Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Dog Shy

Charley Chase silent short has one funny scene near the end with everyone howling, but that doesn't work nearly as well as it would in a talkie. The rest is OK, but nothing special.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

As a teenager growing up in England during the Falklands War I'm very interested in seeing This is England.

Out of

Madman
Despite being a big horror movie fan I am not a great admirer of slasher films. So I have no idea why I watched this turkey for a the second time when it turned up on IFC this week. Just to confirm that it's still stupid and cheesy I suppose.

Django 1/2
Corbucci's and Nero's breakthrough spaghetti western is a little slow at the start but has some great ideas and scenes. The shootout in the street is super and I especially liked the way Corbucci staged and shot the bar fight – very exciting. I'm still not sure how Django managed to get off 6 shots in that last scene but never mind. Pretty poor dubbing.

M Hulot's Holiday
Now that's how to play tennis.

Tell Them Willie Boy is Here 1/2
Exciting manhunt, good photography, pretentious and dull talk.

The Warriors (Original cut)
Lean and exciting action flick. I would like to know more about the alleged gang incidents at cinemas when this first played. Were they real or was it just a moral panic?

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 3 1/2 stars

After the letdown that Temple of Doom was, Crusade is fun film to watch. Practically a retread of Raiders, its almost as good thanks to the horse car chase in the desert, the tank fight, the puzzles and the chemistry between Ford and Connery.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Scoop (2006)

Not up to par with Woody Allen's other movies but still watchable.

Scarlett Johansson stars as Sondra Pransky a young journalism student in London who attends the magic show of magician Sidney Waterman. While participating in one of his tricks, deceased journalist Joe Strombel appears to her and tells her that British aristocrat Peter Lyman is really the Tarot Card killer. Sondra enlists the help of Sidney to find out about Lyman and if he is in fact the killer.

Johansson is pretty solid here but Allen's twitchy performance is getting to be annoying. I wish he would concentrate on writing which he has an enormous talent for. Hugh Jackman as Peter Lyman and Ian MacShane as the ghost were both fine in their respective parts. Entertaining enough movie to while away a deary afternoon.


The Sands of Iwo Jima (1949)

John Wayne plays Sgt. Stryker a tough marine drill Sgt. who trains men to fight in the Pacific.
His men become resentful of his hard line command and one in particular, Peter Conway is very resentful having joined the Marines because it was expected of him.

John Wayne is excellent as Sgt. Stryker. I think this is the best acting I've seen from him in the movies that I've seen so far. The rest of the cast were uniformly good except for John Agar who's character just irritated me. I started watching Clint Eastwood's Flags of Iwo Jima but just couldn't get into the movie so ended up turning it off. Enjoying this movie makes me want to try watching Flags of Iwo Jima again. The classic scene at the end was very well done and brought a tear to my eye. I think what could have been a standard war movie was elevated by John Wayne's performance.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/5/08

Brighton Rock (1947) Dir: John Boulting

Terrific, mostly faithful adaptation of Graham Greene’s ‘entertainment’, by Greene himself and Terence Rattigan (The Winslow Boy, The Browning Version).

The story is about Pinkie Brown (Richard Attenborough), the 17-year-old leader of a small-time mob in the English resort town of Brighton. He also happens to be a cold-blooded psychotic with a paradoxical bent toward clean living (no drink, no smoke) and an unflinching Catholic faith and foreboding attachment to Hell (“These atheists don’t know nothing—course there’s a Hell, flames, damnation, torments”). Pinkie’s mob is falling apart around him. There’s a bigger mob (run by a man named Colleoni who fancies himself more of a ‘businessman’ than a thug) that actually runs Brighton, much to Pinkie’s humiliation. There’s also been a murder, and Pinkie needs to clean up some loose ends, even though the police have ruled the death was of natural causes. His own man, Spicer (Wylie Watson, who played Mr. Memory in The 39 Steps), has been sloppy, or “milky” as Pinkie calls him. Pinkie starts a relationship with Rose (Carol Marsh, Fan in 1951’s Scrooge, the Hammer Dracula), a mousy waitress at a local café who may be a witness, in order to keep her quiet. Then there’s Ida (Hermione Baddeley), a blowzy, big-hearted barfly, who had a chance meeting with the victim before he was killed and conducts her own investigation to prove her suspicion that he was forced into suicide/murdered by Pinkie and his mob. As the situation degrades for Pinkie, the heat turns on and Ida and the police close in, all leading to a thrilling end and a marvelous coda where we see that at least one character may go on with some hope.

