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Halloween Ends (2022)
Halloween 5 and Resurrection look like Academy Award winning masterpieces compared to this...
Just don't waste your time and money on this awful excuse of a finale. I can safely say I will never watch this again and wish I never even bothered. I'm always open minded and will defend parts of a bad film if I can see what they were trying to do but there is no excuse for any of the direction taken in this entry.
I cannot believe this was all done by the same people involved since the 2018 film which I thought was brilliant. Halloween Kills wasn't the best film of the franchise but at least it did Michael Justice and had some good moments.
I've got all previous Halloween movies on DVD including the bad ones just to simply have for the collection. But when this one is released I will honestly not bother.
Joshua Tree (1993)
So Underrated!
Now let's be clear, it's no secret that Dolph Lundgren wasn't given much of a chance in Hollywood after Rocky 4. And that's a damn shame because Joshua Tree (or Army Of One, whatever title you're familiar with) is the movie where he proves he belongs there. And I think it's fair to say that this movie wasn't promoted enough back when it was released. And that's really unfortunate because this is what you call a good action movie.
This is without a doubt Dolph's best leading role film. So don't dismiss it if you're lucky to find it on DVD or Blu Ray or whatever people use these days, again it just goes to show how underrated this film is since it's difficult to find on a physical format. Now Dolph has done some other decent films when playing the lead, like Showdown in Little Tokyo and the original Punisher movie, but Joshua Tree is actually in my opinion a lot better as it is more action packed and suspenseful. Trust me, you won't be disappointed.
Hush (1998)
I've seen some bad films in my time but this...
I normally wouldn't waste my time on doing a review for such bad films but I feel I need to save people from this one. Anyone giving this positive reviews must only watch them daft Shark movies that are so bad they're good on SYFY, or TV movies on the Hallmark channel for a living. I can't even say that this film is so bad it's good because it is just an absolute time waster.
Now the plot made this sound good and I saw it was on Netflix and thought with both Jessica Lange and Gwyneth Paltrow in the lead roles it must be worth a watch. I expected something a bit like Cape Fear or Misery. Instead I ended up wasting an entire evening.
I'm so glad to hear Jessica Lange has since regretted doing this. I mean, she did a good enough job portraying the psychotic mother but the whole build up with her character just abruptly ends with nothing. And how this didn't kill off Gwyneth Paltrow's career before it barely began is a miracle. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad it didn't because she's a wonderful actress. But I'd hate to have this included on my acting CV if I were her.
The first 20 minutes or so is enough to get you intrigued but the whole build up as I say is honestly for nothing. I couldn't give spoilers away even if I wanted to because there is seriously not one thing that happens that would be classed as a spoiler. Since I can't rate 0/10 I'll have to give it a 1. But even that's being far too kind.
King Kong (1976)
My favourite version of King Kong
I honestly have no idea where a lot of these negative reviews have come from. There is nothing wrong with the 76' version of King Kong. I mean of course the original will forever be a classic. No denying that. But it sure beats the 2005 version. This version despite being a remake, actually tried to be original in it's own way. Where's Peter Jackson's film just copied the entire plot of the original but tried making up for it with special effects.
Now while we're on the subject of special effects, yes I will admit in this version they're now rather dated. But for a movie made in the 70's they're certainly not terrible. Rather than bashing the effects I see it this way, that a lot of hard work went it to making this film to look as good as it possibly could during that era for such a film.
Well now we have that out the way, what is it about the 76' version that stands out to me? Well.. a great cast for one thing. The dude himself Jeff Bridges played a great Male protagonist, and what I love about his character is he isn't your typical guy who just wants the girl and would rather see Kong dead. He grows to care for Kong because he understands that an ape of his size is a once in a lifetime animal that shouldn't just be destroyed. Then we have Charles Grodin, the complete opposite to Bridges character. Grodin's character is a typical money oriented Antagonist that doesn't really care about anybody but himself, just aslong as he gets a big paycheck in the end. But he certainly fits in well with the story. And then there's Jessica Lange, who makes her film debut. And she does a brilliant job. I once read she wasn't happy with her performance in this film which is why she didn't act again until about 4 years later to take up acting lessons, which I'm very surprised about because I think she does a great a job, even Jeff Bridges has vouched for that. I'll get to the point now, you certainly haven't got anything to worry about with the performances.
