Had a bout of insomnia tonight, so used it to catch up with this thread.
The Boxer's Omen (Chih-Hung Kuei, 1983) - This is probably the most batshit insane kung-fu movie I've seen. A man becomes a Buddhist monk to avenge his brother's death and does battle with an evil wizard. This horror/kung-fu hybrid is filled to the brim with style, its colorful palette and cheesy special effects leap off the screen, its almost like a Chinese Giallo film, albeit without the gratuitous sex.
Evolution (Ivan Reitman, 2001) - Decided to give Reitman's attempt at capturing that Ghostbusters magic another shot. Its entertaining enough but doesn't hit on the right notes. Stiffler is absolutely terrible in this , as is Orlando Jones. It still blows my mind how anybody ever thought that dude could be a star.
Popeye (Robert Altman, 1980) - This was the movie I decided to revisit when Robin Willams offed himself. Still pretty fucking amazing in a lot of aspects. The world Altman creates is truly surreal and Williams gives one of his best performances. Anyone who thinks of his style is one-note and over the top needs to check this out, as its an incredibly nuanced and understated performance, blending into the ensemble whenever the plot requires.
Godzilla Vs. Biollante (Kazuki Ohmori, 1989) - Zilla takes on a giant mutated rosebush. Seriously. Also seriously fun.
Bullet to the Head (Walter Hill, 2012) - Wanted to love this so bad, but this Asian faggot from Fast & Furious ruins every fucking scene. Terrible actor with no charisma. When Stallone is acting circles around you, its time for you to go Paul Walker yourself. Pissed me off even more when this faggot somehow bags an incredibly sexy tatted up Sarah Shahi. Still worth watching though because the fucking axe fight between Sly and Jason Momoa makes the entire trip worth it.
My Name is Nobody (Tonino Valerii, 1973) - A young gunfighter tries to get his hero to come out of retirement for one last gunfight. Just a really fun spaghetti western in every way, with all the style the genre is known for.
The Aviator (Martin Scorsese, 2004) - Recently just finished the excellent book Conversations With Scorsese which got me fiending to revisit his entire catalog. The chapter on The Aviator was enlightening as far as what he was going for and his filming methods and helped me appreciate this on a much deeper level.
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (Martin Ritt, 1965) - This fucking floored me. A complete deconstruction of the spy genre of the times, stripping away all of the seductive allure of being a spy and showing the warts of just how ugly and heartless it really is. It actually reminds me a lot of Classe Tous Risques, the French crime film which similarly broke down the crime/heist films of the era. It also helps that Ritt's adaptation of LeCarre's story is airtight, pulling off some major plot twists that you won't see coming, while somehow keeping the film grounded firmly in reality. Right after I finished it the words "best spy movie ever" kept popping into my head, and I'm still hard-pressed to think of another film that can top it.
Leonard Part 6 (Paul Weiland, 1986) - This one has been on my to-watch list for a long time because of its reputation as one of the best worst movies. Glad to say it didn't disappoint whatsoever. Apparently Cosby was so ashamed of it that he personally bought the television rights to the film just so that it couldn't be seen. Cosby plays an ex-spy brought out of retirement to take out a villain that is turning small animals into killing machine. Highlights include a group of frogs murdering a guy by hopping underneath his car and knocking it over a bridge and Cosby riding a fucking ostrich.
Gladiator (Rowdy Herrington, 1992) - Faggot-ass James from Twin Peaks and faggot-ass Omar Gooding Jr before they were faggots. Always enjoyed the shit out of this movie.
The Master (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2012) - Late pass. Another film I really wanted to love but just couldn't do it. Its an exceptionally well-directed film with some really amazing acting performances but the trip is way more fun than the destination. As a film nerd I have a pretty high tolerance for movies without a narrative. Problem is that this subject matter and these characters were ripe for the picking, and Anderson ultimately took us all on a destination to nowhere. Which, if I'm being honest, is a bit of an ongoing problem with almost all of his films, it just doesn't seem like he has anything to say.
Draft Day (Ivan Reitman, 2014) - Really enjoyed this despite all its flaws. Its an attempt to cash in on the success of Moneyball, except the films depiction of how an NFL front office operates is hilariously retarded. Costner makes franchise-changing decisions without even consulting his staff and trades like Gloss in our fantasy baseball league. Even so, its still a really enjoyable watch, it hits all the right beats and Costner is in top form. I can see this turning into one of those movies you get sucked into every time it plays on cable.
Muppets Most Wanted (James Bobin, 2014) - Got lambasted by IDAL for stating that this sequel is better than the new reboot but I'm sticking to my guns. Very little screentime for the new faggoty Walter character that starred in the first Segal/Adams movie, instead letting the original characters shine like they deserve. All the Russian prison scenes with Tina Fey, Ray Liotta and Danny Trejo are fantastic.
Sabotage (David Ayer, 2014) - Schwarzenegger and his Expendables-lite DEA task force rob a drug cartel and things immediately spin out of control when members of his team start dropping like flies. Decent film but should have been much better with such a great cast. Apparently the studio interfered with the cut to make it shorter and action-oriented and you can tell as there certainly seems to be sections of the plot missing.
The Dorm That Dripped Blood (Stephen Carpenter & Jeffrey Obrow, 1982) - I've owned the Synapse blu-ray for years, finally got around to watching it and wasn't too impressed. Its a pretty run-of-the-mill slasher, competent enough for a watch but not all that memorable. I can't even remember a single kill from it. Will probably sell my copy now, doubt I'll ever get the urge to watch it again, as there are a multitude of better slashers from the 80's.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Philip Kaufman, 1972) - Always try to work more horror movies into the rotation around this time of year so I decided to rewatch one of my favorites. One of the few remakes of a classic film that can hold its own against the original.
