Rate the last movie you've seen

[MinionZombie]

Insidious: Chapter 3 7/10 A prequel to the first two, but a standalone story in many ways. It takes a bit of time to get going and for the viewer to get more connected with the characters, but there are some effectively-staged scenes of spooky-doings, even if the main bad ghost feels a bit underwhelming in the end. Lin Shaye owns the movie and commands some powerful scenes, and the theme of a loss of a spouse is mirrored throughout the movie and helps pull the viewer deeper into the movie on an emotional level. It's not as effective as the first two, but it's still pretty strong, and as I said before this is Lin Shaye's film and she really seizes the opportunity.

[bassman]

^ That’s good to hear. I might need to seek it out now. After Wan left the series, I just kinda trailed off and didn’t bother with the third entry. Although come to think of it, I believe the third film could be helmed by Wan’s right-hand-man, Leigh Wannell? That certainly helps. Once Upon A Deadpool I’d waited until I could see it for free because I wasn’t going to buy a ticket for a watered down version of Deadpool 2 with fifteen minutes of Fred Savage footage. As long as you understand what this experiment is, you can enjoy it all the same. I just feel sorry for all the general audience members that thought it was effectively Deadpool 3, only to be disappointed after sitting down in the theater. That said, it’s fun and worth a freebie viewing. It’s all just a way to test the waters for a PG13 version of Deadpool in the future, which I think could work just fine, and I imagine this will be the version played on TV, so catch it there. 6/10

[MinionZombie]

^ That’s good to hear. I might need to seek it out now. After Wan left the series, I just kinda trailed off and didn’t bother with the third entry. Although come to think of it, I believe the third film could be helmed by Wan’s right-hand-man, Leigh Wannell? That certainly helps. Once Upon A Deadpool I’d waited until I could see it for free because I wasn’t going to buy a ticket for a watered down version of Deadpool 2 with fifteen minutes of Fred Savage footage. As long as you understand what this experiment is, you can enjoy it all the same. I just feel sorry for all the general audience members that thought it was effectively Deadpool 3, only to be disappointed after sitting down in the theater. That said, it’s fun and worth a freebie viewing. It’s all just a way to test the waters for a PG13 version of Deadpool in the future, which I think could work just fine, and I imagine this will be the version played on TV, so catch it there. 6/10 1) Yep, Insidious Chapter 3 is indeed directed by Leigh Whannell. James Wan makes a cameo appearance and produced it. 2) As long as the main Deadpool series remains R-Rated, then that's okay ... Deadpool appearing in someone else's PG-13 movie would be okay in that context.

[JDP]

Truth or Dare (2018): If the Final Destination and The Ring films had a baby it would be something like this movie. It mixes elements of both. Three things that bugged me, though:   The demon should have killed Olivia when she answered she would choose for all her group to die rather than the entire population of Mexico. She was obviously not being sincere, as we can plainly see at the end by her decision to spread the deadly game among millions of people worldwide rather than she and her friend to die.   Olivia and Markie could have also forced the demon into ending the game, even after Carter/Sam died; all they had to do is invite one more person into the game, then play two rounds of "truth" in a row right before the demon's turn to force it into choosing "dare", and then dared it to end the game. It would have to comply or face its own destruction, according to the very rules of the game.   If all else would fail in stopping the demon's deadly game, they could at least have implemented the temporary solution that Carter/Sam had adopted, namely: isolate yourself, alone, with no one else around you, in a living space with no deadly objects around. It seems to have worked for Carter/Sam, who managed to survive the game all this time. It would also be better than spreading the deadly game all over the world.

[bassman]

^ Based solely on the promotional materials, I thought this looked like a cheap “boo!” horror flick for the tweens. Of course marketing doesn’t always represent the most accurate depiction of films, so would you say it’s worth a viewing?

[JDP]

^ Based solely on the promotional materials, I thought this looked like a cheap “boo!” horror flick for the tweens. Of course marketing doesn’t always represent the most accurate depiction of films, so would you say it’s worth a viewing? Only if you enjoy that type of horror films that primarily target younger audiences, specially the Final Destination franchise, which this movie is obviously strongly influenced by, and to a lesser extent The Ring movies, which were directed at more mature audiences. But this movie gives the Final Destination idea new "twists" since there is actually interaction between the victims and the evil force that is relentlessly pursuing and mowing them down one by one. The victims have more of a chance to try to survive, as it depends a lot on their decisions and actions. If they are clever, they can even try to fight it back and beat it at its own game.

[bassman]

Interesting. While it’s been quite a while, I do seem to remember enjoying the first few Final Destination films. I kinda lost interest as they went on(I think there were about five entries?), but the first two had some great sequences. I particularly remember the highway crash from part two being quite inventive and disturbing. Actually, seems like I heard recently that they’re working on bringing the series back?...

