Tuesday, September 8, 2020

STUNTWOMEN: THE UNTOLD HOLLYWOOD STORY Movie Review



Stuntwomen: The Untold Hollywood Story (2020) d. April Wright (USA) (85 min)

Remember when Joan Wilder took her big slide down the mountain in Romancing the Stone? Or when Trinity raced against traffic on a motorcycle in The Matrix Reloaded? Or when Kara and Letty beat the crap out of each other (wearing evening gowns) in Furious 7? These are some of the most memorable moments in their respective films, and you’ll notice that I refer to them by their character names, as opposed to the performers that played them. That’s because for each of these moments, it’s not Kathleen Turner, Carrie-Ann Moss, Ronda Rousey, or Michelle Rodriguez whose actions we’re applauding, but rather those of the less-recognized Jeannie Epper, Debbie Evans, Heidi Moneymaker, and Renae Moneymaker taking falls, burning rubber, and kicking ass. This is the world of the stuntwoman and, as narrator/exec producer Rodriguez declares in the intro of director Wright’s eye-opening documentary, “The best ones are invisible… until now.”


Monday, January 6, 2020

2019 Wrap-Up and Year-End Stats!



Aaaaaaaaand we're back!

Having addressed the horror genre in the previous entry (hey, this is HORROR 101 after all), it’s time to give the Civilian flicks their moment in the sun. As always, all titles listed were encountered for the first time from January 1 to December 31, 2019 (i.e. no repeat viewings were eligible), with top picks denoted with an asterisk. (*)

However, first... A little context:

This was probably the first year in the last 20 years that I didn’t see a single movie at the multiplex and, with the exception of the Music Box of Horrors and Cinepocalypse, it was the first time that I didn’t see more than a single film in the theater with each trip. That’s right, no double, triple, quadruple features, just in and out and off to the proverbial snack bar to discuss. It was a fairly unique experience, but it also meant that my numbers for current releases were WAAAAAAAY down from usual. Also, since my focus tended to err toward chosen “projects” – most of which were of a certain vintage (007, Chuck Norris, various directors) – my home viewings rarely dabbled in the modern shiny stuff. Can’t say I’m really bummed about the results, they’re just not the norm.

Totally gratuitous pic of Denise Richards riding a dinosaur to entice you to click below the fold...

Monday, January 7, 2019

2018 Wrap-Up and Year-End Stats!



Aaaaaaaaand we're back!

Having addressed the horror genre in the previous entry (hey, this is HORROR 101 after all), it’s time to give the Civilian flicks their moment in the sun. As always, all titles listed were encountered for the first time from January 1 to December 31, 2018 (i.e. no repeat viewings were eligible), with top picks denoted with an asterisk. (*)

As mentioned in the horror wrap-up post, I didn't spend a lot of effort keeping up with the current output - I only indulged in two or three cineplex binge-trip theater-hop voyages, with most of the current crop viewed in the latter half of the year once they’d hit home video. I also will admit to spending a fair amount of time revisiting films that I hadn’t seen in a while to see if my opinions had changed (or hey, just for fun - what a concept!)

I am also happy to report that after two years of less-than-ideal stats, I managed to climb back into the 300+ Club (not really a club) and, as you’ll see below, I devoted a healthy amount of time to several actor/director projects over the course of the year. In addition to another successful Scare-A-Thon/October Challenge, I decided to re-introduce the notion of a November Turkey Hunt, tracking down the best of the worst, tallying 30 Gobblers (plus a few fence-sitters) when all was said and done.

Many thanks to everyone for their support and feedback and conversation over the years. We'll see what 2019, the last year of the “teens,” has in store!

Let the OCD madness begin!!!


TOP 10 2018 CIVILIAN RELEASES

Avengers: Infinity War
BlacKkKlansman
Black Panther
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
Game Night (*)
Leave No Trace
Mission: Impossible – Fallout (*)
Sorry to Bother You
Thoroughbreds (*)
Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

Sunday, January 7, 2018

2017 Wrap-Up and Year-End Stats!




Greetings, my friends!

This marks the 11th year that I have taken the time to not only reflect upon "the year in movies" gone by, but attempted to give it context and shape by assessing the quality of the films in question, and noting any particular patterns or interests that made the year distinctive. In 2009, I began breaking the Horror Views and Civilian Views into two separate sections, being that the blog I had just started was called, after all, HORROR 101.

Having already given 2017’s fright flicks their deserving measure of thought (click HERE to see)
, it’s time to dive into the less-scary side of things, as well as looking at the Views overall.


This year, it should be mentioned, marks the lowest total of films (251) watched since I started tracking such minutiae back in the early 1990s. (I know, I know, it may still seem like a lot to some. Everything is relative, no?) I attribute this to a variety of elements, not least of which being the amount of time I simply sat staring at the computer screen in disbelief at the madness occurring in the political arena. I was, quite literally, stunned by this world that had been allowed to manifest itself and almost didn’t dare turn my back… for fear things would slide past the point of no return during the period between opening and closing credits. I also found myself looking for ways to combat the various situations rather than escape from them, and often decided against a movie if there was a worthier task at hand, be it the organizing of a self-defense workshop or contributing time or money (or both) to a fundraiser or protest, etc.


This is also probably a good time to point out that there also wasn’t much coming to the cinema that I was interested in seeing. Outside of the two film festivals (BIFFF and Cinepocalypse), there was only one day that I spent at the multiplex seeing more than a single movie. One. (August 8, to be exact.) The rest of the time I was single-viewing it, i.e. going to the theater, seeing ONE MOVIE (“inconceivable!”) and then going home. I mean, seriously, who is this and what have you done with AC?


