#the classic who dvd documentaries are ALWAYS worth watching

[lilydvoratrelundar]

And for the classic show:

The Tom Baker stories The Ark In Space, The Brain of Morbius, and Pyramids of Mars were re-written almost entirely by script editor Robert Holmes, two of them were credited to pseudonyms and one just to Holmes.

The Dominators was originally scheduled to be 6 episodes long, however the production team agreed it was shite and decided to shorten it to only 5 episodes. The original plot was condensed to be an episode shorter, and the following story, The Mind Robber, was given an extra episode at the start. Instead of extending the story, the writers and production team created a weird and unnerving prequel episode using mostly stock sets props and costumes.

The Edge of Destruction only exists because the original series order for the first ever Doctor Who series was 13 episodes. If they weren't extended to their full series order, the production team didn't want to have the series end two episodes into the 7-part Marco Polo, but they only had the money to actually film the episode, plus some small amount of prop work and a few stock images.

The fourth story of season 6 fell through and had to be pushed back in the season (it was ultimately cancelled), resulting in The Invasion being extended from 4 episodes to 8.

Similarly, the final 4-parter and 6-parter of season 6 both fell through, and script editor Terrance Dicks worked with writer Malcolm Hulke to create a 10-part story, The War Games, to act as the final Patrick Troughton serial instead.

The very specific brief of Horror of Fang Rock was Robert Holmes' revenge on Terrance Dicks for forcing him to write to a similarly limiting brief for The Time Warrior

City of Death began as a story by David Fisher about 1920s gambling in Monte Carlo used to fund Scarlioni's time travel experiments to prevent his people dying of the common cold. Producer Graham Williams found that the gambling plotline was inappropriate for children, but when Fisher was unavailable for rewrites, Williams and script editor DOUGLAS ADAMS !!!! rewrote it almost entirely and credited it to a pseudonym

The original season 15 finale was deemed too expensive to produce, as due to the ongoing economic crisis in the UK the show's budget was stretched even thinner than usual. Graham Williams and script editor Anthony Read wrote The Invasion of Time to be a lot cheaper, since it re-used a lot of costumes and sets for Gallifrey

Ghost Light started as a story about the Time Lords featuring a lot of elements that would be then adapted into the book Lungbarrow for the VNAs. The story was then repurposed to be about a creepy old Victorian house, playing into Ace's backstory rather than the Doctor's

Time and the Rani wasn't originally a post-regeneration story, but Colin Baker refused to return after being fired. I don't blame him.

A lot of early Pertwee stories were 6 or 7 episodes long to save money on sets and costumes. A lot of the blatant padding is complete filler, but sometimes it resulted in strokes of genius like the alternate universe plotline in Inferno, which completely transforms the tone and vibe of that story

Terry Nation tried to sell a Dalek show to American producers in the late 60s/early 70s. Because of this, he refused to let Doctor Who use the Daleks from The Evil of the Daleks in season 4 (in which the daleks are finally defeated completley and therefore somewhat written out of the show) until Day of the Daleks in season 9.

The Celestial Toymaker was written about three times by different writers, and script editors coming in and out of the program during season 3 until it didn't resemble Brian Hayles' original storyline at all. However, it was still credited to him because of rules about crediting script editors in the BBC.

The same thing happened with The Massacre of St Batholemew's Eve, John Lucarotti also hated the rewrites by Donald Tosh however Tosh could only be credited in episode four because by that point he was no longer script editor. John Lucarotti wrote then novelisation and it is apparently very different to what was broadcast (I haven't read it)

Matthew Waterhouse appears as Adric in Time-Flight despite the character having died a week earlier, so as to keep his being written out as a secret - the Radio Times listings credited Waterhouse for Time-Flight, therefore he wasn't conspicuously absent in a way which could have led to viewers guessing his fate.

The Deadly Assassin had no companion in it because Tom Baker insisted that the show didn't need one - the story was written to give him what he wanted to keep him on side, but it was also partly an attempt by the production team to prove him wrong.

Leela's exit in The Invasion of Time is so awkwardly slapped onto the end because Graham Williams was convinced he could get Louise Jameson to stay on for another year, and kept writing scripts with the possibility of her staying.

AND THE BIG ONE this is very complicated but.

Robert Holmes was originally commissioned to write the concluding 2-parter of The Trial of a Time Lord. He wrote the first episode, and then was hospitalised and died shortly after. Script editor Eric Saward stepped in to write the final episode and finished the story based on Holmes's notes.

HOWEVER the original ending, by both Holmes and Saward, was a cliffhanger featuring the Doctor and Valeyard fighting with an ambiguous ending. Producer John Nathan-Turner feared that, having just come off a forced 18 month hiatus and not being in the good graces of BBC controller Michael Grade, the show might be cancelled if they thought this ending would serve as a fitting conclusion to the entire show. JNT asked that the ending be rewritten. Eric Saward, who had not been getting along with JNT at all during the last few years of the show, quit, and prohibited access to his script or the original notes.

JNT had to act as script editor to writers Pip and Jane Baker who were brought in to pen the final episode of the season, tying up the loose ends and using the plot elements established in part one, without being allowed to follow the same plotline as Saward's script.

Trial of a Time Lord was already Not Very Good but this really just made the ending so much worse. The extremely confused nature of the production of that final episode also meant that a shoehorned in happy ending for Peri was added.

How Behind-the Scenes Issues Affected the Writing of Doctor Who (Both Good and Bad)

Doctor Who is such a fascinating show to look at from a Watsonian v. Doylist perspective. Like, entirely just from an episode writing point of view:

Twice Upon A Time feels so slow and meandering and even boring in places because Chris Chibnall didn't want to start his run as showrunner and Steven Moffat didn't want the show to lose the coveted Christmas timeslot (ironic, I know) so he bumped the Twelfth Doctor's regeneration from the end of The Doctor Falls (where it makes sense) to the end of the Christmas special

Boom Town (my beloved) only exists because originally there was going to be an episode in its spot explaining that Rose had been molded to be the Doctor's perfect companion (by the Doctor, gross) and the writer didn't have the time to commit to the show

The ending of Last Christmas feels like one inside-a-dream too many because originally Jenna Coleman was questioning whether she was going to leave the show or not and the ending was rewritten after the first readthrough when she decided she wanted to stay for another season

The first five episodes of Season 7 feel like each one takes place in a different genre because that's literally how Steven Moffat pitched it to the writers; for example, A Town Called Mercy was literally pitched as "Doctor Who does a Western"

Not so much a weird one but one I find cool: Eleven's first words and Thirteen's first words were literally written by Moffat and Chibnall respectively, as they were brought in to write the first words of the first Doctors of their runs so as to make it cohesive

The reason why Fourteen isn't wearing Thirteen's clothes when he regenerates is because Jodie Whittaker is much shorter than David Tennant and Russell T. Davies didn't want it to look like he was making fun of the genderfluidity of the Doctor (still think he made the wrong decision, but eh)

Wilfred Mott isn't in the Runaway Bride and Donna's father isn't in Partners in Crime because the actor who played Donna's father, Howard Attfield, died after filming several scenes for Partners In Crime, leading to the character of "Stan Mott" from Voyage of the Damned being written into Partners In Crime as Donna's grandfather

Astrid Peth doesn't die in the original drafts of Voyage of the Damned, but Russell T. Davies wrote what is generally considered one of the most emotional deaths in Doctor Who just because he wanted Kylie Minogue to be able to focus on her music career

Originally Oxygen was written as a prequel to Mummy on the Orient Express, where a corporate representative appeared on a monitor. Said representative was fired for his fumbling of the station and would later live on as the company computer, Gus

During Season 11, Chris Chibnall had to do some major rewrites for many of the one-off episodes, therefore The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos ended up being a first draft that made it to screen. He later admitted it was his least favorite episode of the series

And this is only a fraction of what I found in terms of major behind-the-scenes writing reasons. Though I am still totally willing to critique the product that made it to our screens, finding out the reasons behind some of the more badly written episodes of the show really made me feel sympathy for every showrunner of the show as well as appreciate a lot of the good episodes that ended up here despite the short production schedule/unexpected problems (once again, Boom Town my beloved AND everyone's favorite companion Wilfred Mott only exist because of unforseen problems). Absolutely bonkers, isn't it?

[world0fmadness]

Hey, you seem like you’re into horror. Do you have a favourite horror movie, any suggestions on what to watch? Hope you’re having a great day!

Ps. Love the last hc about camping, Nocturno really deserves more love in this community :))

-🐀

୨୧ hey there, my sweet little rat anon! i’m having a very decent day and i hope you are too, if not then i send many hugs and kisses

indeed, i am very much into horror lolol! been into it just about as long as i have been extreme metal music, just a little earlier… oh what an amazing question to ask during the spookiest month of the year and so close to halloween! trying to get some scary movies figured out for the rest of the month? nothing feels better than watching a horror during halloween… it would simply be too hard for me to pick a singular favourite but i can name a couple off the top of my head for you

some of these kind of teeter on the edge of thriller more than horror but some favourites would be ;

house of wax, 2005 ( perhaps this will be a hot take but as someone who owns both the original movie and the remake, i actually preferred the remake! i think it was just so different and creative in the best way possible, it was not just a lazy cash grab remake of an old film, they really put their own spin on it and changed things up for what i think was the better! the set design for this movie is absolutely gorgeous and i believe the short documentary or behind the scenes footage is available to watch for free on youtube but i have it on dvd myself! paris hilton is in this movie and surprisingly does a decent job at acting her role, she did very well and fit her assigned character )

house of 1000 corpses, 2003 ( listen, i do not think this is the best horror movie in the world and i would never claim it to be that but it just has a very special place in my heart because it hits points of everything i enjoy in a movie! the acting, in my own opinion, is very good, the plot is so strange but not too much of a complete mind fuck to where it is just not enjoyable to watch anymore, it has some comedy that works well and is not just randomly thrown in there and ohhh the soundtrack, my beloved soundtrack! just a killer halloween movie, especially since it actually takes place during halloween )

black christmas, 1974 ( there really is not much i can say about this one without rambling for hours! just a classic, must watch horror! it’s an annual christmas and halloween movie for me! it used to keep me up some nights when staying at my grandparents house due to the type of house they had being similar to the house in the movie unlike my own )

the crow, 1994 ( another general classic movie that to me, is a must watch for the dark and gothic romantics out there! such a beautiful movie with and even better soundtrack for those who enjoy industrial metal and all )

rec, 2007 ( so damn freaky, knocks the blair witch project out of the water when it comes to found footage horror films! the screaming and yelling all just sounds so genuine and loud, the acting from the main cast is just so incredible in my opinion )

the descent, 2005 ( as someone who loves horror movies that slowly turn into so much more than they seem on the surface… wowee did this one catch me so off guard! the feelings of claustrophobia this film fills you with, the feelings of panic and tension is just amazing )

the dark crystal, 1982 ( i class this as a horror because the strange vulture creatures scared the living shit out of me when i first watched it as a child and i always watch this movie during october but now, i see how truly gorgeous this movie is despite still being a little disturbing to me at times )

the texas chainsaw massacre, 1974

elvira: mistress of the dark, 1988

the satanic rites of dracula, 1973

the evil dead, 1981

the birds, 1963

psycho, 1960

carrie, 1976

and some that are not quite favourites but i still think are definitely worth mentioning as recommendations ;

silent hill, 2006 ( i have my issues with this movie and i absolutely hate how the snow not ash lore plagued the community for so long and still does but i would be lying if i said i did not find it to be an enjoyable movie! i do absolutely love the atmosphere and the costume design, not to mention that the plot is not all that bad at all! definitely worth a watch, especially if you would like to get into silent hill but maybe do not enjoy playing games and simply prefer movies )

the texas chainsaw massacre 2, 1986 ( obviously nowhere near as spooky and scary and grisly as the first, classic movie but that is the whole point! the tonal shift is just amazing in my opinion and the comedy is just so… so obviously eighties in the best ways possible! a must watch comedy horror for me, so goofy and weird yet so lovable )

elephant, 2003 ( not so much a horror at all, more a thriller but i will mention this movie whenever i can because it is just so eery and so incredibly disturbing despite not being a horror, despite not having creatures that look like they come from the deepest pits of hell, despite the only cast and characters being our own human selves )

tokyo gore police, 2008 ( another less than perfect movie but to me, it is just such a joy to watch with all of the weirdness and wackiness it holds )

creepshow, 1982, creepshow 2, 1987

the lovely bones, 2009

bride of chucky, 1998

murder weapon, 1989

the collector, 2009

the lost boys, 1987

laid to rest, 2009

cat people, 1942

may, 2002

again, these are just quick and off the top of my head so i am definitely missing a few notable ones, does not help that i’m a little sleepy at the minute but hopefully these are some decent enough recommendations for you! have fun watching ^w^

and thank you very much! super glad to hear how many people really liked them when i was so worried about them not being the best hehe…

yeahhh, he absolutely does! he was and still is a total cutie, so so so handsome and so obviously a complete sweetheart! though to be honest, i feel like there are just so many under-appreciated and under-loved people in the black metal scene! there are so many people who deserve so much love and appreciate, much more than they get…

thanks again for this ask, rat anon! you guys don’t know how happy it makes me to answer any and all of your questions <3

