The Search for One-eye Jimmy

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

Whaaaaat hahaha. Strange no budget 90's film with a pretty cool cast. Couldn't find a trailer for this one. But hey, you can watch the entire film on youtube should you feel the desire...

So an indie film maker starts filming some low-lifes looking for their friend Jimmy who has mysteriously disappeared. Crazy hijinks ensue.

John Turturro does some disco dancing. Samuel L. Jackson is a crazy war vet. Oh and spoiler alert: Sam Rockwell is One Eye Jimmy, who does indeed show up at the very end and that's pretty great.

It's not a terribly good film. There are some humorous moments though and the characters are good. It's just one of those films thats funny it even exists.

Disturbing Behavior

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Amberly, Jordan

Watching scream must have made me nostalgic for 90's teen horror. This, along with The Faculty, are my favourite slightly sci-fi of the bunch. This one's a but invasion of the body snatchers/stepford wives transplanted to high school.

It features THE best cafeteria school groups exposition in any teen film ever. It also has James Marsden who is just dreamy and Nick Stahl who is just the best. And a fantastic 90's score by the great Mark Snow who's patches I can always instantly recognise from years of watching the X-Files.

The other reason this one stands out in my mind is the crazy quotable "teen-speak" dialogue in Scott Rosenberg's script. There are a heap of lines I still quote to this day.

I think the first half of the film is stronger than the second half. It doesn't really have that much of a climax. It's there but it just ends up being a punch up which is a let down.

I can't disassociate all the nostalgia I have for this film though, it's probably far worse than I see it but I just remember all the lines and scenes and I had great time catching up with this one again. I miss the 90's.

Scream 4

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Josh, Tyler, Amberly, Jordan

I had a lot of fun with this one. It's true the series has probably done what it needed to do by now, and this has just sort of devolved into a post-modern meta-mash of rules and forgets the actual horror and suspense parts, but it still has it's moments.

It fits in nicely with the rest of the series and It's certainly way better than the third film. The opening sequence is usually the most fun part of these films and that's no exception here. It's cool they managed to get back most of the original cast too.

There's so much meta commentary about sequels and remakes and franchise reboots, and while everything they say is true, it also doesn't ever rise above them with something fresh and original. But perhaps that's the point. I can't deny that watching this one with a good rowdy crowd and friends is the only way to do it. Have fun with it, and it's pretty enjoyable. However it is just more of the same, so if you don't like the last three I wouldn't bother with this one.

Hopefully this is done and Wes Craven and go onto something else now.

The Daytrippers

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

After watching Paul I thought I'd go back and have a look at where Greg Mottola started out.

This is a very enjoyable little 90's New York indie film. Watch the trailer for the synopsis, it's pretty straight forward. And look at that cast. Amazing.

A lot of the film takes place in the car and it feels very cramped in there, perhaps they couldn't afford rigs to shoot from the windows, perhaps it's a stylistic choice, but it does feel like you're squished in there with this family, shooting the shit and speculating on the marital affairs of others.

It's pretty funny and rather tangential. The characters are all well thought out and create a great dynamic between them. And the ending is a little bitter sweet, as these films usually are. Very different to the comedy and slightly more action oriented stuff he's transitioning into, but it's a great one to check out.

Suspect Zero

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

This was an alright serial killer movie, I recall it coming out and never managed to see it. There are some interesting and a little far fetched ideas that take it into a very slightly fantastical relm, but on the whole it's kept gritty and real by director E. Elias Merhige. I absolutely love his previous film Shadow of the Vampire but this is far removed from that.

The pace is kept up and the twists and turns and nicely spread to keep you interested. There's just one conceit that is a tough sell, involving a secret FBI programme. I don't think it quite gets there.

Still they are using quite a few tricks to keep you interested, lots of flim stock changes and flashy jump editing in the flashbacks and visions characters have. The acting was fine, Ben Kingsley comes off the worst although his character is a tricky one. But the rest of it was amiable enough.

Brighton Beach Memoirs

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

A neat little nostalgic piece based on Neil Simon's play. It really captures the feeling of a family in a time and place that doesn't exist anymore, with fondness and affection.

