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The Witches of Oz (2011)
Fun, epic movie!
I am a huge fan of the original L. Frank Baum books, and this movie admittedly does not follow the source material very well. The movie has many effects, which are low budget, but very imaginative, and it is clear real effort has been put in. The cinematography, art direction, lighting, and score are all beautiful. To all the people complaining about how the book doesn't follow the original books, just try to suspend your disbelief! The story is still very strong, and the 3 hours gives time for both character development and action/special effects. I personally love the acting, even though it is at times cartoonish. Oz itself is a fantasy, so the acting should not be as subtle as a different, darker film. Most of the actors are relatively new, and hopefully this will lead to new and exciting opportunities for all involved, including famed B-movie director Leigh Scott.
MacGruber (2010)
Not for stuck up pricks
I love intelligent cinema. I have fond memories of sitting at my TV watching the films of Ingmar Bergman, Harmony Korine, and Stanley Kubrick. But, I am not a stuck up prick. So, when I went to see MacGruber with my best bud, I laughed so hard I actually thought I would pass out. My lungs were very sore by the end of this movie and my face was streaming with tears of laughter. I walked home laughing. I went to sleep still laughing. I watched it again on HBO and still laughed. No, this is not supposed to be intelligent, the entire thing is comprised almost entirely of blue humor. But it's absolute onslaught of vulgar obscenities will cause anyone with a good sense of humor to laugh their ass off. Will Forte, Kristen Wiig, Ryan Phillipe and Val Kilmer are hysterical, each contributing their own unique styles of humor to the film. Forte uses his screamy, obscene style, Wiig uses her awkward style, and Kilmer is just as funny as we knew him from Top Secret!, and Phillipes "serious guy" thing ties the whole thing together in one beautiful package of funny.
Trash Humpers (2009)
An excellent film I highly recommend.
Trash Humpers is a beautiful and provocative film. Director Harmony Korine completely shuns all conventional ideas of film-making in one of the most bizarre yet intriguing 78 minutes you'll ever experience. Being born in 1997, I grew up at a time when VHS was slowly being pushed aside and DVD began to take over. This movie affects me on a personal level, because as a child, I would have nightmares nearly every night until I turned six. They were incredibly vivid, and I remember many of them as looking like they were shot on VHS. They made no sense, and were simply made from fragments of reality my infantile brain had pieced together. This movie mirrors that exactly. To this day, no conventional horror film has ever been able to frighten me. Th Excorsist, Stephen King's It, Insidious, never once caused me fear. Trash Humpers genuinely scared me. I remember a nightmare I had of a woman that was incredibly old and was covered in makeup. There is a character in Trash Humpers that is nearly the same. In my nightmare she holds a birthday cake. In the movie she does the same. I find it amazing that Harmony Korine coincidentally captured my nightmares into a movie, and that is why I love this film and personally think it deserves a Criterion Collection release.
Pocket Ninjas (1997)
Not amazing, but not as bad as people make it out to be.
Since everyone seems to be putting this movie down, I'm going to say some GOOD things about it first.
1- There's Gary Daniels. He's a pretty cool action star, and it was strange seeing him in this movie, as he starred in a theatrical release before and after this straight to video movie. Nevertheless, he's a good actor and a good martial artist.
2- The cinematography. I don't care what you think, the cinematography was good. There were interesting angles, and the film stock genuinely looked nice.
3- The lighting. This movie was supposed to look like a cheesy comic book, and I think many people miss that point. The whole thing uses extreme colors in it's lighting, with streaks of red over blue. The whole movie is lit like a 1960's Batman episode, which I like.
4- It's supposed to be laughable. It's a freakin comedy, and obviously a lot of it is tongue-in-cheek. The directors were clearly having fun making this.
Okay, now that I got that out of the way, here's the bad stuff: 1- The acting. Yes, the acting was not very good. Of course, this was a low budget movie featuring a large cast of child actors, so you shouldn't expect Oscar material anyway.
2- The plot. The plot is all over the place, but at least they have a good reason. Donald G. Jackson was originally hired to film footage for a different kids movie, and then he was canned, and a new director was hired with a new script using the same actors to wrap around the old footage. If it weren't for the firing of Jackson, the plot would have been much easier to understand.
3- Not enough Robert D'Zar. D'Zar must have quit in the middle of production, because he never actually shows up at the end, which is a real shame.
4- The training scenes. There are too many that go on for too long.
