Monthly Archives: October 2009
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Next film for Halloween is Dawn Of The Dead remake. Based on the George Romero 1979 gore classic, this remake takes place as the United States is overrun (after a plague) by millions of corpses who walk the earth as … Continue reading
Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
The next horror film is sometimes considered a horror film, but not really. Director F.W. Murnau (John Malkovich) yearns to create the most terrifying vampire tale imaginable. Unknown actor Max Schreck (Willem Dafoe), cast as the vampire Count Orlock, makes … Continue reading
Tremors (1990)
For all this week leading up to Halloween I will be doing 5 movie reviews on horror films startiing with this one first. Hick handymen Val McKee (Kevin Bacon) and Earl Bassett (Fred Ward) can barely eke out a living … Continue reading
Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
There’s a one inside of us. Max (Max Records) imagines running away from his mom and sailing to a far-off land where large talking beasts — Ira, Carol, Douglas, the Bull, Judith and Alexander — crown him as their king, … Continue reading
Fighting (2009)
The 21st century Fight Club, without the brain-busting plot. When Sean Arthur (Channing Tatum),an unmotivated young man who hustles counterfeit merchandise in New York City, meets seasoned street-fighting coach Harvey Boarden (Terrence Howard) by chance, his whole life changes. Sean’s … Continue reading
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
I actually like Shakespeare now because of this film. What if a penniless William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) fell in love with a noblewoman (Oscar-winner Gwyneth Paltrow) while struggling to write a comedy with the unlikely title “Romeo and Ethel the … Continue reading
Up (2009)
An old geezer takes flight. After a lifetime of dreaming of traveling the world, 78-year-old homebody Carl (voiced by Ed Asner) is lured into an unbelievable adventure, thanks in part to the persistence of Russell, an 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer (Jordan … Continue reading
Life (1999)
Finally these two all-stars meet up but in a jail. It’s 1932; Ray (Eddie Murphy) is a small-time hustler, and Claude Banks (Martin Lawrence) is a bank teller with a taste for gambling. When Ray picks Claude’s pocket to pay … Continue reading
Couples Retreat (2009)
All in the title. Desperate to save their marriage, one couple convinces three other couples to go in on a group rate price for an island retreat designed for troubled unions. But the “mandatory therapy” brews up nothing but trouble … Continue reading
The Hunt for Red October (1990)
Sean Connery trying to be a Russian, nothing else is better than that. When a Soviet nuclear sub headed toward American waters drops off U.S.scanners, the Yanks scramble to take defensive steps. But CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Alec Baldwin) convinces … Continue reading
Paranormal Activity (2009)
Don’t go to sleep! The movie centers on a young couple, Katie and Micah, who are haunted by a supernatural presence in their home. The movie is presented through the camera set up by the couple to capture the paranormal … Continue reading
Midnight Express (1978)
Turks are so evil. A young American Billy Hayes (Brad Davis) is arrested in Turkey for smuggling hashish and then is sentenced to unreasonable time in a hellish Turkish prison, where he begins to self-destruct, until he musters the courage … Continue reading
Year One (2009)
If Jack Black and Micheal Cera were my ancestors, I would probably be insane. Banished from their primitive village after the tribe elders deem them too lazy, Zed (Jack Black) and Oh (Michael Cera) leave everything they’ve ever known behind … Continue reading
An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1998)
Somebody needs to burn this film. In this satire skewering Hollywood movie making, Eric Idle stars as a film editor who gets a shot at directing a big-budget film (starring Sylvester Stallone and Whoopi Goldberg, no less) but is foiled … Continue reading
Unforgiven (1992)
Clint Eastwood doing what he does best. Retired gunslinger William Munny (Clint Eastwood) reluctantly takes one last job — and even more reluctantly accepts a boastful youth (Jaimz Woolvett) as a partner. Together, they learn how easily complicated truths are … Continue reading
Running on Empty (1988)
Was not expecting what I got. After they bomb a napalm plant during the Vietnam War, Arthur and Annie Pope (Judd Hirsch and Christine Lahti) are fugitives, never able to settle down in one place for too long. Years later, … Continue reading
88 Minutes (2007)
What were you thinking Al Pacino?!?!?! Jack Gramm (Al Pacino)– a college professor and occasional forensic psychologist for the FBI– finds himself in a race against time when he receives a mysterious phone call telling him he has exactly 88 … Continue reading
Say Anything (1989)
Very first Gen-X romantic comedy. A budding romance between noble under achiever Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack) and high school valedictorian Diane Court (Ione Skye) is threatened when Diane’s overly possessive, disapproving father (John Mahoney) interferes with their relationship. With a … Continue reading
