Thoughts On The Last Movie You've Seen

[Graven]

Crazies (1973)

Print: Arrow Video Bluray

Director: George A. Romero

 

Cool and yes, quite crazy low-budget movie from the director of legendary zombie movies we all know.

A man-made virus called Trixie gets loose in a small West-Pennsylvanian Evan's city. The army comes to control the situation,

or so they think. The virus turns the infected into frenzy crazies, acting uncontrolled and fighting back with guns of course.

The center of attention is a small group of people who successfully avoid being quarantined in the local school.

They roam in the woods looking for cover and practice target shooting. Which is easy because the soldiers are wearing white protective overalls, what craziness!

Nukes are being considered, the bomber is in the air ready but never used. A scientist working on the vaccine makes a breakthrough but fails to deliver the blood samples through

hysteric crowd of schoolkid crazies. They actually used the kids from the local school, and it shows because they smile and dance in the scene. Maybe they got lollipops for taking part?

We don't get final resolution to the virus issue, the operation leader flees in a helicopter.

Besides all the fun action, there's a subtlety of seriousness about power. You might find asking yourself who really were the crazies. People or the power.

I can't remember a thing about Dawn of the Dead (except that it takes place in a mall) nor Day of the Dead because I have not seen them since 1980s,

but I read that Crazies is somehow linked with Day of the Dead. That's interesting, got to add it in the shopping list.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 2 by Graven
grammar

[Lonely-Martin]

@Graven

 

Really enjoyed Romero's The Crazies when I watched it not too long ago. Definitely has that confusing element to how the town reacts and the governments actions etc which helps make it unsettling as a story with its loose feel and build.

 

As you've said it's been a while, I do highly recommend giving Night/Dawn/Day of the Dead all another viewing while The Crazies is fresh in your mind, a great weekend's entertainment there indeed! Zombie movies have definitely been overdone as a sub-genre, but these are very much the place to go to see it done right and ideas firmly planted.

 

Personally I enjoyed Land of the Dead as well (and Diary/Survival all have ideas/moments, but are far inferior overall, IMHO), but the first 3 are the best of that series (with Dawn as my personal favorite). The first of that franchise well deserves its place in horror and independent filmmaking history for all the right reasons. Much like Dracula/Frankenstein from the 30's in how they are just game changing really. Great themes in these early Romero movies along with good stories that evolve the series along nicely. Much of it is often replicated but rarely matched still.

 

For me, The Crazies is easy to fit within an overall larger story Romero sets out with that initial trilogy of zombie flicks, not exactly, but plenty there in both. You can see the man had one thing on his mind overall with an outbreak threatening mankind like that and the different views he offers with these 4 movies overall. 

 

And to be fair, the remakes of The Crazies, Night of the Living Dead 1990 (directed by the legend that is Tom Savini, starring Tony Todd too), and the remake of Dawn of the Dead (directed by Zack Snyder), I'd say are all good movies in their own ways. But be careful though, there's some really awful remakes and such out there from this series, lol.

 

And as we mentioned before about a cult favourite spin off, Night of the Living Dead bought us the fantastic guilty pleasure Return of the Living Dead in ways of course which came about partly because of the split in naming rights between Romero and John Russo after the original Night of the Living Dead. And then we've got the "Zombi/Zombie Flesh Eaters" series' too which came about because Italian filmmakers wanted to capitalize on Dario Argento's involvement in the original Dawn of the Dead (with the first film in that series from Lucio Fulci, Zombie Flesh Eaters, is such a favourite of mine). Crazy few series to follow for the new fans, but some absolute gems in there no less.

 

And while we're on the topic of George Romero, we really need the 4k/blu ray remaster of Martin to come along. Been on the cards for a while from one of the boutique labels, I think Second Sight, which fairly recently released an amazing version of Dawn of the Dead on 4k to rival Arrow's earlier release. So fingers crossed that's still on the way. 

[Mister Pink]

The Northman 2022, Dir. Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse, The Witch)

 

 

The Northman is based on old Norse mythology, namely Amleth. The story follows a boy who witnesses his Father's death and his Mother's kidnapping  and seeks revenge as an adult to avenge his father and free his Mother.

