Jeanie
(Fem or Gender Neutral)
I've heard the stories of when the Marine Corps started using the Harrier. They were notorious for being hard to pilot. So much so, the squadron in Cherry Point, NC developed the nickname "Carolina Lawndarts".
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Movie Time 2.0: TT mini reviews
- Thread starter Rascally Badger
- Start date
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- movies
Not gonna lie, pretty disappointed with Ghostbusters Afterlife. Nobody except for Paul Rudd seemed to be aware that the franchise is supposed to be a workplace comedy with professional monster hunters. Everyone was firmly aware they were in a Ghostbusters movie, and not one single person ever thought about what genre they were making. References to the original movie ranged from “subtle and clever” to the point where everyone just set up an obvious joke and was too tired to even wink at the camera (which honestly, was a pretty solid gag on its own).
To the films credit, Gozer got a redesign that I liked a lot; covered in spiky flesh armour instead of sudsy bubbles.
To the films credit, Gozer got a redesign that I liked a lot; covered in spiky flesh armour instead of sudsy bubbles.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I've been watching the Female Prisoner Scorpion movies since I forgot to cancel Shudder when the month ended. They are a series of pulpy and super exploit-y and super stylish thrillers where the title character, a prisoner sent to jail after attempting to kill her lover, a cop who used her to catch some crooks in an awful way, and overcomes cruel authority. It's a series that has no shortage of problematic elements but also is incredibly watchable and not easy (for me, anyway) to dismiss, though I wouldn't blame anyone for doing so.
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion is the first film an it is the one that is the most overtly kinky and soft core. LOTS of prisoners getting their tops ripped off and several sexual assaults. But if you can compartmentalize, a lot of the film makes really cool directing flourishes (the director himself was also perhaps questionable, since apparently his last film was a well-received movie that was all like "You know, Tojo was misunderstood maybe".) Of the movies, it's definitely the most surface and lacking in depth, mostly wanting it's audience to enjoy it's creepy-horny stuff and watching the title character outwit her enemies. The finale were she's free and offing her enemies one at a time is great.
Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 is a much better film, less interested in sexual assault, thankfully. Less thankfully... there's still two. In this one Scorpion and a gang of prisoners escape and are torn between their own personal interests and helping each other in a man's world It's still an exploitation series. But this one seems more interested in enthralling rather than titillating and feels more like it has something to say, as cynical and bleak as it is. I definitely would hesitate to call the film feminist (or if that was the intent, they are questionable about their approaches) but it is a film about women wanting to be free from evil male authorities and even evil civilians. This film feels much more like a traditional Japanese ghost story or tragedy. Heck, there's even an element of Greek tragedies, specifically Medea, where the women take wraith-like vengeance on the world and by the end of the film, each other. It's definitely the best of the series and while it is stylish, it feels a little less "whoa cool" and more of a descent into an older form of story in a captivating way. There's a haunting segment where they come across an ancient looking woman with a knife, the last resident of a ghost town, who also has a tragic tale of vengeance.
Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable is a step down but it is still interesting, this time feeling a bit more like a noir tale. Scorpion's finally escaped for real since the last movie, but is still hunted by the police. There she meets a crime boss who was a former inmate and a woman who uses unsavory means to control her brain damaged brother's evil urges and is hunted by a one armed officer hell bent on vengeance. There's still some good stuff and some questionable stuff but overall, it's a decent enough movie that has an EC Comic's style karmic ending where Scorpion manages to use her biggest problems to solve each other.
Recommend isn't the word I would use for films like this but I can't deny the series has a ton of moments and set pieces that stick hard in my imagination.
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion is the first film an it is the one that is the most overtly kinky and soft core. LOTS of prisoners getting their tops ripped off and several sexual assaults. But if you can compartmentalize, a lot of the film makes really cool directing flourishes (the director himself was also perhaps questionable, since apparently his last film was a well-received movie that was all like "You know, Tojo was misunderstood maybe".) Of the movies, it's definitely the most surface and lacking in depth, mostly wanting it's audience to enjoy it's creepy-horny stuff and watching the title character outwit her enemies. The finale were she's free and offing her enemies one at a time is great.
Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 is a much better film, less interested in sexual assault, thankfully. Less thankfully... there's still two. In this one Scorpion and a gang of prisoners escape and are torn between their own personal interests and helping each other in a man's world It's still an exploitation series. But this one seems more interested in enthralling rather than titillating and feels more like it has something to say, as cynical and bleak as it is. I definitely would hesitate to call the film feminist (or if that was the intent, they are questionable about their approaches) but it is a film about women wanting to be free from evil male authorities and even evil civilians. This film feels much more like a traditional Japanese ghost story or tragedy. Heck, there's even an element of Greek tragedies, specifically Medea, where the women take wraith-like vengeance on the world and by the end of the film, each other. It's definitely the best of the series and while it is stylish, it feels a little less "whoa cool" and more of a descent into an older form of story in a captivating way. There's a haunting segment where they come across an ancient looking woman with a knife, the last resident of a ghost town, who also has a tragic tale of vengeance.
Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable is a step down but it is still interesting, this time feeling a bit more like a noir tale. Scorpion's finally escaped for real since the last movie, but is still hunted by the police. There she meets a crime boss who was a former inmate and a woman who uses unsavory means to control her brain damaged brother's evil urges and is hunted by a one armed officer hell bent on vengeance. There's still some good stuff and some questionable stuff but overall, it's a decent enough movie that has an EC Comic's style karmic ending where Scorpion manages to use her biggest problems to solve each other.
Recommend isn't the word I would use for films like this but I can't deny the series has a ton of moments and set pieces that stick hard in my imagination.
So I saw Resident Evil The New One
It's ok! But really has a weird feel - like nothing really pops
I like the change of context and events, and showing key events in a movie. It's fun! But teh movie has a bad flow, and just feels poorly paced. I think it's cool that they remember that RE is horror, and leans into that more, and a lot of the stuff with lone Chris in mansion is really great.
It's ok! But really has a weird feel - like nothing really pops
So Redfields are orphans at the Raccon Orphanage run by Umbrella. Young Claire sees Lisa Trevor there, proving human experimentation. It's also run by Birkin! At some point they take Claire to do some experimentin' but she escapes never to return until 1998. In her absense Birkin treats Chris as a son, gets him into post secondary then in RPD. Claire returns to discuss a report from Bertolucci about Umbrella's misdeeds. In Current Raccoon, Umbrella has decided to cease all operations and is pulling out all assets. As the main employer in town, the city is left as a rust belt casualty. Betrolucci said that there was slow infection in the water, which made me think of Flint. A group of RPD goes to investigate a body at the long abandoned Spencer Mansion, and when they go missing, Chief Irons sends Wesker, Jill, Chris, Richard and Vickers to take the helicopter to investigate. Loser Rookie Leon is told to mind the desk.
Meanwhile Claire sees people degrading in town and heads towards RPD to find her brother. The truckdriver crashes his truck, and his burning corpse walks into RPD. Leon panics and Irons rescues him, but then tells Leon that city is doomed and he flees the station. Birken gets a phone call at home indicating the city will be destroyed at 6AM. He feels this will erase his work, so he takes his family on an excursion before fleeing town. Irons tries to leave town, but umbrella has soldiers at all exits shooting anyone who tries to escape. He heads back to station, and is rescued by Claire in the Garage. Leon and her then find Betrolucci, who is then killed by his cellmate. Irons, CLaire and Leon decide to escape.
MEANWHILE in the mansion - everyone is beset by Zombies. The helicopter is destroyed, and Chris is left alone to defend for himself. Jill and her crush Wesker take a different route. He has been taking instructions to find something there, and also is aware of the city being destroyed. Jill figures it out - Wesker is low paid public servant,a nd was being paid to find info on Umbrella. This is the final assignment. He leaves Jill to descend into the lab. Jill reunites with Chris and they then follow Wesker into the lab.
Irons thinks they need the helicopter to escape, unaware it was destroyed. He knows of a passage from the orphanage to the mansion. The 3 are attacked there by a Licker, and Irons is killed. Lisa Trevor kills it to save Leon and then leads them to the passage. They discover teh lab where teh children were experimented on, and a film strip of the Ashfords pulling apart a dragonfly, with Birkin in background. Birkin and his family now in lab, where he is securing his viruses. There is a vivisected zombie on table trying to talk - shocking his family. He claims he has been doing GOD'S WORK. Wesker comes in, but is shot by Birkin (they don't know each other in this version) Wesker shoots him down, then shoots his wife in the head. Sherry runs and hides. Wesker is panicking and feels guilty a bit, but Sherry points a gun at him, and he is about to shoot her... Jill shoots him in the back. He apologizes to Jill and Chris as he dies. Birkin takes the G virus and mutates.
