The Gift of BIRDMAN

Brilliant. I didn't love the movie, but Michael Keaton is at his best again, and that is AWESOME.

R.I.P. CHUCKY ..and the END of the LAST 80's Horror Franchise

I love the first Child's Play - It's a great horror film that's well-shot, lots of laughs with one lovely leading lady - Catherine Hicks - one of my all time celebrity crushes.
In the first film we have a serial killer, a toy, a son and a loving Mom - perfecto - it's got uber creepo Brad Douriff, black magic, that 80's vibe I love, great special effects and A KILLER DOLL!!!

Alex Vincent is great as cute little Andy, but Brad Douriff steals the show as Chucky. His voice performance will remain the steady constant that the franchise is built upon, through film after film and change after change.
The first one is a blast, and did pretty well so...
Child's Play 2 has Andy return, but no Catherine Hicks. Now I bought this more than the switcheroo in Poltergeist 3(which undermined the film before it even started) with the story telling us that Andy's Mom went crazy after the events of Part One - sure it's an excuse, but at least it's logical.
I always enjoy Chucky's resurrections too, some clever - some hokey - always fun...
But I digress - two is a good sequel and three is decent though it featured a new actor in the role. Surprisingly, the story of the third is referenced in the last, and overall it's not bad with Andy older and attending a military school, finding romance ..and oh yeah - dispatching Chucky again.

Number 3 was the last to use the original title, and the last official horror film in the series for a while.
With the next chapter things get really strange with this goofy franchise with #4's Bride of Chucky and it sure is different. It surprised even me that these films kept getting theatrical releases, which is pretty wild into a fourth and fifth installment, but they keep doing well. Bride is funnier than scary, but still a good watch, and again - Jennifer Tilly - big celebrity crush - she's bloody great, and so obviously having a blast - really fun performance both as human and as the Bride to be.
Then came Seed of Chucky - one bloody weird movie. More like Glen or Glenda or Freaks, it has it's following for sure, though I didn't love it. You should watch it - you'll find it hard to believe it not only played theatrically but did okay  ...SUCH a bizarre experience.

The SIXTH and final film(I believe) finally became a "straight-to-video" with Curse of Chucky just last year(2013) and though the franchise feels a bit long in the tooth, it still boasts Chucky/Brad Douriff and that crazy "good guy" doll who can't stop killing. Weird to see an older BD in the flashback scenes, but somebody obviously cares about this particular franchise's fate far more than I'd have guessed would/could happen. Don Mancini is his name, and he directed the first film, as well as writing ALL of 'em. Very cool, and I'd guess only PHANTASM has a more dedicated Director(having written and directed all of those) in Don Coscarelli, which is also highly respectable - I just happen to prefer this aging franchise.

But here's the catch see - the final Child's Play film does have one really good reason to watch it:

It's the ending. 

I won't ruin it but I will say the final 60 seconds of the Child's Play film franchise is the best ending to a horror series I've ever seen - no joke.
I sat in the dark as the credits rolled, and smiled to myself realizing I've been watching that stupid character since I was 18 years old, and I turned 44 yesterday.

This was also the END of the LAST EIGHTIES HORROR FRANCHISE.  Jason - Freddie - everything else is dead or rebooted, but this series lasted 25 years solid. Of the old horror franchises, only Phantasm will see another addition to its ongoing canon, but they started in 1979.

Very impressive for the only slasher franchise that doesn't have a lead human, so to speak.

So it's finally over - Rest in Peace, CHUCKY - that was quite the run, ya fu*%ing little bastard.

AC

Tootsie and Me

I loved this movie when I saw it in 1982. Loved him in the role, and the beautiful love story at the core. Loved walking out into the sun that day at age 12, and comparing the blue sky to that New York blue sky in the film. I remember hoping they'd make it as a couple.

LOVED seeing it again at the Oxford Theatre last week, and walking out into the exact same blue sky matching the end of the film.
I love it's wit, charm, look, humour and it's performances. I love how beautifully early '80s it is. I appreciate Charles Durning and Dabney Coleman a helluva lot better too.

I love Tootsie - and I love it when a movie you loved in youth is every bit as good or better as an adult.

AC

Merry Christmas!!!

Some thoughts on UNFORGIVEN and 3:10 TO YUMA

I enjoy discovering the genetic material of moviemaking.

