American Punks B
I don’t know why I added this to my queue. I think Netflix should provide trailers with
all their movies. At least Redbox does
and it prevented me from renting lots of what looked like garbage despite
sounding good summarized. I hated this
low-budget movie from 1997 about American punks plotting revenge against the
man they think murdered their friend.
They assume it was a middle class yuppie they had a minor (meaning no
lasting damage) incident with. We as viewers
see who murdered their friend right away and it’s someone the punks come into
contact with, so there’s no suspense as we’re impatiently waiting for the
erroneous final altercation. I’m all for
supporting any and all filmmakers, young/beginning/low-budget/what have you,
but they have to remember we’re using our precious time when watching their
finished product. Make us use it
wisely! 11/25/2017
Beach Rats OK/G
Imagine Mallrats
at the beach. Actually, it’s nothing
like Mallrats. It’s gayer, slightly. It does take place at the beach sometimes, in
New York. It’s more coming-of-age than
coming-out. It focuses on one young man
(I’m guessing he’s older than high school age) who is obviously gay but not
ready to accept it. If you’re
uncomfortable with any male nudity, I suggest you look elsewhere because
there’s a decent amount on display. This
does take place currently and proves gay people (men especially) still have to
hide that part of themselves. The guy in
question gets a girlfriend to cover up the fact he meets men online and then in
person. It’s the harsh reality of life
in this heteronormative world even though I would’ve thought living in the city
(any city) would be more accepting. He
gets an idea of his three pal’s homophobia when subtly mentioning gay men. Things don’t turn out too well for some
involved in his life and it all could’ve been avoided if the world was more
tolerant. It is a bit slow but the
performances (especially from the leading man) are convincing. There isn’t quite a resolution but the ending
is bleak and perhaps that was intended. 11/22/2017
Bunks OK/G
This Canadian Disney channel movie involves two brothers successfully
maneuvering their way into attending a different camp other than the “obedient”
one they’re sent to. The camp on an
island contains a zombie created in the ‘70’s brought into the present after a
story is read from a “magical” book.
I’ve always been a fan of movies set at camp for some reason. They’re fun (or at least should be) and even
better when involving horror elements.
There’s absolutely nothing scary about this and it contains no gore but
I think it’s an excellent example for introducing young’uns to the genre. It’s from the same guy that directed The Gate so he knows his family friendly
horror, but he also directed the feature-length pilot for Sabrina the Teenage Witch so take from that what you will. Sure, the acting may not be the greatest but
you have to remind yourself it’s a live-action Disney channel movie. It’s generally a fun summer camp film that’s
funny at times. It may not contain the
same amount of fun as Meatballs, Ernest Goes to Camp, Gorp, or horror franchises like Sleepaway Camp and Friday the 13th, but it’s far from the worst zombie
movie I’ve seen. The zombie makeup isn’t
half-bad considering the production. It’s
a decent time-killer that reminded me of the corny but watchable TV films shown
on basic channels I used to watch as a young boy. 11/22/2017
GLOW: Season One OK
Let it be known I had no intention of watching this Netflix
series upon hearing of it and reading reviews for it. I figured, why would my gay ass want to see
‘Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling?’ I don’t even
like to watch men wrestle. I watched the
first episode on a whim when I had nothing else to watch. I have to say it wasn’t half-bad in the
beginning because it was more about a woman struggling to get by. Plus, it takes place in 1986. Me being an ‘80’s junkie, that’s always a
plus. I dug a lot of the soundtrack for
that reason. The show primarily centers
on the trials and tribulations involved in making the pilot episode of a TV
show and getting it on the air. The
wrestling aspect takes a back seat to all the colorful women trying to perfect
their roles since they simply want to act.
During a time when not all was exactly P.C., there’s an East Indian
playing a terrorist (East Indian is an entirely different culture from Middle
Eastern), an Asian girl nicknamed “Fortune Cookie” (she mentions being
Cambodian at one point, not Chinese), and one of the black women plays “Welfare
Queen.” I can’t stand when someone in
the audience (here, being the father of a girl initially mocking her
dream---another cliché) begins a chant and clap inspiring everyone else to follow
suit giving motivation to the person in question. Cue eye rolls. It may not have been quite a cliché in 1986
but this was made now. Let it be known I
never would’ve continued if the episodes were an hour instead of half-hour
(give or take). Let it be known if I had
to wait weekly between episodes, I would’ve forgotten after the second or third
one (if that). The creators can thank
Netflix for allowing me the option of binge-watching, otherwise they would’ve
had one less viewer. It’s not my first
choice of content but not a bad series if you have time to kill and looking for
something different, but I don’t see how a second season would be necessary as
it would likely, more or less, tread similar ground. 11/22/2017
Hedwig and the Angry
Inch OK/G
I must’ve added this when I was on a transgender high. Whenever I watch movies with specific themes
or categories, I always want to watch more.
This is based off a musical of the same name featuring a transsexual
(played by the director, John Cameron Mitchell, who is not trans in real life
but is a gay man) charting “her” life
from being a little boy in Germany to the present time fronting a band in the
U.S. It is a musical, more or less, but also
a biopic of sorts. There’s about 1 or 2
catchy songs by the fictional band, none being absolutely terrible, but I don’t
plan on adding any of them to my playlists.