Leon and CLaire also arrive. They take Sherry and flee, as Chris attempts to kill Birkin, his father figure? Birken reveals teh reality of the situation, and Chris gets upperhand and defeats him. The group finds the train and they take off, with mere minutes to spare before 6am. Super duper Birkin attacks and Chris and Claire getting their asses kicked. leon pulls a rocket launcher out of his ass, and BOOM.
Post Credit - ya boi Wesker was ressurected by Ada....!
Meanwhile Claire sees people degrading in town and heads towards RPD to find her brother. The truckdriver crashes his truck, and his burning corpse walks into RPD. Leon panics and Irons rescues him, but then tells Leon that city is doomed and he flees the station. Birken gets a phone call at home indicating the city will be destroyed at 6AM. He feels this will erase his work, so he takes his family on an excursion before fleeing town. Irons tries to leave town, but umbrella has soldiers at all exits shooting anyone who tries to escape. He heads back to station, and is rescued by Claire in the Garage. Leon and her then find Betrolucci, who is then killed by his cellmate. Irons, CLaire and Leon decide to escape.
MEANWHILE in the mansion - everyone is beset by Zombies. The helicopter is destroyed, and Chris is left alone to defend for himself. Jill and her crush Wesker take a different route. He has been taking instructions to find something there, and also is aware of the city being destroyed. Jill figures it out - Wesker is low paid public servant,a nd was being paid to find info on Umbrella. This is the final assignment. He leaves Jill to descend into the lab. Jill reunites with Chris and they then follow Wesker into the lab.
Irons thinks they need the helicopter to escape, unaware it was destroyed. He knows of a passage from the orphanage to the mansion. The 3 are attacked there by a Licker, and Irons is killed. Lisa Trevor kills it to save Leon and then leads them to the passage. They discover teh lab where teh children were experimented on, and a film strip of the Ashfords pulling apart a dragonfly, with Birkin in background. Birkin and his family now in lab, where he is securing his viruses. There is a vivisected zombie on table trying to talk - shocking his family. He claims he has been doing GOD'S WORK. Wesker comes in, but is shot by Birkin (they don't know each other in this version) Wesker shoots him down, then shoots his wife in the head. Sherry runs and hides. Wesker is panicking and feels guilty a bit, but Sherry points a gun at him, and he is about to shoot her... Jill shoots him in the back. He apologizes to Jill and Chris as he dies. Birkin takes the G virus and mutates.
Leon and CLaire also arrive. They take Sherry and flee, as Chris attempts to kill Birkin, his father figure? Birken reveals teh reality of the situation, and Chris gets upperhand and defeats him. The group finds the train and they take off, with mere minutes to spare before 6am. Super duper Birkin attacks and Chris and Claire getting their asses kicked. leon pulls a rocket launcher out of his ass, and BOOM.
Post Credit - ya boi Wesker was ressurected by Ada....!
I like the change of context and events, and showing key events in a movie. It's fun! But teh movie has a bad flow, and just feels poorly paced. I think it's cool that they remember that RE is horror, and leans into that more, and a lot of the stuff with lone Chris in mansion is really great.
8-bit Christmas seems like a perfectly successful saccharine Christmas movie updated for Millennials. We now have our A Christmas Story; a mediocre nostalgia trip with a few moments that are at least somewhat interesting. Its not particularly good, but it isn't insulting.
The Terminator is still one of the my favorite movies, and the whole finale is still one of the absolute best gol-danged sequences ever commited to film
I realize I didn't share some of last October's spooky viewing. In the movie department, the big highlight was It Follows, which I am late to the party on. That was incredibly effective and unnerving, basically my ideal horror movie. It amusingly reminded me of the Incredibly Slow Killer of the Extremely Inefficient Weapon, but it was legitimately paranoia-inducing. Also, love the respect it had for its audience, such as the final confrontation referencing something that is very important and upsetting to the protagonist, but never spelling that out, and only hinted at through pictures seen at the protagonist's home earlier.
It was also fun identifying all of the Michigan locations they filmed at. I was especially amused by its use of the Redford Theatre. The movie as a whole has this surreal, dreamlike anachronism going on, with the era difficult to pin down based on the technology and media shown. We only ever see old shows and movies being watched, including the one seen in this theater. To an outsider, that would contribute to the whole "when does this movie take place, anyway?" feel that the movie is going for. But the Redford is an old-school theater that exclusively shows classic movies.