[JDP]

Interesting. While it’s been quite a while, I do seem to remember enjoying the first few Final Destination films. I kinda lost interest as they went on(I think there were about five entries?), but the first two had some great sequences. I particularly remember the highway crash from part two being quite inventive and disturbing. Actually, seems like I heard recently that they’re working on bringing the series back?... There seems to be a "re-imagining" in the works. Oh boy, yes, yet another one!

[bassman]

The Punisher - Season Two This series is without a doubt the best effort from Marvel on the Netflix platform. It couldn’t be further from a “superhero” series. Of course The Punisher has never been a superhero, but some general audiences may consider it as such solely because of the Marvel name. Really it’s a very hard-R, character-driven thriller and actioner. I don’t want to go into too much detail for fear of spoilers, but I highly, highly recommend these two seasons to everyone. You don’t need to know anything about the other Marvel shows on Netflix, either. Just start with Season One and it plays perfectly as it’s own entity. While it hasn’t been officially announced as of yet, the second season is likely the last due to the tensions between Netflix and Marvel/Disney. Their other shows were recently cancelled after their newest seasons premiered, and they’re very likely to do the same for Punisher. Should it happen, I very much hope Marvel/Disney continues the series on their new streaming service or let it continue elswhere(Disney is partial owner of Hulu, so maybe it could move there?). I can’t recommend this show enough. Bernthal is perfect, the action is amazing, the stories are solid, etc etc. One of the best shows currently available! 9/10 Fun little tidbit: Fans of John Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13 will notice that episode 203 is actually a solid remake of said film. Better than the other remake, even. ‘Twas a nice surprise when I realized that they really were going for it! There’s also a nice little reference to “a western where the stranger comes into town and you later find out he’s a spirit”.

[bassman]

Knocked out a couple documentary series’ that are currently on Netflix... Conan Without Borders Basically, this takes the episodes of Conan O’Brien’s late night talk show that are set in countries outside of the US, removes the guest interview, and edits back in lots of the “on the street” footage that wasn’t aired on TV. While it’s obviously a funny docu-series, it also addresses important issues that are taking place in each of these countries, while also being quite informative of their history and culture. Educational and very funny, that’s a winning combination in my book! 10/10 Conversations With A Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes If you’re already deeply familiar with the in’s and out’s of Bundy’s case, I’m not sure if you’ll learn anything new with this series, but it’s an informative and well made documentary. Using Bundy’s tape recorded “confessions”, we’re taken from the start of his murders, up until his end. I didn’t know every detail of the case, so the doc informed me on quite a few things about the crazy bastard. Disturbing, but good watch! 8/10

[EvilNed]

City of the Living Dead (and then with commentary) Great film. Watching Arrows recent limited edition rerelease. The commentary was not that interesting tho. An interview with one of the stars. The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue This is really a great zombie flick, and damn creepy despite it's age. A Black Veil for Lisa Slow burn giallo with a low bodycount, cast of characters etc. Not that interesting, but a decent 90 minutes. Giallo In Venice Sleaziest film I've ever seen. Such a dirty and bad film. Il Fantasma dell'Opera Dario Argento's 90's outing is fairly ugly and clumsily edited. But it's not horrible. It's subpar, tho. Django Classic spaghetti western. Watched the english dub, which does NOT feature Franco Nero's real voice. Never again! Gang War in Milan Real good Umberto Lenzi helmed eurocrime! The Wax Mask Decent late 90's giallo! Better than expected. Green Book Great film. I hope Viggo wins the award. Navajo Joe Sergio Corbucci, of Django fame, directs another violent western. It's alright, but not great. The Great Silence Cynical, dark and snowy western by Corbucci. Got one of the grimmest endings I've seen. Threads British post-apocalyptic heavy drama and disaster-piece. Torso Part giallo, part slasher. The ending is great. The Bird with the Crystal Plumage One of the best giallos, and films, around. Tenebrae One of Argento's best. The Red Queen Kills Seven Times Decent giallo. But I prefer others more. Cat O'Nine Tails I rewatch this often. I like it alot! Noirish. Spasmo Second time viewing this. I love it! It's so bonkers. Beck Vita Nätter Nordic noir. Quien Sabe? Or "A Bullet for the General". Great spaghetti western with Gian-Maria Volanté. Vamos a matar, Companeros Violent, adventurous spaghetti western with an excellent score. Franco Nero and Tomas Milian. They'll love me when I'm dead Documentary on Orson Welles. Eaten Alive! Lenzi cannibal film. Decent, but maybe a tad bit too much rape for my tastes. Beck - Öga för Öga Nordic noir. Beautiful Boy Decent melodrama about a family torn apart by substance abuse. A Quiet place in the country Elio Petri directed this, mostly arthouse, giallo with Franco Nero in the late 60's. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone except you love european arthouse. Split Damn, that was good! Glass Damn, that was mediocre. Britt-Marie var här Swedish comedy. Fyre Excellent documentary on the Fyre festival!