Clint Eastwood's UNFORGIVEN is an elegy to the genre, and an excellent example of a revisionist western  ...or is it?
I think it's an extremely interesting film for the fact that it sets itself up in the traditional ways of western storytelling then meta-rides through it's own contempt for the genre wilst utilizing it's tricks to both defy and embolden our ideas of "a western" at the same time. Even the decision to open the story with the respect for women that the genre is know for a definitive lack-of, is a genre-challenging choice that should let us in on the fact that this is going to be a layered intelligent film. The screenplay flirts with conventions while undermining its power with the same tools. Unforgiven, like Will Munny, hates itself whilst respectfully acknowledging the only language it can speak to us in - the language of fear.

I remember seeing it for the first time - I was a wild 21 year old, and the fear in Clint in that end scene - it threw me off, and I wondered why? Why the effect in me, and why the choice to end the film on the note of a seemingly powerful character's fear. Like Chinatown and The French Connection I wasn't sure if I liked it, but it called to me - I needed to understand why Unforgiven was told.

There's a lot of fear in the movie 3:10 TO YUMA as well, and I think this element of humanization is always the way revisionist genre will go. We create stories that mythologize the things we believe in on a grand scale - makes for great entertainment, but association with this is a bit trickier ..broader than the world we reside in. This is where realism, or at least the move towards it has to begin, so that we the audience can find ourselves within the story being told, no matter which character we find association within.
Even as far back as 1957, I think the audience of 3:10 would have been equally split between the motivations of Dan(the good guy) vs the motivations of Ben(the bad guy), and I'd even guess Elmore Leonard's choice of names was deliberate - they're pretty close. Each of these men is trying to be something specific and different, but each seems very much activated by fear. We see each of these men make decisions from different motivations and we understand them.

So much for color-coding cowboys, eh?

Will Munny could easily be Glenn Ford's character and may just be..
as well as being many of Clint's younger, wilder characters.
Is Unforgiven's Director not saying straight up "I've played a lot of violent irresponsible characters - perhaps it's time to atone, at at least address atonement."
Gleaned from David Webb Peoples' screenplay is that yes, Munny was a rather bad cat - drunk, violent and not unlike the scheming womanizer Ben of 3:10, who may just go on to become a better man.
But what does Clint ultimately say about the western and the western archetype by playing this aged antihero who rises to defend the honour of whores?
Plenty, but it's complex. Like his character in Gran Torino, I think Mr. Eastwood is at a point of maturation and recognition of much larger elements to the human story. The phrase "no more" is used quite a bit, illustrating a definite acknowledgement of everything that came before, both in his own career and the genre itself. As the Director of Unforgiven I think Clint saw an opportunity to comment very deeply on his own perception of violence, and when/why it is ugly but necessary. Or maybe it evolved as he recognized it within himself - the grand comment from filmdom's senior tough guy might be "..there's always a smarter way to face your fears than violence".

3:10 to Yuma is an excellent example of a revisionist genre film, whilst Unforgiven is either the ultimate revisionist western, or an extraordinary film-career-socio-commentary-meta-film on the ridiculousness of North American violence really well-disguised as one.


AC

MAN of STEEL

Superman..

..blah blah..
I don't know what everyone's so excited about - fantastic new Superman actor - thoughtful sharp script - cutting edge effects - a cast that challenges the '78 Superman - yeah, what gives..

anyway, I'm off to see Man of Steel for a third time - I'll be back with a proper review..

AC

DIE HARD has FALLEN

I watched an excellent action film this month and it was fun as hell, though bittersweet.
From beginning to end this tale of a man on his own - of impossible odds against a group of terrorists, looks, acts, and feels like the movie I'd absolutely hoped for with Die Hard 5. It was logical - he saves a building in the first - an airport in the second - a city in the third(his city) - the eastern seaboard in number four, and logically - inevitably would be the whole country in number five. Not only would he save the country, but the actual president in his house - goofy, overly patriotic ..perhaps, but Die Hard evolution, baby..
..could have been huge and so much fun if that guy up there kicking ass and saving lives while saying hilarious shit was named John McClane,
but nope.

OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN was a blast, and so close to what A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD should ..could have been - that it embarrasses the makers of the latter.

DH5 is the equivalent of a direct-to-video DH, but my immediate review - the "out-the-door-chatting-with-buddy" review was..

"Ugh - that felt like a two hour television pilot for a high-budget-but-shitty-anyway TV show called DIE HARD: Next Gen or somesuch starring his son, where Bruce Willis would do the occasional lazy cameo during sweeps week."

"Where's the phone? I gotta dial this in..."

The film is fucking atrocious.
It's a messy ill-paced disaster and I honestly can't believe they let this go out as a DIE HARD movie.
The character deserves way better. I would have thought the actor himself would deserve "good quality" but what if someone doesn't know what that is anymore?