Scream 3 (Wes Craven, 2000) - Rewatched the first three Scream films throughout the course of this year. This is probably the weakest entry in the series but still a good time.
Transformers: Age of Extinction (Michael Bay, 2014) - I have nothing intelligent to say about this (or any of the other Transformers movies). They are stupid fun and a great way to turn your brain off for a few hours. Dino-bots didn't disappoint.
The Fog (John Carpenter, 1980) - Took the new Shout Factory blu-ray for a spin. So good.
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (Chuck Russell, 1987) - A young nubile Patricia Arquette in her acting debut. One of the best of the entire Freddy franchise.
X-Men: Days of Future Past (Bryan Singer, 2014) - Exceptional. So glad Singer is done raping little boys and is back behind the wheel of this franchise. The twist ending was pretty great, but saddening at the same time because
The Blob (Chuck Russell, 1988) - New twilight time blu-ray, which looks fantastic. Similarly to the Body Snatchers remake, this an exceptionally competent remake. Except in this case I'd actually argue that it is indeed an improvement on the original overall. Johnny Drama is no Steve McQueen and his mullet is hilariously awful, but the plot makes much more sense now and the movie has some pretty great/memorable special effects.
Scanners (David Cronenberg, 1981) - New Criterion blu-ray. Amazing. Hadn't watched in a long time but liked it this time more than ever. Might have to rethink where I'd put it among his best films, but its definitely up there.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (Dean DeBlois, 2014) - The first one is one of my favorite animated movies in recent memory and had low expectations for what I thought would be just another quick & cheap cash-in. Glad to say I was wrong and that this easily stacks up to the first one and it looks like its setup to be an exceptional trilogy when #3 comes out. It doesn't quite make sense saying this but these movies remind me a lot of the original Star Wars trilogy for some reason (that could just be due to the plethora of actual Star Wars references in this one though).
The Invisible Man Returns (Joe May, 1940) - First time watching any of the sequels. Don't have much to say about it other than I enjoyed it quite a bit, Christopher Lee was an inspired choice to replace Claude Rains as the Invisible Man, you need someone with great character in their voice to star in a movie where no one can see you, and Lee's brooding tone and sinister laugh are perfect for the role.
Friday the 13th Part III (Steve Miner, 1982) - I decided to actually watch this in 3D with the shitty old-school red and blue lensed glasses. The 3D effects themselves are rather gimmicky (characters are constantly pointing things at the camera in an awkward manner). But the colored tint of the glasses distorted the image picture so significantly that in a way they added to the experience in an unexpected manner as it felt like I was watching it through a time capsule on some shitty drive-in theater screen.
Neighbors (Nicholas Stoller, 2014) - Pretty hilarious overall.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch (Tommy Lee Wallace, 1982) - So I'm just now realizing this, but somehow I ended up watching the 3rd film of each of the 4 most popular 80's-90's slasher franchises this month (Halloween, Scream, Friday the 13th & Nightmare on Elm St). Completely unintentional. Always enjoyed this one quite a bit even though Michael Myers isn't in it at all.
The Haunting (Robert Wise, 1963) - One of the best classic ghost films. Its been a long time since I've watched this, don't think I ever picked up that Claire Blooms character was gay before.
John Wick (Chad Stahelski & David Leitch, 2014) - Repost from the Wick thread: Saw John Wick last night in IMAX, some of the most fun I've had in a theater all year.
Just really solid action film in every aspect, some fantastic violence set against some well choreographed fight scenes (knife kill in his house, and him running over some guy and then shooting him as he rolls over his roof were personal highlights).
Surprisingly funny at times too. Entire audience was really into it.
Also, Keanu actually has a couple moments in here where he actually acts his ass off too, which surprised me.
Underworld U.S.A. (Samuel Fuller, 1961) - Always thrilled when I have extremely high expectations for a movie and then it actually exceeds them. A young juvenile witnesses a group of men beat his dad to death in an alley. Then as an adult he connives his way into their crime syndicate and takes them out from the inside. Fuller is in peak form here, you could teach a filmmaking class just based off this movie alone. Just the way he edits, its so economical and bullshit-free and I love the way he shot it, some really impressive camerawork here but its never flashy enough that you become aware of it. The image of the last scene in the pool has stuck with me something awful.
Drug War (Johnnie To, 2012) - Damn good. Another gem by To. The deaf twins were probably my favorite part.
A Night To Remember (Roy Ward Baker, 1958) - aka the other Titanic film. I put this in the other night thinking it would be something good to fall asleep to but ended up getting sucked in and getting fuckall for sleep. I was genuinely taken aback at just how captivating this was, and also surprised to see just how much of this film James Cameron straight up jacked for his take on the story. In a lot of ways its a better movie; there's no corny love story here, or even a main character. Just a true ensemble piece in every sense of the word. Baker realized that firmly grounding his film in realism would be to his advantage, there's no need to romanticize or embellish the events when the true story is extraordinary enough on its own.
The Expendables 3 (Patrick Hughes, 2014) - A good time despite how much it suffers from its ill-advised PG-13 rating. It really drags in the middle, the cliche as fuck sequence where he meets his new team members by traveling to different parts of the country and witnessing each Expendable while they are conveniently doing something extravagent with Kelsey Grammar making humorous quips was particularly painfull. But its bookened by a fantastic opening assault on a train sequence and an intense battle in a war-torn high-rise which makes up for its faults.
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