Add to this the insanity of running on minimal sleep during the 25 weeks that I was rehearsing and/or performing onstage while maintaining my personal training practice of 25-30 sessions a week, and suddenly it becomes clearer why the numbers are the way they are. To be honest, I’m genuinely surprised the tally isn’t lower. Then again, BIFFF, Cinepocalypse, and October’s SCARE-A-THON 2017 represent approx 35% of the total Views, even though they cover only 6 of the 52 weeks. (It seems we can still dive in deep when the occasion calls for it.)

This is why we record these things, to remember each year and what was different and special. So… let’s look around a bit, shall we?

2017 Totals: 251 films, 179 first time views, 111 horror, 52 cinema

(2016 Totals: 272, 183, 131, 31)

(2015 Totals: 352, 190, 224, 41)
(2014 Totals: 399, 203, 251, 48)
(2013 Totals: 306, 240, 185, 69)
(2012 Totals: 607, 520, 362, 166)
(2011 Totals: 640, 419, 355, 59)
(2010 Totals: 364, 253, 242, 45)
(2009 Totals: 472, 276, 289, 38)
(2008 Totals: 384, 278, 226, 39)
(2007 Totals: 409, 284, 260, 40)

Saturday, January 7, 2017

2016 Wrap-Up and Year-End Stats!



Aaaaaaaaand we're back!

Having addressed the horror genre in the previous entry (hey, this is HORROR 101 after all), it’s now time to give the civilian flicks a moment in the sun. As always, all titles listed were encountered for the first time from January 1 to December 31, 2016 (i.e. no repeat viewings were eligible), with top picks denoted with an asterisk. (*)

As I mentioned in the horror wrap-up post, I didn't spend a whole lot of effort keeping up with 2016's output - I don't think I indulged in more than two or three cineplex binge-trip theater-hop voyages, so most of the current crop were viewed in the latter half of the year once they'd hit home video. I'm genuinely surprised I saw as much as I did, since this year wasn't really calling to me.

Additionally, as you'll see below, this marks the fewest total films I've seen in probably 15 years, due to work and travel and interneting. But hey, Life takes its turns and shifts, and I'm okay with it, so hopefully you are as well. We'll see what 2017 has in store!

Let the OCD madness begin!!!




TOP CIVILIAN RELEASES OF 2016
Everybody Wants Some!
Green Room
*The Handmaiden
Hell or High Water
Swiss Army Man

Thursday, January 7, 2016

2015 Wrap-Up and Year-End Stats!


I've always been a firm believer in building up suspense, he said in response to the inevitable question, "What the hell took so long to post the second half of the year-end recap????"

Anyway, here's the rest of the goods from 2015. Didn't spend much time at the cineplex this year, so I can't say that this really reflects the state of The Year That Was, but then again, maybe it does, seeing as how I wasn't all that drawn to seek out the latest shiny new objects. Or maybe that just says more about me.

As before, all titles listed were encountered for the first time from January 1 to December 31, 2015 (i.e. no repeat viewings were eligible), with top picks denoted with an asterisk. (*)



TOP CIVILIAN RELEASES OF 2015


Wednesday, January 7, 2015

2014 Wrap-Up and Year-End Stats!



Back again!

Having addressed the horror genre in the previous entry (hey, this is HORROR 101 after all), it’s now time to give the civilian flicks their moment in the sun. As before, all titles listed were encountered for the first time from January 1 to December 31, 2014 (i.e. no repeat viewings were eligible), with top picks denoted with an asterisk. (*)




TOP CIVILIAN RELEASES OF 2014




Wednesday, April 23, 2014

HAPKIDO (1972) / LADY WHIRLWIND (1972) DVD REVIEW



Lady Whirlwind (aka Deep Thrust) (1972) d. Feng Huang (Hong Kong)
Hapkido (aka Lady Kung Fu) (1972) d. Feng Huang (Hong Kong)

Right off the bat, let’s make one thing clear: I don’t pretend to be a martial arts or Asian cinema expert. I’ve seen my share of chop-sockey flicks, both good and bad, but I’m a casual observer at best. Martial arts-wise, I’ve seen Bruce Lee’s five official features, several of Jackie Chan’s Hong Kong outings, Seven Samurai, 47 Ronin, a few 80s Cannon ninjafests, Five Deadly Venoms and other classic Shaw Brothers offerings, newer stuff like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, the Ong Baks, The Raid and its sequel, and maybe a dozen Jet Li movies. More than some, far less than others, but on the whole I can say I like the genre and am always eager to experience more.



Wednesday, April 16, 2014

COLD IN JULY (2014) movie review



Cold in July (2014) d. Jim Mickle (USA)

One hot summer Texas night, professional picture framer Richard Dane (Dexter’s Michael C. Hall) is awoken by the sound of someone breaking into his home. Spooked, the mild-mannered husband and father creeps downstairs and, accidentally firing his pistol, mortally wounds the intruder who turns out to have a criminal record a mile long. An instant small-town celebrity, Dane is applauded by the local lawman (Nick Damici) for bringing down “a really bad guy.” But when the burglar’s jailbird father (Sam Shepard) comes to town looking for revenge, it sets in motion a mysterious chain of events, revealing that nothing is as it appears to be.



Sunday, April 6, 2014

THE WHITE BUFFALO (1977) movie review



White Buffalo, The (1977) d. J. Lee Thompson (USA)

Produced by Dino de Laurentiis the same year as his Jaws/Moby Dick hybrid Orca, this similarly themed Western epic pits a syphilitic Wild Bill Hickok (Charles Bronson) against the enormous titular bison, with none-too-subtle parallels of them each being the last of their kind.