 

The film is brutal at times in it's depiction of violence and the times and world they live in. Murder, rape and slavery are pretty common. I enjoyed the film visually but never felt connected to any of the characters. Some of the performances were superb, namely Nicole Kidman. I didn't think she would be suited but her performance was just a testament of how great she is at acting. 

 

Overall my anticipation for this film was greater than my enjoyment of it. From the trailer, it ticked all the boxes of the type of film I wanted to see. Visually, it' looks great apart of it being a little unnecessarily blurry in some scenes  - like it was shot on some vintage prime glass and had some aberration. I just couldn't connect with any of the characters and the resolve at the end didn't do anything for me. 

[Tacymist]

A League of Their Own

 

 

It's a classic and is my fav baseball film of all time. It takes us back to WWII, during the formation of the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. The characters are fictional, but the AAGPBL was a real thing from 1943-1954. It's one of the movies I get immersed in when watching, smiling at the funny moments, eyes getting misty at the sadder parts. Wonderful film. You don't have to be a baseball/sports fan to enjoy it either. It was the characters and setting I loved most about this movie, so even as a non sports fan back in the day, this film has always been a favorite. 

[TwistOfLime21]

Paranormal Activity: Next Of Kin.

 

I'm not the biggest fan of these movies but they're still something I'll give a watch anyway, knowing exactly what I'll expect, and thats fine. It breaks the formula of taking place in a house with fixed cameras and only relies on a handheld camera, to the point where it feels like a found footage movie with the Paranormal Activity logo slapped on. It feels a lot more creepier than the predecessors because it takes place on a farm in a small community where you know something is wrong, but you don't know. The previous movies, you know theres a demon in the house. The night scenes are pretty anti climatic. One scene in particular in the attic where the tension rises to an all time high with very little pay off. The second half of the movie pretty much falls off a cliff when its revealed whats actually happening. Its no longer scary and is rather tacky instead. 

[Stahli]

The Gentlemen (2019)

 

The Gentlemen is an action comedy film directed by Guy Ritchie about a drug lord who wants

to sell his business. The main actors include Matthew McConaughey and Charlie Hunnam.

 

 

It's a typical Guy Ritchie film. It has everything in it that makes his movies. For me, this is his

best movie. Apparently I like British humor. I especially like the dialogues with the cool sayings

and the weird, but somehow also believable characters portrayed by top actors. I must admit

that I was not familiar with Charlie Hunnam before. But in this film he convinced me. The film

also remained interesting until the end, through the many twists that you did not see coming.

I saw the movie yesterday for the third time and I still love it.

Edited May 8 by Stahli

[Arrows to Athens]

On 5/8/2022 at 1:21 AM, TwistOfLime21 said:

Paranormal Activity: Next Of Kin.

 

I'm not the biggest fan of these movies but they're still something I'll give a watch anyway, knowing exactly what I'll expect, and thats fine. It breaks the formula of taking place in a house with fixed cameras and only relies on a handheld camera, to the point where it feels like a found footage movie with the Paranormal Activity logo slapped on. It feels a lot more creepier than the predecessors because it takes place on a farm in a small community where you know something is wrong, but you don't know. The previous movies, you know theres a demon in the house. The night scenes are pretty anti climatic. One scene in particular in the attic where the tension rises to an all time high with very little pay off. The second half of the movie pretty much falls off a cliff when its revealed whats actually happening. Its no longer scary and is rather tacky instead. 

Do I need to watch the previous ones to understand this one? I've seen the first two or three, but that was a long time ago, so I barely remember them. And I've already seen the Marked Ones. I don't care for the rest. This one somewhat interests me, though. I'm a fan of found footage films, so this might be up my alley. I just don't know if it's supposed to be a sequel or what. 

Edited May 9 by Arrows to Athens

[TwistOfLime21]

47 minutes ago, Arrows to Athens said:

Do I need to watch the previous ones to understand this one? I've seen the first two or three, but that was a long time ago, so I barely remember them. And I've already seen the Marked Ones. I don't care for the rest. This one somewhat interests me, though. I'm a fan of found footage films, so this might be up my alley. I just don't know if it's supposed to be a sequel or what. 

