I thoroughly enjoyed this remake, much more than I was expecting. It was better than the original, in almost every way. It didn't take me long to arrive at that conclusion as I was watching it, since the original was mediocre.
Reviews
8 Reviews
Scarface
(1983)
The epic rise of a Cuban gangster...
26 May 2017
If you know what kind of person I am, it should come as no surprise that Scarface is one of if not my favourite movie of all time. Of course, you likely don't know what kind of person I am, because chances are, you've never met me; but I'll put it out there for you, I am obsessed with organised crime. This film is full of action, witty (if somewhat cheesy) dialogue and a lead character who is likable, even though he is a scumbag.
The film tells the story of Tony Montana, a Cuban refugee who arrives in Miami, Florida. He, his best friend Manny and a bunch of other thugs from Cuba, get involved in Miami's filthy criminal underworld run mainly by violent South American gangsters. Needless to say, things do get bloody.
If you're a fan of gangster movies and you haven't seen this, you need to. It's a classic that will never die!!
The film tells the story of Tony Montana, a Cuban refugee who arrives in Miami, Florida. He, his best friend Manny and a bunch of other thugs from Cuba, get involved in Miami's filthy criminal underworld run mainly by violent South American gangsters. Needless to say, things do get bloody.
If you're a fan of gangster movies and you haven't seen this, you need to. It's a classic that will never die!!
The Exterminator
(1980)
Has it's moments...
13 May 2017
The Exterminator tells the story of John Eastland, a former Vietnam war veteran whom goes on a vigilante killing spree after his best friend is viciously attacked by a group of thugs. Meanwhile, a detective, James Dalton tries to stop him.
For the most part, this film is extremely dull. It draws itself out for far too long, and there is a subplot where the detective starts dating a nurse, which is completely unnecessary as it adds nothing to the plot. It's as if the director thought the film wasn't long enough so he tried to find excuses for it to be longer.
While this film does have it's share of exciting scenes from time to time, it really doesn't have much else going for it. The acting isn't bad; not top notch, but acceptable.
If you are after a good vigilante thriller, you could do worse than 'The Exterminator.' Then again, you could do a lot better too.
For the most part, this film is extremely dull. It draws itself out for far too long, and there is a subplot where the detective starts dating a nurse, which is completely unnecessary as it adds nothing to the plot. It's as if the director thought the film wasn't long enough so he tried to find excuses for it to be longer.
While this film does have it's share of exciting scenes from time to time, it really doesn't have much else going for it. The acting isn't bad; not top notch, but acceptable.
If you are after a good vigilante thriller, you could do worse than 'The Exterminator.' Then again, you could do a lot better too.
Dead Calm
(1989)
In the middle of open water, no one can hear you scream!
13 May 2017
Warning: Spoilers
After their son is killed in a horrific car accident, Ray and John Ingram (Nichole Kidman & Sam Neill) decide to take a yacht cruise to the middle of open ocean, in order to put their minds off the whole ordeal. They come upon a sinking schooner and rescue a man, Hughie Wariner (played fantastically by Billy Zane) whom is frantically rowing away from it in a dinghy. Hughie insists that the rest of the crew from the schooner have all died from food poisoning. John is not convinced however, as Hughie seems somewhat odd. After putting him to bed, he decides to investigate the schooner for himself. Leaving Ray alone with Hughie, he rows over to the schooner in the dinghy, and once there, he discovers that the entire crew has been brutally murdered. Before he can go back to warn Ray, she is taken captive by Hughie, whom takes control of their boat and drives it away.
This is a film I'm sure Alfred Hitchcock would have been proud of. It doesn't rely on bucket loads of blood and gore to scare you, instead it relies on suspense and atmosphere. There is an incredible sense of isolation out in the middle of open water, because there is no one there to help you, which is one factor that makes this film so effective. Billy Zane does an extremely good job at playing a mentally ill individual, the kind of man you would not want to be stuck on a boat with. You can tell from the get go that he is not right in the head; a result of a brilliant performance. Sam Neill also does a good job and plays a likable hero who you root for. Nichole Kidman is the worst of the three but she does okay for the part she's given. At times, her acting can come off as wooden but this didn't ruin the movie for me. Graeme Revell's musical score is extremely memorable and worth noting. The film wouldn't be nearly as effective without it.
If you have a taste for psychological thrillers without extreme blood and gore, I strongly recommend you give this film a watch.
This is a film I'm sure Alfred Hitchcock would have been proud of. It doesn't rely on bucket loads of blood and gore to scare you, instead it relies on suspense and atmosphere. There is an incredible sense of isolation out in the middle of open water, because there is no one there to help you, which is one factor that makes this film so effective. Billy Zane does an extremely good job at playing a mentally ill individual, the kind of man you would not want to be stuck on a boat with. You can tell from the get go that he is not right in the head; a result of a brilliant performance. Sam Neill also does a good job and plays a likable hero who you root for. Nichole Kidman is the worst of the three but she does okay for the part she's given. At times, her acting can come off as wooden but this didn't ruin the movie for me. Graeme Revell's musical score is extremely memorable and worth noting. The film wouldn't be nearly as effective without it.
If you have a taste for psychological thrillers without extreme blood and gore, I strongly recommend you give this film a watch.
Halloween
(2007)
By far the worst remake in cinema history...