It's actually one of my favorite places to visit in the greater Detroit area, with some really unique decor (It Follows doesn't even spotlight the cool starry ceiling it has, complete with a moving cloud effect). It has a lot of rich history to it, including its organ, which drew the interest of the incredibly enthusiastic, friendly organ society that now owns the theater and have been tirelessly working to restore it. It's been cool to visit over the past few years and see at least one major improvement each time. Just a really fascinating place: Redford Theatre
Sorry for morphing this review into a theater ad, but a place where you watch movies is totally relevant in a movie review thread, right???
It was also fun identifying all of the Michigan locations they filmed at. I was especially amused by its use of the Redford Theatre. The movie as a whole has this surreal, dreamlike anachronism going on, with the era difficult to pin down based on the technology and media shown. We only ever see old shows and movies being watched, including the one seen in this theater. To an outsider, that would contribute to the whole "when does this movie take place, anyway?" feel that the movie is going for. But the Redford is an old-school theater that exclusively shows classic movies.
It's actually one of my favorite places to visit in the greater Detroit area, with some really unique decor (It Follows doesn't even spotlight the cool starry ceiling it has, complete with a moving cloud effect). It has a lot of rich history to it, including its organ, which drew the interest of the incredibly enthusiastic, friendly organ society that now owns the theater and have been tirelessly working to restore it. It's been cool to visit over the past few years and see at least one major improvement each time. Just a really fascinating place: Redford Theatre
Sorry for morphing this review into a theater ad, but a place where you watch movies is totally relevant in a movie review thread, right???
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Female Prisoner Scorpion: #701's Grudge Song
Finally finished this series and while the main director is gone, this is... mostly a good movie. This time, Scorpion has a willing partner in crime when she meets a former student revolutionary tortured by the cops in the 60s. Together they wage war against authority until things go wrong and then go wronger. The latter half puts us once again in jail where a cop vows to give her a special taste of vengeance. My main issue is this latter half which has interesting ideas that feel like anti-corporal punishment. Unfortunately, one of the things I like is Scorpion outwitting her enemies and in this one she kind of... just lucks into her win? It's a bit disappointing. Nonetheless, it continues a fascinating film series that while having questionable elements also remains fascinating an watchable.
Finally finished this series and while the main director is gone, this is... mostly a good movie. This time, Scorpion has a willing partner in crime when she meets a former student revolutionary tortured by the cops in the 60s. Together they wage war against authority until things go wrong and then go wronger. The latter half puts us once again in jail where a cop vows to give her a special taste of vengeance. My main issue is this latter half which has interesting ideas that feel like anti-corporal punishment. Unfortunately, one of the things I like is Scorpion outwitting her enemies and in this one she kind of... just lucks into her win? It's a bit disappointing. Nonetheless, it continues a fascinating film series that while having questionable elements also remains fascinating an watchable.
Never saw Beethoven as a kid. If you didn't know, the plot is that the bad guy tries to trick the family into giving up their dog so he can shoot it in the head with a gun to test a new kind of ammunition.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar is a kind of movie that I feel like it doesn't get made anymore. Specifically, it is an SNL movie without being an actual SNL movie with broad yet idiosyncratic characters in outrageous situations. Unlike most SNL movies, it's also pretty funny, with Jamie Dornan giving a surprisingly hilarious performance as a handsome moron looking for love. The movie does have actual affection for its characters and they even get an arc of learning to enjoy time away from each other and still be friends but most of all, it is clear Mumolo and Wiig just wanted to make a film that they found hilarious first and foremost.
Time to start my Holiday Movie cycle; and that means beginning with a Stage One Christmas Movie (one which is only tangentially about the Holidays, or would require extensive rewrites if not set during Christmas);
So yeah; Die Hard.
S’good movie. Pity it’s gradually gotten the reputation of being being snidely ironic about it being a Christmas movie, because y’know… it’s good.
Easily my favourite Bruno Willy movie and possibly my favourite Alan Rickman performance
So yeah; Die Hard.
S’good movie. Pity it’s gradually gotten the reputation of being being snidely ironic about it being a Christmas movie, because y’know… it’s good.
