& Days in May? Rings a bell. I'll watch for it.


Just watching HBO upcoming movies: 127 Hours (James Franco) and Matt Damon's "Hereafter". Both start this month. I would like to see both.



TIS

I had pretty much given up on Kevin Smith as a director. I thought his muse had left him. On a lark I decided to watch his movie "Red State" on VOD. It was described as a horror movie.

It wasn't a horror movie.

But it was one of his better movies since "Clerks" or "Chasing Amy". Smith has matured as a director and writer. I'm not saying this movie is Oscar material but it does have some Oscar winning performers in it like Melissa Leo. I was really surprised by how strong the story was. And at just under 90 minutes there's not much wasted here.

It is a take on what would happen if Fred Phelps, he of the "God hate homosexuals" fame, had decided to "start using the Second Amendment and not just the First" as one of the film's characters puts it.

Three horny high school kids (are there any other kind?) are surfing the net to find free sex. They come across a local solicitation from an older woman who agrees to service all three of the boys. Excited, the trio pile into one of their parent's cars and head off to the agreed destination. When they get there they are less than impressed with the looks and demeanor of the woman (Melissa Leo) but decide to go ahead with the plan. However Leo has plans of her own. The boys drink drugged beer and find themselves tied up in the basement of genially deranged preacher Abin Cooper (Michael Parks), Leo's father, who sends his followers out into the world to bring back homosexuals and fornicators for God's punishment. And God's punishment is more than just Bible reading. Parks does a good job with this role.

This film could have gone down the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" road at this point but it turns smartly to focus on ATF agent Joseph Keenan (John Goodman-when did he get so old??) who is called in by the sheriff to handle the situation. Keenan's supervisors are very wary of another Waco or Ruby Ridge(the media attention, not the killings) and give Keenan orders which will cause him and the audience to question just who the good guys are here.

Smith's writing is pretty good here-most of his trademark sarcasm and cynicism is muted-and he has some interesting questions to raise about religious fundamentalism AND the incredible-if not excessive power of the Federal government.

Kevin Pollak, Stephen Root, Michael Angarano and Kerry Bishe also star. I thought this was worth checking out.

Sounds really good, Lilo. I heard that John Goodman lost a lot of weight, and at his age, the skin doesn't have the elasticity to bounce back from that.

John Goodman has always been one of my favorite actors. I loved him as the Acting President on West Wing. My favorite line? "I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm about one prime rib away from a heart attack."

It was good SB. I kept waiting for Jay and Silent Bob to show up or some NJ connection or some over the top dirty joke but Smith didn't write any of that in this film. Just a good straight drama.

Yeah, maybe that's it -the weight loss. He just looked very different and very old.

It sounds like it was the right kind of scary - the kind that makes you go Hmmmmm....

I just love the Bourne movies. I have all of them yet every time one is on tv (like now the Bourne Ultimatum) I find myself tuning in to at least portions of it. So suspenseful.



TIS

nope, never seen it.

I gotta tell you though, after "Spartacus" and "Ace in the Hole" I might look for more Kirk Douglas movies.

Laurence Olivier as Crassus stole "Spartacus" and some other performances are more impressive - Lentullus Batiatus, Gracchus - as Spartacus is a great character nonetheless which didn't have to rely on Douglas' touch to take it to another level.

Ace in the Hole's Charles Tatum though, is a selfish journalist, a cruel human being and a woman-beating bastard and he still comes out as a loveable character because of Kirk Douglas performance. if he hadn't nailed it so perfectly, Tatum would be just a hateful prick.

You might also checkout his performance in In Harm's Way.

I saw "Book of Eli" Friday night. On the surface, it seems to be standard post-Apocalyptic fare. However, it deepens into something much more thought-provoking.

Denzel Washington plays a man who has been walking west for almost 30 years. It seems that God has told him to bring the last remaining bible on Earth to California. He wanders into a town run by a corrupt and evil man, played by Gary Oldman, who is obsessed with getting a copy of the bible, as he understands its power. Jennifer Beals and Mila Kunis play a mother and daughter held captive by Oldman's character.

