I had a backlog last week and have another this, so I guess I'll post 20 (of the last 23) movies I watched:
Snake Eyes (1998) “Don’t give me that wounded look. You haven’t got the face for it.”
—DePalma’s mystery thriller turned 25.
Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on the Exorcist (2020) “I don’t believe in take two.” —R.I.P. Friedkin. Shuddered this instead of watching one of his movies because of time constraints and I hadn’t seen it yet. Very interesting.
White Lightning (1973) “You two are more fun than going to an all-night dentist.” —50th anniversary.
Throne of Blood (1957) “If you choose ambition, lord, then choose it honestly, with cruelty.”
The Village (2004) “The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.”
[Rifftrax:] Baby Ghost (1995/2021) “Sorry, hard to hear you over keyboard demo track number 3.”
Cujo (1983) “F**k you, dog!” —40th anniversary.
High Art (1998) “Is it a problem or an issue? -Both. I have a love issue, and a drug problem. Or maybe I have a love problem, and a drug issue. —Pretty good, but depressing.
Uma [Horse] (1941) “I’ve never heard of keeping a horse leading to anything good.” —A Japanese propaganda (but not annoyingly so) film about a poor family raising a horse ultimately to sell to the military. The last film Akira Kurosawa worked on (co-wrote, edited, and shot second unit) before directing.
The Matrix (1999) “Fasten your seat belt Dorothy, 'cause Kansas is going bye-bye.”
The Great Outdoors (1988) “I don’t want to hear any more about anyone blowing anything out of their a**.”
Freddy vs. Jason (2003) “Dude, that goalie was pissed about something.” —20th anniversary.
Predators (2010) “All brought here for the same purpose. This planet is a game preserve. And we’re the game.” —Just been in a pred mood thanks to getting so many NECA recently.
Ordet [The Word] (1955) “Do you know what the difference is between your faith and mine? You think Christianity is sullenness and self-torment. I think Christianity is the fullness of life. My faith is for all day long and joy in life. Yours is the longing of death.” —Danish film (from Dreyer) looking at differences of religion within and without a small-town famer’s family with a surprise ending. Good.
Time After Time (1979) “Every age is the same. It's only love that makes any of them bearable.”
[Rifftrax:] Cyber Tracker (1994/2016) “The senator is thinking ‘I killed a woman and she’s still in my car. What would Ted Kennedy do?’”
Open Range (2003) “Man’s got a right to protect his property and his life, and we ain’t letting’ no rancher or his lawman take either.” —20th anniversary.
Gator (1976)
“Patrick McGinnin, I have known you since you were 11 years old and you were a sweet young man and your father a Catholic priest. -Baptist minister. Right.”
It’s Alive (2008) “There’s nothing wrong with the baby.” —Pretty bad. Tries to pass off Bulgaria for New Mexico. The mother might be psychically controlled by the killer baby this time, but they don’t spell it out so she just comes off as annoying.
The Face of Another (1966) “There are limits in life. Men don't have wings. No matter how high they rise, they always fall back to earth.” —Strange (on purpose, slightly surreal), but good Japanese flick about a badly-burned man who gets a realistic mask, allowing him a double identity.
I had been feverishly anticipating this film and was not disappointed. If you're a fan of the show, the living cast members and creator showed up for this. I really hope they make more.
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Babylon 5 The Road Home (2023)
I had been feverishly anticipating this film and was not disappointed. If you're a fan of the show, the living cast members and creator showed up for this. I really hope they make more.
Good to know. I saw the trailer and then saw the movie in stores this week, but passed. I was intrigued. It's a shame how many from the cast aren't with us. I also don't know if I should watch this without a refresher. It's been over 20 years since I watched the bulk of that series, but I did love it back then.
Rampage (2018) “I’m gonna prance myself right out on a limb, and guess that no one’s ever accused you of being a people person.”
Sharky’s Machine (1981) “You know Frisco, when we used to flush the toilet upstairs, we always wondered where it came to.” —Burt Reynolds directs and stars as an Atlanta narc officer who mistakenly gets a civilian shot and chooses to work vice. While staking out a high-class call girl he and the team uncover a vast conspiracy.