I'll never forget seeing DIE HARD at the Oxford Theatre back in 'ol '88. Great memory, that one - Jim, Steve, and I - utterly floored.
DH5 was the inverse experience.
 
I wish I could ask BW if he cares about keeping that franchise intact ..his true hero if you will, but I think I just got the answer. Too bad.


Go see OHF instead - lotta fun.

AC

S K Y F A L L

SKYFALL is the 50th anniversary James Bond movie, and it's the best film they've made yet. It's filled with love of the character, his history, and all delivered in a well-paced tightly written juggernaut of an action/spy thriller.

The film is a MASTERPIECE, and here are a few of the reasons I think so...

1) Bond - By the end of this one, Daniel Craig IS the Ian Flemming character.
2) M - I love Judi Dench, and the Motherly relationship explored so well
3) M's death scene - emotional and anything but gimmicky ..very well delivered.
4) Javier Bardem's SILVA ..wow, best single Bond villain yet
5) Silva's intro scene - exceptional
6) Silva's "advances" on Bond - ballsy stuff, and watch Bond for his disappointment - extremely courageous performance matching the writing perfectly
7) CINEMATOGRAPHY - Roger Deakins is a genius - this is a BEAUTIFUL FILM
8) DIRECTION - Sam Mendes might be made for Bond ..very surprising
9) Moneypenny - yum yum.. she is one charismatic actress
10) Ralph Fiennes - Great addition, and a character well-played
11) Q - I like 'im - great chemistry with Bond
12) The Cuff - Bond fixes himself as he lands off the tractor on the train - Great Moment
13) The Casino - Beautiful, and evocative of Bond in the '70s
14) Silva's Island - too cool ..great Art Design, and a particularly nice evolution of the Bond Baddie Secret Lair - wish I could visit that crazy spot
15) The SUITS ..man, they are nice
16) Bond Assassination and FALL ...what a scene, and it led perfectly into...
17) The Titles - Gorgeous, and thematic ..very nice.
18) The Relationships - Enemy/friend - the character writing is really solid
19) The New MI6 - Stylish, and subterranean - cool
20) Silva's girlfriend - Lovely, but mysterious ..again, evoked memories of the '70s
21) Her Death - Surprising, and his line "Your lovers are here" was oddly chilling
22) The rescue by MI6 - Bond doesn't usually get "the Cavalry" but it worked
23) Silva's "monster face" and origin ..dramatic, but not ridiculous(Robert Carlyle anyone?)
24) The LIGHT FIGHT - simply one of the best staged/photographed fight scenes in Cinema History
25) Bond AGES, and we see it's effects - very human, but still the spy we love
26) M makes mistakes, and is going to be "fired"
27) Mallory's arc from "jerkoff" to "M"
28) Great Script overall
29) Bond's visit to M's house ..fun
30) The ASTON MARTIN DB7 - Glorious, and a very nice touch that Connery's car is Craig's Bond's one passion he reveals.
31) SKYFALL is a great title, and almost makes up for "Quantum of Solace"
32) Skyfall the place - Stark and beautiful - Interesting thing to finally give us some real humanity with JB
33) Good origin tale, and hey ..we knew he and Batman had similar pasts - how could they not?
34) Kincade - I love Albert Finney, and do wonder if Connery would have been asked to play this role ..regardless, he was fantastic, and it was a treat to watch he and Judi Dench flirt it up
35) Watching the three of them turn JB's family home into a "Home Alone" movie was pretty fun
36) The attack on Skyfall, and his car - rough to watch
37) The Final fight with Silva - personal, and well done
38) Almost forgot how much I liked the Adele song too
39) It was long - I love a GOOD long movie
40) The "exploding pen" comment from Q
41) The Women - far less focus on "Bond Girls" and more on making the females relevant
42) Kincade doesn't die
43) Bond on the roof/top of MI6 - nice metaphor
44) The central plot is Silva's revenge on M - Bond is simply in the way - I like that
45) THE BAD GUY WINS - Never happened before - he has one goal, and he does achieve it
46) The Moneypenny reveal
47) The Bulldog gift from M ..nice
48) A BILLION - It made over one billion dollars, and that means someone just might say "Whatever you just did - do it again". Good.
49) "James Bond will Return" - nice 50th anniv. homage to those old ones that had the next film title in a promise at the end
50) THE EJECTOR SEAT GAG!!! - I sooo love that moment "Oh go ahead, Bond - eject me - see if I care.."
What a brilliant moment, not unlike the third "Indy" movie where the first film is reduced to one sound bite joke I thought this was so Mother/Son and just so damn charming. I'll miss her in the series, but boy - what a note to go out on.

