Recent Viewings, Part 2

[RCMerchant]

DISCO GODFATHER (1979): The Disco Godfather (Rudy Ray Moore), who's also a retired kung fu cop, resolves to "attack the wack" and take down the local PCP cartel after his basketball star nephew trips out on angel dust. This ridiculous, dated piece of trash restored my faith in so-bad-they're-good movies. 4/5  at least on a bad movie scale.

I have it on VHS as AVENGING DISCO GODFATHER! Astounding. Mind boggling. Brain numbing.
I love it.


http://youtu.be/gpiqT3kzngY


"How? and why?" is right!

[Trevor]

Terminal Island (1973)

Prison exploitation movie meets Lord of the Flies. The basic idea is that the state of California has abolished the death penalty and decided instead to maroon murderers on an island. When Carmen, a new prisoner, is brought to the island, she learns that there are two factions: a camp ruled by a tyrannical Bobby (Sean Kenney of Star Trek fame) with a pre-Magnum Roger E Mosley as his strong man, and a band of rebels, who fight a guerrilla war against Bobby. Also there is a doctor, played by an equally pre-Magnum Tom Selleck. Carmen falls in with the rebels, and together they plot to overthrow Bobby. The population of the island decreases rapidly.

This one is pretty boring: just a sequence of exploitation scenes, fights, some sexy stuff, and more violence. The plot wanders about: at first Carmen is set up to be the badass mama main character, but then she just fades into the background, and it becomes more of an ensemble piece of the rebel group. Actions and motivations are wildly improbable. It does contain a reverse strip tease, where a girl starts out naked in a lake and seductively puts her clothes back on again.
For some unfathomable reason, this movie is taken seriously by some.

This was released in South Africa and Zimbabwe when both Tom Selleck and Roger E Mosley hit it big with Magnum PI.

[indianasmith]

COMING 2 AMERICA (2020) - Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, and James Earl Jones are back in this sequel to the classic COMING TO AMERICA.  King Jumbe Joffer is old and dying, and Akeem is about to succeed him.  But Prince Akeem and his wife Lisa have three daughters, and the law of Zamunda requires a son to rule.  The neighboring republic, Nexdoria (great name!) is threatening war under the leadership of the sinister General Tiki (played by Wesley Snipes). But, just before his father's death, Akeem discovers he has a bastard son living in America, a child whose existence he was unaware of until now.  So the King of Zamunda must return to Queens to find his son and stave off war and invasion.  This is a pretty funny sequel to a classic film, with lots of nods to the original.  4/5

[lester1/2jr]

The only thing I remember from terminal Island is tom Sellecks line on the beach "what are you gonna do: kill me? do me a favor"

[FatFreddysCat]

"Spies Like Us" (1985)
Two bumbling government employees (Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd) are promoted to field agent status and sent off on their first globe trotting mission. What they don't realize is that they're only decoys, meant to distract the bad guys so the real spy team can complete the actual mission -- to hijack a Russian nuclear missile in order to test a new satellite defense weapon.
A fun Cold War comedy inspired by the old Bob Hope/Bing Crosby "Road To..." movies (Hope himself has a brief cameo), loaded with quotable bits and slap-sticky action. Aykroyd and Chase make a great team.
Fun fact: the movie's theme song was written and performed by Paul McCartney. Director John Landis thought the song was terrible, but said "you don't say 'no' to Paul McCartney."

[FatFreddysCat]

"Bulletproof" (1996)
A dim witted small time crook (Adam Sandler) is shocked when he's suddenly arrested by his "partner" and best friend (Damon Wayans) who's actually an undercover cop. After a stint in jail, Sandler agrees to go state's evidence against a major crime boss (James Caan) and Wayans is assigned to bring him into protective custody. Naturally, the two "frenemies" end up bonding all over again as they face off against a seemingly endless series of hit men and professional killers trying to rub Sandler out before he can talk.
I never pictured Adam Sandler as an action movie type, but he almost pulls it off in this enjoyably dumb, mostly forgotten shoot'em up comedy in the "Bad Boys" or "48 HRS." vein. 

[Jim H]

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - Entertaining family flick.  Some legitimately funny moments.  Probably 15-20 minutes too long.  I don't think it's quite as satisfying as the original (which wasn't a super high bar to begin with) and some of the smarmy moments don't land, but all in all it works.  Idris Elba is a highlight as Knuckles, does a better job than I expected and elevates it above purely star casting.  Tails is, as always, adorable. 

Bit of a side note - the designs are generally very faithful to the video game versions, and while this is obviously better than the "Ugly Sonic" style, it still doesn't totally work.  Their proportions and style are just very strange in a realistic style like this, especially when they're talking.  I don't know what could be better and still be recognizably Sonic though.

