Saturday 27 February 2021
Operation Petticoat (1959)
During World War II, a commander finds himself stuck with a decrepit (and pink) submarine, a con man executive officer, and a group of army nurses.
Mildly amusing military comedy somehow easily smooths its way around having a coherent story, but prefers on presenting some singularly entertaining moments.
Halliwell*: "Flabby comedy with good moments, but not many."
Maltin***1/2: "Hilarious comedy...Some truly memorable gags; Grant and Curtis are a dynamite team in this happy film."
Friday 26 February 2021
Oculus (2013)
A woman tries to exonerate her brother, who was convicted of murder, by proving that the crime was committed by a supernatural phenomenon.
Very well to look at and with a capable cast this horror flick ha style and atmosphere, but thoroughly disappoints any high expectations with a silly and illogical plot.
Maltin**1/2: "Handsome, well-acted horror film is so inventively edited, the past and present correlate; too bad such skill is expended on a plot that's just the same old horror-movie stuff."
Thursday 25 February 2021
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet (2020)
One man has seen more of the natural world than any other; this feature documentary is his witness statement.
More heartfelt and stirring plea than just a documentary David Attenborough presents his warning of the damage humankind has brought upon the planet as a summation of his life's work, including some spectacular nature photography.
American Murder: The Family Next Door (2020)
In 2018, 38-year-old Shanann Watts and her two youngest daughters disappeared in Colorado. With the heartbreaking details emerging, the family's story made headlines around the world.
More than just a simple true crime documentary this is a quite incisive and stirring study of domestic violence and the influence of social media.
Wednesday 24 February 2021
Tuesday 23 February 2021
House of 1000 Corpses (2003)
Two young couples traveling across the backwoods of Texas searching for urban legends of murder end up as prisoners of a bizarre and sadistic backwater family of serial killers.
Deliberately over-the-top gory homage to 80s video nasties is obviously aimed to die-hard fans only and hasn't much to offer more than that.
Halliwell (no star): "Unoriginal, low-budget, gore-filled tribute to horror movies of the past, particularly The Texas Chain Saw Massacre."
Maltin BOMB. "This infantile ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW/TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE wannabe sacrifices genuine scares for gratuitous gore and nonstop profanity. Rocker Zombie, who has a genuine fondness for horror films, pointlessly sprinkles in vintage movie/TV clips."
Monday 22 February 2021
Sunday 21 February 2021
Home to Danger (1951)
A drug dealer tries to kill his partner's daughter, when she inherits an old house.
Above-average crime mystery is nicely staged and has a good cast; a bit old-fashioned, though.
You're Next (2011)
When the Davison family comes under attack during their wedding anniversary getaway, the gang of mysterious killers soon learns that one of the victims harbors a secret talent for fighting back.
Fairly original take on the slasher genre is quite effective and tinged with black humor; the final twist, however, seems very contrived.
Maltin***: "Basic slasher plot (with a twist) is given imaginative, involving, and witty treatment; sets are used and photographed well."
Saturday 20 February 2021
Beyond Skyline (2017)
A tough-as-nails detective embarks on a relentless pursuit to free his son from a nightmarish alien warship.
Mindless, silly sci-fi entertainment full of action, CGI effects and lots of gore was obviously made for a quick buck.
Friday 19 February 2021
Babylon Berlin, Season 3 (2020)
The third season is set in late 1929 around the Black Tuesday stock market crash and navigates the rise of the subversive Black Reichswehr and Communis political groups as well as the advent of talkies.
The third season finally tones down the complexity of its plot a bit and strives more into the direction of solving a crime mystery, on its way giving a good impression of the German film industry of its time and the political undercurrents in Berlin; furthermore, still a top-notch TV production compared to what German TV has to offer otherwise.
Monday 15 February 2021
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
Rey develops her newly discovered abilities with the guidance of Luke
Skywalker, who is unsettled by the strength of her powers. Meanwhile,
the Resistance prepares for battle with the First Order.
Competently produced and highly entertaining continuation of the Star Wars
saga, again proof that the recent productions are superior to the
previous trilogies concerning characters and character development, -
and diversity; Daisy Ridley's Rey is arguably the series' most agreeable
hero.
On rewatching: Although visually stunning in some sequences, this episode is in fact more generic and less entertaining on a second watch.
Sunday 14 February 2021
Pontypool (2008)
A radio host interprets the possible outbreak of a deadly virus which infects the small Ontario town he is stationed in.
A welcome original take on the zombie genre works quite well as a one-room drama with incoming (and outgoing) radio messages, but is muddled by a irritatingly ambiguous main character and a silly 'linguistic' explanation for the doomsday virus.
Saturday 13 February 2021
Friday 12 February 2021
The Meg (2018)
A group of scientists exploring the Marianas Trench encounter the largest marine predator that has ever existed - the Megalodon.
As much as it tries to emulate Deep Blue Sea this shark monster movie never quite achieves its humor and campiness (and tries to top it with even more stupid science), but is nevertheless mildly entertaining.
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