At the Movies!

[CLXcool]

A few nights ago. I watched Cool World with a few online friends of mine. First time in years since my high-school days. Oh god, I wish I never did rewatched this movie, I remembered now why I disliked it in the first place. I'll give the short version of what happened behind the scenes. Ralph Bakshi pitches a live-action/animated horror movie to a studio, producer of said movie sees the success of Roger Rabbit and quickly rewrites the script of the movie without telling Ralph, Ralph finds out and he's pissed at the said producer, but in the end he has to make the movie because he's got a deadline to meet and it fails both the critics and doesn't make back its budget(Makes you wonder how the movie would've done money wise if the producer didn't get greedy from Disney and let Ralph had his way with the project).

The thing is, watching this movie sort of made me feel a little sorry for my negative remarks towards Roger(and you can blame some of my family members from quoting the hell out of the movie to the point where I could hold up at gunpoint to shut them up) at least Roger had a story. This movie's story tries too hard to be like Roger. Even has a few plot holes that cannot be explained in the movie. The only positives that I can give this movie are the following. The animation is more fluid and colorful compared to the movie its trying its hardest to be, the voice acting is very solid in terms of the characters they're being voiced by(you have Charles Adler, Candi Milo and Maurice Lalamarche to name a few, if you're familiar with cartoons you have heard all three of them at least once). Character designs and music. The music of this movie features a mixture of rock and jazz, the soundtrack is more interesting thing than the movie. Let alone the character designs of the movie feel like they're not living up to the potential that they have given with a badly written last minute script from a greedy Hollywood producer trying to get money from Disney. After this movie was done with my online friends, I did something I rarely did.
 
I had a couple of drinks just to get my mind off of this, while listening to jazz. Can I recommend this? Yes and no. Unless if you have a couple of friends and are willing to rip on this movie, you're better off avoiding this. This should be one of the examples on why you should NEVER let executives screw around with development of a movie. If alternate dimensions do exist, somewhere the movie Ralph wanted to make is out there. Not a butchered version of the film that Ralph tried to make, only for it to be a Roger Rabbit wannabe movie. You want a better Ralph Bakshi movie? I'd recommend watching Heavy Traffic, Coonskin, and Wizards. Moral kiddies? Stay independent when it comes to film making.

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

So today I watched Back to the Future as well as its sequel.

I really enjoyed them. The soundtrack is used very effectively. The special effects are decent. Every actor did a fine job with their roles, my favorite being Crispin Gloverwith with his interesting potrayal of boy-turned-man George McFly. Sure, there may be some inconsistencies regarding time-travel here and there, but those are minor details that do not really affect the quality of it (then again, time-travelling in general is a godforsaken mess).
Something interesting about these movies it that they feel like an extension of a single film rather than proper sequels.

Looking foward to watching the third and final chapter of this trilogy.

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Unrelated, but...

Cloverfield was released 10 years ago.

It's been 10 years since Heath Ledger's death. R.I.P

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

Alright guys, the following review must be read with the right theme in the background.

So today I rewatched "Unbreakable" in anticipation of the upcoming Shyamalan film: "Glass".

The acting was spot on. Bruce Willis unassuming and “feeling empty” behavior was believable. Samuel L. Jackson nailed as the enigmatic Mr.Glass as well.

The score was one of the best James Newton Howard has ever done. It's compelling and booming. It's powerful but not over-the-top and excessive.

As for the ending? It felt quite out of place, it just doesn't fit with the rest of the film in my opinion.

But other than that, this movie is the best one Shyamalan has ever done alongside 'Split'. Looking foward to the third and final chapter "Glass", which will come out in 2019.

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You know? It's kinda funny. If you told me three years ago or so that I would get excited for an upcoming Shyamalan project I would have told you to shut up. Yet here I am....

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

So yesterday I watched Kong: Skull Island.

The fights were entertaining. The special effects were good (at least good enough to not make feel like I'm playing a videogame). The first 20 minutes nailed that 70s atmosphere quite well. The acting in this film isn't bad, but it definitely won't win any awards for it. Just your tipical blockbuster fun.