[adultswim2021]

Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! #6: “Slop” | March 18, 2007 - 11:45PM | S01E06

Cold Open: Tim and Eric enter the frame in different outfits, walking with their chests out. Eventually Tim enters with his shirt off. His nip does a big milk squirt, yuck! (the first of many sketches to feature his teets). This sketch repeats with Tim wearing a sweater which Bugs Bunny (I assume) erases away at said sweater exposing Tim’s nips yet again. This includes a middle third one which weeps a drop of blood, which gets lapped up by a giant “tongue” that juts out of Tim’s pants (it sure looks like something else). This is said to be in reference to some extra feature on the DVD for the Gary Busey classic Quigley.

Tonight’s hosts are a fake, foreign Tim & Eric, who are barely intelligible. They mostly just say nonsense words. Tim & Eric point out in the commentary track that it’s a little self-indulgent to be doing this on your sixth episode. But it does yield one of the greatest moments of the show: the post credits stinger of the episode wherein a sick Tim Heidecker pathetically says “we should all get together some time heh heh heuugh (coughing fit)”. This is one of those moments of television that has never left my head. 

What I’d call the “main” sketch of the show is Beaver Boys, which has three segments. The Beaver Boys are two brothers who dress in tight white clothing, drink white wine, eat shrimp, and seek out sexual partners to have unprotected sex with. This is a very typical Tim & Eric premise: Weird characters acting weird, dumb names of things popping up on screen (for this sketch it’s the Beaver Boy’s various dances). We see them harass women on a beach who at first seem to freeze at the sight of them as if they are wild animals and they are behaving in whatever way a teacher or valued community member taught them to in the event of a Beaver Boy encounter. When they start conversing, it’s as if they are humoring little children. The voices Tim & Eric use are “deaf guy adjacent”, and I wonder if that was a choice. A shirtless man in a fanny pack looks at them piteously: this man was on the beach that day, watching them film. They liked his look, so they asked him to film a cameo. It’s worth noting that Tim is also shirtless in this, again.

Beaver Boys would recur in the series at least a couple more times. This is definitely the strongest of all the sketches, I think. It was reworked from its original form, which you can find on the DVD extras. It was originally envisioned as a documentary about said boys. There was also a “viral video” of them performing a rap song about being Beaver Boys. Tim and Eric point out in the commentary that it’s good to come up with characters that your fans can easily dress up as. Indeed, I’ve been to many Tim & Eric live events, and there are always Beaver Boys in the crowd. 

DLH does a song about Staying in School, this time with a big creepy bear puppet. The best part of this is when it winks at the camera. It’s alright. Too scary! 

Tragg’s Trough is their big celebrity sketch featuring Fred Willard. This one has grown on me. I thought it was sorta weak at the time, despite having an affinity for both Fred Willard and Tim & Eric. At the time I thought their styles clashed just a tad, and considered this a mild miss. As it’s own thing, I like it! Willard worked out a lot of ad-libs for this, so it’s safe to say he absolutely made it his own. There’s a little call back in this where Fred Willard says “stay in school” for no reason. I could do without that. Get out of school, you sicko. Oh yeah RIP Fred Willard.

Kidz Break is back with “I Wear My Dad’s Dirty Socks”, based on a real dad Tim or Eric or both of them knew. He was the dad of a childhood friend who would go out line dancing and come home reeking of other women’s perfume and would casually come home to face his wife. The song is catchy but nowhere near the heights of “I Sit Down When I Pee”. I think they went too broad with the make-up here. I think these characters are supposed to be real kids, but the pronounced rosy cheeks make me think we’re watching adult actors portray children in-universe, like it’s a Mexican sitcom or something. The first sketch is so perfect, so it’s gonna be a hard act to follow. This does have an excellent shot of Tim spewing a sock out of his mouth. Yuck! 

The Ken Tulley exercise tapes commercial is really fucking funny and great. It’s a weird premise that’s a tad tough to follow: Ken Tulley (Tim with his shirt off yeat again) and his weird wife are selling a set of exercise tapes that he has legally acquired but otherwise has nothing to do with. The tapes involve a potty-mouthed hispanic man whose fitness regimen requires the ability to flip. Ken Tulley bundles this with a bunch of other useless crap that he’s probably also legally acquired, like Glow Bonez, a car tarp (it actually makes your car smaller), and a spherical storage container called the Taargüs. Get in shape, dickhead!

Honestly, I remembered this one as my least-favorite of season one. At the very least I now like it better than Chunky. Pretty gosh darn good.

[glenngaylord]

Glenn Gaylord’s Capsules From The Bunker – Summer 2021 Lockdown Style

Like many of you, I’ve lost all concept of space and time during this lockdown era. I’d watch movie after movie, but somehow forget to write about them. I’d consume films for sustenance, but then I’d move on to the next task of cleaning a room, doing a crossword puzzle, or staring at my dog for hours on end. Thank goodness I have a few friends to have breakfast with every now and then, or else I’d have assumed I had been transported to a cabin in Montana. “Am I a film critic or a hermit?” I’d ask myself daily…that is, if I even understand what days are anymore. All of this is to say that I have a lot of catching up to do now that we’ve taken a baby step or two towards returning to some sense of normalcy. Wait a minute. What’s that? Highly transmissible variants? Back into the cave I go. While I still can, I’ve managed to blurt out a few capsule reviews of some films worth mentioning.

In Between Gays – Film Review: Summer Of 85 ★★★★

Prolific French filmmaker, François Ozon, has made a career out of finding dark crevices in the most unexpected of places. Here, with Summer Of 85, he tweaks this New Wave era gay romance just enough to upend our expectations. In pure Talented Mr. Ripley meets Call Me By Your Name meets Luca fashion, Ozon spins what could have been that sun-dappled, seaside summer that changed everything into a love that perhaps never was, zeroing in instead on a young man’s obsession for something unobtainable. Beautifully shot and acted, Ozon takes the story to more provocative places than you’d initially expect while still maintaining the boppy fizz of a great Cure song. Despite the mish mash of tones, the film has a pulse all of its own. It’ll make you swoon, pull the rug out from under you, and then make you wonder how he managed to quietly get a little twisted.

Summer Of 85 currently in select theaters, see official website for details. Released on DVD and BluRay August 17th.

Truffle In Mind – Film Review: Pig ★★★★

Writer-director Michael Sarnoski makes an auspicious feature debut with the story of a man searching for his stolen truffle-hunting pig. Caked in dirt, blood and looking not so much like a homeless man but as a person who died inside a thousand times over, Nicholas Cage gives one of his best performances ever as a man who seeks the truth at all costs. He asks his only connection to the outside world, Amir, played wonderfully by Alex Wolff, to drive him through Portland’s dark underbelly to retrieve his pet companion.

Although the film takes us to a rather unbelievable “Fight Club” moment, it generally holds its mood with credibility. It’s a great calling card, not only for Sarnoski, but also for his talented cinematographer Patrick Scola, who brings a painterly quality to every single image. The film finds beauty in a bite of food, a breath of air, or simply the compassion between two main characters who have seemingly little in common. It’s a shame the trailer elicits laughs when Cage utters lines like, “Who has my pig?” Clearly they want to sell the actor’s neo-gonzo persona, but Cage brings so much depth and seriousness to this project, only raising his voice once. He deserves the highest praise for committing to such an oddly touching, gorgeously quiet story. At risk of sounding Dad-jokey, the only thing that hogs the scenery is his porcine friend.

Pig is in theaters now.

All Is Lost – Film Review: Old ★★

In 1999, M. Night Shyamalan made a great film, The Sixth Sense, and has been chasing that dragon ever since, often to diminishing returns. His films, however, often do well because he has great concepts, a keen eye for visuals and timing, yet things always seem to turn clunky and inane real fast. With Old, he continues down that path by giving us something compelling—a group of people on a beach who age quickly—and ruining it with dialogue seemingly written by an algorithm and rendered unintelligible much of the time, while the terrific cast seem to have no idea how to make Shyamalan’s words sound any better than a high school play. A couple of sequences did make me sit up and take notice, and he uses compositions and offscreen space well, but overall, Old plays like a stretched-out episode of Lost, and like that cool but overstuffed series, you’re not gonna get very good explanations as to what transpires. Sure, the big twist works well enough on some level, but it doesn’t save you from the discomfort of watching good actors flatline in more ways than one.

Old is currently in theaters nationally.

Hi Fidel-ity – Film Review: Revolution Rent ★★★1/2

Shot in 2014, Andy Señor Jr., who played Angel on Broadway along with a host of other credits, staged the classic musical Rent in Havana during a thaw in our relations with the Communist regime. He did so against the wishes of his Cuban family, who suffered under Castro and insisted his production would merely serve as a propaganda tool for the government. He plows ahead instead, capturing the months long process in a rather artless home movie style. The aesthetics don’t carry any weight here when you have such a compelling subject matter. Witnessing his actors struggling with their performances while also living in harsh conditions adds new layers to the late Jonathan Larson’s story of squatters in the age of AIDS.

With a limited talent pool, one of whom doesn’t feel comfortable with the gay subject matter and another who lives with HIV himself, Señor finds new connections to Larson’s material as well as an affection for his heritage. What we may have taken for granted here in the US in terms of sexuality and gender expression feels like a whole new experience when seen through a Cuban lens. Señor speaks out against the Castros with quick sequences showing moments of oppression, thus preventing this film from perpetuating the lies of its government. Instead, he gifts the people of this poor, struggling country with a real sense of community and its first burst of musical theater in ages. Sure he’s a privileged westerner who dangles hope in front of people only to return to his cushy life, but he does so with heart and good intentions. You end up loving and rooting for his cast in this moving, sweet documentary.

Revolution Rent is currently streaming on HBO Max.

Do The Hustlers – Film Review: Zola ★★★★

Call me wary when I went to see a movie based on a viral twitter thread and directed by Janicza Brava, whose Sundance Award-winning short, Gregory Go Boom, proved to be not only tone deaf but downright offensive towards people with disabilities. Her new film, Zola, excels however, in ways her prior work has not. Taylour Paige, a standout in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, plays the title character, a stripper who meets Stefani (Riley Keough) one night and is convinced to travel with her down to Florida where they can make a lot of money dancing all weekend. Things, however, do not go as planned, with Zola’s story escalating from one insane twist after another. Paige and Keough are outstanding, as are Nicholas Braun and Colman Domingo as their traveling companions. Jason Mitchell, so great in Straight Outta Compton and Mudbound, brings a wild, dangerous energy, something he shares with the film itself. It comes across as The Florida Project meets Hustlers, but with its own surreal, unexpected tone. I laughed out loud often, especially with Paige’s loopy reactions to her surroundings and the giddy, zippy energy on display. Zola chews you up, twerks on your face, and spits you out, exhausted yet anxious to see whatever this talented group of people will do next.

