Topic: KinkyCyborg's Random Reviews 2012

[Antares]

3:10 To Yuma (1957)

You should check out the Budd Boetticher/Randolph Scott films like Comanche Station, 7 Men from Now and Ride Lonesome.

[KinkyCyborg]

3:10 To Yuma (1957)

You should check out the Budd Boetticher/Randolph Scott films like Comanche Station, 7 Men from Now and Ride Lonesome.

I've recently picked up some Randolph Scott movies including some non-westerns but I don't have anything from Boetticher. He has a box set floating around out there that I have in my wishlist.

[KinkyCyborg]

Poltergeist



Title:Poltergeist
Year: 1982
Director: Tobe Hooper
Rating: PG
Length: 114 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1, Pan & Scan 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround, French: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Stars:
Craig T. Nelson
JoBeth Williams
Beatrice Straight
Dominique Dunne
Oliver Robins

Plot:
"They're here." And they seem almost whimsical at first, playing stack-the-chair games in the kitchen of the Freelings' suburban home. Then things turn darker. A storm erupts, a tree attacks, little Carol Anne Freeling is whisked into a spectral void. And as her family confronts a chain reaction of horrors and fights to bring the youngster back, something else is here too: a new benchmark in Hollywood ghost stories.

Producers Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall and director Tobe Hooper head the elite scream team of this spooktacular whose nerve-jangling effects include floating phantasms, the fiercest monster ever to pop out of a closet and an entire house collapsing into nothingness. Welcome to Home Sweet Haunted Home.

Extras:
Scene Access
Feature Trailers
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:

They're here! An iconic line from a classic horror film. This movie could genuinely creep you out back in the day but now.... not so much. I don't find this has the same staying power like The Exorcist does which still to this day freaks me out. Poltergeist is still a great story and the effects were quite good but I found some of the logic to be rather silly. Like why are these parents being so casual and collected knowing that their daughter is still in the TV somewhere?! And when they finally get her back why do they stick around and put their kids back into the room where the malevolence was strongest... even if the psychic midget said the spooks were gone?

We were expected to play stupid back then in order to let them throw another few frights our way but that just doesn't work with the more critical viewers of today who expect more.

A good collaboration between Spielberg and Tobe Hooper which now gives us some fond memories of yesteryear's horror scene but it's rather tame when compared to the output of the genre today.

KC

Rating: and a half

[Jimmy]

A good collaboration between Spielberg and Tobe Hooper

This isn't really a colaboration between them as Hooper was fired early in the shooting. Hooper is always listed as director because of his contract, but the movie is almost completly a Spielperg's movie.

[KinkyCyborg]

Really... I didn't know that. I just made that assumption when looking at the credits on the dvd artwork. Good to know! Thanks Jimmy.

[KinkyCyborg]

The General's Daughter



Title:The General's Daughter
Year: 1999
Director: Simon West
Rating: R
Length: 116 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.30:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround, English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, French: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English

Stars:
John Travolta
Madeleine Stowe
James Cromwell (1940)
Timothy Hutton
Leslie Stefanson

Plot:
There's the right way, the wrong way and the Army way. But there's no way military investigator Paul Brenner (John Travolta) is going to participate in a cover-up when Fort MacCallum officials try to hide the motive behind the murder of a beautiful female officer.

Travolta's magnetic performance sparks this riveting thriller from the director of Con Air and the producer of The Hunt For Red October.

Madeleine Stowe plays Brenner's co-investigator and former flame. And James Cromwell, Timothy Hutton, Clarence Williams III and James Woods are among the suspects in this "steamy game of cat and mouse that will keep you guessing until the surprising, explosive ending." -Sandie Newton, CBS-TV

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:

The General's daughter is murdered and CID officer Brenner (Travolta) must hunt down her killer. Plenty of suspects abound but by mid-movie you can sort of see where it is heading.

I didn't mind this whodunnit but I felt that Travolta was even more hammier than usual, terribly overacting in some scenes. He is surrounded by an excellent cast including James Cromwell, Timothy Hutton, Madeleine Stowe and a stellar James Woods who impresses once again even in his short screen time.

Some interesting subject matter is breached during this film including the hardships of women in the military, duty and allegiance vs. morality and the delicate art of bringing down superiors and how dangerous a game that could be. I immediately thought of my workplace, strife with politics, favoritism and general unethical behavior and I began musing how I might go about exposing those higher up on the food chain. 

That's the great thing about movies... they take you to far off places and let you dream. 

Average movie experience.

KC

Rating:

[KinkyCyborg]

Precious



Title:Precious
Year: 2009
Director: Lee Daniels
Rating: R
Length: 110 Min.
Video: Widescreen :1
Audio:
Subtitles:

Stars:
Gabourey Sidibe
Mo'Nique
Paula Patton
Mariah Carey
Sherri Shepherd

Plot:
Precious Jones, an inner-city high school girl, is illiterate, overweight, and pregnant...again. Naïve and abused, Precious responds to a glimmer of hope when a door is opened by an alternative-school teacher. She is faced with the choice to follow opportunity and test her own boundaries. Prepare for shock, revelation and celebration.

