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Movie tracking week of 3/5/2016- 3/11/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

This week I didn’t have a whole lot going on, so I was able to make more time for movie watching. Most of my favorite Television shows like within the Arrowverse so there wasn’t much going on and I didn’t catch up with House of Cards Season four, which I got to say, has been pretty tough. Especially considering that Daredevil will be coming up soon, I strongly doubt I will get caught up with House of Cards until maybe next month.

I’ve been keeping up with my reviews for Supergirl and Gotham as of late, which I cover for the PopOptiq website, which has been pretty cool. I really like Supergirl a lot and am really excited for the upcoming crossover with The Flash in a couple of weeks. I was really hoping that when they introduced the whole Multiverse plot thread that they would attempt to touch base on other shows using that conceit. I mean, even Gotham having a crossover is possible now.

The other big thing this week was watching Fuller House on Netflix. I remember watching Full House when it was on the air back in the day and I can’t say I was a big fan of it but it was a show I liked and did enjoy. It’s not a show like Friends or Everybody Loves Raymond which I really feel strongly that I love those shows but it’s one that was definitely in my wheelhouse of family sitcoms. It was strange seeing all the girls all grown up and having their own family and adult things going and it’s pretty neat to have this show back because it really does feel the same. It’s weird because there is always a cycle of nostalgia that tends to trend in pop culture and television is doing that again here through revivals. I mean we’re living in a time where we got The X-Files and Twin Peaks revivals and sequel series like Girl Meets World and 90210. Sometimes you got to take the good with the bad, you take them both there you have…Oh geez, I really need to stop.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

The Fly, 1958

I must have watched this a long time ago but I really don’t have a solid recollection of it. I’ve always been a fan of the 1986 remake for so long because of the monster make-up being more authentic and gross. But I really like the original now too because it’s really dark and depressing in a way I never realized. The main character is a mad scientist but a kindly one who incidentally played god in an attempt to bring mankind to the next level but like Icarus flew too close to the sun and burned. The horror is very creepy and works amazing well even today. I fully understand why it’s considered to be a classic.

This film is great and I strongly recommend seeing it, so I give it a REWIND, because it will stick with you and you will probably want to see it again and again.

Ghoulies, 1985

This weekend I had my friend Davis join me to check out my new Scream Factory release double feature disc of Ghoulies I and II. It was a lot of cheesy low budget special effects and drawn out convoluted plot, which was neat to make fun of. The first film doesn’t really play off the Ghoulies aspect of the movies that much, they are actually almost an afterthought in this weird cult resurrecting evil summoning possessed narrative. It also has that awful eighties trope of people wearing sunglasses indoors. The best use of this was in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The thing that really limited the Ghoulies in this film is that they had no will of their own; they were these creatures that did the bidding of their evil masters, which is not the best use of them.

Despite downplay of the creatures themselves, there is still fun to be had with this film for what it’s worth. I like to compare this to other similarly high concept low budget horror movies like The Deadly Spawn, Critters, or Troll. Unfortunately, it’s not nearly as fun as any of those so I will have to give it a grade of FAST FORWARD.

Ghoulies II, 1987

The second film in the franchise does a better job at utilizing the creatures and puts them in a place where they could have the most fun wreaking havoc, and that is at a carnival. The creatures end up in a funhouse terrorizing the folks within who think it’s a part of the experience and therefore becomes a popular attraction. When I was a kid I remember watching this and thinking it’s really effective, I don’t think it’s as strong now but it’s still better than the first film and fun watch overall.

I give this a grade of PLAY, because it’s worth watching and sitting through all the way because it does have fun Ghoulies action that you expect to see, this is the one you want.

Return of the Fly, 1959

I forgot to mention earlier that I was watching all of my blind spot movies in The Fly series of films for an upcoming Separate But Sequel podcast episode. We are going to discuss The Fly II (1989). It’s interesting comparing that one to this one because there are some similarities such as the son following in his father’s footsteps, the fly’s desire for revenge and the less somber ending. What most surprised me about the fly in this one is that the monster had a larger head than before and looked very comical. I’m sure it wasn’t the intention of the filmmakers to make him look so silly but it sure did. I did appreciate the story it told overall though.

I’d say this is a PLAY because although it’s not as good as the original there’s still some cool things going on in it and you can never go wrong with watching any Vincent Price movie.

Curse of the Fly, 1965

This movie is weird but also fascinating to me. It’s a sequel to The Fly in a way that is somewhat removed from what you would expect, in fact there is no version of the fly monster in the film. This is a movie that is much more gothic and creepy and oddly romantic. There are some things that are going in it that just really stretch my imagination to the possibility of this franchise. The story is a bit Jane Eyre, The Island of Lost Souls, and an even darker handling of The Fly moral dilemmas. I’m amazed at how much I enjoyed this film. The opening starts off with a window shattering and a young woman escaping a mental hospital in just her underwear. From there she enters into a romance with a well off scientist who falls madly in love with her and takes her in and that’s where the plot sets in.

This movie is on youtube right now and I would strongly recommend seeing it if you are interested in the Fly story taking an odd yet interesting turn. I’ll grade it a REWIND because I’ll probably end up watching it again myself.

The Fly II, 1989

I watched this a lot when I was a kid, this along with the original Cronenberg version. I thought it was the logical next step for the series at the time, albeit not that original. The big thing in the eighties was all about the corporate hive mind and the coldness of the office setting and how something was getting lost. This was dealt in Poltergeist III, Gremlins 2, Robocop and others I’m sure. The office setting seemed very of its time. It’s strange that this film was directed by the special effects guy who worked with Cronenberg on the remake, but oddly some of the special effects don’t work particularly the fly monster itself. The cocoon looked about right, kind of had the glow you would imagine but something was off. All in all it’s an alright sequel.

I’d grade it a PLAY because it’s definitely not as good as the remake but if you’re in the market for a Fly sequel to the remake this would do you in a pinch.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #The Fly #the fly ii #return of the fly #curse of the fly #ghoulies #ghoulies ii #scream factory #fuller house #Gotham #supergirl

Movie tracking week of 2/27/2016- 3/4/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

The big thing for me this past week has been the return of Gotham on FOX, which came back in full force with the introduction of Mr. Freeze and Professor Hugo Strange, which both are very promising for the season’s second half. Along with the return of the show are my reviews which I write for the PopOptiq website. There have been two episodes aired as of this writing and I’m really loving this season much more than season one, which I did like but thought it lagged in some areas. Anyway be sure to check out my reviews over at the link below.

http://www.popoptiq.com/tv/tv-reviews/gotham/

Also this week I have a new band discovery that I want to share here, although I tend to write about my television viewing here, there is this band that I learned about through a movie soundtrack and I just think there are so awesome. The band’s name is Gal Pals, and they’ve got this very fun garage girl group sound that is, for me reminiscent of bands like The Dum Dum Girls, The Shitbirds, and Tuscadero but they are totally their own musical style, which I think is phenomenal. They were featured in the soundtrack of the film starring Katie Holmes called Miss Meadows and from the instant the music played I knew theirs was a sound I would like to get really into. As of late I’ve gotten into not that many bands, the most recent ones that I’m big on are Tame Impala, Chvrches, and Courtney Barnett. Each of these are fairly different sounds which I like for different reasons, but I have to strongly recommend Gal Pals because they are a lot of fun and they haunt my mind with their heady melodic beats.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

The Good Dinosaur, 2015

I got to spend some time with a couple of my younger nieces and we ended up watching this recent animated release, which from what I remember did not make a big splash in the box office. It’s a bit unfortunate because this just reflects poorly on the film which is actually pretty good. Sure, this is not the runaway hit that Inside Out was but it’s still a well-made and quite impactful film nonetheless. The animation is stylized in a unique way and there are a large amount of sequences that really highlight the beauty of the world that is created for the film. As far as engaging, it really was for me and my two nieces who were both transfixed to the screen. I had a really good time with it.