[pacman000]

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - Do movies need dynamic characters? I'm not sure anyone really learned anything or changed over the course of this film. Giant squid still looks good. Fun adventure movie, with a sad end.

Iron Will - A boy enters a dog race to save his family farm & earn money for college. Lost of work-hard-for-your-dream rhetoric. Not bad, tho I wonder if the risk was too great for the potential reward. (They had another option to raise funds, tho it wasn't great it was less risky.) Hmmm... working hard is laudable, so I'll say this is a decent film, with some exciting segments & cool scenery.

White Fang - 90's adaption of 1900's novel. The novel follows a wolf-dog; this follows the boy who'll eventually take him. Decent survival/treasure hunt movie. Bart the Bear makes an appearance.

Swiss Family Robinson (1940's) - Wanted to see this for a long time. The 60's version's better, but this is a decent family adventure film. It is episodic, & most episodes are given a religious interpretation, tho that's in the novel as well. Don't mind the religious angle, but the last episode left the film with a question instead of an answer.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Mel Brooks: Make A Noise" (2013)
The comedy legend looks back on his 60+ year career in show biz in this "American Masters" documentary from PBS. Loaded with interviews from friends, co-stars, and associates and full of classic clips from Mel's catalog like "Young Frankenstein," "Spaceballs," "High Anxiety" and of course "Blazing Saddles." An entertaining trip down memory lane.

[Rev. Powell]

MST3K: MUNCHIE: The movie is a Roger Corman produced family-friendly cross between ET, ALADDIN and GREMLINS, with a misfit kid freeing a magical (if horrifying) little imp voiced by Dom DeLouise, who helps solve his bully problems and get the girl. The host segments are busy, though not exceptionally funny, setting up what appear to be ongoing storylines. The movie is funny, but they definitely overhyped it as the "movie that nearly broke the writer's room." Maybe it was hard to write, that doesn't necessarily make it a classic episode for the end viewer; the movie is no worse than MAC AND ME (it's nearest relative). 3.5/5.

[Jim H]

The Northman - Visually pretty amazing and very immersive.  Pretty solid story and characterization too.  I quite liked just being placed into this world, which is in general deeply alien to a modern person.  Neat stuff.

Mona Lisa - A great lead performance by Bob Hoskins elevates the film, and some good supporting performances too (nice to see a young Robbie Coltrane).  Plot line wise, I didn't find it completely satisfying, but worthwhile as a character piece.

Ride the High Country - Pretty solid early Peckinpah.  Two good leads, I like the somewhat unpredictable way the storyline unfolds, and the way it ends - I learned Peckinpah himself changed a key part of the ending, and I think it was the right choice.  Worth a watch.

[lester1/2jr]

Im watching a different gangster tv series, from Czech republic not romania. honestly, i don't really like gangster stuff its like japan stuff I don't get it.

[FatFreddysCat]

"Lake Placid" (1999)
A New York paleontologist is summoned to rural Maine, where a giant, apparently prehistoric crocodile has taken up residence in a local lake and is munching on local residents. It's a pretty basic creature feature plot that we've seen dozens of times before, but "Lake Placid" is elevated by its witty script (by TV writer David E. Kelley, of "Ally McBeal" and "L.A. Law" fame), and a great cast that includes Bridget Fonda, Bill "Independence Day" Pullman, Oliver Platt, and a hilariously potty mouthed Betty White. Followed by a seemingly endless parade of cheap, crappy direct-to-video sequels. This is the only one in the series that's worth a spit.

[FatFreddysCat]

"The Jesus Music" (2021)
Documentary on the history of Contemporary Christian Music (aka CCM), which began with the so called "Jesus Music" movement of the late 60s (when hippies started bringing electric guitars and amps to worship services) and eventually turned into a full blown multi billion dollar industry. Interviewees include Amy Grant, Michael Sweet, the guys from DC Talk, Michael W. Smith, REZ Band, and more. I would've liked to see more about Stryper and the CCM Metal genre, but that's probably a whole 'nother documentary right there.  I'm not particularly religious but I dig music docs, and this one was an interesting look at a segment of the music biz that average consumers probably don't even know exists.

[indianasmith]

THE DEVIL BELOW (2021)  A group of researchers hire a professional guide to take them into the Appalachians, where an entire coal mining town simply disappeared in the 1970's.  Was it a sinkhole, a subterranean coal fire, or something more sinister?  Arriving at the site despite the attempt of locals to run them off, they discover every potential exit to the mine is barricaded and electrified.  Why are the locals so eager to keep outsiders on the outside - or are they trying to lock something in?  This was a fun monster film, reminiscent of SILENT HILL and THE DESCENT.  A bit of a slow burn at first but builds nicely.  4/5