This is a superb crime picture that stands with any of the other Greene-based works from the 40’s (This Gun for Hire, Ministry of Fear, The Fallen Idol), if not quite The Third Man. Attenborough is remarkable as Pinkie. He’s appropriately chilling, occupied with his ‘cat’s cradle’ but ready to go to Hell. While the film does a nice job of developing Pinkie and showing more depth than the average lunatic, its here in his characterization where there is a slight divergence with the book. There's a reason why Pinkie recoils and is repulsed by Rose's attempts to get closer to him, but it's just not explored here. The film shows us that he's revolted by marriage and devoid of all sentiment and emotion, but not why.

The rest of the cast is excellent, too. Baddeley is terrific. Carol Marsh, in the first role of an unfortunately modest career, is absolutely pitch-perfect as Rose. A lot of the film depends on her and she carries it all the way.

Another striking aspect of the production is the cinematography, credited to Harry Waxman. There’s some fantastic location shots of Brighton (a year before The Naked City no less), as well as a pivotal moment in a funhouse that is brilliant.

There’s also a goofy disclaimer at the beginning telling us that while these mobs thrived between the wars, well, that was a different Brighton than the one we have today. Good to know.

A minor classic from Boulting (I’m All Right, Jack) that I believe is greatly underrated on this side of the pond, and as such is criminally unavailable on R1 DVD (like another gem of ’47 British cinema, Odd Man Out).

Note: The title refers to a type of candy that was popular at the seaside resorts of Brighton.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

To Have & Have Not

Probably the most undervalued classic film here at HTF. At least among the group who'd gladly watch anything by Harmony Korine or Catherine Breillat, but wouldn't get caught dead watching anything by Hitchcock or Wilder. If you'd rather watch a 7 hour film of a naked man snoring than waste it watching Citizen Kane then avoid this by all means, but for anyone who appreciates classic film, and doesn't think subtitles automatically makes a film a work of art, or that being made in Hollywood automatically makes a film a piece of trash, then if you haven't seen this, by all means do.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Theatrical Films Watched in 2008:

January
1/4- Walk Hard: Dewey Cox Story 1/2
1/6- The Orphanage 1/2
1/13- Atonement 1/2
1/19- Sweeney Todd (2007- third time) 1/2
1/20- 27 Dresses
1/25- Persepolis 1/2
February
2/2- Cloverfield
2/3- Over Her Dead Body 0
2/3- In Bruges
2/19- Be Kind Rewind 1/2
2/22- The Savages 1/2
2/23- Michael Clayton
2/23- There Will Be Blood
March
3/7- U23D (IMAX) 1/2
3/15- Horton Hears A Who (2008) 1/2
April
4/11- Leatherheads 1/2
4/13- Horton Hears A Who (2008- second time) 1/2
4/19- Forgetting Sarah Marshall 1/2
4/27- Baby Mama 1/2
May
5/2- Iron Man (2008)
5/3- Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay
5/10- Speed Racer
5/20- Forgetting Sarah Marshall (second time) 1/2
5/25- The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
5/26- Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull 1/2
5/31- Sex and the City
June
6/6- Sex and the City (second time)
6/8- The Strangers 1/2
6/13- The Happening
6/18- Mamma Mia! (sneak preview) 1/2
6/20- Get Smart (2008)
6/28- Wall*E
6/29- Wanted
6/30- Hancock (sneak preview) 1/2
July
7/13- Hellboy 2: The Golden Army 1/2
7/13- Kung Fu Panda 1/2
7/14- Journey to the Center of the Earth (3D- 2008) 1/2
7/18- Mamma Mia! (second time) 1/2
7/23- The Dark Knight (IMAX)
August
8/3- Brideshead Revisited (2008) 1/2
8/5- X-Files I Want to Believe
8/13- Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (second time) 1/2
8/14- Tropic Thunder 1/2
8/15- Star Wars: The Clone Wars 1/2
8/17- The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2
8/30- Hamlet 2
8/31- Vicky Christina Barcelona
8/31- Elegy
September
9/7- The House Bunny
9/12- Burn After Reading 1/2
9/28- Rent: Live on Broadway
October
10/19- The Duchess 1/2
10/24- Eagle Eye
10/25- Religulous
10/28- Rachel Getting Married 1/2
November
11/3- Zack & Miri Make A Porno
11/6- Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
11/11- Happy-Go-Lucy
11/15- Bolt
11/27- High School Musical 3: Senior Year
11/27- Quantum of Solace 1/2
11/28- Slumdog Millionaire
11/29- Australia
11/30- Twilight
December
12/7- Milk
12/10- Doubt
12/13- Role Models 1/2
12/14- Four Christmases

