|
|
Post by silverbullet63 on Feb 24, 2020 23:31:53 GMT -5
The Choice (2016)
Chasing Liberty (2004)
Clash of the Dead (2015)
|
|
|
|
Post by ArcLight on Feb 25, 2020 1:27:59 GMT -5
Yep, I liked that one, too. And it's another one close to home. |
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 25, 2020 18:32:14 GMT -5
The City of the Dead (1960) aka Horror Hotel in the US Old fashioned low budget B+W horror about Satan worshipping witches who need sacrifices to keep their eternal life. Sir Christopher Lee CBE CStJ  appears from time to time in the film. It is an important role just not extensive. Predictable plot development, acting and dialog typical of cheap films of the era, zero gore. Yet mildly entertaining as a relic of that era with some spookiness here and there. The isolated town where the action takes place and the road leading to it seem always to be drenched in fog. And apparently it is always nighttime. That and the old cemetery are the totality of the attempts at atmosphere. The means of destroying the witches at the end is cheap, even silly, and totally unforeshadowed until nearly the climax. It is similar to the ending of Brides of Dracula made early that same year and the language used to describe it clearly shows it was plagiarized from 'Brides'. Available on Prime but in a not very good transfer, maybe from VHS or even broadcast TV? |
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 25, 2020 21:36:38 GMT -5
The Monster of Phantom Lake (2006) An OTT sendup of bad cheap 1950s monster movies, hitting as many tropes, memes and stereotypes as could fit into one movie. Cheap B+W camera work with a few deliberately bad shots like heads out of frame. (A clever reference to watching old 4:3 movies on 16:9 screens, I believe.) Quite funny if you are in the mood. I was. The plot? Teens (1950s stereotypes of course) go camping and are threatened by a creature in the woods created by atomic waste dumped in the lake. Gee, how original. The plot is actually more complicated and much sillier. 'Rock and Roll' singing scientist and nicely zaftig assistant, dumb cops and of course Sex = Death and 'it aint over' ending. The movie revels in cheapness. Examples: The badge you see dropped in the mud is a plastic one from a dollar store. The 8 legged mutant frog is a toy frog with extra legs stuck on with what looks like Elmer's White Glue. And of course the stupidest looking monster since, well, the 1950s. |
|
|
|
Post by silverbullet63 on Feb 26, 2020 16:28:08 GMT -5
The City of the Dead (1960) aka Horror Hotel in the US Old fashioned low budget B+W horror about Satan worshipping witches who need sacrifices to keep their eternal life. Sir Christopher Lee CBE CStJ appears from time to time in the film. It is an important role just not extensive. Predictable plot development, acting and dialog typical of cheap films of the era, zero gore. Yet mildly entertaining as a relic of that era with some spookiness here and there. The isolated town where the action takes place and the road leading to it seem always to be drenched in fog. And apparently it is always nighttime. That and the old cemetery are the totality of the attempts at atmosphere. The means of destroying the witches at the end is cheap, even silly, and totally unforeshadowed until nearly the climax. It is similar to the ending of Brides of Dracula made early that same year and the language used to describe it clearly shows it was plagiarized from 'Brides'. Available on Prime but in a not very good transfer, maybe from VHS or even broadcast TV? I have a soft spot for this movie, remember watching on local tv here in NYC as a kid.
|
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 26, 2020 19:10:26 GMT -5
The City of the Dead (1960) aka Horror Hotel in the US I have a soft spot for this movie, remember watching on local tv here in NYC as a kid.
