Recent viewings

[claws]

Children of the Corn (1984) (Blu-ray)

No matter how many times I watch this movie I still think it's bad. Not Ed Wood bad, but bad enough to be called bad. For some reason I own the Blu-ray, and I end up watching it once or twice a year, which is odd since Children of the Corn isn't necessarily a favorite bad movie of mine either. I guess nostalgia has a lot to do with this, and I just like to own movies I rented in VHS days - no matter how bad or good - in better quality. 3.5/5

Terror in the Aisles (1984) (Blu-ray)

Still a fun and charming documentary about horror/suspense movies, hosted by Donald Pleasence and Nancy Allen. I love how they spliced different movies with a similar theme together while discussing or pointing out certain aspects of the genre. Cleverly done. 4/5

Streetwise (1984) (DVD)

Documentary about street kids in Seattle. Still shocking (not in a gross-out way), touching, sad and yet fascinating, and it will stay with you for a long time once the movie is over. 5/5

[Jack]

Demonic (2005) - some kids are driving through the country and the inattentive driver runs into a girl. A couple of them stay to watch her while the others go in search of someplace with a phone so they can call an ambulance. Unfortunately that particular patch of forest is inhabited by wood nymphs. Yeah when was the last time you saw some of those running around the woods? They're these naked chicks that are sort of like vampires - they entrance you with their beauty and then have themselves a nice little lunch. Where did these nymphs come form, why are they here? You'll never find out by watching this movie. This was actually pretty good (compared to the crap I usually watch). Good theme music created some tension and suspense throughout. One girl was such a mega b!tch that she practically fell into the comedy relief category, but the other characters were at least decent. Pretty predictable and tacked-on ending, but I'll still give it a 4/5.

Rodentz (2001) - some scientists are working in a lab and one of them pours some glowing liquid down the drain. C'mon man, first thing they teach you in Chem 101: If it's glowing, don't dump it in the sink Anyhow this stuff ends up in the sewers (or the first floor of the building I guess) and turns all the rats into hyper-agressive killer rats! There's even one guy in a giant rat costume Other than some unintentionally humorous junk this was pretty crummy. I couldn't even tell one generic character from the next and the whole thing played out in entirely predictable fashion. 2.5/5.

[claws]

Demonic 4/5? 

For me that one was a real chore to sit through. I admire your ability to stomach certain movies, and to actually get some enjoyment out of them   

[Jack]

Demonic 4/5? 

For me that one was a real chore to sit through. I admire your ability to stomach certain movies, and to actually get some enjoyment out of them   

I've been watching a lot of Mill Creek 50 pack stuff lately, so anything that I can stay awake through probably seems great to me 

[Rev. Powell]

IVAN'S CHILDHOOD (1962): A 12-year old orphan boy works as a scout for the Russian army during WWII, journeying alone into Nazi territory to gather intel on troop positions. Beautifully shot B&W war drama with tasteful dream sequences. 4/5.

[Mofo Rising]

Children of the Corn is the very first horror movie I can remember watching. I remember finding it terrifying. Have seen it since, and every single one of the sequels, I will agree that it is an awful movie.

Funny story, as a kid I didn't understand the concept of poisoning. So when they kill all the adults in the diner at the beginning of the movie, I thought they were all dying because the coffee was "much too hot."

Also, Rev., what are the chances we both recently watched the same obscure Tarkovsky movie? I actually quite liked Ivan's Childhood, but it's pretty atypical for a Tarkovsky flick.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Austin Powers in Goldmember" (2002)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBcIAuGqOJ0

Third (and so far, last) installment in Mike Myers' shagadelic spy spoof series sends Austin time traveling back to 1975, where he teams up with bad-ass superchick agent Foxy Cleopatra (Beyonce Knowles) to foil Dr. Evil's latest scheme and rescue Austin's kidnapped Dad (Michael Caine).

Not as good as the previous two "Austin" films but there is still plenty of immature smirky fun to be had. My fave bit involves Steven Spielberg directing a movie of Powers' life, with Tom Cruise as Austin, Kevin Spacey as Dr. Evil, and Gwyneth Paltrow as agent "Dixie Normous."   Y'know what? I'd totally see that movie.

[Jack]

Shakma (1990) - a college professor (Roddy McDowall) implants a microchip into the brain of a baboon. What do you suppose the chances are that it's going to turn into a psycho killer baboon? Meanwhile a bunch of kids are playing a live action Dungeons and Dragons role playing game in the building. So it looks like our psycho baboon is gonna have a nice full tummy by the end of the night. This doesn't start out too bad, but halfway through it's nothing but kids running into rooms and holding the door shut to keep the baboon out. About 50 times. All the doors are apparently made out of cardboard. Except for the ones on the professor's offices, which is where the only phones in the building are. Those can't be broken down by a full grown college student. Yeah riiiiight. 

I don't know, if there was a killer baboon loose and I was finding dead bodies all over the place, I might lock myself in a room and wait for help to arrive. It is a college building, and even if it's Friday, they were in a kitchen at one point so it's not like you couldn't hold out for a couple days. Not these idiots though. If the main guy isn't running around looking for someone who got killed an hour earlier, he's finding dead bodies and looking as if he can't decide whether to throw up or die of a heart attack. And 20 minutes before the end the action comes to a complete stop so we can soak in the emotional drama of all this nonsense. Egads. It was a real test of endurance to make it to the end credits. 1.75/5.

