Lost in a Blink

The Lost World (1925), the earliest feature film adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, was expiring on NWI so it was time to give it a spin. And it works well despite some corny moments with the native manbeasts. It's cool to see what they were able to do with the fantasy adventure elements in 1925. 7 / 10

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) has been on my to-watch pile since the moment it was nominated for 4 Oscars back in 2008. And it was also on my blindspot list. No surprise here as this is one amazing film. Mathieu Amalric is incredible. This is the movie and story that I will always refer to whenever someone uses the #FML hashtag. Because most of the time people have no conception of what a fucked up life really is and misuse/abuse that notion. In this movie it's 100% appropriate and yet inspiring. Love this movie. 7.5 / 10

• July New: 16
• July Re-watch: 1
• July '11 MTD: 17
• July '10 MTD: 54
• 2011 YTD: 403
  

Can You Hear Me Calling?

Oh Ki-hwan's Voices (2007) suffers from a premise that is often hard to swallow; those around you want you dead so bad things happen. The protagonist here seems to be at the center of envy from everyone including her friends and family. The evil spirit jumps from person to person trying to kill her. If you can buy the story this will work for you. 6.6 / 10

My Planet of the Apes blu-ray boxed arrived so I've been chomping at the bit to view the films again. We arranged a special movie night to do just that but not the first film (because Ron's already shown that one to his kids). Tonight I watched the original Planet of the Apes (1968) on blu-ray by myself just to prepare. The PQ is pretty nice altho not as good as I expected. Still it's a great film that really only drags at the very end. But it remains one of my favorites for everything leading up to that. 9 / 10

• July New: 9
• July Re-watch: 1
• July '11 MTD: 10
• July '10 MTD: 54
• 2011 YTD: 396
  

Clowns Cry Too

100 Tears (2007) is quite a splatter-fest. A low-budget splatter-fest. Here we have a murderous clown and the reporters tracking down the story. It's not the worst thing but did I mention it's bloody? Gotta give it up for effort put into the gore but I winced at the story and acting. But some remarkable practical effects. 5.5 / 10

• July New: 8
• July Re-watch: 0
• July '11 MTD: 8
• July '10 MTD: 54
• 2011 YTD: 394
  

Bad Girls Have More Fun

Eben McGarr's Sick Girl (2007) was something that was recommended by Netflix and looked intriguing (see that movie poster). For a indie (low budget) horror flick, it's not a bad watch even if the motivations of the "sick girl" aren't exactly clear. She seems to kill bullies but makes some questionable choices. Worth a look. (note: the short film doc on the DVD is more interesting) 6.6/10

Roy Ward Baker's The Vampire Lovers (1970) is another old Hammer classic running on NWI right now. Better than average plus the gorgeous Ingrid Pitt but not near the top. Essentially a vampire Marcilla infiltrates a family and horror ensues. Still required viewing for all Hammer horror fans. 6.8/10

Sadly it was announced today that Tura Satana passed away. She was like a lightning bolt; short lived career but tremendous impact & influence. She'll forever be an unforgettable icon in all of cinema. Felt it was appropriate to finally watch Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965) that's been on my DVR for over a year. Been saving for the right occasion. Just wish it wasn't this. Still an awesome flick in every way. 7.5/10

• February New: 13
• February Re-watch: 0
• February '11 Total: 13
• February '10 Total: 61
• 2011 TOTAL: 104
  

Getting Low

Time to fly back to Chicago. I'm ready to go home but hated the way I had to leave (6am this morning after my girlfriend didn't come home until 3am but that's another story). My in-flight film was a complete opposite of the crap they gave us on the way out (Ramona & Beezus). We were treated to Get Low (2010), which saw limited release earlier this year. It's a period piece features Bob Duvall as a man, Felix Bush, who wants to have his funeral before he dies. Bill Murray and Lucas Black are the funeral directors that assist him. Sissy Spacek is great as one of Felix Bush's old and only flames. Got a little sleepy towards the end due to my 3 hours sleep. Will need to revisit. 7/10

