Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
Rating: 8/10 Atkins
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Slaughter (1972)
Revisit
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
One of my favorite blaxploitation films ever and the subject of last week's Junkfood Cinema. Give it a read, won't you?
Rating: 8/10 Atkins
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
Rating: 8/10 Atkins
The Oracle (1985)
1st View
Format: 35mm
Venue: Alamo Ritz
The subject of this week's (read last week's) Terror Tuesday Report. I will save my thoughts for that and then link it here.
Format: 35mm
Venue: Alamo Ritz
The subject of this week's (read last week's) Terror Tuesday Report. I will save my thoughts for that and then link it here.
Birdemic: Shock and Terror (2008)
1st View
Format: Blu-ray (Thanks Severin!)
Venue: Rivendell
Not since Plan 9 From Outer Space has a film this inept fostered such instant endearment. It has been ages so I laughed this hard while watching a film. Movies like this are the antidote to cinematic pretension and that is why I love them so much.
Rating: Not Possible
Format: Blu-ray (Thanks Severin!)
Venue: Rivendell
Not since Plan 9 From Outer Space has a film this inept fostered such instant endearment. It has been ages so I laughed this hard while watching a film. Movies like this are the antidote to cinematic pretension and that is why I love them so much.
Rating: Not Possible
Dragonslayer (1981)
1st View
Format: VHS
Venue: Rivendell
Dragonslayer may be dry and a little rough around the edges but it has some interesting religious commentary and some of the very best practical dragon effects I have ever seen. Young Peter MacNicol creeps me out.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Format: VHS
Venue: Rivendell
Dragonslayer may be dry and a little rough around the edges but it has some interesting religious commentary and some of the very best practical dragon effects I have ever seen. Young Peter MacNicol creeps me out.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Dark Star (1974)
1st View
Format: VHS
Venue: Rivendell
Directed by John Carpenter, co-written by Dan O'Bannon, who also stars, Dark Star is a prime example of why copious amounts of cannabis and filmmaking do not mix. Boring, silly, and fraught with horrendous jokes that would only elicit a giggle from the incredibly stoned.
Rating: 2/10 Atkins
Format: VHS
Venue: Rivendell
Directed by John Carpenter, co-written by Dan O'Bannon, who also stars, Dark Star is a prime example of why copious amounts of cannabis and filmmaking do not mix. Boring, silly, and fraught with horrendous jokes that would only elicit a giggle from the incredibly stoned.
Rating: 2/10 Atkins
Madhouse (1974)
1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
Enjoyable, self-referential Vincent Price horror flick that suffers from being not as neatly packaged as Theater of Blood. Interesting tidbit, an alternate title for the film was The Madhouse of Dr. Fear...despite the fact that no character in the movie is named Dr. Fear.
Rating: 6/10 Atkins
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
Enjoyable, self-referential Vincent Price horror flick that suffers from being not as neatly packaged as Theater of Blood. Interesting tidbit, an alternate title for the film was The Madhouse of Dr. Fear...despite the fact that no character in the movie is named Dr. Fear.
Rating: 6/10 Atkins
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Cobra (1986)
Revisit
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
Awesomely bad flick from, as far as I'm concerned, the golden age of Stallone. Whether you appreciate the movie legitimately or ironically--or even if you hate it--it's hard to deny Marion "Cobra" Cobretti is among Stallone's most badass characters. He is a complete asshole who does not give a fuck about anything and has no problem icing melon farmers who break the law. From the director of Rambo, Leviathan, AND Tombstone? Hell to the yeah!
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
Awesomely bad flick from, as far as I'm concerned, the golden age of Stallone. Whether you appreciate the movie legitimately or ironically--or even if you hate it--it's hard to deny Marion "Cobra" Cobretti is among Stallone's most badass characters. He is a complete asshole who does not give a fuck about anything and has no problem icing melon farmers who break the law. From the director of Rambo, Leviathan, AND Tombstone? Hell to the yeah!
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Superman/Batman: Apocalypse 2010
1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
As a die hard Batman fan, and considering the amount of positive buzz I'd been hearing about all DC's new animated films, I was very excited to see this. I found it to be...terribly average. Not bad, not great, just average. Disappointing.
Rating: 5/10 Atkins
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
As a die hard Batman fan, and considering the amount of positive buzz I'd been hearing about all DC's new animated films, I was very excited to see this. I found it to be...terribly average. Not bad, not great, just average. Disappointing.