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes

My Thoughts:

This movie has been much talked about and for good reason as the raw subject matter is shocking, appalling, heartbreaking and yet ultimately, uplifting.

Set in late 80's Harlem, we follow the life of an overweight, introverted 16 year old girl named Precious, portrayed by newcomer Gabourey Sidibe, who already has one child and another on the way, both conceived from incestuous abuse from her own father. More abuse would follow from her mother (Oscar winner Mo'Nique) who blamed her daughter for the lack of attention she received from her man. Precious endures and eventually overcomes the continued abuse, poverty and lack of education. Although she turns her life around a deadly, dark cloud tempers her success, yet another unwanted blight bestowed upon her by way of her abusive parents.

Parts of this are difficult to watch and yet it was so compelling that for 109 minutes it was as if time stood still. I am certainly not naive... I do realize that this monstrous kind of abuse does exist in the world but had you watched my horrified reaction to this movie you would certainly think I was oblivious. I couldn't blame this poor girl for going off into a far corner of her mind and fantasizing about a different, glamorous life while these debasing acts were perpetrated against her.

Strong, moving performances by Sidibe and Mo'Nique compliment this powerful story. I would have liked to seen the story extrapolate a bit farther but it still managed a satisfying ending. The music industry was well represented in Precious with Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz in small supporting roles. I could have swore that one of Precious's classmates was played by Nicki Minaj but IMDB proved me wrong.

Given the promotion of this film by Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey it was impossible not to be noticed. While watching the 2010 Academy Awards I remember distinctly perceiving a vibe of arrogance coming from director Lee Daniels and his Precious entourage. I think all the hype gave them a sense of entitlement, even before they had won anything, which kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

That aside, it was a forceful, gritty film and one that will stay in my mind for some time.

KC

Rating:

[Dragonfire]

I remember seeing the cast during the award season that year and I got the same feeling from them.  Especially Mo'Nique.  I even saw an interview with her around the time the Oscar nominations came out and she was so arrogant in it.  She really turned me off with her attitude.

[samuelrichardscott]

They were the same in interviews in the UK. Really put me off seeking out the film, but the reviews I see are continually very good. I've added it to my wishlist.

[KinkyCyborg]

The Onion Field



Title:The Onion Field
Year: 1979
Director: Harold Becker
Rating: R
Length: 126 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Mono, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Mono
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Stars:
John Savage (1949)
James Woods
Franklyn Seales
Ted Danson
Ronny Cox

Plot:
From a real life American tragedy, this tale of thoughtless brutality, cold blooded murder and hard won justice is "a prowling, gripping, disturbing movie" (Newsweek). Starring John Savage and James Woods and featuring a stunning attention to detail, The Onion Field is "intriguing, absorbing, powerful, well acted " (Film Journal) – and riveting from beginning to end.

On March 9, 1963, LAPD officers Karl Hettinger (Savage) and Ian Campbell (Ted Danson) pull over a vehicle for making an illegal U-turn – and find themselves held at gunpoint by two seasoned armed robbers. Forced to give up their guns and drive to a deserted road, both officers face the horror of becoming victims in a mob-style execution…but only one is able to escape into the bleak darkness of an onion field.

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Featurettes
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:

Another true story adapted from Joseph Wambaugh's book of the same name about two petty crooks who kill a cop and then spend more than a decade manipulating the justice system until their death sentences were commuted to life sentences.

Considering the stellar cast, some excellent individual performances and a compelling enough story this was actually rather drab. James Woods has always been a favorite of mine but he was quite average this time around as the fast talking hood Gregory Powell. His partner in crime, Jimmy Smith, was portrayed by an unknown to me, Franklyn Seales whom I thought was outstanding. He conveyed great emotion and brilliantly captured the likeness of this man who was always a thief but never a killer. His IMDB bio states he was best known as Dexter Stuffins on Silver Spoons. He died of the AIDS virus at the young age of 37.

In contrast, John Savage gave a terribly wooden and flat performance as the cop who survived the shootout and then sunk into a deep depression. Some of his scenes were almost unbearable to watch. This was one of Ted Danson's earliest film appearances and Ronny Cox also got some screen time.

I thought the material was there to make a good film but was handled poorly, almost like a crime show re-enactment of the facts. This is a story that would benefit from a remake which could do better justice to these true events.

KC

Rating:

[KinkyCyborg]

Jesse Stone : Night Passage



Title:Jesse Stone: Night Passage
Year: 2006
Director: Robert Harmon
Rating: NR
Length: 89 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, French: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Portuguese: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Other: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai

Stars:
Tom Selleck

Plot:
Emmy® and Golden Globe® Award winner Tom Selleck (Three Men and a Baby, TV’s “Magnum P.I.”) reprises his starring role as police chief Jesse Stone in this prequel to the hit telefilm “Stone Cold,” based on the best-selling Jesse Stone murder/mystery novels by Robert B. Parker.

