'REVENGE'S A DISH BEST SERVED... IN 2160p LINES OF RESOLUTION?' TRIO!
DESPERADO (1995, ARROW 4K UHD) ORCA: THE KILLER WHALE (1977, KINO 4K UHD) BEVERLY HILLS COP III (1994, 4K UHD)
Arrow's new 4K release of Robert Rodriguez's "Desperado" (the only UHD in the 'Mariachi' trilogy Box Set, hence why I got it on its own) looks/sounds better than it ever has before. More importantly, it preserves in a time capsule that glorious mid-90's golden era when Rodriguez built on his rags-to-riches promise from "El Mariachi" and seemed to be the second coming of Quentin Tarantino (whose cameo telling a dirty joke is no accident). It helps a ton that Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek play the impossibly attractive leads, exuding sexuality and charisma in spades. Borrowing from the John Woo school of badassery (Mexican stand-offs, bullet-riddled corpses flying, two-fisted shootouts galore, etc.) and Sam Raimi's remake-doubling-as-a-sequel "Evil Dead II" precedent, "Desperado" isn't a typical action/revenge movie. It's a series of mostly comedic, occasionally bloody, always cinematic vignettes that upends/glorifies action genre tropes for our (and Rodriguez's) amusement. It always bothered me that our hero never seemed concerned that his allies (including the two mariachi buddies that join Banderas for the final battle) drop dead for him to finally confront drug dealing boss Bucho (Joaquim de Almeida), but I've seen enough J! movies to know this is the norm. Underwhelming fade-to-black action finale notwithstanding, "Desperado" just plain rules. 4.5 PEAK DANNY TREJOS (out of five).
Unlike most Italian "Jaws" rip-offs from its era, "Orca: The Killer Whale" (a Dino De Laurentiis production) had a decent budget and great talent in front (Richard Harris, Charlotte Rampling, Will Sampson, Bo Derek in her film debut, etc.) and behind the camera ("Logan's Run" director Michael Anderson, composer Ennio Morricone, etc.). It even flashes some humor (an Orca mauling a great white) but ultimately being a wronged whale's revenge tale (human killed his mate and unborn offspring, 'now it's personal') comes at the expense of the human characters. Captain Nolan (Harris) learning about killer whales for the first time from Rachel (Rampling, narrating subtext to the cheap seats) makes the former seem like an idiot fisherman, until we learn much later that Nolan's looking for quick cash to pay off his boat and return to Ireland. Neither the boat crew nor civilians that join the final voyage have a relationship/chemistry with one another, making this a tension-free countdown toward a predictable conclusion. If this wasn't a childhood favorite (saw it back-to-back with "Jaws" on TV in '83 and considered them equals :-O) it'd be a rental at best. A generous 3 FAKE ICEBERGS (out of five), mostly because the 4K transfer looks fine.
Of the four "Beverly Hills Cop" movies "III" has the second-best inciting incident (death of mentor/boss by shadowy criminals during a badly timed SWAT raid) pushing Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) to return to Beverly Hills to stir some shit up trying to nail down the guilty parties. Unlike the first "BHC" periodically reminding you that Axel was avenging the death of bestie Mikey Tandino (or the first sequel updating us on the health of gunned-down Cap. Bogomil), "III" completely forgets about Inspector Todd after our hero travels West. Foley still has the drive and persistence of a wronged man, but his quest to bring down the criminals operating behind the scenes at the Wonder World theme park feels more like he's pissed at the main bad guy (Timothy Carhart's DeWald) than wanting revenge for a fallen friend/mentor. It's another in an unending litany of flaws (bad direction, absence of key supporting characters, unfunny gags, underwhelming action beats, etc.) that put the franchise on ice for 30 years. "BHC III's" biggest sin remains having script/plot/characters beneath the standards of a never-made Saturday morning cartoon version. 2 OKIE DOKIE SHUFFLES (out of five).
Somewhere between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, a gang of motorcyclists (do three people constitute a gang?) led by a Vietnam veteran with PTSD terrorize, steal, rap€ and kill for fun. The veterinarian husband of a rap€d wife and the young widow of a killed old-timer team up to hunt the bikers down. It's vet vs. vet!