Zola is currently playing in select theaters and available on demand.

Banned On The Run – Film Review: There Is No Evil ★★★★

It’s impossible to review There Is No Evil without giving away its central premise, so I will avoid as much description as possible. Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof has crafted a four-part anthology of sorts around an agonizing moral issue important to people worldwide. At the end of the first part, a stunning cut to an unforgettable visual reveals everything and allows you to watch the rest with informed eyes. Rasoulof seamlessly excels at different genres, from family drama, to action escape, to romance, weaving a tale of such depth and sorrow for its talented cast of characters.

The making of it proves as interesting at the film itself. Banned by the regime from producing feature films for two years and prohibited from traveling outside of Iran, Rasoulof, like any crafty filmmaker, came up with an ingenious plan. He slipped under the radar by calling these four short films, mostly shot in small towns far outside the reach of Tehran, and then had the final product smuggled out of the country. A filmmaker with such talent not only at telling stories, but the with ability to will his vision into existence against all odds, deserves the world’s attention.

There Is No Evil is available on DVD, BluRay and VOD now.

In Space No One Can Hear You Think – Film Review: F9: The Fast Saga ★★★

Considered review-proof, the Fast and the Furious franchise has ruled the box office for the past 20 years, so my calling its latest entry, F9: The Fast Saga, monumentally dumb will have zero influence on anyone’s decision to see it. We all know it’s big and stupid, as do the filmmakers. These films, deliver said stupid with such gusto, that you simply surrender and have a great time nonetheless. Nothing, however, prepared me, for this series to go all Moonraker, sending a car to a place no car has ever gone before. You’ll know it when you see it and probably say, “That’s ludicrous!” and also say, “That’s Ludacris!”

F9: The Fast Saga is currently playing on every screen on Earth and in select theaters throughout the universe.

[greensparty]

Returning to the Cinema

The other night, I returned to the movie theater for the first time in over a year. The last time I went to the movies was in February 2020. Since I began going to the movies at a very young age, this is the longest amount of time between movie theater visits for me. Its funny how you just take something like that for granted: wherever I lived, whatever was going on in my life, wherever I worked - I always found time to go to my happy place: the movie theater! Once select cinemas began re-opening in Summer 2020, I didn’t feel the risk was worth it for me to go see a movie, so I just watched DVDs and streaming during that time. A few weeks ago after it had been two weeks since my second vaccine shot, I began the process of slowly getting back to normal. One of those things is getting back to the movies. I chose a special movie theater and a special movie for this special occasion.

The Coolidge Corner Theatre (located in Brookline, MA) is one of the most prominent and respected independently owned and operated indie movie theaters in the U.S. I first went there as a teen around 1991 when my friend brought me to see Spike and Mike’s Festival of Animation there. It was such a cool grand cinema and they play older films as well as indie films. Over the years, I’ve seen countless films there including the re-release of The Graduate, a midnight showing of 12 Monkeys, anniversary screenings of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and 2001, and of course Independent Film Festival Boston screenings. But of all the awesome films I’ve seen there over the years, my favorite was in 2018 when they did a special one-night sold-out screening of my documentary Life on the V: The Story of V66! Since the Coolidge’s closure in March 2020, I have made donations to them, purchased their concession stand curbside pick-up and I even attended the virtual seminar on Jonathan Demme’s classic Something Wild (a class I easily could have taught, but I still had a blast)!

Coolidge Corner Theatre marquee

Last month, the Coolidge re-opened while maintaining COVID protocol (limited capacity, masks required, etc). They began showing some classics and they are continuing their programming this month. For my reunion with the movie theater experience, I chose just the right Coolidge screening: David Lynch’s 1986 masterpiece Blue Velvet! This is one of my 15 favorite films of all time. As special as this film is to me, I’m embarrassed to say I’ve never actually seen it on the big screen before, which is why this was the perfect movie for me to see on the big screen. I believe they were showing the Criterion 4K restored version. Even though I own the movie and can watch it anytime, it was important for me to see this on the big screen with an audience. 

As I sat in the limited capacity theater (there was probably about 25-30% occupancy in the big movie house, people and groups sitting apart from each other) with my beer and popcorn (this wasn’t just any old trip to the movies, so you might as well enjoy it!) and I marveled at Lynch’s surreal film noir mystery in spectacular projection and sound, it was a form of escapism I hadn’t had in so long. Blue Velvet really is an audience movie: like a lot of Lynch’s films there’s a ton of moments of pure weirdness and bizarre acting, which lends itself to the communal experience of movie-going. There were tons of parts where the audience was laughing (”you know the chicken walk?”) and there was applause at the end credits. After the film ended, I caught up with some friends who were also in the audience and we chatted for a few minutes about some of the recent IFFBoston films. More than any social interaction in the last year+ it took me back to the days of going to see a movie and talking film with friends afterwards in the lobby, outside the cinema or in the cinema itself! 

With the Brattle re-opening next month and more Hollywood theatrical releases on the way, there’s signs of a return to normalcy, especially for film geeks like myself! 

For info on Coolidge Corner Theatre: https://coolidge.org/

[discovisiondreams]

Top 15 First Watches of 2020

I’ve never been good at staying current on pop culture, and that became especially pronounced in 2020. A year where most of the anticipated theatrical releases were pushed to VOD (and the price nearly tripled) meant that a lot of flicks I was excited for got added to the end of the “Maybe Someday” watchlist. 

But in this strange year, I did manage to watch 245 movies- and 195 of those were first-time watches. Some were new, only available on the (virtual) festival circuit. Some were Criterion mainstays, films I’m horrified to admit I hadn’t seen before. But this year, when movies cemented themself as my biggest joy, I began to really track what I watched- including a “top 5 first watches of the month” roundup for every month. These top 5s weren’t ranked, and weren’t even based on technical ability, strength of dialogue, or critical acclaim. They were just the 5 I loved the best. 

So without further ado, here are my top 15 of the year- one selected from the top 5 of each month, with some bonus entries thrown in as well. As a general rule, I only included features on this list- I was fortunate enough to catch shorts that streamed at Chattanooga Film Fest, Celebration of Fantastic Fest, and more, but to add them to the running would have made writing this listicle absolutely impossible. 

HONORABLE Honorable Mention: The Holiday. Inspired by the fine folks at Super Yaki, I finally watched this Nancy Meyers classic. Why is it two and a half hours long?! Why is that two and a half hours so significantly lacking in Jack Black?! The scenes that Black is in, though, really shine. This one is going to be a Christmas mainstay in the Disco household (and not just because I spent money on the DVD).

15: The Love Witch (Honorable Mention, April). This one came highly recommended to me by friends of all sorts, and like most of my 2020 first watches, I’m deeply embarrassed that it took me this long to get to it. Upon finally watching it, on a rainy Sunday, I described the movie in general (and the color palette, specifically) as “sumptuous,” which is one of the most complimentary visual descriptors I can bestow upon a movie. The plot felt a little convoluted at times, but I still found The Love Witch incredibly enjoyable and am hoping to explore more of writer-director Anna Biller’s filmography in 2021.

14: The Guest (Honorable Mention, October). The Guest is one of the few movies I watched multiple times this year- and the only one I watched twice in one week. From the sultry industrial soundtrack selections to the numerous visual nods to Halloween III: Season of the Witch, The guest was Extremely My Shit. The casting here is truly tremendous- especially Maika Monroe, who was similarly brilliant in It Follows. Also of note: Lance Reddick, one of my current favourite character actors. 

13: The Fast and The Furious (Honorable Mention, May). 2 Fast 2 Furious (and its bespoke theme song, Act A Fool, by Ludacris) came out when I was in the 6th grade. Do you remember the music and movies that entered the world when you were in 6th grade? Do you have an inexplicable zealous love for them? 2F2F was the only film in the Fast Cinematic Universe I had seen for a long, long time. Then I saw Fate of the Furious. Then I bought the series box set, as a joke?? And then, slowly but then also all at once, I genuinely started to love this franchise. Some of them are truly ridiculous. Some of them are genuinely bad. But the first one? The Fast and The Furious (2001)? Timeless. Point Break updated and adapted for the early-aughts, The Fast and the Furious walked so The Italian Job (2003) could run. Without The Fast and The Furious, Paul Walker would just be “the guy from Tammy and The T-Rex” to millions of casual cinemagoers. The cultural impact of The Fast and The Furious simply cannot be denied!! 

12: Come to Daddy (Top 5, July). Honestly, this is the exact flavor of bonkers bullshit I’ve grown to expect from Elijah Wood, and that is not an indictment. Wood’s genuine love for genre film is evident here, in what can only be described as an uncomfortable film of family, reunion, and redemption. The tense and abrasive first half gives way to a surprisingly relieving wave of violence and exposition in this critically-acclaimed flick. 

11: The Stylist (Top 5, September). The feature-length debut of writer-director Jill Gevargizian, based off her short of the same name, is female-led horror that pays homage to genre mainstays like Maniac and Psycho while still being decidedly singular. Not only shot in Kansas City, but set in Kansas City, The Stylist made my midwestern heart happy. This is one that I really, really would have loved to see in a crowded theater auditorium, were this year a different one. 

10: In The Mouth of Madness (Top 5, March). Despite being the beginning of pandemic awareness, March was a slow month for me, movie-wise (even though it’s not like I had anything else going on??). But I finally made time for this Carpenter classic, and I’m so happy I did. I’ve long been fascinated by stories about stories, and the people who find themselves trapped within those stories, and this one is truly, in the most basic sense of the word, horrifying. Sam Neill proves that he belongs in horror here, making his role in Event Horizon seem like a natural fit. Also a highlight: noted character actor David Warner, best known (to me) as “Billy Zane’s bodyguard guy in Titanic,” who never ever fails to be unsettling. 

9: Profondo Rosso (Top 5, April). Before this year, my only Argento exposure was Suspiria (which is phenomenal), but Deep Red goes off the deep end in all the best ways. The score (by frequent Argento collaborators Goblin) is truly groovy. The number of twists and turns the plot takes is kind of mind-boggling, but also delightful. Daria Nicolodi (RIP)  is at the top of her acting game here. This quickly became one of my beloved background movies- if I opened Shudder and Profondo Rosso was playing on one of their live-streaming channels, it stayed on while I was cleaning or cooking or paying bills. Profondo Rosso is a must-watch for those hoping to get into giallo.

8: Crimson Peak (Top 5, November). This one was definitely not what I was expecting, but it was GORGEOUS. I loved the world immediately (a Del Toro trademark, to be honest). As a longtime Pacific Rim stan, it made my heart happy to see Charlie Hunnam and Burn Gorman reunited under Guillermo Del Toro’s vision. 

7: Palm Springs (Top 5, August). I am not typically a time-travel movie enthusiast- but I am a sucker for witty repartee and Andy Samberg. This one made me ugly-cry, which I should probably be a bit more ashamed to admit. August had a lot of really great first watches, but the Hulu exclusive takes the cake due to its novel premise, some truly heart-wrenching reveals, and the amazing casting (is there anything JK Simmons cant do?). 

6: Scare Package (Top 5, May). Is there any format I love more than the horror anthology? While there have been so many over the years (Creepshow, All the Creatures Were Stirring), Scare Package might be my favourite of them all. A variety of fun and inventive stories combined with a genre-lovers dream of an overarching narrative make this one a must-see- in fact, it was the whole reason I bought a pass to this year’s online version of Chattanooga Film Fest. There’s a cameo here that absolutely knocked my socks off (and continued to do so even on repeat viewings). While the scares here are honestly minimal, Scare Package is a great love letter to the genre at large.

