{insert 200 meme images of da pope w chicago references}
Nothing But Trouble (1991 Sling)
#1: The Bernstein/Berenstain Bear situation is absolute evidence that something occasionally messes with our timeline/reality. The fact that Dan Aykroyd wrote, directed, stared in a batshit crazy movie with Chevy Chase and John Candy and it was off my radar for over 30 years is further evidence of said timeline/reality chicanery!
#2: Stephen King directed/wrote only one movie. Maximum Overdrive. Opinions vary wildly (its a hot mess that i adore). But its very clear that he channeled his inner 12 year old when building the content: tons of AC/DC, killer cars, crazy deaths (including a little league massacre), basement full of guns, antiestablishment hero who gets the girl, and so on. This....finally....brings me to my review.......
My mind was blown during the opening credits as i didnt know Aykroyd ever directed. Turns out he did...only once. And, as with my king comment above, i think he did the exact same thing. channeled his inner 12 year old: insane haunted fun house filled with traps/gadgets/rube-goldberg-inventions, freaky judges, mutant men babies, run ins with the law, meat grinder deaths, random musical number, incredibly huge sets filled with random sh@t, and so on. All of that, COMBINED with Candy, Chevy, Demi, Taylor Negron, and this flick should have been a cult comedy classic in the vein of Strange Brew. Alas theres one small catch....the writing is terribly boring. It all happens but does so with no sense of humor or character other than "everything looks weird". A shame really as this could have been epic.
#3: During the scene where the group Digital Underground (w Tupac!?) randomly shows up and does a musical number (which i enjoyed) it occured to me that this film very much pairs with the FAR better but equally lost in time Doctor Detroit. Dan plays multiple quirky, weird, over the top, characters in a wacky comedy and finds ways to interject musical numbers.
Going on Nothing But Trouble and Doctor Detroit imdb pages is a bad idea, there's a ton of recommendation for other 80s comedies. Some i need to rewatch, some i never saw. Those were the days 😁
The Luckiest Man in America (2024): I know why, but every time I see Paul Walter Hauser in a movie, I'm impressed by how good he is. And I know he is, I shouldn't be surprised because I've seen him in a lot of stuff, and sometimes he's the reason why I'm watching the movie. Anyway, he's still good here and the movie's good. I was aware of the history of the events adapted here, they obviously changed a few things, like they usually do.
Brotherhood of the Wolf (Le pacte des loups, 2001): An okay movie full of style, that was well received back then, still well reviewed now, but I couldn't get into it. 24 years later, I still can't get into it. That's too bad, because it's really well made. Mark Dacascos character is by far the most interesting, but obviously gets killed midway through.
Kill Them All and Come Back Alone (1968): An Italian director, shot in Spain, with Italian and English audio tracks, an international cast, and the title appears in French. All the things we love from a good Spaghetti Western. I really like this genre, but I'm severely behind in my knowledge, so I do what I can. There's always something interesting in those movies, even the boring ones I can't help but watch, these Italian dudes are crazy. I bought this on a whim because it's 2 movies (with The Hellbenders (1967) in glorious 4k, and the genre is underrepresented in that format.
I was wandering through the Night Flight app. after wrestling last night and couldn’t settle on what to watch until I was reminded of this weird little documentary that’s been on my watchlist for awhile. Grew up a big Detroit Rock City fan and once I realized it was directed by Adam Rifkin (The Chase) decided to pull the trigger. It’s a fun, strange little insight into the world of outsider art, father and son relationships, and L.A. poverty. Highly recommend if you dig Harmony Korine, Jackass, Daniel Johnston, or simply movies about filmmaking.
Today, during work, I plan on rewatching Tremors for comfort, possibly finishing Joe Bob’s Vamp presentation, and another hour of the massive (endless) Doc. of Chucky.
Tonight, films will take a backseat to more wrasslin’ at least for awhile. Maybe I’ll be feeling spicy and cue up an early Mother’s Day feature.
I got to quite a few films during the week and watched parts of others. Some of those I will finish at a later time. Tonight I am going to a Russ Meyer double feature of UP! and MOTOR PSYCHO at the Gap Theatre. With Motor Psycho being a midnight screening, it will be a late night.
ZIGEUNERWEISEN (1980, dir. Seijun Suzuki) – This was the return of Seijun Suzuki to prominence in the Japanese film industry after more than a decade of blacklisting. With the art-house narrative style, Zigeunerweisen is a departure from the genre films he became famous for. Two men, a German professor at a military academy and a former colleague who has abandoned respectability for a wandering existence, have a quirky friendship that takes many turns in early 20th-century Japan. The contrast between the disciplined professor and the wild, impulsive life of his friend forms the bulk of the narrative. There is much that remains deliberately ambiguous in the film, with the weirdness getting stronger by the conclusion. Though not a work of entertainment, it is interesting as part of the evolution of a filmmaker.
