

[Torgo]

Great minds think alike apparently, I did the exact same thing last night after I got off work.

Here's how I rate them individually on a B movie grading scale:

THE EVIL DEAD *** out of ****
EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN   ***1/2 out of  ****
ARMY OF DARKNESS (theatrical cut)  ***1/2 out of ****

I'd agree with those rating. I guess it's about my 20th or 30th viewing of these classics.

I ordered a bunch of box sets from Full Moon, can't wait to get those.

Tonight feast of bad cinema is Murder Party.

I've seen Murder Party for sale at the local Wally World. The plot synopsis looked interesting and it's gotten some pretty solid reviews, particularly from horror sites. I might have to check that out at some point.

[RCMerchant]

Maniac (1934)



Metropolis (1927)

Two fine examples of how to make a classic and how to f$ck up in every way possible....thus making an anti-classic!!!