Recently watched movies!

[klen7]

Tokyo Tribe - Hey a Sion Sono flick on Netflix... not really my cup of tea though. It felt more like a Miike film in a lot of regards, and much more misogynistic than i expected (to the point i almost turned it off in a few places). 75%+ of the dialogue was rapped as hip hop verses which kept me engaged enough to finish it. It was kind of like Warriors, but with an even stupider reason for why the "bad" guy wanted to wipe out the "good" guy... it's pretty much the punchline to the film, so i wont spoil it....

[jellydonut25]

[Rody]

[lhb412]

Enjoying and Kong countdowns, which have really gotten me into the whole Kong spirit for Skull Island in a few days.

Today I basically watched King Kong all day, first with King Kong (2005), which, despite being way overlong, I find myself enjoying more and more. Then I watched the slight but still entertaining (but not as much as Mighty Joe Young) Son of Kong. I closed things off by skimming through King Kong (1976), which I don't like very much but has a lovely John Barry score.

[Dr Kain]

[O.Supreme]

[lhb412]

John Wick Chapter 2

Keanu Reeves' John Wick is called out of retirement only a day after the events of the first movie by way of an old blood oath he made. It's a bad assignment, and it gets progressively worse for Wick every step of the way, putting him up against oceans of opponents. Fortunately, John is really really really good at killing enormous amounts of people, mostly by shooting them in the head, but occasionally if you get close enough to him you can also get killed by some quick and brutal martial arts.

I enjoyed this. The role is tailored to Keanu's strengths (did I mention he looks good in a suit?), it takes place in an interesting alternate reality where an intricate secret society of criminals exists alongside our day-to-day world, and the action (car chases, gunfights, martial arts) is awesomely staged. I think it's a bit too serious though; there are some great moments of humor and I wish there was just a bit more of them.

Got my ticket for Kong this Thursday!

[klen7]

I absolutely adore the first John Wick. Maybe the best action flick of the 2010s.

The second one succeeded in expanding the universe and setting up a third one. I enjoyed it and will buy it on bluray, but not as strong as the original, which in my estimation is a near impossible task considering the pitch perfect pacing of the first two acts in the first film. I am happy to have a new franchise i can get excited about.

[Dr Kain]

[lhb412]

Watched Kong Kong vs. Godzilla (Japanese version) and the delightfully over-the-top King Kong Escapes. Too sleepy to finish Kong '33...

[lhb412]

Got up early and watched King Kong (1933), the original and still the best! Now fully prepared for Kong's return tonight!

[klen7]

The Shallows - I remember this getting good reviews. Parts of it reminded me of the underrated croc flick "Rogue". The smaller scale, small cast, minimalist premise all worked. There were some down right silly things and massive coincidences in the final act that squandered the a lot of good will that led up to it though. Amber Heard and Steven Seagull both carried the movie well nonetheless. Worth a watch.

Sausage Party - I remember this getting good reviews despite the internet hating it from the moment the trailer dropped. I had a few chuckles (mostly at the over the top violence) but everything was so over the top (race jokes, critiques on religion, sex, and drug use are all cranked to 11) that it had more eye rolling moments than it did chuckles for me. After enjoying Rogan's take on Preacher, i came in to this cautiously optimistic, but it's not a film i would recommend to anyone.

[Dr Kain]

Yeah, The Shallows was really well done. I don't care how unrealistic it is, it's a movie, not a documentary.

Sasuage Party though, I refuse to watch. I have no interest in suffering through Seth Rogen's obnoxious voice when I don't have to.

[klen7]

[jellydonut25]

King Kong 1933 - Perfect. 5/5.

Son of Kong - If the original was the granddaddy of the entire action/scifi/kaiju genre (and it is) then this is the granddaddy of the rushed, sloppy, lame cash-in sequel. So much here is wrong, which is unfortunate because it actually starts off RIGHT with Denham facing the consequences of his actions. But then it gets boring, and then silly, and then it just ends. Blah. 2/5.

King Kong vs. Godzilla - I love it. My second favorite Kong movie to date. 4/5.

