Friday, June 30, 2023

Cocaine Shark

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In case you haven’t seen the intro from my entry dated 1/26/19 (it’s in my archives whenever you want to read it), I’m no longer going to review every single movie I see.  I’m going to review one, with the occasional bonus, and just give ratings for the rest from now on (unless I decide to pick it up again in the future).  You can always ask me why I gave the ratings for the films without reviews though (via comments or the e-mail addresses under the ‘About Me’ section).
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Cocaine Shark                                                             VB
It was only a matter of time right?  Of course I knew not to take it seriously; hell, I didn’t even take Cocaine Bear seriously and that was released theatrically with a bigger budget (you can read my review for that here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2023/03/cocaine-bear.html).  Whether I take it seriously or not and however low my expectations may be, it’s still a matter of whether you should spend roughly 70-minutes of your mortal existence with it, free or not (it is on Tubi, meaning free, with ads).  Well, if my rating didn’t make it clear enough, the answer is an emphatic no!  The one involving the bear was a masterpiece compared to this.  I almost want to give it a teeny, tiny bit of credit for utilizing stop-motion effects in these highly digitized times, but the scenes involving them were constructed extremely poorly (the kills being some of the worst I’ve seen; yes, even for this type of movie).  The titular creature is the result of an incident making it become a “crab shark,” and there are two other creatures as a result of this incident we barely get to see (a subplot involving a “man shark” would’ve been an interesting concept, at least theoretically); hell, we barely even get to see the titular shark itself in its scant run-time!  No loss considering how awful the effects look.  The rest of the movie involves drugs (No way! Really?) and bad people that good people try to avoid (or something like that).  Of course a film with a title like this is going to make myself and those like myself curious, but, my dear readers, you need not satiate your curiosity all the time, as hard as it may be, and this is one of those times you best save 70-minutes for something worthwhile.  Did I mention I wasn’t a fan of this movie?  6/30/2023

Bonus reviews:

Skull Island (Season One)                                           EH/OK
(haiku review)
Pros?  Short episodes.
Cons?  Series more lame than not.
Not over either!  6/26/2023

*Netflix; 8 episodes*

The Possessed                                                             B
(haiku review)
A TV movie.
1977.
It’s awful.  Awful!  6/26/2023

Other movies I've seen and their ratings (see above):

Aged  >>>OK

Cryptid  >>>EH/OK

Run Rabbit Run  >>>EH
            (Netflix)

Who Killed Cooper Dunn?  >>>EH

You’re Killing Me  >>>EH

---Sean O.
6/30/2023

Sunday, June 18, 2023

Black Mirror (Season Six)

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In case you haven’t seen the intro from my entry dated 1/26/19 (it’s in my archives whenever you want to read it), I’m no longer going to review every single movie I see.  I’m going to review one, with the occasional bonus, and just give ratings for the rest from now on (unless I decide to pick it up again in the future).  You can always ask me why I gave the ratings for the films without reviews though (via comments or the e-mail addresses under the ‘About Me’ section).
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Black Mirror (Season Six)                                          G
Season six of this Netflix anthology series involving different technologies with episodes falling under sci-fi, drama, horror, and thriller.  There were more hits than misses for me with this series in order to call myself a fan.  Some of my favorite episodes have been “White Bear” from season two, “Shut Up and Dance” and “San Junipero” from season three, and “Metalhead” from season four.  After revisiting the series before this season, there were really only three I disliked and some just okay.  Apparently my opinion changed on some; I sort of praised “The Entire History of You” from season one in my review, but wasn’t a fan this time; I also didn’t seem to be a fan of the “White Christmas” special before, but didn’t think it was too bad now.  [You can read my review of seasons one through three in here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2017/04/mooby-reviews-42417.html, season four in here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2018/01/mooby-reviews-11318.html, season five in here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2019/06/black-mirror-season-five.html, and the movie, Bandersnatch, in here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2018/12/mooby-reviews-122918.html].  This season had five episodes.  Imagine if parts of your life, recently at that, were made into a TV series for all to see, some parts rather private.  Such is the premise for “Joan Is Awful.”  Leads to somewhat of a mindf*** by the end and further adds to the notion of modern technology encroaching on our privacy.  “Loch Henry” was probably the most up my alley in terms of content, following a murder mystery dug up from the past in an isolated Scottish community; uses older technology in the form of VHS tapes.  “Beyond the Sea” is the longest at roughly 80-minutes (the previous two were barely an hour) and involves two men working in space while a mechanical version of themselves (exact replicas) can simultaneously be at home with their families.  And what if something happens to their replicas on Earth?  Some of what occurs is slightly predictable, but it still manages to be a somewhat effective episode.  “Mazey Day” is the shortest and eventually becomes a different tale than initially expected; it’s fine, but could’ve utilized better creature effects.  Lastly, “Demon 79” is the second longest and I don’t understand how it tied in with Black Mirror, a talisman appearing to be the “technology.”  A woman comes across this talisman in the basement of a shoe store she works at in England which unleashes a demon (hence the title) demanding she make three human sacrifices by a certain date or the end (for all) will come.  As an episode on its own merit, it was fine, although not altogether fresh.  I still don’t see how a talisman (shaped like a domino) counts as a technology (which this show revolves around).  When all is said and done, I didn’t dislike any of these segments, enabling me to give this season of Black Mirror a passing grade.  6/17/2023

