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The Devil's Brigade (1968)
Die Teufelsbrigade
It is the height of the Second World War. Someone decided it was time to have a Joint Readiness Brigade. Many did not want to see it succeed so it was consisted of the bottom of the barrel US troops and crack Canadian troops. Naturedly to head this up was Lt. Col. Robert T. Frederick (William Holden), Maj. Alan Crown (Cliff Robertson), and Maj. Cliff Bricker (Vince Edwards).
The film is formula (a "Dirty Dozen" knockoff) where they must give a ragtag motley crew the incentive to become a cohesive fighting machine will a will to win in unorthodox ways. In the process, they will become Die Teufelsbrigade or The Devil's Brigade.
I have to admit that this is fun to watch over again as we see the slow metamorphoses and ask what would I do in their shoes.
The Thing (2011)
You only know it is a prequel in the ending credits
Based on the story "Who Goes There" by John W. Campbell Jr., this is the third effort to convert an excellent Sci-fi story into movie form.
Original story: We find that thousands of years ago a rocket crashed and was buried in the Polar Regions. It was found due to a magnetic disturbance. On extraction, there is an accident. We find a being from another world and another time. The being has powers of deception and shapeshifting. Yet the story is not really of supernatural beings as it is of the people and their relationship to each other. As with many great mysteries, it is always the last person you suspect. That is one of the strong points of Sci-Fi, not the technology as it will come about soon enough; what it is really about is how we deal with our fellow humans under duress.
The first film effort was in the fifties with the movie "The Thing from Another World." Naturally, it complied with the monster movies of the time and starred James Arness in a veggie suit. It was lots of fun, spooky and had some of the original electrical devices from the book. If you like fifties sci-fi, do not miss this one.
This effort was made as a prequel to the1982 Carpenter version when the monster moved from veggie suits to cheap graphics. The graphic tradition is kept on this presentation. There was a need for the story to be fleshed out and Director Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. Did better at portraying people as people than Carpenter did.
Still the story was fluffed out with Carpenter sequel storytelling and misses the point of the book and the film spends too much time with blood and guts to focus on the people's interaction. Sure, there is some interaction or we would not have a movie at all.
The thing in the book was psychic and could read and manipulate the minds that the film overlooks.
In this movie, we have an organic way to determine who the intruder is that is different from the Carpenter movie's detection methods. We end with the beginning of the 1982 version.
Just a note: they supply subtitles for the parts that are not in English.
The Book of Eli (2010)
Mad Max got religion.
There is nothing more to the movie than was promised. It is post-apocalypse and Eli (Denzel Washington) must deliver the last KJB to the west. To do this he must go through Mad Max territory. He makes a stopover in a town ran by Carnegie. Carnegie is Gary Oldman in his Jean Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg character from Le Cinquième Élément (1997). I guess some people are destined always to play the ruthless bad guy.
So, will Eli make it out west and foil Zorg (oops) Carnegie or will the bad guy finally win for once? After all, being ruthless has its advantages. Of course, there has to be a ditzy girl to slow or distract Eli from his mission. In this case, it is Solara (Mila Kunis) who is not aware of the wicked ways of the.
Rio Bravo (1959)
A real western with a little fun tossed in
This is John Wayne. You can spot the formula and most of his supporting actors for other John Wayne movies. O. K. You can also see that it is a Howard Hawks movie. It has that Howard Hawks feel.
Dean Martin plays himself as Dude. And Ricky Nelson as Colorado Ryan fits in this movie. Do I hear a song coming on?
The story is of good guys are holding the Daddy in the jail. All his compadres want him out. It is up to the town characters to prevent this from happening. How this is done or not done in the movie.
There may be something going on between Sheriff John T. Chance (John Wayne) and Feathers (Angie Dickinson.)
The only thing this movie needed to be perfect is black and white hats.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
Godzilla- King of the Monsters (2019)
The only relation to the original 1954 movie is the monster's name. Then there is a series of old Japanese movies where their monsters fight each other.
1954 has no animation and none of that muddled CGI, other than a tad anti-nuclear, with no social-political correctness. None of that forced standard man Vs monster stuff and just good clean entertainment.
Now this version made at "Proletariat 8: A subsection of Warner Bros., composes popular movies that look like marvel comics franchise movies, especially for the proles, using a special machine, rather than human artistic talent.
Be prepared for dazzling color, lots of noise, "stay in the car" scenes, and potty mouth. As a dysfunctional family with a housewife that happens to be a scientist on the side, a ditzy daughter that acts like a six-year-old, has to become functional to save the world. Oh, yeah, there are several known and made-up monsters that want to be controlled for nefarious purposes by an evil standard villain.
