Films seen in December
Return to main page
01. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
(2008, USA) Dave Filoni -
worth seeing [C-]
02. The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989,
USA) Michael Herz & Lloyd Kaufman -
has redeeming facet
03. Chantal (2007, USA) Tony Marsiglia
- worth seeing [C+]
04. The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation
of Toxie (1989, USA) Michael Herz & Lloyd Kaufman -
worthless
05. The Final Countdown (1980, USA)
Don Taylor - 
a must see
08.
Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV
(2000, USA) Lloyd Kaufman
-
a must see
Tasteless as it is, there is no denying that
Troma is capable of good, even great, Midnight Madness fun. Also on display
here is some effective commentary on selling out and the Hollywood system, something
that informs all of Mr. Kaufman’s work.
09.
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
(2008, USA/UK) Andrew Adamson -
has redeeming facet [D]
Adamson is not a bad filmmaker, but this movie
needs to get over itself and stop trying to be the next Lord of
the Rings. Incredibly overlong and lacking many of the qualities
of a great epic, this plays out like a 2 1⁄2 hour US Marines commercial.
Oh, and as for the Italian invaders? All I can say is, “I told ya so…”
10. White Dog (1982, USA) Samuel Fuller
- 2nd viewing [last viewing Aug. 04] 1st viewing in OAR; no change
in rating **** Masterpiece
Pulp philosophy is not for everyone, but done
right it can be incredibly potent stuff. McKee/Diesen’s contemporary film
Red is a relative to this film, supplanting an animal
and man’s relation to it, in order to make a deeper statement about the
darker side of the species. Fuller’s picture is obviously superior (perhaps
even the highpoint of 80’s cinema), but for everyone taking in his masterpiece
this Holiday season, I recommend giving Red a spin…
11.
Donkey Punch (2008, UK) Oliver
Blackburn
-
a must see
[B-]
13.
Inglorious Bastards (1978, Italy) Enzo G. Castellari
-
worth seeing
14.
Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984, USA) Charles
E. Sellier Jr.
3rd viewing [last viewing Dec. 07] - **
or Camp Rating
15.
Truck Turner (1974. USA) Jonathan
Kaplan
-
a must see
Very underrated blaxploitation film that came
with Joe Dante’s seal of approval, and who just happens to have a character
named after him in the film. Coincidence?
16.
Savage Grace (2007, USA) Tom Kalin
[2008 based on theatrical run] -
worth seeing [C-]
See it if only for the extraordinary performance
by Eddie Redmayne. Everything else, including Julianne Moore's overacted trainwreck
character, is nothing we haven't seen before.
17.
H.O.T.S. (1979, USA) Gerald Seth
Sindell -
has redeeming facet
A bad T&A movie, I hardly remember what it
was about, but I think I enjoyed it at the time.
18.
Man on Wire (2008, UK) James Marsh
- a must
see
[B+]
Pertinent and skillfully crafted, this also happens
to be one of the most entertaining docs in recent memory. It’s a crowd
pleaser, but never to a fault, as Philippe Petit is a showman, so James Marsh
must be.
19.
Sudden Impact (1983, USA) Clint
Eastwood -
worth seeing
I’m simply not a fan of Eastwood’s
self mocking/deconstruction of the Dirty Harry persona. Some brilliant noir
sequences though…
20.
Barbarella (1968, France) Roger
Vadim -
worth seeing
Hard to believe this was as influential as it
was. How many band names came out of this film? I counted three…
22.
Milk (2008, USA) Gus Van Sant
-
Excellent [A-]
I love how there is such a direct lineage between
Mala Noche, My Own Private Idaho
and Milk. Today, Van Sant has so matured as an artist,
he has a vast array of filmic styles that he has acquired (early beatnick/queer
cinema, mainstream Hollywood, and art house meditations) and he juggles these
to astounding effect in Milk, illiciting just the
right vibe in practically every scene and never once overdoing it. This is how
you make a bio pic folks.
23.
Caramel (2007, Lebanon) Nadine
Labaki -
worth seeing [C]
Undistinguished women’s picture that certainly
aims for big things and according to Amy Taubin manages to get there, but for
me Labaki’s intentions are never fully realized in her final product.
24.
Christmas Evil aka
You Better Watch
Out! (1980, USA) Lewis Jackson
- 2nd viewing [last
viewing Nov. 06]; no change in rating **
25.
A Perfect World (1993, USA) Clint Eastwood
-
a must see
[3rd
viewing; first viewing since launch of this site]
26.
Reprise (2006, Norway) Joachim Trier -
worth seeing [C]
27.
The House Bunny (2008, USA) Fred Wolf -
worth seeing [C]
28.
The Room (2003, USA) Tommy Wiseau
-
worthless [F] -
or
Camp rating ???? Is it the camp masterpiece everyone proclaims?
I’ll hold off on my evaluation until I’ve had a chance to watch
it with a late night crowd, in the meantime however highly recommend
you check this sucker out for yourself…
30.
Invasion of of the Bee Girls (1973, USA) Denis
Sanders
-
a must see
31.
Wanted (2008, USA) Timur Bekmambetov
-
a must see [B-]