Bonus reviews:

The Amityville Curse                                                   EH
(haiku review)
New film on Tubi.
Another Amityville?!
Yes, it sucked.  Shocker!  6/8/2023

Based on a True Story (Season One)                          OK
(haiku review)
Fair dark comedy.
Obviously not over.
Why can’t shows just end?  6/12/2023

*Peacock; 8 episodes*

Servant (Seasons 3 & 4)                                              EH/OK
(haiku review)
One?  Fine.  The rest?  Meh.
Short eps., but not worth four runs.
Good thing it’s over.  6/9/2023

*Available on Apple+; 10 episodes per season.  You can check out my review for the first season in here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2020/04/servant-season-one.html, and my haiku review for season two in here---https://vampireclown82.blogspot.com/2021/03/pg-psycho-goreman.html*

Other movies and TV show(s) I’ve seen and their ratings (see above):

Close (2022)  >>>OK
   (In French and Dutch with subtitles)

Demigod  >>>B/EH

The Park (2023)   >>>OK

Renfield  >>>EH

She Came from the Woods (2023)  >>>OK
                        (Tubi)

Shining Vale (Season One)  >>>OK
            (Starz; 8 episodes)

A Small Town in Texas  >>>EH

Split (2016; dir. Jamie Buckner)  >>>EH

The Super Mario Bros. Movie   >>>EH

---Sean O.
6/18/2023

Thursday, June 1, 2023

65

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In case you haven’t seen the intro from my entry dated 1/26/19 (it’s in my archives whenever you want to read it), I’m no longer going to review every single movie I see.  I’m going to review one, with the occasional bonus, and just give ratings for the rest from now on (unless I decide to pick it up again in the future).  You can always ask me why I gave the ratings for the films without reviews though (via comments or the e-mail addresses under the ‘About Me’ section).
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65                                                                                OK
With a title like that in a movie involving dinosaurs I don’t think I need to tell you when this takes place (hint---it’s not the future).  There actually is a plot---Adam Driver plays a man that must travel across an unfamiliar terrain with the daughter of two other passengers that perished when their ship crashed in order to get back home.  There is dino action, sure, but I didn’t think there was enough (the best being saved for last).  Perhaps I just wanted more, expected more (it’s also a secondhand father-daughter tale of sorts).  Obviously two primary human characters can’t be killed off, so don’t expect any human deaths by dinosaurs.  And whereas the dinos in the Jurassic films looked more tangible, most of the ones here looked like they belonged in a videogame.  Perhaps this looked better on paper?  Possibly.  The setting was nice to look at though.  It may not be the worst dinosaur action film I’ve seen, but it’s certainly no Jurassic Park/World either…5/30/2023

Bonus review:

Fatal Attraction                                                           EH
The 1987 film starring Michael Douglas and Glenn Close was decent, but it wasn’t that great.  If you were to watch it now for the first time you’d probably think it was no different than any other erotic thriller released since.  In other words, it didn’t stand the test of time.  Therefore, did we really need a TV series update (available on Paramount+), that’s ultimately more of a drama than thriller, consisting of eight episodes roughly an hour a piece?  Absolutely not!  I usually complain how some modern shows’ episodes aren’t all released at once, but I actually liked the break in between each episode here; this is most definitely not a binge-worthy show (although it somewhat worked effectively as character studies initially).  I mean, if you saw the original film you pretty much know what to expect; it’s just a matter of sitting through eight stretched-out episodes.  Sure, some things are done a bit differently, but nothing exactly worth raving over.  Yes, the plot remains the same---a man cheats on his wife with a woman (played by Joshua Jackson and Lizzy Caplan this time), the man tells her to get lost, the woman doesn’t take it so well, etc., etc., etc.  Since there’s a lot more space for the story to unfold, we are shown flashbacks (oh yeah, it takes place on two different timelines) and how other characters are affected by this relationship.  Again, nothing exactly worth writing home about.  To needlessly sum this remake up in one word?  Unnecessary.  Oh, and the very end of the last episode suggests an entirely new storyline.  As of now, there are no talks of another season and I hope it stays that way!  I won’t be continuing anyhow…5/29/2023

Other movies I've seen and their ratings (see above):

Alone with You  >>>OK

Luck (2022)  >>>OK
(Apple+)

The Price We Pay  >>>OK

Sharper  >>>OK
   (Apple+)

Shepherd (2022)  >>>OK

Tin & Tina  >>>EH/OK
   (Netflix; In Spanish with subtitles)

Woman of the Photographs  >>>B
   (In Japanese with subtitles)

---Sean O.
6/1/2023