Light comedy, light drama, easy to watch, nothing to demanding. Good performances, appropriately directed. Some 4th wall breaking running narration. Don't really know what else to say. I enjoyed it.

Hostel Part 2

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First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Jordan

A rare sequel that's better than the first. It intelligently develops the themes established in the first film, gives us more of what we want to see and something new and fresh too.

It takes all the great elements from the first film and flips them. This time we have predominantly female protagonists. And yet, despite the excessive gratuitous female nudity in the beginning of the first film, there is hardly any of that this time. The same can't be said for the guys though.

Parallel to this we have two protagonists on the other side of the equation, as guys paying to do some killing. We get a peak behind the curtain at this establishment and how it works and exactly how far it reaches. These two story points come together beautifully in the climax, which features a method of escape I don't think I've ever seen in a horror film. It says a lot about the true horror of capitalism and whoever is willing to pay the highest price.

It also features a scene based around the "Blood Countess" Elizabeth Bathory, the only scene that has actually made me feel queezy in a cinema for as long as I can remember. That could be in large part because of my fondness of Heather Matarazzo. Also Krum from Harry Potter 4 is in it and he is so delicious you could just eat him up (or perhaps just parts of his leg meat anyway).

The rebel kid gang gets a little more to do in this one too, in fact most of the supporting characters are back. It really isn't just a sequel, Part 2 is much more apt. It picks up right where the ending of the first one leaves off and then completes some thematic arcs.

I think it's best to watch these both back to back like I did tonight. They are great fun and full of surprises. Plus this one has a hell of an ending that will be sure to warm your heart. Delightful

Hostel

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Jordan

Too many people wrote this film off as "torture porn." I think this has far more value than that though. It examines the perverted thrill seeking fetishes of young guys and then flips it on them and takes it to an extreme. It starts off with drug taking and porn, then moves up to some more extreme fetishes and fantasies then gets very dark as it throw is all back in their faces, and the audiences. It's makes you reprehensible for enjoying it. Genius.

It's also very funny.

What I love about it is the way it doesn't start out how you would think, and doesn't develop how you might think either. It takes its time and sets up these horrible American characters. The kind of douchbags you want to see taken out. Then it very slowly starts to humanise them. They pull a nice little Hitchcock bait and switch ala Psycho too, which throws a lot of people and gives the film an air of unpredictability. They play it more of a strange dream like mystery.

The physical sequences in the latter half are great. They aren't that grotesque people, they show just enough to get the point across. The only time it lingers is in the unrated cut with the the infamous eyegasm, which is just so over the top it's hilarious.

The film is filled with great set-ups and pay-offs. This film got the most vocal and energetic response from a crowd in the cinema that I've ever seen in my life. I've never seen anything like it. Which was a huge reason why it into my top 10 of 2006.

And Takashi Miike cameo! :) He obviously had a big Influence on Eli Roth.

A far better film than most give it credit for. And the sequel is even better!

Sucker Punch

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Jordan, Belinda

What can I possibly say? Except...

Still awesome. I was wondering if I was crazy or not in my first review but I still loved it. It's still ridiculous and even more bombastic in IMAX. (fake IMAX but still bigger and great sound and the best Perth has to offer...)

I was watching carefully this time in the mirror shot, the writing goes forwards on both sides. I don't know what that means, but now I know.

Again I watched through burlesque sequences in the end credits. They are far too lavishly produced to just be an end credit song and dance. I must see them.

So there were only two other people in the whole IMAX cinema. I understand this film isn't for everybody but seriously I can't believe it isn't more popular. It's like Scott Pilgrim or Speed Racer, or even Watchmen, bloody awesome films that nobody saw. This film isn't anywhere near as good as them but it's still very entertaining and surprising that it isn't finding much of an audience. But it will be used for years to come to sell entertainment systems.

I'm sure it will find some cult following somewhere. Well I enjoy it and at least now I've seen it with others I know i'm not the only one that likes it. It's very pretty and a whole lot of fun.

