Topic: Weekend Movie Marathon 1/18 - 1/20

[addicted2dvd]

Weekend Movie Marathon

1/18 - 1/20

This weekend I decided against having any type of theme for my Marathon... Thought I would just go with anything from my collection.... as the mood hits. Whether I seen it or not... whether it is old or new... no matter the genre or who is in it. All is fair game this weekend! So this weekend I watched...

Unholy
'Adrienne Barbeau' (of THE FOG, SWAMP THING and CREEPSHOW fame) and 'Nicholas Brendon' (Xander of 'BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER') star in this provocative shocker about a mother's investigation into the grisly suicide of her daughter. But what begins as a family tragedy will soon lead to a conspiracy of bizarre crimes, occult carnage and a necromancer who may control a dark new trinity of warfare. How far would our government go to harness a Nazi legacy of paranormal power? Has the U.S. military secretly attempted to develop time travel, invisibility and mind-control as weapons? The answers wait in a mind-blowing journey that will take one woman from the trauma of the unimaginable to the ultimate horror of the 'UNHOLY'.

My Thoughts:
This movie was a blind buy. The only thing I saw was the trailer online one day. It looked interesting so thought I would check it out. This movie wasn't terrible... but was far from great. I would say it is no more then an OK movie. I actually found it to be a bit on the weird side. I have become a fan of Adrienne Barbeau... though she didn't do her best work in this movie. I like Nicholas Brendon as Xander in the Buffy series... and this is the first time I seen him in another role. I thought he did a pretty good job in this movie... just wish it was a better movie for him to shine in. Over-all I would score this movie at about a 5 out of 10 rating. I would say if you are curios about this one... wait and catch it on cable.

[addicted2dvd]

TMNT
It's the Year of the Turtle as everyone's favorite hard-shelled heroes finally meet their match when an army of old foes and ancient monsters, under the command of a mysterious tycoon, threatens New York. Patrick Stewart, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Laurence Fishburne lend their voices to this powerful action-packed thrill ride.

My Thoughts:
This is a movie that my daughter Brittany bought with a Walmart Gift Card she got for Christmas. I never seen this one till now. Is an all CGI movie. It was a decent cartoon... I enjoyed it. I enjoyed Sarah Michelle Geller doing the voice of April. If you enjoyed the old cartoons and movies you should enjoy this one as well.

[DJ Doena]

TMNT
It's the Year of the Turtle as everyone's favorite hard-shelled heroes finally meet their match when an army of old foes and ancient monsters, under the command of a mysterious tycoon, threatens New York. Patrick Stewart, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Laurence Fishburne lend their voices to this powerful action-packed thrill ride.

My Thoughts:
This is a movie that my daughter Brittany bought with a Walmart Gift Card she got for Christmas. I never seen this one till now. Is an all CGI movie. It was a decent cartoon... I enjoyed it. I enjoyed Sarah Michelle Geller doing the voice of April. If you enjoyed the old cartoons and movies you should enjoy this one as well.

Is that the movie that was 2007 in the cinemas?

I'll have a look at it, I liked the TV series and even the first two "real" movies.

[addicted2dvd]

Yeah... that is the one. I watched it with my daughter today. This was like her 4th time watching it. 

[addicted2dvd]

Hostel
Presented by Quentin Tarantino ('Kill Bill, Vols. 1 & 2') and written and directed by Eli Roth ('Cabin Fever'), HOSTEL is a shocking and relentless film about two Americans (Jay Hernandez of 'Friday Night Lights' and Derek Richardson of 'Dumb and Dumberer') backpacking through Europe who find themselves lured in as victims of a murder-for-profit business.

My Thoughts:
This is a movie that was given to me from a good friend not that long ago. Going into it I knew very little of this movie... so went into it with very low to no expectations. The first thing I noticed about this movie is that when watching the first half an hour of the movie you can forget that you are even watching a horror movie. That first half an hour feels more like a movie about college buddies backpacking it through Europe. But then when they get to this one particular Hostel... that is where all the fun begins. Then the horror hits pretty good. This is not much of a movie for scares... it is more of a shock value type horror... with a generous amount of gore. Over-all... while it is not the best horror movie I have seen lately. I did enjoy it quite a bit... and can see myself watching it again. Definitely was worth the hour and a half I invested into this movie... now I find myself wanting to get part 2 and checking it out.

