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Knowing - Interesting idea, M. Night Shaylamadingdong should sue whoever wrote this, because this is basically a Night film. Some shabby effects too. 6/10 The Day The Earth Stood Still - Can anyone say if they've ever seen a more 'wooden' performance than Keanuuuu's ? Dear Oh Dear 4/10
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FRANKENSTEIN (1931): 9/10 Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat ! ! ! DRACULA (1931): 6/10 It's Bela, it's of great historical significance, it has some great moments, but it's way below FRANKENSTEIN. DRACULA (1931 - Spanish Language Version): 8/10 Some people stick up for the Tod Browning version over this, but I'm with those who prefer this one. I think it's a vast improvement, and the DVD copy is amazingly pristine. The photography really shines in this one, showing off the sets to their best advantage. It's much longer than the Browning, but I think the greater exposition is a help here, and the majority of the scenes are much more vigorously handled than in the Bela. And with cleavages, nipples showing through the nightdresses and even a neck-biting scene, this gets my vote. The downside is Carlos Villarías as Dracula. Wrong face. When he's angry he looks like a little boy trying not to cry, and when he's "seductive" or threatening he looks like Henry Mancini. BLADE 2: Minus a billion/10 Absolute shite.
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DRACULA'S DAUGHTER (1936): 7/10 Dracula's daughter tries to rid herself of her old man's curse, but can't. A very sadly neglected film, I think this is almost great. When I was ten years old and scared by everything, I was sorely disappointed, but that was then - and there is indeed not much monstermash action. But seen now (and it's a film I keep going back to) it is a rather wonderful little movie - sober in the extreme ( despite the dodgey first part with the comedy policemen) and extremely rewarding. Beautifully photographed and acted, it has dated surprisingly little. I'd go as far as to say that, of the Universal horror cycle, this is their most underrated and misunderstood work.
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MARK OF THE VAMPIRE (1935): 6/10 Actors pretend that they are vampires in order to unmask a murderer. Now, this is one I bought on DVD just today. In all my years of horrific horror film-watching I'd never caught this one before. I don't remember it ever being on British TV for example. So I had to get it. And it is an EXTREMELY odd oddity! There doesn't seem to be any narrative movement at all, and what there is is humungously perplexing, intoxicatingly so. The imagery is amazing, full of weird creepy-crawlies and stuff which director Browning merely hinted at in his DRACULA. And a lot of it seems to look ahead to everything from PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE to THE MUNSTERS. But the logic of it all eluded me, which is perhaps why it "works" to a certain extent. It's like a dream world, and maybe that's why the "logical" wrap-up is so frustrating. And again, as in his DRACULA, the drawing-room theatricalities are a minus. But it has so much going for it that I can't help liking it. It's unbalanced for sure, but my mouth was agape at the the audacity of much of it. Just a little comment/ suggestion for this incredibly cumbersome on-going topic - Does anyone think that it would be better to divide it, from the start of December say, into a "What Movie Did You Just Watch... in the Month of...?" type thingy? We used to do that a few years ago over at the MovieMusic site.
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Posted: |
Nov 22, 2009 - 12:52 PM
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By: |
Reeler
(Member)
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MARK OF THE VAMPIRE (1935): 6/10 Actors pretend that they are vampires in order to unmask a murderer. Now, this is one I bought on DVD just today. In all my years of horrific horror film-watching I'd never caught this one before. I don't remember it ever being on British TV for example. So I had to get it. And it is an EXTREMELY odd oddity! There doesn't seem to be any narrative movement at all, and what there is is humungously perplexing, intoxicatingly so. The imagery is amazing, full of weird creepy-crawlies and stuff which director Browning merely hinted at in his DRACULA. And a lot of it seems to look ahead to everything from PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE to THE MUNSTERS. But the logic of it all eluded me, which is perhaps why it "works" to a certain extent. It's like a dream world, and maybe that's why the "logical" wrap-up is so frustrating. And again, as in his DRACULA, the drawing-room theatricalities are a minus. But it has so much going for it that I can't help liking it. It's unbalanced for sure, but my mouth was agape at the the audacity of much of it. Just a little comment/ suggestion for this incredibly cumbersome on-going topic - Does anyone think that it would be better to divide it, from the start of December say, into a "What Movie Did You Just Watch... in the Month of...?" type thingy? We used to do that a few years ago over at the MovieMusic site. So, you like vampire movies, eh.
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Here's one with no vampires in it, Reeler - THE MASK OF FU MANCHU (1932): 8/10 Boris Karloff is Dr Fu, and tries to dominate the world using the sword of Ghengis Khan. Greeeeaaat fun this! A fast-paced catalogue of very un-PC torture, eroticism and racism. And Boris. My only quibble is the lack of vampires.
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Posted: |
Nov 22, 2009 - 4:57 PM
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By: |
Cryogenix
(Member)
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Survival Island - Didn't know this was a Showtime movie, and I picked it hoping for another "Dead Calm," since Billy Zane was in it. Not even close. There are only a few good reasons to see this film: 1) You really have a hard-on for crystal-blue ocean waters and beach sand; 2) you really have a hard-on for seeing a sexy woman naked http://www.totalprosports.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/kelly-brook.jpg on a desert island; 3) you really have a hard-on for seeing a sexy young Brazilian man walking around naked. The story was dull and annoying at times (specifically the voodoo dancing intercuts) and drama and excitement were sorely absent, but cinematography was awesome and made me feel like I was actually there. If it not for Kelly Brook struting/bouncing around in a bikini, I wouldn't have finished this - and it not for the sexy Brazilian guy, my girlfriend wouldn't have finished it either. A film with beautiful people with great skin and hot bodies. As it turns out, I'm glad I got to see the ending. Actually, it's a very relaxing, slow-paced experience on a lazy Sunday afternoon - 6 Man VS. Wild - Collection 1 - After thoroughly enjoying the last Discovery Channel reality series, "Out of the Wild: The Alaska Experiment," I saw this and decided to give it a try. This series is more instructional and informative than dramatic. This British guy, Bear Grylles (and ex Navy Seal or something) drop-chutes into a remote area of about 12 different locales (European Alps, Everglades, Sierra Nevada, Alaskan Mountain Range, Iceland, etc) and shows you how to get to civilization and survive if you're ever lost in a particular place. Along the way, he eats a lot of crazy-ass things (some live, some dead, some totally disgusting - things that would make a billy goat puke...) and creates some very interesting items. Oddly (a heads up for gays and women) he spends a lot of time stripping down to nothing due to wet clothes... Definitely not nearly as cool as "Out of the Wild," but it was interesting, and his English accent and vocabulary made it more enjoyable (and challenging) to watch - during the first episode, I couldn't figure out what a GLASS-seer was. Three episodes later, it finally hit me...glacier - 8.5 The Gate - This isn't the film I thought it was, but I think I may have seen bits and pieces of it before. I think "The Gate 2: Trespassers" is the movie I was looking for. However, it's a fairly fun and entertaining kids' movie about a couple of boys who accidentally unlock a gateway that allows dino-demons (stop-motion clay animation) to enter their world and cause some problems. The feel of the movie is what makes it work. The setting and atmosphere remind me of E.T., Poltergeist, Explorers, but without the solid story, good dialogue or believable acting. The sister is super-cute and has a nice ass, though... - 7
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