As for a grade, I’m going to give it a PLAY, because it’s definitely worth seeing and I would strongly recommend seeing it, but it’s a sad movie too, so it may affect the re-watch-ability of it. I had a good time with it though and I will surely watch it again.

Kill For Me, 2013

I sure find some really interesting movies at the library. Sometimes I see something that is genuinely good, while other times there are films that are ridiculously or even just plain bad. This time I picked up this one because it featured two TV actresses that I am a little familiar with. There’s the one girl from Arrow and the main girl from Revolution. Katie Cassidy as Black Canary on Arrow is by far for me the worst, and I feel bad saying it but the actress is not very good in the part, plus the writing for her isn’t really helping her either. I thought if I saw her in a different production she might show some signs of range and unfortunately this film is not that film. It’s not entirely her fault because the film itself isn’t very good. There is an inkling of a good premise that is a little Single White Female and a little mystery intrigue that I think Jim Mickle does really great in his films We are what we are and Cold in July, but this director doesn’t have the chops or even the same control of the narrative to deliver the quality that emulates what he is going for.

Alongside the very woody acting from Cassidy is the enigmatic performance from Tracy Spiridakos, which is supposed to be mysterious but is mostly confusing. There really is no really logic through line to the story either. It’s almost like things happen because they need to or in order to prolong revelations that are unsatisfyingly predictable. Also Donal Logue appears in the film and he’s either A. not right for the role or B. not given the right direction to present the character. It’s because he’s supposed to be an abusive father and he doesn’t come off as a menacing figure, he’s just average non-threatening Donal Logue. I think Logue is great in general but for some reason he just couldn’t pull off the danger of the character that was needed in the film.

The only good thing I can say is that the make-up effects and the cinematography were all great to decent. People, who are made to look tired or sick and dirty, really look it.

All in all I have to say this movie had potential to be somewhat decent but I found myself constantly at odds with the girl’s performances the strange turns that either didn’t make narrative sense or were just eye roll inducing and contrived. I have to give for my final grade that this is total SKIP unless you want your intelligence insulted and spit upon.

Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension, 2015

I have to say this upfront, I’m not a big fan of found footage films and particularly not that thrilled with the Paranormal Activity series either. The only reason I felt the need to watch this one is simply because I have seen all the other ones before it, but not the Marked Ones spinoff. I think the first film is okay, the second film is crap, and the third film is best one, while the fourth one is forgettable. The main reason to watch this one after such lackluster returns from previous installments is because I read on the box that this was the one that was going to end the series. As someone who is a completists (not a pure completists otherwise I would’ve made myself watched the spinoff as well), I felt as though the box was challenging me.

This one to me is another okay one. Not bad and not great but they are doing some interesting things and there is some fun to be had although for me there is not much. I will say that I liked all of the parts whenever the camera would show the paranormal activity that people cannot see in the real world, which really made me think of From Beyond a lot. But again this is the thing I noticed about these PA movies is that in order to keep the audience interested in the mundaneness of the film in order to shock them with ghost stuff, they have to draw you in with the actors who always seem like they are “On” or superficially performing naturally. It’s like weird improve that works better for comedy than it does for horror, at least for me it does. I like horror to have a more deliberate approach. The ending seems very typically dire of what the series has done again and again. If they were to continue the series they probably could but if they were going to follow this one it may be an entirely different era in the franchise, which may or may not be more interesting than what the franchise is now.

My final grade is FAST FORWARD, because for me this is not a franchise I enjoy but I can see some aspects of this film that are worthwhile and it’s those elements that I find interesting more so than sitting through it.

Miss Meadows, 2014

I really had a good time watching this movie. I saw the trailer like a year ago and thought it was kind of interesting with a female vigilante sociopath running around and acting so prim and proper, like a psycho Mary Poppins. It’s really hard to categorize this as simply a comedy because it’s not just a comedy, or a drama, or a vigilante film. It’s more of a quirky character study that I think is quite fascinating. It brings to mind a couple of other films that I think try to get into the psyche of a female murderer, sometimes through a male protagonist as in Home Sweet Home, while another goes in from a more ambiguous and strange angle like in Amnesia. I was not that pleased with Home Sweet Home which featured Katherine Heigl as the antagonistic killer, while Amnesia did have its moments and really shone with its visual style and creative structuring. But what Miss Meadows does that separates itself from those two is that it makes the audience sympathize with the killer and makes her the main protagonist. She’s a similar Killer to Michael Douglas Falling Down or to TV’s Dexter where the audience relates to the murdering because she’s only killing the wicked in retaliation for harming or threatening to harm innocent people.

Also Katie Holmes is great as Miss Meadows, really brings her to life with a bridled energy that is compelling and engaging. She’s funny and sympathetic and relatable in a way that I found to be truly engrossing. Holmes gives a through and through winning performance in this role. There are some elements that are fairly weak and that it seldom comes across that Miss Meadows is ever in danger of getting caught by the police, which is a plot point that is necessary to ignore in order to appreciate the film. Another thing that I really enjoyed was discovering the music of Gal Pals featured in this film.

For me this is a movie that I believe has lots of re-watch-ability and one that I hope finds cult status because it deserves it because it does so many things right. My final grade is REWIND.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #miss meadows #gal pals #paranormal activity ghost dimension #kill for me #good dinosaur #Gotham #tuscadero #dum dum girls #chvrches #courtney barnett #the shitbirds

Movie tracking week of 2/13/2016- 2/19/2016 & 2/20/2016-2/262016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

Okay, so this week and last week I did very little movie watching. I mean like I watched one movie in two weeks and that movie I saw twice. I’ve been really overwhelmed with TV watching this past week so although I wanted to watch more movies I didn’t find any time to really watch anything new. So this one post will serve as my movie watching post for two full weeks.

Monday and Tuesdays are literally the worst right now for my TV watching as there are far too many shows I want to watch that night. I watch Jane the Virgin, Better Call Saul, The X-Files, 11/22/63, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Superstore and Supergirl. Not to mention, sometimes I need to play catch up with all the Sunday shows like Girls, The Good Wife, The Walking Dead, The Simpsons, and Vinyl. That last one was a two hour premier too, which by the way was not worth it and is now out of my rotation of viewing.

Also this past weekend I entered a whole of watching yet another new Netflix show called Love, starring Paul Rust and Gillian Jacobs. There is something about Netflix that they produce just so many really awesome shows and this new addition is yet another that I really enjoyed. I was already familiar with Gillian Jacobs from Community and Paul Rust for his stint on the short lived Rebel Wilson show Super Fun Night. Mostly I know these two from Comedy Bang Bang podcast from all the Gillian Jacob and Paul F. Tompkins guest appearances and Paul Rust’s bits of doing the New No-No’s. Essentially this was my first chance at seeing what these two could do on a drama grounded comedy about courtship and I had a blast watching it.

This week also marked the end of The X-Files event series which ended strangely and abruptly with a cliff hanger. Now I’m not saying that this season was great, it wasn’t, but I’ve read a lot of backlash against this season and a lot of the complaints are about how it’s stuck in the 1990’s and hasn’t evolved and how the creators are missing the point or whatever. The show creators are getting back into the swing of writing The X-Files again and there are going to be some growing pains (it’s to be expected) but to just bitch and moan about things this season isn’t doing is a bit unfair. They only had six episodes to work with and there was no way they were going to address everything that people wanted, and certainly not in the perfect PC way that everyone thinks television should be held up against. There will definitely be more episodes to come and whether or not Chris Carter and company will be there is still to be determined. I, for one, would like to see what Chris Carter has in mind for the continuation of the series and I hope he gets the chance to. But I guess it’s only safe to say is that time will tell.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

Deadpool, 2015

I’ve been curious to see this since I first heard about the whole test footage leak a few years ago and there had been so much talk about how right they get the character here. I’m going to have to agree the character really lives on screen and so feels like the comic book one that I’ve read when I was younger. I found myself laughing from the very beginning with the slow mode shots with the faux credits that had me thinking “Oh, okay so now it’s going to cross off and then show the real credits or something…no…oh really? So they really are just going to let it hang like that. Okay, cool.” Right then I was like this is going to be fun.