Apart from the name, there’s zero connection to the previous movies.

[Arrows to Athens]

7 hours ago, TwistOfLime21 said:

Apart from the name, there’s zero connection to the previous movies.

Ah, so like Wrong Turn (2021). 

[TwistOfLime21]

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)

 

This is a series that I generally won’t go out of my way to watch but I made an exception with this one when I saw several posts about it in this thread a couple of months ago. I’ve never seen the original but have seen the remakes and sequels from the last 20 years or so, including that god awful one starring Alexandra Daddario.

 

It started off better than expected. I like that we pretty much got straight to the point. You came to watch forgettable characters getting slashed up and this movie does not make you wait long. The kills were ramped all the way up to 11, absolutely brutal. The woke tropes got tiring REALLY quickly. It just made the characters unlikeable when we’ve barely been given a chance to like them in the first place. It seemed like they were really trying to hammer home that this movie is set in the present and just how much time had passed since the original. Nothing gets explained or delved into. A character survived a school shooting. We get a couple of flashback scenes that go no longer that 10 seconds all up. Other characters who don’t even look old enough to vote are buying a town. No explanation how, but they are.

 

The last 20 or so minutes was just stupid. Super cringe moments and stupid decisions. The movie borrows from Halloween 2018 by having the survivor from the first movie become an ageing bad ass hell bent on tracking down the person who tried to kill her. It worked in Halloween. It didn’t work in this. At one point, she has Leatherface at point blank range with a shotgun. He picks up his chainsaw, walks right past her and proceeds to continue hunting. When she finally decides to shoot, she aims like the guy in Pulp Fiction who tries to kill Vincent and Jules, and catches a chainsaw right through the torso while being held up in the air then hurled across the road. Does that kill her? Nope, she’s still able to fire her shotgun several minutes later.

 

Its a decent movie overall but probably not one I’d watch again.

[sabitsuki]

 

I watched Ghost Dog again, and this time I really paid attention to the details and nuances of it.

 

It's easily on my Top 5 films now, not only for its dreamlike, Zen and meditative atmosphere and its homages to a number of old French New Wave and jidaigeki films, but also because of its themes of battling human nature, adapting to changing times and living a life by a strict code.

 

Forest Whitaker was perfectly casted for the role. The character he plays, Ghost Dog, is a man, despite his hulky exterior and his deadly profession, adopts an aura of tranquility and lives by a samurai code as described in Hagakure, and I feel Whitaker expresses those sentiments extremely well. I feel this is a very interesting foil to the character of Louie (played by Uncle Vince's actor from TBOGT), who Ghost Dog is saved by and declares him as his master, who is by contrast meek, aging and extremely paranoid and anxious. Both men are products of a bygone age, and by the time of the film's setting (The turn of the millennium), both men seem to be aware of that fact.

 

Many elements of the film are surreal and almost otherworldly in nature, such as mafioso watching cartoons and listening to hip hop, a French-speaking ice cream vendor who is best friends with Ghost Dog, a man building a boat on a project rooftop and the constant exchanging of books between friend and foe, but I feel that they sort of all tie back to the themes of obsoleteness and the passing of a bygone era. True to Zen philosophy knowledge is passed on to the next generation via the characters of Pearline and Ms. Vargo, and the cycle continues. I believe this may be a metaphor for cinema in general as well, particularly mob films which were essentially at their nadir by this point in history.

 

In short, its an extremely beautiful film, both thematically and cinematographically, and a very underrated one at that, and I don't think there's any other movie quite like it save for its influences. Great cast, amazing soundtrack by RZA and the Wu-Tang Clan and there are several moments where the dialogue and the absurdity of the scenes made me bust a gut laughing. 

 

It's a crime mob samurai arthouse action film set in Jersey City, and a pretty damn good one at that. I put this on whenever I want to get back down to earth and keep my mind clear.