Funny, I've seen it twice but having just finished this I think I'll see it again.
How often does a franchise produce it's best work at age 50? Gives me a little faith...

The irony of Bond's "no parents" for this kid is that I've lost mine too
 ..but man I wish I could have taken them to see it.

A.

Lessons of Darkness - Herzog

Brilliant visual experience ...enlightening.

Werner Herzog has fascinated me for years, but this one really got me..
...and I can't stop watching this one DOC, for that motion of camera through the nightmare landscapes, as his voice is becoming a companion to me like a weird old German uncle ...I highly recommend it.

There's beauty, even in the horror of the situation that Herzog is drawn to, that only certain minds can see. I do believe that that is his single greatest motivation, actually - the humanity within the madness humans create...
Black beauty.

Blackbird (2012)

This is the best film of the Atlantic Film Festival here in Halifax this year.

I LOVED it, without that painful caveat of having to say "for a local film"...

It's simply one of the best movies I've seen this year. Extraordinary for it's ground-level-genius, and ultra-consistency of tone/performance.

I'll seek out Jason Buxton, and offer my limited services as a result. This, and a number of others in the fest, are the inspirations for a cat like myself over Hollywood's millions...
I choose artistry and choices as my heroes.

The Long Goodbye (1973)

Great poster - great movie..
What an interesting thing to bring the classic noir into the gritty '70s and mix it up just right.
That's exactly what Robert Altman did with his adaptation of Raymond Chandler's Phillip Marlowe in THE LONG GOODBYE.
Personally, I didn't think Elliot Gould would pull it off, but this is just another of many instances when I'm happy to be way wrong. Took a while to recognize Sterling Hayden, and Marlowe's car was a very nice touch, as were a lot of the "here he is in the nineteen-seventies" moments.
Go watch it ..it's worth it.

A.

Seed of Chucky

Okay, how the fuck did this movie get made? ..seriously?
It's not that it's terrible - it's not, but it is genuinely bizarre.

I will creep you out

This is the weirdest part...












Since I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, I think I'll watch it again ..skim anyway - then attempt a review type o' thing..

ALRIGHT, it's a black comedy with a horror film pedigree, but mostly a strange and sometimes funny Jennifer Tilly movie.

"Hi, my name is Tiffany Ray. Um, you don't know me but, a few years ago I killed your husband, and I am SO sorry."

Even the trailer plays mostly for chuckles, and feels more like '70s Corman than modern Hollywood...

Fun though..

Again, very weird little film, and something much closer to '80s horror/comedy than anything recent.
I'm still not sure if I like it, but am looking forward to #6..
CURSE OF CHUCKY is coming soon...

A.

Ted Talk

YAYY!!! Ted today, and back later with a review...

Well, it's a Seth MacFarlane movie for sure, but emphasis on the movie. Cute and predictable little rom-com in the middle and Mila Kunis is pretty good, got to admit..
but the Ted/John Bennett(Mark Wahlberg) relationship is the story and it is funny. I like Mark Wahlberg best when he's light, though The Fighter is a f'ing great movie - he looks like he's having a good time, but only as much as we are, and man do I hate it when the cast is having more fun than I am ...rrrgggg ...you know that feeling - one of my comedy pet peeves.
It feels like a future classic at the moment but we'll see how it holds up. Took my GF, and her Dad - smart cat, 74 and we all howled. End credit sequence is funnny...
Like Family Guy there are jokes that fall plenty flat but it's on from beginning to end - especially the end..
The whole movie is funny Funny FUNNY ..bit stupid, but..

..TED's a BLAST!!! Go see it.

A.

Kingdom of the Spiders

William Shatner VS Killer Tarantulas - now, that's a logline..

I liked this film quite a bit when I saw it as a boy. I loved it last night as I watched it on a sweltering July evening ..munching snacks and rooting for ol' Billy 'til the sun went down. Perfect night.

Alright, yes - it's a B-movie but as one it's close to perfect. Cool beginning - good middle - great ending - I adore endings like this, and without ruining it I can guess "The Birds" was the principal inspiration. It's not without it's stupid moments, but it rolls along nicely, and I'm already a huge Shatner fan - I just plain dig him - he's hilarious and ambitious beyond even Tom Cruise's insanity. Bill Shatner LOVES being Bill Shatner, and we love him for it.