Ryan Reynolds is perfect as Deadpool too, as he really emulates a live action and more adult version of Bugs Bunny with all the foul mouthed language and vague yet overt sexuality. The scene where he threatens a mark that he has “Hard parts” as well as soft spots and then catches it as sounding homoerotic but then just owns it by saying “or did I mean it to sound like that” and then kisses the guy is totally Bugs Bunny-type mockery but much more adult. Although there are plenty complaints on how one dimensional the female characters are in the movie I think Morena Baccarin excels at giving the character she plays nuance despite lack of it in the writing. She’s just always so fun to watch, and I’ve seen her in a lot of things from Spy, Homeland, V (2009), Gotham and Firefly, obviously. She’s fantastic always and here she’s great.

I will say the story is very thin but I think that’s fine overall because I believe the fun parts outweigh the weak parts. The parts I think where it fails are when it tries too hard to make it like an actual Superhero story, which it really isn’t. It’s a meta-parody of all superhero movies that can break the rules of the fourth wall and typical genre restraints such as what comes with having an R rating.

Now I ended up watching this twice and so I can say with complete confidence that this film is best represented with a PLAY grade because it really is good, but as for re-watch-ability I’m not sure it has that much going for it. A lot of the stuff I laughed at the first time I felt weren’t as strong the second time but the stuff I really liked still was plenty good. Such as the montage when he’s killing baddies trying to get to the main boss and he’s fighting one chick and he’s like “is it sexist that I punched you? Or is it more sexist if I don’t punch you? I don’t know I’m just really confused right now.” But all in all, I had fun with it and would recommend that people see and find out for themselves.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #deadpool #love netflix #the x files #the x-files revival

Movie tracking week of 2/6/2016- 2/12/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

This week I had another binge watch catch up to another TV series I had heard quite a bit about and have been meaning to watch. My recent ventures had given me some really good programming such as Fresh off the Boat and Schitt’s Creek, both of which are on my weekly scheduled viewing. One of the shows that I took the time out to check in on but hadn’t kept my interest was Limitless because I guess I’m not very keen on the lead actor as I think he’s kind of a douche bag who has a particular charm I do not find very appealing. Although the show is interesting in how creative it can be with how it structures its episodes, I mean as far as a procedural show can tell a story, the writers find smart ways to tell their stories. This really opens up the audience to appreciate the ride of an individual episode without being marred down by the overarching season plot. Some episodes are better than others, but throughout I have to admit the fourth wall breaking, I find to be annoying, and I guess that’s because I don’t like the main character like even a little.

As for shows I’m really digging now, I’ve got to say I’ve really turned around on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend because when it came back from the winter break it did so with a really strong episode and have been keeping up the quality since and now I’m really glad I stuck with it. There are still the occasional thud musical performances that I feel nothing towards, but the writing is strong and they’ve gotten me back on board with Rachel’s motivations behind why she’s after Josh. Also this past week’s episode had perhaps my favorite song that the show has done yet called “You Stupid Bitch”, which in a fantasy sequence that has her like a mid-1990’s Diva performing at some kind of ceremony or telethon event that is always playing their hit ballad. There are a lot of subtle layers to the choices in making it seem like a hazy live performance show that I think works really well. So yeah Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is really good right now.

One last thing I watch to mention here and that there’s this show on FXX called Man Seeking Woman that I think is really smart but not a lot of people are watching it apparently and very few critics talking about it. I, myself, probably wouldn’t be watching it now if I hadn’t heard about it on The Televerse podcast last year. In some ways it’s your typical sitcom about a twenty something guy trying to find love in the modern day, but it takes that tired old trope and re-frames it through heightened emotions and social anxieties in the prism of pop culture allegory and/or metaphors. In the first episode Josh breaks up with his longtime girlfriend and is begrudgingly single again, where he encounters surreal manifestations of his anxieties of reentering the dating landscape.

After putting his relationship with his ex on a pedestal it’s understandable that any girl he would date right after would never stack up to his impossible standards so the show has him literally date a troll to get across the idea. When encountering his girlfriend again and her new beau, it makes emotional sense that anyone that she dates after him would be the worst person in all history, so when Josh meets him, he is actually Hitler, which places the audience right in Josh’s view of the situation when people are nice to his exes new boyfriend it feels like a truly heinous betrayal. This show does this constantly and there are visual layers to put the audience on board with the emotional narrative of Josh’s journey that is hilariously absurd every episode.

The most recent episode of Man Seeking Woman places Josh on the flip side of this situation where he is the one vying to win over a girl he has a connection to but who has a boyfriend already. To get the audience to understand his dilemma and how challenging he finds it to court this girl away the show presents the boyfriend as Jesus Christ. It would be impossible to romance a girl away from Jesus because it’s a reminder of the immorality of the desire. It’s just an extremely smart show and I wish more people were watching it because it’s a comedy with complexity.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

Cannibal Diner, 2012

There really isn’t a lot I can say about this movie other than I didn’t like it. I find it in the library and thought the cover looked interesting but for whatever reason I didn’t get into this movie. Watching this was a foolish decision.

I give this a SKIP.

Dogfight, 1991

I remember watching this a long time ago and really liking it and so when I saw it at the library I was like “you know, I think I want to check this out again” and so I did and it was great. River Phoenix is incredible in this and Lily Taylor is adorable and fantastic. The story is really interesting and so fun to watch develop as these two meet then go on their date and have a very memorable night of their lives. This I think was Before Sunrise before that film. It’s a period film set during the 1960’s the year before JFK was shot, before America was changed forever. I guess I just really like these types of movies where there is a couple who meet and have a crazy beautiful night together. It’s just a really great film and I cannot recommend it enough.

I give this a REWIND because it’s definitely a movie I would want to see again and again.

Big Bad Wolves, 2013

I had heard about this one a few years ago and have been meaning to watch it. I think it is an okay movie. The story plays with who is telling the truth and who isn’t in a way that’s kind of interesting. There are so many sequences of torture that is excessive which almost always bore me. If this film is trying to make the case that torture doesn’t lead to justice, then I guess that’s pretty cool. It seems like these characters got so bent out of shape on trying to get revenge that they forgot to even be sure that who they were torturing was even the guilty party.

I would give this a PLAY because it’s fairly clever with its story and I always like it when there’s a mystery and unreliable sources that make for a more interesting investigation. It’s a good film, I just didn’t like it as much as I would’ve if it didn’t feel the need to dwell so much on the torture, which I think is just a personal taste.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #crazy ex-girlfriend #fresh off the boat #man seeking woman #cannibal diner #dogfight #big bad wolves #schitts creek #limitless

Movie tracking week of 1/30/2016- 2/5/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

With this week’s post I am now officially caught up with my weekly movie watching and tracking. It feels good to be somewhat on schedule again. This weekend we had Superbowl playoffs or something, which doesn’t really mean anything to me, well except for the Superbowl ads. We got new trailers for Captain America Civil War, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, X-Men Apocalypse and the latest Bourne Identity sequel. I’m mostly interested in the comic book films, a bit non-plus on TMNT except for the fact that they showed Krang with Bebop and Rocksteady which has me curious. I watched the first Bourne trilogy a while back and thought those films were okay, but I kind of fell away when Matt Damon left so I’m interested to see how they bring him back.

The big news for me in the television world is the crossover I’ve been waiting for between Flash and Supergirl, which I think is amazing that they are actually moving forward with this. I mean, c’mon they introduced the multiverse why not blow our minds by having them play together. I’ve been reviewing Supergirl over at PopOptiq for a few weeks now and I really think the show has improved in recent episodes. The episode that aired last night I particularly liked which had the TV series adapt the Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons story “For the Man Who Has Everything”, which I thought was really well done. Check out my review in the link below.

http://www.popoptiq.com/tv/tv-reviews/supergirl/

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using. SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped. FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention. PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to. REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

Man Up, 2015

On one of my many trips to the New York Public Library where I check out their movies section often, I found this Simon Pegg and Lake Bell starred romantic comedy and thought I would check it out see what I think. As it turns out it’s just okay. I can’t say it’s particularly comedic or even particularly romantic, it’s a bit silly and unremarkable and Lake Bell is putting on this forced British accent which I’m not even sure if it’s authentic or not. Pegg gives his typical serviceable performance and it goes a long way to making this movie passable but for me the story is kind of bland. I’ll say this though; I’ve seen far worse and far less interesting films.