Fail-Safe

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

Another Sidney Lumet. This one is like a deadly serious version of Dr. Strangelove.

I love me my nuclear drama. Although this one was very hard to get into, it starts off with just a lot of talking heads, most of the film is just talking heads actually. And a lot of it is moralistic diatribe that sounds a little shoehorned into the conversations. I guess they make their point though.

But towards then end when the tensions starts building to the climax it becomes much more engaging and interesting. And it builds up to a great ending, that's the most important thing.

It has a fantastic cast, but unfortunately the version I watched was very old and grainy. It might just be that way, i'm not too sure, there seemed to be a lot of stock footage used so that could be part of it. Also one of the reasons they probably shot in Black and White too.

It makes a great addition to my nuclear drama list and also another great film from the recently deceased director. I still have a heap more to go though.

Death Sentence

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

I somehow missed this one from James Wan. Leaving the horror genre to do a straight up revenge thriller, with Kevin Bacon going all Taxi Driver at the end.

This is really really straight forward. It's the same as pretty much every revenge thriller ever made, a gang kills his son and he takes the law into his own hands. Nothing new.

There are some good action beats, I particularly liked the sequence of him being chased through a multi-story parking lot, which end in a confrontation between Bacon and Leigh Whannell. As you can imagine things don't end to great for Whannell.

There's not much more to it than that. If you like these kind of flicks you'll probably find this one an alright addition to the list.

The Killing Room

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Myself

This is the little film Jonathan Liebesman made before Battle L.A. and the only feature film of his I hadn't seen.

It's pretty much confined to the one room and the people observing the experiment. The film builds nicely and there are a few surprises along the way but nothing major.

It's a pity they get rid of Clea DuVall so quickly but the rest of the cast is good too. The trailer makes it look far more action packed than it is, It's not a fast moving film, but it's certainly not ever boring. A fine little thriller but nothing overly memorable.

George Washington

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

David Gordon Green's first film. Like All the Real Girls it's very different to the studio comedies he's making now. A slow drama and character study of working class kids in North Carolina.

They only actor I recognised was Paul Schneider, most of the cast seem to be non actors, at least I hope they are because that's what it looks like at certain moments. Sure there is a lot of realism added and natural dialogue but there are quite a few scenes that feel awkward and stunted to me.

It has some nice cinematography , there are some interesting turns in the plot, watching them deal with a small tragedy but overall paints a pretty bleak picture of their lifestyle.

But I always have trouble with these indie slow paced character dramas. I certainly struggled with this one. Not that's it bad, just not for me.

No Country for Old Men

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Nicole

The Coen's make a hugely suspenseful and intriguing modern western. Javier Bardem delivers an iconic performance. Brilliant photography, stark use of sound and music and one of their patented head scratching endings that makes you go have to back and re-evaluated what you thought they were getting at.

It's a slow burn to a climax they completely deny you. But when you go back and think of this film as the Sheriff's story it comes together more appropriately. First time through I wasn't really paying that much attention to Tommy Lee Jones's character because you easily get so caught up in the stolen drug money chase. But that ending forces you to stop and take notice.

It's a brilliantly put together film, with some of the best suspenseful action sequences I've ever seen realised. It feels so observational, a big part of which is from the lack of any music that would normally accompany such sequences. I don't normally fare well with westerns but I find this wholly engaging.

The Fall

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Nicole

One of my all time favourite films ever and one that unfortunately never got a release in Australia or much notice anywhere else. That is a travesty because it's simply breathtaking and I have yet to find someone that doesn't love it upon viewing.

The film takes its plot from the premise of the 1981 Bulgarian film Yo Ho Ho. A stunt man with a broken back befriends a young girl in hospital by telling her adventure stories, in order to trick her into helping him commit suicide. The fantasy sequences are incredibly realised with some striking photography and astonishing real world locations.

Tarsem Singh, who seems to be just going by Tarsem now, has been making commercials and music videos for a while now and the very slick commercial visual look shows up in his films. I think I may be one of the few that liked The Cell, but even if you didn't go along with the story it's hard to deny the look is incredible.