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Desire Me (1947)

The only redeeming quality about this movie is Greer Garson. The plot of this soap-opera is hard to swallow. It seems to go on forever without much happening. The only other interesting thing was the cottage and village. Can't recommend this one.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

At first I was thrown a little by this review because I thought you were talking about either EMANUELLE AND THE LAST CANNIBALS (1977) or EMANUELLE VS. VIOLENCE TO WOMEN (1977) - both of which I've seen (albeit heavily cut) - but it turns out it's about another entry in the series which I haven't caught up with yet...



It was Michael Elliott who saw these two in quick succession...but I've seen the first as well as several Emanuelles - so, I guess, I qualify, too!



Terrific review, Pete!

Many years ago I've read the book and seen the film on TV and, while I rarely go for bare-bones discs anymore, I can't tell you how many times I've had the R2 DVD of this one in my hands at the local DVD rental shop. But, now, I'm getting the itch all over again! Actually, I've been waiting for a much-deserved SE DVD of it from either side of the pond - what with its 60th anniversary just gone by - but, alas, it hasn't materialized!

So, far, I've only got 2 films from The Boulting Brothers on DVD - THUNDER ROCK (1942; which I highly recommend) and HEAVENS ABOVE! (1963); I might spring for THE MAGIC BOX (1951), PRIVATE'S PROGRESS (1956), BROTHERS IN LAW (1957) and LUCKY JIM (1958) in the future; and am eagerly awaiting the eventual R2 DVD release of the superb SEVEN DAYS TO NOON (1950; with which I'm only familiar via an Italian TV screening from ages ago).



I have no clue to whom "George Kaplan" is alluding in his comments above, or how he came to the conclusion reached in his first sentence, but I plead guilty to dismissing this one off as a second-rate CASABLANCA (1942) upon first viewing in the late 1980s; however, reading David Thomson's essay on Howard Hawks in his challenging tome "A Biographical Dictionary Of The Cinema" a couple of years later changed that original, uninformed opinion for all time. TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT (1944) is a major Hawks film and one of Bogie's finest, period.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Roaring Twenties (1939)

Apparently James Cagney was getting tired of being typecasted for mostly gangster rolls and this was the last picture of that type for ten years until he did White Heat in '49 according to Robert Osborne.

Three buddies get out of the service after WW1 and one becomes a lawyer while the other two become bootleggers. This movie mostly takes place in the '20's where prohibition was in full-force.

This is quite an involving little movie with a great story. James Cagney who plays Eddie Bartlett is of course perfect for the role. No-one can play this type of role like Cagney can. In this movie though, he has a heart as indicated by his intercession on behalf of his lawyer friend. There are two ladies in Eddie's life, Jean Sherman who is played by Priscilla Lane. Eddie is devastated when she choses someone else. The other is Gladys George who plays Panama the owner of a speakeasy who gets Eddie started as a bootlegger. Both these actress were great in their respective parts.
Humphrey Bogart as one of the buddies was adequate in his role but nowhere near a great as Cagney who owned this movie. This was a good movie and a worthwhile watch.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I think the chip on your shoulder got bigger, George.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I only saw it one time, but what still stays with me is Lauren Bacall's sex appeal (yummy). It was a good film. I wouldn't call it great.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Mario,

It wasn't you.

Adam,

Just blowing off some steam left over from that 'other' thread.

We're Rich Again

Early screwball comedy is so-so. The idea is good, but something falls flat, and there aren't that many laughs.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Not as great as either THE BIG SLEEP (1946) or RED RIVER (1948) perhaps, but great nonetheless; still, as a vehicle for Lauren Bacall, it's ahead of THE BIG SLEEP for sure.



That's good to know, George.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)

The first in a long line of Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films. Undoubtedly the best of the screen Tarzans, he had the physique and athletic ability to pull the role off. Though not much of an actor, this role was taylor made for him.

