Vampire's Kiss (1988)

Vampire's Kiss (1988)
In the mid to late 1980s a bunch of vampire movies came out such as Fright Night (1985), Near Dark (1987), and The Lost Boys (1987), all of which I enjoyed. 
Vampire's Kiss is a horror-comedy movie about literary agent Peter Loew (Nicolas Cage) who thinks he may have turned into a vampire after being bitten by a beautiful girl named Rachel (Jennifer Beals). There isn't much of a plot and the main thing driving the story is a missing file that Loew's boss says early on it's not important. Despite this information, Loew uses the missing contract as an excuse to constantly harass his secretary (played by Maria Conchita Alonso who was in The Running Man and Predator 2). The harsh treatment of the secretary by Loew was just petty and made it hard for me to care about him, vampire or not. Not to mention the fact that he apparently raped this secretary?! Now I guess it is possible he simply imagined it but we see scenes between her and her brother without Cage's character that seem to imply it actually happened. It is possible for a film with an unlikeable protagonist to be work, but Loew is just not interesting outside the fact that he may be a vampire and the story just isn't there.
Most of the humor in the movie comes from Nicolas Cage's hilarious over the top but frantic performance. Although Cage is pretty ridiculous as usual, it does make Vampire's Kiss fun to watch. Overall though the tone doesn't work as the movie is trying to be a vampire horror-comedy along the lines of Fright Night but without much of a plot to support it. In Fright Night you had laughs and scares but they were used to reinforce an interesting story that wasn't just about whether or not the new neighbor was a vampire but how to stop him from turning others into vampires once his true nature was revealed. In Vampire's Kiss we are just left to wonder if Loew is really a vampire or a crazy yuppie dreaming this all up.

The above picture shows you what you are in for when it comes to Cage's acting in the movie. That facial expression in particular caught on with the recent "You Don't Say?" internet meme.
I watched Vampire's Kiss with a group of people and many of them didn't believe the movie was intentionally a comedy. I had no problem as identifying this movie as an intended horror-comedy and it seems to have always been marketed this way judging from the original trailer and posters. However, I think this shows that the movie wasn't able to capture the fun but serious enough tone of a movie like Fright Night.
Jennifer Beals is sexy as a vampire but she doesn't do much besides bite Loew then have sex with him. Couldn't she have helped find that missing file when she isn't out at night seducing Nicolas Cage?! Oddly enough Beals was also in Frankenstein movie The Bride (1985) a few years prior to this film.
Although Vampire's Kiss had its moments, all related to Cage's performance like him buying plastic vampire teeth or eating cockraoches, the movie didn't work for me. I liked that it was ambiguous as to if being a vampire was all in Loew's imagination, but there wasn't much of a point other than that. I feel that there needed more to the story than just "is he crazy or not?" since we don't get any definitive answers on that anyway. Maybe if Loew actively tried to be a human again or stop Rachel there would've been more to suck me in (pun intended) while keeping the ambiguity. I also think Loew should have been more likeable (like, you know, not a rapist!) so that we would have cared more about the character other than just what outlandish thing Nic Cage would do next.
Vampire's Kiss is watchable thanks to Cage's hilarious screams and wacky facial expressions. Without his memorable performance this movie would have been totally different and probably have been completely forgotten today. Nicolas Cage seems to always put in either great or terrible performances, all of which are usually interesting to see. I've now seen eleven Nicolas Cage movies, including his brief role in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982).
Another mid 80s vampire comedy is the movie Once Bitten (1985) starring Jim Carrey. I'll have to check it out sometime and see how it stacks up against Vampire's Kiss.
4/10

Weekly Wrap-Up (12/4)

I have my final exams coming up this week so I'll keep this post a bit shorter than usual. This week I saw seven movies. One is a true classic, one is a true stinker and the rest are somewhere in between!

The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Somehow I had never seen this film before even though I love Casablanca which also has Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, and Sydney Greenstreet. Like in that film, the supporting cast here is fantastic and just as great as the leading actors. The story is good but it is the characters, dialogue, and acting that make this film great. The Maltese Falcon is important to film history, but it still holds up extremely well. The movie is always entertaining and it is easy to see why this film has made its mark on popular culture. The Maltese Falcon truly is the stuff dreams are made of!
9/10

Three Amigos! (1986)
Last week I saw The Blues Brothers so here is another John Landis comedy. I actually liked this one a bit better and at the moment it is my favorite Landis comedy. The basic plot of actors being confused for the people they portray has been done before and since. For similar movies I still prefer Galaxy Quest but liked this one more than Tropic Thunder. Although the movie meanders at points (the singing cowboy parody parts for instance, especially since these are silent film actors and that fad happened later) it is consistently funny and there are few movies that have made me laugh as much as this one did.
8/10

Coming to America (1988)
Since I have liked pretty much every John Landis movie I have seen so far (Into the Night was mediocre and its hard to judge his work on Twilight Zone: The Movie because of the infamous helicopter accident and the fact that its an anthology film) I plan on eventually seeing all his 70s and 80s movies. It seems that Landis came down with John Carpenter syndrome and couldn't make a good film after the 80s ended.
The plot of Coming to America is that Prince Akeem defies his arranged marriage to find a woman who will arouse his intellect as well as his loins, to paraphrase a line from the movie. Akeem and his servant travel to Queens, NY disguised as poor goat herders to find Akeem's true love. While this basic story has been done many times before, Coming to America puts a new spin on the material and does its own thing. Prince Akeem may be Eddie Murphy's finest film role. Like Landis, Murphy also lost it after the 80s ended. Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, and John Amos steal every scene they are in. There are also early roles from Samuel L. Jackson and Louie Anderson. Murphy and Hall play several roles throughout the movie, including the hilarious barbers. Coming to America is quite funny, but it also has heart and makes you care about the characters.
7/10

Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996)
I just realized that I saw two movies with America in the title this week, I didn't plan on that, I swear!
As a fan of the Beavis and Butthead TV show (and the brand new episodes!) I had been meaning to see this movie for quite some time now. Besides Mike Judge who voices the titular characters (as well as several others), Bruce Willis, Demi Moore, Robert Stack, and Cloris Leachman round out the cast. Beavis and Butt-Head Do America is pretty short as it clocks in at 81 minutes and there is some filler.
If you like the show you will enjoy the movie, but Beavis and Butthead still works better in small doses as a TV series. Beavis and Butthead don't get the chance to mock any music videos which make sense for the movie, but was a bit disappointing as it was always a major part of the show. It doesn't matter too much as these two dumb metal heads will always make me laugh.
6/10

Pretty in Pink (1986)
Although I liked every John Hughes movie I had seen so far, I didn't care for this one. To be fair Pretty in Pink was only written by Hughes and he didn't direct it. However, it is usually considered one of "his" films since he wrote it specifically for Molly Ringwald. I knew this movie probably wouldn't be my cup of tea coming into it, but was surprised that I didn't like any of the characters. Part of this may have been because there was some confusion during production as Robert Downey, Jr. was almost cast as Duckie which would have been pretty different. I won't go into spoilers, but the ending was also changed at the last minute. The plot is your basic poor girl falls in love with rich guy story and doesn't really bring anything new to the table. The movie is competently made and held my interest, but I'd say it is Hughes weakest movie (scripted or directed) that I have seen thus far. Harry Dean Stanton put in a solid performance as Ringwald's jobless single father and I enjoyed James Spader's role as a rich jerk who looks way too old to be in high school.
5/10

Identity (2003)
Identity is a creepy atmospheric thriller with some nice acting performances by John Cusack and Ray Liotta. It is hard to discuss this film further without spoilers so I'll just say that I liked the way it progressed even though I wasn't blown away or thought it should not have gone that direction like some people did. I was impressed with the directing by James Mangold who also made Girl, Interrupted, Walk the Line, and 3:10 to Yuma so I'll have to check out some of his other films when I get the chance.
7/10

Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (1972)
Bad movies come in all forms and genres. This piece of crap is a terrible Christmas movie and a bad kids movie. Bad children's films often get a pass as people say "but it was only made for kids!" as some sort of excuse for a bad movie that is usually incredibly dumbed down. I have seen some awful Christmas movies before like Santa Claus Conquers the Martians and Santa Claus (1959) but this one takes the cake.
This excuse for a movie starts out with Santa's elves then switches to Santa on his sleigh stuck in the sand at the beach. There is no explanation given for what happened to his reindeer or how the sleigh got stuck there. A bunch of children find out about this (I don't know how) and bring different kinds of animals, including a guy in a gorilla suit, to pull the sleigh but nothing works. Somehow Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn observe all that goes on with Santa and the children even though they are fictional characters and the movie takes place in the present day real world. Since the kids can't get the sleigh out of the sand, Santa tells the children a story. This is when the movie suddenly turns into another movie about Thumbelina from the same production company. We even see the opening credits for that movie as Santa begins to "tell" the story! And the worst part is that the Thumbelina movie has its own framing story since its being told at an amusement park called Pirates World.
So to summarize, what essentially happens is that Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn eavesdrop on Santa telling kids a story about some people going to an amusement park who go into a room and hear a story about Thumbelina on a loudspeaker. Yes folks, that is how bad this movie is. The Thumbelina story is just as bad as the Santa story, except much creepier thanks to the animal costumes which are pure nightmare fuel. After the Thumbelina story ends, a bunny driving an old fashioned fire engine comes by and Santa hitches a ride with the bunny as the kids wave goodbye to him. Santa just leaves his sleigh on the beach and despite the title there is never any connection between this bunny and ice cream. Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny is one of the worst movies ever made and despite my description I don't think I can do justice as to how bad this garbage really is. I can't believe people actually paid money to see this movie in theaters as it is 96 minutes of hell unleashed upon the Earth. Luckily I saw the RiffTrax version from Mike Nelson and Kevin Murphy of MST3K fame which hilariously mocked the movie. Check out a sample here if you think you can stand it!
Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny deserves a 0/10, but I do my scoring system on a 1-10 scale to sync up with my votes on IMDB.
1/10

Weekly Wrap-Up (10/16)

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983)
I love Monty Python but this is not one of their better works. It feels like a long episode with segments that are loosely connected. There are more musicals numbers than usual and they are hit or miss. I liked the short film at the beginning The Crimson Permanent Assurance (technically a separate film as it is sometimes shown with the feature but The Meaning of Life is never shown without it) directed by Terry Gilliam. I laughed quite a bit but these guys can do much better as seen in Holy Grail and Life of Brian. It was a bit of a disappointment but still not bad at all and I'm glad I saw it for completion's sake. I guess the biggest problem was that this was a sketch movie and didn't have the focus like the Monty Python's other two films. For example some of the segments felt like they went on too long and since the topic (life) is so general there are no recurring characters. If you are a Monty Python fan you will certainly enjoy this movie, but if you are just getting into them start with Monty Python and the Holy Grail or their TV show Monty Python's Flying Circus.
6/10