Sit back eat your popcorn, do not choke on the kernels, and kibitz all you like.
Double Indemnity (1944)
"Murder can sometimes smell like honeysuckle."
Los Angeles, July 16, 1938.
"I don't like the word confession..." - Walter Neff
A good story that unfolds as a flashback with Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwick, and Edward G. Robinson. Screenplay by Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler from the novel by James M. Cain.
Do not want to go into the details of the movie as that is where the fun is. What can go wrong? Do not panic. I can say that the love sorry in the movie is between Walter Neff and Barton Keyes from the beginning to the end.
Many movies and books are written for their mystery. Others focus on time and place. It is the time and place that fascinated me just as much as the story. Los Angles Railway Corp. I rode both the Red Cars and the Green Cars before they were dumped in the ocean. I even rode the electric buses that replaced the streetcars. They also showed Glendale. The Long Beach oil fields are mentioned (not Signal Hill.) Santa Monica, Palo Alto (a tad to the north), Olvera Street, and so on.
There are a few technical faux pas, however they do not distract from the movie.
It is worth watching several times to see how the details match the story.
Limitless (2011)
Super noisy.
From start to stop this is the noisiest film. Occasionally there are a few known pieces of music from classical masters. Yet, for the most part, it is obscure pieces of music overwhelming the dialog. And what is with the inappropriate rap? Occasionally there is a spot where they still play jingles or extremely loud sounds of glass breaking or footstep noises.
If you can get over the noisy background, the premise is pretty good. I would not want to presume to tell the producers how to improve this film, but it is too much like those soundbite documentaries where they do not complete a thought before moving on to the next thought.
The basic story is Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) a going nowhere would-be writer who stumbles into a situation where he obtains a substance that allows him to utilize parts of his brain that were previously unreachable. Now we are off and running. Where is the substance coming from and are there any side effects? Watch and find out.
If you can get over the noise, there are a few fun spots where you can put yourself in the situation.
If you did not get enough Limitless then you can watch the TV series of the same name.
Troy (2004)
"I lived in the time of Achilles"
This film pretty much follows the story of Homer's Iliad with very few exceptions and a possible ending. However, the few exceptions and ending are what make this story work as a movie instead of a long poem. Stories being told many ways five different insights and there should be no conflict between the reader and viewer and both stories are real to the observer.
For you, that forgot the story and you that know the story well but have not seen this movie we are looking at a story that you may or may not have had an opportunity to sidestep in school but can never have a grasp on social history without it. Some call it real and lost in antiquity. Others say that homer had a Good imagination. And others treat it as an allegory with a historical background.
Brad Pitt who has played fickle people before is excellent in the part of Achilles and is sort of a heel. Nothing less was expected. It was the other actors that played their parts so well that you forgot you were watching the movie.
The story:
Two Trojan princes are the guests of the Spartan ruler Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson). While Menelaus is preoccupied with other matters he leaves his wife, Helen of Sparta (Diane Kruger), to her devices. The younger Trojan prince Paris (Orlando Bloom) is left alone too many times with Helen and decides against everyone else's better judgment to make her Helen of Troy and thus pilfers her from Menelaus.
As a husband, Menelaus is of course miffed. However, his brother the Greek king Agamemnon (Brian Cox) sees this as an opportunity to absorb Troy into his territory. Naturally this spawns a war in which Agamemnon recruits Achilles an extremely gifted and charmed warrior. Achilles goes to make a name for himself. He brings his cronies and his cousin. Together they do many bold and callous things.
I will not go into the details of the war as you either know or will soon know the details. However, I will say that I thought that the Trojan horse was well and realistically designed. And you may want to pay attention to the background music as it is relevant to the film. The gods that fire the war are missing from this presentation.
La casa 4 (Witchcraft) (1989)
David Hasselhoff and Linda Blair
"Witchery" (1989) If it was not for such great popular actors this movie would be lost in obscurity. David Hasselhoff played Prince Simon in Starcrash (1978). Linda Blair played Ida Mae in "Married with Children" TV Series (1986-1997).
Strange things happen like the film runtime is stated as 95 minutes or 96 uncut. But the DVD I placed in the player says 1:36.50 minutes. There are no subtitles so you might have to play the German parts over again as they slur. There is not an overabundance of background music which makes the phony background music more impressive when they use it.
We get a lot of amateur-stilted dialogs; you are just going to have to get over it if you are to make it through the movie.
