after instant watching it (very nice streaming quality! Looked great!). Since t/viewing I desire to be in Henry Spencer's home (w/o the freakish mutant baby). That continual rain + wind just lulls me to sleepiness. Ideal flick for cold, blustery evenings.
and more Basil Rathbone. Really dig the old Sherlock Holmes films (this one from 1944). 
Watching Star Slammer
at the moment but it will be a real test as to whether I will endure this Fred Olen Ray 2/10 star low budget sci-fi slop from 1987. But if that cover art isn't a lure I don't know what is. (yes, watched the whole thing and it wasn't terrible; kinda taking the women's prison film of the 70s into space but executed poorly... but some of the costuming would make for some decent action figures.)
. Wish I had a better sense of what exactly the point or plot of this is... I get the biker chicks and all but wish it had a little more bite and grit.
(1946) featuring the delightful Basil Rathbone. Dug most of this film up until the final conclusion, which was anti-climatic after the build-up. 
Closed with Wandering Ginza Butterfly
. Holy shit do I love 60s/70s Japanese cinema, particularly the earlier Nikkatsu studio, yakuza and revenge films. Meiko Kaji is as excellent as ever here (and gorgeous, natch). Think it's great to see the final bloody climax happen after an intense billiards contest. Visually this film is excellent w/an equally fine enka soundtrack.
, which I picked up while black friday shopping at 4AM. Seems that so many twitter film folks I follow have been watching the hell outta the blu and I understand why. Movie is beautiful and so damn good. 
LOL a lot (in a good way). So enjoyable and nearly as perfect as it gets for a big film. Already looking forward to commentary & extra features. Happy that Clifton Collins Jr had plenty of screen time.
, not worth the rental but perfectly suitable for watching on the fly and bailing if you so desire. I didn't bail on this b/c it's a somewhat watchable c-grade horror flick about a killer clayanimation penis. 'nuff said.
with my father on this Thanksgiving evening. Can't recall the last time I watched an entire film on primetime television with commercial interruptions. Always wanted to see this but was hoping for a better experience. Dad enjoyed it. Probably will rewatch on disc one of these days along w/the sequel.
blu-ray from the quick picks shelf @ t/library figuring it was about time I rewatched this film (having not seen it since I saw it in the theater w/p@). It's still just *okay* in my book as my feelings haven't changed much. Watchable and nice transfer. Keira is, however, stunning. Stunning.
Now watching Leonard, Part 6
on Netflix Instant. Never seen and heard only bad things so I had to see for myself and Instant Watch is the perfect forum to do so. Gotta say that it lives up to its reputation.
on TCM, my next 2 hours were booked. Love this musical and it must be at least 30 years (?) since I've seen it. Was always a fun Sunday afternoon flick. Didn't know Julie Newmar and Jerry Lewis were in this (Lewis having a small uncredited cameo). Besides good tunes (who knew hillbillies could sing so well and dance!) all the young ladies are insanely beautiful starting w/Leslie Parrish as Daisy Mae. Watch this film if you haven't seen it.
, which only got interesting at the 1-hour mark (the kidnapping) and got better from there. Fairly decent film if you can tolerate Tony Scott's film style (still trying to decide if I do like it or not). Enjoy Denzel as the total badass. At least made me want to read the A. J. Quinnell novel it was adapted from... not a bad watch.
You know you're watching an old (older) movie when Peter Cushing's character is referred to as "the boy"... and so it goes with The Mummy
, my 3rd mummy film in as many days (thx to Netflix this time). Yes I noticed that my viewing was a tad deficient in mummy films so a bit of a binge. And this is best of the 3 and a better Hammer example of this classic monster and quite good for a 1959 Hammer Horror Film. Love Christopher Lee as Kharis, the Mummy.
from my blindspot list. Tremendous film and even more amazing Daniel Day Lewis. Really enjoyed the first 2 arcs more than the 3rd but extremely good overall.
(followed that terrible Mexican Robot vs. Mummy flick). Gotta say this isn't one of Hammer Films better flicks but not awful. I dig the mummy in this but how they develop its behavior is rather weird (why doesn't the mummy just attack everyone?). Receiving Hammer's The Mummy tomorrow so hoping that's a better example.
is a damn fine piece of film. The cinematography is stunning; the scenes capture the situation perfectly. For me, I am most amazed by the sheer number of known actors featured here. From top to bottom. Eric Bana easily wins the best of the bunch award with Lucius Malfoy in second. Thinking I may want this on Blu.
(yes, pun intended). Was waiting the entire for the reveal and it did as intended (was a shocking moment for sure). Since I didn't catch this film immediately upon its release I became aware of the plot, which didn't leave much desire to see. Glad I did; Eastwood & Freeman were great as usual. Still not a fan of Hillary Swank.
and I watched. Despite it's status and possessing all the hallmarks of blaxploitation cinema, I don't think this particular film is good example of that genre. In many ways, it stands on its own. Ron O'Neal is excellent. I also listened to most of the commentary track, which is just as good.
, with the always great Alan Arkin in supporting role. Big shout out to Clifton Collins Jr. for his role as Winston (my favorite character here). Nice little flick. An aside, just noticed the blu-ray is $9.99 @ AMZ while the DVD is $14.99. WTF?
officially off the list. Not bad to see 2 good (great?) Nic Cage performances in one week (why can't he get more work like this, me asks). Chris Cooper also terrific here and nice small part by Judy Greer, whom I heart. Just wish the disc had some special features incl. Stephen Tobolowsky's deleted scenes, dammit.