I don't want to give more than that away, but the film was better than I expected. At first, I thought it was a rip off of the Mad Max series, but it turned out to be a very different film. I highly recommend it.

SB,

I think that's been on HBO. I do like Denzel but wasn't sure if I'd like the movie. I'll try to check it out. Thanks

Last night HBO aired 127 Hours with James Franco. If you remember it was up for the Oscar last year, though didn't get much notice. It is based on a true story in which Franco plays a hiker who slips down into a mountain side and gets his arm stuck under a huge boulder. You would think there wouldn't be much to tell into a 90 minute film but it does keep you interested. You see/hear what is going thru the lead character's mind (some in flashbacks) as he struggles to survive, gradually losing confidence that he'll ever be found. I recommend it.



TIS

Glad to hear that you recommend it, TIS. I was a bit squeamish about seeing it.

One of my coworkers actually met the hiker. He went to his book signing. He said he was quite inspiring.

"Eli" has its violent moments, as well as some WTF moments, but I still felt it was worth seeing. Some people felt the plot holes were too large, but I think every film requires a certain amount of suspended belief.

I saw it and it is unremarkable. It tries to be deep, but fails.

By the way TIS, I've watched Unstoppable several times and I like it more each time. Now I understand better the use of its dynamic camering which creates movement in lieu of static scenes. It's not as staccato as I originally complained.

Really Oli? Hmmm It was actually better than I thought it would be.

Unstoppable has been on regularly and of course it's on "On Demand." Right now there isn't anything good on, so maybe I'll check it out again once I'm ready to get comfortable.


TIS

It's rare, but my husband and I actually went out to the movies last night. My daughter wanted to see "Lion King 3D" with her friends for her birthday. While they watched it, we saw "Contagion".

The movie tracks a virus as it makes its way to the USA from China, thanks to an executive, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, on her way home to her husband and son in Minnesota. The horror is how easily the virus/plague is spread in today's traveling world. You will never look at an elevator button again without feeling a bit of a shudder up and down your spine.

With the possible exception of Matt Damon (Paltrow's husband), you don't really get to know these characters. It's more about the virus, how it's spread, how it kills, and how the CDC and the WHO try to figure it out and stop it.

While it may be a bit dry for some, the movie was worth seeing. It was quite realistic, no drama, as in "Outbreak", no miracle vaccine. Be warned though - bring some hand sanitizer with you. Trust me. You'll be reaching for it afterwards.

The Thing

This is strictly speaking a prequel to the 1982 Kurt Russell movie but in actuality it's a remake right down to the music and even the scene progression. This was a mistake. A bad one. The SFX are good but basically if you've seen the previous movie, you've seen this one-only done right. In fact this was such a disappointment I don't really feel like writing much about it. This might be okay for people who haven't seen the 1982 move but of course any sci-fi/horror fan has already seen the Russell version. This is based on a John Campbell pulp story but it's 100% Lovecraft inspired. It wasn't a bad movie but looking back I just think it was unnecessary. The SFX are both a homage to and an improvement on the 1982 film but what's missing is the sense of paranoia.

There was slightly more explicit violence and gore, probably because that's what the modern audience is used to seeing. A woman (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) had the lead role. She does ok. The movie just didn't work for me. Ok that's it. I'm not writing more about this.

Yes, that's it. I watched Kurt Russell in the 1982 version because I'm a sci-fi/horror fan. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

I love "The Thing" (80s version). I never got to see it in the theater but rented it and it became a classic favorite for my family. Oh yea, and Russell is pretty hot!

Btw, another remake that was a favorite (especially for my girls, tho I enjoyed it too) was Footloose. Anyone see/hear about that remake. It was just released last weekend.



TIS

I haven't seen it, but the reviews I've read are that it is the cheesy remake of a cheesy film. I remember seeing the original in theaters. Kevin Bacon was adorable. I thought Zac Efron was supposed to play Ren in this remake, though. What happened to that?

SB

I don't know what happened. I barely no the cast. The lead girl is from DWTS is about all I know of cast. I saw previews on tv BUT didn't hear the song "Footloose". I'm sure it's gotta be in there.