[Rev. Powell]

Also, Rev., what are the chances we both recently watched the same obscure Tarkovsky movie? I actually quite liked Ivan's Childhood, but it's pretty atypical for a Tarkovsky flick.

I'd say the odds are pretty close to 1-1. I thought of mentioning in the IVAN'S CHILDHOOD mini-review that it wasn't typical for Tarkovsky, but I didn't think that would mean anything to most people. The average person would be able to deal with IVAN'S CHILDHOOD better than STALKER or SOLARIS; it's like a breakneck action movie compared to those two.

[claws]

Shakma (1990) - a college professor (Roddy McDowall) implants a microchip into the brain of a baboon. What do you suppose the chances are that it's going to turn into a psycho killer baboon? Meanwhile a bunch of kids are playing a live action Dungeons and Dragons role playing game in the building. So it looks like our psycho baboon is gonna have a nice full tummy by the end of the night. This doesn't start out too bad, but halfway through it's nothing but kids running into rooms and holding the door shut to keep the baboon out. About 50 times. All the doors are apparently made out of cardboard. Except for the ones on the professor's offices, which is where the only phones in the building are. Those can't be broken down by a full grown college student. Yeah riiiiight. 

I don't know, if there was a killer baboon loose and I was finding dead bodies all over the place, I might lock myself in a room and wait for help to arrive. It is a college building, and even if it's Friday, they were in a kitchen at one point so it's not like you couldn't hold out for a couple days. Not these idiots though. If the main guy isn't running around looking for someone who got killed an hour earlier, he's finding dead bodies and looking as if he can't decide whether to throw up or die of a heart attack. And 20 minutes before the end the action comes to a complete stop so we can soak in the emotional drama of all this nonsense. Egads. It was a real test of endurance to make it to the end credits. 1.75/5.

See? I totally enjoyed Shakma  Seems like we are worlds apart, again. 

[Jack]

Shakma (1990) - a college professor (Roddy McDowall) implants a microchip into the brain of a baboon. What do you suppose the chances are that it's going to turn into a psycho killer baboon? Meanwhile a bunch of kids are playing a live action Dungeons and Dragons role playing game in the building. So it looks like our psycho baboon is gonna have a nice full tummy by the end of the night. This doesn't start out too bad, but halfway through it's nothing but kids running into rooms and holding the door shut to keep the baboon out. About 50 times. All the doors are apparently made out of cardboard. Except for the ones on the professor's offices, which is where the only phones in the building are. Those can't be broken down by a full grown college student. Yeah riiiiight. 

I don't know, if there was a killer baboon loose and I was finding dead bodies all over the place, I might lock myself in a room and wait for help to arrive. It is a college building, and even if it's Friday, they were in a kitchen at one point so it's not like you couldn't hold out for a couple days. Not these idiots though. If the main guy isn't running around looking for someone who got killed an hour earlier, he's finding dead bodies and looking as if he can't decide whether to throw up or die of a heart attack. And 20 minutes before the end the action comes to a complete stop so we can soak in the emotional drama of all this nonsense. Egads. It was a real test of endurance to make it to the end credits. 1.75/5.

See? I totally enjoyed Shakma  Seems like we are worlds apart, again. 

We did agree on, what was it, 3 movies last year?     We could go for 4 in 2013 

[alandhopewell]

     WELCOME TO BLOOD CITY (1977)
I dunno whether to call this a bad film or not....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnhKDT4Y4bE

     The pseudo-Western sequences with Jack Palance, Keir Dullea, et al were interesting, while the material taking place in the lab reminded me of Canadian tax-shelter sci-fi at it's worst.

     Another viewing experience courtesy of MillCreek....



     $8.95 at Wal-Mart....that's 17.9 cents per film!

      GOD BLESS AMERICA!

[316zombie]

sybil-again,i was astounded at how BRILLIANT sally fields is in this movie!!
the story is very painful,especially if you've read the book too,but it's incredibly well done,especially for it's era.

and then there's.....abraham lincoln:vampire hunter,lol! i loved this,thought it was incredibly funny,and the end ROCKED!!!

[FatFreddysCat]

"Tower Heist" (2011)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-u3MXkGf5s

This caper comedy is kinda like an "Ocean's 11" for the Recession Era, with Ben Stiller as the head of a gang of ritzy NYC high-rise employees who plan to steal $20 million from the penthouse of a Bernie Madoff-style swindler. Eddie Murphy is a hoot as the street thug they hire to guide them through the process of becoming criminals. Fun stuff.

[JaseSF]

I agree that Children of the Corn is awful. Yes, even the first film. Only thing it really has going for it is some of the kids make for creepy villains. Yet I also own it on DVD and one sequel...goodness knows why...

Recently watched...

Further Up the Creek (1958): Val Guest directed Hammer comedy from 1958 has the scheming crew, led by their Bos'n (Frankie Howard), of a soon to be retired warship tricking an inept naval commander named Lt. Fairweather (David Tomlinson) into unwittingly taking a crew of passengers on a cruise during the warship's last official voyage.

I really enjoyed this little film. It's not quite as racy as its advertising suggests on its DVD but is nevertheless quite amusing throughout. Howard proves a great foil for Tomlinson who, perhaps best known for his Disney film efforts, pretty much steals the show whenever he's on screen. It also doesn't hurt to have the lovely Shirley Eaton as frequent eye candy throughout the picture. Character actress Thora Hird also has a memorable role here too. Quite a lot of silly fun, this is great escapist entertainment for an hour and an half. ***1/2 out of ***** stars.