Following his divorce and the loss of his job as a homicide detective with the LAPD, Stone travels across the country to Paradise, Massachusetts, a small and seemingly quiet New England town where he is recruited by the town’s board of selectmen to become the new Chief of Police. But things are not quite so heavenly in Paradise, as Stone starts off his first day on the job investigating a domestic abuse case that least to a money-laundering scheme possibly involving bank manager Hasty Hathaway (Saul Robbins, Unforgiven, The Contender) - one of the men responsible for hiring Stone. Stephen Baldwin and Stephanie March co-star.

Will town officials be able to stop Stone from digging too deep into their dirty secrets, or will Stone and his dedicated police force be able to unearth a deadly cover-up in “Night Passage?”

Extras:
Scene Access
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:

I actually quite enjoy these Jesse Stone movies which never try to be anything more than what they are... TV movies without the Hollywood glamor but brimming with good stories and great performances. In a lot of ways I find this kind of movie like comfort food as I'm assured to be entertained when I pop one of them into my player.

This time around we find Jesse Stone taking over as Chief Of Police in Paradise, Massachusetts and days into his job his predecessor turns up dead. He quickly sizes up the makeup of this small town and his early deductions produce suspects almost immediately.

While there is not a lot of mystery surrounding the murder there is a good amount of suspense as we are taken to the conclusion. Far from being one dimensional, some of the smaller sub-plots are quite interesting as well including Stone's recent divorce, his drinking problem and the different women that come his way. I thought one of the most compelling parts was when he must struggle with the knowledge that his faithful hound dog and friend, Boomer, must be put down. It's funny how you can see death in film all the time and not even blink and yet a sad end to a family pet gets a lump in my throat almost every time. 

Tom Selleck is perfectly suited to play this sullen but intelligent man who performs his job well despite his demons. A strong supporting cast includes Viola Davis, Stephen McHattie, Saul Rubinek and Stephen Baldwin as the slimy antagonist.

I still have a few more of these Jesse Stone movies to watch and I'm looking forward to them. If you haven't already, give them a try.

KC


Rating:

[Dragonfire]

Something happening to pets always gets me..or just animals even. 
Human characters dying or getting hurt gets to me too at times...it just depends on how they are presented in the movie.  But animals...that will get me every time.  I won't even watch some movies if I think an animal is going to be mistreated or get hurt.  I just don't deal well with it.  That sort of thing isn't entertaining to me and I want no part of watching it.

[KinkyCyborg]

I'm ok with watching it... I know they aren't really dying or being hurt... it just seems so much more sad than when a human kicks the bucket... sounds weird but most people will say the same thing.

[KinkyCyborg]

Backdraft



Title:Backdraft
Year: 1991
Director: Ron Howard
Rating: R
Length: 137 Min.
Video: Widescreen 2.35:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, French: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Kurt Russell
William Baldwin
Robert De Niro (1943)
Donald Sutherland
Jennifer Jason Leigh

Plot:
Ron Howard directs an all-star cast in this exciting action-thriller that shows you the mystery, drama and devastation of fire as you've never seen it before! Kurt Russell and William Baldwin star as two feuding siblings carrying on an heroic family tradition as Chicago firefighters. But when a puzzling series of arson attacks is reported, they are forced to set aside their differences to solve the mystery surrounding these explosive crimes. Scott Glenn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca DeMornay, Donald Sutherland and Robert DeNiro also star in this acclaimed suspense story filled with some of the most awe-inspiring fire sequences ever filmed.

Extras:
Scene Access
Production Notes

My Thoughts:

A favorite of mine and easily my best Bluray experience to date. The picture quality was top notch and the SOUND... so loud and marvelous! If you closed your eyes you would believe that your house was coming down in flaming destruction!! The amount of extra content on the bluray is fascinating and plentiful. 

Scintillating cast led by veterans Kurt Russell, Robert DeNiro, Scott Glenn, Rebecca DeMornay and Donald Sutherland. The younger generation was well represented as well with William Baldwin, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jason Gedrick also strong in their roles. Russell is at his best in Backdraft, plying that irresistible boyish charm of his and then surprisingly shows us a man who is recklessly obsessed with his need to tempt fate. Sutherland, gets a gold star for his two brief appearances and enthralling exchanges with DeNiro and Baldwin. He personified crazy in those brief moments and it was brilliant.

Great story, breathtaking fire scenes and such a memorable image for me in my days of watching movies... the moment when Axe & Bull face off against each other, each wielding their sturdy axes. Even though the fight never happens I always think of that scene when I see a fire in film.

Backdraft will always be the end all and be all of fireman movies for me. Ladder 49 or the tv series Rescue Me can't hold a candle to it. Ron Howard hit a home run. 

KC


Rating:

[samuelrichardscott]

This is of course a classic but I think Ladder 49 is almost as good. It just gets a little melodramatic though.