What else can I say about this version? The score is great. The cinematography is really good. Just a very a good remake overall. So don't overlook this version until you've seen it for yourself. It's probably one of my favourite films altogether.
Superman (1978)
Forever a classic
To say I'm not a huge superhero fan. I do love Superman The Movie. Since I was a very young kid and now I'm just over a month away from turning 25. Superman will forever be one of my favourites. As I mentioned above, superheroes aren't always my cup of tea. I don't mind a few of the Batman movies (especially The Dark Knight Trilogy) and the Spider Man films that starred Tobey Maguire. My reason for mentioning those films is just to point out that I'm not being biased. And to prove that you don't have to be either a DC or Marvel fan to enjoy a film based off one of their comics. But what makes Superman The Movie stand out? Especially a film that has since been rebooted and is now 42 years old.
Superman was done in a very much different style, and comes from a very much different era. It was like it was made to be it's own thing as well as respecting the origin of the story. I hope that makes sense to others, I can't really explain it other than that. But it's a heartwarming, exciting, emotional rollercoaster that you will keep you very much entertained. And another thing, Superman The Movie was very much made with passion and effort by people who cared about making this film. Something that we don't really see anymore. And let's certainly not forget Christopher Reeve. This man made this role his own. He played Superman/ Clark Kent with heart. He was and always will be Superman.
And to say this film was made in the late 70's, I'd like to think many will be pleasantly surprised at how good the effects still hold up, at least for it's time. So don't be put off by that, you won't be disappointed. And as well as Christopher Reeve, the rest of the cast is great as well. You'll never get actors like this ever again. I mean you've got Marlon Brando as Jor El for one thing, Gene Hackman nailed the role of Lex Luthor, Margot Kidder as Lois Lane and Ned Beatty, who plays the hilarious role of Otis.
Superman The Movie is more than a superhero movie for me. It represents a golden age of film that sadly, will most likely never return.
So do you love superhero films? Then what you waiting for. Watch this classic.
Not big on superhero films but looking for something to watch? Superman is one I'm sure you can make an exception for.
Volcano (1997)
I've only got one thing to say to those who are clearly taking this film so seriously... it's just a movie.
Volcano has always been one of my favourite disaster films. Although I can understand why some people feel the way they do about Volcano, they're all seem to be forgetting one thing. It's only a film. It doesn't try to be one of those movies based on things that could potentially happen. It doesn't try to do anything other than entertain you. Is Volcano really the first film to feature an event that we know in real life is very unlikely next to very much impossible from happening? Far from it. It's called fictional storytelling.
As much as I do find the subject of Volacanoes interesting, I genuinely have no idea on the chances of a volcano forming underneath the ground unbeknownst to anybody's knowledge before it's too late. But if 2020 is one year to go by...
And you can look at it this way, the film is set in Los Angeles. At least they picked a city that does in fact suffer a lot of natural things happening such as earthquakes.
But anyway, I enjoy Volcano and I'm sure many of you will too. Although not the first film about a volcano, at least the story and circumstances make it original. An entertaining film with some intense moments that will keep you on edge. And that's all you should view it as. Plus, you've got Tommy Lee Jones, what more could you want? Trust me, there's much worse volcano movies out there. And no, I'm not referring to Dante's Peak.
John Q (2002)
Decent movie, don't let "official reviews" put you off
There seems to be a pattern when it comes to certain films that won't shy away from showing how scum the media can be that they always seem to get bad reviews from certain review sites.
I can assure many people will actually enjoy this film. Some movies do in fact deserve negative reviews but this isn't one of them. Denzel once again fails to dissapoint. It's an easy to follow story that will keep you on edge.
Panic Room (2002)
Hell of a movie
It's always the simple films that become the most entertaining. A mother and daughter hide in their Panic Room when their house gets burgled. Who would've thought it would work. Of course there's a little more to the story but I'll not give anything away.
One of the most suspenseful and intense thrillers I've seen. Jodie Foster and Forest Whitaker were unsurprisingly great in this film. The younger generation would definitely enjoy this as it's got Kristen Stewart and Jared Leto as well. But Dwight Yoakam stole the show for me. I think his performance as the psychotic one of the 3 villains doesn't get enough praise. I never expected that level of performance from him. Considering he's mostly a country a singer rather than an actor.
If you haven't watched Panic Room yet, then why are you still reading this? Get this ordered now! Get the snacks ready. And enjoy.