5: Do The Right Thing (Top 5, June). Yes, it took me until 2020 to watch Do The Right Thing for the first time. The palpable tension, the interwoven stories of Bed-Stuy’s residents, all seem timeless. Giancarlo Esposito is, as always, a joy to watch. 

4: Knives Out (Top 5, February). “It’s a Rian Johnson whodunnit, duh,” states the SuperYaki! T-shirt famously worn by Jamie Lee Curtis, star of Knives Out (2019). This one has received worlds of critical acclaim, I truly do not know what I could even hope to add to the conversation. I want more old-school murder mystery cinema.

3: The VelociPastor (Top 5, January). It should be testimonial enough that The VelociPastor beat out Miss Americana, Netflix’s Taylor Swift documentary, as the top pick for January- but in case it isn’t, let me end 2020 the way I began it; by evangelizing the HECK out of this movie. Written and directed by up-and-coming triple-threat (Director/songwriter/prolific cat-photo-poster) Brendan Steere, The VelociPastor is a true love letter to genre cinema, complete with a big wink to the criminally underloved Miami Connection. Alyssa Kempinski shines as Carol, a doctor/lawyer/hooker with a heart of gold. The VelociPastor premiered in 2019 but gained tons of attention in 2020 (thanks in part to YouTube sensation Cody Ko)- attention that it truly deserves. A sequel is rumored to be in the works, but mark my words, anything to come from the imagination of Brendan Steere will be worth a watch. 

2: Dinner in America (Top 5, October). I genuinely feel sorry for the other movies I watched in October (there were a lot) (they were all SO GOOD). Dinner in America, which I caught during the Nightstream hybrid festival, was not at all what I was expecting. While the other features were all very solidly genre flicks, this was…. A comedy? A modern love story?? I’mn honestly still not exactly sure, but I do know I loved every second of it. I laughed. I cried. I threw my hands up in the air exuberantly (in front of my laptop, looking like a true fool). I did not shut up about this movie online for weeks. I told anyone and everyone that Kyle Gallner is the most underrated actor of my generation and I still believe it! Dinner in America, the story of a punk band frontman who unwittingly takes refuge from the police in the home of his biggest fan, was an unexpectedly heartwarming tale of family, young love, and arson. Watch it as soon as you can. 

1: Promising Young Woman (Top 5, December). This last-minute debut from Emerald Fennell, originally scheduled to hit theaters in April of this year, finally made its way to the big screen on Christmas Day, and became the 2020 entry on my annual “Christmas Day Trip to the Theater” list.* Carey Mulligan is an icon and deserves all of the awards for this. The soundtrack is sublime. The casting choices are truly incredible. While I have no doubt that the general themes of the movie will be polarizing, I absolutely loved this one- I sat in my car in the theater parking lot for a WHILE, considering just buying a ticket for the next showtime- that’s how badly I felt like I needed to see it again immediately. I look forward to writing its inevitable Criterion essay.

*Nobody else in rural iowa was interested in seeing this movie at noon on Christmas Day. I’m shocked.

[roseisread]

My Year in Movies: Favorite Non-2018 Feature Films (Part 1)

I watched a LOT of movies this year. At last count, I had logged 229 features and 126 shorts; and that doesn’t count rewatches--only movies that were new to me.

I set a few challenges for myself as well this year. The first one was to watch at least one non-English language/US release per week--this exposed me to so much world cinema and some really amazing filmmakers. Anyone who avoids foreign films because “I don’t like subtitles” is really missing out, and I found myself craving these narratives from voices I don’t ordinarily get exposed to in my everyday life. 

Other personal challenges: Watching as many horror movies as possible in October (with horror defined pretty loosely so I could include entries from silent era and onward, as well as some comedy cult classics that have horror/thriller elements); participating in Noirvember (in addition to attending Noir City in Chicago); crossing off some major blindspots from my list (such as Bicycle Thieves, The Producers, Lethal Weapon, A Few Good Men, Grease, Home Alone 2, Brazil, and Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom); and trying to watch movies and short films from every decade that motion pictures have existed.

In 2019, I hope to do similar personal challenges with a focus on movies made by women, LGBTQ+, and people of color, in addition to filling in the gaps of my classical/canonical movie knowledge. 

OK, so that’s enough preamble. Let’s get to the list! For this list, I’m excluding movies that were released in 2018--that’s coming but this is for movies released before that. 

50. Linda Linda Linda (2005, directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita, country of origin: Japan)

High school girls recruit the Korean exchange student (Doona Bae, of Cloud Atlas and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance) to join their rock band a few days before the school talent show. This is just a feel good film, recommended if you enjoyed the likes of Sing Street, We Are The Best!, and The Runaways. Unfortunately, it’s out of print in physical form; but last I checked someone had uploaded it to YouTube so you might want to get on that before it’s removed. You can watch the trailer here.

49. The Blue Dahlia (1946, directed by George Marshall, country of origin: US)

This film noir stars Veronica Lake and Alan Ladd, and like any good noir, it deals with dark subjects including murder, blackmail, political corruption, and PTSD. It’s been on my watchlist for a long time, and thanks to Noir City Chicago, I got to see it on the big screen at the Music Box Theatre. For small screen viewing, you can catch up with it via rental on Vudu, Amazon, iTunes... the usual suspects. 

48. Siren of the Tropics (1927, directed by Mario Nalpas and Henri Etievant, country of origin: France)

My dearly departed Filmstruck had a spotlight on the films of Josephine Baker, and this was among them. I fell in love instantly with the lively, beautiful Baker, here playing a woman named Papitou who deals with some super scummy dudes but manages to be herself in the face of all that nonsense. Silent films can sometimes be tougher to engage with for modern audiences, but this one flies by and contains some unexpectedly racy sequences for the time. Its racial politics don’t meet today’s cultural standards, but considering Baker’s parents were former slaves and their daughter went on to become the first woman of color to star in a major motion picture, this is still a landmark film worthy of our consideration. She broke down many barriers and contributed a great deal to both the entertainment world and the Civil Rights movement, and this serves as a nice entry point into her career. It’s available on DVD through Kino Lorber, and hopefully one day soon it’ll pop up on another streaming service that carries on the Filmstruck legacy.

47. I Don’t Feel At Home in This World Anymore (2017, directed by Macon Blair, country of origin: US)

Here’s a film that goes to some unexpected places. I had no idea what to expect from Macon Blair, who frequently appears in the movies of Jeremy Saulnier; but in his debut feature for Netflix, he pulled out all the stops. Hilarious, violent, and intense, with memorable performances from stars Melanie Lynskey and Elijah Wood, this is a movie about getting in over your head and just going for it anyway. I don’t want to tell you about the plot because it’s best discovered through watching--just go to your nearest device and add it to your Netflix queue. 

46. Song of the Sea (2014, directed by Tomm Moore, country of origin: Ireland)

Absolutely gorgeous animation from the team that previously brought us The Secret of Kells, and a touching story that combines family and mythology. I adored this one. Watch it on Netflix or rent on the usual streaming sources--for a preview, click here. 

45. Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942, directed by Michael Curtiz, country of origin: US)

I always watch Independence Day on the Fourth of July; but in 2018, I decided to mix it up and cross this patriotic musical off the watchlist. I’d seen James Cagney’s gangster movies like White Heat and The Public Enemy, but seeing him sing and dance was a whole new joyous discovery. This movie is entertaining, funny, touching, and full of iconic sequences that other films would go on to borrow from. I absolutely loved it. Pretty sure I saw this on Filmstruck originally, but since that’s no longer possible you should be able to find it at your local public library or you can rent it for a couple bucks on Amazon, YouTube, iTunes, and the like. 

44. The Man Who Cheated Himself (1950, directed by Felix Feist, country of origin: US)

This tightly wound noir thriller pits brother against brother against the backdrop of 1950s San Francisco. Lee Cobb plays an aging bachelor and an accomplished police detective who falls for the wrong dame. His younger brother, played by John Dall (Gun Crazy, Rope), has just joined the police force and idolizes his older brother. Trouble strikes when the dame murders her no good husband and needs help from Cobb to cover it up. Naturally, Dall gets assigned to the case and as he begins to piece together the clues, he doesn’t like where they’re leading him. The climactic sequence is one of my favorite endings to a noir film, and I’ve seen a lot of them. Watch it for free if you have Amazon Prime; otherwise, there are a few versions uploaded to YouTube of varying quality or you could wait for it to pop up on TCM. 

43. Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003, directed by Thom Andersen, country of origin: US)

This documentary edits together clips from movies of every era that were filmed or set in Los Angeles, and explains through voiceover narration the significance of each location and the history of the motion pictures in LA. That’s it--very simple concept but also fascinating. I split this up over a couple nights because it’s pretty long, but if you’re a film fan or a Los Angeles native, this is well worth your time. The voiceover is kind of hilariously flat in its delivery--kind of a Steven Wright sound actually--but that sort of adds to the charm for me. Get a taste by watching the trailer, and then you can rent it on YouTube for $1.99.

42. A Simple Plan (1998, directed by Sam Raimi, country of origin: US)

It’s been almost two years since we lost Bill Paxton; I don’t know about you but I don’t think any other actor can really fill those shoes. This year I caught up with three films that showcased his talent: A Simple Plan, One False Move, and Frailty. He plays very different characters in each one but in many ways they all start off with a similar premise: Ordinary guy dreams of becoming more. What that “more” is for each character is what sets each film and performance apart, but Paxton provided a great canvas to paint these unique characters onto. He inhabited the ordinary man better than just about anyone. 

In this film, which I watched during Noirvember, Paxton plays Hank, a college-educated guy working a blue collar job in a small town, trying to make a better life for himself and his family. He’d like to get away from those small town roots, but his socially awkward brother Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton) relies on him. Unfortunately, Jacob is often accompanied by the hard-drinking loose canon Lou (Brent Briscoe). When the unlikely trio discover a crashed plane in the woods containing a suitcase full of cash, they each have ideas for how to handle the situation. Of course things escalate from there, and the way the movie explores human nature and family ties set this story apart. Available for online rental on the usual platforms.

41. The Iron Giant (1999, directed by Brad Bird, country of origin: US)

Given my obsession with Vin Diesel in the early 2000s, it’s pretty shocking I never saw this movie til now--sure, he and his glorious muscles don’t appear on screen, but he does provide the voice of the title character after all. When the Iron Giant made a controversial cameo in this year’s film adaptation of Ready Player One, I decided it was time I saw the source material for myself. 

This gorgeously animated fable unfolds during the Cold War era, and features an ET-inspired story arc of a young boy befriending an unlikely being that the government is looking for. If you’ve never seen it, this is definitely a must-watch. Currently available on Netflix, but rentable on other platforms too.

40. The Unsuspected (1947, directed by Michael Curtiz, country of origin: US)

I adore Claude Rains, star of this film and supporting actor in Curtiz’s more famous work, Casablanca. Here, he plays the host and narrator of a popular radio show that revolves around tales of murder--basically the Law and Order: SVU of its day. We learn early on that he sometimes draws inspiration for his broadcasts from real life criminals. When people in his own life start dropping dead, the plot thickens and he finds himself at the center of the action. A very suspenseful and well-plotted film noir, which is available from the Warner Archive collection on DVD. I got to see it at Noir City Chicago, and loved every second of it. 

That’s all for this entry--stay tuned for part two of this list, posting soon! 

[brokehorrorfan]

Blu-ray Review: Popcorn

You probably wouldn’t guess by watching it, but Popcorn suffered from a number of production troubles before its release in 1990. The director was replaced midway through production, and the lead actress suffered the same fate soon after. Producer Bob Clark (director of Black Christmas, A Christmas Story, Porky's) is said to have had a lot of input on the direction as well. Shooting in Jamaica also proved to be problematic. It's amazing that the film turned out as good as it did.

