Movies you have seen recently

[ViceFanMan]

3 minutes ago, Remington said:

That would be cool. I'm hoping that since the new Halloween is making a ton of cash, that they'll get their shit together and get Friday the 13th and Elm Street going again. Although, I hated the Elm Street remake. Robert Englund recently said that he may have one more film in him. The F13 remake I thought was pretty decent but I'd like the next one set in the 80s.

 I actually really liked the Nightmare on Elm Street remake! I thought it really focused more on the plot and character development, and the fear, rather than the gore and shock like the 1984 original. I loved it! However, don’t misunderstand me…I still love the original too! 

 As for the Friday the 13th remake, I hated it! It was really bad compared to the original, in my opinion. It too only focused on shock and gore, rather than fear or plot. 

 It hasn’t been that long since they’ve tried to reboot Nightmare on Elm Street or Friday the 13th…so I don’t necessarily think those  franchises are going to get another reboot anytime soon (although I did read an article saying that Robert Englund said he would possibly maybe do one more at some point). But, I do think there will be another Halloween movie. It’ll be interesting to see what they do with it, if there is. 

 I have work in the morning unfortunately, LOL. So I’m heading to bed now. I will try and continue our Halloween conversation tomorrow.

[Matt5]

The remake sounds interesting I’ll see if I can catch it.

[ViceFanMan]

4 hours ago, Matt5 said:

The remake sounds interesting I’ll see if I can catch it.

If you’re talking about the Nightmare On Elm Street remake, I thought it was really good! Not sure what the problem was with some viewers...other than they were probably still expecting Robert Englund’s ‘Freddy’, with slap-stick comedy and corny one-liners thrown in. And the new Freddy was NOT like that! Don’t get me wrong, Robert Englund will always be ‘Freddy’...but in many ways the remake Freddy was scarier and more frightening than the original 80s movies. He was more “real” and deadly! The plot and backstory were very well done too! 

[ViceFanMan]

I’m sitting in my living room, waiting to see if any trick-or-treaters show, sipping Sam Adams Octoberfest, and watching one of my all-time favorite movies—Halloween (1978)!  Probably my most favorite aspect of this movie...is the beautiful simplicity! It doesn’t need lots of blood and guts, or wild special effects to get the points or plot across. 

I grew up and/or still live in Midwest, small-town America. So I can truly relate to these people and the characters. How they act and approach life and situations is very true and realistic!  And the idea that teens are so caught up in themselves and their own lives, that they don’t pay attention to what’s really going on around them, is still true today. That aspect has not changed, LOL!

This film is very scary to me, because in my opinion it’s very realistic (not referring to Michael Myers not dying at the end after being shot 6 times by Dr. Loomis—the only unrealistic part of this movie)—this could actually happen! And kids are so caught up with whatever they’re doing & they don’t really pay attention to something that’s wrong going on around them until it’s too late! 

Superb plot, cinematography, musical score, characters, acting performances, filming locations, etc...!! Superb film!! 

 

Edited October 31, 2018 by ViceFanMan

[ViceFanMan]

After my last post earlier, I’ve moved on to its awesome sequel—Halloween II! For a sequel I have always loved this film...cool new plot twists, freaky musical scores, new scares & frights thrown in, more Jamie Lee Curtis & Donald Pleasence, etc... However, a couple of the kills were a little over-the-top.  More of the night ‘He’ came home! 

 

Edited November 1, 2018 by ViceFanMan

[Daytona74]

I watched Alien part I on my flight home from my vacation this Sunday.

For its close to 40 years since its making, it's still really a great sci fi horror film that holds up even today. The story is compelling, great set design, and awesome acting by Sigourney Weaver (one of my all-time favorite female actors). The special effects are of their time, granted, but it kind of feels good to watch an old school movie where they didn't do all of it in CGI. And the alien creatures themselves probably couldn't be built any better today anyway. Especially in the scene where they closely examine the face hugger's underside, it really looks like a living thing.

And even the late 1970s computers which they used as props have kind of an endearing quality about them today. They would today probably be classed as retro sci fi.

This is really a great movie to watch on a flight home from somewhere at night, I have to say. Because it kind of enhances the experience of returning home from wherever you were, just like the crew of the Nostromo does. And then if your flight is kind of bumpy, it sort of feels like a force feedback during the scenes where they first land on the alien planet of LV-426...

 

I think I will take the sequel movie "Aliens" on my next vacation. Because it has many more "bumpy" scenes, and is a terrific movie all in itself...