I’d give this a grade of FAST FORWARD simply because it’s okay, nothing remarkable but if you’re in the mood for a rom-com this one will do the trick and you don’t even have to invest that much interest in it.

The Guardian, 1990

I wanted to see this because I really liked the Exorcist and director William Friedkin take on horror is usually quite affecting. This is clearly not a great film though, it has problems with the story and the ending is a bit meh, but there are some really cool ideas in the concept which I’ve got to say aren’t fully explored. None of my issues with the movie come from the direction but really for some poor writing in the script and story development. There are a few kills that are really cool and the villain is well presented. Unfortunately there isn’t much done with the premise to warrant seeing this with any high demand.

I’d give this a FAST FORWARD because there are some very cool things and moments in this but it’s hard to recommend this with any real weight because of the cheap writing.

Labyrinth, 1986

After David Bowie passed away a while back I’ve wanted to revisit some of my favorite films wherein he had a role in, and I’m glad I had the chance to catch this one on the big screen over at the museum of moving image. It’s great to see and Jennifer Connelly is excellent and Bowie is fun and the story still holds up with grand fantasy that inspires the imagination. There is currently buzz about a sequel to this film and I’m totally on board for it when it does appear.

This movie gets a REWIND from me every time.

Jay And Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie, 2013

While rummaging through Netflix to watch something while I played Pocket Morty’s I came across this animated feature and thought I’d check it out. It’s not great and it’s pretty cheesy and the jokes are a bit repetitive and/or predictable but it was alright. As a fan of Kevin Smith films I think there is somethings here to enjoy.

I’d give it a FAST FORWARD as it’s not very long and sitting through it isn’t a chore, especially if you’re simultaneously playing Pocket Morty’s.

Penubre, 2012

This was another film I found in the library and one I had heard about a while back that I’ve been meaning to check out. It’s a strange mix of horror and comedy which I think worked for me more than it did not. I really liked the main actress a lot as she was kind of bitchy but you can really get behind her as a protagonist. I can’t say this movie is great or particularly one that many horror fans would enjoy as there are some horror elements but those aren’t as predominant as the comedy or as compelling as the story wants it to be.

Overall I’d give it a PLAY grade because I think it’s worth seeing and the actress gives a very good performance.

Wetlands, 2013

This movie I’d see a trailer for some time ago and was a bit curious. It’s about this girl who has a strange fetish with bodily fluids and I don’t know it was kind of gross and I lost track of what was going on and so I don’t know. I just really didn’t care for it. I can’t say there was any particular thing I didn’t like or that I thought was bad, I just got bored and tuned out.

I’m giving this a SKIP because I found it just was not worth the time.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #wetlands #penubre #jay and silent bob #jay and silent bobs super groovy cartoon movie #Labyrinth #man up 2015

Movie tracking week of 1/23/2016- 1/29/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

Alright, I’m really close to getting up to date with this blog, only one more post after this one. In recent weeks I’ve taken up reviewing Supergirl for the Popoptiq website and I’ve got to say I’m digging it. I always liked Supergirl as a character and I think Melissa Benoist is doing a fine job in the lead and these latter episodes are really ramping up on the source material in pretty cool ways that I think is starting to work more than not. My favorite iteration of Supergirl though has to be the short-lived Peter David run in the late 90’s where she was part angel. It was the coolest thing to do with the character and the writing and the art really appealed to me. Currently I’ve liked the run of Supergirl comics that featured Mahmud Asrar’s art but haven’t caught up with it after he left the series. Anyway, check out my reviews of the show by clicking the link below, and while you’re at the site check out the other sections too. It’s a good community of writers there.

http://www.popoptiq.com/tv/tv-reviews/supergirl/

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

Vampire Hunter D, 1985

I hadn’t seen this movie in so long and all I had remembered was being fairly disappointed with it. The problem is that it did not live up to its cover art. That happens sometimes. I won’t get too into it now as we’ll be talking about it in an upcoming episode of the Separate but Sequel podcast.

As for a grade I’m going to have to say SKIP.

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, 2000

Again I will not get in too deep with this one as my thoughts on it will be on the podcast episode but all I’ll say is that I liked the animation way more on this than in the original and that’s not saying much as I’m not really that big on Anime movies in general.

I’d give this a PLAY.

American Gigolo, 1980

This movie was recommended to me by one of my coworkers who told me this was a pretty good film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Richard Gere, although he says he hadn’t seen it in a long while. I’ve got to say I thought this was a really quality film. I thought Richard Gere gave a phenomenal performance and the story told a much focused character study that was very much of its time and is extraordinarily well made. Schrader makes some very interesting movies and this one I think was very much worth the time especially how it handles gender dynamics and shady unions. I don’t know I just had a really good time watching it.

I give this a REWIND, because I think I would revisit it again.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #vampire hunter d #vampire hunter d bloodlust #american gigolo

Movie tracking week of 1/16/2016- 1/22/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

I’m back again still catching up with my movie tracking post for the New Year. On this week I think my big thing was obsessing over Pocket Morty’s game. I cannot stop playing this game. I don’t even know why. I stay up nights when I should be sleeping. I wake up and play the game and can’t get out bed when I should be getting dressed. I shower with the game. I even go to the iphone repair shop playing the game. This game is ruining my life.

The other thing I had fun with this week was watching Angie Tribeca which is this very silly and fun comedy that sends up the cop procedural. It’s very much a modern day Naked Gun or Airplane, which is a humor that I really enjoy. In recent years they’ve totally taken that type of humor and run it into the ground with over referencing pop culture things which really became annoying, but Angie Tribeca finds the sweet spot and makes it work. I strongly recommend checking it out.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

Victoria, 2015

I really enjoyed this movie. It’s about a girl who meets a group of guys and we learn a little about her and she is intrigued to hang out with them and it’s exciting and romantic and fun but then things get complicated. It’s actually really impressive how the story develops. It’s all shot in real time which is very interesting and really good at creating tension in scenes and sequences, but I feel that the idea runs too long and gets a bit gimmicky or for just the sake of artistry. I’m sure many would disagree but that’s how I feel. It’s a really good movie though. I liked the lead actress and it’s clear she put herself through every second of this film as you could see on her face how raw and messy her look gets by the end. It’s really great actually. I love this one scene where she holds up her hand like a bandit and says in her characters native Spanish language “A kiss or your life”. It’s very cute and I think it really conveys the characters raw emotion so well.

I would watch this again so I have to give it a REWIND.

Brooklyn, 2015

I had heard some mixed criticism about this film and wasn’t sure I was going to see it, but my brother David convinced me it was worth the time seeing it and I have to agree it’s a very well made and compelling movie. It’s the story of an Irish girl who moves to America and lives in Brooklyn and while there begins to discover herself. It’s fun to watch the character grow and learn to become empowered by the end and a lot of that is due to the Saoirse Ronan’s performance. She is excellent.

I give this a REWIND because I really found it to be very worthwhile.

The Revenant, 2015

I really enjoyed this movie oddly enough. I, of course, had heard about the bear fight and couldn’t wait to see it. It’s really great sequence and to watch it on the big screen it’s really remarkable. Another aspect of watching this movie that I have to call attention to is that I got to see it in one of those theaters that has recliner seating. I was so amazed how comfortable they were and not only that but I felt wide awake the whole time. I was afraid I might fall asleep but during the duration of the film I was completely awake and engaged. I guess that may be the result of the movie and Leonardo Dicaprio’s fine performance.