[addicted2dvd]

Superman
Soaring even higher in a state-of-the-art digital transfer from restored elements and with dynamically remixed digital audio, the Academy Award®-winning adventure also now includes eight minutes integrated into the film by director Richard Donner. Enjoy more footage of the Krypton Council, a glimpse of stars of prior Superman incarnations, more of Jor-El underscoring his son's purpose on Earth and an extended sequence inside Lex Luthor's gauntlet of doom. Christopher Reeve (Superman/Clark Kent), Marlon Brando (Jor-El), Gene Hackman (Luthor) and Margot Kidder (Lois Lane) give indelible performances that fuel the film's aura of legend. Looks like a swell night for flying. Why not come along?

My Thoughts:
This movie... with Christopher Reeve in the starring role... was how I grew up knowing Superman to be. At the time I related was more used to seeing him in the role more so then George Reeves. I believe this came from a time that I did not like to watch anything that was in Black and White.... yes... I was one of those people at one time. But I have sense learned there is a lot of great entertainment out there in Black and white... and now have all the George Reeves Superman episodes... including the early Black and White ones. But I think... to me at least... when I think Superman... I still picture Christopher Reeve.

My favorite scene in this movie... one that makes me laugh even to this day... has to be the scene when Superman is seen for the very first time. Especially when he flies up the side of the building to catch Lois Lane... saying "Don't Worry Miss, I got you."... and she comes back with... "You got me... Who's got you!!!"... I don't know what it is about it... but I love that line.

[Najemikon]

Glad to see you liked Hostel. It's such an easy target for critics and deserves better treatment, I think. I did a review of Hostel II a while back here if you fancy seeing it.

Re your comments regarding overcoming prejudice toward B&W can't you see yourself doing the same with subtitles? With your horror interest there is so much good stuff from Japan and Korea in a variety of styles. You really should give it a go. And Spanish for Del Toro for that matter. His own language stuff is much more potent than Hellboy or Blade 2, much as I like both of them.

[Achim]

Glad to see you liked Hostel. It's such an easy target for critics and deserves better treatment, I think. I did a review of Hostel II a while back here if you fancy seeing it.

I was going to quote it again earlier today, but then thought I should wait a little to see if you yourself drop by

[addicted2dvd]

Glad to see you liked Hostel. It's such an easy target for critics and deserves better treatment, I think. I did a review of Hostel II a while back here if you fancy seeing it.

Re your comments regarding overcoming prejudice toward B&W can't you see yourself doing the same with subtitles? With your horror interest there is so much good stuff from Japan and Korea in a variety of styles. You really should give it a go. And Spanish for Del Toro for that matter. His own language stuff is much more potent than Hellboy or Blade 2, much as I like both of them.

Thanks for the link... will check it out here shortly.

I been meaning to try some more subtitled movies... but it is a little difficult for me. It really isn't a prejudice against subtitles. It more of knowing my limitations. As I said... I am an extremely slow reader. And having to pause or rewind the movie every few minutes really takes away from the joy of the movie itself for me. I been actually trying to get used to it more by watching shows/movies that are only partially subtitled like the TV Series Heroes or the movie High Tension. Masters of Horror: Dream Cruise was another good for this. I been doing fairly well with those... but still don't think I am ready for a movie that is completely subtitled.

Though there is some I do want to check out... I think... going by some of the remakes I would really like the Japanese horror... seems like they are doing some of the best horror work... at least for my tastes... they really seem to know how to do something that Hollywood apparently forgot... how to make a movie creepy!

[Najemikon]

I was going to quote it again earlier today, but then thought I should wait a little to see if you yourself drop by

Thanks! I never miss a self-marketing moment though!   

Though there is some I do want to check out... I think... going by some of the remakes I would really like the Japanese horror... seems like they are doing some of the best horror work... at least for my tastes... they really seem to know how to do something that Hollywood apparently forgot... how to make a movie creepy!

They most certainly are amongst the best at the moment. As a good starting point, I'd recommend Dark Water, especially if you haven't seen the rubbish remake. It's a while since I saw it, but it's very much a traditional haunted house set-up and there isn't much dialogue as I remember, so the subs are quite straight forward. Whereas Oldboy, my favourite Korean film, are chatterboxes in comparison so there's plenty of reading in that one!