Lots of very real spiders, and a script that's not afraid to kill kill kill...

Go watch it on YouTube - it's Free!!!

And if you, like myself, love a good "Double-Feature" watch it with Dark Night of the Scarecrow - man, I wish I could get my local Drive-In to play those ..what a night.

cheers, A.

c O s M o P o L i S

WTF?

my brain after COSMOPOLIS

Alright, it forced hours of complex thought - I'll give it that, but wow ..what a weird time @ the movies.

July 10/2012 Okay, it's been a while and I suspect the film has sunk in so...  WTF!!!

It's a very odd ride, but it gave me a genuine appreciation of Mr. Pattinson - I'd discounted him for the Twilight shit, but he can act it turns out.
Paul Giamatti is always good, but boyoboy - Cronenberg - who in God's name were you aiming this bizarre experience at anyway?

I liked his car quite a bit.
A.

P r o m e t h e u s

Will I love it?

Will Will love it?

Will I be conflicted?

Will I lie to myself, and think I loved it?

33 years - will this puzzle piece fit in with the rest?

WHAT lies at the other side of the Universe today? ...we'll see in a few hours...

5 HOURS LATER...

Well, ...conflicted it is
..but good conflicted, for one really good movie lovin' reason..
I enjoyed watching it, and I can't wait to go back and see it again.

Review will be next up, but do I write it before or after seeing it a second time? ..hmmm.

On a cool aside, I'll say what a blast it was to see it tonight after all this waiting - with my GF and some good friends - big screen - center of the theatre - great 3D, and long heated conversations about what we all saw...
which ultimately was Ridley Scott's return to sci-fi..
pretty cool.

The Ghost Train

1941 was a good year for film - Dumbo, Citizen Kane, and a little British thriller called THE GHOST TRAIN.

Next time you have an hour and a half, check it out. It'd make a groovy double-bill with the much more recent Woman in Black, and on that note: I think I like moody British film quite a bit.. 

 ...but I'll have to keep diving in to make sure ..forever.. like Highlander..

Anyway, the film moves along at a perfect pace, and will leave you wondering until the ending, which is kind of clever. The characters are fun and the writing is tight - most of the movie is on one great set - very entertaining.

Arthur Askey is annoyingly excellent - obviously one of those true entertainers of the day - true multi-talented cats - I'd have punched his lights out, but hey..
What a blast - to be honest, I really can't wait to watch it again.

Cheers, A.

Chernobyl Diaries

Two pleasant horror surprises in one week. Groovy.

Where Dead Silence proved to be a homage to old horror, this one is a little ...more modern - nastier, though only for the fact that the tone throughout is about two notches into the more serious. It gets intense quickly, especially with the decision to show us so little of the antagonists - that worked.
This is a pretty decent horror movie - I'll be curious to see a sequel, that's for sure - it had a few really good jumps, and a setting that worked extremely well.

I'd guess complaints will stem from that somewhat ambiguous ending, but holy shit do I ever like those. It is a peculiar particular choice to do that with any film, but I have a damn good imagination - I like it when it has to do some work.

Certainly not hard to tell it came from the Paranormal Activity gang, but again - that's alright, keep 'em coming.

This isn't a great movie, but I'd happily watch it again ...preferably with really jumpy friends.

A.

the S H I N I N G

Where to begin.

This movie really pissed me off the first time I watched it, having just finished reading the novel.

I agreed with Stephen King - what a shitty adaptation of a brilliantly terrifying story. Who was this Stanley Kubrick, and what was he thinking?

A movie from a book is a weird thing. It inevitably draws the comparison, but the two are such different art forms, I have to look at them as works of art based on interpretation - both books and films.


This post'll be a work in progress...

Dead Silence

Pleasant surprise, this little film.
Myself and a few friends watched it probably more to have something to make fun of for two hours than as a serious movie - and as you know, dear reader, that can be great fun.
So here's the catch see ..it's kind of good.
Dead Silence features a decent script, a fun intro, a couple o' moviestars, and a few genuinely scary moments. I dug it, and it's close to the tone I'd like to get up on the bigscreen myself.

Facts being facts, I'm a huge fan of "Evil Puppet" movies - I LOVE 'em, and am now watching MAGIC with Anthony Hopkins ...fun so far, but I digress yet again.
This one is a blast, and I'd watch horror films like it every day if I could. There's a gruesomely serious tone to the "torture porn" movies that is soooo not in this one..
If you like Tales from the Crypt or Trilogy of Terror, or the Chucky movies, you might want to give DEAD SILENCE a try.

A.