Change Your Image
blackstone454
Reviews
Danger Word (2013)
Compact and compelling
This movie is well worth a look for a few reasons.
As a short movie in the horror genre, it builds tension, suspense, plot and character in 20 minutes.
It was made via social crowd funding.
It featured heartbreaking performances by veteran character actor Frankie Faison and young Saoirse Scott as grand-father and grand daughter fighting for survival.
It adds new twists to a crowded sub-genre of horror: zombies.
It was written by Steven Barnes ( a sci-fi novelist and screenwriter ) and Tananarive Due (also a novelist) based upon a book they co-wrote.
Check it out!
Faster (2010)
Parker for the 21 Century
I was surprised by this somewhat. I expected a brainless revenge thriller. What I got was a nicely crafted caper, a throwback, a homage, to several genre films.
The storytelling was straight to the point, almost linear. A vengeful juggernaut-The Rock-gets out of jail and seeks revenge for his murdered brother. He's as focused as a laser missile. An eclectic cast of characters are in his way. A strung-out cop out for redemption (Billy Bob Thornton), a neurotic hit-man and various unsavory people.
I thought this was nice nod to 70s style vengeance driven movies and somewhat reminiscent of Richard Stark/Donald Westlake's PARKER character (seen, in its most recent incarnation in PAYBACK, starring MEL Gibson: one man seeking revenge against fellow criminals). A man focused on his mission. The Rock is a cold-blood murder machine. Nothing heroic or even sympathetic about this guy, which makes him fascinating to watch as he runs down his list.
This movie doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it is a nice cure for the sugar coated holiday releases flooding our cinemas. A nice balance of violence, solid acting and some great music provided by THE HEAVY.
The Matrix (1999)
Hm.
The heroes are much like the protagonists of STAR WARS.
The villains are much like STAR TREK's borg.
The wardrobe is a rip-off of T2 and BLADE, for the heroes, and MIB for the bad guys.
The gunfights are Hong-Kong inspired. So are the fight scenes.
Those are only a few of the influences I've spotted.
This movie did not reinvent the wheel, but it's still gives the movie goer quite an eyeful and does what it's supposed to, which is to entertain. All the stories have been told, it's all in the "how" you tell the story. This one had a cool style and some innovative special effects. I won't say this is my favorite movie ever, but it was worth watching.
Charlie's Angels (2000)
Pure Escapism
This is the type of movie that will have many intellectuals shake their heads in dismay and sadness at the state of contemporary popular culture.
"Millions of dollars were spent making a movie that does not elevate the level of culture, awareness, and in fact only increase the collective mindlessness of entire generations." Maybe.
Maybe movies, books,TV shows and all art forms should exist not only to entertain, but also elevate us in a way, and make us question ourselves about the human condition and our future as a race and a civilization.
Or maybe, just maybe...it should just be about FUN.
This is easily the most FUN movie I have seen in a while.The best? No. The one with the most moving performances? No. The one that made me question myself about my place in this universe? No. The one with the most surprising plot twists? No. But, man,was it FUN!
And this movie, with its stunning leading ladies, amazing stunts and special effects, and funny lines and outrageous situations was just...FUN. I forgot about all of my worries and I was entertained and totally engrossed by the movie.
Bottom line, the movie going public needs movies like this who are pure escapism- well done and unpretentious-as much as we need movies that are allegedly "about something", for the mind, like every part of the body, needs to rest.
So, if you are an educated scholar who would rather see obscure French philosophical/psychological dramas about self centered 60 year old men cheating on their 35 year old wives with 19 year old girls, you might not enjoy this movie. But if you do, don't feel bad, it's okay. It was made so you could enjoy it. So, just enjoy it. And go back to reading Kant, Chomsky, Wittgenstein and Kierkegaard and watching Truffaut and Bergman movies to counter the effects of this this trashy pop movie.
The rest of you, if you go in the intention of having a good time, this movie will deliver.
Full Eclipse (1993)
URBAN WEREWOLF VIGILANTE COPS
The title explains it all.
If you get a bunch of friends together, on a rainy Saturday night and all of the new releases are gone from the shelves, make you own horror festival: BLADE, VAMPIRE$, FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN and this kick butt flick. Like the aforementioned movies, it is a purely escapist fantasy, done just well enough as to not insult your intelligence TOO MUCH. A good sense of humor, some snacks and some suspension of disbelief will help make this movie more enjoyable.
There is some sex,plenty of gore, fangs, claws and guns...
The cast seemed to have had a blast in this movie. If you like this kind of stuff, you will enjoy this film.
Shaft (2000)
See it and judge for yourself.
Like you know by now, the new SHAFT is not a remake, but a SEQUEL of sorts.
SAMUEL L. JACKSON proves he can carry a movie, kick booty and take names, and even get girls...and look cool while he is doing it.
I found the cast to be rock solid-except maybe for VANESSA WILLIAMS, who has a weak role, though, I appreciate the LACK of sexual tension between her and JACKSON. It would have been all too cliché-and the script and story are quite decent as well. BUSTA RHYMES is hilarious and CHRISTIAN BALE and the actor who played PEOPLES,Mr WRIGHT, were excellent villains.
And as for SHAFT "JR"... SL JACKSON is not RICHARD ROUNDTREE, just as ROGER MOORE and PIERCE BROSNAN are not SEAN CONNERY. That does not make their portrayals worthless. SLJ's SHAFT has the same sense of justice and right and wrong as the original SHAFT. Maybe not as suave, and not as jaded...But definitely a bad mofo.
Solid summer entertainment, that pays homage to its source material.(Unlike MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE)
Blade (1998)
A TRUE (ANTI)HERO...
This movie is brutal, bloody, violent, bloody, noisy, contains loads of profanity and blood. Did I mention the blood?
But seriously,folks, do not take this movie seriously. Do not watch this expecting to find answers about the meaning of life. It is not even a horror movie. It is an action movie, in which the villains are vampires.
BLADE will go down as an enduring (anti)hero in late 20th century fiction, like RAMBO,TERMINATOR, or the revamped SHAFT. WESLEY SNIPES is as bad a mofo as you are gonna find as far as good guys are concerned...If you like ruthless, uncompromising heroes that are scarier than the villains, this is a movie for you.
Shaft (1971)
A GOOD MOVIE
I find it a shame that this movie is wearing all sorts of labels:"cult classic","blaxpoitation","campy(?!!!!)"
This is a good movie: Sure the movie has style and attitude and started a whole subgenre in gangster movies, but it has a strong lead, a solid story and good actors. No camp here: SHAFT is a down to earth, gritty movie about urban decay and corruption. No flamboyant stereotypical pimps and pushers.SHAFT is a HERO, who , much,like his contemporary DIRTY HARRY, has his own set of rules.
See this for what it is.A good movie.