Dune (1984)

 

In the distant future, a man appears who may be the prophet that a long-suffering galaxy has been waiting for.

Visually compelling and with imaginative styling as you'd expect from the director, the plot has been overloaded so that the sci-fi epic seems more summarized than actually adapted.

On re-watching: Still good to look at, but the narrative is simply not convincing nor much coherent either.

Halliwell (no star): "A basically simple space fiction plot is immensely complicated by a welter of characters who are not properly introduced and who indeed are mostly irrelevant. The result, which cost nearly 50 million dollars, is inaudible, invisible (because of dim lighting) and unentertaining: a disaster of the very first order."

Maltin*1/2: "Elephantine adaptation...You know you're in trouble when film's opening narration...is completely incomprehensible! Visually imaginative, well cast, but joyless and oppressive - not to mention long. For devotees of Herbert's novel only." 

 

Alien: Resurrection (1997)

 

200 years after her death, Ellen Ripley is revived as a powerful human/Alien hybrid clone who must continue her war against the Aliens.

Too ambitious for its own good this installment of the Aliens series is quite messy, but has some moments, especially concerning the visuals.

On renewed viewing I need to correct my initial rating: this is actually an imaginative and at times quite disturbing new take on the Alien saga and, compared to the last installment, the plot is quite coherent.

On re-watching: meanwhile I do quite enjoy this version; it does have some intense moments.

Halliwell*: "Stylish, occasionally impressive movie that all too soon settles into familiar routine."

Maltin**: "Clumsy sequel with crummy logic, far too many wisecracks; a few good action scenes, but scrictly for series fans."

 

Priest (2011)

A priest disobeys church law to track down the vampires who kidnapped his niece.

If you look past the rather cliched, unoriginal plot, you may enjoy this horror-science fiction-Western action thriller for its brilliant style and some breathtaking visuals.

Maltin**1/2: "Director and star of LEGION reunite for an equally absurd but more exciting fantasy-thriller...Violent action-adventure borrows imagery and plot elements from THE SEARCHERS and other classic Westerns, and is all the more enjoyable as a guilty pleasure for not slipping into self-conscious campiness."

Wise Blood (1979)

A Southerner--young, poor, ambitious but uneducated--determines to become something in the world and decides that the best way to do that is to become a preacher and start up his own church.

Quite loyal adaptation of Flannery O'Connor's novel with some good performances which brings the grotesqueness of plot and the characters to full power.

Halliwell***: "Odd story, not easy to like but with many impressive moments."

Maltin***1/2: "Brilliant translation of Flannery O'Connor's peculiar hell-and-salvation tale. Flawless cast, ledd by Dourif..inhabits Southern Gothic world as though born in it."

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

A criminal pleads insanity after getting into trouble again and once in the mental institution rebels against the oppressive nurse and rallies up the scared patients.

A masterpiece of anti-establishment entertainment, excellently staged and with an unforgettable cast, still manages to captivate, although it does reveal a strong streak of misogyny.

Halliwell****: "Wildly and unexpectedly commercial film of a project which had lain dormant for fourteen years, this amusing and horrifying film conveniently sums up anti-government attitudes as well as make love not war and all that. It's certainly impossible to ignore."

Maltin****: "Ken Kesey's script is a triumph of human spirit..."

The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (2009)

A drug- and gambling-addled detective in post-Katrina New Orleans investigates the killing of five Senegalese immigrants.

Abel Ferrara's masterpiece is stripped down to a hypnotic, at times surreal crime thriller within a world of lost moral barriers; the movie is mainly successful due to Nicolas Cage's intense performance.

Maltin***: "Wacky police procedural...a long, tawdry, wide-ranging yarn in which the good guys  and bad guys are hard to differentiate. Cage is terrific in a no-holds-barred performance. Bear no resemblance to the 1992 film..."

My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done (2009)

Inspired by a true crime, a man begins to experience mystifying events that lead him to slay his mother with a sword.

Stylized investigation of a crime that avoids offering a simple explanation.

On renewed viewing: A great Werner Herzog movie that delves deep into its story and deliberately irritates by acknowledging and emphasizing the complexity of its topic.

Maltin**: "Genuinely odd film is ambitious but only intermittently successful, as it leaves too many unanswered questions about its characters...Given the film's general weirdness, it's no surprise that David Lynch is an executive producer."

Blue Velvet (1986)

The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.

Need I explain? When it was released I watched it 3 times in a row, I was completely overwhelmed, Lynch exceeded my expectations. An instant classic!

On renewed viewing: David Lynch's masterpiece still mesmerizes with its idiosyncratic and sinister, but spot-on vision of Americana.

Halliwell***: "Bizarrely stylish exercise by the director of The Elephant Man, popular at the box-office."

Maltin**: "Terminally weird, though flamboyantly original film...A highly individual look at the bizarre elements just behind the facade of a picture-perfect American town. Too audacious to be easily dismissed, but too strange to be easily enjoyed...yet this was one of the most critically acclaimed movies of 1986!"

Blue Velvet (1986)

The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.

Progeny (1998)

An unsuspecting woman is impregnated by aliens who are experimenting on the human population.

By far not what one would expect from the synopsis and the director this repetitive semi-psychological  horror movie will disappoint the casual viwer as well as the gernre aficionados.

Halliwell (no star): "Slow-paced psychological horror with some gruesome moments; after a long, dull opening, it becomes more interesting and suspenseful."

Blue Velvet (1986)

(Italian movie poster by Esciotti) 

The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.

Cerro Torre: Schrei aus Stein (1991)

Two famous competitive climbers make a bet on who can climb Cerro Torre, one of the most dangerous mountains in Argentina and the world, first.

Lacklustre performances and clunky dialogue mar a good story with great landscape photography; the "Herzog touch" can be found only in occasional moments.

Halliwell*: "Spectacular photography compensates for a muddled narrative about obsessive people."

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

Upon admittance to a mental institution, a brash rebel rallies the patients to take on the oppressive head nurse.