Linda Sullivan (Catherine Hickland) is a witchy researcher and an overdue virgin. She and her quazi boyfriend investigate a derelict hotel on the coast of Massachusetts.
Same time a family is looking to purchase the hotel. We get to see the boat captain hanging around, an intrepid German actress, a weird portal (like "Hot Tub Time Machine",) a dumb waiter, and much more.
They have time to reflect and so do we. Did I watch the whole thing?
Looks like it could be a pilot for a TV series.
Witchboard (1986)
Formula time passer
Jack and Jill play spooky with a Ouija Board (that looks creepier as time slowly passes due to the director constantly exchanging boards to see if we notice.) Naturally, they conjure up the wrong spirit. The spirit is a Jason want-a-be. We have the dumb cop that figures it out too late.
Of course, no one stays in the car. You just have to ax-cept this film for what it is.
Naturally there is blood and gore. It is not gratuitous as it has a purpose and adds to the ambiance of the movie.
A side note is that the DVD has a commentary (10 years later) and the making of; that is if you finished the movie and are still interested.
If you like movies that can go witchy and no one believes until it is too late then your next view should be Night of the Eagle (1962).
WiseGirls (2002)
Fun formula movie
For those viewers that are enamored of Mariah Carey, she can do no wrong. Those viewers that do not particularly care for her, can do nothing right. The reality is all of the actors were very sufficient for the movie. The bad guys are bad and the good guys are bad. The costumes and dialog fit very well. The story was formula and the standard twists are standard. The only thing that is below par is the "let's wrap this up" ending.
The basic story is of three waitresses that form friendships in an adversarial environment. Each brings their strengths and weakness which balance out. I will not go into detail as the unfolding story is the only attribute the movie has.
Wings of Desire: The Angels Among Us (2003)
Let's fall in love.
Why shouldn't we fall in love?
Our hearts are made of it
Let's take a chance, why be afraid of it?
By: Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler
The basic story is of an angel that after recording life falls in love with life, not just the trapezes artist that he eventually wants to meet in the flesh. We get to follow his transition blow by blow, as he attempts to follow his desire.
Peter Falk as Der Filmstar is a catalyst and the glue to the story. I even mention that Colombo did not have a hat.
The film started unscripted, and the directors and writers had to punt. You may notice this as the story improves. There was a partial start script from Paris Texas.
I took a German class actually several classes about the time of this film. Therefore, some of the film languages are natural, some, I recognize after the subtitles, and some are new. No one slurs the words so this would be a great training film. However, I never made it there so this is as close as I will ever get to 1987 Berlin.
Filmed in:
Berlin, Germany
Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche, Berlin, Germany
Potsdamer Platz, Mitte, Berlin, Germany
Siegessäule, Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany
Staatsbibliothek, Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany
The DVD has a great commentary by director Wim Wenders and Peter Falk, which lets you see what is attempted in the film. So, did they accomplish what they set out to do?
Watch Berlin: Berlin - Die Sinfonie der Großstadt (1927) as a contrast.
Also, do not miss what touts as a sequel but as a standalone revision of this film.
In weiter Ferne, so nah! (1993) with Nastassja Kinski.
Winter's Tale (2014)
Love look at the two of us
Unknown to most of the world is the battle for good and evil over people's souls. Miracles play a big part in the equation. Peter Lake may be part of that equation without being aware of it himself. Pearly Soames (Russell Crowe) is determined not to let that happen.
The story is an interesting story based on a novel by Mark Helprin. For the people that know the novel, most movies are not good enough. However, without knowing the novel that this movie is based on there is a lot of unanswered references. Unfortunately, the version I watch came on a rental disk so it did not have a voice-over commentary to explain the unexplainable.
The costumes were well done. The graphics were reasonable without overwhelming the story. The background music matched the feel and did not overwhelm the dialog.
I do not know if it was intentional, however, it was fun finding major actors in all the strangest places in the film; Will Smith was just being himself. Jennifer Connelly must have felt that she was back in "Labyrinth" (1986.)
Anyway, for those of us that have not read the story before viewing, it was predictable and interesting but nothing exceptional.
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957)
Just a tad over campy
Frank Tashlin's screenplay adapted from the play by George Axelrod (of "Lord Love a Duck" 1966 fame) that was adapted from Frank Tashlin's story, answers the question that has been on our mind "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?"
Rockwell P. Hunter (Tony Randall) comes up with a plan to save the company he works for (Stayput Lipstick) from going down the tubes, by using a well-known movie star that is noted for her kiss, to endorse the product.
