Funny Games (1997)

sadistic, surreal, and... fun?

i got way too much pleasure from watching Michael Haneke's original funny games. the 2 psychotic guys seem to be the protagonists, and its actually somewhat pleasurable watching them interact with the family they are torturing and holding captive. there are moments in the film where paul (arno frisch) looks at the audience and talks to us. its funny, and kinda cool. i like the little rewind feature as well. the film is mostly torture and drama, but there is a lot to break up the tension. what else makes this film unique and cool is that most of the murder/torture takes place off screen. we see other characters react, or not react, to the actions happening. made in austria in mostly german, this film delivers. this is definitely not a hollywood movie... nothing you would expect to happen does. michael haneke also made the remake in 2007 with american actors. that's cool, but the original is quite good.

Friday the 13th

topless wakeboarding (and a running jason?) i'm sold!

yep, another horror film remake. it's nothing new at all... but the execution (pun intended) of the friday the 13th remake was very successful. not only does jason really put on a good show, but the filmmakers weren't afraid to show boobs, gore, and other visceral stuff that made the 80's slasher films entertaining. the plot is dumb, the characters are incredibly shallow, and it's all predictable... but it's fun. so far this remake and my bloody valentine 3d have delivered. a few complaints however: waaay too many "shock" scenes where things are peaceful then a loud noise and the audience is startled. this works well when it doesn't happen like 20 times. also, why the fuck did the 2 survivors go back to the voorhees house when they were running from the bastard?

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

star trek in 80's san francisco. why the fuck not?

so the crew of the enterprise needs to travel back in time to bring a now extinct hump back whale to communicate with an alien ship who is destroying the planet. once again, it's plausible... and downright logical! this was the funniest trek film so far, and probably the easiest to make. the setting is more or less the present day, and the jokes center around the crew members trying to interact with 20th century californians. hilarity ensues. the film felt like a long episode of captain planet. we're supposed to stop whaling and save the whales... we get it. entertaining indeed, but incredibly silly. even for a star trek film.

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

christopher lloyd and the genesis planet = spock lives

i feel bad that i hadn't seen these films when i was younger. they are a big part of the phenomenon that is star trek... and i hadn't given them a shot until now. spock died at the end of wrath of khan, but he landed on the genesis planet which creates life. not to mention that he mind melded with dr. mccoy. add that together and you have a young spock who is rapidly aging on planet genesis. wouldn't you know it, but kirk's son discovers him. oh, and christopher lloyd (as a klingon captain) is on the hunt. it plays out like an average action adventure show. not horrible, but not very good either.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

KHAN!!!!!!!

better than the first film, but still... this is just another soap opera episode stretched into a 2 hour film. ricardo montalban is hilarious as the full chested mulleted khan. shatner and nemoy are good as usual too. there is a lot of decent action and the ending is pretty good.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

holy shit is it long...

ok, so its not nearly as long as some epic film like Soderbergh's Che, but this felt twice as long. in the first star trek film, almost nothing happens. it was like an average episode of the original series... stretched into 2 hours plus! hardly anything happened, and everything was so damn ludocrous it wasn't that enjoyable. shatner does his shatty best, and the other cast members are good, but it was indeed boring as all hell.

Bull Durham

not as great as i had heard

i've always heard about how great bull durham was as far as baseball movies go. i just wasn't all that impressed. ron shelton has made some good sports movies, but this is far from his best. tim robbins and kevin costner are good as the 2 male leads, but fucking susan sarandon man. she performs pretty good, but she's not sexy, and her retarded rituals/spirituality involving baseball were just unbelievable. that's part of the point to be sure, but she got very annoying very fast. hollywood can make a decent baseball movie, and this is one of them... but the romance and whatnot are what keep this one from being really good.

Monster-in-Law

i liked it!

a crowd pleaser, a chick flick, and a feel good movie. i loved jennifer lopez in this movie. she was so damn cute and loveable. she's trying to marry the man of her dreams, but jane fonda won't leave them alone. look out for Will Arnett and Adam Scott in smaller roles.

