What was the last movie you've seen?

[Ack]

Futureworld

Westworld had a sequel, only instead of killer robots in a theme park, it's about killer robots in a theme park...with nonsensical dream sequences, an evil corporation replacing world leaders with robots, and eyeglasses that would make Elton John giddy. Oh, and a lot of talk about sex with robots because why not?

Basically the film takes place a few years after Westworld does, with the Delos corporation coming back strong with a new line or robots and an expanded theme park. Delos invites world leaders along with game show winners and journalists to come see the park, so newspaper reporter Chuck Browning and TV reporter Tracy Ballard come to see it...only Chuck's received a message from a technician who was assassinated in front of him at the start of the film, so he's very suspicious. As the two journalists investigate, they discover the Delos corporation is making robot doubles of world leaders as well as themselves, with the plan to assassinate the originals and then eventually rule the world and prevent bad or embarrassing press for the company.

The biggest problem with this is that everything is '70s chic, so it's already highly embarrassing for the company, and for all involved. Having to listen to the game show winning pervert rave about what it's gonna be like to pork lady Robocop certainly doesn't make me think good things with regards to Delos. Also note, none of the Delos robots can apparently withstand getting wet yet, so a brisk summer shower would likely be enough to stop their evil plans. Also the new area of the park, a space station simulator called Futureworld that allows you to do things like ski on Mars, is very underwhelming, particularly "futuristic" versions of games like Chess and Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots. I was not impressed.

Yul Brenner does come back in this sequel, but only for a weird dream sequence where he's apparently the lover of Tracy. Also there is a red string, some weird bondage stuff, a chase sequence...none of which makes sense and all of which feels totally out of place. It felt more like they were trying to pad out the movie than anything else. The same goes for a weird chase sequence where samurai holograms appear and attack the reporters. It's disjointed and awkward.

There are a couple of nifty things though. First, the earliest CGI production ever made, A Computer Animated Hand, makes an appearance. Second, this was the first modern American film to achieve theatrical release in communist China, which makes sense considering its representation of an out of control capitalist corporation plotting world downfall. Also Futureworld apparently used the same sets as Logan's Run. I preferred Logan's Run, though admittedly it also has problems with being '70s chic.

[Xeogred]

It seems like all the movies Crichton did involve killer robots? I saw jokes about people thinking a robot must have slept with his wife at some point or something.

[Ack]

He did work on a lot of sci-fi, but he actually has a varied career as a director which includes a courtroom drama, a heist film, and medical dramas. It's just that the robot and tech stuff is what he is best known for in terms of directing movies. In TV, he is better known for his medical show ER, and in his writing, Jurassic Park.

So a robot dinosaur must have performed surgery on his wife.

[Ack]

Manhunt in the City

There are actually two movies in the poliziotteschi genre with this title featuring Henry Silva that came out in the 1970s. This is the second such movie, released in 1975, and it is sometimes referred to as The Manhunt.

Crime runs rampant in Italy. A trio of thieves whose leader poses as a blind man use an innocent little girl to commit a robbery. As they leave, their leader shoots and kills the little girl, who only manages to mumble "Scorpion" before she dies. Henry Silva plays the girl's father, who reunites with his separated wife out of grief, gets fed up with the impotence and corruption of the police, and instead begins investigating the murder on his own out of his own desire for revenge and vigilante justice as well as a need to make a statement in a nation gone sick from a never ending crime wave.

Unfortunately for Silva, he doesn't really know what he's doing, and he fumbles more often than not, tracking down the wrong leads, getting himself into trouble, and getting the people around him hurt or killed. When he does eventually find a man with a scorpion pendant hanging from his watch, he forces a transvestite prostitute to set up a phony drug deal, only to end up getting the prostitute killed. Not to be held back, he hunts the men himself, resulting in his house coming under attack and his wife being briefly kidnapped, before finally joining up with an extremist militant organization which seeks to end crime through terror and brutality. He even goes so far as to join them in a raid to capture a pair of thieves who accidentally killed a woman while stealing her purse; the militants hold them down and smash both of their hands with hammers while beating them into submission.