The movie star (Jayne Mansfield) has plans of her own with will eventually propel Rock into the limelight from there he may even advance in the company and become a success. And we all know what the big question is.
See if you can recognize the huge cast of supporting actors including Barbara Eden.
The Wild Women of Wongo (1959)
Prehistoric beauties that live by the code of the jungle
The only intelligent animal in the movie, a colorful parrot, narrates this simple story of love, lust, and betrayal.
The main pair of wild women look like white trash in leopard skin and black. They dislike their uggy local tribe's men and may just have to hogtie some men from another tribe from the south. They swim in a large crockpot, or legume of crocodiles, tempting the croc gods with leggy snacks.
Bad acting and stilted duffus dialog do a comedy not make. It is a croc.
However, if you are in need of a good laugh at hokey scenes than this may have some redeeming social value.
A much better representation of wild women is Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death (1989).
Vildheks (2018)
Run-of-the-mill foreign kiddy story.
Based on a book series by Lene Kaaberbøl, it is not as flexible as the movie could be if designed for a movie.
Clara (Gerda Lie Kaas) comes of age to find her mother seemed to forget to tell her of her destiny. She gets scratched by a black cat and everything in her life goes wonky. Yep, she is the one, and has to do the things "The One" has to do to save everything that is "Wild."
I must say the real cutie is May Simón Lifschitz; she plays the evil Kimæra.
I watch the one with the English dubbing. Somewhere out there is the original language version. The trailer is in Danish and they only used basic words so I can see that the dubbing is convenience but not necessary.
This could become a series. However, it was wrapped up well.
Wild in the Streets (1968)
FOURTEEN OR FIGHT
Long before "never trust anyone over thirty" a final solution was proposed in this classic movie.
"Max Frost" (Christopher Jones) has figured out the fundamental flaw in the U. S. Government. "AGE", yep those old fogies are too stuck in their ways to run a government of the people. So, with a little correction, this can be amended. Be sure to see the unique solution for adjusting the government and helping people to retire a tad early. So, is early retirement a bad thing?
Now the real question that "Max" must face is what is old?
Be sure to listen to "The Shape of Things to Come." And look for Bill Mummy of "Lost in Space."
Wholly Moses! (1980)
Plausible history
While touring the Middle East Harvey and Zoey get off the bus and find some scrolls in a cave. They chronicle the life of Herschel; as Harvey starts reading, we are carried back to the actual time and given a first-hand look at what took place with Herschel and Moses. Several times God speaks to Moses and Herschel is in earshot and thinks it is he being addressed.
My favorite scene is when they are both in baskets floating down the Nile and Moses gives Herschel's basket a push-off course and changes the course of history.
Dudley Moore is Harvey/Herschel and Laraine Newman is Zoey/Zerelda. Many great actors are choice picks for the characters. A shortlist:
Richard Prior - Pharaoh
John Ritter - Satan (The Devil)
Lisa Caimano - Baby Moses
John Houseman - The Archangel.
Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
You will be electrified
Everyone can make a good guess as to who was the culprit and you will all be correct. This documentary shows the unleashing of such a great conspiracy that it almost defies belief.
If you are sensitive to the point that you cannot watch animal documentaries that show animals eating animals then you may not want to watch this documentary and the demise of the electric car is just as repulsive.
The film starts with some namby-pamby complaints about the environment. However, it soon gets down to the nitty-gritty details of who and why the electric car had to be stamped out before you found out all the other great benefits of the most successful transformation since sliced bread.
How many people think that the EV1 is still out there and soon they can get one?
How many people were aware of the EV1 and other versions (Toyota's RAV 4) of the electric car?
Today at least we finally have a hybrid plug-in. The world is on track now for an electrifying car future. But this film is still good for knowing the early struggles to get off the ground.
Who Killed 'Doc' Robbin? (1948)
George Zucco surrounded by Little Rascal want-a-be
'Fix-it' Dan Cameron (Whitford Kane) invents an atomic device and is accused of dispatching his financer Doc Hugo Robbin (George Zucco.)
Three-fourths of the movie is a bunch of kids running around in a spooky house with secret passages and being chased by a big gorilla.
One-fourth of the movie is ridiculous and slapstick scenes that add no value to the plot or characters.
The original was filmed in 35mm Cinecolor that was developed by William T. Crispinel and Alan M. Gundelfinger, and in use from 1932 to 1955.
A good movie with George Zucco, the same type of spooky house Topper Returns (1941)
They even play the exact theme song. However, a better story.
American Playhouse: Who Am I This Time? (1982)
Better than the real thing.