Wild Side

dull "thriller", but at least it has walken

the only reason i saw this movie was for christopher walken. he was his usual self, nothing too amazing to offer in wild side. he's a criminal who's under investigation. he falls in love with a banker/hooker (anne heche), and his driver/bodyguard happens to be a cop investigating him. wacky stuff! also, anne heche falls in love with walken's wife (joan chen). the movie makers either know NOTHING about human sexual relations, or they were pressured to make the sex scenes as unsexy and unbelievable as possible. also, anne heche has never been attractive, has she? this was made in 1995, and it shows. kinda like a lame version of 'the net' with some lesbian action thrown in.

Ghost World

another movie about teenage angst

solid movie about 2 best friends who graduate high school and learn to grow up. thora birch is good as enid, a girl who knows what she doesn't like or want, but can't figure out what she DOES want out of life. her friend rebecca, played by scarlett johansson, does know what she wants and is going after it. the 2 are outsiders and don't fit in anywhere. they start to stalk steve buscemi and try to humiliate him... thora eventually likes him and they become good friends. the movie is funny and sad at the same time, which is good. i like the material, the style, and the performances.

Cabin Boy

"between forging girders and swimming, i don't have a lot of time for a relationship"

bizarre, dumb, and not too funny. cabin boy is just a vehicle for chris elliott, for which i have no idea he got one. his character is an annoying brat with an annoying accent. he eventually becomes likeable, but still. this film is definitely bizarre, which may be the best thing it had going for itself. overall, meh.

Che: Part Two

the less likeable, more controversial che

so after his success in cuba, che goes into hiding for a while, only to emerge in bolivia to revolt there. this is where his credibility goes into question. the film is still good, but not as interesting or likeable as the first part. that's not the filmmaker's fault, che himself seems to be in the wrong in bolivia. the 2nd part is far more boring and confusing than the prior, but del toro is still great. this one has many cameos including matt damon, lou diamond philips, and franka potente (run lola run). the film as a whole is very good, but long and drawn out. there is a lot of good info on the legend that is che.

Che: Part One

very good film about a legend

che guevara is certainly a controversial figure in history... and a cultural icon, therefore any film about him will bring up strong emotions and opinions. steven soderbergh does his best to show the life of ernesto guevara from many angles. in part 1 we see him rise up through the cuban revolution to become the leader he was known as. benecio del toro is amazing (as usual!) and really brought the man to life. the epic 2 part saga is very long and somewhat drawn out. that's my biggest complaint, it dwells on many insignificant events, as well as long battle scenes that don't do much for the story. this is definitely the better of the 2 parts.

Hamlet 2

definitely strange

steve coogan isn't that funny. that's what i ended up taking away from hamlet 2. the jokes are very random, and hit and miss. nothing too too hilarious other than the jokes about how outrageous the actual play is. catherine keener is up to her annoying tricks, and david arquette's character could have been played by anyone with a pulse. kinda funny at times, but overall it just isn't that special.

Lupin III: Tokyo Crisis (Rupan sansei: Honô no kioku Tokyo Crisis)

LUPIN the THIRD!

i fucking love lupin III. he's one of the few manga/anime characters that i really like, and that alone made me enjoy this little adventure of his. The story isn't too great, and the usual Lupin humor isn't there... but hey, its lupin the 3rd. Lupin and his gang are up to their thieving ways and trying to steal valuable plates from a collection while Zenigata is on the hunt with a reporter named Maria who is a psychic. nothing too amazing, but the action and Lupin himself make this one enjoyable.

The Château

boring little indie film

paul rudd and romany malco are usually good, but in the chateau they are both annoying and dull. they play half brothers who go to france because they inherit a chateau. the staff on-hand doesn't like them much, and the brothers just want to sell the damn thing... there's more, but its not worth relaying. nothing funny, or provocative, or original at all in this one. waste of talent.

Fear

2 pack FTW

i bought the 'parents'/'fear' 2 pack mainly for the first film... but wound up watching fear as well. this isn't all that bad, but obviously ridiculous. ally sheedy stars as a woman who has psychic powers and has helped police investigate and capture several serial killers. now she's forced to use her powers once again to find the shadow man... and to write her latest non-fiction book as part of her contract. here's the twist, the shadow man is a psychic too! and he's channelling sheedy's mind to help him get away with murders. not too much gore in this horror/thriller... and sheedy's hair gets annoying. its too fucking thick!