I grew up in NYC. WOR-TV (channel 9) and WPIX-TV (channel 11) often had bad horror movies late at night. There was also Chiller Theater on Saturday nights on WPIX. I remember they kept moving the time around. Then in the fall of 1975, Saturday Night Live started up and I started watching that. Not too long after, Chiller Theater moved its time slot earlier, possibly because SNL was stealing their audience. I rarely watched it because Saturday night was having 'the gang' over to listen to loud rock music until 11 PM, when Second City came on, a good lead-in to SNL. Chiller finally just disappeared. Well before that, I was a fan of Shock Theater from when it started in October of 1957 with a lineup of old Universal horror films. It was on Thursday and Friday at 11:15 PM and Saturday at 10:30 PM. My allotted viewing time was Friday night, but I had to keep the sound down. Originally, the show started with the opening of Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain and an anonymous voiceover introducing the movie. Later when the movies were no longer top notch, deep voiced Zacherle took over with his wonderfully humorous insanity, like his wife Isabel in the box and Yanush his off-screen assistant, and his wacky skits and songs. The intro changed to a line from Olivier’s Hamlet (Claudius’ anguished cry of “Give me some light!”) followed by the start of a piece called Haunted House, the opening track of an album called Shock! which I had. Years later I would listen to Zacherle late at night on WNEW-FM and later WPLJ-FM, both album rock stations. [/memory dump]
|
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 28, 2020 18:13:44 GMT -5
Bigfoot: The Movie (2017) Broad comedy about West Pennsylvania hicks taking on Bigfoot. (Everyone in East Pennsylvania is from New York City) Drinking, guns, bar fights, almost sex scenes, trouble with the sheriff, trouble with the mayor who BTW has Amish henchman, bad guys in black commando clothing ... and a Sasquatch. The chief characters are like the denizens of that region turned up to 9. Not 10 and certainly not 11. They are not that far off reality. In fact I think I know some of those guys.  The humor is pretty good for those who are familiar with the region. And the creature is quite good. Fair amount of good gore as well in the climax. No point in talking about acting and dialog - it is supposed to be dumb. Not everyone's bottle of beer but I liked it. |
|
|
|
Post by ArcLight on Feb 28, 2020 22:33:43 GMT -5
Knives Out (2019)
From IMDb:
"When renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead at his estate just after his 85th birthday, the inquisitive and debonair Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is mysteriously enlisted to investigate. From Harlan's dysfunctional family to his devoted staff, Blanc sifts through a web of red herrings and self-serving lies to uncover the truth behind Harlan's untimely death.
Written by Lionsgate"
I didn't get a chance to see it in theaters but I had enough points for a free RedBox rental, so why not?
Nice and twisty, and even if I had a hunch where some of the twists were going, the journey was fun.
Hard to believe it was written and directed by the same guy that fumbled the middle chapter of the latest Star Wars trilogy.
|
|
|
|
Post by silverbullet63 on Feb 28, 2020 23:59:59 GMT -5
I have a soft spot for this movie, remember watching on local tv here in NYC as a kid.
I grew up in NYC. WOR-TV (channel 9) and WPIX-TV (channel 11) often had bad horror movies late at night. There was also Chiller Theater on Saturday nights on WPIX. I remember they kept moving the time around. Then in the fall of 1975, Saturday Night Live started up and I started watching that. Not too long after, Chiller Theater moved its time slot earlier, possibly because SNL was stealing their audience. I rarely watched it because Saturday night was having 'the gang' over to listen to loud rock music until 11 PM, when Second City came on, a good lead-in to SNL. Chiller finally just disappeared. Well before that, I was a fan of Shock Theater from when it started in October of 1957 with a lineup of old Universal horror films. It was on Thursday and Friday at 11:15 PM and Saturday at 10:30 PM. My allotted viewing time was Friday night, but I had to keep the sound down. Originally, the show started with the opening of Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain and an anonymous voiceover introducing the movie. Later when the movies were no longer top notch, deep voiced Zacherle took over with his wonderfully humorous insanity, like his wife Isabel in the box and Yanush his off-screen assistant, and his wacky skits and songs. The intro changed to a line from Olivier’s Hamlet (Claudius’ anguished cry of “Give me some light!”) followed by the start of a piece called Haunted House, the opening track of an album called Shock! which I had. Years later I would listen to Zacherle late at night on WNEW-FM and later WPLJ-FM, both album rock stations. [/memory dump]
Ah yes, Memories. I watched Chiller and Channel 9 had Fright Night back then. Oh also Channel 5 had Creature Feature. |
|
|
|
Post by silverbullet63 on Feb 29, 2020 0:12:26 GMT -5
Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Finally watched this one, gorgeous costumes and set design.