Blade (1998) “The world you live in is just a sugar-coated topping! There is another world beneath it: the real world.” —25th anniversary.
[Akira Kurosawa’s] Dreams (1990) “Some say life is hard, but that is just talk. It is good to be alive, it is exciting!”
Hard Target (1993) “What kind of a name is Chance? -Well, my momma took one.” —30th anniversary. This might be one of the first movies I’ve celebrated an anniversary twice for (last time 25) apart from Godzilla movies or the Ed Wood movies I do annually.
The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023) “I do not fear you. -You will.”
The Seventh Victim (1943) “I runne to death, and death meets me as fast, and all my pleasures are like yesterday.” —Val Lewton’s film noir turns 75.
[Rifftax:] The Dark Knight (2008) “Carry any Ricolas in that belt?”
Asteroid City (2023) “You can’t wake up if you don’t fall asleep”
Beat (2000) “This is not my space time lcation!” —Pretty good, but dark. Follows some of the last days of real-life Beat writer William Burroughs (Keifer Sutherland) marriage to his second wife, Joan (Courtney Love), which was complicated by his homosexual affairs, the attentions of Lucien Carr (recently paroled for killing a man) and ends in a drunken screw-up of the William Tell trick.
Rope (1948) “By what right do you dare to say that there's a superior few to which you belong?” —75th anniversary. Not unknown, but still underrated Hitchcock classic.
The Men Who Tread on the Tiger’s Tail (1945/1952) “Now, I will dance.” —Kurosawa’s first (but far from his best) samurai flick. It was extremely low budget, though.
The Children (1980) “Harry the Hawk does it again!” —My friend and I wanted to see this after watching about it in In Search of Darkness III during another movie night. Peacock obliged and we both dug it though it is low budget are sparse. Notable for having a Harry Manfredini score that supposedly he pretty much lifted for Friday the 13th when next to no one saw this one.
Luther (2003) “So when the devil throws your sins in your face and declares that you deserve death and hell, tell him this: I admit that I deserve death and hell, what of it? For I know one who suffered and made satisfaction in my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, son of God, and where He is, there I shall be also!” —20th anniversary.
Lost (2004) “Every animal leaves a trail.”
Roman Holiday (1953) “It’s always open season on princesses.” —70th anniversary. Probably my favorite film (and the one she won the Oscar for) from my favorite actress (Audrey Hepburn) who made her American/lead debut and never studied acting.
Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) “I don’t think. I drink.” —20th anniversary. My least favorite of the trilogy, but it has good bits in it.
Robocop 2 (1990) “Bad language makes for bad feelings.” —Watching RLM’s retrospective made me want to re-watch this (thanks to Tubi).
Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) “It’s as kosher as Christmas.” —25th anniversary of Guy Rithie’s premier feature.
Jeepers Creepers 2 (2003) “Two classes of people? What, the ‘will be eaten’ and the ‘won't be eaten’?”
Dream Lover (1994) “Sometimes everything’s a clue, and what you think is paranoia is actually heightened awareness.”
The Amityville Moon (2021)
“I’ll get help-my dad’s a lawyer.” —Watched for the blue moon. Not good, but not as bad as you might expect.
Blue Thunder (1983) “The moral of this story is: If you’re walking on eggs, don’t hop.”
[Rifftrax:] The Galaxy Invader (1985/2011) “No biggie; we were going to get rid of Des Moines anyway.”
Continental Divide (1981)
“What do you mean, almost killed? -Well, you know when you stop breathing and walking, seeing things? That kind of almost killed.” —Good, but not as funny as I expected from Belushi. Follows a Chicago reporter who decides to take a story about a secluded eagle expert on a mountain after being threatened by the corrupt politicians he exposed. The two fall for each other but realize they’re from different world.
Super Mario Bros. the Movie (2023) “Cool raccoon suit. -Really? Not at all!”
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) “Sanctuary! Sanctuary! Sanctuary!” —Centennial!
Iron Monkey (1993) “You look like a monkey. Arrest him!” —30th anniversary.