Home and chilling with some Instant Watch. Decided to finally watch the animated version of Superman: Doomsday (2007) storyline from the early 90s. Kinda okay and since I never bothered to read that storyline at least now I know what happened. Not bad. 6.6/10

And because it was expiring too I finally spun Stan Lee's Mutants, Monsters & Marvels (2002) which is a video interview with Stan Lee by Kevin Smith. It's broken into two segments; the first deals with Stan's career overall and the second just focuses on Spider-man. Interesting to hear a lot of what I already knew in Stan's words with his take on the events. Wish this Kevin Smith was still around. 7/10

Finally watched Dragonslayer (1981), which I guess I've never seen in its entirety, only bits and segments. It was expiring so what the hell. It's actually pretty good and darker than I expected for a Disney property. I could see them doing a remake of this in all CG. It's the practical effects that make this charming. Good late night watch. 6.8/10

• December New: 67
• December Re-watch: 6
• December Total: 73
• 2010 TOTAL: 790
  

London Calling

My girlfriend had picked up a few movies she thought we could watch during the holiday break. The Bollywood film Namastey London (2007) was one of them and sadly we both didn't care too much for it even with Akshay Kumar. Basically none of the characters are likable and there's no sympathy for the bratty Jazz (Katrina Kaif). The instant love bit grows tiresome here. 4.4/10

• November New: 47
• November Re-watch: 6
• November Total: 53
• 2010 TOTAL: 711
  

Annual Horror Movie Night

Kicked off Halloween movie night with Bert Gordon's Empire of the Ants (1977) streaming from NWI. We had Shannon, her husband Jon, pAT, myself plus Ron's family in attendance this year. Sadly only Shannon, Jon & myself dressed up in costumes (they made for a wonderful Peg & Al Bundy!). Empire is laughable but pays off in the end. I will watch Joan Collins in anything pre-1980s. Having never seen this before I was excited to see that flick esp. since I have the half-sheet. "Beware of the sugar refinery." 6.5/10

Followed that with The Mist (2007) in black & white. Yeah, still dig the shit outta Darabont's Stephen King adaptation. Plays even better with a crowd. Great to see it again in that environment. Everyone really enjoyed it. 7.8/10

The House of the Devil (2009) I saw last year and loved so much I've been itching to see it again. Brought my DVD since Ron & I discussed a possible screening. Fortunately none of our other guests had seen it so it was an ideal candidate. Mixed reactions but overall good. Adore this film and Ti West for making it. Tom Noonan is so great. pAT commented that my costume (a lumberjack) was AJ Bowen's character. Nice compliment. 8/10

Michael Winner's The Sentinel (1977) was our final viewing via NWI and what a pleasant surprise this was… as much as it was that *everyone* stuck around to see it (was already pushing 2AM). Damn is this flick so much fun. John Carradine, Ava Gardner, Eli Wallach, a wacky Burgess Meredith, and bare-breasted Beverly D'Angelo? Did I mention Jerry Orbach and a subdued, young Christopher Walken? Sign me up. Such a bizarre little film. 7.5/10

And there ends another highly enjoyable Halloween Movie Night! Already looking forward to next year.

• October New: 56
• October Re-watch: 16
• October Total: 72
• 2010 TOTAL: 656
  

Fear(s) of the Facebook

Because I wanted to catch Catfish (2010) before it left the theater I went out to S.Barrington AMC for a matinee, eschewing the late NFL game. I think it's just as what many that I know have said, insidious. I don't buy it as a documentary or that the narrative happened naturally. All that said, it is a very compelling watch and I would encourage anyone with a Facebook account to watch it. 7.4/10


Finished watching the late game and capped the evening with Peur(s) du noir (2007), a series of animated short stories with a horror element. This played at Fantastic Fest a few years ago and I'd heard some good things. Unfortunately it didn't live up to what I was expecting. Still a okay watch but definitely didn't pass the movie night mustard. 6.7/10