Finally, when he manages to find the hiding place of his targets, he nearly falters until he sees a little girl that reminds him of his dead daughter. This works up his nerve, and he enters a brief but climactic showdown where he takes down the gang at point blank range with a shotgun. There's just one problem... It's the wrong gang. The actual murderer of his daughter was killed in a shootout with police the night before. But the police let Silva go, because they understand that society as a whole is ultimately responsible for what he has done. The film ends with Silva and his wife deciding to move to Canada, only for Silva to see a police chase and use his car to stop the escaping crooks. Silva reaches into the back of the car for his gun, but his wife begs him to stop, leaving him in a moral quandary between his need for unfulfilling revenge, justice, violence, and peace.

Manhunt in the City is not a great movie. It's poorly edited so that it feels choppy. Music just sort of comes and goes at times. It doesn't always frame up the way it should, and it occasionally jumps between moments in jarring ways. As a result, it feels a bit impotent...but that's also where it surprisingly succeeds. Ultimately the supposed hero will end up committing his own crimes and giving in to violent impulses in the name of justice, yet he is never fulfilled; despite his claims of the weakness, corruption, and ineptitude of police, their time-consuming methods are what actually resolves the investigation, not his fumbling. The movie never feels gratifying, yet the movie is only sharing the despair of the lead.

There are also serious questions posed about the nature of the police, the press, criminals, the public, and the perception of each other that feel particularly poignant considering our current problems in society. The social problems that director Umberto Lenzi attempts to tackle in this picture feel just as relevant to Italy in the 1970s as they do today. And while I don't believe he was attempting to make a statement about it at the time, the general treatment of the transvestite prostitute is also something that will likely weigh heavily on the mind, considering the use of insulting slang but also the harassment and the violent act that inevitably happens yet isn't shown. It doesn't have to be, the implication is disturbing enough.

Manhunt in the City is a problematic movie, but it's one I find myself respecting for its failures and shortcomings because of how well they match the shortcomings of its characters. It won't sate anybody's need for bloodlust, but it will make you question the usual behavior of the traditional action hero.

[KalessinDB]

Just got out of Dr Strange. I do not consider it a spoiler to say there were post credit scenes, because if you've seen any MCU movie other than Age of Ultron you know they're there, usually two of them.

The first one? I definitely channeled Krieger watching it. "Stop, my penis can only get so erect!"

Movie was excellent. Visually stunning, great storyline, actors killed it (even Tilda Swinton as an old Asian man), and the humor was great. Highly recommended if you think you might like it.

[noiseredux]

Just got out of Dr Strange. I do not consider it a spoiler to say there were post credit scenes, because if you've seen any MCU movie other than Age of Ultron you know they're there, usually two of them.

The first one? I definitely channeled Krieger watching it. "Stop, my penis can only get so erect!"

Movie was excellent. Visually stunning, great storyline, actors killed it (even Tilda Swinton as an old Asian man), and the humor was great. Highly recommended if you think you might like it.

cool. I'm going Tuesday.

[MrPopo]

I'll be checking it out tomorrow. I'm still not sure I can handle Benedict Cumberbatch with an American accent, but I guess I'll have to deal.

[Exhuminator]

Planning on seeing it Sunday. Who can resist Benny Cucumberpatch?

[Stark]

I'll be checking it out tomorrow. I'm still not sure I can handle Benedict Cumberbatch with an American accent, but I guess I'll have to deal.

This was my concern too.

[Fragems]

It's great Cumberbatch did pretty awesome as always . As was stated though definitely stick around for the post credit scenes there is one pretty early but the second is all the way at the very very end and literally 99% of the audience left before the second one .

spoilery talk about the second post credit scene.

Thor is probably my least favorite character of the MCU at the moment, but Dr. Strange possibly being a big part of Thor 3 Ragnorak or whatever it's called has me somewhat hyped. When he said "let me help you" I was like YESSSSSS!!!!!. Hopefully Cumberbatch will make at least some interesting cameos in the future avenger movies as well since his powers are freaking awesome .