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Posted: |
Mar 16, 2015 - 2:32 AM
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By: |
Bob DiMucci
(Member)
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Saw a western double feature of REVOLT AT FORT LARAMIE (1957) and QUINCANNON, FRONTIER SCOUT (1956) in HD On Demand. Both are from Bel-Air Productions & United Artists, with bright Color by Deluxe. And both are directed by Lesley Selander, with scores by Les Baxter. REVOLT has a fort that is menaced by Indians from the outside and roiled by dissension on the inside, as the Civil War breaks out and soldiers start choosing sides. A good subject, but the film can only do so much with it in 83 minutes. QUINCANNON, the only one of the two on DVD (from MGM MOD), is unique in having singer Tony Martin in his sole major action role. He's surprisingly good and tough, as the script demands, as he leads a small band of undercover troopers on a mission to recover a shipment of stolen rifles. Baxter's action music for both films was pretty much nonstop, and was at times a little too insistent. For B western fans: 6/10 for REVOLT, 7/10 for QUINCANNON. All others, don't bother.
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Posted: |
Apr 5, 2015 - 9:55 AM
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By: |
TominAtl
(Member)
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It Follows
Yes folks, thankfully we do get a horror film this year that no only gives you the deep creeps and a couple of good "booyas!" but one that really gets you to think about it once you leave the theatre and won't be able to shake. Sure, there will be some giggling about it but a nervous one at best.
But this film is one that the less you know about it, the better. There have been some accolades on it and if you go in expecting the scariest movie in years you will be disappointed and wonder what the fuss is about. It's also done on a shoestring budge with barely adequate actors at best and topped off by a sophomoric score that at times totally apes Vangelis's "Blade Runner" if you could believe that. And the finale will more than likely be disappointing to some but once you really think about it, most may realize there was really now way else to do it.
Having said all that, what this film lacks in polish and Holllywood slick production more than makes up for it by the plot and story alone, along with this deep sense of dread and the locales of the shooting, which were in the midst of some really poor and dilapidated areas of Detroit and topped off by the steady yet relentless pacing that keeps you on your toes for the entire film once our protagonist realizes the pickle she is in. The plot turns the age old "have sex in a horror film and you are dead meat" on its head and never lets up and if you haven't read about it already, I will leave it alone here.
There is minimal gore here yet there some gooey moments to be sure but it's all part of the mystery and story. The director also has some wonderful moments of great blocking and camera placement and some cool trickery and red herrings. You are constantly on guard for whatever happens next or could happen.
There is a line in the film that was almost a throw away but perfectly sums up not only the horror but the movie itself: "It may be slow, but it isn't stupid".
*** out of 5
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Posted: |
Apr 11, 2015 - 11:41 PM
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By: |
Solium
(Member)
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Daredevil (2015)
By the numbers script with generic characters, plot, and situations. Scenes never feel developed and it felt like I got a bunch of ideas strung together which leaves no emotional impact. Going down the depressed, morbid, violent Dark Knight route there is absolutely nothing entertaining here. Our hero lacks charisma and whispers or mumbles his lines continuously.
Then there's the lack of logic. In the climax of the pilot Daredevil gets into a bloody fight which would have lead to multiple scrapes, bruises and cuts on his face. The very next scene he looks good enough to do a photo shoot.
Production wise the video looks like crap. Over saturated, over dark, over grainy. In this day and age of HD it's beyond me why studios insist on purposely making their films look like shit on purpose. I could barely make out anything regardless if it was an indoor or outdoor scene. It literately looked like a 10th generation VHS copy of an old film put up on YouTube. Perhaps it was done to hide a presumably small budget.
In all fairness it is a series and it usually takes time for a series to take off both in character and story, so no rating. But the pilot was rather bland and morbid. With it's gaudy visuals, continued viewing is questionable.
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