The Blob (1988)
The Blob is a remake of the 1958 cult classic. While the original was not a great film, the blob was one of the most creative monsters of the time period and its still a fun watch today. I wrote about it when I saw it at Blobfest this past summer.
From a technical aspect the movie was better made than I was expecting. The practical special effects are quite good and still horrifying. There is also a nice cut early on from the blob taking over guy's hand to a kid eating jello. The acting is average at best although I enjoyed Art LaFleur as Mr. Penny the Pharmacist and Jack Nance's cameo as a doctor.
The 1988 version tries to be like John Carpenter's The Thing by putting a darker tone to a 50s monster movie. However there is still a decent amount of humor which makes the tone of the film go back and forth from campy fun to creepy horror.
Speaking of Carpenter's The Thing, the blob in the 1988 version acts more like The Thing in the way it takes over bodies. In the original people were absorbed into the blob which made it grow larger and more powerful while this time the blob appears to hide within bodies.
Besides the tone, I noticed the pacing is off. The scene with the freezer is similar to the one in the original, but its placed way too early in the film. Some characters are given a decent amount of set-up time only to be killed pretty early on (the football player who seems to be the main character at first, the sheriff, the restaurant owner). The sub-plot with the priest felt out of place and didn't make a lot of sense. The ending was also kinda abrupt and felt like they were setting up a possible sequel which never came to fruition.
There is a plot twist in this version that the U.S. is responsible for the creation of the blob as a biological weapon. This was an interesting development that differentiates it from the original, although the way its done is quite similar to how the Weyand-Yutani Corporation wants to use the Xenomorphs as weapons in Alien and Aliens. Even the new stuff in this remake had been done before, and better.
I liked the 80s rock song over the end credits ("Brave New Love" by the band Alien) although I'm 99% sure it was only here because of the Dokken songs in A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors which came out the year before and did quite well at the box office. The Blob (1988) was a commercial flop when released although it seems to have a somewhat better reputation today, probably because its practical effects have aged so well.
Despite my issues with the remake, I still had fun watching it. I would still recommend it to anyone who likes sci-horror films that don't take themselves too seriously. But if you are only going to see one blob movie, stick with the original. And if you ever get the chance to attend Blobfest I highly recommend it! I had tons of fun and it was one of my favorite cinematic experiences. It was awesome to actually be in the theater that The Blob was filmed in, while watching The Blob! I don't know if the remake is ever shown there but it would make a nice compare/contrast double feature.
5/10

Weekly Wrap-up (8/28)

The Adjustment Bureau (2011)

The Adjustment Bureau is loosely based on the 1954 Philip K. Dick short story The Adjustment Team. While that story is not one of his better pieces of short fiction, it is an enjoyable read. The movie takes the story in a different direction but keeps key elements. For example, the two main characters in the film are a politician and a ballerina. In the short story the main characters are a married coupled and the husband works in an office. As an adaptation of Dick's story it is not very close (like most science fiction/fantasy short stories you would have to make it into a Twilight Zone/Outer Limits episode to truly adapt it) but as a stand alone film its good. I don't have a problem with Hollywood re-imaging Dick's work as was the case here, but other films got closer to his themes, some which aren't even based on PKD stories! For example, this movie felt like the little brother to Dark City (1998). Both movies share similar ideas like free will and "adjustments," but Dark City explores these philosophical questions deeper while The Adjustment Bureau focuses on the love story. That said, the love story is well done and I'm not knocking the movie for doing something different with the source material. When dealing with films based on books or any other sort of media I try to judge it as a film first and foremost and through my preconceptions out the window. Getting back to the love story, it doesn't feel forced as Emily Blunt and Matt Damon have good chemistry together. The relationship aspect wasn't tacked on to the plot like in other films (*cough* Thor *cough*) as their attraction and love for each other is the driving factor in the story.

The film's story is grounded in real world as every one from Jon Stewart to Jesse Jackson make cameos as themselves in the opening scene. When the sci-fi/fantasy part of plot comes in with the adjusters the movie is still always pretty grounded. For example, we don't have the talking dog from the short story (its not what it appears to be, but still much more fantastical than the tone they were going for here). The film is a "romantic thriller" (my apologies to James Nguyen, the director of the crapfest Birdemic who coined that term) with both paranoia and heart.

The outfits of the adjusters in the 50s/60s style with hats was certainly a throwback to Dick's stories and is something that hasn't really been used in the film adaptations of his works until this point. One problem about the adjusters is that for some unknown reason they don't like water and it apparently affects their powers. It seems that this was just thrown in there to give them a weakness and doesn't really make sense.

Besides Damon and Blunt, Terence Stamp, Michael Kelly, and Anthony Mackie put in solid supporting roles as no performance stood out as particularly great or poor. There were not a ton of special effects in this movie but I didn't notice any CGI, so if it was used it wasn't distracted which was nice for a change in modern films.

The Adjustment Bureau is director George Nolfi's first film, and it is certainly a good start. I am interested to see what he will do next.

7/10

Gremlins (1984)

I had seen part of Gremlins on TV a long time ago, but never actually got around to watching the whole thing until now. Gremlins is a type of movie we don't see a whole lot nowadays: an original story (not a remake, sequel or based on a book/comic) that also has great practical effects. This movie features tons of familiar actors so I won't even waste your time listing them all. More importantly, these actors do a great job of playing interesting characters that you care about such as the old Chinese man who sells Gizmo, the inventor/salesman Dad, the war veteran afraid of gremlins, etc. The directing by Joe Dante is good. I'm familiar with his TV work and Amazon Women on the Moon so I'll have to check out more of his stuff. The script was written by Chris Columbus who would go on to have a nice career (wrote Goonies, directed Home Alone and first two Harry Potter films). Gremlins inspired a slew knock-off movies from the mediocre (Critters) to just plain terrible (Hobgoblins). Like tons of other TV shows and movies such as Back to the Future, Gremlins was filmed on the Universal back lot.

Gremlins is a throwback to 1950s monster movie as the film features a short scene from Invasion of the Body Snatchers as well as a cameo from none other than Robby the Robot as himself! I was impressed with the attention to detail in this movie. Early on the lead actor's romantic interest says that she hates Christmas. I thought it was a bit odd but didn't think much about it until it was followed up on later. A more fun example is when Gizmo is in the backpack quietly humming "Hi Ho" while the other gremlins are watching Snow White in the theater!

