But seriously, PF is awesome and quite incredible.
Another good John Waters film is "Female Trouble", which would be Water's last NC-17 feature until the 2004 film "A Dirty Shame".
AwesomeMonstar wrote:
if you want a shocker, ack, this one will definitely do the trick.
And HOW!!
AwesomeMonstar wrote:
Also, I wish this was the first Waters flick I saw. Crybaby was alright... but goddamn do I love the midnight movie scene!
I actually saw Hairspray to make up for not being able to see PF at the time, since no rental place had it. It actually is what led me to my current film buff status.
And sadly, there's no midnight movie "scene" in my town. There's two theatres: a major chain (R/C Theatres) and The Arthouse, neither of which will do midnight movies (the latter due to their hours, which are based on the fact that they're part of a locally-owned convenience store).
The Color of War. A WW2 Documentary shot on home videocameras from all sides in color overlayed with stories told from letters and journals from soldiers. It made it feel like it was not all that long ago. The D-Day footage was remarkable.
Underworld - This is arguably the best of this decade's modern-day action-horror revival films (better than films like Van Helsing or The Mummy, maybe better than the Blade series). For some reason, though, it gets a lot of shit from most critics. Sure the CGI is a little over-the top (and "obvious") and the acting is wooden from most of the cast, but the plot itself I found to be an interesting and novel approach to handling Vampires and Werewolves. The set design, costumes, lighting, and general look of the film are really striking - it sets up an aesthetic here that is even better defined by the end the trilogy. Kate Beckinsale pulls of the action heroine role better than many other women in Hollywood have, and only Scott Speedman's character comes across as irritating (whereas he is supposed to be sympathetic). The first film's biggest flaw is that it purposely leaves the viewer hanging for a sequel.
Grade: 3/5
Underworld: Evolution - This is the weakest of the trilogy, but not near as bad as some reviews might lead you to believe. The acting (even Speedman's) is stronger here as the actors seem to know the characters much better, the CGI is both toned down and more imaginative than in the first film, and the story has some genuinely intriguing points. In fact, the plot adds a lot to the lore of the series, but the way it unfolds is plodding and predictable.
Grade: 2.5/5
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans - This was a nice surprise, as I probably found it the most enjoyable of the three films but expected it to be the worst. It certainly is the most polished in terms of effects, and the story is more engaging (and, frankly, hangs together better) than the previous two. Bill Nighy (Viktor) gives arguably the finest performance of the trilogy. As a prequel it stands well on its own, but seeing the previous two films adds a lot of depth to the movie. This film is also notable for perfecting the "look" of the Underwold series as it defines the heavy blues through more frequent and better use of contrasting colors (other than just blood red). A visual treat, and an intriguing chapter.
Grade: 3.5/5
The Bank Job - My viewing of this film may have been colored by the fact that several people had told me it was the best heist movie they'd seen. It is not, to my mind, anywhere near one of the better heist films made (for example The Sting, Ocean's Eleven, and A Fish Called Wanda are all far superior). While the film looks and sounds great, the plot itself is fairly straightforward and, I felt, predictable. It doesn't come across as a historical-based piece (even though it is) as Jason Statham basically plays Jason Statham once again - and here it just doesn't fit.
Grade: 2/5
Righteous Kill - I love Pacino and DeNiro. I wrote a few weeks ago that 88 Minutes was a shit film that was elevated to passable by Pacino's acting. Heat was fantastic. This film is horrendous - HORRENDOUS. Anyone who's ever watched more than a few cop movies/TV shows can figure out pretty quick who the killer is, and the rest of the film is an exercise in not laughing at the ridiculous dialogue. Let me put it this way: 50 Cent is the only believable and somewhat interesting character in a character driven film. Poorly edited, uninteresting, and marked by two great actors going through the motions with a horrible script. I can't even recommend this one as an oddity. Spare yourself two hours and skip it.
Grade: 0.5 (50 cents!) /5
Next Up: Up (really!), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Unforgiven, A Clockwork Orange, and more!