Rating: 5/10 Atkins
Night Terror (1977)
1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
Great little made-for-TV horror film. Minimalist, well-paced, and solidly acted. May need to revisit when the hour is not so late to glean more nuance but I would assign it the same quality level as Dark Night of the Scarecrow.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
House II: The Second Story (1987)
1st View
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell (Kayla Kromer's Birthday Celebration)
The great thing about being a limitless film lover is that the opportunity for glorious discovery is similarly limitless. I had heard of this film in a very ephemeral way throughout my life, but had never seen it. It is an amazing feat of b-movie filmmaking that actually combines at least 4 bad films into one. I loved every wild, pretense-free moment of it. There is a scene in this film that I had seen as a kid that had haunted me ever since and for YEARS I had tried to trace its origins. House II was therefore not only a fantastic guilty pleasure, but also a truly transcendent experience.
Rating: 8/10 Atkins
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell (Kayla Kromer's Birthday Celebration)
The great thing about being a limitless film lover is that the opportunity for glorious discovery is similarly limitless. I had heard of this film in a very ephemeral way throughout my life, but had never seen it. It is an amazing feat of b-movie filmmaking that actually combines at least 4 bad films into one. I loved every wild, pretense-free moment of it. There is a scene in this film that I had seen as a kid that had haunted me ever since and for YEARS I had tried to trace its origins. House II was therefore not only a fantastic guilty pleasure, but also a truly transcendent experience.
Rating: 8/10 Atkins
Standing Ovation (2010)
1st View
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell (Kayla Kromer's Birthday Celebration)
I love my friends, and I will do anything for them. I have proven this today. Standing Ovation was one of the worst things I have ever seen and I don't mean to confine that statement merely to the realm of film. It is a near 2 hour soul degeneration and a landmark in the pseudo child prostitution of film marketing. I am immensely thankful to have seen this with a crowd and, to its dubious credit, it did provide endless laughs.
Rating: 1/10 Atkins
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell (Kayla Kromer's Birthday Celebration)
I love my friends, and I will do anything for them. I have proven this today. Standing Ovation was one of the worst things I have ever seen and I don't mean to confine that statement merely to the realm of film. It is a near 2 hour soul degeneration and a landmark in the pseudo child prostitution of film marketing. I am immensely thankful to have seen this with a crowd and, to its dubious credit, it did provide endless laughs.
Rating: 1/10 Atkins
Saturday, February 19, 2011
2010 (1984)
1st View
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Casa de Q
I loved this film. It explores the same territory as 2001 while having the foresight to include a goddamn plot! Granted, this film would not have been half as effective without having seen 2001 so I can't completely write off that film. I love the expounding upon the mystery of the monolith and the group dynamics of the crew sent to find the Discovery. In many ways, the Alien influences are painfully obvious but the film is done no disservice by this plagiarism.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Casa de Q
I loved this film. It explores the same territory as 2001 while having the foresight to include a goddamn plot! Granted, this film would not have been half as effective without having seen 2001 so I can't completely write off that film. I love the expounding upon the mystery of the monolith and the group dynamics of the crew sent to find the Discovery. In many ways, the Alien influences are painfully obvious but the film is done no disservice by this plagiarism.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Revisit
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Casa de Q
Saw this once as a kid, and I've since felt a major blind spot in my classic film education and woefully absent from my knowledge base. Watched my friend Q's copy of the Blu-ray and...I hate this film. Is it beautiful and brilliantly shot? Absolutely! Is it worth 2.5 hours of your time to suffer through a pretentious, plot-less piece of crap masquerading as a classic? Not even close. The thing that bugs me is that there is an interesting story here buried under endless self-indulgence.
Rating: 4/10 Atkins
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Casa de Q
Saw this once as a kid, and I've since felt a major blind spot in my classic film education and woefully absent from my knowledge base. Watched my friend Q's copy of the Blu-ray and...I hate this film. Is it beautiful and brilliantly shot? Absolutely! Is it worth 2.5 hours of your time to suffer through a pretentious, plot-less piece of crap masquerading as a classic? Not even close. The thing that bugs me is that there is an interesting story here buried under endless self-indulgence.
Rating: 4/10 Atkins
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Coffy (1973)
Revisit
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
This viewing had the double benefit of assisting with my friend Jacob Hall's blaxploitation education and providing the inspiration for this week's Junkfood Cinema. Link to follow.
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
This viewing had the double benefit of assisting with my friend Jacob Hall's blaxploitation education and providing the inspiration for this week's Junkfood Cinema. Link to follow.
A Nightmare on Elm Stret 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
Revisit
Format: 35mm
Venue: Alamo Village
My friend Eric Vespe's birthday screening. It will be the subject of next week's Terror Tuesday Report to which I will link once it goes live.
Format: 35mm
Venue: Alamo Village
My friend Eric Vespe's birthday screening. It will be the subject of next week's Terror Tuesday Report to which I will link once it goes live.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Revisit
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell
A Valentine's Day viewing with my wife. It was her choice and she picked this...I love her so much.