Branaugh's portrayal of Hercule Poirot was a bit too self
Indulgent. Hope he reigns it in for Death on the Nile.
Wanted to love it, but only liked this adaptation.
|
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 29, 2020 9:30:31 GMT -5
It is February 29 (2/29) again and I watched The Seventh Sign (1988). Again. Critics badmouthed this movie. I love it. Prochnow, Moore and Friedman do it up very nicely. Plot, mood, acting, dialog - everything works IMO. I especially love the part where the teenage Orthodox Jewish boy and the very pregnant shiksa check into a motel. Why? To read the Bible The critics hath not an ear. If anyone gets that, it is an automatic like. |
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 29, 2020 9:56:00 GMT -5
Murder on the Orient Express (2017) Finally watched this one, gorgeous costumes and set design. Branaugh's portrayal of Hercule Poirot was a bit too self Indulgent. Hope he reigns it in for Death on the Nile. Wanted to love it, but only liked this adaptation. IMO the 1974 version was just about perfect. |
|
|
|
Post by ArcLight on Feb 29, 2020 17:18:35 GMT -5
47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019)
From IMDb:
"47 Meters Down: Uncaged follows the diving adventure of four teenage girls (Sophie Nélisse, Corinne Foxx, Brianne Tju and Sistine Stallone) exploring a submerged Mayan City. Once inside, their rush of excitement turns into a jolt of terror as they discover the sunken ruins are a hunting ground for deadly Great White Sharks. With their air supply steadily dwindling, the friends must navigate the underwater labyrinth of claustrophobic caves and eerie tunnels in search of a way out of their watery hell.
Written by Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures"
I didn't really think much of the first 47 Meters Down (2017) but it's hard to pass up a shark movie on a cold, lazy day when I didn't have anything else I could afford to do. Beyond the '47 Meters Down' brand and the fact that there are sharks, there's no real connection to the first one.
This one, I think I actually liked better. Maybe because the under city/cave complex was a nice change of pace and added a layer of claustrophobia on top of the threat of limited air supplies and CGI sharks. Not sure I'd say it's "good" but I finished it.
Sistine Stallone is indeed Sylvester Stallone's daughter, in her first featured movie role. Corinne Foxx is Jamie Foxx's daughter, also in her first movie role it seems.
It's included with Amazon Prime
|
|
|
|
Post by silverbullet63 on Feb 29, 2020 21:28:16 GMT -5
Phantom Thread (2017)
For me, basically Paul Thomas Anderson's love letter to Douglas Sirk. Just like Carol (2015) a tad bit overrated.
Not on par with Far From Heaven (2002) or A Single Man (2009)
|
|
|
|
Post by someoldguy on Feb 29, 2020 21:29:25 GMT -5
Sometimes They Come Back (1991)
Stephen King ghost story, another example of his 'what happened when they were kids' theme. Man goes back to his home town with his family because the only teaching job he can find is there. When he was a kid, his brother was murdered there. The bad guys died back then but they have come back to haunt him and kill off his students. These 'ghosts' are corporeal BTW just as they were before they died.
Pretty good. Acting is kept mainly in the capable hands of Tim Matheson and Brooke Adams. Dialog is reasonable, FX not bad especially considering this was a 1991 TV movie. For that same reason gore is negligible. The movie runs primarily on mood and atmosphere and does well, which is what most SK stories are based on, more psychological than action oriented, although that happens as well.
Free with Prime.
|
|
appears from time to time in the film. It is an important role just not extensive. Predictable plot development, acting and dialog typical of cheap films of the era, zero gore. Yet mildly entertaining as a relic of that era with some spookiness here and there. The isolated town where the action takes place and the road leading to it seem always to be drenched in fog. And apparently it is always nighttime. That and the old cemetery are the totality of the attempts at atmosphere. 
Le Loup-Garou Qui Rit