Gremlins has a perfect tone for this type of horror comedy as it is funny but never silly and serious when it needs to be. The ending with Stripe dying is pretty creepy and would certainly scare younger children.

The movie is a lot of fun as we have gremlins singing Christmas carols, playing cards, and going to movies! The special effects are very well done and still hold up today. The mogwai and gremlins feel like real creatures and their personalities bounce off the screen.

While on could easily guess that this movie would have a happy ending, it also follows up on the beginning and is a perfect wrap-up. I felt bad that Billy couldn't keep Gizmo, but I'm glad this was in ending as it makes more sense and is as realistic as possible given the circumstances.

7/10

Cocoon (1985)

The plot of Cocoon is reminiscent of the original Twilight Zone episode "Kick the Can." However, I actually think this movie handled a similar premise even better. Cocoon is unusual for a Hollywood movie in that the leading actors are all old people. The three lead senior citizens are played by Wilford Brimley, Hume Cronyn, and Don Ameche. A veteran actor since the 1930s, Ameche won his one and only an Oscar (Best Actor in a Supporting Role) for Cocoon, although it was essentially a lifetime achievement award. Steve Guttenberg is fun in a supporting role although nobody could have predicted that in 2011 the general public would be more familiar with Wilford Brimley than Guttenberg. Diabeetus! Speaking of Wilford Brimley, that man always looked old. I still can't believe that he was only 50 when this movie was made! Brimley looked old in The Thing (1982) and The Natural (1984) and surprisingly he turns just 77 this September!

Cocoon has nice score by James Horner, one of my favorite movie soundtrack composers. The opening soundtrack song is fantastic and used perfectly in the Super 8 trailer since most people (myself included) thought it was an original piece made for that movie!

The premise of older people feeling younger (but not looking younger) is quite good and also well executed. A friend of the group, Bernie, chooses not to swim in the "fountain of youth" pool because he says its  "reshuffling the deck" and like playing god. Cocoon is a film is about growing old that is not depressing, but a celebration of both life and death. Leaving earth is a metaphor for dying and going to another planet where they can't return from but will never die is like the afterlife. The pool is also an example of too much of a good thing as Joe obsesses over it to the extent that his wife (temporarily) leaves him.

Besides having a much older cast than most popular films, it is also interesting to note that Cocoon has no villains or bad guys. Instead we just have people trying to help each other despite obstacles. The old friends try to help each others health through the pool. The aliens try to rescue their friends who were left behind. Steve Guttenberg's character agrees to help the aliens in their quest. Even the Coast Guard is trying to at the end since they think the old people went senile on the boat and attempt to bring them back. The special effects still hold up pretty well, and they should since the film won an Oscar for best Visual Effects.
 

Cocoon was not as sentimental as I was expecting it would be. Instead it was realistic as possible when it came to the characters. There was also a great sense of wonder, which is has often been absent from more recent films. Like Gremlins, there is obviously going to be a happy ending, but its not sappy. There is a typical cheesy 80s montage about halfway through the film which feels out of place, although that is sort of the point. However, that was already cliche by this point and certainly could have been handled better. Something else I wonder is if the cast was too large. For example, Barret Oliver (Brimley's grandson), was an important character in the beginning then disappears for most of film. That said the acting was good all around and I think it not only handles the ensemble cast well but better than the second movie did.

I also gotta add that the picture quality of this film (and the sequel) is amazing in HD (free on demand thru comcast). Not a movie I would expect to look great but I gotta give credit for the pristine video and sound quality. When it comes it family films that don't play down (or up) to an audience that all ages can enjoy, you can't go wrong with Cocoon.
My favorite quote from the film: "It wouldn't be fun if we had permission" - Art Selwyn (Don Ameche)

7/10

Cocoon: The Return (1988)

The lure of great HD picture quality was enough to get me to see the sequel. Another plus was the return of the entire ensemble cast. Even Brian Dennehy and the actress who played Rose return for cameos! This is rare for a sequel that isn't part of a franchise like Star Trek or X-Men. Besides all the returning actors we also have an early role for Courteney Cox. Ron Howard did not return to the directing chair and his presence is missed. It was interesting to see an older Barrett Oliver in one of his final film roles before he retired from acting. This sort of thing happens a lot to child stars, but he will always be remembered for his role as Bastian in The Neverending Story.
Although the sequel came out three years later, it picks up five years after the first film for some reason. While this sequel was certainly not necessary, it was not completely unnecessary either as there was a good reason for them to return to Earth that follows up on the last movie. It was also clever to bring back Bernie and follow-up on his character, who plays a larger role this time. Jessica Tandy is great as usual, and she gets more screen time in the sequel, along with the other wives of the main three old men.

It's nice to see these older actors having fun in these roles. Wilford Brimley and the guys play basketball against 20-somethings which was hilarious even though it didn't move the plot forward at all. The pregnancy (?!) sub-plot was just plain ridiculous. Also, the more screen time the alien Antareans have in the natural form, the sillier they look. Less is more in this case.
Obviously Cocoon: The Return is not as good as the original, but its not a bad sequel. If you liked the first movie I'd be surprised if you didn't like the second one at all. The follow-up is much more episodic than the original which told a more cohesive story. As a result the pacing drags at times and has bigger shifts in tone. Perhaps the movie could have been better if it was shorter (say closer to 90 minutes than two hours) and focused more on rescuing the cocooned Antareans, which is why they came back to Earth in the first place. The credits are played over scenes from both movies which is unusual but works in this case.
5/10

The best part about the sequel is that it ties up all the loose ends so that there can't be another one. And since all of the seniors except Brimley are now dead... we don't have to worry about a Cocoon 3 unless Wilford Brimley REALLY wants to reprise his role! Although knowing Hollywood it wouldn't surprise me if they remade Cocoon with Shia LaBeouf as Steve Guttenberg's character or Gremlins with LaBeouf as Billy... now that I have given you nightmares, see you on Thursday!