GOING ATTRACTIONS: THE DEFINITIVE STORY OF THE AMERICAN DRIVE-IN MOVIE (2013, dir. April Wright) – I have no recollection of watching this documentary before, but I certainly would have if I ever encountered it. The history of drive-in movie theaters is chronicled randomly, but that seems to be the case with any of the drive-in documentaries out there. It all depends on the people that do the talking in the film. Overall, it is a genial look at drive-ins and the personal histories connected to them.
TOMBSTONE (1993, dir. George Cosmatos) – With the passing of Val Kilmer and recent a television broadcast on the Fox movie channel (FXM), I decided it was finally time to see it. Even with the clipped aspect ratio (formatted to 16:9) of this version, the cinematic qualities of Tombstone shine. In particular, the sequence in the closing credits of the main characters walking up a street is amazing. So much machismo in one image. That cast is beyond terrific. Although the real life of Wyatt Earp was not quite like the story in the film, the western genre is about so much more than history.
THE LEECH WOMAN (1960) – Another culturally sensitive B-movie portrait of Africa. The natives dance around holding spears and shields or carry the supplies for a jungle expedition. Of course, there is plenty of stock footage of elephants and other animals that do not even live in the same environments. This is a fun film blending the jungle adventure of a search for an elixir of youth with marital melodrama. It does go into some of the same territory as The Substance, but certainly not at the intensity of the later film.
Tombstone has come up so much lately on podcasts and im DYING to revisit but i really wanna watch in 4k and that disc is crazy impossible to get right now (thou i heard they'll be making more). Just rewatched the Val doc, which is awesome, and loved the bits from Tombstone. The final scene with Wyatt is incredible.
{insert 200 meme images of da pope w chicago references}
ReplyDeleteNothing But Trouble (1991 Sling)
#1: The Bernstein/Berenstain Bear situation is absolute evidence that something occasionally messes with our timeline/reality. The fact that Dan Aykroyd wrote, directed, stared in a batshit crazy movie with Chevy Chase and John Candy and it was off my radar for over 30 years is further evidence of said timeline/reality chicanery!
#2: Stephen King directed/wrote only one movie. Maximum Overdrive. Opinions vary wildly (its a hot mess that i adore). But its very clear that he channeled his inner 12 year old when building the content: tons of AC/DC, killer cars, crazy deaths (including a little league massacre), basement full of guns, antiestablishment hero who gets the girl, and so on. This....finally....brings me to my review.......
My mind was blown during the opening credits as i didnt know Aykroyd ever directed. Turns out he did...only once. And, as with my king comment above, i think he did the exact same thing. channeled his inner 12 year old: insane haunted fun house filled with traps/gadgets/rube-goldberg-inventions, freaky judges, mutant men babies, run ins with the law, meat grinder deaths, random musical number, incredibly huge sets filled with random sh@t, and so on. All of that, COMBINED with Candy, Chevy, Demi, Taylor Negron, and this flick should have been a cult comedy classic in the vein of Strange Brew. Alas theres one small catch....the writing is terribly boring. It all happens but does so with no sense of humor or character other than "everything looks weird". A shame really as this could have been epic.
#3: During the scene where the group Digital Underground (w Tupac!?) randomly shows up and does a musical number (which i enjoyed) it occured to me that this film very much pairs with the FAR better but equally lost in time Doctor Detroit. Dan plays multiple quirky, weird, over the top, characters in a wacky comedy and finds ways to interject musical numbers.
Going on Nothing But Trouble and Doctor Detroit imdb pages is a bad idea, there's a ton of recommendation for other 80s comedies. Some i need to rewatch, some i never saw. Those were the days 😁
DeleteNothing But Trouble is always going to be remembered more for "Same Song" being Tupac's debut as a rapper than the movie itself.
DeleteThe Luckiest Man in America (2024): I know why, but every time I see Paul Walter Hauser in a movie, I'm impressed by how good he is. And I know he is, I shouldn't be surprised because I've seen him in a lot of stuff, and sometimes he's the reason why I'm watching the movie. Anyway, he's still good here and the movie's good. I was aware of the history of the events adapted here, they obviously changed a few things, like they usually do.