Edited May 14 by sabitsuki

[TwistOfLime21]

Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness

 

 

Multiverse seemed like the equivalent of putting a script in a blender, absolutely terrible. This movie gave me zero reason to care about America, so I didn't. It bordered on fun for a bit but stayed in average and occasionally cheesy territory. When the Avengers from Wish appeared, I laughed. I couldn't tell if they were meant to be taken seriously, but I couldn't do it. When Zombie Strange appeared, I just wanted the movie to be over.

Two things I really liked though. Having a hero be the villain, and what a bad ass she was. I never saw the trailer (apart from the snippet at the end of Spiderman) so I pretty much went in blind. I also liked that it was a horror movie as well. Along with that came brutal kills (for a Marvel movie anyway) like Carter having the shield go through her.

I wanted to like it but I just couldn't. Just like after Endgame, I think I'll be taking a long break from Marvel movies after this.

[Mexicola9302]

I watch "Crank 1" atm, i already watched that move 15 times or something, but this time i watch it in HDR in UHD. It's my favorite movie of all times.

 

Edit: Lol the datarate is too much, my TV only has a 100 mbit connection, i usually just transmit stuff via LAN, not enough for this. I will copy it to my USB Stick.

 

It seems it's more than 100 mbit lol.

 

It's a 70+ GB large movie.

Edited May 15 by Mexicola9302

[Graven]

Hitch-HIke (1977)

Print: Anchor Bay DVD

Director: Pasquale Festa Campanile

 

If you've seen Wes Craven's debut Last House on the Left, it's hard not to think about it because David Hess plays a similar psycho role in Hitch-Hike.

Walter Mancini (Franco Nero) is a reporter, very much inclined to alcohol. He and her wife Eve (Corinne Cléry) are driving to Los Angeles in their car and camper.

They pick up Adam (David Hess) by the road. Adam has 2 million dollars loot moolah in a case. Soon after formalities he begins to harass and torture the pair.

He rapes Eve by the camp fire and after discovering Walter's profession, offers a split if Walter agrees to write a book about their trip.

 

Good movie with a fun dialogue, packed with action and violence. The only small letdown to me was the outcome, although for an exploitation movie it was probably appropriate.

 

 

House on the Edge of the Park (1980)

Print: Another World DVD

Director: Ruggero Deodato

 

The reason I watched this right after Hitch-HIke is a no-brainer. It is Ruggero Deodato's take on "Last House on the Left" and we have David Hess again torturing the decent citizens!

Man I gotta admit he's good in the sleazebag role. The movie starts off with a rape and strangulation death. Alex (Hess) and his dunce buddy Ricky run a garage.

Two women and a guy have their car fixed in the garage. After hearing about their evening party Alex and Ricky get interested and invited. There are more revelers in attendance.

The dimwit sidekick Ricky likes to groove and play poker but loses all his money. Alex gets nasty, the party house becomes a bedlam of indiscriminate violence and preposterous brawl.

 

Very brutal movie. But I highly recommend if you like Last House on the Left and similar exploitation shockers. Imho this is more entertaining than the legendary paragons.

 

 

 

[KiTTYReCkless]

Just watched " infamous" last night on Hulu. It was about this chick and her boyfriend robbing banks while she Livestreamed it online. They, well she became famous and it went to her head and she started killing the people they robbed. 

It was actually pretty good and dare I say inspiring. I always wanted to be famous and have everyone love me. FFS I have been doing stupid sh*t like pissing myself in public and just being my obnoxious self for the past decade to get views. I always get banned before I hit 1k subs/ followers.

 

I also always had a Bonnie & Clyde fantasy and dream about how fun it would be on the run with my significant other. I can easily see me being like her. I am also better with guns and can hit tight groups constantly. Only problem is I am on red flag lists and I am out right banned if not shadowed on most platforms. Everytime I tried getting my exes to partake in my shenanigans it drives a wedge between us, tho. .. I just wish life was like the movies or video games. It's fun to live on the wild side, but consequences really f*cking suck...

[Graven]

Robotrix (1991)

Print: 88Films Bluray

Director: Jamie Luk

 

A Japanese scientist Sakamoto who is turned down by the other robot developers due to unethical methods, is unable to participate a robot exhibition.

He's transferred his own mind to a robot, and kidnaps the attending Middle-East prince.