Desert Heat (1999)
Pleasantly surprised
I originally didn't really have any intentions of watching Dessert Heat. As much as I love a Van Damme film, the fact this is one of his released straight to DVD films did put me off. I only ended up purchasing it because I happened to come across it in the 50 Pence section of a DVD and Games store we have in the UK. I thought for 50p why not. And to be fair, I really enjoyed it.
If you can prepare to watch a movie and not take it too seriously then it's worth a watch to let the time pass and entertain you. Don't get me wrong, it's not Universal Soldier or Sudden Death. But Van Damme kicks ass in this.
Silent Fall (1994)
Disappointing
I don't take joy in writing negative reviews, especially for films I thought I would be doing the opposite for. I'm a big fan of Richard Dreyfuss' work, as he stars in my all time favourite movie, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. So it was only natural when I heard about this film I was rather intrigued. And of course as well as Dreyfuss there's an all star cast of Linda Hamilton, John Lithgow, Liv Tyler and JT Walsh. I even watched the trailer and I thought it looked good. I wasn't able to buy the film on DVD in Region 2 (UK) so I had to buy the Region 1 addition, luckily I have a multi regional DVD player.
But sadly, it wasn't worth the hassle. Silent Fall was very disappointing. I didn't like the style it was filmed in, the way the story folded and John Lithgow being in this movie may as well have been classed as a Cameo. Linda Hamilton's role is nothing to get excited about as her character hardly has any purpose or screen time. It doesn't even feel like a theatrical movie. I felt like I was watching something made for the Hallmark channel.
It's a shame really because the plot of this film actually has potential to become a good story (take away the obvious twist and the whole voice mimicking stuff). If this project was handled better, and better use of the supporting actors, this could have gone on to become a really good film.
And then there's Liv Tyler's debut. Don't get too excited over that either. I think anyone watching her in this will be in for a shock. It's safe to say she must have took up some intense acting lessons after filming this.
But let's end this on a slightly positive note. Richard Dreyfuss still did a good job. Far from his best performance, but enough that stopped me from switching this off halfway through.
I guess the script just fell in the wrong hands with this one.
Bad Blood (2017)
One of the best TV shows I've seen
I'm quite a picky person when it comes to watching a series as it normally takes for me a lot of patience to get into them. Bad Blood however, really didn't take a lot to get into. But then again I love my mob movies like Goodfellas, Casino, Godfather etc. This show, well the first season is definitely done in a similar style to those movies. Not to say the direction season 2 took was bad, far from it.
I quite like how they did the first season in a slightly old school style to fit in with Vito's story and then for season 2 it was done more in a modern style for Declan's story. I've really enjoyed Bad Blood and I hope they will continue to make more seasons.
If season 3 or any future seasons happen, I do hope we will see Vito (played by Anthony Lapaglia) make a cameo return for a flashback scene, or maybe a few. That was my only dissappoint with season 2. I understand Declan is now the main focus and I have no complaints about that whatsoever, it's about time Kim Coates got his time to shine. But Vito is where it all began, I think it would be great to somehow include Vito in future storylines.
And then that brings me to the character of Vito's girlfriend Michelle (Maxim Roy). Again, I was more surprised she didn't return for season 2, especially as she found out at the end of season 1 she's pregnant with Vito's child just before his death. So I thought that was a bit strange. I understand season 2 was set 5 years after the end of season 1 but I would've thought she would want the truth about what happened to Vito by confronting Declan.
By all means I'm not complaining, season 2 was great and in some ways probably better than season 1. Just a couple of missed opportunities that I hope they will make up for in future seasons.
Sudden Death (1995)
Van Damme's absolute best!
I don't mean to sound biased as I am huge Van Damme fan. But this is definitely his best film to date. Completely different to his regular stuff. Even if you're not a fan of Van Damme I promise this is a film you will accept him in. If you're more of a Stallone or Schwarzenegger fan, this movie is one you will definitely enjoy as Sudden Death is more their style. And I promise Van Damme proves in this film he belongs in the action star world.
Nowhere to Run (1993)
A must see
As much as I love a Van Damme movie, I understand his usual movies are not quite everybody's taste. But this one is definitely very different to his regular films. I also say the same for Sudden Death, Double Impact and Universal Soldier. But Nowhere To Run is one that will definitely pleasantly surprise many.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988)
One of the better sequels
A really good sequel! I was put off watching Halloween 4 for a long time, and it became quite hard to find on DVD for a while. Because I had actually watched Halloween 5 (which is terrible) and Halloween 6 before finally seeing H4. Although Halloween 4 is considered as part of the "Thorn Trilogy" none of the Thorn stuff or the Man in Black etc is introduced in this film (thank goodness).