When a college's modest film department needs to raise money and awareness, the students devise a plan to host an all-night horror movie marathon as the last show at a historic local theater before its torn down. More than a simple screening, the students make a full experience out of the swansong, complete with costumes, decorations, and re-creations of the campy films' William Castle-esque gimmicks. The packed and excitable audience filled with rowdy college kids eats it up.

Among the collection of vintage movie memorabilia loaned to the students by local film historian Dr. Mnesyne (Ray Walston, My Favorite Martian) is an old film print. It contains the only existing footage from an infamous movie in which its director, Lanyard Gates (Matt Falls, one of the film's special makeup effects artists), killed his family in front of a live audience. This strikes a chord with Maggie (Jill Schoelen, The Stepfather), one of the group's aspiring filmmakers, who has been seeing the man in her dreams.

Popcorn was clearly inspired by the success of the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise; it features a hideously burned killer who appears in a girl's dreams, and her parents know more than they let on. Even the eerie musical cue, composed by Paul Zaza (A Christmas Story, Prom Night), is vaguely similar to Freddy Krueger's theme. But Popcorn exhibits several advantages that make it more memorable than the glut of Elm Street wannabes.

I'm not sure it would be entirely accurate to classify Popcorn as a horror-comedy, as it doesn't often play for laughs, but the material is approached with its tongue planted firmly in cheek. The clips from the films within the film - the titillating lineup includes Mosquito in 3D "Project-o-Scope," The Attack of the Amazing Electrified Man in "Shock-o-Scope," and The Stench in "Aroma-rama" - are just as entertaining as the main movie. They're pitch-perfect send-ups to 1950s B-movies.

Not unlike Scream, being a movie buff adds a layer of fun to Popcorn. The film also looks better than many of its peers, thanks in no small part to cinematographer Ronnie Taylor (Gandhi, Tommy). It's not particularly gory, but there are some fine practical special effects, supervised by Georgio Ferrari (Lord of the Flies) and Robert Clark (Godzilla, Starship Troopers). Zaza's score mixes orchestral music to match the '50s movies with then-current electronic compositions.

Bob Clark initially tapped his longtime friend and horror collaborator Alan Ormsby (Cat People, Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things) to write and direct the film. Roughly three weeks into production, however, Ormsby was removed from the director's chair and replaced by Mark Herrier (who’s better known for playing Billy in Porky’s). It's also speculated that Clark also had a heavy influence on the direction, similar to Steven Spielberg's involvement in Poltergeist.

To muddle things further, original star Amy O'Neill was replaced after filming for about a week, with the capable Schoelen filling her shoes. The cast also includes quintessential '80s mom Dee Wallace (E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Cujo) as Maggie's mother, Derek Rydall (Phantom of the Mall: Eric's Revenge) as Maggie's love interest, Kelly Jo Minter (A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child) and Malcolm Danare (Christine) as members of the film club, and Tony Roberts (Annie Hall) as their professor.

After being out of print on DVD for many years, Popcorn is available on Blu-ray and DVD from Synapse Films. Released as a limited edition SteelBook earlier this year, standard Blu-ray and DVD versions are now available. Well worth the wait, the release boasts a new 2K scan of a 35mm interpositive vault element and a 7.1 surround sound mix (as well as the original 2.0 audio), along with reversible artwork.

A 57-minute documentary discusses the film's production troubles, featuring input from Herrier, Schoelen, Rydall, Wallace, Danare, Falls, Zaza, actors Ivette Soler and Elliott Hurst, and distributor executive Jonathan Wolf. I always prefer edited-together featurettes over individual interviews, and this one plays nicely. An audio commentary with Herrier, Schoelen, Danare, and Falls is a bit slow and repeats a lot of information from the interviews, so if you only have time for one stick to the featurette. Bruce Glover (Chinatown), who stars in one of the films within the film, is the subject of a separate interview. Extras are rounded out by trailers, TV spots, and a still gallery.

Living up to its title, Popcorn is a good popcorn movie. When else will you hear Police Academy 5 compared to the work of Ingmar Bergman? The film goes beyond the prerequisite slasher tropes by offering a little more substance, even if the story is needlessly complicated. Overcoming the hardships faced in production, Popcorn is a cult classic that deserves to be celebrated like the films within it.

Popcorn is available now on Blu-ray and DVD via Synapse Films.

[3ng-cl6ss-2020]

Life In Quarantine: Week 2

안녕, welcome back on this blog. So what’s new this week, you might ask?...Not a whole lot to be honest. Not that I got bored or anything, I’m still pretty happy with staying at home (well I do miss swimming), but I don’t do I lot of new things. You could say that my Korean is getting a little better, but it is still very shaky. Otherwise, I must have probably finished four detective novels (I thank my grandmother for giving me the entire collection of Kathy Reichs books) and three documentary about serial killers. I also spend around a good hour of my time just listening to music (here’s my playlist if some of you are curious) and staring dramatically at my window (don’t ask why, I have no good answer). OH! And also I did a 3D puzzle of Big Ben (Nothing really interesting but I still proud of myself it took around 16 hours).

Okay, now that the little life update is done, I will answer two questions one of them being the theme of this week blog “What makes something mandatory” and the other one being “why am I learning Korean ?”.

1. 나는 왜 한국어를 배우고 있을까?*                                                                   I’m not learning Korean for a very specific reason, a lot of people think it’s because of I listen to Kpop but it’s really not. I think Korean is a very pretty language and is also relatively simple to read once you know the alphabet. Plus, I always wanted to learn third language, more precisely a language very different from french or english because I feel like the challenge is bigger and it makes it more interesting. I want to visit Korea one day (once the pandemic’s over), because I really like the culture and the history of the county and being able to at least understand Korean would be very helpful. 

*It’s pronounced “naneun wae hangugoreul baeugo isseulkka” and it means “why am I learning Korean”. 

2. What makes something mandatory?                                                         As I said earlier, this question is this week’s theme. Mandatory means that you have the obligation to do it for some reason, it could be because of the law or because of your conviction. Obviously, in life everything is a choice so there is nothing really mandatory. For exemple, in many countries the military service is mandatory, but you could choose not to do it, but i comes with consequences. It’s the same things with homework and exams, teacher usually says that it’s mandatory, but you don’t really have the obligation to do it, but if you don’t you will be in troubles, it might be with the school because you skipped an exam or just with yourself because you’re late on your work. I think that what makes people say something is mandatory is the presence of a consequence if you decide not to obey. 

I feel like I already wrote a lot, but I’m not done, because I still have my recommendation of the week to share with you. So last week I shared with you some youtube channels this week I’ll talk about TV shows. As i’m only recommending things in english it would not include any Kdrama but if any of you are interested I could make a small part next week about some of my favorite Kdrama. 

1. Doctor Who (1963-1989, 1996, 2005-present)

If you know me, at least just a little bit you would know that Doctor who is my favorite tv show of all time. I watch every single episodes, and you might think that it’s normal to watch every single episode of a tv show what is less normal is that this tv show had 26 season between 1963 and 1989, one telefilm in 1996 and has 12 new season since the reboot in 2005 and I watch ALL of it. 

Okay said like that it might look scary, but I will only talk about the reboot, because the “classic” doctor who seasons are extremely difficult to find in good quality if you don’t live in England and without buying it on amazon or on DVD. Plus you don’t need to have watch the old series to understand the reboot. 

Doctor Who is a British science fiction show. The series revolves around an alien named the Doctor and one or more companions. The Doctor has a spaceship called T.A.R.D.I.S (Time And Relative Dimension In Space) that allows him to travel through time and space. The series makes it possible to travel to another planet, but also through time. One of the special features of the show is the change of main actors every two or three seasons. In fact, the series was created to evolve over time, so the Doctor can regenerate. However, it’s a special regeneration, the Doctor changes completely, of sex (although it happened only once), of physics, taste and even his personality, but he/she always keep the same memories. 

The reason I love this show so much it’s because I never know what is gonna happen because with the Doctor changing his/her personality you don’t have the time to get bored with the way he/she react to the problems he/she faced. It might look a bit badly animated when you watch the first season, but don’t let it stop you from watching the rest because it’s really worth it (and the animation gets better with time and more budget). 

Sadly it’s not on Netflix since 2018, but it’s disponible on Amazone Prime and streaming device by HBO and BBC. 

2. Mindhunter (2017-present)

Beside my love for science-fiction there is another thing everyone should know about me: I’m fascinated by criminology or the anatomy of murder. It’s actually part of what I want to do in the future in term of career. If you guys didn’t know I want to be a forensic pathologist which is the person who do the autopsy of the victims on a crime scene. 

Let’s go back to Mindhunter. It’s based on the non-fiction crime book of John E. Douglas “Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit”. The series is a semi-fiction, the whole group of detectives and psychologists are purely fictional ( although they’re inspired by some of the people you can find in the book) but the crimes and the killers are real. There is two seasons and an upcoming season 3. 

The series is about a two FBI agent, Holden Ford and Bill Tench. They interview Serial Killer in order to understand how they think. The series first take place in ‘77 at the beginning of the criminal psychology. The show is extremely interesting because it’s not about the murder or about making the killer a monster above men, it’s about our own fascination for them. The show describe the killers as they are not as fiction want us to look at them. I really enjoy it because most of the time the series are about the crime, showing all the blood and all the gore, and as much as I like series like American Crime Story I particularly like seeing people trying to understand deeply disturb minds. 

It’s an original Netflix series so you can of course watch it on Netflix. 

Well this week blog comes to an end, hope I did not creep you out to much with my weird fascination for serial killer and crime in general. Hope you would go check my recommendations. Have a nice week!

[adamwatchesmovies]

2017/09/06 - A Final HMV Collection Update

It's taken me an eternity, but finally, the last of the films I picked up while HMV was closing its doors have been cataloged, labeled, and put away. In case you were curious, here are some of the pieces being added to my collection.

Astérix: Le Domaine des Dieux a.k.a. Asterix : The Mansion of the Gods (2014) 1-Disc DVD

I’m a big fan of the Astérix comics. I saw this film in theatres and it's probably the best animated treatment the classic books have received. With my shelf space being so cramped, I'm going to have to start watching some of the other adaptations and decide if some of the other ones are worth keeping. Even as a kid I remember thinking that 1967's Asterix the Gaul featured shoddy-looking animation.

Heart of a Dog (2015) – 1-Disc Criterion Blu-ray

I picked up this Blu-ray purely because Criterion releases are expensive, but worth the cost thanks to the abundant and extensive special features as well as the superior picture and sound quality. Criterion also tends to pick some pretty good films. I don’t know much about this 2015 release (it always weirds me out when Criterion picks modern films, but maybe this is an instant classic), but from what I’ve heard, it might make a good double-bill with A Dog’s Purpose for my weekly Good/Bad Movie Night with my friends. First, we’ll watch the phony, sappy grandma movie that raises a lot of questions, then we’ll watch this film and compare the two. Should make for some interesting conversation.

Crimson Peak (2015) – 2-Disc Blu-ray, DVD + Digital Copy Combo

I didn’t love Crimson Peak, but the elements I enjoyed I thought were terrific. I’m curious to see if a second viewing still yields the same reaction from me. At the very least, it comes with a digital copy that I get to keep forever, should I decide that I don’t need to keep the movie.

Computer Science 101 – 3-Disc Combo – Hackers (1995), War Games (1983) & Antitrust (2001)

Hackers is an alright film, I can see the appeal of it, particularly if you grew up with the picture. More interesting to me is the way the perception of hackers has changed over the years. It used to mean someone who was cool, who spent hours in front of their computer deciphering the mysteries of the Internet and was almost like James Bond’s Q. They were the person you’d turn to in order to get that thing you needed for that mission. Now, nobody likes hackers. They’re the people who bombard your favorite website with so much spam that it shuts down, the ones responsible for locking you out of your Facebook account or stealing your credit card information.