Weekly Wrap-Up

I'll start the Weekly Wrap-Up with movies I have seen this week but not reviewed yet. Some I have seen before and some I have not. After that I'll wrap up with the movies I have seen this week and already reviewed.

Heathers (1988)
Since my brother recently graduated from High School I wanted him to watch this movie as it is one of my favorite comedies both for its humor and how well it is made. Heathers is a satiric dark comedy about social cliques in high school, and really in life in general. Winona Ryder and Christian Slater are fantastic as the leads, but even the background characters are great such as Veronica's parents, the cops, and the minister. This time around I noticed that Heathers is even better made than I thought. Plot elements such as the Moby Dick book and the fact that Veronica can perfectly imitate Heather Chandler's handwriting are set up very early on. Also Veronica and all three of the Heathers have color schemes that follow them throughout the movie. Veronica is blue, Heather Chandler is red, Heather McNamara is yellow, and Heather Duke is green. Everything from their croquet balls, to clothes, to bedrooms and even the lighting around them follows this pattern. And when Heather Duke takes over Heather Chandler's place, she also takes over the color red! I absolutely love Heathers and its too bad its director (Michael Lehmann) and writer (Daniel Waters) haven't done much of note since. Lehmann has directed some movies but has mainly done TV work since, most recently directing some episode of True Blood. Waters wrote the screenplay for Batman Returns but has only worked on two movies since 2001. Also Heathers did not get much attention when it was first released, it now has a sizable cult following.
9/10

The Tree of Life (2011)
Before I get into my mini-review I just want to saw that I had the pleasure of watching this movie with Nate of Forgotten Classics of Yesteryear!
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of my all-time favorite movies. So when I heard that Douglass Trumbull who did the special effects for that film as well as Silent Running, The Andromeda Strain, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and Blade Runner was involved with The Tree of Life I knew I had to see it! Directed by Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life reminds me of 2001 and not just for the "birth of the universe" segment. The two films complement each other and are both up to the interpretation of the viewer. The Tree of Life is about, as Douglas Adams would put it, life, the universe, and everything. I feel that an alternate title for the film could be "A Human Odyssey." As great as it was to see Trumbull back to work in a post-CGI world, the 1950s story was also done wonderfully with great performances by all, especially the child actors as it truly felt like you were watching home movies of their lives. Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain put in fantastic performances as the father and mother of the family. The Tree of Life is not for everyone since its events are not linear (we have one of the biggest time jumps in all of cinema!) and everything is not completely explained and tied up with a bow at the end. However, if you want a film that will challenge you, make you think and wonder in awe, then I highly recommend you go experience The Tree of Life right away!
10/10

Dreamscape (1984)
I have watched this before but saw it again with my brother who was watching it for the first time. My opinion did not change. I still like it and still think Christopher Nolan saw it before making Inception. There are a lot of recognizable actors in this movie from Christopher Plummer to Max Van Sydow to the guy who played Norm on Cheers! By the way, I love how this poster looks like an Indiana Jones movie, I guess because Dennis Quaid looks and acts like Harrison Ford. The movie isn't like that as it is a thriller about entering the dreams of others, mostly to help them get over psychological problems and bad dreams.
6/10

The Cable Guy (1996)
I had seen part of this movie years ago and since my brother wanted to watch it I felt it was time to see the whole thing. While I found the movie quite funny at times, it felt like it needed a re-write as the plot wasn't focused and the cable guy acted out of character near the end. It was hard for me to root for or against either Carrey or Broderick since they were at times sympathetic then did things which would make you not care for them. Broderick's character is generally considered the protagonist but the movie is named after Carrey's character so who knows. The Cable Guy was directed by Ben Stiller and I actually think it could have been better if he played the role which ended up going to Matthew Broderick. Although The Cable Guy performed well at the box office, I can see why it got mixed reviews and didn't do as well as Carrey's previous films. The Cable Guy has a quirky sense of humor as well as a large amount of film references which would not appeal to everyone. Despite its flaws I still found it funnier than most comedies.
6/10

Movies I have seen this week and already reviewed:
Fright Night Part 2 (1988)
Solid horror comedy sequel. I wrote more about this movie in Summer Round-up Part 3.
6/10


Drag Me to Hell (2009)
Fun horror movie with some dark humor. Check out my full review posted Wed. June 29th.
7/10

First Blood (1982)
good action thriller that is not like the Rambo sequels. Check out my full review posted Fri. July 1st.
8/10

Summer Movie Round-Up Part 3 of 3

This will be the final post covering the movies I have seen so far this summer. Like the previous posts, this one includes 8 brief reviews.

I love Bill Murray, and he is at the top of his game in Stripes. Murray stole the show in Caddyshack (1980) but this time his is the leading man. Murray's character, John, loses his job and his girlfriend so he convinces his best friend Russell (Harold Ramis) to join the army with him. Ivan Reitman directed three films in a row with Bill Murray: Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981), and Ghost Busters (1984), which also starred Harold Ramis. Although Stripes is a Bill Murray vehicle, we are also treated to early roles  from John Candy, John Larroquette, Judge Reinhold, and Sean Young who all add to the hilarity. The first two thirds of the movie takes place at boot camp where hi jinx ensue. However, it is the last act where the movie really shines. Murray and Ramis steal a secret government vehicle in order to meet up with their girlfriends only to have things get out of hand... and "That's the fact, Jack!"
Stripes joins a 7/10!