Edited November 1, 2018 by Daytona74

[agent 47]

Land of the Dead (2005)

George Romero's fourth and bigger budget zombie film. I hadn't seen it since it first came out in 2005 as I wasn't to keen on it then due it's more Hollywood-made vibe as opposed to the first three which were definitely Independent films at heart. Watching it again it still  feels very, very Hollywood but has enough good qualities than help me overlook it this time. While the main lead played by Simon Baker left little impression both John Leguizamo and Dennis Hopper delivered some outstanding work here totally getting what movie they're in and having fun with it especially Hopper as a wealthy, ruthless businessman who's turned a community of survivors into a class-based nightmare. Asia Argento is in it too but doesn't leave much an impression outside of her beauty.

The rest of the performance outside of oddly enough the lead zombie we're just serviceable but that's partly due to Romero's attempt at Hollywood style writing which lacked some of the humanity that was present in the first three Dead films. Maybe this is intentional on his parts but some of the characters were just obvious tropes rather than fleshed out humans in bad situation like previous films. The zombies here though are more evolved than in previous films with the lead zombie in particular being the other stand-out performance . The lead zombie who's a gas station attendant zombie (this plays into Hopper's last scene in the movie) actually develops empathy for his fellow zombies and leads them against the human population more as revenge than just seeking food teaching them to use whatever they have left of their brains even how to fire guns. Interesting concept as Romero despite going for a more studio-styled zombie film upped his political and social commentary even more than the previous films with front and center themes of authoritarianism and class.

All in all this was fun yet flawed entry in Romero's Dead series. The short length did help me overlook some of the flaws as well as the performances of Hopper and Leguizamo (given their character's are at odds with each other it makes me wonder if Romero was a fan of the Super Mario Bros. movie) and interesting zombie concepts. Not up to the quality of the first three but still above a large portion that would make up the glut of zombie films around this time period and still going today.

[Voodoo Vice Dealer]

Speaking of Romero I strongly recommend to all vicers to watch Day of the Dead (1985). The film definitely has the Vice vibe from the first 2 seasons. I believe it was set in Florida and/or some Caribbean islands, it's mid 80s and the synth soundtrack composed by John Harrison really puts you in the Vice mood. Even Elvis made its cameo appearance  (check image below)

Recently I have seen (again) Lucio Fulci's Zombi 2 (1979), a great masterpiece for zombie/living dead cinema lovers and The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988). Both films remind me of Miami Vice episodes such as Calderone's Demise and Tale of the Goat because of the voodoo and zombie themes present in the plot.

+ There are lots of references to George Romero in Vice City 

 

[Vincent Hanna]

Recently watched the TV film version of 12 Angry Men directed by William Friedkin.

I had wanted to see it for awhile due to the impressive cast that includes the likes of Jack Lemmon, George C Scott, Edward James Olmos and William Petersen but was left slightly disappointed. The big flaw of these scene-by-scene remakes is that they unintendedly show how masterful the original film was and exposes itself for lacking the original's greatness. I had the same feeling watching Red Dragon compared to Manhunter.

It was hard not to notice when they butchered a famous scene. There's a powerful moment in the original film where Ed Begley's characters goes off on a racist rant and the other jurors without saying a word slowly turn their backs to him. In this version it's Mykelti Williamson giving the rant but instead of being met with silence, the other jurors are openly combative with him and when it comes time for the line "We heard you, now sit down and don't open your mouth again", we are left wondering if the character even understands what he did wrong.

The original cast was so perfect that it's almost impossible to reproduce. In this it felt like a lot of the actors were miscast, Tony Danza was particularly awful. I was thinking that William Petersen could've played the Henry Fonda role amazingly, Jack Lemmon could've played the old man sitting next to him. EJO would've been better as the Martin Balsam character. George C Scott was the only one not miscast but even he can't beat Lee J Cobbs portrayal.

I'd recommend the original 12 Angry Men, one of the greatest films ever made.  Only watch this if your fan of Friedkin or the actors.

[Vicefan7777]

So for a Christmas gift my wife got me the complete 5 movie collection of the horror classic Phantasm. The original film from 1979 is one of my must see films every Halloween.  Last night we binged watched all the films until 3:30 am.  Although not a favorite of hers she was a real trooper to watch with me. I love the creepy storyline to this series.  Actor Angus Scrimm plays the villain known as the Tall Man and he knows how to put the fright into your veins.  These films are not big budget productions and have some cheesy special effects but the film crew still gets the scares across.  I know horror films is an acquired taste but I do enjoy certain horror franchises and Phastasm is one of them. 