Also included in the box set is Antitrust, a picture I’d never heard of before picking up this box set. It was made way later than the other two films, which spells trouble. Taking a quick peek at the premise, it sounds an awful lot like this year’s The Circle, a film that I still think is so bad it’s hilarious. Perhaps we’ll have more of the same here, but minus the A-list actors?

War Games was the reason I bought this set. I’ve never seen it, but love the premise and, of course, have heard it quoted many times. I want to know what the deal is. That and the box set was practically a steal.

Rewind This! (2013) – 1-Disc DVD

What’s this? A documentary about VHS tapes, the impact the format had on movies and about the people who now collect them? Sounds right up my alley. Unlike some film fanatics, I don’t have a love for the format. My first language is French, meaning that until I began buying my own movies, I didn’t watch Speed, I watched Clanches. I didn’t know what Arnold Schwarzenegger sounded like, an issue that was further complicated by the fact that a different actor dubbed him in Twins than in Eraser. Many Disney films I know by heart… but I don’t know the lyrics to the songs. It wouldn’t have been a problem if we had been watching those on DVD but this was VHS, there were no alternative language tracks. Combine that with the inferior audio and picture quality compared to disc formats, the extra space it takes on the shelf and the fact that the format transition arrived at a strange time and I don’t look back at those tapes with any fondness. That doesn’t mean that I don’t understand how revolutionary it was to be able to own films and watch them at home. The collection aspect also intrigues me. I have a number of weirdo pictures that have never been released on DVD. There’s a reason they’re collectible. I look forward to getting to know the biggest fans when I see this documentary.

[daleisgreat]

NXT Greatest Matches Volume 1

The original NXT that aired from 2010-2012 was a laughingstock of a ‘reality competition’ show filled with goofy challenges and awful gags. NXT’s re-launch as the new developmental territory for WWE in 2012 eviscerated all those bad early NXT memories. Since then, especially once the WWE Network debuted in 2014 and NXT introduced its PPV-esque, TakeOver specials, NXT has evolved into a unique third brand of the WWE. Triple H has been behind it since 2012, and he formed NXT today into something that feels like WWE’s take on a premiere indie promotion like Ring of Honor where the product is treated more sports-like and there is less of the mind-boggling ‘sports entertainment’ hijinx that sneaks onto core WWE programming each week. I feel it is necessary to clue those in who may be unfamiliar with the buzz about NXT among ardent wrestling fans. NXT has a consistently fresh roster because the average NXT star is only on the roster for 1-2 years before getting ‘the call’ to move up to the main WWE roster or let go from the company all together. The talent regularly steps up to deliver big matches and moments on countless occasions that stand out in a special way because NXT is taped in front of a studio audience that has a more intimate feel than the big, showpiece sports arenas the average RAW and Smackdown emanates from. Best of all, the weekly NXT show on WWE Network is a swift one hour, and not the two-to-three hour slogs that the main roster programs can be toil to persevere through sometimes. In 2016 WWE released a DVD/BluRay collecting the best of the first four years of the new NXT through 2015, so let us take a look at NXT Greatest Matches: Volume 1 (trailer).

Volume 1 collects 18 matches, with five more upping the tally to 23 on the BluRay release. There is no feature-length documentary, but instead after every couple of matches there are 2-3 minute clips of new interviews from NXT stars and Triple H talking about pivotal moments in NXT history. These add up to a little under a half hour and cover the major moments such as how Triple H shaped the new NXT, debuting the first TakeOver on the WWE Network, NXT bringing a new focus on women’s wrestling, moving TakeOver to a big arena like the Barclays Center and lots of love for Dusty Rhodes when it came time to discuss the passing of ‘the oak’ of NXT. These are the essential bullet points I would like covered of NXT history, but a big part of me feels a little short-changed because I could easily see how WWE could have interviewed many more past and present NXT talent and made a far more comprehensive documentary. I like most of the 18 core matches of the collection. Other than a handful of matches as extra features on other WWE home videos I have never seen much of the first two years of the new NXT, and there are eight matches from that era in Volume 1. It kicks off with a pre-3MB Jinder Mahal taking on a pre-Shield Seth Rollins to crown the first NXT champion in an electric moment that capped off with Dusty Rhodes presenting Rollins with the NXT Championship. From this era we also saw Paige winning the first NXT Women’s title in a tournament final against Emma. There is a reason why Emma was constantly mentioning her and Paige were the real beginning of the Women’s Evolution of WWE, and this match proves her point.

There are a couple awesome Cesaro matches from this era on here too from back when he had a first name! There is an absolutely tremendous 2-out-of-3 falls match with Cesaro and Sami Zayn that will likely be the first and only time I see someone tap out to….a basic headlock…seriously, and it looked damn convincing too! That Sami Zayn is a master salesman! Cesaro also has a superb technical/strong style showcase match with William Regal in what is essentially his retirement match where Regal gets his own Flair/Michaels Wrestlemania XXIV moment in a emotional sendoff for the Brit! There is a solid 2013 match on here with Chris Jericho making a guest appearance on NXT taking on Bray Wyatt, but it is ruined with obnoxious commentary from Brad Maddox. Speaking of commentary, it is rare to have the same pairing of announcers in two matches straight as there is a revolving door of announcers throughout. Pre-Network era announcers are primarily William Regal and Jim Ross, but others like Brad Maddox occasionally join in. Throughout this collection NXT announcers are shuffled in and out such as Alex Riley, Renee Young, Rich Brennan, Byron Saxton, Jason Albert and Corey Graves.

As expected, a lot of classic TakeOver matches are on here. The main event of the first TakeOver with Neville winning the NXT Title from Bo Dallas in a ladder match is on here. Charlotte Flair winning the Women’s title in a tournament final against Natalya that featured both Ric Flair and Bret Hart at ringside to add extra notoriety is also a must-see. Volume 1 goes out of its way to show the story of Sami Zayn’s chase for NXT gold throughout and it pays off big with his title match in a Takeover special against Neville in a monumental match in this collection, which also has an equally monumental angle playing out afterwards with a debuting Kevin Owens. As much as I loved the Paige/Emma and Charlotte/Natalya title matches, the standout women’s match in this collection is the TakeOver match between Sasha Banks and Bayley. It was a great crowning moment of Bayley’s multi-year growth over NXT history and her chase for NXT gold nearly ran parallel to Sami Zayn’s, and I recall that match living up to the hype. I was surprised their TakeOver Iron Man rematch somehow surpassed it and am dismayed that it did not make the cut for Volume 1, but I guess that is what…wait a sec, I just did some research and am flabbergasted that match is not in Volume 2 either. Screw it, here is a link to it, now make haste and check out the greatest women’s match in NXT history! The collection winds down with two Kevin Owens TakeOver matches, where he wins the title from Zayn in a bout with a brutal finish and defending it against Finn Balor at the unique WWE Network-exclusive Beast in the East event in Japan. The final match features the finals of the first Dusty Rhodes tag team tournament which features a lot of solid old-school tag team wrestling fundamentals that were not that common in the tag team scene in recent decades until The Revival brought it back a couple years ago.

Most of Volume 1’s five BluRay exclusive matches are worth watching. It starts off with CM Punk teaming up with Seth Rollins to take on Cesaro and Kassius Ohno it what will likely be the only time we see the Kings of Wrestling team up on WWE television. We have a reminder that current RAW & SmackDown announcer Corey Graves was once a wrestler on here with his grudge match against former partner Neville. Charlotte and Sasha have a highly competitive match on here from when Charlotte cashed in her rematch clause for the Women’s title. Finally, Apollo Crews and Tyler Breeze have a surprisingly good match on here from a TakeOver special I have long forgotten about. There were a lot of intense sequences in here the duo pulled off flawlessly and this match is easily better than anything we have seen from both Breeze and Crews on the main roster. Wrestling fans that are use to sticking to the main roster programming have been missing out big time if they have not been keeping up with NXT. NXT Greatest Matches Volume 1 is the perfect way to catch up to see how far their favorites have come. I got a lot out of this too from the eight matches that I did not see from before NXT was on the WWE Network, with the addition of a couple of bonus dark matches that were never before televised. My only main gripe is the lack of a fully featured documentary, but the interspersed interview clips are a sufficient compromise. I did pick up the follow up NXT home video WWE released last year, so be on the lookout for an entry for that too later this year! Past Wrestling Blogs Best of WCW Clash of Champions Best of WCW Monday Nitro Volume 2 Best of WCW Monday Nitro Volume 3 Biggest Knuckleheads Bobby The Brain Heenan Daniel Bryan: Just Say Yes Yes Yes DDP: Positively Living Dusty Rhodes WWE Network Specials ECW Unreleased: Vol 1 ECW Unreleased: Vol 2 ECW Unreleased: Vol 3 For All Mankind Goldberg: The Ultimate Collection Its Good to Be the King: The Jerry Lawler Story The Kliq Rules Ladies and Gentlemen My Name is Paul Heyman Legends of Mid South Wrestling Macho Man: The Randy Savage Story Memphis Heat OMG Vol 2: Top 50 Incidents in WCW History OMG Vol 3: Top 50 Incidents in ECW History Owen: Hart of Gold RoH Supercard of Honor 2010-Present ScoobyDoo Wrestlemania Mystery Sting: Into the Light Straight to the Top: Money in the Bank Anthology Superstar Collection: Zach Ryder TNA Lockdown 2005-Present Top 50 Superstars of All Time Tough Enough: Million Dollar Season True Giants Ultimate Fan Pack: Roman Reigns Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe War Games: WCWs Most Notorious Matches Warrior Week on WWE Network Wrestlemania 3: Championship Edition Wrestlemania 28-Present The Wrestler (2008) Wrestling Road Diaries Too Wrestling Road Diaries Three: Funny Equals Money Wrestlings Greatest Factions WWE Network Original Specials First Half 2015 WWE Network Original Specials Second Half 2015 WWE Network Original Specials First Half 2016 WWE Network Original Specials Second Half 2016 WWE Network Original Specials First Half 2017

[mrmichaelchadler]

Home Entertainment Consumer Guide: February 7, 2019

10 NEW TO NETFLIX

"About a Boy" "Annie Hall" "Bull Durham" "Casino Royale" "Jaws" "The Magnificent Ambersons" "The Master" "Personal Shopper" "Silence of the Lambs" "Zodiac"

8 NEW TO BLU-RAY/DVD

"Boy Erased"

Can a movie be given points for effort? The message behind "Boy Erased" is undeniably an important one to hear in 2019 as efforts to roll back gay rights or at least halt the implementation of them continue under the Trump administration. So the story of a family that learns the hard way that gay conversion therapy is an evil practice that denies human rights and damages people forever is one that feels urgent and important. And there are strong performances embedded in this film, particularly from Nicole Kidman as the mother who senses in her heart that she should just accept her son. The problem is that the film doesn't work as storytelling, keeping its subject matter under glass in a way that never allows us to know him, developing his parents as characters more than the center of this story. Still, it's a story worth hearing, even if one wishes it were told better.

Buy it here 

Special Features Deleted & Extended Scenes Jared Revealed - Featurette Becoming the Eamons - Featurette Man Consumed: Joel Edgerton - Featurette

"In the Heat of the Night" (Criterion)

It's a slower movie than I remembered now that I've revisited it for the first time in probably two decades, but it's still powerful, thanks in large part to Sidney Poitier's commanding performance and something I think I was too young to really appreciate the first time: Haskell Wexler's amazing cinematography. This movie looks phenomenal, capturing a time and place while also having a strong visual language as cinema at the same time. And the new 4K restoration really allows Wexler's work to shine. It's interesting that several people have brought up this film in the context of 2018 Oscar players "Green Book" (another film about an interracial partnership) and even "If Beale Street Could Talk" (Baldwin had some harsh words for the film in one of his most famous essays). It's incredible how often Criterion finds a way to release a film at just the right time, although "In the Heat of the Night" would probably find a way to resonate whenever it was released. 

