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Reviews
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live (2024)
Magnificent writing and acting
I love the fact that TWD series shows a world where gender, race, age, physical or intellectual abilities no longer matter. The love story between Rick and Michonne is completely believable and this time, the audience will not tolerate a situation where this couple is split apart by death such as happened with Glen and Maggie. I am thrilled with this spinoff and hope for many more years. Both leading characters deserve Emmys. People are tired of obscure, British period pieces which are, let's be honest, boring yet we are'supposed' to like keep winning awards, while apocalyptic sci if or horror is overlooked. The Ones Who Live will break this mold, I hope.
Night of the Demon (1957)
Made to be watched over and over
Where to start? The performances are magnificent, especially Dana Andrew and Peggy Cummins who is gorgeous and looks almost exactly like a British Marilyn Monroe. Wonderful chemistry even when they butt heads, which is frequently.
So we have the love story, now for the villain. Julian Karswell is a black magician, but worse than that, he has a cult following that encourages evil and shuns good. He doesn't care who dies or how.- a perfect foil for Dana Andrew's hard headed realist who refuses to believe even as the evidence piles up that he might be doomed to die in three days.
The director brilliantly adds a seance scene halfway through which is absolutely hilarious in a way that only British films can be. Mrs Karswell, the black magician's mother, steals even scene she is in. She is truly a force for good, undermining her son every chance she gets but is a sweet, ditzy way.
Read the M. R. James short story "Casting the Runes" written in the late 19th century. Old stories and old movies can do so much more than the ridiculous "in your face" films of today. Yes, the monster seems pasted in because it was post production, but I rather like it.
The Bear (2022)
Yelling
I watched most episodes of season 1. Must have missed the explanation of why Mikey killed himself and how. Although, a good guess was he got tired of all the yelling. I watched until the egregious Christmas dinner episode where Jamie Leigh Curtis devolved into a sloppy bipolar drunk. The camera right up next to her face made me feel sorry for her, as she looked terrible which I am sure was the use of prosthetics. I mean, nobody in the family seems to like each other. I would not have been surprised if somebody pulled out a gun. The whole episode just made me feel claustrophobic and, if I was there, would have fled the house.
There aren't many shows that have no redeeming value, but this might be one.
Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)
So much potential wasted
Exorcist 2 may one day be recognized as a masterpiece, but I wouldn't bet on it. Literally every main cast member from Richard Burton to James Earl Jones and the director John Boorman, are multi nominees or winners of the Academy Award. On paper, this film must have looked like a masterpiece in the making. And it could have been, so all I can do is blame the script. There are scenes so ridiculous that I can't forget them: Reagan doing a tap dance in a sequin onesie and hat, Father what's his name trying to put a fire out with a cane, Reagan walking onto a glass patio with no handrail and a sheer drop to the street below, Father what's his name traveling to Ethiopia where he finds the long lost body of a Coptic Christian worshiper. When the Ethiopian priest asks him who he is and why he is here, Father dumb dumb responds "I'm here to find Pazuzu ". Well that goes over really well, NOT. The thing that really bothers me, why they never mention Father Karras from the original Exorcist. And why are they calling Father Merrin a satanist? Poor Richard Burton was at this time suffering from advanced alcoholism and the way he delivers his lines is probably due in large part to that. I love the director John Boorman, from Excalibur, Deliverance fame. Two magnificent films. I just don't know what happened here.
Underworld (2003)
I have seen this more times than I can count.
This is one of those delightfully enjoyable films that I can watch when I've had a stressful day and want to take my mind somewhere. I love the campiness of Bill Nighy/Victor and how he whips everyone into shape. Even though he appears about halfway through, the film seems to belong to him.
Poor lovesick Erika, poor lovesick Kraven, poor lovesick Michael and Selene. What gorgeous costumes! I wish we could have seen more of Emilia, the Female Elder. Loved her dress, a shame she couldn't make it to her party. In case you're wondering this film is just beautiful, even the perpetual rain.
I also heartedly recommend the two sequels Rise of the Lucan's and Evolution.
Penny Dreadful: City of Angels (2020)
Some great actors but couldn't get into it.
John Logan is a terrific writer/creator. Original P. D. was a marvel and have seen it at least 10 times. The beauty of that show was the humanizing of various villains and the marvelous character arcs they go through. City of Angels has villains that can never be humanized and bizarre cults that can't have an "arc": Nazis, cult of Santa Muerte , some kind of witch, Natalie Dormer, and that's as much as I know because I couldn't get past episode 3. The last straw was the budding romance between the Mexican-American cop and the fake female evangelist. Or is she fake, who knows who cares? Well, the actors try to make something of this hash and John Logan will always be great. I feel bad that this was not the breakout role for Ms. Dormer, who is a marvel.
Elvis (2022)
So disappointed
I had to go at this film twice because I couldn't get through in one sitting. The most important scene, where Luhrmann attempts to explain why Parker worked Elvis like a plough horse, was entirely inadequate and you would miss it if you blinked. Luhrmann seems to believe that everyone in the audience knows everything about Elvis going in. Good Lord man, he died 45 years ago! Give us some more background on the titular character and cut way back on the slimy, repugnant "Colonel" Parker. They miss the most important aspects of Elvis's life: his strong religious beliefs, his support of Civil Rights and just what was Parker's hold on his client. Weren't there lawyers around? Most importantly, after all these years, why is Elvis's estate worth only 100 million dollars? Jeez, Eric Clapton is worth 250 million dollars!
As I understand it, Austin Butler sang the songs himself. If that is true, he definitely deserved an Oscar nomination at the very least. The film itself, the directing and the script were horrible.
The Counselor (2013)
Difficult to watch but truthful
They say those who dance with the devil pay the price. The Counselor, who goes unnamed, "the Everyman", decides to dip his toes into the deep waters of drug trafficking. His reason is unknown, but a good guess is that he wants to provide for his beloved, a stunning Penelope Cruz. Things start to turn sour when Cruz meets Cameron Diaz's character, a venemous devil as evil as Cruz's character is angelic.
I have seen this film four times and still don't understand the intricacies off the plot. People die and there is nothing The Counselor can do to save his beloved and he sinks into despair and insanity.
The only thing that makes this film watchable is the top caliber acting, directing and cinematography. It does not have a happy ending and even the "relatively" good people do not win.
I also recommend ZeroZeroZero on Prime. Very sImilar themes.
Disturbing the Peace (2020)
Totally unbelievable
First of all, why does this debacle take place in Horse Cave, TX? All the men are caricatures and all the women look like strippers. The waitress even knows hand to hand combat, which I suspect was meant to titillate male viewers. The dialog is supposed to set the stage I guess, but I couldn't sit through beyond 30 minute mark to find out what the "stage" was. The accents are also horrible. Only good thing is Guy Pearce.