What ELSE (other than KUNG FU) has everyone been watching?

[masterofoneinchpunch]

45 minutes ago, DragonClaws said:

 

It year's since I watched this one, but I loved it as 15 year old Action Movie fan. Sure I wouldn't rate it so highly, if I was to view it for the first time now. Recall renting it first from Blockbuster. The U.K print was butchered, with both MPAA & BBFC cuts. It was one of those movies friends would quote at school all the time. Wasn't there a Directors Cut released?.

I'm not aware of a Director's Cut (there is an extended cut for the 2004 film which I have seen).  Now you have me intrigued.  But watching all three of the Punishers close together really made this one stand-out in the worst way.

[Asmo]

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure.

[ShawAngela]

John Wayne's feast today !

The fighting Kentuckian in which he pairs with Oliver Hardy (who has a bizarre accent when dubbed in French while all the other dubbed actors don't have any American accent !!) in order to help exiled French colons against a powerful cheater.

In old Oklahoma in which he pairs with the beautiful Martha Scott against  a rich man who finds Oil.

She wore a yellow ribbon in which he plays an old captain leading his men against the Indians.

I had never seen the two first movies and I enjoyed all three.

[Duel to the Death]

Watched Wolfen a couple days ago. Pretty good movie with Albert Finney. He's a great actor. Gregory Hines is in it too. It's a very suspenseful wolf movie. 

[masterofoneinchpunch]

Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991: Mark L. Lester).  

What is interesting is that I've wanted to see this since it first came out. When you like films there is always more you want to watch and films that will stay unwatched for years.  I do watch a lot of movies, but I think you know that. 

Second Dolph Lundgren in a row where he shows his backside (at least less in this than he showed in The Punisher). He is the star here. His acting is a lot more fun here than in The Punisher. He's not going into catatonic mode which helps -- a lot. He certainly has the physique and enough skills to look good in this movie. I love seeing the progression of Brandon Lee (HK film, B film, less B film and then Rapid Fire which I have seen tons of times and The Crow). It is so sad to think of his completely unnecessary death. 

You can see Brandon Lee having fun here. He knows it is a B film, but he knows that one-liners, good moves and decent delivery make him look well -- and this led to Rapid Fire and then The Crow. You can see he had star potential here (though I do wonder about the penile line). 

It is not a good film. Might even consider the script barely competent (I would have rewritten the whole last half), but it is fun. It's amazing when the actors are having fun, the dialogue is cheesy but done well. Some of the MA is not bad.  There is a pretty good leg sweep here that made you think the stuntman took a nice fall.  I like that. 

And, well Uzi's and most sub-machine guns suck. They cannot hit anything. This film, while a nineties film, feels so eighties. Serious eighties vibe here: buff lead, comic relief, lots of gun action, nudity, gratuitous violence, and clothing styles before nineties became the go to decade for extra loose clothing. If I rewatch this, I'll look for pastel colors (courtesy of Miami Vice). Still hilarious seeing Dolph in a kimono. Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa always makes for a decent bad guy. I still think Mortal Kombat when I see him. 

I'm glad I finally saw this after years of wondering how this is. It's decent for action fans. 

[masterofoneinchpunch]

On 8/23/2020 at 1:54 PM, ShawAngela said:

John Wayne's feast today !

The fighting Kentuckian in which he pairs with Oliver Hardy (who has a bizarre accent when dubbed in French while all the other dubbed actors don't have any American accent !!) in order to help exiled French colons against a powerful cheater.

In old Oklahoma in which he pairs with the beautiful Martha Scott against  a rich man who finds Oil.

She wore a yellow ribbon in which he plays an old captain leading his men against the Indians.

I had never seen the two first movies and I enjoyed all three.

I'm a huge John Wayne fan.  I still need to see In old Oklahoma.  Always fun see The Fighting Kentuckian as I like Oliver Hardy.  She Wore A Yellow Ribbon is a classic as is all in the Cavalry trilogy.  But I can always watch a John Ford film.

[ShawAngela]

8 hours ago, masterofoneinchpunch said:

I'm a huge John Wayne fan.  I still need to see In old Oklahoma.  Always fun see The Fighting Kentuckian as I like Oliver Hardy.  She Wore A Yellow Ribbon is a classic as is all in the Cavalry trilogy.  But I can always watch a John Ford film.

Yes, it was a change to see Olive hardy in something else than his movies with Stan Laurel, and I liked him in this movie.

In old Oklahoma is a charming movie.

I also watched yesterday Paradise Canyon (a very short movie, only 53 mn !) and I was very disappointed because I had also got the movie Tall in the saddle in the same lot, but the dvd never played in any of my dvds player !