Buy it here 

Special Features New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray New interviews with director Norman Jewison and actor Lee Grant Segment from a 2006 American Film Institute interview with actor Sidney Poitier New interview with Aram Goudsouzian, author of Sidney Poitier: Man, Actor, Icon Audio commentary from 2008 featuring Jewison, Grant, actor Rod Steiger, and cinematographer Haskell Wexler Turning Up the Heat: Movie-Making in the ’60s, a 2008 program about the production of the film and its legacy, featuring Jewison, Wexler, producer Walter Mirisch, and filmmakers John Singleton and Reginald Hudlin Quincy Jones: Breaking New Sound, a 2008 program about Jones’s innovative soundtrack, including the title song sung by Ray Charles, featuring interviews with Jones, lyricists Alan and Marilyn Bergman, and musician Herbie Hancock Trailer PLUS: An essay by critic K. Austin Collins

"Lu Over the Wall" "Night is Short, Walk on Girl"

Japanese animator Masaaki Yuasa released two films in Japan in 2017 that were both released by GKids in 2018 and are now new to Blu-ray from the wonderful company that brings some of the best overseas animation to American audiences. The sweet "Lu Over the Wall" owes a great deal to Hayao Miyazaki's wonderful "Ponyo," which, of course, owes a great deal to Hans Christian Anderson's "The Little Mermaid." In this iteration, Lu is a one of the mythical merfolk, who comes alive when she hears sullen middle-schooler Kai playing with his band in a small fishing village. She sings, dances, and even grows legs, becoming a phenomenon in the community, where they build a mer-theme park and turn her into an attraction. It's a cute movie that runs WAY too long at 112 minutes. I haven't had the chance to check out "Night" yet but wanted to include it for Yuasa fans or those looking for the latest from GKids, a company all film fans should keep an eye on. 

Buy it here 

Special Features Interview with Director Masaaki Yuasa Audio Commentary with Director Masaaki Yuasa Trailers TV Spots Original Japanese language and English dub versions

"A Private War"

Matthew Heineman's first fictional film tells a story in keeping with his experience as a documentary filmmaker but proves that what works in one may not work in another. Rarely has a performance fought against the weaknesses of a script more than Rosamund Pike's does here. You can almost see some of the cliched dialogue get stuck in her mouth, but she does just enough to ground the story of Marie Colvin in something genuine that she elevates what is a truly awful screenplay and pedestrian direction. Pike is one of those great actresses who always seems on the verge of finding the right part to make her a household name or Oscar winner. This could have been it with a better script. Watch it for what could have been.

Buy it here 

Special Features Becoming Marie Colvin: How Rosamund Pike transformed herself for A Private War Women in the World Summit Q&A: Featuring Rosamund Pike, Jamie Dornan and Director Matthew Heineman, moderated by Tina Brown Requiem for A Private War: Inspiration behind award-winning musician Annie Lennox's song

"The Sisters Brothers"

One of the films already popping up on "Underrated" lists for 2018 is this character-driven Western from Jacques Audiard, an entertaining rental with a great quartet of actors. Seriously, how does a movie with John C. Reilly, Joaquin Phoenix, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Riz Ahmed slide this far under the radar? Perhaps it's for the best in terms of the film's longevity in that this is a movie that I'm certain people will find on DVD and Blu-ray and recommend to their friends. It's more than just a competent genre flick thanks mostly to its cast, especially Reilly, who imbues his Sisters brother with a perfect blend of world-weariness and dedication. It's a reminder of how good Reilly can be in the right part. 

Buy it here 

Special Features Striking Gold: Making a "Modern Day" Western Q&A Panel Promotional Featurettes: Brothers Forever Wanted Dead or Alive Gallery Theatrical Trailer

"Suspiria"

You would think that the director of my #1 film of 2017 ("Call Me By Your Name") reimagining one of my favorite films of all time would be an easy slam dunk for this critic, but "Suspiria" is more of a modest lay-up. It's a film that I can appreciate in terms of ambition, but it has a number of elements that simply don't work. I'll never understand some of the washed-out visual choices, especially when compared to the unforgettable imagery of the first, and I don't like the way it uses real political upheaval as cheap background. Still, there's that Tilda Swinton performance and that climax, which is like nothing else released in 2018. It's funny how divisive this movie became when it was released, making some top ten and some worst ten lists at the end of the year. I really don't understand either extreme reaction, but love to see the debate. 

Buy it here 

Special Features "The Making of Suspiria" Featurette "The Secret Language of Dance" Featurette "The Transformations of Suspiria" Featurette

"Widows"

I don't believe I had to defend any 2018 review more than my 4-star write-up of Steve McQueen's latest, now on Blu-ray and DVD. I stand by every word. And I think history will come around to reveal the criticisms of this film being petty or unfounded. "Too much movie"? Yeah, how often do we get to say that? Yes, there are a lot of characters to follow and a few plot threads left dangling, but that's true of a lot of classic cinema that attempts to capture the pulse and people of a major city like Chicago. A lot of those '70s crime epics you love? They've got some plot holes too. We're in an era in which we sometimes fail to see the forest for the trees, too eager to pick apart little plot details when we miss the overall fabric of a piece like this one. It's a great movie. And it gets better every time I watch it. And every time I have to defend it too. 

Buy it here 

Special Features Widows Unmasked: A Chicago Story Plotting The Heist: The Story Assembling The Crew: Production The Scene Of The Crime: Locations Gallery

from All Content http://bit.ly/2WJ8LkJ

[peter-horrocks]

Reading classic French novels

Since I got stuck into reading in my teens I have taken huge pleasure as my interests have shifted over the years in working through various genres of English literature. One of the most rewarding being reading the classics albeit that every now and again it was more like hard work. More recently I set about the French classics and surprisingly met with an unexpected early reward for my time invested.

“Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend“

- Albert Camus

The latest Astérix book is as topical as ever - the theme being road potholes known in French as ‘nids de poule’.

I didn't get on with French at all at school and learnt only through submersion and necessity when I spent my gap year working on a farm in south-west France which was owned by the daughter of a 'pied noir'. It was either learn to speak French or sink. So I did acquire the basics with plenty of help from my hosts and by the time I left I was proud to be able to read and understand the most part of an Astérix the Gaul comic book or ‘band dessinée’ as they are known in France.  

Over the years I gradually got better and better at speaking French largely as a result of working in the tourist industry specialising in France though I still relied quite a lot on expert French speakers for assistance. Things evolved and I got better at reading and writing when I started working directly with a French company and even more so ten years ago when I met my better half who is French and with whom I have lived fulltime in Grasse for over four years now.

Lying around our apartment here I came across contemporary novels by the likes of Guillaume Musso and Marc Levy and I decided to try reading them. To my pleasant surprise, I could. So as is my bent I read a whole heap of their very enjoyable books until I had just about had enough.

So what next? Chance had it that we stayed in Normandy with the sister of my French wife. She has a huge selection of books including full collections of most of the French classics. Jules Verne caught my eye and I spent the next year merrily cruising through many of his best works.

The following year I asked for suggestions on what would be the best French classics for an Englishman to read in French given that I had already read some in English such as Victor Hugo's 'Les Miserables' and Alain Fournier's 'Le Grand Meaulnes'. I came away with an old box containing twelve classic French books.

This is the ultimate book of words by Sartre

It seemed appropriate to start with 'Les Mots' by Jean-Paul Sartre as one of my key aims is to grow my vocabulary. An inspired choice that proved to be as it gives a wonderful insight into the mind of the writer and how one as gifted as he fell into complex storytelling at such an early precocious age so much so that it became a handicap before proving a blessing. What a rich selection of words it threw up too, it certainly had me reaching for my google translate on a regular basis.

This was followed by interesting forays into works by Maupassant and an intriguing book by Camus called L'Etranger. I discovered from my French family that Camus was a 'Pied Noir' too and by chance shortly after I found a film based on his life on NETFLIX so I watched it. The French are pretty good at documentary-style films about their painters and writers so it was fairly inevitable that I found it enjoyable and also it gave me a bit more insight into what these 'Pied Noir' people who lived in Algeria from around 1830 to 1962 went through in the latter years.

The strangely simplistic yet very revealing L’etranger by Camus

Then last week for work I went to visit a villa which was recently added to the VDM range in Provence. It is unusual because it has a mini cinema which seats ten in proper cinema style rows with staggered heights and actual cinema seats as well as full surround sound and a big screen along with over 1500 DVD's, the likes of which I had never seen before (and I have seen some).

The home cinema

I always like to know something about the owners of the villas as it allows me to evaluate if they are reliable and on a human level it is interesting too. So I popped the question on this visit. Turns out the owner is a film director for French television. "Would I know his work?" "Depends what you watch" he responded perhaps thinking it unlikely that this tall very English looking old fellow would watch French TV at all. "Well, what genre?" "Period documentary films." "Ah sounds interesting".

To my surprise, it turned out that he directed the Camus film. 

So next time you wonder if it's worth reading a book in French I say go on, you never know where it might lead you and if nothing else you will acquire words maybe friends too.

Best wishes

Peter H. Copyright © 2018 Peter Horrocks, all rights reserved

[spryfilm]

“Life, Animated” (2016)

Documentary

Running Time: 92 minutes

Directed by: Roger Ross Williams

Featuring: Jonathan Freeman, Gilbert Gottfried, Alan Rosenblatt, Owen Suskind, Ron Suskind

Alan Rosenblatt: “The image of autism in the early 90’s was not terribly flattering.”

Documentaries highlighting hardships in life are not new and the way people cope with these things are ripe subject matter, particularly when they are unique as well as having the potential ability to help others. In this case Roger Ross Williams takes a story about a man with autism who copes using Disney animated films as a conduit for life as well as communication with his family and potential friends and peers. This is a film well worth seeking out as well as meeting a family that are loving towards their son and brother, as well as coping with some pretty serious issues.

Owen Suskind was a boy of considerable promise, until he developed autism at the age of three. As Owen withdrew into his silent state, his parents almost lost hope that he would find some way to meaningfully interact with his world. However, that way was found through animated films, especially those Walt Disney Pictures, which provided Owen a way to understand the world through its stories to the point of creating his own. This film covers the life of Owen and how he manages to become as functional as possible with the help of Disney and his families to the point of having his own life. However, Owen soon learns as well that there is more to real life than what Disney can illustrate in animation even as his family prepares itself for an uncertain future with him.

This documentary is one of five nominated for Best Documentary at this years Academy Awards and while I see the appeal of the movie, I am not sure it is one of the best of the year. This may sound harsh but this is a very documentary but it has a few weaknesses that detract from the overarching original and inspirational story.

As a film lover I have always been a fan of animated films and the Disney oeuvre of course stand out as milestones in the genre, they have since seen the challenge of other studios as well as the increased popularity of computer animation, the waning of the musical and now, in the past ten years, there has been a resurgence in their overall popularity. This film has many clips from the most popular and “classic” Disney films, while I watched I could not help but think this was a bit of an advert for their back catalog. Now, this is cynical and a little unfair but feelings are feelings.

The crux and best part of this documentary are the first third where we learn about Owen and his family –the hardships and the breakthroughs. When watching a documentary about this and in particular with someone who has challenges with the outside work i always ask the question: “What happens when the parents are either unable to look after their child, or pass on?” In this case the parents are extremely pragmatic, and deal with Owen in a loving respectful way – I wont go into it here, as there are still story elements that are better revealed watching the film.

The main issue is that in the last two thirds the film and film-maker seem to run out of plot and narrative devices and so its turns into a reality TV like documentary which for me is not compelling at all. My feeling was it was still enjoyable but with autism as the central hurdle with Owen I wondered if he would behave differently if the camera was not in his face all the time. There also seemed to be some obstacles that were “created” for atmosphere and to keep an audience interested – again that was my feeling.