One of my new favorite directors is David Cronenberg. I absolutely love Videodrome (1983) and Dead Ringers (1988) and have been seeking out more of his films. They Came from Within (1975), also known as Shivers, was Cronenberg's first full-length film. Not surprisingly it is pretty raw, although since the movie is about parasites that infect the residents of a high-rise and turn them into sex-crazed zombies, it works in the film's favor. The special effects and gore are pretty good considering the low budget. Probably the best example is the horrifying bath tub scene which is depicted on the poster. It is interesting to see Cronenberg's body horror at an early stage and how the themes of flesh and technology would be further developed upon in his later films. Like most of Cronenberg's movies, this was filmed in Canada, specifically in the city of Montreal. Almost the entire movie takes place in an apartment complex. Even though it is a huge building, it leads to a claustrophobic setting since all the rooms and hallways are small to accommodate so many people, which helps add to the suspense. So far this is the weakest film I have seen by him, but I still enjoyed it. Cronenberg's next film, A Dangerous Method, will be released later this year and is about Freud and Jung.
They Come From Within infects a 6/10!

The last two round-ups have featured many movies from the last year or two, so now I get to change things up a bit with (so far) the oldest movie I have reviewed on this blog. The Mummy (1932) stars Boris Karloff as Imhotep and also features African-American actor Noble Johnson as "The Nubian." The film starts out with a fantastic scene in which the mummy is discovered in 1922. The screams are haunting and this creepy opening still holds up today. After this great beginning, the story jumps ahead ten years and unfortunately the story slows down. Imhotep pretends to be a modern Egyptian, and finds a woman who was his lover has been reincarnated. While the final scene is just as good as the first, most of the movie is dialogue heavy with not much happening. I am not asking for non-stop action, but it felt a repetitive at times. I did enjoy the flashback scene, although it was heavily cut for its theatrical release and that footage is sadly lost. Critics have never put The Mummy on the same level as Frankenstein (1931) or Dracula (1931) and although I haven't seen those films yet, I think I can see why. Simply put, not enough happens, although I think the explanation is that unlike those two films, this one was not based on a novel. I have a feeling that audiences in 1932 would have had a greater appreciation for the characters simply talking than we do today. But all things considered The Mummy is still a classic early horror film with great cinematography and atmosphere. Karloff manages to make his character an intimidating force to be reckoned with, yet one the audience feels bad for as he literally waited thousands of years to get back the woman he loves. Although Karloff had already hit the big time as Frankenstein's monster a year earlier, it was films like The Mummy that helped cement his status as a star. "Karloff the Uncanny," indeed.
The Mummy wraps up a 7/10!

I got to admit I was pleasantly surprised by Devil (2010). Although directed by John Erick Dowdle, M. Night Shyamalan is credited as a writer and producer. While I haven't seen Shyamalan's more recent films, I have not heard good things about them. However, Devil is a solid contained thriller about group of people trapped in an elevator who apparently have Satan himself in their midst. Like many of Shyamalan's films, this one takes place in the Philadelphia area, specifically center city. While I would have made the devil stuff more ambiguous, I did like it. The characters stuck in the elevator were well written and it was interesting to them interact with each other as the situation got increasingly worse. The detective investigating the situation is not played by the best actor, but I did like how his storyline coincided with one of the people in the elevator. Even if Shyamalan did direct this, I still wouldn't call it a comeback, but it is a step in the right direction.
Devil doesn't go to hell with a 6/10!

Time to take a break from horror movies and thrillers. I always thought that St. Elmo's Fire (1985) was a John Hughes film, I guess because it features so many members of the "Brat Pack" who were in movies like The Breakfast Club (1985). In fact we have almost half the cast from that movie here! St. Elmo's Fire is actually a Joel Schumacher film. Having recently watched The Lost Boys I was curious to see another of his pre-Batman Forever and Batman and Robin movies. St. Elmo's Fire is about the trials and tribulations of recent college graduates. As a recent college grad myself I felt it was the right time to see this one! Overall this wasn't really my cup of tea, although the characters were interesting and the directing was fine. What I want to know is how these seven guys and girls all became friends in the first place since they were all pretty different and it therefore felt like an unrealistic group. Also I don't understand how Rob Lowe's character got into Georgetown, but whatever. Anyway I'm glad I saw this since I had heard the quote "You cannot have the Pretenders' first album!" and now know its from this movie. Also featuring Andie McDowell and Jenny Wright (Near Dark).
St. Elmo's Fire burns up a 5/10!
   

Finally I get to write about a truly awful movie, Robot Holocaust (1986)! I first heard about this one through Mystery Science Theater 3000, so when I saw it was in available for free in HD via Comcast On Demand, I had to see it. Once or twice I had seen a MST3K movie in its original form, but never has one looked so good when it comes to picture quality. The plot (or lack thereof) is about a rebel named Neo who teams up with a robot that makes Jar Jar Binks seem like John Wayne in comparison. Together they meet up with a woman warrior, a Beastmaster wanna-be, and a rebel girl in order to defeat an evil computer ("The Dark One" although it is a glowing orange ball and not dark at all!) that has taken over the world. This movie rips off everything from The Terminator to Star Wars to Mad Max to Alien. When a movie borrows music from Laserblast, you know its going to be bad. If you took a drink every time a character uttered "the Dark One" you would be in a coma in 10 minutes. As bad as this movie was, I got through it without too much permanent brain damage so it was still watchable. I was laughing at it and cracking jokes, but I've seen some movies so boring and bad that I couldn't even do that. Robot Holocaust is still in so bad its good territory, although barely.
After watching the movie I decided to see the MST3K episode. This is a first season episode and I noticed that Joel and the bots use more sight gags in the theater than in the later seasons. Also it was interesting to see Josh "J. Elvis" Weinstein who played Dr. Forrester's original sidekick Dr. Laurence Erhardt as well as Tom Servo. Dr. Erhardt would be replaced with TV's Frank (played by Frank Conniff) and Kevin Murphy took over as Servo. I thought he was fine (he was a little annoying as Dr. Erdhart though that was the point) but that the other two were simply better fits for the show. For an early episode I was surprised about how good it was. I loved the recurring jokes about Valaria's "accent" and the Ted Nugent references. One of my favorite riffs was "In the future, all robots will act like Don Knotts!"
Robot Holocaust craps out a 2/10. Stick with the MST3K episode.