The police end up doing the same. An outstanding robot is created from one of Sakamoto's female victims to enforce the squad of sense-lacking male cops.

Two fembots are employed to track down Sakamoto and save the prince.

 

This Hong Kong movie was obviously influenced by Robocop and Terminator, but falls purely on the comedy side.

The props look cheap, and acting is over the top. All the possible flaws (I like flaws...) are however overwhelmed by great martial arts and action.

It's a Category 3 movie, with full nudity and extreme violence. Me likey!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 22 by Graven
Had a robocall.

[Big Molio]

The Ledge (2021) (Amazon Prime)

 

Two young ladies go on a rock-climbing holiday and get in with a group of four young men staying nearby who are there to climb the same cliff face. They all drink one night and when one of the ladies goes to bed, the lead guy in the group tries to rape the other one. She runs off and he pushes her over an outcrop. Instead of taking her to the hospital, the group of men finish her off with a boulder to the face, just as the other friend comes looking for her and captures their crime on her camera. She then makes a run for it and starts to climb the cliff. They go after her.

 

It's badly acted and utter nonsense, but entertained us for a couple of hours.

 

Uncharted (2021) (Amazon Prime)

 

Film version of the excellent video game series. For some reason, they decided to cast Tom Holland and Marky Mark Wahlberg as Nathan Drake and Sully respectively. It's not bad, and is as you would expect really, an Indiana Jones / National Treasure / Jungle Cruise / Red Notice mash-up. I actually fell asleep towards the end though so I don't know what happens.

[Graven]

Stone (1974)

Print: 88Films Bluray

Director: Sandy Harbutt

 

Grave Diggers MC member witnesses political assassination. To prevent getting caught with his employer, the assassin begins to slay the Grave Diggers one by one.

A Sydneysider cop called Stone takes the risky job of joining the Grave Diggers to get in a better position to catch the assassin.

The Grave Diggers know Stone is a "pig", but majority votes yes for his temporary membership. Stone just needs to submit to the MC rules and stay silent in the background.

 

I guess it makes sense to mention Mad Max was done 5 years later, because these movies have much in common.

Both are low-budget Australian biker movies, some of the cast in Stone appear also in Mad Max.

The acting in Stone is overall amateurish, but the action scenes and club members leisure activities make up for it. Especially the biking scenes are epic.

I watched the Director's approved version that is much shorter than the original. The deleted footage from original theatrical version was included in the extras.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[The Time Ranger]

The Suicide Squad

 

So since the late 2000's we've been bombarded with Superhero movies and tv shows of varying quality, I was never a marvel or dc fanboy by any means, but i'd still watch their output, if not seek them out, with a couple of exceptions. Overall I think I have a bit of superhero fatigue. But James Gunn directed and wrote this and he's a very talented guy so I thought I'd try it.

 

So it's imprisoned mainly D-list comic book characters sent on a suicide mission for time off their prison sentences. Among them is Peacemaker, a jingoistic brute with a big f*ck off handcannon who'll kill anybody who threatens peace, you've got a retarded man/shark in bermuda shorts who has a taste for human flesh, and "Polka Dot Man." No comment necessary.

 

The action is gory and frenzied, the characters bounce off each other well and it has some genuinely funny moments, and the humour is not to the detriment of the stories stakes, it fits well, and knows when to shut up, balancing silliness and seriousness well. 

 

The characterization is impressive, giving depth and layers to characters who would under a lesser writer be just a joke or at the butt end of the very prominent "superhero quip," and that would be that, but there's heart here, and the movie has a message, a critique of Americas foreign policy.

 

Overall one of the better superhero movies of late, and a good movie full stop. My only real criticism would be towards the middle there were a few sequences that could have been a bit tighter and shorter, but it's not a big deal. 

Edited May 29 by The Time Ranger

[flow_42]

30 Minutes or Less - 7.5/10

I thought it was funny, even though ridiculous most of the time in terms of the plot. aziz ansari and jesse eisenberg gotta rob a bank, or else...

also involved: danny mcbride, anything this man says is hilarious. nothing but love for him!