 

[Bren10]

The first Phantasm is a unique classic.  Directed by Don Coscarelli who also did Beastmaster, another worthy 80s film.

[ViceFanMan]

On 1/11/2019 at 11:46 AM, Vicefan7777 said:

So for a Christmas gift my wife got me the complete 5 movie collection of the horror classic Phantasm. The original film from 1979 is one of my must see films every Halloween.  Last night we binged watched all the films until 3:30 am.  Although not a favorite of hers she was a real trooper to watch with me. I love the creepy storyline to this series.  Actor Angus Scrimm plays the villain known as the Tall Man and he knows how to put the fright into your veins.  These films are not big budget productions and have some cheesy special effects but the film crew still gets the scares across.  I know horror films is an acquired taste but I do enjoy certain horror franchises and Phastasm is one of them. 

 

I’ve seen the whole Phantasm franchise several years ago. I’ll be honest...I don’t understand it??  The plot or purpose doesn’t make sense to me. What’s the point, and what is the ‘Tall Man’ trying to do or accomplish? The whole thing’s a little off my radar.   

[Vicefan7777]

14 minutes ago, ViceFanMan said:

I’ve seen the whole Phantasm franchise several years ago. I’ll be honest...I don’t understand it??  The plot or purpose doesn’t make sense to me. What’s the point, and what is the ‘Tall Man’ trying to do or accomplish? The whole thing’s a little off my radar.   

Let me try to explain these films.  The Tall Man is a surgeon and scientist who during the American Civil War invents a teleportation machine.  When he goes through it it sends him to another dimension and to another planet.  This changes him drastically.  He turns from kind hearted to evil and has one mission.  That is to go back to earth and take the recently dead and reanimate them.  Then he send them thru another teleportation device to his new world to become slaves. As the series moves from one film to another we see the Tall Man using chosen people to become his little army of workers. The character MIchael is special to the Tall Man who wants to make him one of his minions. The films can get confusing as we go from dreams to reality.  Sometimes I even wonder if the whole series was nothing more than a dream.  I know this is a simple explanation but I hope this helps. 

[ViceFanMan]

On 1/17/2019 at 1:29 AM, Vicefan7777 said:

Let me try to explain these films.  The Tall Man is a surgeon and scientist who during the American Civil War invents a teleportation machine.  When he goes through it it sends him to another dimension and to another planet.  This changes him drastically.  He turns from kind hearted to evil and has one mission.  That is to go back to earth and take the recently dead and reanimate them.  Then he send them thru another teleportation device to his new world to become slaves. As the series moves from one film to another we see the Tall Man using chosen people to become his little army of workers. The character MIchael is special to the Tall Man who wants to make him one of his minions. The films can get confusing as we go from dreams to reality.  Sometimes I even wonder if the whole series was nothing more than a dream.  I know this is a simple explanation but I hope this helps. 

Still pretty bizarre...but this does explain some things. Thanks! 

[jpaul1]

white zombie (1932). aging from the very beginning of the sounded movies (not sure about the spelling), it's the very first zombies movie ever made. even though the plot has nothing extraordinary, it's still interesting as it speaks of the power of love. but what is really cool in that movie it's the actors performances. they were mute cinema returning actors, and they are all very expressive, and make great performances. especially the couple of lovers Madge Bellamy, and John Harron. M. Bellamy is super cute in a deeply in love woman. also starring B. Lugosi as the evil man. the plot is taking place in Haïti, and is about zombies, & vodun

 

 I walked with a zombie (1943) movie about vodun. with an unexpected ending, but that nonetheless let's you meditative

 

now i'm gonna give voodoo vice dealer movies a try

Edited March 2, 2019 by jpm1

[ViceFanMan]

I love several genres of movies, but film noir is one of my favorites. A little bit ago I just finished Pushover...a noir from 1954, starring Fred MacMurray and Kim Novak in her first movie role! The plot is one not-of-new, but these actors play it out beautifully! Full of passion, greed, lust, backstabbing, and ultimately murder...the film sizzles with suspense, action, captivating performances, and tragedy that permeates the fascinating characters from the “get-go”. Awesome, enjoyable, and under-rated noir that someday soon needs some kind of an official release to DVD/Blu-ray!  

[Stinger390X]

I grew up in the 60's and 70's and "My Three Sons" was a pinnacle of tv series.

It's weird and wonderful to find that FM was such a versatile actor. I also loved him in the movie "Double Indemnity" he was so cold and calice in that movie, far from his "America's DAD' that he played on MTS.