I would still recommend this documentary because it does show the power of film (which I love) and how it can be a transformative experience, and opens a new world in ways we don’t even realize. Movies have only been in existence for just over a hundred years, we as audiences and creative are still exploring and discovering what the moving image is capable of.

This DVD is released on 9th March 2017.

DVD Review: “Life, Animated” (2016) "Life, Animated" (2016) Documentary Running Time: 92 minutes Directed by: Roger Ross Williams Featuring: Jonathan Freeman, Gilbert Gottfried, Alan Rosenblatt, Owen Suskind, Ron Suskind…

[westsidevideo]

One Last Look Back

It's 2017, and though we're excited to move forward, it's tough not to look back just one last time. In 2016 we lost many top notch entertainers; we rounded up some of our (maybe unconventional) favorites that go in the unforgettable section.

[Look for Ashlyn’s ratings in the brackets, as usual.]

Star Wars (1977, PG) - We hope you’ve all seen this, but just in case, go fall in love with R2-D2 and the gang. Like...now. [It’s fiiiiine.]

Postcards From The Edge (1990, R) - This one breaks the mold a bit, but two insanely good actresses playing Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, and that’s just excellent. [This is rated for language, though there is quite a bit of sex-related and drug-related talk. Probably nothings teens haven’t heard.]

Purple Rain (1984, R) - Okay, maybe this isn’t the best movie of all time, but it will always be classic, and the soundtrack is in the GOAT conversation. [Lots of upsetting themes in this one. Multiple forms of abuse, a suicide attempt, cursing, sex...so probably just older teens.]

Labyrinth (1986, PG) - The Goblin King danced through the maze and into both our dreams! [Little scary for small children.]

Galaxy Quest (1999, PG) - The cast of a very popular, discontinued science fiction television series accidentally ends up involved in a real galactic war. Will this movie make you laugh out loud? Always. [The visual gags will probably be scary for small kids, but everyone else should be good.]

To Kill A Mockingbird (1962, Unrated) - Atticus Finch dishes out lessons left and right in this classic literary tale, adapted perfectly for the screen. [The story is about a racially charged rape accusation and its echoes through a community. Probably not appropriate for small children.]

Run Ronnie Run (2002, R) - While the events of this comedy might now be a little too close to home, the endless cameos will make the trip worth it! [This has pretty much every reason for an R rating. Other parents will hate you if you show this to their kids; it’s too quotable for a clean getaway.]

When We Were Kings (1996, PG) - The Rumble In The Jungle gets the full documentary treatment here, showcasing then-underdog Muhammed Ali. [Documentaries are good for brains.]

Charlie Bartlett (2007, R) - Charlie is an eccentric teenager having trouble making friends at his new high school...until he innovates and becomes the psychiatrist to the student body, meds and all. Funny and endearing! [This would be PG-13 if they didn’t say the f-word roughly one billion times. Teens who have experienced language should be fine.]

Pretty Woman (1990, R) - The story is classic by now, and we owe it all the charms of Julia Roberts and the intuitive filmmaking of Garry Marshall. [There is obviously adult content, but it’s likely not too risque for older teens.]

Wasabi Tuna (2003, R) - This one crazy night story revolves around drag queens and gangsters in LA on Halloween Eve. Silly fun! [I’m just gonna call this one R and leave it at that.]

The Brady Bunch (1995, PG-13) - Something about taking a chance on moving our own little Pleasantville family into the 1990s made it all even more perfect. Double the nostalgia!

Firefly (2002, Television) - A little more genius from Joss Whedon in a show that was gone too soon (though the movie Serenity and the comics live on), featuring an excellent cast of misbehavin’ characters. [Fun for everyone!]

Growing Pains (1985, TV) - A family show with a home-based dad and a high-powered working mom? Sign us up! We still like the show even though one of its stars grew up to be kind of a jerk. [Family friendly.]

Extras (2005, TVMA) - An ambitious actor gets nowhere in his career, but gets us tons of excellent celebrity guest stars! [Older teens and adults.]

MASH (1972, TV) - The chuckles never stop from the folks at this Army hospital right in the middle of the Korean War, though we lost one of their finest in 2016. Salute and watch on![Kids who know what war is should be fine, although they might not get all the jokes.]

Dope (2015, R) - A blerd (Black nerd, for the new readers) trying to get into Harvard finds himself flung into a ridiculous and dangerous adventure with his friends, drug dealers, and a backpack that won’t go away. Excellent coming of age story! [Viewers will find cursing, drug references, drug use, and some sexuality. Older teens are probably good.]

The Year Without A Santa Claus (1974, Unrated) - Sick and discouraged Santa Claus decides to just skip the whole Christmas thing this year, so Mrs Claus, Vixen, and a couple of elves set out to bypass the Misers and spread some holiday joy. Classic! [All ages.]

Batman (1966, Television) - Holy cow, Batman’s early adventures are finally on DVD and you haven’t watched the whole series yet?! Get your life together and come rent this! [Not sure what a childhood would be without classic Batman, honestly.]

The Night Of The Hunter (1955, Unrated) - This is a crazy messed up noir of robberies and con artists to come out of the 1950s. You’ll be looking at dolls in other folks’ houses all sideways now. [Probably both too intense and too slowly paced for kids. Tweens and up.]

Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990, TV) - Here, America’s obsession with teen drama officially begins. Plus, get your Peach Pit tees at the shop! (Probably only teens or adults who previous

The Green Hornet (1966, TV) - Just as Batman was using bams and pows to win the hearts of Americans, Van Williams and Bruce freakin’ Lee were blasting their way through your television screens. This ain’t your grandpa’s Black Beauty! [This is a way more fun introduction to martial arts than getting knocked on the mat. Kids should be fine.]

Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955, TV14) - An absolutely incredible amount of star power passed through the gates of this short stories format show. Every bit is worth the watch. [I’d say anybody who has already seen Psycho and The Birds and been fine with it can watch the show.]

Martin (1992, TV) - So much magic in this sitcom, and even more in the huge slate of Black-led comedy programs in the 1990s offering diverse representation to viewers. Without Martin and other shows of its time, we wouldn’t have Black-ish or Empire or How To Get Away With Murder today. We’re gonna need these laughs again soon. [Tweens and up will probably get the most out of the funnies.]

Do The Right Thing (1989, R) - This film is a masterpiece. Spike Lee brings us the hottest day of the year where the racial tensions were already turned up to eleven. [There is a lot of cursing and a big riot. Not for the wee children, but teens will need to learn eventually.]

The Sound Of Music (1965, G) - Here’s another classic that we would all be culturally poorer for not having. If you somehow have not watched this, get it together. [Family friendly, even though there are totally Nazis.]

The Big Lebowski (1998, R) - If you live in Santa Cruz, this film is required watching. No excuses! [Unless you’re a child, in which case, you’re good, don’t watch this yet, just go regular bowling. There is a lot of language and a lot of sexual references and some scenes of (mostly) comical violence. So...maybe pre-screen.]

Young Frankenstein (1974, PG) - Mel Brooks is a genius, and this is one of his standout creations. Doctor Frankensteeeen is more than worth your time! [This rides between a PG and PG-13 to me, but older kids should be okay.]

Boston Public (2000, TV) - It’s like Law & Order in a high school, as we follow faculty trying to deal with those darn kids (and also live a little). This one went four good years of full-sized seasons, so you can totally binge this over 2017’s upcoming holiday weekends. [This is in the Ally McBeal range of acceptability- little kids will have no interest, tweens and teens will be either super interested or refuse to watch with you.]

Gilmore Girls (2000, TV14) - What a gem. Seven seasons of mostly great family storytelling. Don’t miss Babette and Morey- the neighbors you always wanted!

Enter The Dragon (1973, R) - What a battle! You will want to learn kung-fu after you watch this. [There’s uh...quite a bit of fighting. ‘Cause kung-fu.]

Popular (1999, TV14) - Ryan Murphy begins! This is his pre-Glee nonmusical cheerleader-y show, and boy is it a fun watch. [Teens will love this best.]

Valley Of The Dolls (1967, PG-13) - There’s no business like show business; turns out it’ll probably seriously mess you up. [There are adult themes here, but not really actual adult material. Kids will be bored senseless, but some teens will like it.]

Grandma's Boy (2006, R) - A thirty-something video gamer ends up having to live with his grandmother and her golden girl housemates. Pretty funny stuff! [This one’s a pretty hard R.]

The Twilight Zone (1959, TV) - This is a staple, scarring kids and spooking adults for nearly 60 years. We’re privileged to have the whole series available. [There’s creepy things for everyone here, of all ages.]

Darkman (1990, R) - Sam Raimi gets weird, and we get weird with him in this fantasy actioner. [This one’s probably a PG-13 without the couple f-bombs, but it has stylized violence and a pretty twisted tone. I’d say 16+.]

Beverly Hills Cop (1984, R) - Eddie Murphy is a brilliant actor, and his comedy is on point in this culture clash story of a Detroit cop on the worst vacation ever in Beverly Hills. [There is a lot of swearing, quite a bit of violence, and a bunch of drug dealers. 16+.]

The Sopranos (1999, TVMA) - Tony Soprano is just a regular guy trying to keep his two families- home and mob- on track. This show started a lot of modern cable television trends, and will definitely survive the ages. [HBO show for grownups.]

NOW we can move on. The losses the film community sustained last year were worse than usual, in our opinion, but that just means more new folks will have to step up and become the next legends. Get to work!

[windowsonmyworld]

(100) Movies of 2016 - COMPLETED

January 3rd, 2016, I watched a delightful film with my mother called Salmon in the Yemen (2011).  On December 31st, 2016 I watched a slightly disappointing documentary with my girlfriend called Finding Traction (2014). And thus ended my New Years’ Resolution to watch 100 movies in the year 2016. 

I can’t say it was easy; having such an irregular work schedule certainly didn’t help; but I pulled through for the win. 

Regrets: I strongly regret my almost complete failure to watch older movies. I went on a lot of movie dates with my girlfriend on Tuesdays (bargain day at our favorite theater) and watched a lot of the recent releases on Netflix and thus didn’t see many of the classics I was hoping to tackle (for example, I wanted to watch The Godfather series, as I’ve only seen the first one and it’s been almost ten years since I watched it.) I also wish I had put effort into my movie blog. I think it is time to rethink that blog’s purpose and make some goals for it. Let’s face it -- I abandoned it this past year. I will have to make up for that. 

Successes: It was very satisfying to add another mini review once I had watched a new film. I didn’t have as much time to flesh out the December movies, as I was working 9.5-10 hour days, three days a week and was overly, thoroughly exhausted, but it  always felt great adding another movie to my list. My AMAZING (not really) discovery of the CWMars network through our local library contributed to a solid amount of the movies I watched. And of course, there was Netflix, Hulu, HBOGo, and Amazon Prime. Maybe I’ll make a pie chart of my viewing habits from this challenge. 

Many movies made the resolution worth it, such as Mad Max Fury Road (2015), Attack the Block (2011), What’s Up, Doc? (1972), Moana (2016), and of course Sisters (2015). 

Since 2016 was such a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year, I was also deeply grateful for the escape that all of these movies provided. I became more and more aware of the pleasure and happiness films can give people during difficult times as the year went on. 

That being said, the ending of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016) (which I watched Election night with my girlfriend) was a sharp reminder that a foul, abominable white man can tarnish even the most charming and delightful of movies. Everyone, please always be aware of and consider who or what you are supporting when you watch a film. 

I am extremely pleased I finished my challenge (I also managed to read my goal of 60 books this year, NAILED IT.) I plan to make a different movie goal this year -- perhaps related to cleaning out my Netflix queue? Perhaps clearing out my DVD collection? I am considering a TV series goal as well, but I will have to work out the details out in my classic use-way-too-much-notebook-paper manner and give you all any updates. 

Cheers!