[masterofoneinchpunch]

10 hours ago, ShawAngela said:

Yes, it was a change to see Olive hardy in something else than his movies with Stan Laurel, and I liked him in this movie.

In old Oklahoma is a charming movie.

I also watched yesterday Paradise Canyon (a very short movie, only 53 mn !) and I was very disappointed because I had also got the movie Tall in the saddle in the same lot, but the dvd never played in any of my dvds player !

Tall in the Saddle is a far better movie than Paradise Canyon.  I still love seeing the Wayne "B" films as his acting kept improving all through the 1930s.  Those films were made so quickly and the quality does vary a bit.  But they were such a learning experience for him that by the time John Ford forgave him (being the Irish Catholic he is), Stagecoach made him a star.

Still love seeing Laurel and Hardy.  I have most of their talkies, missing some of their silents (was hoping for a good silent set to come out that never did, apparently there were some issues with the negatives at one point, but I digress)0.

[DragonClaws]

On 8/24/2020 at 4:48 PM, masterofoneinchpunch said:

She Wore A Yellow Ribbon is a classic as is all in the Cavalry trilogy. 

 

First caught these on T.V, then purchased them on VHS. I've commited a movie viewing crime by never picking these up in Wide-Screen, on DVD or Blu-Ray.

 

[ShaOW!linDude]

Me & the wife just finished binge-watching the show Firefly. Gotta dig out the movie Serenity now.

[Ninja Sinai]

I watched the original Dracula (1931) starring Bela Lugosi on Blu-Ray recently and man what can I say.. it was awesome. A real classic!! The first 30 mins were excellent and so atmospheric. After watching it you can see why almost every incarnation of Dracula afterwards copies Bela Lugosi's version of Dracula! 

Def HIGHY RECOMMENDED!

 

[masterofoneinchpunch]

3 hours ago, Ninja Sinai said:

I watched the original Dracula (1931) starring Bela Lugosi on Blu-Ray recently and man what can I say.. it was awesome. A real classic!! The first 30 mins were excellent and so atmospheric. After watching it you can see why almost every incarnation of Dracula afterwards copies Bela Lugosi's version of Dracula! 

Def HIGHY RECOMMENDED!
 

I love watching the Spanish version of Dracula which was filmed at night with the same sets.  The direction is better, but the Dracula is not (Lugosi is just too iconic).

[Ninja Sinai]

1 hour ago, masterofoneinchpunch said:

I love watching the Spanish version of Dracula which was filmed at night with the same sets.  The direction is better, but the Dracula is not (Lugosi is just too iconic).

Yeah Lugosi is proper BAD ass as Dracula!!

Edited August 26, 2020 by Ninja Sinai

[masterofoneinchpunch]

1 minute ago, Ninja Sinai said:

Yeah Lugosi is proper BAD ass as Dracula!!

Have you seen the rest of the important 1930s Universal horror films?

[masterofoneinchpunch]

Possessed (1947: Curtis Bernhardt):  

This is quite a better film noir than I was originally expecting. It is exquisitely shot. The chiaroscuro and German Expressionistic cinematography is superlative. The camera movement is fluid and works so well. 

Watching several Joan Crawford films this year (including Strait-Jacket (1964: William Castle)) makes me realize that she has "crazy" down quite well. Obviously, she was typecast in that sort of roll, but when you do well in Hollywood, you are going to get typecast. 

It certainly reminds me a bit of Sunset Boulevard where I do not quite blame the female protagonist (in Sunset I really do blame Holden's character more though). David Sutton (Van Heflin) is a playboy whose cold demeanor helps cause her issues (and if he does not come back again and again there would have been no further issues from her. Dating the daughter was so unbelievably stupid, but not in the realm of the impossible (though he seems unappealing to me; loved his character in Airport (1970) reminding me I need to rewatch that). 

This is the only Curtis Bernhardt directed film I have seen. I am now curious on his filmography. Is Joan Crawford the type of actress you don't want to dial down the scene? Please push it to 11. Please don't end your career with Trog (yes I've seen Trog). 

[DrNgor]

40 minutes ago, masterofoneinchpunch said:

Please don't end your career with Trog (yes I've seen Trog). 

I've seen it, too. The best scene is the inclusion of Willis O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen FX footage from Animal World in a flashback sequence...because of course Trog would have latent memories from events some 63 million years (give or take a couple of million) before his species' existence.

[Ninja Sinai]

4 hours ago, masterofoneinchpunch said:

Have you seen the rest of the important 1930s Universal horror films?

Ive watched The Invisible Man which is another classic and one of my favs..

I thought The Wolf Man was average..

Also watched Frankenstien Meets The Wolfman which was ok.. and also seen Abbot & Costello Meet Frankenstien which is another classic and Lugosi returns as Dracula!

Frankenstien is on my to watch list.