[Graven]

The Beast Within (1982)

Print: Arrow Video Bluray

Director: Philippe Mora

 

This movie is definitely in the goodie basket of older not-so-well-known horror movies. It's a kind of werewolf legend adaptation but differs considerably from the other ones I have seen.

So much actually that you can't really call it a werewolf movie, though some things point to that direction.

The story is interesting, the scenery is gloomy, the acting is great and I have nothing to complaint about the orchestral soundtrack either.

It does not have long dull sequences, but the best action takes place in the latter 30 minutes.

The transformation effect from man to beast is amazing considering this was made 1982 and I liked the other gory scenes as well.

Bob Clark's Deathdream (1974) popped on my mind during watching, because this movie has a tragic background that evokes sympathy for the beast.

 

A couple are driving a Mississippi road 1964. Their car gets stuck on the road side. The man leaves to get towing help and meanwhile his wife gets raped by a strange creature.

17 years later they return to the town with their son who is having strange health ailments. They try to dig the past to find out why their son is acting weird.

Brutally torn bodies starts to appear. One certain family of the town seems to be the beast's objective, unfortunately the only beauty in the town is a member of that family.

I give this 7/10, got me captivated.

 

 

 

[flow_42]

shawshank redemption - 9/10 - in one word - captivating!

never seen it completely before. was aware of it, but didn't get around to watching it. it's from '94, same year as forrest gump and pulp fiction, right?! what a year for movies!

 

 

[flow_42]

and another movie from 1993, apparently. although it's pretty much timeless! oh and I checked the date for forrest gump and pulp fiction, that was '95. the great 90's! *sighs*

 

this time:  SCHINDLER'S LIST - oh my - masterpiece!

I don't know how I feel after this one, I knew I had to see it sometime, been stalling for nearly 20 years.

ralph fiennes was astonishing. it was difficult to watch the movie without a few breaks now and then, it was a lot to take in (3 hours+) and not easy on the eye.

"I could have gotten more..." simply overwhelming.

 

 

 

Edited June 1 by flow_42

[Graven]

Terminal Island (1973)

Print: Vinegar Syndrome Bluray & 4K

Director: Stephanie Rothman

 

The initial setting of this exploitation movie was interesting. Californian first degree murderers are sent to an island for the rest of their lives instead of death penalty.

They have to come along on their own without any help from outside, and it should be impossible to escape.

The dwellers, who are mostly men have divided into two rivaling groups. The other seems to be ruled brutally by a man with a strange fear of dark.

Carmen Simms, soon after having been shipped to the island unfortunately stumbles upon the crueler camp and gets the usual beat treatment into subordination.

For her luck the other group decides to kidnap the women from the other group. In the end they have a wits versus firearms style confrontation.

 

All elements of a good exploitation movie are present. Oppression, campy action and crazy violence.

I got it because Phyllis Davis was impressive in "Sweet Sugar", which was filmed only a year before Terminal Island.

Definitely recommend if you're into the 70s low budget exploitation/drive-in movies, Tom Selleck is also in it.

 

 

 

[flow_42]

^ graven, whenever you post that retro stuff I usually go to youtube and look for trailers or clips to get a vibe of it. TERMINAL ISLAND's trailer had me really intrigued. and I had a good laugh too!

"I'm breaking out of here! I'm going after monk, I'm gonna wipe out that big nigguh faggot, I'm gonna smash his balls till they turn to jello!"

 

[Big Molio]

A Perfect Pairing (2022) Netflix Romantic Comedy

 

Ambitious young American wine executive (Victoria Justice) goes to Australia to try and land a wine deal, ends up falling for the local farm hand (Adam Demos) who works at the client's farm. She volunteers to help on the farm, some "fish out of water" hi-jinks ensue. It goes exactly like you would imagine. They get together, break up towards the end, then get together again in the final scenes. Adam Demos plays exactly the same role as he played in similar 2019 rom-com "Falling Inn Love" opposite Christina Milian.

 

The wife put this on as there was nothing else to watch. Completely forgettable.

[Graven]

The BIg Doll House (1971)

Print: Prism Leisure DVD

Director: Jack Hill

 

The Big Doll House is a Women-In-Prison movie. If you've seen any WIP movies, you can pretty much predict the plot outline beforehand.