It’s fairly straightforward but also avant-garde in its approach. It might not appeal to all tastes, but for those
that enjoy quirky cinema with equally quirky characters, step right up. 11/25/2017
The Ice Cream Truck OK
This seemed more a drama involving a woman relocating to the
suburbs with only a few slasher scenes which weren’t that impressive save a
head bashing with an ice cream scooper.
Other than a few unnecessarily long moments (like conversing with a new
neighbor or an awkward encounter with the moving guy) likely utilized to
prolong the run-time, this might’ve been a decent slice-of-life tale about a mom
experiencing life before her family arrives.
That wasn’t the type of movie I expected however. Also however, there’s a twist at the end (be
sure to pay attention in the beginning, otherwise you might not “get” it)
that’s annoyingly clever (for this movie at least) yet negates the entire film
yet almost makes it one of those films bettered by it. I kinda did like this movie when all was said
and done, but I was kinda impatient and frustrated with it too, if that makes
any sense…11/21/2017
Little Evil EH
Was this supposed to be a parody? It seemed like a sardonic homage to The Omen. It involves a child spawned from Satan and
the kid uncannily resembles Damien from the original Omen. Have we come to the
point where no one can make original films anymore (or at least worthy
imitators) that studios feel making tongue-in-cheek references to overdone
clichés will work? Trust me, there was
nothing original about this nor was most of it remotely funny. Like I said before elsewhere, it’s never a
good sign (or omen!) if you don’t like a movie from the onset. I’m sure there’re still ways to make an
effective evil kid movie, however unoriginal, since there aren’t a huge amount
of them. Sure, we’ll always have the Children of the Corn movies, both
versions of Village of the Damned, The Good Son, and The Omen, but movies like Sinister
2, The Children, and Eden Lake prove good evil kid movies can
still be made. I would’ve mentioned Orphan too but I don’t want to ruin it
in case you haven’t seen it yet (technically it’s not an evil kid movie). 11/22/2017
Money EH
“There are only two things wrong with money: too much or too
little.” That quote by Charles Bukowski
is the first thing appearing on screen for this film. I don’t see how too much money could ever be a problem other than people wanting to
take it from you. Too little money would seem worse as those
with too little (I’d imagine) would desire too much of it. I highly doubt those with too much would wish
they had too little. Like the
Silverchair song ‘Tomorrow’ states, “You say that money isn’t everything, but
I’d like to see you live without it.” Do
you think this movie involves money? It
does and it involves people ending up in a predicament after obtaining too much
money due to having too little. A
handsome man just happens to stop by your house after claiming to be renting
from a couple nearby and you allow him entry just because he gives a convincing
introduction? One person wasn’t even
aware the neighbors rented their home.
Uh-huh. After watching so many
movies, I’m going to try and contact my neighbors if someone claims they’re
staying at their place! Naturally,
people turn against each other and there’s a bit of implied Stockholm syndrome. This is strictly a by-the-numbers thriller (I
guess you can call it that) produced and released solely because there’re
pretty faces in the roles. Not only will
this film waste your money (unless
you somehow watch for free), but your time as well and that’s something most
people have too little of. 11/18/2017
Ozark: Season One OK
This Netflix series involving money laundering was just okay
like my rating says. Perhaps if
everything was condensed into a 2-hour (I’d even forgive 2 ½ hour) film, my
rating might’ve been higher. The series
begins promising suggesting darker things and it does get dark at times, but
ten 1-hour (give or take) episodes naturally means there’s boring filler
throughout. I told myself that the homophobic
redneck (A backwoods redneck from Missouri is homophobic? You don’t say?) better not end up being
gay. Not every outwardly homophobic guy
is gay despite ALWAYS appearing so in the media. It doesn’t ruin anything so I will reveal that
he does end up being gay, or at least bisexual (he has two biological kids)
which he never actually reveals to being either. Of course he accuses the gay man of “turning”
him after being accused of criminal intent.
Why can’t people just be who they are no matter where they reside
geographically? Eradicating Old
Testament-based hypocritical religions would be a step. Kudos to Jason Bateman’s speech pertaining to
his non-religious views! Anyway, money
laundering appears to be a dangerous way of life especially when dealing with
businesses (professional, personal or otherwise) and some resort to violence
when things don’t go their way. Violence
does erupt sporadically especially towards the end. Ironically, the only part that made me cringe
involved toenail removals. Another thing
I learned is that there’s apparently a difference between a hillbilly and a
redneck and the former doesn’t take kindly at all to being called the
latter. 11/21/2017
Your Name. EH/OK
Look no further if you want to see Freaky Friday, The Hot Chick
or any other body-switch film Anime-ted. It’s body-switching via dream but the same
idea. There’re also elements of Donnie Darko and The Butterfly Effect. While
it could’ve been interesting seeing the “put yourself in others shoes” theme in
this format, it gets frustrating as to who’s in what body and finishes off as a
sappy melodrama. 11/18/2017
---Sean O.
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