I think it’s a good movie so I’ll give it a PLAY. I doubt I will want to watch it again though, it’s so harrowing.

Martyrs, 2008

I had heard about this movie because it got a lot of buzz from the horror movie community stating how it’s one of the best French horror movies of recent years. I had heard this one spoken of along with Inside, High Tension, and Frontiers, some of which I’ve seen and think are okay but could not live up to the hype. Especially Inside it’s a lot cheesier than people would have you believe. These movies have been touted as part of French horror extreme brand of filmmaking that is supposedly so intense. I’ve seen Faces of Death, which I thought was all about the shock value with no other substance and I’ve heard these movies are similar in that vein. There are people who defend these films as being more substantial than just torture and gore for shock sake, which I tend to agree there is more to these films even Inside is not purely blood spatter and deep cuts, there is a story and there appears to be a purpose to the violence.

My thought on Martyrs though is that it starts off very good and develops superbly but loses steam by the end. There is a genuine creepy vibe with the girl who is haunted by the ghost of one of her fellow tortured victims and the mayhem that she causes to a seemingly innocent family is extremely effective as the reveal is made clear. Where the movie loses me is when we learn all of the pseudoscience philosophy of the actions of the cult. They want to learn the secrets of the universe by victimizing people to the point of transformative enlightenment or something. The torture sequences in this movie are purposefully overdone, and it’s the point they want the audience to understand that their being experimented on and pushed to their limits. I get what they are doing here, but I get the feeling that the message that is coming across is the wrong one. The end of the movie is the equivalent of saying that torture tactics are warranted and get results. I don’t know I really did not care for the ending. From what I’ve come to understand I may be in the minority in that assessment.

I’ll say though, that even though I’m down on the ending I really liked the buildup in the first two acts very much and would definitely say this is a PLAY for that alone.

Martyrs, 2015

I’m not one of those people, who say “Remakes are unnecessary” and that movie studios should always treat the original movies as sacred. I think there is a market for these kinds of films and that sometimes these remakes do improve on their originals. I’ll be honest though, the remakes that do work are becoming rarer every year. Case in point, this remake does not really stray too far away from the original, the only difference is it’s got bad actors in it and is in English. This movie was so disappointing to watch and like I mentioned before I’m not a big fan of the original. It may be my own fault for making the comparison by watching both movies back to back.

The truth is the acting is bad and the script doesn’t do enough to distinguish itself from the original so it could make its own mark. This is why fans dislike remakes, because filmmakers are trying their hardest to appease the fans of the original by giving them the original again but different, when they should just take the ideas of the original and not do a shot for shot style guide simulation of the original just tell a good story and use the original as a jumping off point. But then people will complain then why even call it Martyrs then, why use the name. It’s because it’s the rights the filmmakers bought to make into a new film.

I’m really struggling with whether to give this a skip or not. In the end, I don’t know I guess if you’re really curious like I was to see what differences they made then give this a FAST FORWARD, because really they kept the beginning to parts pretty much the same as the original, only now with bad English speaking actors, and changed up the ending a bit. Here’s a spoiler it was not changed enough to make me like this new ending, and I’m positive that fans are going to dislike how it pulls back on the EXTREME gore of the original.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #martyrs #martyrs 2015 #brooklyn #the revenant #victoria #angie tribeca

Movie tracking week of 1/9/2016- 1/15/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

I’m still in catch up mode, trying to remember what I was doing week of my movie watching.

On this week I remember fairly well what I was doing Monday morning, and that was mourning the passing of music legend David Bowie who had passed away the day prior. Like many he was a hero of mine and a pop culture touchstone that touched my youth and my creative mind in ways that not many artists could. One of my favorite comic book artists Michael Allred would often reference Bowie’s works in his own, which were always fun to see. Then later in the week Alan Rickman passed and the week continued to be gloomy.

The world had lost two great artists this week, so now we mourn, but tomorrow we create and use them for inspiration and by that we can try to keep them alive in our hearts.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

The Magnificent Seven Ride!, 1972

I watched this as our review for an upcoming Separate but sequel episode. It’s the last in the franchise and has none of the original cast and has very little resemblance to the original film. It’s clearly a separate but sequel and we talk in great detail about how it’s different in the episode.

I have to be honest although I liked talking about the movie; the movie leaves much to be desired so that’s why I gave it a SKIP when we gave our QVC.

Tootsie, 1982

Not really sure why but after watching the last film I felt like watching another film and I’ve had bought the new criterion collection DVD of Tootsie and thought I should revisit it, being that it’s been so long since I’ve seen it. It’s good, just a solid comedy. Hoffman is a tour de force, although I never understood how anyone took him seriously as a woman. His performance as a woman is such a put on, but it’s funny and it worked so whatever.

I give this a FAST FORWARD, because although it’s good I think it’s not really any different from many comedies of its time and the themes are somewhat dated, so I’m not sure what to make of it. Again, it’s an okay film, but I wouldn’t strongly recommend it.

Sisters, 2015

I don’t know what I expected from this movie, I wasn’t that big on Baby Mama, and so to think that I would feel different here is where I went wrong. There are some funny moments but it’s no Bridesmaids or They Came Together, both which I thought were hilarious. Y’know, come to think of it I think I should revisit Spy because I’m realizing I had more fun watching that.

I give this a SKIP.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #alan rickman #David Bowie #sisters #tootsie #the magnificent seven ride

Movie tracking week of 1/2/2016- 1/8/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

I’m here again still trying to catch up with my weekly movie watching posts by trying to recall what I was doing the week I watched these movies.

On this week I guess I was also playing catch up, but this time I was trying to watch as many movies that were in my blind spot in 2015. I wanted to make sure I watched these before making up my top five list for the Separate but sequel podcast annual movie watching episode. By the time of writing this the episode is already out to listen to, here is the link if you want to check it out.

http://separatebutsequelpodcast.podbean.com/e/topic-discussion-ep-007-movie-watching-2015/

I really spent most of the week just watching movies, which for the most part were new movies which I’ve got to say wow I covered a lot of ground.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped.

FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention.

PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to.

REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

The Hateful Eight, 2015

I talked about this in the movie watching 2015 episode. I’m not going to say where it is in case you want to listen to the episode.

I’m just going to say I grade it a square REWIND.

Anomalisa, 2015

I really like Charlie Kaufman as a screenwriter, as all of his films I find to be unique creative works that truly speaks to the medium of film and what it’s capable of. I guess you could say he’s the Alan Moore of films. If anyone could make Watchmen work on film it probably could be him. Anomalisa works in a lot of ways but it really requires more than one viewing to really get into what it is doing. At first, I thought the film was a retread of a tired old them of midlife crisis where the main character is chasing after a romance that he thinks would bring fulfillment back into his life. It’s not quite that, but what it is becomes a lot sadder and a lot darker.

It really took me some time to think about this film to reevaluate my feelings and I’ve finally come to the consensus that it’s very good and the animation I’ve always though is pretty standout. It’s stop motion animation done extremely well and brings in another layer to the film. I give this film a REWIND.

Knight of Cups, 2015

I’m not sure what to say about this film. I had a really hard time watching it. I was very bored and not in the mood for it. I didn’t even make it up to the point where Natalie Portman showed up, not even sure if she did in the scenes I did watch.

I might have to finish it someday but I don’t think it’ll be anytime soon. For now my grade is SKIP.

The Outrage, 1964

After watching The Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven, I thought it would fun to watch the American western remake of Rashomon starring Paul Newman as a Mexican bandit. That’s right, a Mexican bandit. I’ve got to say I didn’t hate it, although it’s a lot less ambiguous about what really had happened in the incident.

I still kind of liked it overall and would grade this as a simple PLAY, because it’s okay but I don’t think anyone would say it’s great.

Rashomon, 1950

I had said before that this one of my favorite movies by Kurosawa and so after watching the Outrage I just had to revisit the original film. It’s still one of my favorites and there is so much that I find fascinating about it, from how the story develops to the blurred reality of the differing accounts and the hilarious final battle between the samurai and the bandit. It’s a great film that never ceases to entertain and make me think about how perspectives are always self-serving and no account is closer to the truth than the last.