• October New: 7
• October Re-watch: 1
• October Total: 8
• 2010 TOTAL: 592
  

Horror Movie Mayhem @ Portage Theater

After returning home this morning from Fantastic Fest it was a mad rush to catch up on work items yet still remain lucid. Eventual crashed hard then arise to head over to Portage Theater for a double feature of Spanish horror films shot in Chicago by director Ricardo Islas. First up was El dia de los muertos a.k.a. Day of the Dead (2007) about a sick group of 20-somethings that kidnap women so they can terrorize and massacre them. A mexican revenge spirit shows up coincidentally at the same time a dead girl's father arrives from Mexico to identify his daughter's body. Dun-dun-dun. Not bad but overly long. 6.5/10

Next was Night Fangs (2005) also directed by Islas, which is about, yes, vampires. More specifically it's about two lesbian women who want to resurrect the spirit of Lady Bathory. Somehow this ritual turns a bunch of kids into cannibalistic vampires with the final climax set in the Aragon Ballroom! didn't really make much sense as to exactly how the vampires turned and unturned but for a low budget flick it's not terrible. Cool to see films shot in and around Chicago! 5.5/10

Arrived at home in time to catch Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968) on TCM. This Hammer horror flick is entertaining (the blonde guy cracks me up) but doesn't have enough Christobher Lee. I'm thrilled that TCM is running Hammer Horror every Friday night this month! 6.7/10

• October New: 2
• October Re-watch: 1
• October Total: 3
• 2010 TOTAL: 587
  

Resident Evil: Gone Baby

After a long day at the office I stopped by Showplace 14 on the home to catch Paul W.S. Anderson's latest in the RE franchise, Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010). Sadly this doesn't live up to the fun in the previous 3 films. I think PWSA needs to turn the reigns over to some new blood. Didn't bother with the 3-D version, natch, but Milla Jovovich didn't look all that great as she usually does. This flick only had me wanting to re-watch the other installments. Boo! 5.75/10

Anticipating Ben Affleck's upcoming The Town I wanted to check his Gone Baby Gone (2007). Damn fine film! Sadly the DVD I got from my library was scratched to all hell so I couldn't watch the end. Hafta get it from Netflix. Boo x2! 8/10


Also from my library I picked up Black Angel (1946), a good film noir about a wife trying save her husband in wrongfully accused of murder with the help of the victim's ex-husband. I actually watched this twice but only tallying once, natch. 7/10

• September New: 15
• September Re-watch: 0
• September Total: 15
• 2010 TOTAL: 522
  

Corrupting Our Youth

Didn't watch any films yesterday b/c we spend the day moving my storage to my condo and afterwards went to Kuma's Corner to celebrate or lick our wounds. Long day.

Back on the saddle with Vikaren (2007) a.k.a. The Substitute directed by Ole Bornedal and featuring the awesome Paprika Steen as the totally bonkers alien substitute teacher. From Denmark and part of the Ghost House series this is easily one of the better films under that label.


Followed that with Carnage (1968) a.k.a. Corruption recorded from TCM. Pretty cool thriller featuring Peter Cushing as a plastic surgeon. His crazy, beauty-obsessed fiance wife forces him to kill woman to help her maintain her scarred face. The end is just nuts.

• August New: 2
• August Re-watch: 0
• August Total: 2
• 2010 TOTAL: 443
  

NWI Monkey Madness

Not sure what got into me but this sure turned out to be a marathon day (evening) of movie watching. I blame Netflix Watch Instantly. First up Battle of Shaolin (1977) featuring the wiry Don Wong on his quest to rescue his girlfriend from the brothels. Ultimately he must face Lieh Lo as the bigger than badass villain w/decapitator chains. Angela Mao is also great w/her razor blade shoes but doesn't get enough scenes. The coin sequence w/The Sparrow (Chiang-lung Wen) is excellent!

Next the disturbing short film by Nacho Cerdà, Aftermath (1994), which doesn't look like it's 16 years old. But it's also quite unbelievable that something this obscene was released in 1994. Seriously, it looks like it was made recently. Definitely not for easily shaken... necrophilia!

Needing a breather, flipped to Blood Monkey (2007) expecting it to be bad. Oy! It's worse than bad and not in a good way. Avoid!

Next in my queue was the Chuck Norris supernatural thriller Hellbound (1994). Okay, so this is not a good flick but it was amusing to me for a few reasons (besides Chuck Norris). It's set in Chicago (until they travel to Israel) and they fight demons. It's as silly as it sounds.