The movie's much more concerned with the Vietnam vet's mental breakdown than revenge, but it'll do for today's category. It's a simple plot, but Meyer manages to squeeze some entertainment and excitement out of it, Stephen Oliver is great as the villain who left part of himself in Vietnam, and Meyer muse Haji is a vision. The dialogue offers gems like "Don't wig out, man. I'm hip!", so you know it's definitely from the 60's.
There is definitely some revenge going on in Motorpsycho, Mikko. The presence of Alex Rocco was a surprise. It is always interesting to see prominent actors before their careers took off. This must be one the first portrayals of a crazed Vietnam veteran in a film. The war was just beginning to escalate in 1965.
Nu xing de fu chou (New Type Revenge) AKA The Nude Body Case In Tokyo is a 1981 Taiwanese movie directed by Yang-Ming Tsai (Phoenix the Raider, The Legend of Broken Sword) and written by Chen Kuo Tai and Chen-hsiang Tai. Sure, it’s a revenge-o-matic, but it’s also a Taiwan Black Movie, so called because it takes real life and goes hard in its depiction of a woman done wrong going for blood.
Ling (Elsa Yeung) is a dance instructor who has learned that her best friend Meihua has been killed in Japan. To add more pain, Meihua’s sister Meifeng is tied up in this, forced into prostitution to pay for the cocaine she’s stolen. Ling saves her, at the cost of her eye, making her into the Frigga of this film.
This is also wildly unfocused and padded, which I loved, because it includes Ling going to watch a KISS band play in the park and attend a sumo match. How this advances the plot is unknown, but then this goes for broke by having Yakuza gangsters torture women by crucifying them upside down before covering them with ants. After all this lunacy, Ling gets all of their victims together for the eye for an eye that they need. Literally.
You will believe that sexy gymnasts can obliterate evil men. This is how it should be.
RANDOM ACTS OF VIOLENCE (2002, Kantz) First-time watch, York Entertainment DVD, 6/10. Mack 10 is trying to seal a big coke deal but Punisher-mode Andre 'Chyna' McCoy is murderously mad at his family being killed years before. This debut film isn't great, but it's not boring. Wonky humor & so-so style don't take too much away from a rap-centric, homegrown crime/revenge story that's under 90 minutes.
Revenge on the Highway aka Silent Thunder (1992, dir. Craig R. Baxley)
Thank the Junesploitation gods! Best thing I've seen this month. Stacy Keach stars as a father seeking revenge on the murderous trucker that killed his son. As a trucker himself he dives into the trucking underworld with his only clue to the killer being his handle: "Python". It's less exploitation-y than I guessed, more interested in being a realistic drama with real characters behaving how they would in this situation. However, it delivers the goods in the 3rd act. I wouldn't dare spoil the identity of the actor who is revealed as "Python" (look up the cast list if you want to have your mind blown). The epic battle-of-the-big-rigs finale is spectacular and satisfying. My highest recommendation.
SEX HUNTER: WET TARGET (1972, dir. Yukihiro Sawada)
Do not let the title fool you: This is a mean-spirited revenge film. The plot revolves around a mixed-race Japanese man, Okamoto, searching for the American servicemen who raped his sister. In jail at the time of the incident, Okamoto has to wait until his release to start his quest for revenge. Things take a distinctively political turn as he learns about a system that lets American military personnel get away with their crimes. There are also some criminal elements that enter the story. Being part of Nikkatsu’s Roman Porno line, Sex Hunter does have its quota of sexy bits, but these also take on a political edge by the conclusion. This is definitely a rough film but also one that showcases the diversity of Nikkatsu’s softcore output.
Candyman (1992): Now that's a movie I haven't seen in a while. I found the 4k recently at the used dvd store, so it was cheap. I'm putting it here because, as in any good slasher, the villain is seeking revenge from some bad treatment he got a long time ago, so I'm counting it. Anyway, the movie's way better than I remember, even if some bits of writing can be 'iffy' (sorry JB, I'm quibbling again), everything is saved by the iconic villain, played by Tony Todd. Clive Barker knows how to write creepy stories and I think Bernard Rose did a good job putting it in screen. It has the kind of slow built that I like in these kinds of movies. I miss Virginia Madsen in movies, not that she stopped doing them, I just haven't watched any of her recent stuff. Should I watch the new Candyman from 2021 or any of the sequels?
The remake is worth seeing as it's a story continuation (but not a sequel) to OG "Candyman," but done in a completely different style. 😎 Don't remember if l've seen the sequels, so if l have seen them they're quite forgettable.