[RedDragon86]

"Mulholland Drive"

Saw this they other night for the first time and think its brilliant.

[MTVcops]

Reservoir Dogs starting Michael Madsen who played Burt Young in the episode "Give a Little, Take a Little"

 

 

 

Edited March 31, 2019 by MTVcops

[Dadrian]

5 hours ago, MTVcops said:

Michael Madsen who played Burt Young

played alongside* Burt Young 

Awesome movie!

[ViceFanMan]

On 3/30/2019 at 2:06 PM, Stinger390X said:

I grew up in the 60's and 70's and "My Three Sons" was a pinnacle of tv series.

It's weird and wonderful to find that FM was such a versatile actor. I also loved him in the movie "Double Indemnity" he was so cold and calice in that movie, far from his "America's DAD' that he played on MTS.

Perfectly stated...Double Indemnity is one of my all time favorite movies! Fred and Barbara Stanwyck sizzled! But, he and Kim Novak were superb in Pushover too.  

On 3/30/2019 at 2:17 PM, RedDragon86 said:

"Mulholland Drive"

Saw this they other night for the first time and think its brilliant.

Everyone has their opinions...to each his or her own. But, I’ll be honest and say I hated Mulholland Drive, lol!  It was weird, bizarre, and basically had no point...I was greatly disappointed.  But, it does have a following...it’s one of those movies that you either love it or hate it.  

[Romeom]

Have watched The Handmaiden on MegahFilmesHD (from apknite) recently. No wonder it's popular.

[ViceFanMan]

I’m in the middle of one of my favorite film noirs—Bogie and Bacall’s Dark Passage. This is my 2nd favorite of the 4 films the real-life husband and wife screen-team did together...my all-time favorite being The Big Sleep. 

Dark Passage was a revolutionary film in the fact that it was one of the first movies to not show the face of one of its main stars (Bogie) until halfway through—showing everything through his eyes & point of view. This was because Bogart’s character had escaped prison for a murder he didn’t commit & wanted to prove his innocence. He ultimately has to have plastic surgery (which for 1947 I’d of thought was a fairly new thing), and the new face we finally see is of course Bogie. 

Warner Bros was pissed at first because their main star isn’t shown until halfway through...but there was nothing they could do about it, lol, and ultimately it’s an awesome flick! Amazing cinematography & 1940s San Francisco locations, superb plot & not just another 40s gangster movie, captivating plot-twists, intrigue, action, expertly directed, and powerful performances by both Bogie and Bacall! 

If you like older movies and/or noir that rely on fascinating plots and actual acting by the actors, and not tons of special effects, CGI, and bizarre sci-fi...then I highly recommend this film (as well as all of the Bogie and Bacall movies for that matter)! 

Edited April 28, 2019 by ViceFanMan

[Vicefan7777]

3 hours ago, ViceFanMan said:

I’m in the middle of one of my favorite film noirs—Bogie and Bacall’s Dark Passage. This is my 2nd favorite of the 4 films the real-life husband and wife screen-team did together...my all-time favorite being The Big Sleep. 

 

Wow ViceFanMan great review.  We think alike as I too enjoy Bogie and Bacall films.  The Big Sleep is my favorite also.  I have some in my family who are way younger than me and refuse to even watch a black and white film.  They do not understand how a person can enjoy a movie without color.  I once saw an interview with a movie producer who said filming in black and white is a welcomed challenge.  You have to appreciate the mood lighting and shadows in a b/w film.  A great story helps too. 

[ViceFanMan]

3 minutes ago, Vicefan7777 said:

Wow ViceFanMan great review.  We think alike as I too enjoy Bogie and Bacall films.  The Big Sleep is my favorite also.  I have some in my family who are way younger than me and refuse to even watch a black and white film.  They do not understand how a person can enjoy a movie without color.  I once saw an interview with a movie producer who said filming in black and white is a welcomed challenge.  You have to appreciate the mood lighting and shadows in a b/w film.  A great story helps too. 

Amen!! You do not have to have color to have a great film. I understand in today’s world everything is in color...but when watching something from the past, you have to have the mindset of when it was made. Don’t watch a movie from 1947, with a 2019 mindset.  In all honesty I’d probably rather watch a movie from ‘47 than today anyway...more intelligent.  But, how they used to use black-n-white to portray a certain mood or style was amazing! 

However, there are some color noirs that they were able to use the color to portray the same feeling or mood...that too is amazing to me! Desert Fury and Niagara are two perfect examples of this, in my opinion.