Easily my favourite Bruno Willy movie and possibly my favourite Alan Rickman performance
HOT TAKE:
Die Hard I have no problem considering to be a Christmas Movie, as so much of the plot is based around allowances made for the fact that it’s set at Christmas; Batman Returns does not. The only concession is that the winner of a beauty pageant is winter-themed and it’s snowy.
Furthermore, I don’t have immediate easy access to it
Die Hard I have no problem considering to be a Christmas Movie, as so much of the plot is based around allowances made for the fact that it’s set at Christmas; Batman Returns does not. The only concession is that the winner of a beauty pageant is winter-themed and it’s snowy.
Furthermore, I don’t have immediate easy access to it
I watched The Warriors last night. I think I've seen it about a half-dozen times, but I really really liked it a lot this time (as opposed to just like, appreciating it, you know?). And now I've been trying to come up with a third movie to throw in a triple feature with The Warriors and Escape from New York because that would be a hell of a good time.
Streets of Fire, from the same director as The Warriors and the other huge inspiration for every beltscroll brawler ever made, gets my vote.
Olli
(he/him)
Alternatively, Attack on Precinct 13?
House of Gucci was pretty lame. The character direction and pacing of the dialogue were awkward at times and Jared Leto was just an ass. It missed a lot of relevant history, too. Costuming and music worked, Adam Driver and Gaga were hot, but almost everybody else felt out of place.
House of Gucci was pretty lame. The character direction and pacing of the dialogue were awkward at times and Jared Leto was just an ass. It missed a lot of relevant history, too. Costuming and music worked, Adam Driver and Gaga were hot, but almost everybody else felt out of place.
I was going to suggest Streets of Fire if you didn't. Watched it this weekend and it's good fun.
Nobody will ever convince me that Escape from New York isn't a Warriors sequel
Right??
The Matrix is a sequel to The Terminator
And both are a prequel to Cars
My friends and I went through Beethoven's Gate a few years ago - marathoned the entire series. 8 movies. Nothing lives up to the premise of the first one ("kidnapping dogs to shoot them in the head to test bullets") but there are a few twists and turns. Nothing good, mind you, but we definitely had a few surprises in store for us.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Godzilla Vs. Kong - I was hoping to like this more. I got the impression it was going to be a "good dumb" movie with some trippy scenes based on reviews I read but in all honesty, it was mostly a bore. Some of the fights were kind of fun but I don't think Adam Wingard does anything new with the giant monster fight formula. Probably the weakest part of the movie is the Millie Bobbie Brown section, which feels like a Michael Bay Transformers plot and I feel like could almost be excised from the film entirely. The Kong stuff is far more interesting and even that isn't that good. I get people are jazzed to see Mechagodzilla and really embrace the b-movieness of the film but I was surprised with how checked out I was through the film.
Nightmare Alley is an incredible mix of sentimentalism and nastiness. The beautiful production design kind of disguises just how mean this movie actually it. And it turns out it is very, very mean. I do like del Toro just making his subtext text by having Willem Dafoe's carnival barker pose the question if the subject of his freak show is a man or beast at the start of the movie, and then the movie spends its runtime letting you sort it out (hint: man is the real monster).
And Crimson Peak. And Hellboy 2. And his Trollhunters cartoon on Netflix. Not so much Pacific Rim (though rumor says his planned sequel would have revealed that the aliens on the other side of the breach were future humans attempting to colonize their own past).
Dang that's a good hook
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
This is also the same premise of the Sheeda in Grant Morrison's 7 Soldiers series.
I wanted to watch more 2021 movies and this was a Hell of a week so I wanted something unchallenging. Unfortunately Free Guy is too much of that, a movie that is not very good. It hints at some more interesting ideas but they are smaller parts of the movie (a scene where everyone's mind starts to break when Ryan Reynold's tries to order something different gestures towards a more interesting movie) and most of it feels like a retread of better movies, namely The Lego Movie. I also don't need an accurate representation of video game creation or culture but even with my limited knowledge, there's something a big off about it throughout that makes it feel written buy someone who isn't that invested in it, no matter how many internet personalities you through in it. Probably the most eyerolling moment is the climax that features the most generic nerd-pandering that actually doesn't really fit into the movie we watched very well. I also think that Ryan Reynold's is self-obsessed. I don't even mean that as a negative, so much as a some actors are drawn to certain themes, I feel like he's obsessed with the line between himself and the audience and likes movies about that. I also think this is the first time I didn't care for Taika Waititi in a thing, as he's just too broad.