TIS

Watched Fanny and Alexander recently, which was great (Bergman's 400 Blows in some ways - childhood, atmosphere, autobiographical, inclusion of his favourite actors etc), but I'm contemplating whether to buy the five-hour extended version that's not available online. Probably a long shot as not many might've seen it, but is it significantly different from the theatrical cut?

I recently watched the Fright Night remake with Colin Farrell playing the vampire Jerry. It was better than I thought it would be. Chris Sarandon had a cameo. The major difference is that the new film very quickly has the main character realize that "Jerry" is a vampire.

There is a particularly creepy scene in which Jerry tries to manipulate Charlie into inviting him into his house. Before that Charlie didn't realize he was dealing with a vampire but does during the scene. I wouldn't have paid to see this movie in the theater but VOD was perfect..

They are remaking a lot of horror films. HBO had been running a new Friday the 13th with Jared Padelecki (Supernatural tv show); the other night they had "My Bloody Valentine" remake. I can't rate it cause I never saw the original. I know a few years back they remade "Carrie". I'm thinking it may have something to do with these new horror tv shows that have become hits, like "Walking Dead", "Being Human" & "American Horror Story" not to mention "True Blood."



TIS

i just watched The Sitter with Jonah Hill. The only thing i can say about it is....i liked it when it was called ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING w/elizabeth shue. i thought jonah hill was funny but his last two movies that i have seen him are horriable. the sitter and cyruss was just was plain out strange.

Another remake was Straw Dogs. The setting is changed from England to Mississippi. As I suspected it would this version eliminated the controversial ambiguity about the rape scene that defined the original. Here it is VERY clear that it is rape -not rough seduction.

The remake also removes the scene during the siege when the husband slaps his wife. And just to make sure that its feminist bona fides can't be questioned we have the ridiculous spectacle of the wife going running braless , complaining men are looking at her, telling her husband she dresses for him, right before stripping everything off to tease the workers-including her ex.

WTF?

Anyway those choices aside it's almost a scene-by-scene reworking of the original film. Like the original the film asks some questions about what it means to be a man. The southern workers, who are to a man dedicated to God, guns, football and Lynyrd Sknyrd pretty much in that order have little understanding or patience for the James Marsden character, who is slight, drinks lite beer, listens to classical music and can't change a tire. This being the South their contempt is initially expressed behind a thin veneer of politeness and blink-and-you'll-miss-it sarcasm. When Marsden's character expresses dismay that the barn re-roofing is taking too long, Skarsgard's character responds with seeming kindness and curiosity "How long , in your experience sir, should a roofing job take?"

James Marsden, Kate Bosworth, Alexander Skarsgaard and James Woods star.

I love James Marsden, and I hear that he finally breaks his Corny Collins and 27 Dresses smarminess and shows some serious acting chops.

I saw the original of Straw Dogs when it was released and posted a trailer to both on here on the BB. I hadn't seen the original since it's release. At the time I saw every movie Hoffman made. I do remember it being somewhat of a "downer" type movie but not a bad movie. But, like I said, it's been a long while. I'd probably check-out the remake on HBO.



TIS

The Christmas Day film we watched was THE KINGS SPEECH. Despite it's great press and the fact that it's a Brit film i didn't really fancy it. Have to say though, its a great movie, well worth a watch.

I agree, I thought it was decent too. Of course I thought the original version was decent as well (if overrated by the Internet), if primarily worth watching because of the late great Roddy McDowell.*

What bothers me is that the FRIGHT NIGHT remake bombed. Why is it that in recent years, any decent horror (or horror-flavored at least) movie bombs in theatres while the public rewards the latest mindless, boring, insulting horror sequel or Bay-produced remake? I'm reminded of another solidly entertaining horror-themed release in DAYBREAKERS, which didn't just bomb, it never broke weekend box-office Top Ten.

And people wonder why that genre is too busy felching itself.

*=Who incidentally also help make another pretty decent 80s matinee picture in CLASS OF 1984 much better than it had any right to be.

We watched "Contagion" last night and I have been washing my hands every ten minutes ever since!

Saw Shaft last night. Takes me back to those 70s and the styles, the cultural and societal upheavals. That theme - wow! The acting left alot to be desired, but it was fun.