Last edited by dsheinem on Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
dsheinem wrote:Underworld - This is arguably the best of this decade's modern-day action-horror revival films (better than films like Van Helsing or The Mummy, maybe better than the Blade series). For some reason, though, it gets a lot of shit from most critics. Sure the CGI is a little over-the top (and "obvious") and the acting is wooden from most of the cast, but the plot itself I found to be an interesting and novel approach to handling Vampires and Werewolves. The set design, costumes, lighting, and general look of the film are really striking - it sets up an aesthetic here that is even better defined by the end the trilogy. Kate Beckinsale pulls of the action heroine role better than many other women in Hollywood have, and only Scott Speedman's character comes across as irritating (whereas he is supposed to be sympathetic). The first film's biggest flaw is that it purposely leaves the viewer hanging for a sequel.
Grade: 3/5
Underworld: Evolution - This is the weakest of the trilogy, but not near as bad as some reviews might lead you to believe. The acting (even Speedman's) is stronger here as the actors seem to know the characters much better, the CGI is both toned down and more imaginative than in the first film, and the story has some genuinely intriguing points. In fact, the plot adds a lot to the lore of the series, but the way it unfolds is plodding and predictable.
Grade: 2.5/5
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans - This was a nice surprise, as I probably found it the most enjoyable of the three films but expected it to be the worst. It certainly is the most polished in terms of effects, and the story is more engaging (and, frankly, hangs together better) than the previous two. Bill Nighy (Viktor) gives arguably the finest performance of the trilogy. As a prequel it stands well on its own, but seeing the previous two films adds a lot of depth to the movie. This film is also notable for perfecting the "look" of the Underwold series as it defines the heavy blues through more frequent and better use of contrasting colors (other than just blood red). A visual treat, and an intriguing chapter.
Grade: 3.5/5
The Bank Job - My viewing of this film may have been colored by the fact that several people had told me it was the best heist movie they'd seen. It is not, to my mind, anywhere near one of the better heist films made (for example The Sting, Ocean's Eleven, and A Fish Called Wanda are all far superior). While the film looks and sounds great, the plot itself is fairly straightforward and, I felt, predictable. It doesn't come across as a historical-based piece (even though it is) as Jason Statham basically plays Jason Statham once again - and here it just doesn't fit.
Grade: 2/5
Righteous Kill - I love Pacino and DeNiro. I wrote a few weeks ago that 88 Minutes was a shit film that was elevated to passable by Pacino's acting. Heat was fantastic. This film is horrendous - HORRENDOUS. Anyone who's ever watched more than a few cop movies/TV shows can figure out pretty quick who the killer is, and the rest of the film is an exercise in not laughing at the ridiculous dialogue. Let me put it this way: 50 Cent is the only believable and somewhat interesting character in a character driven film. Poorly edited, uninteresting, and marked by two great actors going through the motions with a horrible script. I can't even recommend this one as an oddity. Spare yourself two hours and skip it.
Grade: 0.5 (50 cents!) /5
Next Up: Up (really!), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Unforgiven, A Clockwork Orange, and more!
I hated the Underworld movies. The first two were rather boring IMHO and I therefore never saw the prequel.
And yes, you should see A Clockwork Orange.
noiseredux wrote:I mostly watch 80's slashers and trash like this:
I watch damn near everything, and '80s slashers are a fave of mine. In fact, I've got all of the Slumber Party/Sorority House Massacre movies, courtesy of CinemaGeddon (cuz I will NEVER shell out $60 for just one of the films, much less about a whole paycheck on the whole series). Thank God they were able to fill my DVD-R request so I don't have to watch rips, which often look like shit when they're burned to DVD, since they're compressed and often have odd resolutions in lieu of the standard stuff, like 640x480 for FS and 720x480 for WS.
REPO Man wrote:
I hated the Underworld movies. The first two were rather boring IMHO and I therefore never saw the prequel.
And yes, you should see A Clockwork Orange.
I've seen it many times on pretty much every format imaginable as Kubrick is one of my favorite directors. I have even taught some undergraduate seminars where I show and discuss/debate Kubrick's work...
I just picked up the Blu-Ray recently and am dying to watch it again as it has been a few years - it is my second favorite Kubrick film (just behind Dr. Strangelove). I'll be interspersing some reviews of films I've seen many times before in these periodic posts since I've been upgrading my library.
Sorry you didn't like the Underworld films. I like them for what they are (cheesy action- gothic horror films) and think they are better than most in a genre that generally produces poor films. Even still, the whole trilogy would only rate 3/5 stars at best from me. I do think that the prequel is the best one - you should give it a look.