Had never watched all of Joe Dante's comedy Matinee (1993) so I felt obligated to see it thru (think this stems from not being much of a John Goodman fan in the early 90s). Under more informed conditions I can appreciate this film much more now as it really is a nice homage to the William Castle gimmick flicks. Recommended viewing for all film fans.


And finally finished up Luigi Cozzi's campy Starcrash a.k.a. The Adventures of Stella Star (1978) featuring one of my favorite screen queens Caroline Munro in addition to the one and only David Hasselhoff! Amazing. And Amazingly bad. However this is bad in the good way. I love this film and all its low budget Star Wars wannabe silliness & glory (including light sabers! Look at that poster art!). Looks like it's finally getting a UK DVD release later this month and a domestic Blu-ray release in September. I will buy this!!

• June New: 26
• June Re-watch: 2
• June Total: 28
• 2010 TOTAL: 351
  

Tokyo Raiders

Haven't watched very much anime in the last couple of years (grew tired of it after spending most of the '00s watching more anime than film) but Netflix delivered an old hold in Strait Jacket (2007), which sounded like an interesting magic fantasy OAV. But overall it's just meh. Basically modern day sorcerers wear armored spell suits and destroy demons. Yawn.


From NWI I finally watched Motoyoshi Oda's Godzilla Raids Again (1955). This is the red-headed stepchild of the early Gojira films as it was later released in the US in 1959 as Gigantis the Fire Monster in a bastardized form. G takes on Anguirus here marking the first big screen kaiju battle. Not the greatest Godzilla film it's still quite good and deserves more recognition.

• June New: 4
• June Re-watch: 0
• June Total: 4
• 2010 TOTAL: 327
  

Unleash Hell in an Arrow

For Memorial Day, I jumped into a packed Showplace 12 cinemas for a packed viewing of Ridley Scott's Robin Hood (2010) with his favorite muse of recent years in Russell Crowe. Originally lost interest in this film after the early reviews reporting a disappointment among critics. But @Schofizzy's championing of the film sold me. Glad I made the leap; this is a sold flick albeit a little too serious. A better title would've been "Robin Hood Begins" as this tells the story before the Robin Hood you've seen time and time again. I appreciated that. Not a great film but highly watchable w/a few good sequences. And Crowe doesn't overact here, which is a plus.

On NWI I struggled thru the anime OVA Karas - The Prophecy (2006). It wasn't the dubbed version that NWI served up that made this nearly unwatchable but rather the general convoluted plotline that plagues many adventurous anime features. For the entire 90 minutes I truly had no idea what was going on. The melding of CG & traditional animation looks good but that's about all I can say. Have no interest in watching part two.


Finally my last film of May I reached back into Watch Instantly for another mutant animal attack trash feature in Razortooth (2007 - São Paulo International Film Festival). The mutant animal in this one is a killer eel that somehow is mobile on land. Yeah, it's that kind of stupidity. And why I can enjoy this kind of film. Pretty dumb stuff but my kind of dumb. Appropriate way to end the month of May.

• May New: 56
• May Re-watch: 12
• May Total: 68
• 2010 TOTAL: 323
  

Future War

Went back to my hometown to help my parents prepare for their garage sale (and drag some of my junk out of storage for it). Took a couple a library holds with me to keep me company. First up was the Nicolas Cage thriller Next (2007), which I didn't even know existed until recently. Here he's a Vegas magician that can see the future... only 2 minutes ahead. Yes, it's that kind of film. Julianne Moore and Jessica Biel (still hot) also star in this kinda okay thriller.

The other film was another recent release I hadn't seen, John Cusack's War, Inc. (2008). Fairly interesting and satirical take on the arms trade that's mostly a fun ride even with its over the top finale. Was surprised by Hilary Duff's performance (didn't recognize her at first) and Marisa Tomei is dreamy sexy as ever.