I give this a REWIND.

Final Girl, 2015

I had been meaning to check into this film for some time as I have become familiar with the director Tyler Shields, but mostly by his work as a photographer. The images that he creates are amazing in their composition, lighting and staging in a way that is remarkable. I would say the story of this film isn’t really that great or complex. It’s a very simple plot of a girl is trained to become a Trojan horse of deadly skills who gets herself embroiled with a group of guys who hunts women for sport. It is some parts The Most Dangerous Game mixed into a slasher film. Again the visual accomplishments are very interesting and stylized and fun to watch. The lead is Abigail Breslin, whom I really enjoyed in Haunter a while back. Here she’s okay as the final girl.

I would say give this a PLAY because it’s really interesting and I’m almost certain the visuals are impressive enough to compel through the running time, but don’t expect any deep meaning as it’s mostly style over substance.

The Big Short, 2015

This film is really good and an interesting way to explain the financial crisis and how screwed up it is. It tells the real life events of the few who saw the bubble about to burst before it did. It’s told in a really interesting way as well, with every once in a while a character breaking the fourth wall to address the audience about certain artistic licenses taken on the film or to explain a particularly complex bit of information.

I say give this a PLAY because it’s well made and funny, but also very freaking depressing.

Joy, 2015

I like Jennifer Lawrence and I have for a while. I caught wind of her back when there was buzz for her performance in Winter Bone, which is when I realized I recognized her from watching The Bill Engvall show where she played the daughter. I really watch way too much TV. Recently she’s been working a lot with David O. Russell who is a director I like and from time to time don’t. I think my favorite movie of his is I heart Huckabees, because it’s existential and metaphorical and weird and interesting, much like a Charlie Kaufman movie. Joy is okay, it’s not really trying to do a lot and there are some flourishes that make this film just seem to use familiar referential film grammar short hand to tell its story, which I think can be fun. In the end she looks fondly at some art craft she made as a little girl and it’s a very Citizen Kane reflective moment that I think is done well enough.

Again, I think this movie is okay, not Russell’s best but good and worth a watch, so I give it a PLAY.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #joy #hateful eight #the big short #anomalisa #knight of cups #the outrage #rashomon #final girl

Movie tracking week of 12/26/2015- 1/1/2016

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

Here again playing catch up with my movie tracking posts. This week I didn’t do a whole lot of anything but watch movies I think. I may’ve tried to watch Schitt’s Creek, which I liked. The cast is good and I never tire of Catherine O’Hare. But other than that I don’t know. Y’know what I may’ve also been catching up with Fresh Off the Boat which I think is a great fun show. I can’t believe it took me so long to discover it but it’s as fun and nostalgic as The Goldbergs but set in the 90’s. Good stuff.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

SKIP – This grade is given to films that are not really worth watching and would be best skipped. FAST FORWARD – This grade is given to films that have something worth seeing about it but could probably be seen without your full attention. PLAY – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and should be paid close attention to. REWIND – This grade is given to films that are worth seeing and needs considerable attention to viewing and also possible multiple viewings to be fully appreciated.

Sicario, 2015

This week I continue to catch up with my 2015 blind spot movies and watched Sicario which I liked but thought was a bit overrated. I think it’s a solid film, but not really anything special. Emily Blunt is solid in the role and Benicio Del Toro is also a highlight but overall it’s pretty basic, nothing to shout about.

I give this a PLAY though.

Spectre, 2015

This is almost exactly what I had heard about, it’s not bad but it’s also not as good as the best Daniel Craig films. This seems like a step down because it’s trying to turn towards what the franchise is and these later films are better when it just goes away from the Bond tropes and inanities.

I’d give it a FAST FORWARD.

The Hateful Eight, 2015

This was great. I watched the Roadshow cut of this with intermission and all and just thought it was a blast. I’m not a fan of all Quentin Tarantino films, but I do respect almost all of them. Well, except for Inglorious Basterds which I know I’m alone on, but I really think he dropped the ball on that one in a lot of ways. But The Hateful Eight is the western I was hoping he was capable of.

REWIND.

The Martian, 2015

I like Ridley Scott movies and this is certainly one of his better ones. It’s a very grounded story and from what I hear the book is better, as they often are, but I really had a good time with this film and the performances really helped to make this work. I think this is decent in the same sense that Forrest Gump is good, as it is somewhat inspiring about what the human will is capable of when it comes to survival. It’s actually a bit like Gravity, but I had way more fun with this movie.

I’d give this a PLAY, a solid one.

The Seven Samurai, 1954

Talk about roadshow length films, here’s an epically long film that I decided to watch as part of our upcoming Separate but Sequel movie review podcast episode on the Magnificent Seven. It’s well-known that a few of Akira Kurosawa’s films were adapted into American westerns and this is one I hadn’t a full grasp on yet. One of my favorite movies is Rashomon, and I figured it would be a good time as any to check into this film.

I’ve got to say for a movie that is long, it is very good. It’s like watching a really great TV series as the story development is so drawn out and evocative. The seven samurai are very charismatic and well defined characters that you could easily want to follow any one of them.

I’m going to give movie a grade of REWIND because even as a story that I’ve seen done again and again since, this film really entertains and flows really well.

The Magnificent Seven, 1960

As I mentioned earlier this film is an adaptation of The Seven Samurai film but in a western setting and it’s clear in that sense it has a lot to live up but ends up somewhat short, but that is not to say that this film isn’t any good because what it does do different works really well here. The script is really smart in how it changes up some elements and moves around story beats or mixes character traits from the original seven to one or two others. The main difference and I would say is an improvement on the original is that you really get a sense for the villain in this film, while in the original film the villain was more of an uncharacteristic bandit set. On this film the villain is a vile bandit leader who you can get behind to hate.

This film also gets a REWIND, because as far as remakes go this is an excellent one that is done quite cleverly and if you consider it as its own film apart from the original, it’s even better.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #the magnificent seven #the seven samurai #the martian #the hateful eight #the hateful 8 #sicario #spectre #fresh off the boat

Movie tracking week of 12/19/2015- 12/25/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

I’m back again trying to catch up my posting. This was Christmas week which I think I was catching up with an animated show called Star Vs the forces of Evil. Maybe it was the week after, it doesn’t matter. So I watched this awesome animated series from Disney Channel called Star Vs the forces of Evil and I’m hoping that it could be the show that fills the void of Gravity Falls which I had learned was ending its run. I had tried watching other popular animated shows in recent times which I found myself unable to embrace for whatever reason.

First I tried Adventure Time, but that’s way too many to catch up with so I just gave up. Then I tried Steven Universe which is okay, I’m not that big on it though. I watched like 20 episodes and I don’t feel the need to continue. But I had heard about Star from the voice actress Eden Sher who mentioned it on a podcast. I really liked her on The Middle so I figured let’s give this a shot and it’s really good. It’s also really short to catch up with so that may’ve been a factor. It’s about this girl from another planet who is very Sailor Moon like who befriends and moves in with this boy and his family as a foreign exchange student. It’s just really cool and fun and I just love the theme song. I give it a super strong recommend.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

The Peanuts Movie, 2015

I guess I wanted to play catch up with this year’s movies in order to come up with a decent top ten list for the topic discussion episode of the podcast about movie watching in 2015. I really liked the trailer and wanted to see it but wasn’t sure what to expect. It’s a bit of a remix of a lot of the comic strips which is cool. It’s not entirely a cohesive story but enough to make it okay. I think there could be more in the future for the series which could explore new ground but as a feature it is just a very fine film.

I’d give this one a PLAY.

Creed, 2015

I think Michael B. Jordan is great in this film. This is basically Rocky but modern and race switched. It’s a good addition to the franchise and a smart one. There may be more movies to come but I don’t know what that would look like. Stallone is serviceable and puts a fine stamp on the film that seems to take this franchise to the next level.