I WANT TO GET EVEN (aka COMMANDO WILDCAT, LADY EXTERMINATOR, VIOLENT KILLER; 1983, Maman Firmansyah) First-time watch, Neon Eagle Blu-ray, 8/10. Eva Arnaz can't catch a break! Her taxi-driving hubby can't get s-e-n-s-u-a-l with violence & local kingpin Cobra thinks she's hot. Cobra doesn't seem that capable, but he runs drugs, buys guns, kidn@ps women & trains his female employees in the martial arts. Revenge begets revenge as the r@pe-revenge formula spreads to revenge-r@pe & back again. There's no newdity & not much gr@phic nastiness, but it's a sleeze-rich environment in this vacation to Indonesia. Your itinerary includes Chekhov's rocket launcher, leather-clad henchwomen, great synth tones, a thug in a Peanuts T-shirt & the kind of moment devotees of HARD TICKET TO HAWAII will enjoy.
The Punisher (2004): The ultimate revenger, the dude's been getting revenge on his family for around 40 years. I always loved that movie despite its changes to the characters and its origins. I never bothered with those things, when they're done well, and I think it's the case here. They're adapting one of the greatest Punisher stories, the reboot written by Garth Ennis in 2000, with Thomas Jane who's doing a great job in the title role. John Travolta is awesome as the bad guy and every secondary characters are great. The action scenes are cool, without being over the top, and I like the theme music. They just made an overall cool movie, it's basically a western. On a side note, the next Punisher movie, subtitled War Zone, is also very good, but a very different tone. The 1989 movie with Dolph Lundgren is a very decent B-movie. And lastly, I'm not a fan of the tv series with John Bernthal.
'REVENGE'S A DISH BEST SERVED... IN 2160p LINES OF RESOLUTION?' TRIO!
ReplyDeleteDESPERADO (1995, ARROW 4K UHD)
ORCA: THE KILLER WHALE (1977, KINO 4K UHD)
BEVERLY HILLS COP III (1994, 4K UHD)
Arrow's new 4K release of Robert Rodriguez's "Desperado" (the only UHD in the 'Mariachi' trilogy Box Set, hence why I got it on its own) looks/sounds better than it ever has before. More importantly, it preserves in a time capsule that glorious mid-90's golden era when Rodriguez built on his rags-to-riches promise from "El Mariachi" and seemed to be the second coming of Quentin Tarantino (whose cameo telling a dirty joke is no accident). It helps a ton that Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek play the impossibly attractive leads, exuding sexuality and charisma in spades. Borrowing from the John Woo school of badassery (Mexican stand-offs, bullet-riddled corpses flying, two-fisted shootouts galore, etc.) and Sam Raimi's remake-doubling-as-a-sequel "Evil Dead II" precedent, "Desperado" isn't a typical action/revenge movie. It's a series of mostly comedic, occasionally bloody, always cinematic vignettes that upends/glorifies action genre tropes for our (and Rodriguez's) amusement. It always bothered me that our hero never seemed concerned that his allies (including the two mariachi buddies that join Banderas for the final battle) drop dead for him to finally confront drug dealing boss Bucho (Joaquim de Almeida), but I've seen enough J! movies to know this is the norm. Underwhelming fade-to-black action finale notwithstanding, "Desperado" just plain rules. 4.5 PEAK DANNY TREJOS (out of five).
Unlike most Italian "Jaws" rip-offs from its era, "Orca: The Killer Whale" (a Dino De Laurentiis production) had a decent budget and great talent in front (Richard Harris, Charlotte Rampling, Will Sampson, Bo Derek in her film debut, etc.) and behind the camera ("Logan's Run" director Michael Anderson, composer Ennio Morricone, etc.). It even flashes some humor (an Orca mauling a great white) but ultimately being a wronged whale's revenge tale (human killed his mate and unborn offspring, 'now it's personal') comes at the expense of the human characters. Captain Nolan (Harris) learning about killer whales for the first time from Rachel (Rampling, narrating subtext to the cheap seats) makes the former seem like an idiot fisherman, until we learn much later that Nolan's looking for quick cash to pay off his boat and return to Ireland. Neither the boat crew nor civilians that join the final voyage have a relationship/chemistry with one another, making this a tension-free countdown toward a predictable conclusion. If this wasn't a childhood favorite (saw it back-to-back with "Jaws" on TV in '83 and considered them equals :-O) it'd be a rental at best. A generous 3 FAKE ICEBERGS (out of five), mostly because the 4K transfer looks fine.