BTW, make sure to stay for the credits.

[CLXcool]

Live-action movie time. I watched The Goonies. First time I ever saw the movie. I know its loved by many, but I found myself having a bit of a love/hate relationship with this. It was kinda predictable(in the cheesy way). I most know about the goonies since I played Goonies II on the NES. I think I found a movie to watch the next time there's a rainy day.

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

The journey is over... I just finished watching Back to the Future 3.

For the first time, Zemeckis slows things down a bit, making this third film straightforward, yet just as delightful in a lot of ways as the other films. Marty and Doc had a great on-screen chemistry, and if you liked Thomas F. Wilson's portrayals of Biff, you'll be amazed at his rambunctious portrayal of Mad Dog. The idea of using a 1885 setting was brilliant, it gives the movie it's own sense of identity. There are many callbacks to the orignal films as well.

Basically, a great ending for a great trilogy.

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

SO I recently found out that The Raid will be getting a Hollywood remake.

http://collider.com/the-raid-remake-differences/

Ok. I honestly don't know what to think about this.

Basically, this remake won't feature the highly coreographed action made the original so likeable. It also won't feature pencak silat and there's the possibility of Iko Uwais either getting a minor role or not being featured at all . There's also this:

will build a deeper story with regards to the two brothers and their father, to highlight “The Walking Wounded.”

I... isn't that excatly what the sequel did?

I understand that they want to introduce more people to The Raid, given that it is a fairly obscurse film among the mainstream, but... wouldn't it be much easier to spread the word through social media? Both the director and the producer have twitter accounts after all.

But hey, if this movie somehow ends up being a success then maybe we are gonna get a 'The Raid 3'. Who knows?.

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Also, I can't believe it took me this long to discover this (almost five months since I've watched the movies, to be exact).

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

So today I watched John Badham's Saturday Night Fever.

John Travolta's performance as Tony Manero easily steals the spotlight (at least for me). He's king at his local disco, but anywhere else? He's a random nobody, even at home. The only people who care about him are his friends, who are a bunch of creeps who gave up in doing any beter. Mr. Travolta's performance truly shows Manera's frustrations, and no other actor could have done this role any better.

The film captures the feeling of everyday life in a Blue Collar neighborhood (you are caught in the middle with apparently no means of improvement) and even that of late 70's USA (live for the moment because the future is pretty bleak). The main theme song of the film -Staying Alive- perfectly fits this pivotal yet often overlooked aspect of the movie ("I'm goin' nowhere, somebody help me, I'm goin' nowhere, somebody help me yeah").

Speaking of the sound department (aka what most people remenber this movie for), the soundtrack is used very effectively, and the dance moves are great.

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Fun fact: by the time I wrote this Saturday Night Fever is 40 years old. Time flyes by, don't you agree?

EDIT: while we are at it, let me remind you that Blue collar=/=redneck.

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

Yesterday I saw the first two Dirty Harry films while today I finished watching the third one.

Dirty Harry: Clint Eastwood's performance as the renegade, "loose cannon" inspector 'Dirty' Harry Callahan is a shining example of superior acting. The story itself has a solid foundation and Spoiler:I do like the midpoint twist concerning the fate of the killer, but it is also a bit on the slow side and the runtime could be cut down quite significantly. Decent action, great dialogue, and relentless tension add up more points to one of the best detective thrillers out there. 

Magnun Force (aka Dirty Harry 2): The action scenes were good, altought they were less interesting and entertaining compared with it's predecessor. The suspense was handled pretty well. Some pieces of the musical score were quite interesting. The script has some very good dialogue and Hal Holbrook is a great superior to Harry Callahan. Overall a solid sequel.