Any others @masterofoneinchpunch you would recommend?

[masterofoneinchpunch]

5 minutes ago, Ninja Sinai said:

Ive watched The Invisible Man which is another classic and one of my favs..

I thought The Wolf Man was average..

Also watched Frankenstien Meets The Wolfman which was ok.. and also seen Abbot & Costello Meet Frankenstien which is another classic and Lugosi returns as Dracula!

Frankenstien is on my to watch list.

Any others @masterofoneinchpunch you would recommend?

Sticking with Universal and 1930s:

Bride of Frankenstein (1935):

Not only one of the best horror films of the early Universal age, one of the best all-time movies. A great classic directed by auteur James Whale (the movie Gods and Monsters is about his life) and starring a speaking Boris Karloff and Colin Clive as Dr. Frankenstein.
The Mummy (1932: Karl Freund):Once again Boris Karloff with the greatest death stare of all-time.

Black Cat (1934: Edgar G. Ulmer): What? We root for Bela? Hee, hee Satan worshiping Hungarians.

The Old Dark House (1932: James Whale): What you want more Boris?  Also Charles Laughton is excellent.

Son of Frankenstein (1939: Rowland V. Lee): Vastly underrated sequel that has a big influence on Young Frankenstein.

Not Universal and 1930s:
Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (1931: Rouben Mamoulian):

Mad Love (1935: Karl Freund): Karl Freund should have had more films after this.

Freaks (1932: Tod Browning): A film that killed the career of Browning.

Island of Lost Souls (1932: Erle C. Kenton): Are we not men? A film that has inspired much including such groups as House of Pain and Oingo Boingo. Needs a remastered edition badly.

White Zombie (1932: Victor Halperin): I was so happy when this came out with a restored version.

Vampyr (1932: Carl Dreyer): Get (or watch) the Criterion release.

The Black Room (1935: Roy William Neill): A top 10 horror of the decade. When Boris Karloff wanted to he could give performances that equal any actor.

[Ninja Sinai]

2 hours ago, masterofoneinchpunch said:

Sticking with Universal and 1930s:

Bride of Frankenstein (1935):

Not only one of the best horror films of the early Universal age, one of the best all-time movies. A great classic directed by auteur James Whale (the movie Gods and Monsters is about his life) and starring a speaking Boris Karloff and Colin Clive as Dr. Frankenstein.
The Mummy (1932: Karl Freund):Once again Boris Karloff with the greatest death stare of all-time.

Black Cat (1934: Edgar G. Ulmer): What? We root for Bela? Hee, hee Satan worshiping Hungarians.

The Old Dark House (1932: James Whale): What you want more Boris?  Also Charles Laughton is excellent.

Son of Frankenstein (1939: Rowland V. Lee): Vastly underrated sequel that has a big influence on Young Frankenstein.

Not Universal and 1930s:
Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (1931: Rouben Mamoulian):

Mad Love (1935: Karl Freund): Karl Freund should have had more films after this.

Freaks (1932: Tod Browning): A film that killed the career of Browning.

Island of Lost Souls (1932: Erle C. Kenton): Are we not men? A film that has inspired much including such groups as House of Pain and Oingo Boingo. Needs a remastered edition badly.

White Zombie (1932: Victor Halperin): I was so happy when this came out with a restored version.

Vampyr (1932: Carl Dreyer): Get (or watch) the Criterion release.

 

The Black Room (1935: Roy William Neill): A top 10 horror of the decade. When Boris Karloff wanted to he could give performances that equal any actor.

Thanks man!!!

Def gonna check these out! 

[masterofoneinchpunch]

Mystic Pizza (1988: Donald Petrie)  

I have been catching up on missing 80s films on various lists. This is another of those OK films. Above average for a rom/drama/com which means there are still better films to watch. 

Interesting to me that Julia Roberts is still not top billed yet. That would change with Pretty Woman. Decent here. I've seen more Donald Petrie films that I would like to admit. Kidding, I watch almost anything. 

When I see Vincent D'Onofrio (in shape here compared to later appearances) I always think serial killer. Lili Taylor is good here and their relationship between her and D'Onofrio was the most realistic. Semi-interesting. You can probably tell where the plot is going for all three threads of relationships. The soon-to-be-college student going with the thirty-year-old (how that seems young to me now) is probably the creepiest -- mainly because of the end between those two. 

The relationship between both sides of the tracks was the most benign (though Julia Roberts and Adam Storke both have great hair, they must have been attracted to each other's hair). He forgave her for so many things. 

[Super Ninja]

Peninsula (2020) - Don't know who'll agree, but I actually enjoyed Train to Busan (2016) more. The CGI enhanced car chases and fake zombies didn't work for me.