Based on the character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, James Parker and his daughter Jane and Harry Holt are on a expedition in Africa to search for the fabled elephant burial grounds. Along the way she is kidnapped by Tarzan who she fears at first but then develops an affinity with.

I was a big fan of the books growing up. None of the Weissmuller movies have any resemblance to the books other than the names Tarzan and Jane. I don't think any of the Weissmuller Tarzan movies explained how he happened to be in the jungle. We know of course how that happened in the books but that whole scenerio would not be appropriate for this Tarzan so you have to judge this movie for what it is. This is a very entertaining adventure story dispite the limitations of the era that it was made. It's quite obvious that this was not shot in Africa but on some soundstage and some wooded area in the US. There are some glaring errors. For instance, I don't think there would be a race of dwarves in Africa. If they had said pygmies, that would have made better sense.

The acting of the leads was uniformly good. The stars of course are Weissmuller and O'Sullivan and they pull off the romance quite well.
Maureen O'Sullivan was already an established actress but this is the first movie for Johnny Weissmuller and as stated earlier he was more than adequate for the part. The rest of the cast was adequate in their roles.

Though not my favourite Tarzan movie, that being the next one in this series, this movie is still a worthy entry in this remarkable series of movies.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Well, I know it wasn't me, because I have MANY Hitchcock titles and even some Wilder in my collection. So who was it, georgie porgie?

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Movies Watched In the Theater = 8



January
I am Legend
Juno
Cloverfield

February
Fool's Gold

March
10,000 B.C.

April
21
88 Minutes
Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Legend
= Incredible
= Definitely Worth It
= Should have watched Food Network instead
= I can't believe I paid for that!
= Why? Why? Why?
Note = All Viewed in the Theater

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

History of Violence (2005)

This movie explores the philosophical question, can an cold-blooded killer change and turn himself into someone he wasn't born to be. David Cronenberg has directed a taut, extremely violent but thoughtful movie.
After watching the excellent Eastern Promises, I decided to revisit this movie again.

Tom Stall is a gentle family man, the owner of a small diner in a small Mid-western town in Indiana. He's a loving husband and father of two children, a teenage son and a young daughter. He's an upstanding citizen, a church going man who is well regarded by the community. One night two gangsters enter his place of business and threaten his customers and employees. Tom takes matters into his own hands and kills these men thus becoming the town hero with his picture all over the news. Philly gangster
Carl Fogarty comes to the diner and calls Tom by another name, Joey Cusack. Tom denies it but when Fogarty threatens his son events escalate.

David Cronenberg has a reputation of making very violent and somewhat bizarre movies. This movie plus Eastern Promises are probably more mainstream but still extremely violent. Alot of people dislike David Cronenberg but I'm a great admirer of his especially after I saw this movie. Plus he's a fellow Canadian.
I don't know what prompted Cronenberg to choose Viggo Mortensen for the lead role. Whether he saw something special in him from Hidalgo or The Lord of the Rings movies, I don't know. Before LOTR, if someone had mentioned him to me I wouldn't have known who he was. I would have though, reconized his face in some of his past works. LOTR changed all that. Even though I liked his character Aragorn in the LOTR's movies, I didn't realize how good of an actor he was till I saw History of Violence. What a superb acting job. He was completely believable as both the mild-mannered family man and as the ruthless killer that he once was. The scene that cemented his abilities for me was when his son shoots Fogarty and Tom aka Joey graps the rifle from his son, the look of sheer hatred and evil that came over his face and then changed to the old Tom that we knew was chilling and remarkable acting. The supporting cast was uniformly excellent. Maria Bello as Tom wife was excellent. She was able to convey to the audience, the mixed feelings that she had regarding her husband. The violent scene on the stairs conveyed that. The rest of the supporting cast was also excellent which included Ed Harris, William Hurt in almost a cameo-like role and especially Ashton Holmes who played Tom's son.