5 March 2017
Warning: Spoilers
I might as well spoil everything that happens in this abomination disguised as a film because It'll save you an odd hour and 40 minutes of your life. Will I spoil the whole thing though? Let's just see what happens... Rob Zombie basically takes everything that made the original such a classic and flushes them down the toilet. It seems that Rob Zombie finds excessive swearing to be cool so he has every character drop the F bomb every 2 minutes. Now I'm not one of those people that gets all offended when people swear, in fact I myself love to swear, but it is so overused in this film that it just becomes sleazy and irritating. The movie is extremely violent, more so than the original, but that aspect did not bother me, however some of the death scenes in the film are so badly executed that they had me face palming. There is a scene where Michael Myers kills Laurie Strode's (step)father and it happens so fast that you hardly have a chance to even acknowledge what in the hell just happens. He just appears out of thin air and slashes his throat in literally 2 seconds flat, and you as the audience are like, "what in the hell just happened??" There is a gratuitous rape scene that was completely unnecessary and should not have been in the film at all. It seems as if Rob Zombie just put there for shock value. I don't have a problem with rape scenes in films, so long as they are relevant to the plot, which is definitely not the case here. I felt absolutely no sympathy for most of the victims. Michael's sister is a skank and Laurie's school friends are annoying, so it's actually a relief when they are killed off. Even Laurie Strode herself, who was a likable character in the original film who you cared about, is hard to feel any sympathy for. Do yourself a favour and skip this movie, I mean crapfest. To call this thing a 'movie' is insulting to movies.
Bullitt
(1968)
A timeless classic...
14 October 2016
In addition to the brilliant car chase that this film is most well known for, it also has a brilliant soundtrack, nail biting suspense and a likable lead character. I think what sets Frank Bullitt apart from other action heroes is how he doesn't spit out witty one liners like Dirty Harry or John McLean from 'Die Hard' He is instead a realistic man who you could meet anywhere. This is a film you should definitely watch if you haven't done so already. It has stood the test of time and is as exciting today as it was back in 1968. It can be slow moving at times but it makes up for it with it's brilliant action scenes, made better by the fact there is no pretentious CGI. Highly recommended...
Trespass
(2011)
Didn't do much for me...
24 September 2016
Warning: Spoilers
The biggest problem with 'Trespass' is that I found the villains to be extremely weak. They try to act tough but you get the sense that they are just a bunch of cowards, because they keep backing away; for example when Nicholas Cage's character refuses to open the safe, the head bad guy runs up and points the gun at Nicole Kidman's head to try and scare him into opening it, but you can tell that he isn't going to shoot her. He has plenty of excuses to kill someone throughout the film but doesn't take advantage of any, because he (Ben Mendelsohn) and the rest of his crew just don't have it in them to cause any serious harm. It really takes any tension out of the film. If you want my advice, skip this one and go and watch the Spanish home invasion thriller, 'Secuestrados' (Kidnapped). It has a very similar premise to Trespass but it is much more tense and frightening, because the villains in that film are extremely ruthless. You get the sense that they have little to no regard for human life and will sop at nothing to get what they want. In this sense, it is much more visceral and stomach churning. I didn't care much for the main characters in this film. Nicholas Cage comes across as an idiot and you actually want to see him die, which is frustrating since he doesn't. I did find the subplot of Nicole Kidman having had an affair with one of the baddies, but that didn't do much to save this highly forgettable film. The daughter (Liana Liberato) is your classic annoying teenaged girl who I also wanted to see die. To be honest I wanted everyone dead early on so this film would be over.
So there you have it, I'm not recommending this film, but go out and see it if you really want to. It's important to make up your own opinion...
So there you have it, I'm not recommending this film, but go out and see it if you really want to. It's important to make up your own opinion...
Single White Female
(1992)
Meh...
20 September 2016
Having liked 'Fatal Attraction' and 'Play Misty For Me,' I thought that I would enjoy this film just as much, considering it has a somewhat similar premise. Sadly, I was disappointed. Now, I didn't hate the film, thus why I was kind enough to give it 4 stars out of 10, but it just didn't do much for me. I found Hedy to be an unconvincing villain. She just doesn't come across as crazy as Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction or Jessica Walter in PMFM. I can't recommend this film, but I'm not going to say don't go out and see it. It is worth seeing for you to make up your opinion about it. You might like it. I know there are many people out there that did enjoy this movie and I can definitely see why. It just didn't apply to my taste...
On the plus sides, the acting was good. Not great but good. Everyone does a good job. You might disagree, but I personally didn't find there to be anything wrong with the acting. If you are into gratuitous nudity that adds absolutely nothing to the plot, this is definitely a movie for you. I personally don't have any problem with that. If a movie wants to be sexy, it has every right to be. Jennifer Jason Leigh is a very attractive girl in this movie and you have plenty of moments seeing her bare flesh laid out for the camera to view. I can't say the same for Bridget Fonda. It must be the hair (on her head) but I didn't find her attractive. You might disagree though...
So there you have it. Go out and see the movie and make up your own mind....
On the plus sides, the acting was good. Not great but good. Everyone does a good job. You might disagree, but I personally didn't find there to be anything wrong with the acting. If you are into gratuitous nudity that adds absolutely nothing to the plot, this is definitely a movie for you. I personally don't have any problem with that. If a movie wants to be sexy, it has every right to be. Jennifer Jason Leigh is a very attractive girl in this movie and you have plenty of moments seeing her bare flesh laid out for the camera to view. I can't say the same for Bridget Fonda. It must be the hair (on her head) but I didn't find her attractive. You might disagree though...
So there you have it. Go out and see the movie and make up your own mind....
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