Halloween 4 is a good and acceptable sequel and did what it aimed to do, and that was getting the franchise back to basics after the failed attempt with Halloween 3 Season of the Witch. Which is what makes it such a shame with what followed on after.
Good storyline, good acting (especially by Donald Pleasence, as always), good soundtrack, great kills! Just not a great mask used in this one, but I wouldn't say the worst.
Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
And they say Genisys was bad...
I suppose I had too many high expectations for this movie, but who could blame me when both James Cameron and Linda Hamilton were back on board. It was easy to believe if this was going to be a true sequel to the original two movies. I was dissappointed with the direction they took with this one. I appreciate they wanted to show the strength of the female characters and have the spotlight more on them, but that doesn't mean Schwarzenegger's iconic T800 character has to take a back seat.
I was also dissappointed with the fact they did indeed kill off John Connor. I was hoping for a twist on that part of the story and eventually see Edward Furlong play an adult John, but sadly it never happened. James Cameron should never have claimed Furlong was returning considering that was pretty much not true if you don't include his facial likeness being used for the young John Connor. But I will say the CGI effects to make the characters look younger for the opening scene were impressive, I certainly didn't expect to see a younger Sarah Connor.
And then we have Skynet no longer exisiting. I know this was already revealed before the movie was released but I led myself to believe Skynet would still have a big part to play in the future. I hate say this, but this installment takes away the purposes of the first two movies, when I was expecting the idea of this movie was to expand on those purposes.
Oh.. and Schwarzenegger's T800 (or Carl) selling Drapes for a living and having his own family.. yeah.. I don't know how to feel about that.
The Day of the Dolphin (1973)
Wonderful movie
I remember my mother telling me about this movie when I was a kid and how she's never seen it since she was a kid herself, but it had always stuck with her. Then some years later I became a fan of George C. Scott after I watched Patton, so one day I was looking on his filmography to find what other movies he had done that I hadn't seen and what did I find... The Day of the Dolphin. So, after struggling for some years, I finally found it on DVD.
I'm so surprised this movie is so difficult to find on DVD or any other format. It's a beautifully well made film with a unique story. Maybe a little far fetched but... it's a movie. George C. Scott doesn't dissapoint with his performance. I'm surprised he's not remembered as much as the likes of Marlon Brando. But anyway...
Without giving too much away, I've noticed a lot of other reviews and websites state the plot of this movie is that Scott's character "teaches 2 Dolphins to communicate in english."
That's not exactly true, there are in fact 2 main Dolphins in the film. But only one of them (Alpha aka Fa) is the one capable of communicating with english words, and who the film focuses on more. Beta (the other Dolphin) is simply brought in to keep Fa company. When the wrong people discover Fa's ability to speak, they kidnap Fa and Beta for a sinister plot.
If you're lucky to find this movie I would highly recommend it. It may be a little dated now, but still a unique gem of a film. Just be sure to have some tissues ready, you have been warned.
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989)
Where do I begin?
Many fans of the Halloween franchise will most likely point towards either Resurrection or the Rob Zombie remakes for being downfalls of the franchise. But I have to strongly disagree. Halloween 5 for me was the ultimate failure. The director of this installment admitted himself he didn't care about the film and that it was going to be "the next director's problem". Or something to that affect.
This film doesn't even try, just look at the Mask in this movie, it's nothing like the Halloween 4 mask (which wasn't a great mask either but still..) is it a terrifying mask? Terrifyingly garbage. And since when did the Myers house become an abandoned mansion?! Ok I get it was filmed in a different location most likely than where the first Halloween film was made but still... the Myers house was always a simple looking house that's been abandoned. And why oh why did they decide to have Michael Myers cry??!! And that's not all of it, believe me.
For those of you who have never seen any, or not all of the Halloween movies... if ever you decide to have a Halloween marathon then please, for your own sake, skip Halloween 5. You'll not get those 98 minutes back. And quite honestly you're not missing anything that you need to know for Halloween 6, accept maybe the introduction to the Man in Black, which again.. just why?
It's sad really, because Halloween 4 is actually one of the better sequels and it was followed on by this rubbish.