Shoot First, Die Later (1974) - Top shelf poliziottescho by the genre master Fernando Di Leo, up there with his famous Milieu trilogy. This is a powerful, hard boiled slice of Euro-Crime, just enough violent if that's your thing, but also touching and socially aware, with a great performance by Luc Merenda and a soundtrack by Luis Bacalov.

[Super Ninja]

10,000 Dollars for a Massacre (1967) - Another one from the Django bunch, ranking fairly high among the fans of the genre. Pretty decent, atmospheric little spaghetti western with Gianni Garko as Django this time, playing a bounty hunter. To my surprise, what impressed me the most was the relationship between Django and the lovely Mijanou. She dreams of going to San Francisco and is in love with Django. When he gets shoot, she lies next to him in bed, because only when he's vulnerable will he let his tough guy guard down and she can finally expect some affection. He agrees to go with her to Frisco but not before hunting down Manuel (Claudio Camaso) who's wanted dead or alive with a reward as high as 10,000 dollars.

[masterofoneinchpunch]

The Conjuring (2013: James Wan):  

I had several people get on my case for not seeing this and various other films related to this Universe. So, I had to see it. So many guilty watches. I get that a lot for being the "arrogant film buff. (sometimes just arrogant)." 

I like the mythology of this film. I like when films like Constantine do that as well (such an underrated film in my opinion; it also does not help that Modesto has looked like Constantine's hell the past few days because of ash) and it takes that aspect seriously. 

This is analogous to how The Exorcist started off the movie -- which is an obvious influence here. Other influences are The Amityville Horror and so is Poltergeist (funny I am not a fan of either of these films). 

I thought it was enjoyable. I was never scared. The blurbs said it was sooooooooo scary, but it really was not. Now this might be because my own life is so scary, but I digress. Did I mention I grew up in a farm away from everybody, often alone with the cows?  Cows can be scary.  Transients on a farm are also scary, especially in the middle of the night. 

At first, I thought since it was mentioning Annabelle so much, did I put in the wrong DVD. Easy connection to that film (and a ah-ha moment where this part of the Universe makes sense).  Looking forward to watching Annabelle. 

It is a good cast and I like Patrick Wilson so that helped (note: I saw Insidious recently and he is in it as well). Looking forward to seeing more, but not overly looking forward. I am thinking a theater watch would have helped, especially one alone like I did with Halloween (2018) with the whole theater to myself.  That was awesome as well as Doctor Sleep when I got the whole theater to myself. 

[paimeifist]

@masterofoneinchpunch I saw that in the theatre back when it came out, at the time I remember thinking it was one of the better horror movies to come out in a while.

 

I've been making my way through Walker: Texas Ranger. Follow along here if interested: https://thoughtsoftink.wordpress.com/walker-texas-ranger/

 

After 5 episodes, my overall impression is that it is surprisingly good, granted I had low expectations. Not much in the way of martial arts, but its a fun buddy-cop show so far, and Chuck Norris is just cool and likeable. The last episode I watched feature Richard Norton, and I was a bit let down by the lack of MA action, but it wouldn't really fit the show I suppose. The random redneck villains in the rest of the show would have a little too much to live up to if they took full advantage of that, lol.

[masterofoneinchpunch]

Insidious (2010: James Wan):  

I did not quite like this near as much as The Conjuring (2013: James Wan). You can see improvements in directing from this movie until the latter. You can see similarities between both movies throughout. 

Interesting enough the movie started off scaring me more than The Conjuring. There is something about people peering through windows that I find frightening. Now I did grow up on a ranch with no near neighbors and occasionally there were transients so some of this is personal. 

It set up well in the scares department but did not finish through. At some point I think with the "seance" I found it less interesting. This reminds me of The Conjuring's use and then also reminds me of Poltergeist. 

Someone wrote in a review they had checked out because of the "punching of a ghost" (which was hilarious), but I became a little less interested before this happened.  It started with going into The Further. It sometimes felt like a neighbor's haunted house party with dry ice or something you would see on a Halloween episode of Home Improvement.  

The soundtrack did not help. The discordant string section use gave away way too many scares. This was too amateurish in its use and overuse. The cinematography often gave away the scares as well (seemed better in The Conjuring).  Do not have the camera lead all the time. 

Other similarities between this and The Conjuring both have to do with The Exorcist references, the attaching of spirits (and not the house being the cause in antithesis to The Amityville Horror). I did like the comedic aspects. 

But oh, how was that ending telegraphed with big semaphores. The "twist" ending is often the bane of many horror films regardless of country.  Sometimes you beg, please do not do the obvious.  And of course, the obvious happens. Now Annabelle will be next to watch out of similar horror movies.  Still more to go for Insidious sequels (and yeah there are other Annabelle sequels too).