The Enforcer (aka Dirty Harry 3): The action was as good as the previous one. This time the biting reality and stark realisations (heavily implemented in the first two) taking a backseat for forceful (if crass) humour. The pacing has improved compared with the previous two films. Tyne Daly brings an authentic and potent side to her role as Callahan's assitant Kate Moore. The script has some political connotations (home-grown terrorism and affirmative action) which are more apparent than those of the first film (the rights of victims versus the rights of the accused), but always stays true to the story rather than trying to undermine or overdo it. 

Looking foward to watching the 4th and 5th movies of the series (Sudden Impact and The Dead Pool, respectively).

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P.S Watching this films made me realize why so many people got upset when that one Dirty Harry videogame was cancelled. Considering that the series' 50th anniversary is in 2021, I would like to see Rocksteady take their own spin on the IP (an original story rather than an adaptation of the films would be nice).

[Arjahn]

Ok there's this movie...

It's a buddy cop movie with Chuck Norris where his partner is a dog.

And they have to take down violent white supremacists who brutally murder minorities and bomb hospitals

So the movie cuts from them violently torturing black people

To the dog putting on silly hats

and then the Racists dress up as Clowns and try to murder Chuck Norris and his family

then there's a kid doing RADIIICAL bike tricks



This all happened, This is a real movie, people made this.

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

The journey is over... today I've watched the last two Dirty Harry films.

Sudden Impact (aka Dirty Harry 4):  The action takes a seat back this time and instead it takes a darker, character-driven approach. Clint Eastwood plays Harry as the `old man with a chip on his shoulder' -a story that would be inevitable as Harry Callahan is not inmortal- a role that I must say he plays with with facility and renewed vigor. Another noteworthy performance is that of Sondra Locke as Jennifer Spencer, who serves as a counterpart for Harry. The dialogue is snappy and the story itself (conceived by Charles B. Pierce and Earl E. Smith) is the most engaging since the original `Dirty Harry'. Overall, i'd say it is an interesting approach to the already established DH formula.

The Dead Pool (aka Dirty Harry 5): It was... okay. The action scenes were quite subpar compared with those of the previous films. The mistery surrounding the true identity of the villian was handled fairly decent. The movie also stands out for featuring actors Liam Neeson (who is excellent as the arrogant filmmaker) and Jim Carrey before they were famous. 

My final rating on the films goes as follows: 1>2>4>3>>5

[Hexadecimal*]

I watched The Tunnel, because I super love found footage movies, and I plan on checking every single one out with the exception of Cannibal Holocaust. For real killing of animals is absolutely NOT OK.

Once I found out it had such a tiny budget I appreciated it a lot more. They were actually smart to film it where they did because it automatically unsettles the viewers. Getting lost in a labyrinth of tunnels with limited light makes you nervous before anything starts happening.

It's almost an entire hour into the movie before our monster finally starts doing things but the build up to it is still fun to watch. You never get a clear look at it, but I don't mind that "less is more" approach. Plus the film has an actual ending and not just the camera getting dropped or footage coming to an abrupt stop. I thought since it took place post events it kinda spoiled things as to who lives and who dies but surprises were still thrown in there.

There's obviously a lot of running around, but these are broken up by actual events happening so it's not boring.

My only complaint is that there is absolutely nothing that even hints at what the monster COULD be or how it got down there. That's a bit of a bummer.

[ZpaceJ0ck0]

This video is satire, btw.

[Hexadecimal*]

Willow Creek was the biggest freaking waste of my time ever. OMG.

Like 40 minutes is of them traveling, messing around, and talking about Bigfoot. Then they're in the forest and I saw a dude's naked ass and naughty parts as he skinny dips. There's a long scene of them in a tent with noises. In the final few minutes stuff happens that you cannot see before the footage stops.

You never see Bigfoot. At all.

[SERIOUSLY THOUGH*]

Willow Creek was the biggest freaking waste of my time ever. OMG.

Like 40 minutes is of them traveling, messing around, and talking about Bigfoot. Then they're in the forest and I saw a dude's naked ass and naughty parts as he skinny dips. There's a long scene of them in a tent with noises. In the final few minutes stuff happens that you cannot see before the footage stops.

You never see Bigfoot. At all.

Noice