Of the four "Beverly Hills Cop" movies "III" has the second-best inciting incident (death of mentor/boss by shadowy criminals during a badly timed SWAT raid) pushing Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) to return to Beverly Hills to stir some shit up trying to nail down the guilty parties. Unlike the first "BHC" periodically reminding you that Axel was avenging the death of bestie Mikey Tandino (or the first sequel updating us on the health of gunned-down Cap. Bogomil), "III" completely forgets about Inspector Todd after our hero travels West. Foley still has the drive and persistence of a wronged man, but his quest to bring down the criminals operating behind the scenes at the Wonder World theme park feels more like he's pissed at the main bad guy (Timothy Carhart's DeWald) than wanting revenge for a fallen friend/mentor. It's another in an unending litany of flaws (bad direction, absence of key supporting characters, unfunny gags, underwhelming action beats, etc.) that put the franchise on ice for 30 years. "BHC III's" biggest sin remains having script/plot/characters beneath the standards of a never-made Saturday morning cartoon version. 2 OKIE DOKIE SHUFFLES (out of five).
"Of the four "Beverly Hills Cop" movies..."
DeleteCompletely forgot there was a 4th one, and that I saw it. I was confused for a second there
Ironically that 4th Netflix movie would rank an easy 3rd in most fans' "BHC" rankings, IMO. 🥶🤓
DeleteMotorpsycho! (1965, dir. Russ Meyer)
ReplyDeleteSomewhere between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, a gang of motorcyclists (do three people constitute a gang?) led by a Vietnam veteran with PTSD terrorize, steal, rap€ and kill for fun. The veterinarian husband of a rap€d wife and the young widow of a killed old-timer team up to hunt the bikers down. It's vet vs. vet!
The movie's much more concerned with the Vietnam vet's mental breakdown than revenge, but it'll do for today's category. It's a simple plot, but Meyer manages to squeeze some entertainment and excitement out of it, Stephen Oliver is great as the villain who left part of himself in Vietnam, and Meyer muse Haji is a vision. The dialogue offers gems like "Don't wig out, man. I'm hip!", so you know it's definitely from the 60's.
There is definitely some revenge going on in Motorpsycho, Mikko. The presence of Alex Rocco was a surprise. It is always interesting to see prominent actors before their careers took off. This must be one the first portrayals of a crazed Vietnam veteran in a film. The war was just beginning to escalate in 1965.
DeleteSTAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN (1982, Dir. Nicholas Meyer):
ReplyDeleteRicardo Mantalban invented acting in 1982.
Woman Revenger (1981)
ReplyDeleteNu xing de fu chou (New Type Revenge) AKA The Nude Body Case In Tokyo is a 1981 Taiwanese movie directed by Yang-Ming Tsai (Phoenix the Raider, The Legend of Broken Sword) and written by Chen Kuo Tai and Chen-hsiang Tai. Sure, it’s a revenge-o-matic, but it’s also a Taiwan Black Movie, so called because it takes real life and goes hard in its depiction of a woman done wrong going for blood.
Ling (Elsa Yeung) is a dance instructor who has learned that her best friend Meihua has been killed in Japan. To add more pain, Meihua’s sister Meifeng is tied up in this, forced into prostitution to pay for the cocaine she’s stolen. Ling saves her, at the cost of her eye, making her into the Frigga of this film.
This is also wildly unfocused and padded, which I loved, because it includes Ling going to watch a KISS band play in the park and attend a sumo match. How this advances the plot is unknown, but then this goes for broke by having Yakuza gangsters torture women by crucifying them upside down before covering them with ants. After all this lunacy, Ling gets all of their victims together for the eye for an eye that they need. Literally.
You will believe that sexy gymnasts can obliterate evil men. This is how it should be.
Sounds great! Added to watchlist...
DeleteRANDOM ACTS OF VIOLENCE (2002, Kantz)
ReplyDeleteFirst-time watch, York Entertainment DVD, 6/10.
Mack 10 is trying to seal a big coke deal but Punisher-mode Andre 'Chyna' McCoy is murderously mad at his family being killed years before. This debut film isn't great, but it's not boring. Wonky humor & so-so style don't take too much away from a rap-centric, homegrown crime/revenge story that's under 90 minutes.