ReplyDeleteBrotherhood of the Wolf (Le pacte des loups, 2001): An okay movie full of style, that was well received back then, still well reviewed now, but I couldn't get into it. 24 years later, I still can't get into it. That's too bad, because it's really well made. Mark Dacascos character is by far the most interesting, but obviously gets killed midway through.
Kill Them All and Come Back Alone (1968): An Italian director, shot in Spain, with Italian and English audio tracks, an international cast, and the title appears in French. All the things we love from a good Spaghetti Western. I really like this genre, but I'm severely behind in my knowledge, so I do what I can. There's always something interesting in those movies, even the boring ones I can't help but watch, these Italian dudes are crazy. I bought this on a whim because it's 2 movies (with The Hellbenders (1967) in glorious 4k, and the genre is underrepresented in that format.
Giuseppe Makes a Movie (2014)
ReplyDeleteI was wandering through the Night Flight app. after wrestling last night and couldn’t settle on what to watch until I was reminded of this weird little documentary that’s been on my watchlist for awhile. Grew up a big Detroit Rock City fan and once I realized it was directed by Adam Rifkin (The Chase) decided to pull the trigger. It’s a fun, strange little insight into the world of outsider art, father and son relationships, and L.A. poverty. Highly recommend if you dig Harmony Korine, Jackass, Daniel Johnston, or simply movies about filmmaking.
Today, during work, I plan on rewatching Tremors for comfort, possibly finishing Joe Bob’s Vamp presentation, and another hour of the massive (endless) Doc. of Chucky.
Tonight, films will take a backseat to more wrasslin’ at least for awhile. Maybe I’ll be feeling spicy and cue up an early Mother’s Day feature.
Good weekend to everyone.
ReplyDeleteI got to quite a few films during the week and watched parts of others. Some of those I will finish at a later time. Tonight I am going to a Russ Meyer double feature of UP! and MOTOR PSYCHO at the Gap Theatre. With Motor Psycho being a midnight screening, it will be a late night.
ZIGEUNERWEISEN (1980, dir. Seijun Suzuki) – This was the return of Seijun Suzuki to prominence in the Japanese film industry after more than a decade of blacklisting. With the art-house narrative style, Zigeunerweisen is a departure from the genre films he became famous for. Two men, a German professor at a military academy and a former colleague who has abandoned respectability for a wandering existence, have a quirky friendship that takes many turns in early 20th-century Japan. The contrast between the disciplined professor and the wild, impulsive life of his friend forms the bulk of the narrative. There is much that remains deliberately ambiguous in the film, with the weirdness getting stronger by the conclusion. Though not a work of entertainment, it is interesting as part of the evolution of a filmmaker.
GOING ATTRACTIONS: THE DEFINITIVE STORY OF THE AMERICAN DRIVE-IN MOVIE (2013, dir. April Wright) – I have no recollection of watching this documentary before, but I certainly would have if I ever encountered it. The history of drive-in movie theaters is chronicled randomly, but that seems to be the case with any of the drive-in documentaries out there. It all depends on the people that do the talking in the film. Overall, it is a genial look at drive-ins and the personal histories connected to them.
TOMBSTONE (1993, dir. George Cosmatos) – With the passing of Val Kilmer and recent a television broadcast on the Fox movie channel (FXM), I decided it was finally time to see it. Even with the clipped aspect ratio (formatted to 16:9) of this version, the cinematic qualities of Tombstone shine. In particular, the sequence in the closing credits of the main characters walking up a street is amazing. So much machismo in one image. That cast is beyond terrific. Although the real life of Wyatt Earp was not quite like the story in the film, the western genre is about so much more than history.
THE LEECH WOMAN (1960) – Another culturally sensitive B-movie portrait of Africa. The natives dance around holding spears and shields or carry the supplies for a jungle expedition. Of course, there is plenty of stock footage of elephants and other animals that do not even live in the same environments. This is a fun film blending the jungle adventure of a search for an elixir of youth with marital melodrama. It does go into some of the same territory as The Substance, but certainly not at the intensity of the later film.
Just bought the Tombstone 4k disc, but it's still in the mail. Can't wait to re watch it
DeleteTombstone is a film that would look great in 4k. The visuals are one its strong points.
DeleteTombstone has come up so much lately on podcasts and im DYING to revisit but i really wanna watch in 4k and that disc is crazy impossible to get right now (thou i heard they'll be making more). Just rewatched the Val doc, which is awesome, and loved the bits from Tombstone. The final scene with Wyatt is incredible.
DeleteGot mine from the UK, tired of waiting for the US to get more. Though by the time it gets here, i'm sure US will be available 😵💫
Delete