Here though the story, characters and acting all come together as well. Tarsem gets an incredible natural and moving performance out of young Catinca Untaru. She is the heart and soul of the film, which is quite a big ask for a 5 year old but it comes together incredibly well. Likewise Lee Pace as the injured stunt man is charming and heartbreaking.

I don't want to say much more but for gods sake just try and get a hold of a copy and watch it. It's soooo good.

The Mist

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Jordan

I really love this one. Frank Darabont, again adapting Steven King but this time one of his more horror based stories. People trapped in a supermarket with a mysterious Mist that seems to be home for a whole bunch of creepy crawlies. And they Lord of the Flies it and turn on one another as things get progressively worse.

This has a brilliant cast that have a difficult job of selling the horror and making it feel realistic, or at least real enough to suspend your disbelief. It works for me. Marcia Gay Harden is just magnificent as the religious zealot that whips everybody up into an old testament style sacrificial frenzy. She is probably more horrifying than any of the threats that come from inside the mist.

The creatures are awesome too though. All sorts of creepy stuff. I especially love the giant spiders with acidic web. And the scale of that last guy. Like some Lovecraftian god.

But what makes the film stand out from the rest is the ending Darabont has added to King's novella. It is a pretty mean ending and just the kind of kick in the guts it needed. I also love the way it makes you question the validity of nonsense Harden spouts.

This is one of my all time favourite horror films. Give it a look

Paul

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Jordan

This was a lot of fun. I think it's pretty much what most people will be expecting. A slacker road trip movie with an alien. It's funny and has a few action beats here and there but mainly relies on the scenario and the performances from the leads, who are all great. Including the the digital creation of Paul.

It's very straightforward, you'll know already if you'll enjoy this or not. It's not nearly as great as the comedy duo's collaborations with Edgar Wright, this has a much more American sensibility to it. The biggest complaint, which won't be a problem for some, is that towards the end it just feels like a spot-the-Spielberg-refference game. They rely a lot on their intertextuality for comedy so brush up on your Star Wars, E.T., Close Encounters, Star Trek, Predator, Aliens, Indiana Jones, etc.

It's not a film that will leave a lasting impression but it's a perfectly enjoyable diversion to the day.

Wagner & Me

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Nicole

First documentary of the year. I'm not a big documentary watcher, I'm too much in love with the storytelling and narrative of fiction but I do watch them occasionally and who can pass up anything with Stephen Fry.

There are a few threads to juggle here, The life of Wagner, Fry's personal relationship with the music, it's tainted association with the Nazi party and the upcoming performance of the Ring cycle. It' a tricky balancing act, one and a few stories suffer from the congestion. What becomes the main focus in the latter half of the film, the association with Hitler and the Nazi party and Fry's trepidation about the music because of that, is where all the tension in the film lies.

My favourite part was right at the end while interviewing an Auschwitz concentration Camp survivor and musician. She end up turning the tables on Fry and instead questions him about his feeling towards the ominous association and if it is something he can overlook as Jew.

For someone who doesn't know much Wagner this film doesn't tell me a great deal about the history or even his music, it's more of a personal story. It's enjoyable enough and fans of Fry or Wagner are sure to get something out of it.

Deathtrap

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: No
Watched With: Myself

The great Sidney Lumet has passed away. This is very sad news, the man was a true master. There are a heaps of his films I've never seen so I've made a point of checking some of them out, starting out with this little thriller from 1982.

Based on the very self referential murder mystery play by Ira Levin, the film follows a murder mystery playwright who comes up with a plan to kill a student and take credit for his play. There are the usual twists and turns along the way, my favourite being what an awesome gay couple Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve make. That is the greatest thing ever.

I always found the whodunnit plays a little hoary and this one plays up on those conventions but never truly rose above them. The music was probably the most obvious culprit, aping on the cheesy old english melodramatic mystery music but then itself becoming annoying and corny once we get the idea. It just becomes what is is parodying.

Still, the performances are great and pace is kept up and there are a fair few funny moments, especially from the psychic next door neighbour.

An interesting little film and I hope to check out more from Lumet very soon.