[MinionZombie]

A Quiet Place I really enjoyed this one. Nice and tense, and I really enjoyed all the little 'world building' elements (e.g. the red lights, the sand paths). The monster design was pretty cool, although you kinda wonder 'Really? No military force in the world could figure out how to kill them?' ... that aside, though, I really enjoyed it. Great performances and the emotional core really sucks you in.   I was gutted when the father sacrifices himself to protect his kids, but at the same time it's one of those things that really touches you as a bloke on a base DNA level, you know, that 'sinking ship, women and children first' type of mentality that feels instinctive, bred into you almost. No, of course I'm not saying that women wouldn't feel something akin to that, but I'm just saying that there is this certain something that I feel is deeply buried in the very heart of a man's biology, something tracing back generations and millennia. Plus, scenes of self-sacrifice really get to me. Assault on Precinct 13 Nevermind that, technically, it should be called "Assault on Precinct 9, Division 13" ('cos that's where they actually are located ), but it's been many, many years since I saw this on BBC2 back in the days when I was recording flicks on VHS. Back then I enjoyed it, but found some of the dialogue a bit corny. I enjoyed it more this time around (although there's still a few somewhat ropey exchanges/line deliveries at times). The climax doesn't quite live up to the superb shoot out sequence when the gang members attempt to storm to the building, but the clarity of vision and efficiency with which Carpenter crafts his scenes and tells his story is something to behold. Casablanca This is like my fourth time seeing this, I think. Anyway, I've always loved this movie, but this time seeing it I was really impressed by the thin veneer of politeness that covers up numerous nefarious deeds bubbling under the surface. For example, Major Strasser being very cordial (and yet he's a ruddy Nazi), or Signor Ferrari and his crafty ways of doing dodgy business and lining his own pockets, or most of all: Captain Renault, the total creepo sleaze who is using the desperate situation to worm women into giving him sexual favours in exchange for travel papers. Indeed, that sense of being trapped and desperate to flee lest the Nazis catch up to you is palpable throughout the film, especially in the Paris sequence. That mad dash of everyone getting on the last train out before the Nazis arrive really had me on edge. Also, the way that pretty much all of the major players have a dark side - or have done bad things (some of the considering the time in which the film was made, of course) - makes the film feel that little bit more timeless. Again, there's elements of self-sacrifice strewn throughout the film, and I regard it as one of the most romantic movies ever made in my personal opinion.

[Neil]

Quick Change This one is a bit of a rarity, as it’s Bill Murray’s only directorial effort(Co-Director) and bombed at the box office, so it doesn’t have much of a home video release. I finally gave it a spin, and it’s quite surprising. It’s a great combination of Murray’s early comedy, while also marrying it to the thrill of a heist film, and a bit of the more modern and dramatic Murray. The plot is simple enough, they rob a NYC bank and the next ninety minutes are Murray, Geena Davis, and Randy Quaid trying to get out of town. Needless to say, it’s not all that easy. Wow, made 29rs ago! I recall seeing this one and enjoying it...

[bassman]

^ Glad to see others like it, as well! As I said, it could almost qualify as a “missing film” these days because there isn’t a real home video release. Hopefully that will change in the future, as it’s a good little effort! Monty Python Live at the O2 Arena Netflix must have recently struck a deal with the Python rights holders, because just about their entire catalogue of shows, films, live shows, and documentaries popped up within the last few months. While I was yet to be born during the Flying Circus days, like a lot of people, the show was still very important to my formative teenage years. This concert was a reunion in the early 2000’s(I believe?) where they played the O2 in London for about ten performances. Of course Graham Chapman passed away years ago, so he was absent, yet they still found some humorous ways to work him into the show. It’s both great to see the guys performing the skits in their old age, while at the same time a bit of a downer in some ways. Terry Jones has the early stages of Alzheimer’s, so it’s kinda sad to see him struggling with it at times. But mostly it was fantastic to see these guys putting new spins on their classics and enjoying themselves after all those years. Flying Circus and the films(particularly Life of Brian) will always hold a special place in my heart, so this is like seeing an old relative that had moved away. 8/10 MZ - that particular scene you have in tags....indeed, it was quite moving. I got a bit of tears in my eye in a sort of “yeah, do it!” kind of way. The film has its few issues, all of which have been addressed before, but as a whole it’s a fantastic effort from Krasinski!

[Neil]

Do they reference Queen doing the Flash Gordon (1980) movie soundtrack? Nope... Or Highlander etc...