Sunday, November 29, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Twilight, How It Should Have Ended
Awesome Film Poster Of The Day #107
Apocalypse Now (Polish poster)
This comes as a suggestion from Canuck Critick
Monday, November 23, 2009
Book Review - Celluloid Serial Killers: The Real Monsters Behind The Movies
Kidd, Paul B.
Publisher: Five Mile Press
ISBN-10: 1741784727
ISBN-13: 9781741784725
Year Published: 2007
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Awful Film Poster Of The Week #13
Super Marcey guests on the AITH Podcast
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Twilight: My Opinion
Uhh yeah boy was I ever wrong? The film as a whole I think is a failure, at its core it is a romance between two that aren't really supposed to be together. A vampire and a human, how hard is that to do? Apparently really difficult, because what I saw was a weak romance, zero chemistry between the characters and appalling acting. Robert Pattinson was awful as Edward, the first half of the film he looks like he is going to throw up, he can't say anything convincingly and I couldn't believe he wanted Bella, maybe to eat her but as his girlfriend, erm no. It was watching a terrible train wreck and it was so insanely unintentionally hilarious Twilight was easily one of the funniest films I saw in 2008.
Kristen Stewart was not any better, she had two facial expressions, mouth closed or mouth open and showing teeth. Her acting was slightly better then his, but she was just not convincing and her had more chemistry with Taylor Lautner as Jacob. I am sorry but Bella and Edward I did not feel it at all, they don't have chemistry. There was no romance, it was forced and it was not at all convincing. I wanted there to be some kind of firey passion but there was none. I found the characters to be not very likable either, they just seemed like a bunch of morons.
Now I know I am not really the target audience but people my age love it, I can't see it. Yes this is meant for tweens/teens, but I have seen films meant for that audience that easily shit all over this rubbish. Now when I first saw this film I was a bit more kinder towards it, however the more I thought about it, the more I found I did not like it at all. It wasn't just issues with the main characters, the supporting ones were poor as well and their acting left a lot to be desired.
The vampire mythology is something that changes all the time, I don't have a problem with that. Personally I like what they served up in Near Dark, it was torn down to the basics and I loved that. But what the hell happened here? No vampires burning in the sun? No instead when they hit sunlight they glitter, yes they glitter. Um why? It is awful and it translated even worse on film. It was quite possibly the dumbest and most hilarious thing I had seen for a long time! Sure they clearly wanted an excuse to allow them out in the day with no sun around, but this was just terrible. And don't get me started on the tree climbing stuff, it was awful! Laughable, so unintentionally laughable, it was hard to watch at times. It made me cringe so much, not even The Office (UK) had my cringing that much. Oh and these vampires don't have fangs, because they weren't pussy enough, they had to make them even more pussier.
The vampires also looked hilarious, and in such a bad way. The Cullen Family, whoa, I haven't seen vampires look that bad for a long time. The white hair, the eyes, it was terrible and silly! The only one who looked fine was Alice played by Ashley Greene and she looked hot in the baseball scene and that was the only thing decent about that scene. The badies weren't all that bad, one of them looked stupid but they weren't all that bad. Still needed improvement like everything else but not as bad.
After reading all this, and you haven't seen Twilight you'd be wondering why in the heck people are so obsessed, and I am confused by it. Is it that all the girls think Pattinson is hot? I really don't see the attraction, he's alright looking but everytime I see him he looks high on drugs. There are other guys to obsess over I am sure. People want him and Kristen to be dating or not dating, they are on all the magazine covers. Kristen is boring, I don't see the whole appeal honestly. Pictures of them maybe holding hands was like the talk of the day, who cares? The more people buy into this trash the more popular it is going to be, and it is a sad state of society when those two make headlines over real news.
Now to touch on the book, I tried to read it and it was terrible. Stephanie Meyer I am sorry love but you aren't a good writer, when I can't bare to read something, it has to be bad. After reading what happens in the future books I felt sick to my stomach. It sounds awful, and I can't believe people like this. Sure we all have our own tastes and opinions but I honestly thought people in general had more sense. The more I read what happens, the more I can see Meyer is pushing her beliefs and hiding them in something like this. Now I am all for people expressing their beliefs but when you push them on people you can stay away from me and doing it like this is the same thing. And it is funny that people don't see it either.
This is my opinion and I would like it to be respected. Fair enough if you like Twilight, like it all you want. I don't like it, and I am sick of it. Hate on me for having an opinion which is different from your own, just goes to show what type of person you really are, ooooooo yeah!
Now if you want to see an actual good film with the target audience being teenagers, and it features teenage vampires and a love story and some awesome stuff, go watch The Lost Boys! If you want to see a vampire film where they will burn in the sunlight, it has romance and it has blood, go see Near Dark. These are two examples of vampire films done right, and they are actually good!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Super Podcast Episode 15: No Holds Barred Baby! w/ J.A. Hamilton (JoBlo Writer/Hollywood Raw)
Welcome to Episode 15 of the Super Podcast, this is an episode so epic it comes to you in three parts! As I don’t do these alone, I am joined with another member of the JoBlo family J.A. Hamilton! If you visit the site (if you don’t whats wrong with you, go there now!) you might know J.A. as the C’Mon Hollywood guy as well as writing the comic strip and writing DVD reviews. J.A. also runs his own blog Hollywood Raw which is pretty awesome as well, it is like as awesome as Super Blog hehe. Now that I am done kissing his behind, lets get to the podcast! This one has been in the works for quite some time, so when we got together there was a lot to discuss and a lot of things to shoot the shit about.
Highlights for the 3 parter epic include:
- The usual sucking up, and giving love to JoBlo and making it quite clear it is in fact not a porn site!
