batzu Reviews

Ricochet (1991)

I always wanted a viking funeral

[8/10 · 1 February 2016]

I give this a movie a high rating for many of the reasons people have given it a low rating. As one reviewer stated, it's way way WAy over the top! To me this is a plus to what would otherwise be a pretty boring movie. I found much of it to be hilarious. This movie does echo the whole Lethal Weapon, Die Hard vibe, and is basically the same plot as Cape Fear. But where those movies seemed somewhat plausible, at least as movies, this one goes off the rails. Denzel and Lithgow are watchable even in this ridiculous movie. Here are some highlights:

Spoiler Alert:

A gladiator fight between Lithgow and Jesse Ventura in prison using phone books as armor

A jockstrap with a holdout pistol holster

Lindsay Wagner salivating over a nude Denzel

A prison guard being killed with a circular saw

Ice T

Kevin Pollack doing Columbo and Captain Kirk impressions

A fight scene at the top of Watts Towers

An obligatory impaling of the antagonist

A bar with a heavyset topless woman and a midget (little person) walking on the bar serving drinks

And so much more as the dialog will make you cringe and laugh out loud. I honestly wasn't expecting the level of exploitative entertainment that was contained in this flick and liked in a so bad it's good way.

A Most Violent Year (2014)

Don't believe the hype

[3/10 · 19 August 2015]

O.k., an Hispanic business man with ties to the mob, married to a bleach blond skinny coked out looking white chick in the 80's-hey that sounds a little like Scarface! Well, that's where the similarities end. I'm having a really hard time seeing why this movie has 7.1 on IMDb. My main problem is that this movie presents itself as a violent mob drama. I saw the trailers and was excited to see this movie become available to stream, so I sat through it and waited. I waited and waited for the violence. I don't need violence in every movie, I like dramas, good ones anyway, and this one isn't. But it has the word violence in the title. Is this some sort of ironic title? I will answer that and say yes it is, whether intended or not.

I just didn't believe these characters-that added to the fact they were not interesting in the least-I've sat though Lifetime movies that were more compelling. I don't think the acting is bad, it's just ultimately an extremely banal story with no climax, or any kind of gestalt to make some kind of point. It just drones on and on as you wait for something exciting or interesting. How about a good old emotion or two, that would have been cool. There are a couple of scenes that try to be exciting, wow a car chase! He's pulling out a gun and ... oh he's putting it away without shooting it. The characters just don't really grab you, and the story is preposterous. J.C. Candor must have paid people to like this movie because I don't get what is so great about it! The most misleading title ever. I like a slow-burn, but this thing is a smoldering pile of poo.

Annabelle (I) (2014)

Rated R for ... not sure

[4/10 · 31 May 2015]

my kids are of the age that they want to see something besides superheroes and kid flicks. they wanted to see something scary, so we rented this. big disappointment as this movie wasn't really scary, nor suspenseful. (spoilers) it starts off pretty good with the creepy doll Annabelle, and the freaky hippie cult killers (Manson famiyish). but beyond the opening, there is nothing that was really that scary or disturbing. most of the violence happens off camera and there is a lot of build up with no pay off. there's a really cool looking demon that receives too little screen time to make it interesting. i found myself hoping there would be more of a connection to the satanic hippie cult as i like the late 60's/early 70's and Satan worship, they just seem to go together. I recommend watching The Devil Rides Out, Rosemary's Baby, or Race With The Devil over Annabelle. I still can't really see why this movie was rated R. I've seen more violence in a Roadrunner cartoon. That being said, the acting and directing was actually good and kept me interested and waiting for something to happen that never did.

The Cable Guy (1996)

underrated-SEE IT!