Collier is sent to jungle prison for a very long time. There's a pecking order in the cell, she gets a humiliation hazing in a filthy toilet and a round of punches

but soon finds her place among the others. We get the mandatory shower, soft lesbian, cat fight and torture scenes.

The sadist warden of the prison hears about the escape plan, and begins to interrogate the prisoners one by one to get a confession. Brave tough bitches don't break.

With a help of cat (yay one * for the cat) and two oddball fruit delivery men the women take the risky chance of escaping.

 

Compering to other WIP movies, I'd put it somewhere in the average level of entertainment value.

Wasn't nearly as sleazy as some others but I liked the pace, it managed to hold my interest all the way.

The acting could have been better, though that was expected. Thumbs up for the funky score flowing nicely along the picture.

 

 

 

[Graven]

The Candy Snatchers (1973)

Print: Vinegar Syndrome Bluray & DVD

Director: Guerdon Trueblood

 

This Crime Exploitation is truly amazing and for many reasons.

I found the characters interesting and acting great, but what really is superlative is the ingenious writing.

The structure of the chain of events is solid and capturing, the story is filled with unexpected, surprising turns and unique details. Applause for the imagination.

There's a fair amount of good humor, small shot of soft sleaze and a  jaw-dropper ending.

 

Candy is a teenager, she gets kidnapped by a trio of 2 men and one woman. They bury her in a sand pit, she's kept alive for a valuable exchange.

The trio starts to blackmail her father who runs a jewellery shop, but the task becomes very hard because Candy's father does not seem to care much.

No, he actually has a reason to hope that the kidnappers killed her. The kidnappers move to plan B, and plan C but nothing seems to lead them to the jackpot.

I don't want to reveal the details much to ruin it if for you if happened to get a chance to watch it, but there is also a mute young boy in a big role.

His family lives near the place where the kidnappers take Candy, the mute boy sees from the bushes what's happening but he can't tell anyone about it.

9/10, writing gets full 10 or like the movies usually are rated with 5 stars.

 

[Stahli]

Cop Land (1997)

 

Cop Land is a 1997 melodramatic thriller directed by James Mangold, who also wrote the screenplay.
Sheriff Freddy Heflin, played by Sylvester Stallone, lives and works in Garrison. Because he is  deaf

in one ear, he was barred from joining the New York Police Department. His authority is gladly 

damaged by some police officers of the NYPD. When he notices corrupt machinations of these

officers, he tries to come to their aid along with Lt. Moe Tilden (Robert De Niro). Other leading roles

are filled by Harvey Keitel and Ray Liotta.

 

 

Unfortunately I only became aware of this film after the death of Ray Liotta. I liked him as an actor,
especially in Goodfellas. He only has a supporting role in Cop Land, but the overall cast of the film 
made me want to see the film. Although I had my doubts at first as I couldn't imagine Sylvester 
Stallone in this role and the film "only" had a 7/10 rating on Imdb. That's not a little, but I'm always
careful with older films (before 2000) that have less than 7.5/10. But I'm very pleasantly surprised 
by Cop Land. I would have easily given it a 7.5/10. The film is somewhat predictable at times. The 
story twists could have been exhausted a little more. You noticed too early what was going to

happen. Otherwise, a great movie and a great Sylvester Stallon, who I've never seen in a role like

this before.

[Mexicola9302]

I watched Moonfall 2 days ago, ugh it's so mediocre, i would rate it 4.5 or 5 on IMDB scale. The effects and all were good, but the characters in the movie are just not likeable, the dialogues were pretty bad, and the plot was total nonsense.

 

It's one of these "turn off brain and just watch it" movies.

 

I did like Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow and 2012 by Roland Emmerich, but Moonfall just doesn't feel creative anymore. It's like a mix of Armageddon and 2012.

 

I think this was the last movie i seen of Emmerich, he just got bad over the years it seems. Not sure i will ever watch a Emmerich movie again. Maybe it really was his last one, who knows, the majority of ppl didn't like it.

 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5834426/

 

Trailer in spoiler

Spoiler

 

 

Edited June 12 by Mexicola9302