I’d give this film a PLAY.

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, 1999

I sort of wanted to re watch all of the Star Wars movies again before I watched Episode seven again. I did not succeed in this goal. I did make it all the way through this movie though and I have to say I still don’t hate it. It’s an okay film, people just expected so much from it that’s where it went wrong.

I’d give this a FAST FORWARD though.

Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones

I didn’t really get the dislike of Christiansens’s portrayal of Anakin back then, I thought he was okay. But watching it now I see man there is no chemistry with him and Portman, and I love Portman. The film itself isn’t terrible again, I still feel there’s some good in it that makes it worth sitting through.

I’d give this one a FAST FORWARD.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens, 2015

I’ve said already what I thought of this film in last week’s post. My thoughts have not changed.

REWIND.

A Christmas Horror Story, 2015

On Christmas day I wanted to watch something related to the holiday so I decided on this and I’ve got to say, not a bad idea. This film ties a bunch of somewhat unrelated threads together into one continuous narrative and it’s pretty cool. I can’t say it’s groundbreaking, as I believe The Loved Ones didn’t the disparate stories connect in the end a little bit better, but this one does good too.

All in all, I’m glad I watched it and will give it a PLAY.

Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse, 2015

I’ve got to say I think the whole zombie apocalypse thing is so played out, but this film does a good job at displaying comedy and playing into the tropes as well. I have to place this in the same category as Deathgasm, which was a movie I thought was good but I didn’t find was essential. This is another film that while good, I don’t find myself returning to it or even wanting sequels, although there is potential for more.

I’d give it a PLAY, because if you want to laugh and see zombies too, this one will do the trick.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #scouts guide to the zombie apocalypse #a christmas horror story #star wars #star wars the phantom menace #star wars attack of the clones #creed #rocky balboa #star vs the forces of evil #adventure time #gravity falls #steven universe #the peanuts movie

Movie tracking week of 12/12/2015- 12/18/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

I’m still catching up with my neglected movie tracking here. On this week I turned 34 years old. I can’t say it was very eventful other than the fact that I got to see the new Star Wars movie on the same day of my birth, which in and of its self is pretty cool.

During most of November I gained a new ambition which I might as well mention here. I live in New York City and one of the restaurants I would like to frequent is this pizza place called Two Boots, which specializes in Cajun style pizza. My favorite slice is what they call the Newman which is a pizza with some fine meats on a white slice, on Fridays they would improve on this by supersizing it as the Super Newman. It’s a really tasty dish. Anyway, I would go there often and order the same thing, but then at one point I noticed that they have other slices too that I should try and then discovered another specialty slice called Meat the Mets which was another delicious pizza that I enjoyed heavily. I then decided that I should try all the different specialty dishes they offer because I don’t know I needed something to do and so embarked on a journey of the taste buds and created a checklist of all the ones I needed to try.

I became somewhat obsessed with trying out a new specialty slice and went to all of the locations in NYC to try what they call their home slices that are exclusive to those locations. I’m only missing one place and that’s in Citi field which I don’t believe is open right now; I will get to it at some point. Anyway, so that was a thing I did during this time and thought I may as well mention it here. I’m thinking of taking a trip out to the outside of NYC locations at some point in 2016, but I’m not at that point yet. We’ll see.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

Sleeping with Other People, 2015

This was an okay romantic movie that I saw. It has Alison Brie and Jason Sudeikas which are two actors I like, but Idk this movie was not that entertaining to me overall. I can vaguely remember the plot or any moment that made me laugh. It’s just an eh film.

I’d give it a FAST FORWARD.

Bone Tomahawk, 2015

I had heard a bit about this film and thought it was going to be more horror oriented. It’s not really. It’s mostly a western that has a few bouts of gore in it but not really enough to satisfy any true gore hounds. There’s a good performance by Kurt Russell but nothing much more to comment on.

This gets a FAST FORWARD.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens, 2015

I can’t say that I’m surprised that I ended up really digging this movie. Ever since I saw the trailer I kind of knew that this was going to be a new era for the franchise that I could really grip my hands around. I can’t say that I’ve always been a star wars fan, I liked it sure, but I didn’t really make all that many references to it that the pop culture didn’t already push ahead. I can’t even say that I was that much of a fan to have been insulted by the prequel trilogy, which I understand fans really hated. I didn’t really care that people hated on it, I didn’t hate it, and I didn’t think it was great either, but I just felt it seemed about right for the franchise.

The thing I liked about this new film is that it revitalized the franchise again in a way that I feel I can truly love the series again and get really excited for what is to come again. This film did that and I’m glad that it’s doing well.

My grade for this is REWIND.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #star wars #star wars the force awakens #bone tomahawk #sleeping with other people #two boots pizza #nyc

Movie tracking week of 12/5/2015- 12/11/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

Another catch up post today, on this week I’m not sure but I think this was when The Man in the High Castle premiered. I watched all the ten episodes in a binge watch and I loved it. It was really great and the actors are so good in it and the show certainly does not hold back its punches. This series made it onto my best of television in 2015 list and I really think it’s worth a watch. I was also really glad to find that this show was picked up for a second season fairly quick. Anyway, definitely check out that show.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

Experimenter, 2015

Okay so I only watched one movie this week and it was this one. It’s a decent film, I can’t say I was all that intrigued by it. I decided to watch this for two reasons and one was because I remember hearing about the Milgram Experiments back in college and thought the whole thing was fascinating and bizarre. The second reason was because I wanted to see Wynona Ryder in a film again. She’s good here and so is Peter Sarsgard but again this film didn’t hold that much weight for me overall.

I’ll give this a FAST FORWARD.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #experimenter #man in the high castle

Movie tracking week of 11/28/2015- 12/4/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

Day two in my catch up with posts and I’m trying to remember what relevant thing I was doing the week I watched these movies. I cannot recall. I’m not sure but maybe Gotham was still airing but even if it wasn’t let me promote the reviews I did for Popoptiq website. I’ve been writing reviews of FOX’s Gotham for all season one and the first half of season two and would like people to check them out if they like the show. I tend to review differently than most recap reviews, by having it broken down in three main sections. First I give a general review of the episode, followed with a character study of some of the key characters in each episode and then get into the case-of-the-week with the Case file, where I go into more detail of what the main conflict of the episode deals with the serialized plot and I also touch on the writers and directors of the episode, but then I close the review off with an additional thoughts segment I label as Detective Notes, which are just off hand thoughts I noticed during the episodes, like Easter eggs or random meta commentary.

Check them out here:

http://www.popoptiq.com/tv/tv-reviews/gotham/

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

Buzzard, 2015

I had heard a little about this movie and it’s certainly interesting. It’s a very small film with a dry comedic sense and a narrative that flows well despite being very slice of life everyday life. There are no real stakes and that can be dull but overall it’s a decent film.

I’d give it a PLAY.

Not another Happy Ending, 2013

I really didn’t like this movie. I watched it only because I wanted to see Karen Gillan in something. I really like her in shows like Selfie or NTSF:SD:SUV:: but her charm could not save the stupidity of this movie. She’s not even good in it. It’s about a writer who finds an editor and they have some kind of chemistry but she dates some popular self-absorbed writer who doesn’t treat her right and one of the characters she created talks to her for whatever reason. It’s just a really dumb movie. I hate it.

This gets SKIP.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #Gotham #Fox #buzzard #not another happy ending

Movie tracking week of 11/21/2015- 11/27/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

Happy New Year 2016 everyone!

I know I’m way behind on posting on here, like about three months behind, but I’m going to get back into the swing of things now. What I’m going to do is post a new movie tracking item every day for a week until I’m all caught up to the present. Hopefully I don’t fall behind on this, but who knows.