So the UP creators (Pixar peeps) found inspiration from The Living Edens - The Lost World - Venezuela's Ancient Tepuis
PBS documentary... I watched and I liked. Altho I could only get the VHS from the library (boo!) and would love to see this in Hi-Def. Damn beautiful. Now I want to go there.
is incredibly violent! Similar to the Green Lantern flick I viewed recently, DC has no problem turning up violence in its animated features. Sheesh, it's almost alarming to see so many kill scenes but I appreciate the serious tone and much better than the Marvel animated features in that respect. Overall solid film and more excellent Nathan Fillian voice over acting.
? Heh. It's what you'd expect: poachers on the outback harassing a female at a wildlife refuge. How's that for high concept? Was terribly disturbing to see real butchered kangaroos.
Super thrilled that TCM was broadcasting Breakfast At Tiffany's
so I actually had something good to watch on the nice flat panel TV in my hotel room at the Berkley Hotel in downtown Richmond. Such a wonderful film (as I tweeted: George Peppard handsome, Buddy Ebsen badass & just adore Audrey). Wouldn't mind having a solid blu-ray of this film. Too bad I had that damn Deep Blue Something tune stuck in my head for the entire day after. :-(
, but more as a comedy rather than straight-up horror and casts Tom Poston (Newhart!) in the lead. Okay. This Hammer/Castle collaboration isn't bad but not up to Castle's more gimmicky films, sadly. At least Janette Scott was cast and appears younger and even more beautiful than she does in Paranoiac (released that same year, 1963). Still like the more frightful turn in the original ODH from '32.
is, in fact, a fine film. And yes, I should have seen this much sooner than now. That is me fessing up. Being long enough from its original release, I came in with some preconceived notions that (much to my chagrin) were demolished half-way thru. The twist or reveal, if you will, was unexpected. Enjoyed thoroughly. And mark this as the 2nd Jennifer Connelly appearance in as many days (almost). She's pretty.
and of all the Bakshi flicks I've seen, this one is probably the worst of the bunch. It's more of a mess than anything and much less psychedelic. For a 1992 film, Brad Pitt doesn't really look that young and Gabriel Byrne looks the same as he always does. Not surprised to see such a low score at imdb. Unfortunate b/c somewhere in this I'm sure there's a story.
blu-ray from the library shelf. Ok, maybe "lucky" isn't the best word but I have been looking forward to seeing this sequel having recently seen the first installment. And it ain't bad. Nic Cage is quite likable in these as ridiculous they are (really? a secret gold city inside Mt. Rushmore?). The blu-ray is a decent transfer. I just wonder why Cage can't make another one of these to pay off his debts? This franchise is a bank roll.
is an okay doc but would've like to be a little more on the extreme side (and maybe include some things that this town has inspired such as the Silent Hill backdrop). All you need to know is really contained in the first 30-40 minutes (how the fire came to be and the result). But still a good watch if you're interested.
. Not quite as dark as anticipated but still the serious wig-out of a movie. And maybe one of the best original soundtracks (can Clint Mansell do wrong?). Thinking I might get the blu-ray as I wouldn't mind rewatching this one... it is a cautionary tale, right? right.
Thanks to the Chicago Horror Society, we were graced with yet another excellent horror film festival at the Portage Theater. This one zombie-themed with a few short films followed by feature length movies. Met up w/Ron (@rpringle) and got there in time for the short Chemical 12-D, a very cool little film (but not worth counting towards my movie total at maybe 10min in length). 
After a brief meeting w/@FreddysFingers during the break, we got to see Zombie Girl The Movie, the documentary about Emily Hagins making Pathogen. This was truly the best compliment to follow. Terrific & heartfelt documentary. Amazing to see how Pathogen came together and what was involved. Seeing both of these films back to back was perfect and totally made the night and festival.
in 35mm! Was thrilled to see this again having not seen it in 35mm since when it was originally released in 1985; it was a double-date film (and our dates loved it!). Always quite fun to see w/a crowd of zombie-fans... another rare example of humor & horror done well. Send more cops!
. I think due to the voice casting (never made me identify it as a Pixar film since I wasn't interested when this was originally released). However, recently, I've become more enthused about all that is Pixar and this was a pleasant treat. Not as comparable to the more current work (Up, Wall-E, Incredibles) but quite entertaining. Still not thrilled about the voice casting but whatevs.
first. And it put me in the right mindset for Zombie Outreak tomorrow!
So The Tournament
is a film that should've been released a while ago but is another unfortunate victim from the Weinstein Company considering the budget to produce this action thriller. The premise is stale (30 assassins assembled to kill each other off until only one remains) but there is some good drama here and yet another "kill montage" as well as a good b-list of actors: Ving Rhames, Kelly Hu, Robert Carlyle and others. Yes, it's big on silly but very watchable.
Thanks to a recent review on Gentleman's Guide to Midnight Cinema podcast, I dug into the meaty early 70s flick Payday
(1972) starring Rip Torn as a traveling country-western performer. It's a day in the life adventure including all the women, booze and seedy motels. Rip Torn is a walking disaster and so much fun to watch spiral out of control.
Only vaguely remembered Troll
from the late 80s so was thrilled to watch it again. Man, what a blast. Michael Moriarty, Shelley Hack, Sonny Bono, Gary Sandy, June Lockhart, Brad Hall, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and of course the famous little person Phil Fondacaro. How can you lose? you can't. I would so love to have a few of those creature models! Crazy that this inspired J.K. Rowling!
