What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Hard to Kill (1990)

Prior to the unkillable Casey Ryback, Steven Seagal played the even harder to kill Mason Storm in this classic 80's actioner.

Left for dead and in a coma for seven years, Storm recuperates with the help of nurse Kelly Le Brock and goes after the corrupt senator who put him in the coma and killed his wife at the same time.

Some good L.A. locations are a highlight of this film for me as is the crunching violence Seagal inflicts upon bad guys. Sadly Le Brock seems to come from the Liz Hurley school of terrible acting, meanwhile slimy Bill Sadler is sadly under used.

A vhs fave of mine i don't think i'd seen Hard to Kill since the very early 00's when i initially bought the dvd. What was pleasing was i'd forgotten so much of what happened it felt like watching a new movie for me. And on a lovely looking blu-ray too.

[Justin101]

Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984)

Not as good as the first, it's essentially a 90 minute music video with a slim plot about saving the community centre from being sold to a developer. However, Turbo dancing on the ceiling is EVERYTHING!!

Also, I bought this bluray (Shout Factory) about 2 years ago and it's long since been packed away because I thought I'd already watched it, I'm getting old now my memory is not as good as it used to be

[Frankie Teardrop]

DR BUTCHER MD – Having seen ZH many, many times, and remembering Chas Balun’s seemingly rabid enthusiasm from ‘back in the day’, I was pleased to finally make an appointment with Dr B (MD). Can’t really speak for the bedside manner, but I was quite satisfied to find that my prescription included a load of wild gore and crunky electronic music. Said ‘wild gore’ isn’t any different to that which features in ZH, and the same goes for most of the rest of the film beyond aforementioned atonal soundtrack and a bit of Roy Frumkes. But any excuse to revisit this one in either of its guises really, it’s just one of those ‘over-the-top trash classics’ that fully justifies such a dubious accolade.

WILLY’S WONDERLAND – N Cage is on slightly subdued form as a mute drifter who, for the sake of moving the plot forward, agrees to renovate an abandoned fairground with an evil past… overnight, alone etc etc. He needn’t worry, because when the possessed animatronic puppets come out to play, a bunch of intrepid kids are at hand to serve as fodder while Nick tries to work out what the feck’s going on. I used the word ‘subdued’ in my opening sentence there, but if Nick doesn’t say a right lot, the rest of the movie is pretty loud. Homicidal toy variants are ten a penny and an easy fumble – witness ‘Banana Splits, The Movie’, one I had high hopes for that turned out a little lacklustre – but ‘Willy’s Wonderland’ acquits itself with lots of gore, a dreamy disjointedness, and a defiant garishness which is silly but still manages to seem quite macabre. I liked it.

THE GARDEN OF TORMENT – I was taken unawares by ‘The Garden Of Torment’, a film unknown to me before the recent release from Nucleus. Set in twenties China, it charts an exiled GP’s dawning realisation that the bright young things he’s hanging with are Sadean degenerates who love nothing more than to torture the prole. TGOT has the languid feel of classy seventies Euro erotica, but resounds with a gathering menace as portentous as a slowly tolling bell (you’ll understand the reference if you watch the movie). The last half hour in the torture garden is actually pretty harsh by seventies standards, with amputations and eviscerations framing the bombastic posturing of the libertines. Some interesting stuff also about politics and violence, it being made around the time when a lot of sixties optimism had declined into seventies bombings. Good on Nucleus for putting it out is what I say.

CUTTING CLASS – I don’t drink all that much these days, but I’ve been trying to figure out whether the weirdness I saw in ‘Cutting Class’ was just a product of my acute hangover. Ostensibly a slasher, for the most part it plays more like a high school melodrama, in which a student returns after offing his dad… cue the next wave of (slightly tepid) killings etc etc. There’s a shakiness to it all, it’s full of weird little scenes and throwaway images that don’t resolve and don’t make sense, so you can forgive the clunky pace and the occasional sense of aimlessness, not to mention the lamest ‘reveal’ in slasherdom. I’m sure ‘Cutting Class’ was never very prominent on Brad Pitt’s resume, but somehow I’d rather watch a film with such weird contrivances as the duck hunt-based murder set piece and Roddy McDowell’s sock fetish than ’12 Monkeys’ (and you might be with me on that one, Dem!)