Anyway, so since last I’ve written on here I’ve posted a new TV that Home Video Forgot spotlight on an early FX channel show called Starved. It was created by Eric Schaeffer who also wrote and directed the series. It’s a pretty interesting show which you can read about here:

http://www.popoptiq.com/television-that-home-video-forgot-starved-2005/

That also turned out to be my last post of the TV that Home Video Forgot column for the time being. I needed to take a hiatus because I couldn’t make the time to write the follow up articles. I was planning to write up about two more short-lived shows FOX’s Reunion and VR.5, but again ended up putting them in the back burner. I might get to them someday, as for now I’m okay with closing the book on the column. I would like though that if you’re interested in short-lived cancelled television most of which are not available in home video media, to check out the column and if you do let me know if you liked reading them.

Here’s the link:

http://www.popoptiq.com/tv/idiot-box/television-that-home-video-forget/

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

Highlander: Endgame, 2000

This is a movie I had watched for an upcoming review episode of the Separate but sequel movie review podcast. I had watched the first two Highlander films and thought it was interesting but found that I didn’t love the series. This one we talk about with our reoccurring guest Colleen. It’s a pretty fun episode so I recommend you guys check it out when we release it sometime in March 2016.

I think I gave this film a FAST FORWARD but I could’ve just easily given it a skip.

Fall, 1997

Speaking of Eric Schaeffer earlier, as part of my research into the article I wrote I decided to check into one of his written/directed films, which there are a fair amount. The 1990’s era of films seemed to have an odd frequency of writer/director/actor types who are extremely self-absorbed and pretentious who make very personal films that make their selves appear to be more than they are. Basically, these types want to be Woody Allen and tell their life story and since it’s their lives they think they are making something important. This film reeks of that kind of filmmaking. I can’t say it’s bad though, but I can say with certainty that it’s not great. To me this draws me in with the same curiosity that Tommy Wisseau’s The Room does, in that it certainly has a singular vision and is like trying to analyze a person’s psyche through what they answer on an ink blot or Rorschach test.

What The Room has over on Fall is that the choices made in The Room are bat shit insane, while Fall has a more skillful and clearly defined touch. When I think of the Auteur theory, this is the type of film that I think exemplifies that, and it’s not a purely positive light, which I believe the Auteur theory is far too often revered ignoring the flaws that can come with a purely singular vision. Sure, I believe that a unified film is more interesting than a cookie cutter one but never forget that sometimes a completely original and personal film can be eye rolling with its self-serving.

I’d give this a PLAY.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #eric schaeffer #fall #auteur theory #highlander endgame #separate but sequel #starved #reunion #vr.5

Movie tracking week of 11/14/2015-11/20/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

This has been a fairly slow movie watching week for me. My main focus this week though had been obsessing on taking advantage of the Criterion Collection DVD & Bluray sale happening over at B&N this month. I tend to write about it every November as that is the season the sale happens. It’s been crazy because I got a couple coupons the first week, and bought a few just on sale, then the next week I get two more coupons in the mail and then another in my email. So, I’ve just been maxing out on filling in some holes in the overall collection, which btw at last count put us at owning about 600 out of the almost 800 films in the collection. I also bought Darkman on Bluray from Shout Factory’s Scream Factory line, because I really wanted to check out the special features on it. I’ll try to make time for that soon. But next week is going to be a massive Streaming TV Binge for me, as both Jessica Jones and Man in the High Castle are being released from their respective streaming video distributors. That’s 23 episodes to catch up on. Not to mention the week’s regular TV from broadcast channels.

Speaking of which, there’s one show I kind of want to mention as being pretty good so far and that’s Ash Vs Evil Dead on STARZ. It’s been a ton of fun and it is great seeing Bruce Campbell back in action and being so funny. The first three episodes I’ve caught up with and the pilot was strong, the second episode was even better and the third was interesting but funny as all heck. It’s a really good show, I definitely recommend it.

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

Highlander, 1986

I, somehow, managed to never have seen this movie before. Obviously, I’ve known about it and it’s had a peripheral place in the pop culture zeitgeist as a cult film and it’s understandable to see why. It has a lot of the classic elements of the era of that type of action/Sci fi/adventure genre that were low budget but made with a lot of care. There was a sense of creativity that was speaking to the masses, a high concept action series that’s general focus was about emasculating fantasies for boys. Sometimes these films would evoke humor, other times these movies would take themselves way too seriously. Films that I believe were made in this spirit include The Terminator, Mad Max: The Road Warrior, Big Trouble in Little China, Predator, Escape from New York, Conan the Barbarian and perhaps some others that escape me. These films all have brute heroes in worlds that are familiar to ours but are enhanced by fantasy or sci fi themes and mythology.

Highlander fits into this mold in certain ways as it takes elements such as swordplay, immortality, alternative fashion styles, an endless battle of good vs evil, and fused them all into what is the start of the franchise. It’s understandable why this film would overtake a cult audience but there is a lot lacking in it that would hold resonance. It’s a series that began as a one off, never thinking about how the series could lead to a sequel. Films were not concerned in maintaining mythology at the time, it was simply hard enough to get a feature film made. This lack of foresight, although not serviceable to the films that would proceed it, is what makes this particle film hold better. If you were to imagine a world without its sequels, it might help you in appreciating this film.

But as it stands I’m going to have to grade it as FAST FORWARD, because although it’s a decent film with some instances of entertainment value but not a full feature I would revisit. It’s not entirely to my taste and what can come after can only be diminishing returns. Which makes me rethink the famous quote as “There should only be One!”

Highlander 2: The Quickening, 1991

Speaking of diminishing returns, here is the film I had heard was pretty bad, and it sure lives up to it. I was surprised to find some interesting casting in this film with Michael Ironside and John C. McGinly. In the very beginning the film is confounding as we are privy to an aged Christopher Lambert at an opera house and then he gets de-aged somehow, there’s a crazy time loop or something. The whole things weird. Anyway, the initial plan I had was to try and watch as many of the Highlander films before recording a new episode of the SBS movie review podcast, which would have us review Highlander 4: Endgame, but decided you know what I’ve had enough of these movies, I get it.

This film, although it made me want to give up on the franchise, it’s one I may be curious to revisit watching someday. I’d give it a FAST FORWARD because it is lesser than the original film but I think there is still a little of what’s in that first film here, although it’s gone complete crazy with its attempt at sequelizing.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #highlander #highlander 2 #highlander 2 the quickening #Starz #ash vs evil dead #highlander franchise #streaming tv

Movie tracking week of 11/7/2015-11/13/2015

Welcome to another week in movie tracking.

I have to be honest I actually went this whole week without watching a single movie. I missed this week and I really don’t have a good reason as to why. But last week I actually watched a lot of movies so I’m going to talk about those here to make up for the lack of movie watching.

Aside from my movie watching I’ve also caught up with the four episode run of With Bob and David, the new Netflix sketch comedy show. It was really great and I only wish that it was longer. Also this week I want to link to my latest edition of the TV that Home Video Forgot column over at Popoptiq website. Check it out here:

http://www.popoptiq.com/television-that-home-video-forgot-commander-in-chief-2005/

Alright now it’s time for my movie tracking but first, as always let me rundown the grading system I’ll be using.

Bloodsucking Bastards, 2015

I actually had a really good time with this off beat horror office comedy. It stars the guy from Cabin in the Woods and Dollhouse in a fairly likeable role. It’s about a guy who works in an office setting and he has a weird friend and problems with his girlfriend. Suddenly get weird when an old rival from his high school days comes into the place and shake things up. It’s a lot funnier than how I’m selling it. I’d give this a strong recommend and say PLAY. It’s easy breezy fun.

Mission Impossible 5: Rogue Nation, 2015

Not the biggest action movie person, but this one was pretty good. A lot happens, there’s some globetrotting a really cool ending comeuppance for the villain and twists and turns. It’s just a fun ride. Also there’s this chick in it Rebecca Ferguson who’s a total bad ass. She totally steals the show. I’d say if you’re up for it definitely give it a shot.

For me I’d grade this simply PLAY.

That’s all for this week, thanks for checking in and be back next week when I return with more movie tracking.

#movie tracking #mission impossible rogue nation #bloodsucking bastards #rebecca ferguson #commander in chief #geena davis

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