I have now seen two movies directed by Wes Craven, but still haven't gotten around to seeing A Nightmare on Elm Street. Funny how that works out. I liked Craven's The Serpent and the Rainbow (a cool zombie flick) as well as his work on the 80s Twilight Zone (the show is nowhere near as good as the original but still a decent sci-fi/fantasy/horror anthology show and better than the 2002 version). However, Shocker (1989) was a bit of a mess. Shocker is about a serial killer who comes back from the dead after being killed on the electric chair. The main problem with Shocker is that it doesn't know what it wants to be. At first the main character, Jonathan Parker, can interact with the killer in reality through his dreams. This part is kinda like The Dead Zone meets Nightmare on Elm Street. Then after the serial killer, Horace Pinker (Mitch Pileggi) comes back from the dead, he can inhabit the bodies of other people and the dream aspect is mostly dropped. The first two acts are played pretty seriously but the movie turns into a horror-comedy for the last act when the serial killer uses a satellite dish to go inside television programs! While this was a huge tone shift that felt out of place, I must admit, it was funny. Horace sucks Jonathan into the TV in an attempt to kill him and they run through everything from war films to Leave it to Beaver! One of the things I did like was the revelation which established a strong connection between Jonathan to Horace. Mitch Pileggi was great as a serial killer and Ted Raimi had a fun but small role. I enjoyed the 80s metal soundtrack. Although the directing was fine, the writing could have been a lot better. When Horace's supernatural powers like taking over bodies and traveling through television signals are revealed to others, they buy into it way too quickly, even newscasters! I wouldn't mind this if the story was taking place in the world of Harry Potter or something, but this is clearly grounded in the real world and these are unrealistic reactions. Also the actor who played Jonathan, Peter Berg, wasn't very good and often whispered his lines for no reason. I think I'll stay away from Craven until I get to see Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream.
Shocker shocks its way a 4/10!

I loved the first Fright Night (1985) so I had been meaning to see Fright Night Part 2 (1988) for a long time. Although this is a fantasy-horror movie, unlike Shocker it clearly takes place in the our world as the movie starts out with Charley (William Ragsdale) seeing a psychologist who tries to convince him that vampires aren't real. The first one came out in 1985 so the sequel takes place in real time, three years later. This sequel has the two main characters (Charley and Peter Vincent, host of the fictional late night horror movie show, Fright Night) return and this time they have to deal with a vengeful vampire who wants revenge for her brother in the first film. Unlike many sequels, this movie is not a rehash but instead a good continuation with some nice twists to keep the viewer guessing. Roddy McDowell was fantastic as Peter Vincent in the first Fright Night and he is just as entertaining (as always!) this time around. I only wish that his character got a bit more closure. Like the original, this one does a good job of balancing humor with creepy horror. Overall Fright Night Part 2 is not as good as the first, but still a solid sequel that will please fans of the first movie, though its not as memorable as the original. Now I just hope that the Fright Night remake is good!
Fright Night Part 2 sinks its fangs into a 5/10!

I am now caught up with the movies I have seen this summer! I therefore probably won't have a post tomorrow, but should have one up for Wednesday 6/29. See you then!

Summer Movie Round-Up Part 1 of 3

This will be the first of three posts covering the movies I have seen so far this summer. Each post will include 8 brief reviews. At the end of this post I'll go over my scoring system. Tomorrow (Saturday) will be my first film topic post, which will be a weekly feature. On Sunday I'll continue with Part Two.

Joel Schumacher's 1987 vampire flick, The Lost Boys, is a lot of fun. I enjoyed the atmosphere and the soundtrack. It was hard to believe that this movie was directed by the same guy who made Batman & Robin. The acting wasn't anything special, but just what was called for as this is a horror film geared toward teenagers that features plenty of humor. My favorite character was Grandpa (Emmy Award winner Barnard Hughes) who was hilarious and should have had his own movie. I saw this with a group of friends, some of whom had seen the movie before, and we had a blast. However, when it comes to 80s vampire movies I still prefer Fright Night (the remake starring Colin Farrell is coming soon!) and Near Dark (which is also reviewed in this post).
The Lost Boys bites into a 6/10!

The Untouchables, also released in 1987, is the second Brian De Palma movie I have seen. The first you ask? Well it is hard to believe, but this is the same guy who directed the mediocre at best Mission to Mars! Luckily this is much better as well as a much more enjoyable film. The Untouchables is based on the true story of government agent Eliot Ness as he tries to bring down the gangster Al Capone. Although there are some historical inaccuracies, it doesn't matter since the film is engrossing and makes you want to know more about the real story. Sean Connery is fantastic as Jim Malone, an older cop who helps Ness in his quest to defeat Capone. This role won Connery an Oscar (his only) for best supporting actor.  
The Untouchables shoots its way into 8/10!

At the moment Thor is the most recent movie I have seen in theaters, and I was lucky to see it with a group of friends which made for a fun experience. Thor is based on the Marvel comic book character which is in turn based on the Norse god of thunder and Norse mythology in general. While I was not too familiar with either before watching Thor, I enjoyed it. Sure there is a bit too much CGI and the romance between Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Jane (Natalie Portman) felt forced, but overall Thor has a solid blend of action and humor. Director Kenneth Branagh put his Shakespearean background to good use by giving the movie shades of King Lear, while the villain is not a one-sided bad guy but a complex, tragic figure. Thor is more on par with Iron Man 2 (which I still liked even though it was a bit of a mess) than the first Iron Man, but so far Marvel Studios has only made good movies. Hopefully this trend will continue with the July 2011 release of Captain America as well as the highly anticipated The Avengers in 2012.
Thor hammers a 6/10!