I can't begin to explain how much I love this movie. It's more than just a violent thriller. My husband can watch extreme horror films, yet thought this one was excessively violent. Go figure! Can a cold-blooded killer change? I believe this movie answered that question.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

A Tale of Two Cities

This was the 1935 version, by far the best filming of this novel. A large part of that is due to Ronald Colman (looking kind of odd without his moustache), but it also had great direction and editing. It was interesting to note that Val Lewton and Jacques Tourneur directed some of the revolution scenes.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

From your mouth to the DVD God's ears, Mario. But at this point if anything happens, it'll be in your neck of the woods. British cinema is way undervalued over here; out of the BFI Top 100 alone, there's probably 20 films not on DVD in R1. And likely another 20 either available only in a box set or in some budget release. On top of that you have major films from the Boultings, Carol Reed, even Powell & Pressburger, as well as the Kordas, Sidney Gilliat, Anthony Asquith, Thorold Dickinson, Victor Saville, the work from the GPO film unit, etc. that who knows if they will every see the light of day.

1/5/08

London Belongs to Me (1948) Dir: Sidney Gilliat

Meet the quirky residents of the boarding house at 10 Dulcimer Street, London. See how eccentric they are? I said SEE HOW ECCENTRIC THEY ARE??? If you don’t then it’s your own fault, as this film devotes nearly the whole meandering first hour to a series of vignettes battering you over the head with their wackiness. There’s the landlady of the house, amateur spiritualist Mrs. Vizzard. And Connie Coke, the old lady upstairs, who, when she isn’t sponging off the other boarders, works in the coat room at the club down the block (ah, so that’s why she goes “out with the cats and comes in with the milk”). Percy Boon (Richard Attenborough), the young mechanic, lives upstairs with his mum. Percy’s sweet on Doris (she’s a bit of a snob, thinks she’s too good for Perc), who lives with her family, the Jossers, downstairs. Finally, there’s the new guy, the charlatan-huckster Henry Squales (Alastair Sim), or as he’s referred to by proper company, a “common adventurer” (gasp!). I found this all presented with just a whiff of "aw, the little people"-type condescension rather than genuine affection, but I could've imagined it. My mind was drifting.

Finally, at about the 50 minute mark, there’s an accidental death that Percy is implicated in (for a ‘good boy’ I believe we’re supposed to sympathize with, he makes some awfully bad decisions), which gives the film some much needed narrative drive. Unfortunately, it also feels like another film. There’s a trial and the residents of 10 Dulcimer all get behind Percy and work in his defense. The whole thing’s kind of a British spin on a Frank Capra picture; think You Can’t Take It With You and Meet John Doe in a blender. Or something. Quirky characters? Check. Populist message? Check (there’s a big petition drive at the end, albeit with a cheeky twist). Possible injustice to overcome? Check. Problem is the humor is non-existent and the characters aren’t anywhere near as charming as they’re supposed to be. I give it credit for a slightly unconventional resolution to the main story.

Sim, as the huckster who seeks to worm his way into Mrs. Vizzard’s graces by presenting himself as a medium, is the best part of the film (Guinness is supposed to have based his performance in The Ladykillers on Sim’s role here). He sports a ludicrous hair piece that’s funny on its own. His moments when he’s ‘channeling’ are also at least mildly amusing. That’s all, though. The acting is fine, but if the script is supposed to be funny, it’s so dry that I missed nearly all of it. And after the desultory first half, there’s another hour to go, so on top of everything else, the film drags. There is maybe a fleeting moment or two of drama during the trial, but nothing sustained.

Skip this one. It's probably closer to a merely average film, but it just did not engage me at all.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

City For Conquest (1940)

Thanks to Tim Tucker for the list of Cagney and film noir movies. I probably would never have watched this gem of a movie if it wasn't for this challenge.

Danny Kenny played by Cagney is a truck driver who turns into a prize fighter in order to pay his little brother's tuition at a music school. Ann Sheridan is Peg, Danny's childhood girlfriend who has career ideas of her own. Along the way, Danny loses his eyesight due to a blinding powder that was placed on his opponent's gloves. He remains undaunted by his misforture and continues to encourage his brother to fulfill his dream.

This is a very sentimental movie and I couldn't help but shed lots of tears but that's okay. The sentimentality didn't bother me in the least. Here James Cagney shows a softer, gentle side to his character. He is excellent as Danny the truck driver turned boxer with a heart of gold. Ann Sheridan also was outstanding as the girlfriend. Danny stood by her and loved her despite having his heart broken a few times. Arthur Kennedy was also outstanding as the younger brother.

This is a great tear-jerker if you're in the mood and I certainly was.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Pat,
Did you notice Elia Kazan playing the role of Googi in the film before he became a full-time director?