[26 May 2003]

seeing a lot about jim on t.v. regarding his new movie "Bruce Almighty" made me want to check this one out again.

i think it's a really good movie and it totally entertains. i really think matthew broderick is the only thing that makes the movie lull. this guy, unlike the movie, is terribly overrated. he really fails to be all that engaging.

carey however is a genius and shines in this performance. the comedy is not really that dark, but it is indeed funny. it's also interesting to see jack black in an early film role as well as owen wilson getting his ass kicked by chip douglas.

anyway, don't be afraid of this movie, it's really worth seeing a couple of times. matthew, stick to broadway and neil simon.

The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

KEANU REEVES IS A PIECE OF WOOD

[19 May 2003]

first of all let me say i truly enjoyed the first matrix even though keanu, one of hollywood's worst actors, was in it. the movie was so good even his shallow acting ability couldn't mess it up. here however his wooden appearance only adds to the boredom i felt in several scenes meant to explain the plot of the movie-yet they only succeeded in putting the audience to sleep. there are some truly ridiculous and embarrassing to watch moments in this film (i.e. the rave/stomp scene, i actually laughed out loud).

all that aside, i liked the movie. it was like a less than par issue of a favorite comic book, and that's how i took it. parts of the film were actually brilliant but this was marred by marginal acting, stiff dialogue, and some extraneous editing. there was a point at the end where i completely lost interest in the movie all together.

the sfx were good, yet most of the fighting was all neo. there were some added characters, yet they did nothing in the movie! jada pinket was wasted as was that dude from oz. i guess they'll have more of a role in the next film? will anyone care? the freeway scene was great and if they had ended the film there it might have been cool, but they end the movie on a real lull where you just don't care anymore and want to go home. plus they refer to a battle with the machines but never show it. god damn this movie p***es me off when i think about it.

i've read some reviews that insist this film was brilliant and deep, i think if i was really stoned i might agree. all in all i would rate this movie a 7.5. it's worth seeing but don't be surprised if you find your self not very anxious to see part 3.

--oh, and keanu really needs to stick to bill & ted type characters. how anyone can take him seriously is beyond me-he's like a male pamela anderson-nice to look at on screen until he opens his mouth.

Petey Wheatstraw (1977)

kung-fu watermelon

[7 March 2003]

some of the most racially offensive acts on film, beautiful! see this movie, and everything else rudy ray did in the 70s, you won't be disappointed. (spoiler) the opening scene has petey being born (as a 7 or 8 year old boy) following a watermelon. then he gets p***ed at his daddy for being hit in the head when ever his parents got busy. unflinchingly ridiculously over the top hilarity. the theme song is great also!

Disco Godfather (1979)

go call an amb you lance, tell them what he has had!

[7 March 2003]

this is hands down the funniest rudy ray moore movie! the only draw back is the sound quality, which i had hoped would be improved with the dvd release but is not-i thought my t.v. was broke when i first saw it! this movie has the best(worst) lines, best(worst) fight choreography, and the best(you know) plot. i forgot to say the best acting, but you can only imagine. the story is funny in a way no story about drug addiction could ever be. the scenes at the hospital with the people freaked out on angel dust are great, (SPOILER) especially the girl cooking her baby thinking it's the x-mas ham! priceless. i still pull this one out from time to time and laugh my ass off! i have got to say that the disco g.f.'s fighting is also one of the greatest things ever put on film. buy this one, it's cheap, and watch it a thousand times.

24 Hours in London (2000)

equals 90 minutes of garbage, this movie blows!

[15 February 2003]

i can't decide what i hate most about this movie, so i'll tell you what i liked. i liked some of the plot ideas; organ thieves, london gangsters, crazy criminals, gore, although none of the ideas were developed at all, they should have taken one of these ideas and went with it. who was the main character of this movie? it was baffling trying to follow the plot. at some point i was hoping it would be funny, but it isn't even remotely funny. it seemed like the dialogue was written by someone with absolutely no imagination. the violence was so out of control it served no purpose-it was more over the top than Rambo. it tries to be like a Pulp Fiction/Lock Stock movie but fails miserably. and what's this rubbish about London? most of the movie is spent in a hotel room. Don't waist your time here, rent Lock Stock again.