King Kong Escapes - Unfrotuantely, this was probably not one of my more favorite viewings of this movie. I felt a little lull in the middle and it pulled me out a little bit. 3.5/5

King Kong 1976 - So much is WRONG with this movie, that it's probably better to list what's RIGHT: the natives and the sacrifice, the train sequence, the bloodiness of Kong as he's being blasted, and the character of Jack Prescott who's bar-none the best male lead in any Kong film. That's it though. The movie is BORING, and Dwan is the absolute worst. 1/5

King Kong Lives - It's bad...but it's kinda the right kind of bad. I think it could actually have been a lot more fun with a director who was more interested in the material. John Guillermin's son died in between 76 and 86 and he was in a deep depression and basically didn't even want to make this. A lot of fun and camp that could have been punched up more got left by the wayside. -3/5 (negative. So bad, it's kinda good).

King Kong 2005 - This was probably my most enjoyable viewing of this film since theaters, but the length still tugged at me HARD and it was more obvious to spot the parts that could have EASILY been cut to make a 2-hour movie that would have been GREAT...except for Jack Black. I don't know if it's him, or the way the character has been turned into SUCH a sleaze, but something is just entirely off. It'd be more forgiveable if the film weren't rife with so very many other problems, including some unnecessary bits of dialogue that just add a cheesy feel that doesn't work in with the rest of the film (the guys in the army truck talking about how this is a human city for humans and not meant to be taken over by some mutant monkey is just....AWFUL). The chief problem, in a word though, can be stated simply as EXCESS. Jackson never knows when to cut, never knows when enough is enough, and scenes that start great end exhaustingly or poorly or go on a detour through exhausting/poor before ending decently. This is one of the biggest examples of "there's a good movie IN THERE...but the movie we got isn't this" that I can think of. How did NOBODY reign in Jackson and tell him that a 3+ hour long KING KONG film was a BAD idea? 3/5....could have edited its way to an easy 4.

[lhb412]

I saw a little film called Kong: Skull Island.

It was quite fun.

[jellydonut25]

Passengers- starts off really well, and continues along really well for most of the run time. Then the third act happens and it's coincidence after coincidence and this thing leads to that thing leads to the next and everything that had driven the movie up until that point is tossed by the wayside and it devolves into a standard stupid Hollywood thriller/survival story.

Logan - I loved it. I think it reveled in its R rating a tad too much, with as much swearing as it had (THIS much of it feels a tad off when it's been SO sparse in other Wolverine movies), and I would have liked them to figure out some way to get him in costume, but it stops mattering when the movie is this good. An excellent farewell to a fantastic character who was brought to life by a phenomenal actor for an unprecedented length of time and number of films. Stellar performances, magnificent character work, and great action. 4.5/5. Possibly my second favorite X film.

[O.Supreme]

[jellydonut25]

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

I saw the movie that everyone in this fandom is buzzing about:

That's right, I saw The Greasy Strangler!
Bar none one of the sleaziest movies I've ever seen, it'll worm its way into your various nooks and crannies and you'll wind up thinking about it fondly afterwards despite everything about it (except maybe the score) being otherwise so unpleasant. It's hard to define. It's harder to enjoy. It's impossible to explain. Experience it....and rue my name while you do. Then thank me when it's over.

[Dr Kain]

Never heard of it, and it sounds like I don't want to.

[Dr Kain]

Get Out - If you want a psychological horror thriller that is in league with the likes of Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Stepford Wives, while also have a perfect balance of comedy that symoblizes the topic of racism, this is the movie for you. The acting is top notch for being a horror film while also keeping its charm through intelligently scripted conversations and dialog that keeps you on the edge of your seat. In addition, it doesn't rely on cheap jump scares and gore to make you squirm, it plays with your mind. The year was already off to a great start with Split, and Get Out is now added to that. Let's hope this means 2017 will be another year for horror films. With that said, I give Get Out a 9/10 because the only negative is a plot twist that you could see a mile away.

[klen7]

I haven't seen it yet, but was surprised to see it was written and directed by comedian Jordan Peele (Key and Peele, Keanu)

[Dr Kain]