What am I saying? This is the real thing. Exceptional acting and well put together. They not only pick the correct main actors Susan Sarandon, and Christopher Walken, but the rest of the cast as well.
Helene Shaw (Susan Sarandon) has always been in love with actors in films. Hardware store clerk, Harry Nash (Christopher Walken) is a method actor who has played many characters hence the title "Who am I this time?" It looks like chemistry is about to take its course or off course. Or a new course altogether.
This film American Playhouse: Season 1, Episode 4 "Who Am I This Time?" is based on a short story by Kurt Vonnegut. I have to admit that I have not read the short story yet. However, if this performance is any indication it looks like I missed one.
I watched the DVD that has a few extras:
Author's Bio
Director's Bio
Neal Miller's Bio
Actor Bios
Study guide (requires a computer)
Trailer.
While You Were Sleeping (1995)
Kitty... rich kitty
This is one of those movies that can be watched over and again. The first time you anticipate what is going to happen. The second time you see where they are setting you up. After a while, you can imagine the scene from the sound. Back to the movie.
There is a nice storyline and it is just believable. However, it is the many small scenes that make you enjoy watching. When Lucy (Sandra Bullock) is confronted in Peter's apartment, Jack his brother is already suspicious of her. Peter's real girlfriend Ashley left her cat there. Lucy says she is just there to feed the cat, Jack smugly says that Peter has no cat. About that time what should come around the corner but the cat. Every time Jack thinks he has the upper hand, Lucy has a plausible explanation. I do not want to say too much, as it is fun to watch for the first time. However, I think you will be able to relate to the scene where the family is talking in the church.
Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? (1968)
"Hello Peter...so you're here"
Waldo Zirrer (Robert Morse) the company accountant is showing off the year's profits when the lights in the North East go out. Naturally, Waldo decides to keep the moneyer...uh shall we say "Safe?"
Ladislaus Walichek (Terry-Thomas) producer has an eye on Margaret Garrison (Doris Day) and wants to keep her in his production. When the lights go out opportunities abound.
Margaret's husband Peter (Patrick O'Neal) has a mutual curiosity for Roberta Lane (Lola Albright) magazine interviewer. What he will find after the blackout may wake him up.
The only people that would be disappointed with this movie are the people expecting a Doris Day formula movie. This movie stands on its own. You can call it a Robert Morse movie with Doris Day in it.
However, I have to admit that the Doris Day sleeping potion scene is one of her best. When she practices "Hello Peter... So, you're here" rivals "That Touch of Mink" where she falls out of the window and says "... See that I'm returned"
All I can say is while you are intrigued with the story and are watching the main characters keep an eye on Otis J. Hendershot Jr.
Where to Invade Next (2015)
From the director of "Canadian Bacon" (1995)
I agree with most people that "Michael Moore" is a dirty word. Most of his productions are tripe. He is one-sided, targeted, and opinionating.
The only film I liked even with the "Michael Moore" input was "Canadian Bacon" (1995). His other presentations were hard to watch without making faces.
However, this presentation with all its Mooreisms and targeted narration brings up some good differences and ideas. People like me will never like Moore. However, many institutions have lost sight of their purpose. So, ignore that Moore is a snot and look at what we may be missing.
We also get entertained by great music.
"This Time" by Irving Berlin
"Mind Heist" by Zack Hemsley
"Colonel Bogey" by Kenneth J. Alford
"Volare Parish Version" by Francisco Migilacci
"Slovenian national anthem 'Zdavljica'"
And many others
Many subjects are covered. One is how the war on drugs can be used to control populations. Has been tried earlier "Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich" by Norman Ohler and Shaun Whiteside.
Even people that want to turn this off after 10 minutes need to make it the last 10 minutes.
Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
Good stage to screen adaptation
Max (Max Records) mistreated, misunderstood and ignored by others escapes to the world of his imagination. There he has to be the one to mistreat, misunderstand, and ignore. This allows him to at least have empathy for the other (real) world and his family.
Lots of nice colors and sharp teeth make the visuals quite fun to watch, like a spoon full of sugar.
This film is more of a psychological coming of age film that is not intended for a younger audience. If you are familiar with Joseph Campbell's coming of age stories you will see the semblance in the film.
The film is impressive for what it is, not what it is advertised as. Australia produces another film with a similar theme called (Bridge to Terabithia' (2007). Besides, Spain came out with a darker version of this theme with "Pan's Labyrinth" (2006). However, one of the closest films to "Where the Wild Things are" is "Phoebe in Wonderland" (2008).
I only saw the Blu-ray version so I cannot compare it to other versions.