Are there any good things about this movie? Actually, yes. Despite the terrible film, Donald Pleasence and Danielle Harris still give good performances. I can say that much. But when I did watch this installment the only part I could say I really liked... the opening scene that's the ending of Halloween 4. Yes, that's how much I despise Halloween 5.
Halloween (2018)
Just what the Halloween franchise needed
Halloween 2018 brings us a new prospective of the franchise, disregarding all of the sequels from Halloween II to Resurrection. Was this right direction to take franchise in? Absolutely! At first when I learned this was the direction they were taking, I was... not skeptical, but more concerned at the idea of erasing all of the previous sequels. But thankfully, I had no reason to worry. It's a great alternative take on the story.
For anyone who hasn't seen this film, I will advise to keep in mind that only the events of the original Halloween (1978) have taken place prior to the events in Haloween 2018. I'm not giving away spoilers here, just providing information you will need to know to understand what this movie is all about. Although it becomes pretty obvious when watching the film, but I'd rather you have an idea of the basic story.
Now of course, there's going to be fans of the Halloween franchise that are more loyal to the original sequels (well... some of them) and that's understandable. We've grown up with them. So the idea of another sequel that dismisses all of the previous sequels can be a hard pill to swallow. But if you love your horror, I'd always recommend Halloween 2018.
The soundtrack is absolutely incredible, but should that come as a shock? No, it's John Carpenter for crying out loud. But he sure provides something unexpected. Jamie Lee Curtis is back! And Michael Myers is brutally awesome!
Child's Play (2019)
A great reimagining! Does what it sets out to do
I've been a huge fan of the Chucky movies all my life. So naturally when I first heard that this remake was in the works, I wasn't impressed. But then in time as the trailers dropped, some plot details revealed and Mark Hamill was announced as the voice of Chucky. I was intrigued.
You have to keep in mind that this is a complete reimagining of Chucky. If you go to watch this movie for the first time expecting and hoping for anything like the original Chucky, you're likely setting yourself up for disappointment. But if you prepare yourself for something completely different, then I'm sure you will enjoy this fresh take on the franchise.
I'm very happy to say that for a horror remake (which never normally works out too well) this is an enjoyable movie. It did what it needed to do, and that was a complete reimagining. Sure, it's not as good as the original Child's Play, or Child's Play 2 (my personal favourite) for that matter. But a very acceptable remake.
3000 Miles to Graceland (2001)
Guilty Pleasure
When I first learned of this movie and discovered both Kurt Russell and Kevin Costner starred together in this film, I knew I had to watch it. I never imagined these two great actors ever being in a movie together, so for me it was a must see. But this was going back some years when I learned of this movie and I was only 13 or 14 years old when I finally saw it. And I loved it. Afterwards I then did my research on the film, and I was shocked at the amount of poor reviews it received.
Now I'm 10 years older and a little wiser (I'd like to think) I can see why this film didn't do very well. In my overall opinion I think it simply tried too hard. But does that mean I now dislike the movie? Not at all. I still enjoy it. You got a hell of a lot of action, lots of violence and a great cast. I'm a simple guy who can enjoy a movie despite it's flaws. I can definitely point out things in the movie they could have changed which may have made this movie better (for me) and possibly better received. But no point in thinking "what if?"
I still enjoy the movie for what it is. Full of action and entertaining. As I mention above, has it's flaws but still enjoyable.
Terminator Genisys (2015)
Definitely the best one of the previous 3 installments
Don't get me wrong, Terminator Genisys has nothing on the first 2 Terminator movies. But when you compare Genisys to Rise of the Machines and Salvation, Genisys gets my vote. I can still enjoy a movie and appreciate the story it's telling while also seeing what it didn't get quite right, but not dwell on it.
I enjoy Genisys for what it is. It's fun, plenty of action and entertaining. And that's all I expect to see in a Terminator movie. For anyone who hasn't seen Genisys, I will always say give it a try and don't judge it based on critics reviews. See it for yourself and you may find you'll be pleasantly surprised. I'm a huge fan of T1 and T2, and Genisys is currently sat as my 3rd favourite in the franchise. Will Terminator Dark Fate take the 3rd place? Will Dark Fate be the true sequel to Terminator 2 that many of the fans have desired after all these years? Maybe, we'll see. Even so, I will always think of Genisys as a decent installment in the franchise.