November 21, 2018 “Aliens vs. Titanic” (* out of four) was a hilariously awful horror comedy about a group of space travelers (Tasha Tacosa, Robert Rhine, Brenton Jones, and others) aboard a humongous star-liner which is besieged by a sudden meteor storm which unleashes a deadly biological alien form aboard the ship which (yawn) threatens mankind. Laughably bad acting is matched by terrible script and direction and cheesy special effects and sets and one of the most unlistenable music scores in recent memory. With a title like that, you know not to expect Oscar fare but it’s worthless on almost every level and makes you think what “Aliens” would look like had it been directed by Ed Wood instead of James Cameron. Continue reading →
November 21, 2018 “A Reckoning” (** out of four) was a sputtering Western melodrama about a wife (June Dietrich) who enjoys her life home on the range but whose husband is brutally murdered and she leaves everything behind to seek frontier vengeance and hunt down his killer (Todd A. Robinson) but finds that the road to revenge is a difficult trail for her. Beautiful photography and stirring music score are definite plusses but story is logy and never develops significant or sufficient momentum. Sergio Leone and Sam Peckinpah used to make richer Westerns than this in their sleep. Lance Henriksen and Meg Foster show up in minor supporting roles but I can reckon that these aren’t the comeback roles they were hoping for. Continue reading →
November 20, 2018 “May The Devil Take You” (**1/2 out of four) was an extremely gory and stylish Indonesian horror show about a young woman (Chelsea Islan) whose father falls into a sudden coma and she returns to his old villa to find more answers about his condition but her and her stepsister uncover dark truths which include graphic bloodshed and threaten to destroy their sanity and the rest of their family. Director Timo Tjahnjanto shows flashes of originality and horror in ways that seem a throwback to the early works of Wes Craven and Sam Raimi but the violence and ugliness gets a little over-the-top after a while and film loses some of its impact by going on too long. Still, though, a considerable cut above most American horror movies and definitely worthwhile for horror and gore fans. Continue reading →
November 19, 2018November 19, 2018 “The Farm” (*1/2 out of four) was a grisly exploitation platter about a young couple (Nora Yessayan and Alec Gaylord) who get kidnapped and treated like farm animals after they stop at a roadsider diner to eat meat and are pursued by (who else?) local rednecks. Promising idea for a fun horror story is done in by needless gore and unpleasantness and basic horror-cliches. Movies like these make you realize what a masterwork the original “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “Wrong Turn” really were. Continue reading →
November 18, 2018 “Bohemian Rhapsody” (***1/2 out of four) was a sweeping biography of the legendary rock group Queen whose flamboyant lead singer Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek) drove them to artistic and performing heights but succumbed to AIDS at 45. Malek is nothing short of sensational in the lead role and always gives you the sense that you are watching the actual Freddie Mercury in front of you. Films musical numbers are electric and climax at Live Aid in 1985 is spectacular! Some historical inaccuracies and superficiality to be sure but never fails to be entertaining. Supporting cast members are dead-ringers for Queen members and Mike Myers is amusingly cast (and unrecognizable) as a defensive record exec who says that “teenagers will never bang their heads in cars to ‘Bohemian Rhapsody'”. Continue reading →
November 18, 2018 “Texas Cotton” (**1/2 out of four) was a richly atmospheric and detailed story of corruption in a small Texas town as an aging lawman (Vincent Berger) becomes convinced that a stranger arrested is innocent which uncovers coverups and corruption leading back to his sergeant (George Hardy) and the town’s mayor (Jason Douglas). Engrossing story of power and politics and murder holds your attention without ever quite stirring your emotions or taking flight and is lukewarm as a result. Obviously inspired by the works of Sam Peckinpah and also Walter Hill but never transcends its origins. Continue reading →
November 17, 2018 “Nobody’s Fool” (** out of four) was an occasionally amusing but shrill comedy about a woman (Tika Sumpter) in an online relationship with a man (Mehcad Brooks) who may not be what he appears and all this is complicated by the return of her sister (Tiffany Haddish) who has just gotten home from prison. Fans of Haddish (I’m not) and writer-director Tyler Perry may want to boost rating by a star but regardless, it’s a mixed bag at best and wears out after a while. Whoopi Goldberg adds some laughs as the girl’s mother. Byetheway, this is not a remake of the 1986 Roseanna Arquette comedy although story is somewhat similar. Continue reading →
November 17, 2018 “Brute Sanity” (*1/2 out of four) was a brutally awful sci/fi thriller about an F.B.I. neuropsychologist (Adjovi Koene) teams up with a thief (Steven Lawlor Jones) to find a mind-altering device that unleashes virtual reality while her megalomaniacal former boss (Sam Vanivray) plants both physical and psychological traps to try and stop her. It’s much easier to simply stop the movie instead. Intriguing ideas and premise is totally botched, as film becomes crushingly monotonous and murky. Bad acting and wooden direction is no help. It’s movies like these that make you appreciate “The Matrix” that much more nearly 20 years later. Continue reading →
November 17, 2018 “Lake Fear 3” (** out of four) was a more-of-the-same sequel about the continuing horrors of Remmington (Joshua Winch) who escaped the evil cabin of the last entry but comes in contact with a couple (Katelyn Newberry and Shanon Snedden) looking for their missing sister and also a failing t.v.-show host (Devi Khajishvili) and all their lives and sanity are soon threatened. By the very low standards of these direct-to-DVD horror sequels, this isn’t bad and features enough gore and horror to give fans their money’s worth, but you’ve seen it all before and done better. Let’s hold off on a fourth entry until Fangoria Magazine comes back into production. Continue reading →
November 17, 2018 “Speed Kills” (** out of four) was a perfectly watchable but unexceptional underworld crime melodrama about a speedboat racing champion and multimillionaire (John Travolta) who leads a double life involving the mob (including James Remar as Meyer Lansky and Tom Sizemore as a mob enforcer) and various illegal affairs that eventually end his marriage to his wife (Jennifer Esposito) and seal his demise. Travolta tries hard but is simply too old to convincingly play more-or-less the same role that Johnny Depp did in “Blow” years ago which this film emulates. Fast-paced and reasonably well-made but appears to be following a much-too-familiar pattern and predictability. It’s routine B-movies like these that “killed” Travolta’s career a second time. Continue reading →
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