You had me at "film isn't great, but it's not boring". I'll seek it out
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteIt's a niche item. A niche to scratch.
DeleteRevenge on the Highway aka Silent Thunder (1992, dir. Craig R. Baxley)
ReplyDeleteThank the Junesploitation gods! Best thing I've seen this month. Stacy Keach stars as a father seeking revenge on the murderous trucker that killed his son. As a trucker himself he dives into the trucking underworld with his only clue to the killer being his handle: "Python". It's less exploitation-y than I guessed, more interested in being a realistic drama with real characters behaving how they would in this situation. However, it delivers the goods in the 3rd act. I wouldn't dare spoil the identity of the actor who is revealed as "Python" (look up the cast list if you want to have your mind blown). The epic battle-of-the-big-rigs finale is spectacular and satisfying. My highest recommendation.
👌😃
DeleteSEX HUNTER: WET TARGET (1972, dir. Yukihiro Sawada)
ReplyDeleteDo not let the title fool you: This is a mean-spirited revenge film. The plot revolves around a mixed-race Japanese man, Okamoto, searching for the American servicemen who raped his sister. In jail at the time of the incident, Okamoto has to wait until his release to start his quest for revenge. Things take a distinctively political turn as he learns about a system that lets American military personnel get away with their crimes. There are also some criminal elements that enter the story. Being part of Nikkatsu’s Roman Porno line, Sex Hunter does have its quota of sexy bits, but these also take on a political edge by the conclusion. This is definitely a rough film but also one that showcases the diversity of Nikkatsu’s softcore output.
Candyman (1992): Now that's a movie I haven't seen in a while. I found the 4k recently at the used dvd store, so it was cheap. I'm putting it here because, as in any good slasher, the villain is seeking revenge from some bad treatment he got a long time ago, so I'm counting it. Anyway, the movie's way better than I remember, even if some bits of writing can be 'iffy' (sorry JB, I'm quibbling again), everything is saved by the iconic villain, played by Tony Todd. Clive Barker knows how to write creepy stories and I think Bernard Rose did a good job putting it in screen. It has the kind of slow built that I like in these kinds of movies. I miss Virginia Madsen in movies, not that she stopped doing them, I just haven't watched any of her recent stuff. Should I watch the new Candyman from 2021 or any of the sequels?
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen the 2021 version. The initial sequels offer diminishing returns.
DeleteThe remake is worth seeing as it's a story continuation (but not a sequel) to OG "Candyman," but done in a completely different style. 😎 Don't remember if l've seen the sequels, so if l have seen them they're quite forgettable.
DeleteAll right, I'll check out the remake
DeleteI WANT TO GET EVEN (aka COMMANDO WILDCAT, LADY EXTERMINATOR, VIOLENT KILLER; 1983, Maman Firmansyah)
ReplyDeleteFirst-time watch, Neon Eagle Blu-ray, 8/10.
Eva Arnaz can't catch a break! Her taxi-driving hubby can't get s-e-n-s-u-a-l with violence & local kingpin Cobra thinks she's hot. Cobra doesn't seem that capable, but he runs drugs, buys guns, kidn@ps women & trains his female employees in the martial arts. Revenge begets revenge as the r@pe-revenge formula spreads to revenge-r@pe & back again. There's no newdity & not much gr@phic nastiness, but it's a sleeze-rich environment in this vacation to Indonesia. Your itinerary includes Chekhov's rocket launcher, leather-clad henchwomen, great synth tones, a thug in a Peanuts T-shirt & the kind of moment devotees of HARD TICKET TO HAWAII will enjoy.
The Punisher (2004): The ultimate revenger, the dude's been getting revenge on his family for around 40 years. I always loved that movie despite its changes to the characters and its origins. I never bothered with those things, when they're done well, and I think it's the case here. They're adapting one of the greatest Punisher stories, the reboot written by Garth Ennis in 2000, with Thomas Jane who's doing a great job in the title role. John Travolta is awesome as the bad guy and every secondary characters are great. The action scenes are cool, without being over the top, and I like the theme music. They just made an overall cool movie, it's basically a western. On a side note, the next Punisher movie, subtitled War Zone, is also very good, but a very different tone. The 1989 movie with Dolph Lundgren is a very decent B-movie. And lastly, I'm not a fan of the tv series with John Bernthal.
ReplyDelete