When Spike TV first started it would air two Jean-Claude Van Damme movies over and over again. One was Bloodsport (1988) and the other was KickBoxer. The movies share the same star, were filmed around the same time, and are both martial arts movies so you can understand why they always blended together in my mind. Luckily I got to re-watch this with a group of friends which is the best way to watch this flick. The fighting scenes are done well and Van Damme's facial expressions alone make this one worth watching. Don't expect much of a plot, even though it is supposedly based on true events. Donald Gibb is hilarious in a supporting role as Van Damme's friend who competes with him in a deadly martial arts competition. Bloodsport may not be a good movie, but it certainly is entertaining which is not something all movies can claim.
Bloodsport kicks and punches its way to a 5/10!

I first heard about Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964) from my Dad, who told me it was a movie he had seen as a kid. We watched it together and even though he had seen it before, it was so long ago that we both did not know what to expect. I was guessing it would be cheesy and campy but it was not. Instead the film is an interesting sci-fi adaptation of the Robinson Crusoe story with a quiet atmosphere as the main character (Paul Mantee) simply tries to survive while spending most of the film by himself. It is an older film but still looks stunning on the Criterion Collection Blu-ray released. Adam West appears in a minor role as one of only four characters in the film, one of whom is a monkey! The film was directed by Byron Haskin who is most famous for directing Treasure Island (1950) and The War of the Worlds (1953). This makes sense as Robinson Crusoe on Mars is sort of a combination of the two since it is a version of a classic adventure story as well as science fiction. The science used in the story is dated, but Mars is portrayed close to the science of the time and not simply as pure fantasy.
Robinson Crusoe on Mars blasts off into a 7/10!

I am a big fan of Predator and I liked Predator 2 so I had been cautiously optimistic about another Predator movie. And no, I don't count the Alien vs. Predator series as real Alien or Predator movies! Although we didn't get the Arnie cameo that all Predator fans wanted, this was an enjoyable sequel with some nice twists and turns. There are still no bad movies in the Predator canon. Adrien Brody is cast against type as a bad-ass soldier, but somehow it works. Topher Grace on the other hand is totally out of place, even when the true nature of his character is revealed. I loved the concept of having an alien planet as a game preserve and it was fun watching these dangerous characters having to work together. However, the jungle setting, as well as a few other aspects, tend to rehash the original a bit too much. The relationship between Royce (Brody) and Isabelle (the female lead, played by Alice Braga) worked, but felt too similar to that of Hicks and Ripley in Aliens. There were even some direct references to that movie such as the line, "If the time comes, I'll do us both" and the fact that at the end of both movies the characters finally share their names with each other. I still enjoyed it, but I just wish Predators spent more time being Predators instead of trying too hard to be Predator and Aliens. Predator 2 often gets ragged on, but at least it tried to do something different with its "urban jungle" setting. Considering how some sequels turn out, Predators is not bad at all though still the weakest of the series for me. I'm not counting the Aliens vs. Predator movies which I haven't seen.
Predators hunts down a 6/10!

Before the Roger Corman Blogathon kicked off, Nate told me to watch X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes (1963). Starring Ray Milland as a doctor who gave himself x-ray vision, this was actually only the second Corman movie I had ever seen. While I obviously still need to see a lot more Corman movies, this is so far the one I consider to be his best. The acting is perfect for the tone and there is some great directing. My favorite scene had to be the dance party in which Dr. Xavier sees everyone naked thanks to his x-ray vision! It was fun to see some familiar faces (Harold J. Stone, John Hoyt, and Don Rickles) who appeared on my all-time favorite TV show, The Twilight Zone. "If thine eye offends thee... pluck it out!"
X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes has the vision to get a 7/10!

Before Kathryn Bigelow won an Oscar for directing The Hurt Locker, which also won best picture, she made a fun little movie set in the American West about... bloodsuckers. You know, people who bite others and stay up all night. I'll stop, but the point is that Near Dark (1987) is a movie about vampires that never uses the dreaded v-word! Unfortunately this movie got overshadowed by The Lost Boys which came out the same year and was also about teenage vampires. However don't let success at the box office fool you, this is a better and more interesting movie. Jenny Wright puts in a haunting performance as Mae, a young female vampire who "turns" Caleb (Adrian Pasdar), a farmhand who works for his father. The other vampires are played by the cast of Aliens. I'm not kidding, we have Bill Paxton, Lance Hendrickson, and Jenette Goldstein as the older vampires. I guess it makes sense since Bigelow was married to James Cameron at one point. In addition to those actors, Joshua John Miller plays Homer. He appears to be about twelve years old and therefore the youngest in this group of vampires. However, since vampires can live forever, it actually turns out that he is the oldest with the other characters referring to him as an "old man." The synthesizer score by Tangerine Dream felt out of place, but I don't think it significantly detracts from the movie. This gritty vampire flick is criminally underrated and the perfect antidote for those Twilight movies!
Near Dark doesn't suck, as it gets a 7/10!

Here is how I do my rating system: It is not rocket science but merely a combination of how much I enjoyed the movie plus how well I felt it was made (acting, directing, writing, cinematography, etc.). A 10/10 would be a movie I absolutely loved and felt was incredibly made, a 5/10 would be about average in both respects, while a 1/10 would be totally boring and utter crap. Actually for this blog I'll make that a 0/10 although IMDB only goes as low as 1/10. I might also do .5 ratings (ex: 7.5/10) on this blog since I can't do that on IMDB. I don't give out 1's and 2's easily and 9's and 10's are even more rare. My ratings can change a bit over time, especially when I haven't seen a film in a while. I feel that the content of the review is more helpful and important than any number or grade, but I'll still include my rating for each movie.

On Sunday I will post Part Two, in which I review a Hitchcock film, another Corman flick, and three movies released in 2010!