If you've seen The Ring, the original Ringu would be good too. Plenty of exposition, but the story is identical, so you might be able to wing it. Saying that, I find Asian films in general easier than European. I think the Japanese talk a lot to say little, so subs are short and linger! Whereas with French there always seems a lot to keep up with. 

[addicted2dvd]

Thanks for the heads up Jon... think I just may order me some Japanese horror when I get some more money in my pockets (Feb. 1st) I see that deep discount has a boxset I just may buy... your thoughts?...

Ringu Anthology Of Terror (Boxset)
---- Ringu
---- Rasen (says original sequel)
---- Ringu 2 (says Alternative Sequel)
---- Ringu 0 (Pequel)

Sound like a good start for me?

[Najemikon]

Only if it's a good price, I'd say. Ringu is excellent. Quite subtle and low budget. Good solid story. The sequel, Ringu 2, is alright and the third, Ringu 0 splits opinions. Actually, a friend has just lent me that! I'll give you a proper opinion in a couple of days... 

Here in the UK, I don't think the boxset has Rasen. It's a very confusing production history. Just look at this link for a Wikipedia entry on Rasen... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasen_%28film%29. I've never heard a good word for it.

You can't argue with a good price, but all things being equal, I'd want to have more of a variety of titles. Here are my favourites:

Dark Water is also by Hideo Nakata and based on a book by the same author of Ringu/Rasen. It shares similar themes, but the story is less involved and more about your basic scare tactics.

The Grudge. If you think Ringu has a confusing history, this beats it! Some stunning scenes and a great idea (if someone dies in torment, that emotion becomes a malevolent force), but the narrative is very convoluted and can be difficult keeping up. If you fancy it, don't be tempted by any sequel, prequel, or box set! Ju-On: The Grudge is the proper film.

The Eye. I love this one. Girl loses sight when very young (possibly from birth, but I can't quite remember), has an eye transplant at 18 and is able to see. But she can also see some other things... This one film contains two or three of my favourite scream-at-the-screen moments where you the viewer can see what's happening, but not the poor character!

Audition. This is one of the sickest films I have ever seen. It is an experience like no other. An inspiration to Hostel, it's director had a cameo in that film (Japanese business man arriving at the factory near the end).

Battle Royale. Not horror as such. It's more a basic action flick, but the premise itself is an horrific metaphor. To teach kids a lesson, a class is chosen each year, drugged and dumped on an island. They wake up surrounded by weaponry and wearing collars. Tamper with the collars, they explode. Try to escape, they explode. More than one survivor after a time limit? Boom. And so they set about killing each other, because only one is allowed off the island.  Incredible film. Typical of the more radical style, in that it's a devastating story, but filmed strictly like standard popcorn action.

[Jimmy]

Here are my favourites:

Dark Water / Ju-On: The Grudge / Battle Royale

Agree those one are good, never see the others. But don't buy the "Lions gate's" release of "Audition" from what I've heard there are a lot of problem with it.

Some good other title (they are not all from Japan, but they are all Asian) :

Premonition
Infection
Shutter
Cinderella
Isola

I've got the last with the "Kadowaka horror collection", it doesn't look available separatly.

Jon have you seen "Battle Royale 2", I want to buy it but the review are not really good. If yes, what do you think of it?

[addicted2dvd]

Thanks for all the help... I would say it is a decent price as it would average $7 per title.. but may see what kind of deal I can get on the other titles before I make a decision.

[addicted2dvd]

The Condemned
Jack Conrad is a death row prisoner in a corrupt Central American prison who is "purchased" by a wealthy television producer to take part in an illegal reality game show. Brought to a desolate island, Conrad finds himself trapped in a fight to the death against nine other condemned killers from all corners of the world. With no possible escape - and millions of viewers watching the uncensored violence online - Conrad must use all his strength to remain the last man standing...and earn his only chance at freedom.

My Thoughts:
This time I am actually watching a DVD I don't have. It is my sister-in-law's dvd that she is letting me watch. It was nothing more then pure action... but I must admit... I loved every minute of it. This is one I will end up adding to my collection. But since I now seen it I will put it off till it goes down some in price.