Crawdaddy

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Thin Man (1934)

Smart and funny who-dun-it with memorable characters, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Asta, the cowardly canine comic relief, almost accomplished the task of overshadowing the story itself. We enjoyed it enough to catch the rest of the movies in the future.

As a side note... the names Nick and Nora were a revelation to my wife; on our honeymoon, the fancy restaurant on our cruise ship (the Carnival Miracle) is named after the duo.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Zombie Toxin (1998)

Viewed 1/1/2008 (first viewing)

Two prancing Nazis sell a homemade wine that turns people into flesh-eating zombies. Somehow torture, equine dismemberments, copious vomiting, graphic defecating, flying bottles and druggie nannies figure into the plot. Bizarro entry in the zombie canon wants to be another Bad Taste but comes up short. Still, it's so damn goofy and crudely audacious that you can't help but watch.

out of


Raiders of the Damned (2005)

Viewed 1/1/2008 (first viewing)

A squad of soldiers is sent into a post-apocalyptic enclave of intelligent zombies to rescue a captured scientist and blah, blah, blah. Tired tale is by turns murky and just plain stupid. Almost worth seeing for Richard Greico's hammy performance that makes him look like the bastard offspring of Johnny Depp and Brad Dourif.

out of


A Guy's Guide to Zombies (2007)

Viewed 1/1/2008 (first viewing)

Humorous short done in the style of a 1950s public awareness film. What's worse than a zombie? A stinkin' commie!

out of


Rats: A Sin City Yarn (2004)

Viewed 1/1/2008 (first viewing)

A war criminal's past catches up with him in this well done, fan-made short based on a Frank Miller story.

out of


Eastern Promises (2007)

Viewed 1/1/2008 (first viewing)

David Cronenberg's latest has a dour Russian chauffeur falling for the midwife who has damning evidence against the crime family he works for. Violent, moody thriller is a solid follow-up to A History of Violence.

out of


Yo-Yo Girl Cop (2006)

Viewed 1/1/2008 (first viewing)

A teenaged girl is forced by the cops to ferret out student terrorists at a college. Her weapon: a yo-yo! Fun J-thriller.

out of


Fellini Satyricon (1969)

Viewed 1/2/2008 (first viewing)

Federico Fellini's odyssey through ancient Rome. Indulgent of course, but captivating.

out of


Immortal Beloved (1994)

Viewed 1/3/2008

Revisit.

out of


Lady Chatterley (2006)

Viewed 1/4/2007 (first viewing)

French version of the sexy classic. Long and talky, but engrossing.

out of


Meat for Satan's Icebox (2004)

Viewed 1/5/2008 (first viewing)

Grim, overlong Troma trashfest about a town populated by sadistic cannibals. Includes incest, patricide, necrophilia and Lloyd Kaufman drinking urine. Cheers!

out of


Wiseguys Vs. Zombies (2003)

Viewed 1/5/2008 (first viewing)

Cheapie has two hitmen transporting a cargo of illicit drugs and bodies from New York to Miami. After being stranded in a redneck South Carolina town they discover that the drugs have turned their victims into flesh-hungry and damn near unstoppable zombies! More entertaining than it ought to be, thanks to good chemistry between the leads - when they're not onscreen, things screech to a halt. At any rate, it'd be hard to completely disavow a movie that sports the line "I hope that goat pussy was worth it!"

out of


Trepanator (1991)

Viewed 1/5/2008 (first viewing)

Rare French riff on Re-Animator has mad scientist Herbert East wading through gore as he perfects his reanimation serum. Chintzy production isn't anywhere near the trash classic that Re-Animator is, but it has its moments. For some odd reason, most of the action is set in New York where everyone speaks French! Eurohorror auteur Jean Rollin and Maniac Cop director William Lustig have small roles.

out of


The Living Dead in Tokyo Bay (1992)

Viewed 1/5/2008 (first viewing)

A meteorite splashes down in Tokyo Bay and unleashes a cloud of toxic gas, turning the citizenry into flesh-eating ghouls. But what the government is up to is even worse! Can an ass-kicking, leather-clad hottie put a stop to it all? Choppy blend of action and horror doesn't have quite the budget it needs, but still manages to entertain. Also known as Battle Girl.

out of


Zombie Love (2006)

Viewed 1/5/2008 (first viewing)

A centuries-old zombie falls in love with a mortal girl. But is that love powerful enough to overcome his craving for flesh? And will his undead pals allow this "unholy" union? Winning musical short throws in a Bollywood-style song and dance number for good measure!