Gangster No. 1 (2000)

worth a look

[15 February 2003]

in 2000 i was in europe and bought a magazine (hotdog) with a whole layout about this movie, i really wanted to see it! well, i was a little disappointed but the movie is not without merit. i think Bettany really pulls off a good performance despite the one dimensionality of his character. i seriously don't understand all this praise for Malcolm Mcdowell. i loved him in A Clockwork Orange, but I just didn't buy his performance here, especially since the other actors used makeup to age their characters, yet the older Gangster is played by McDowell who looks nothing like Bettany. He sounded like an american trying to do cockney, seriously. If this was meant to be Shakespearian, they should have developed it more and maybe sighted a specific play or something. for me the movie was entertaining but in the end rather flat. like i said, worth a look.

Coffy (1973)

the best Pam Grier movie!

[12 December 2002]

if you've always wondered what was so great about Pam Grier, and haven't seen any of her movies from the seventies, look no further than Coffy. Coffy has it all, violence, pimps, drugs, nudity, sex, and it's served up with some severe camp and crazy dialogue. what sets this movie apart from other blaxploitaion movies is the excellent story and powerful performance of Miss Grier. I don't think anyone else could have pulled it off, and despite the low budget ambiance and feeling the movie took about a couple of weeks to make, Grier gives a performance worthy of her cult reverence.

the movie is a typical revenge story, with a not so typical hero-a black woman. Coffy's sister is hooked on smack and Coffy vows to herself to destroy the people responsible. Coffy works as a nurse by day, and prowls the clubs by night looking for the pusher who destroyed her sister's mind with drugs. Her search leads her to a pimp, a mobster, the cops, and a politician. In the end, she takes care of them all using her brains as well as her body, and damn do she have a body! Pam Grier makes this movie believable despite the obvious flaws of the low budget production. Her character never shows the weak side of femininity and fall into the ethos that women are at some point weaker than men. Coffy never breaks down to cry for help, waiting for a man or anyone else to help her-she does it all on her own. she kicks ass all over, and no other movie has done that with a female character, at least not anything credible. Coffy makes Thelma and Louise look like Laverne and Shirley.

Pam went on to make more movies of this ilk, but none were as popular nor as good as Coffy. what about Foxy Brown you ask? despite a better title, it doesn't compare to Coffy in either performance or content. Coffy served to bring Pam Grier into the main stream, as much as any black actress could be, and make her a star. all i can say is, thank you Quentin Tarentino for making Jackie Brown and proving her power and presence as an actress. See this movie, then see Jackie Brown, you'll see why Tarentino made it.

Bill (1981 TV Movie)

Quite funny.

[7 December 2002]

i remember this movie well. first off, it really is a good story, and a true story at that. i think a documentary would have served the real Bill Sackter a little better. apparently this may happen yet. as far as Mickey Rooney goes, you really believe he is retarded. a good performance, and to his credit he did this before it was all the rage for actors to play retarded people. it seems this is the true test of an actor these days, from an "i really want an award" stand point anyway. it seems to be that last ditch effort for the self consumed actor (ie Sean Penn.) as a juvinile i watched this movie and really enjoyed it for the heartwarming/goody feely qualities it evokes, but i also thought that Rooney as Bill was hilarious. the bad hair piece, the harmonica, and the strained old man voice saying "i'm a regular good man buddy" was hilarious. me and my friends were saying that stuff for weeks cracking each other up. the sequal "Bill: On His Own" is even better as we have a host of actors playing retarded people, most notably Edie McClurg as one of Bill's house mates. so if you like a movie that warms the heart and makes you feel good, that gives you hope and makes you think "wow, if Bill can make it so can I!", or if you think actors playing mentals is ridiculous and funny, this is the movie for you. tell me Rain Man wasn't funny as hell (written by barry marlow, the real life friend and caretaker of Bill Sackter.)

also see: My Left Foot, Forrest Gump, I Am Sam, Charlie, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, The Other Sister