That about wraps it up. I say go watch this movie out of curiosity, but don't expect gold.
Manhattan Chase (2000)
I loved this film!
I honestly wish I could rate this beyond a 10, I genuinely think this is a great movie. Director Godfrey Ho delivers great, fast and explosive action to the screen. The story, while complicated, is refreshing from most films nowadays, because it constantly introduces new characters and new story lines. A lot of newer films nowadays treat the audience like they're stupid, so they introduce all the characters in the beginning and that's it, aside from a comic relief or two. The use of the color blue works perfectly for an action thriller set in New York, and Godfrey Ho's wide-angle cinematography is spectacular. A good watch, and definitely one of the best and most exciting action films set in New York.
Ghost in the Machine (1993)
It's pretty good, but I can see why it didn't do too well.
One of the main reasons this movie was a box office failure was that Jurassic Park came out the same year, rivaling Ghost in the Machine in it's CGI, star power, and budget. There are some parts of the movie where the characters seem plain stupid. There's a scene where the beautiful babysitter, (who just five minutes ago had a pointless scene where she undoes her shirt for a couple of pre-teens) is watching TV with no headphones or anything other than the speakers to distract her from outside noise, and the dishwasher is made to overflow by the "Ghost in the Machine". Of course, as the water takes around 20 seconds to fill the area of the floor, the babysitter has absolutely no idea what is going on RIGHT UNDERNEATH HER FEET. And of course, she doesn't actually realize anything until the water makes contact with an electrical device and shocks her to death. Then, there is a part where the main protagonist, (Josh,) tries to run at the "Ghost", and Chris Mulkey holds him back, pulling out a very, VERY small pistol and attempting to fire at the entity. Of course, our supernatural antagonist is able to knock the gun out of his hand. He wouldn't even have to, though, because HE'S ALREADY DEAD. At the end, the movie borrows heavily from Terminator 2. Doesn't this sound familiar? A humanoid figure made out of 90's CGI liquid chasing a mother and son around a dangerous warehouse complete with sparks flying out of the walls and ceiling, while the handsome father figure to the boy wearing a coat tries to protect them? Well, you'll see that scene in both Terminator 2 AND Ghost in the Machine as your big finale. The reason I rated it a 7 is because it's still great fun, and certainly entertaining. My MAIN gripe is that Brandon Quintin Adams (from The People Under the Stairs) wasn't used half as much as he should have been.
Braindead (1992)
My favorite zombie movie.
This movie is great. I'm not a bug Peter Jackson fan, (I didn't like Lord of the Rings,) but I loved this one. I honestly wish Peter Jackson would keep making movies like that. The cinematography is like sugar and happiness for your eyes. The slapstick is funny. The very 1950's style works completely, and the fact that it's a little town being affected (and not a big city like most zombie movies) really makes a difference, and shows what happens when something so ridiculous can turn a small little town like that upside down. The effects are great too, and the music is well composed. The best part is that this movie is on netflix instant play. So, if you haven't seen it yet and you have netflix, go ahead and watch it right now! Of course, do not let most little kids see this, especially ones who are easily frightened. But, if you know a really brave little boy/girl (like your brother/sister or son/daughter) who's watched tons and tons of horror movies and is never afraid of a gore film (me when I was 8) then let them, go ahead! Just be warned, there's TONS of violence.
BMX Bandits (1983)
A genuinely good movie.
I love this movie. The DVD from Severin films was in amazing quality, and the new restoration was absolutely beautiful. I think one of the best parts of this movie is that it doesn't matter how old you are to enjoy this movie. Sure, it was targeted towards kids, but really anyone can see it. And I'm not a guy who just praises underrated movies like this, either. My previous review was of the 1988 art film Alice, so I am serious when it comes to critiquing films. The cinematography and atmosphere in this movie are beautiful, and the use of bright, vibrant color reminds me almost of the Award Winning Dario Argento film Suspiria. The stunts are incredibly well done, and overall fun to watch. Nicole Kidman is perfect as the BMX riding tomboy, and her two male friends make great comic relief as one is an optimist, and the other is a pessimist. The sound effects are unique, as "swooshing" sounds play whenever a bike rides past the camera or performs a certain stunt. The film is very cartoonish, almost like Dick Tracy. Whether you're 8 or 88, BMX Bandits is a fun movie to watch. You can play it instantly on netflix, or buy the DVD from Severin films.
Neco z Alenky (1988)
Best adaption of Alice and Wonderland EVER!