"We saved you a kidney!"

out of


Superfly (1972)

Viewed 1/5/2008 (first viewing)

Blaxploitation classic has a drug dealer named Priest desperately trying to get out of the buisness. But a hesitant partner and dirty cops stand in his way! Great score by Curtis Mayfield.

out of


The White Sheik (1951)

Viewed 1/6/2008 (first viewing)

Fellini's first solo directorial effort is a charming tale of newlyweds honeymooning in Rome. But what happens when the wife sneaks away to see her favorite movie star, the "White Sheik?"

out of

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

No, I didn't till I reviewed the credits. That prompted me to refresh my mind on the films that he did as a director. Quite an impressive list if a short one. His career seemed to end in the mid-70's which is a shame. Directors of his era seemed to be alot more prolific.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

On Dangerous Ground

This is from Ray's earlier career (when he made mostly noirs) as opposed to his later career (when he made mostly soap operas), which makes it one of his better films, though not great. The Herrmann score gives it almost a Hitchcock feel at times, but the story isn't much. Interesting that the star, Ida Lupino, doesn't even make an appearance til the film is halfway over.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Kazan had a lot of enemies due to his testimony in the Un-American hearings which probably adversely affected his directing career to a certain degree. Also, he was considered one of the greatest stage directors which decreased his availability to direct films in Hollywood. This is a short list of some of those original Broadway plays he directed and all of them were later made into films. Some of those films he directed and some he didn't.

Without a doubt, I think he was one of the greatest directors, but issues with the Red Scare has overshadowed his wonderful career.

• Death of a Salesman
• A Streetcar Named Desire
• Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
• All My Sons
• Sweet Bird of Youth

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I still remember when he got his Oscar several years back and all this controversy started back up. I remember them getting DeNiro and Scorsese out there to try and "protect" them but several of the actors just sat on their hands instead of cheering for him. I remember feeling sick at my stomach since they should have been cheering for what he did for movies instead of bringing political issues into the mix. I believe it was Nick Nolte who you could see cussing him and God knows this guy has had his own issues since then.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/5: Blade Runner: Theatrical Cut (1982) 1/2 out of
1/6: Blade Runner: Internation Theatrical Cut (1982) 1/2 out of
1/6: Blade Runner: Director's Cut (1992) out of
1/6: Blade Runner: Workprint (1990) out of

Blade Runner is a decent noir picture with lots of atmosphere and imagination, but a lot of the praise and hype it gets is undeserved from my perspective. The film's chief problem is its tendency to move very deliberately and drench a scene in atmosphere instead of story. The whole section just before the hour mark that ends in Zhora's death is too slow for my taste. Roy Batty is fun to watch, but I wouldn't have picked his dialogue as particularly quotable like some on this forum.

The theatrical cuts are quite similar, but I prefer the less violent American release. I'm a big fan of the Deckard voiceovers and the happy ending, so the later versions lose half a star for the omission. I know that Ridley thinks Deckard is a replicant, but I do not. There are certainly some similarities between the detective and his prey, but I don't think there are enough to make a literal connection. Even if he is, how does that make it a better story?

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925)

I finally sat down to watch the 1925 silent version of this story, and from the very beginning I went in completely biased to the 1959 remake by William Wyler, as that is what I consider to be possibly the greatest film ever made. I have to give credit where it's due; the 1925 movie as directed by Fred Niblo is remarkable for its time. What stood out most for me was the cinematography, which really was ahead of many silent films I've seen. I didn't care for Ramon Navarro as a rather boyish Ben-Hur, though -- certainly not as compared to the iconic and magnificent Charlton Heston -- and comparisons are going to be inevitable in a case such as this. There were some amazing camera shots in this version, and most of the big sequences compare favorably to the 1959 film. The only scene which I might say comes close to actually topping the redo is the battle at sea. The chariot race is outstanding, but I'd have to give the nod of superiority to Wyler's version. I also thought the scenes with Judah running into Jesus Christ were much more prolific in the sound remake; not one of them in the silent version comes even close to capturing that emotion for me. In the final analysis, I'd say that I probably only truly enjoyed the Niblo film about three stars' worth personally ... however, I am granting it a little more because it deserves that, if not compared to the 1959 classic and when evaluated for the time in which it was filmed.