[Linbro]

'Noroi: The Curse' - via Shudder.
Fantastic found footage J-Horror that has a building sense of dread and unease. Long running time for f/footage, but that didn't worry me.
This is crying out for a decent home video release - the Shudder version is very average. A number of times the subtitles appear ober the top of Japanese captions, making some of them very hard to read. Video quality is low, as well.
Easily in my top 3 found footage, and top 5 Asian horror.
4.5/5.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Frankie Teardrop

CUTTING CLASS – I don’t drink all that much these days, but I’ve been trying to figure out whether the weirdness I saw in ‘Cutting Class’ was just a product of my acute hangover. Ostensibly a slasher, for the most part it plays more like a high school melodrama, in which a student returns after offing his dad… cue the next wave of (slightly tepid) killings etc etc. There’s a shakiness to it all, it’s full of weird little scenes and throwaway images that don’t resolve and don’t make sense, so you can forgive the clunky pace and the occasional sense of aimlessness, not to mention the lamest ‘reveal’ in slasherdom. I’m sure ‘Cutting Class’ was never very prominent on Brad Pitt’s resume, but somehow I’d rather watch a film with such weird contrivances as the duck hunt-based murder set piece and Roddy McDowell’s sock fetish than ’12 Monkeys’ (and you might be with me on that one, Dem!)

All the way, Frankie.

An enjoyable read as always.

[trebor8273]

I love this film it ozzes atmosphere , with being shot in black and white really helps . The story of young student whom is sent to small village that was the scene of a burning of the witch, as soon as she arrives she soon notices their is something not quite right about the village, when she disappears her brother goes looking for her. Christopher Lee is on top form as usual as the professor who sends her to the village. The last scene in the graveyard is fantastically atmospheric.


Now watching .





Followed by.

[trebor8273]

Originally Posted by Linbro

'Noroi: The Curse' - via Shudder.
Fantastic found footage J-Horror that has a building sense of dread and unease. Long running time for f/footage, but that didn't worry me.
This is crying out for a decent home video release - the Shudder version is very average. A number of times the subtitles appear ober the top of Japanese captions, making some of them very hard to read. Video quality is low, as well.
Easily in my top 3 found footage, and top 5 Asian horror.
4.5/5.

Added this to my watch list yesterday will have to give it a watch sooner rather than later.

[nicholasrope]

Titanic

Don't think I need to explain the storyline but I remember all the euphoria in 1998 when this film came out in the UK, lets face it, it seemed that everyone was talking about it, along with that Celine Dion song and whilst it got annoying, TBH, if I had the chance, I wouldn't have it any different, its what makes memories. Also it's actually a good film even at over 3 hours.

Fast And Furious: Tokyo Drift

The 3rd in the series and focuses on different characters (At the time) as well as a different storyline. A Teen is sent to Japan but ends up in the Japanese Street Racing scene. Not a bad effort but drags on 3 quarters in. Other than a cameo at the end, this could have been a straight to DVD release a la American Pie.

Bad Boys

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are Miami Detectives who have to retrieve some stolen Drugs whilst protecting a witness (Tea Leoni) However circumstance dictate that Smith and Lawrence have to switch identities whenever around Leoni which off course creates misunderstandings. This film is 26 years old (I know) and whilst I still enjoyed it, I felt that I enjoyed it more back in the day. I feel that this is in the 2nd tier of the great 90's Action no brainers.

Oh Simpson and Bruckheimer did some cracking films.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by nicholasrope

Titanic

Don't think I need to explain the storyline but I remember all the euphoria in 1998 when this film came out in the UK, lets face it, it seemed that everyone was talking about it, along with that Celine Dion song and whilst it got annoying, TBH, if I had the chance, I wouldn't have it any different, its what makes memories. Also it's actually a good film even at over 3 hours.

Titanic came out when i was in the midst of going to the cinema every single Sunday.

Due to a hangover from the night before i really didn't feel up to it so my three mates left me to wallow in my own pissed up-ery as they went to see it.

From 1993 - 2001 it was the only movie we selected to see that i missed.

[Justin101]

I went to see it at the cinema, it was sold out, don't see that much these days. There was a group of girls near us crying uncontrollably when Leo was freezing to death after the sinking, which caused a bit of sniggering from the group of lads i was with haha. I've been wanting to rewatch it for a few years now but I never seem to get around to it.