Macbeth (1948) “Hell is murky.” —75th anniversary of Welles classic in which he infamously had his repertoire affect Scottish accents. Funny the pop cred this has. Malcolm is played by Roddy McDowall (PotA). The holy man is played by Alan Napier (66 Alfred Pennyworth), and MacDuff is Dan O’Herlihy of Robocop and Halloween 3 fame. Go figure.
[Rifftrax:] Rats: Night of Terror (1983/2019) “It’s a weird decision to make the English dubs harder to understand than the original Italian.”
The Idiot (1951) “The world’s full of wolves. Be careful.” —Kurosawa’s adaptation of Dostoevsky’s novel is already 2 hours and 46 minutes but apparently was 100 minutes longer before the studio cut it. It shows and Kurosawa wanted to fix even near the end of his life, but I still thought it was pretty good (going in knowing this was a case like Welles’ Ambersons).
Flash Gordon (1980) “Look! Water is leaking from her eyes. -It’s what they call tears, it’s a sign of their weakness. —Watched again in prep of seeing Sam Jones at a con.
The Paper Chase (1973) “Mr. Hart, here’s a dime. Call your mother, and tell her there is serious doubt about you becoming a lawyer. -You are a son of a b***h, Kingsfield! Mr. Hart! That is the most intelligent thing you've said today. You may take your seat.” —50th anniversary. Had seen before. Follows the competitive environment of first-year Harvard Law students.
Hell’s Ground (2007) “This getting ridiculous.” —Pakistan’s first zombie flick. Fun if you make allowances for the low budget and shot-on-video-in-30 days aspects.
Lost in Translation (2003) “The good news is, the whiskey works.” —20th anniversary.
True Romance (1993) “Get some beer and some cleaning products!” —30th anniversary.
[Rifftrax:] X from Outer Space (1967/2023) “Screw you, Laser Chicken!”
A Simple Plan (1998) “I wish somebody else had found that money.” —25th anniversary.
Crazy/Beautiful (2001) “You can be anywhere where when your life begins. You meet the right person and anything is possible.” —Romantic drama about HS seniors from across the tracks (literally on the other side of LA). He’s from a poor immigrant family striving to achieve and she’s a near-drop-out daughter of a senator with severe emotional problems.
VHS Massacre (2016) “There’s a huge following. -There a small group of fans that wanted it . . . ” —Decent documentary mostly (also partly nostalgia, making fun of bad videos, and a history of formats) on how the death of video stores and diminishing of physical media have hurt indie cinema. Sadly, some of these problems have gotten significantly worse since this came out (like how the big stores only sell the top current big-studio movies). On Peacock right now.
Elizabeth (1998) “Observe, Lord Burghley, I am married. To England.” —25th anniversary.
Restless Native (1985) “Do you believe in ghosts.” —Comedy where some poor young men take to robbing the tour busses around Edinburgh, Scotland and become folk heroes.
The Robe (1953) “I owe Him more than my life.” —The extra-biblical epic turned 70.
One False Move (1991) “He don’t know no better, he watches television. I read non-fiction.” —Heard about this crime thriller (about murderous drug thieves who are heading to a small Arkansas town and the local and LA cops trying to stop them) from Patton Oswold’s Criterion Clost recommendations and dug it.
The Pelican Brief (1993) b93f9c612d5f49280a9c42ce107b47ef.jpg “It never ceases to amaze me what a man will do to get in the Oval Office.” —30th anniversary.
Red River (1948) K7VYrFevvCcOemZYFe5xpZ8MpvLDcL_large.jpg “Never liked seeing strangers. Maybe it’s because no stranger ever good newsed me.” —The Howard Hawks western classic (starring John Wayne and Montgomery Cliff) turned 75.
Rush Hour (1998) s-l1200.jpg “Why you gonna put Aunt Bootsie in this?” —25th anniversary.
[Rifftrax:] The Alien Dead (2021) AlienDead_Poster_rev1.jpg “Fans of damp hillbillies, this must be your Citizen Kane.”
Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten (2006) 815XDypOzdL._UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg “I can still only play all six strings or none. It’s why I called myself Joe Stummer.” —Documentary (which because it comes 5 years after his death can be complete) look at the Clash’s frontman/founder. I knew much of the band history (it’s probably my second favorite band), but learned a lot about his life before and after them.
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