I love this movie. It is just pure awesome. The animation is astounding, the atmosphere is amazing, and there is a single boring second. Yes, this is an art film. But not the kind of black and white, 3 hour borefest made up of people with berets atop their head and cigars in their mouths, talking about life. No, this movie is really good entertainment. I saw it when I was little, and I loved it. I re watched it, and I loved it even more. Of course, I wouldn't suggest showing it to especially young children, unless they really like film and are prepared for a dark movie. For instance, I watched many controversial horror films, (Psycho, The Excorsist) at a young age and was not frightened. So, if you do have a child who is not easily frightened, then by all means let him/her watch it. I cannot recommend this movie more, and I suggest you go out and see it immediately.
Four Rooms (1995)
One of the funniest movies ever!
I saw this movie at 10, and loved it! Yesterday, I saw the movie again, and it was even funnier! Tim Roth was hysterically cartoonish in his movements, hand gestures, and facial expressions. He really stole the show. The Misbehavers was my favorite section of the four that make up the film. I also like the Easter Egg of the TV playing Bedhead in the background during that scene. As the movie progresses further, it gets funnier and funnier. In the beginning, it was like "meh", but at the end, I was in tears of laughter! If you have Netflix, stop reading this review, and watch it immediately. It's on instant play. I highly, HIGHLY recommend it.
Sette uomini d'oro nello spazio (1979)
Could have been better.
Alfonso Bresica honestly isn't a terrible director. Though this movie had a small budget, it still could have had potential. The main problem with this movie is that all the sequences are, well, out of sequence. Apparently, there was an editing mistake during post production which shuffled all the scenes around. Also, the movie ends in mid sentence which is really annoying. It has kind of a charm to it that you can't get from a big budget movie, and a much more cartoonish and lighthearted tone. I'd say if you're going to watch an Alfonso Brescia Sci-fi movie, then watch Cosmos: War of the Planets, which is a big improvement.
The Shining (1997)
For a made-for TV horror movie, it was excellent.
I love this movie. My favorite actor is Courtland Mead, the child playing Danny. He was surprisingly very believable, and I can't even begin to imagine what this kid must have went through. If I were his age, I probably wouldn't be able to tolerate being in a 4 hour movie, and this kid did an excellent job. The CGI used to control the hedge animals obviously wasn't groundbreaking, but much better than the hedge maze in the Kubrick version. The only thing that would have made it scarier is if they used stop motion instead of CGI, like in It. I recommend this movie, but maybe don't watch the whole thing at once, try watching one episode at a time, (there are 3 in all.)
L'uomo puma (1980)
Why does everyone hate this movie so much?
I really liked this movie, and so does my 7 year old sister, and she doesn't have a very long attention span. The special effects honestly aren't that bad. Of course they're not as good as Richard Donner's Superman, that one had millions of dollars poured into it. The synth score is wonderful, and I constantly hum it. The trampoline effects were nice too. What I really liked about this film is how even though the budget wasn't as big, they still found ways to work around it. Don't compare this to the big budget Superman, and just look at it as it's own movie. MST3K was very unfair to this movie, and I don't think it deserves to be on the worst movies list. It's really a shame that Walter George Alton quit acting, because he was a perfect underdog role. He was believable as an ordinary guy who DISCOVERS the power within himself. Miguel Ángel Fuentes was wonderful as a mentor. Even though it's dated, it's a great movie for all ages.
The Fantastic Four (1994)
My 7 year old sister and I LOVE this movie!
I'm 14 years old, (which means I actually grew up on Michael Bay and Brett Ratner) and I cannot recommend this movie enough. It's honestly one of my favorite superhero movies of all time. I absolutely despise the 2005 version, mainly because all the characters were complete jerks and there was nothing to relate to. Yes, this version was low budget, but WHO CARES? Clerks was low budget, and look how good that is! There have been many complaints about the fact that the end sequence where the Human Torch chases after the laser was animated. Again, who cares? The movie is SUPPOSED to be a cartoon. The acting was pretty decent, not Oscar winning material, but I could still believe everything was happening. Oley Sassone is a very underrated director, and I think he should be right up there with Spielberg and Lucas! The musical score is absolutely amazing, and I found myself humming the theme song for days. I love all Roger Corman movies, and this one is no exception! If you're a movie buff like me, and you want to show the little ones a Fantastic Four movie, show them this one, it's not as junky and MTV-ised.