Rating: 9/10 Atkins
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell
A Valentine's Day viewing with my wife. It was her choice and she picked this...I love her so much.
Rating: 9/10 Atkins
Monday, February 14, 2011
The Tales That Witness Madness (1973)
1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Castle Greyskull
Rating: 2/10 Atkins
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Castle Greyskull
John and I watched what has to be the worst British anthology horror ever made. Yikes!
Rating: 2/10 Atkins
Maniac (1980) & Maniac Cop 2 (1990): Drafthouse Double Feature with William Lustig in Person!
Revisits
Format: 35mm
Venue: Alamo Ritz
Thanks again to the great Bill Lustig for this amazing night and for this wonderful interview for Cinematical. You will also be able to read my Terror Tuesday Report on Maniac Cop 2 soon.
Format: 35mm
Venue: Alamo Ritz
Thanks again to the great Bill Lustig for this amazing night and for this wonderful interview for Cinematical. You will also be able to read my Terror Tuesday Report on Maniac Cop 2 soon.
Star Wars: Episode V-The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Revisit
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
Not even going to bother to rate, it's too good for my arbitrary numerals.
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
Revisit
Format: HD-DVD
Venue: Rivendell
The next few posts will be bereft of commentary as I need to rapid fire a batch in order to keep accurate track.
Rating: 9/10 Atkins
Format: HD-DVD
Venue: Rivendell
The next few posts will be bereft of commentary as I need to rapid fire a batch in order to keep accurate track.
Rating: 9/10 Atkins
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Star Wars: Episode IV--A New Hope (1977)
Revisit
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
Do I really need to say anything? However, I did have a fantastic surprise waiting for me a the night after watching this again when I got home from a couple of Alamo screenings and my roommates had framed all three of the Tyler Stout Mondo Star Wars posters which I had no clue they had purchased. They now hang like altars of geeky awesomeness above my TV.
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell
Do I really need to say anything? However, I did have a fantastic surprise waiting for me a the night after watching this again when I got home from a couple of Alamo screenings and my roommates had framed all three of the Tyler Stout Mondo Star Wars posters which I had no clue they had purchased. They now hang like altars of geeky awesomeness above my TV.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Maniac (1980)
1st View
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell (Snow Day)
The Good: This is one of the few William Lustig films I had not seen. I was actually watching this in preparation for an interview with Mr. Lustig which should be posted on Cinematical this week. I'm an enormous fan of his and being familiar with his other works made watching this film all the more interesting. Maniac is far darker, and far more character driven than any of his other work and it really elevates the material to something that can't be readily dismissed as exploitation. Great performance by Joe Spinell, captivating story structure, and phenomenal makeup effects by Tom Savini.
The Bad: It is a gritty, gory film that forces you to empathize with a detestable human being. I can therefore understand how arguing its merits would be a tough sell.
The Weird: There was an attempt to make a sequel to this film and the proof of concept footage is a special feature on the Blu-ray.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell (Snow Day)
The Bad: It is a gritty, gory film that forces you to empathize with a detestable human being. I can therefore understand how arguing its merits would be a tough sell.
The Weird: There was an attempt to make a sequel to this film and the proof of concept footage is a special feature on the Blu-ray.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Knock on Wood (1954)
1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell (Snow Day)
The Good: I'm really glad Laura, the roommate Toni and I had in Baton Rouge, introduced me to Danny Kaye via The Court Jester. The man is a comedic genius and his stuff is consistently funny even to modern audiences. Here, the delivery is just as sharp and the timing is perfect. This feels like what would happen if Kaye were dropped into a Hitchcock film. It's all about the wrong man in the wrong situation and having to deal with international espionage utilizing a MacGuffin.
The Bad: Not quite as tight as The Court Jester and could have benefited from one more musical number.
The Weird: It's weird to me that more people are talking about Danny Kaye's non-White Christmas fare. The guy is brilliant.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell (Snow Day)
The Good: I'm really glad Laura, the roommate Toni and I had in Baton Rouge, introduced me to Danny Kaye via The Court Jester. The man is a comedic genius and his stuff is consistently funny even to modern audiences. Here, the delivery is just as sharp and the timing is perfect. This feels like what would happen if Kaye were dropped into a Hitchcock film. It's all about the wrong man in the wrong situation and having to deal with international espionage utilizing a MacGuffin.
The Bad: Not quite as tight as The Court Jester and could have benefited from one more musical number.
The Weird: It's weird to me that more people are talking about Danny Kaye's non-White Christmas fare. The guy is brilliant.
Rating: 7/10 Atkins
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