• May New: 36
• May Re-watch: 5
• May Total: 41
• 2010 TOTAL: 296
  

Bad, Worse & Worst

Another series of 80s horror films that eluded me was the Ghoulies series. Having the flipper of the first two films from my library I was thrilled to dig into these. First up Ghoulies (1985). Not a bad little "bad" horror flick w/some amusing moments and a much younger Mariska Hargitay in a supporting role. Wish I had one of the original Ghoulies used in the film!


From Netflix another awful 80s post-apocalyptic flick She Wolves of the Wasteland a.k.a. Phoenix the Warrior (1988) featuring Kathleen Kinmont (yay!). Yeah this film isn't good by any stretch (my comment on @gomiso was something like "80s is my favorite decade for bad films"). But still my kind of bad film.

Finally suffered thru Dario Argento's recent Mother of Tears (2007). Everything I've heard was true; this is a pretty lousy film in almost every way... 'cept for the gorgeous (and often naked) Moran Atias. Acting is atrocious, story is terrible & convoluted. Heavy on gore, blood & kill scenes, which are decent enough but really add nothing to support the film. Disappointing all around.

• May New: 27
• May Re-watch: 4
• May Total: 31
• 2010 TOTAL: 286
  

Junk Food for the Soul

Added another Asylum flick to my seen list with 30,000 Leagues Under the Sea (2007) featuring the always low-budget capable Lorenzo Lamas. Seriously, I devour Asylum films like junk food. Bad for you but hard to resist sometimes... and feeling a little shitty afterwards.


Prompted by an earlier tweet today by @Gholson, I queued up I Like Killing Flies (2004) via NWI. What a wonderful, quirky documentary about this little dive Shopsin's in Greenwich Village. So glad I ate before viewing this because goddamn the dishes presented here are incredible. Fun documentary and definitely another one for my favorite foodie flicks. Highly recommended.

• May New: 7
• May Re-watch: 3
• May Total: 10
• 2010 TOTAL: 265
  

Teen Sting

April Re-Watch Film: The Sting (1973). Hadn't seen since I was a child so long overdue (possibly my father's favorite film).


Another case of the trailer overselling the film with The Invisible (2007). Started interesting but grew increasingly stupid. Didn't hate it but wanted more teen drama rather that pseudo-ghost follower. I like Justin Chatwin; wish he got better roles.

• April New: 12
• April Re-watch: 8
• April Total: 20
• 2010 TOTAL: 207
  

Not Just Another Film

April Re-Watch Film: A Better Tomorrow (1986). Chow Yun-Fat owns the final act.

Can finally saw that I've seen Condorman (1981). I'd love to have that Condorman car! Sweet film. Oliver Reed is a treasure.

From my library: Midnight Movies (2005). The documentary about the original midnight movies from the 70s. Apparently El Topo was the very first midnight movie, which I didn't know. Also highlights Pink Flamingos, The Harder They Come, NOTLD, Eraserhead & Rocky Horror (natch). Great that each director discusses their films & the others. Wish there was additional bonus coverage or interviews. There are zero extras. boo!


Also from my library: Just Another Love Story (2007), a danish neo-noir thriller that is pretty damn good. Definitely worth seeking out but DON'T WATCH THE TRAILER! It gives away so many key moments of the film. Stupid. Man, I was impressed with this flick. Watch it!

• April New: 7
• April Re-watch: 3
• April Total: 10
• 2010 TOTAL: 197
  
  

Prowling Iceland

It may have been a post on Cinematical that prompted me to drop Astropia (2007) into my Netflix queue. Possibly the geekiest & goofiest Icelandic film I've seen. Okay, the only Icelandic film I've seen. Truly a fun yet odd film from Iceland rife with geek pop culture (think Star Wars meets Lord of the Rings meets The Matrix in a crime comedy). As the highest grossing film in Iceland in 2007, this is a thoroughly entertaining watch.

Followed that with Joe Zito's brilliant slasher The Prowler (1981). Agree w/several of my peers that this is an underrated film that suffers from its original poor distribution during the height of slasher films (it was overshadowed by all the other slasher flicks that received better theatrical runs). Has some great Tom Savini kills and a great location on the Jersey coast. The DVD commentary w/Zito & Savini is also a fun listen. The extras also include many of the original adverts. Great stuff to see.