- We talk about the implications of having your opinion out there and the massive backlash it gets (death threats too .. wha??)
- We give love to the classic 80’s action/martial arts films, and again Loren Avedon comes up, because he rocks.
- J.A. likes to name drop on the actors he’s met, and how one he kind of forgot his name!
- We discuss how much of an impact horror films have had on us, what scares us?
- For some reason wrestling comes up in the conversation, gotta love that, right?
- We discuss the problems in Hollywood, and how they affect the genres we love.
- And much, much, more!
Part 1
Listen Now:
Part 2
Listen Now:
Part 3
Listen Now:
Monday, November 16, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Awesome Film Poster Of The Day #101
The House On Sorority Row
This poster came up during a discussion on a podcast I'm guesting on this week :)
Friday, November 13, 2009
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
4/5
I am sure you have all heard of this film, it was in the middle of production when Heath Ledger passed away. The film's future remained in doubt without Heath but Terry Gilliam got himself a few replacements and completed the film. So how did the last film of Heath Ledger hold up? For this young lady, I thought it was fantastic!
Terry Gilliam is an unusual film maker, and if you look over his filmography, all his films are quite different. For me, he can be hit and miss. I have enjoyed some of his films and others I really couldn't get into. I don't think it is any secret that my favourite film of his is 12 Monkeys, and it is certainly one of his more darker and thought provoking films. He certainly isn't for everyone, and I am sure there are people out there who wont like this film.
After seeing the trailer to this, I had it on my radar, I thought it looked quite good and different. However after seeing it, it was not at all what I was expecting, and that is a good thing! It ended up being just so much more, and the way it unraveled was so good to see. It is one of the rare films I have really been surprised with this year.
So what is it about? To put it in simple terms, there is a travelling theatre company consisting of Dr Parnassus (Christopher Plummer), his daughter Valentina (Lily Cole), Percy (Verne Troyer) and Anton (Andrew Garfield) who give their audience a lot more then they were expecting inside of the Imaginarium. Now that might have you some what confused or thinking, eh?? But it is better to keep it simple because the less you know the better! And where does Heath come in? He plays Tony, a man who joins their company.
The cast are all fantastic, Christopher Plummer is just amazing as Dr Parnassus and Gilliam really did find the right man for the job. He is always on the ball, and he really does disappear into the character. I loved him! Lily Cole is simply gorgeous and she was also right on the ball. She hit all the right notes as Valentina, not an easy role to tackle but she did it and did it well. Surprisingly Verne Troyer was quite good as Percy, he had a few off moments but for the most part I thought he was quite good. The role was well written and with the right direction he can act. Andrew Garfield was good as Anton, his character I found annoying at times but towards the second half as it got a bit more tackling I think he pulled it off. Tom Waits as Mr. Nick was just simply fantastic, who better to play this role? It surely had to be written for him because it was just the right fit. I am always happy to see Tom in film, but this just worked so perfectly, I loved him. Heath was good, there were some scenes he was spectacular and it is so sad to think this was his last performance, who knows how far he would have come if he was still with us. His opening scene will leave you a bit shocked, I had no idea how he would be introduced and it was just extremely sad. Now to where his replacements come in, some clever re-writes which ended up working perfectly have Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell play different sides to Tony. I think Johnny Depp perfectly channeled Heath with his performance and his scenes are extremely moving. I thought he was great. Jude Law was alright, his scenes were different and he wasn't really channeling the character of Tony or Heath but more being Jude Law. Colin Farrell faired better, his scenes were probably the most difficult to do as they come with a big reveal. He was channeling Johnny Depp as Heath, rather then Heath. He did well and I think with at least Johnny and Colin, he picked the right replacements.
Visually this film is stunning, that is something Gilliam knows how to do! His visuals, no matter what the setting are always fantastic. The Imaginarium looks and feels so fantastic, some scenes are just so beautiful I wanted to keep looking at them rather then progress with the film. There are certain scenes which stick out but I wont go into them because it will spoil it. But there is one towards the middle of the film in a Mall that is just really fantastic.
This is a film that basically places you right in, and you need to work out what is going on. No spoon feeding here, and I like films like this. I mean they don't always work but for me this really did. It is like a strange fairytale, and an adventure with meaning. I really enjoyed this film, and I felt it was one of Gilliams better efforts.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Kick-Ass teaser trailer
Awesome Film Poster Of The Day #100
Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
R.I.P. Toby 1996-2009
Toby was almost 14 years old, and I got him when I was 11 years old. I have had the little guy for over half my life, and we had been through a lot together. I am so proud of him for lasting just over a year here in Melbourne. He went through a lot when we moved, we had to give up the cats River and Billy which was heart breaking for us all, and I think Toby felt it the most. The new change was a lot for him, as was the car ride here. But he did settle in really well, and we loved it here. Unfortunately due to his health I wasn't able to walk him often, it was his favourite thing in the world to do. He also got to know his cousin Carlos, and I know they enjoyed each others company. Carlos kept us company yesterday, and he was really sad all day, he knew poor Toby had left us and even he left his loss.
Over the years Toby had been a little trouble maker, but we loved him all the same. I will never forget running after him we he slipped out of the gate, running all over Para Hills in the rain to find him. One day we couldn't find him, I was crying, we drove back home and the little bugger was waiting for us wagging his tail at the gate! Ahh the good ol days! Then he had his interesting habits which he did pretty much up until last week. He loved to hump, normally he would hump a blanket or an old shirt. But he did it all the time, and he especially loved to do it when company was around, he had to show off! Anyone that knew Toby saw him do it, he was so funny.
As I mentioned poor Toby had a lot of health problems, and he almost died several times. He had a hernia before and on the eve of my 18th birthday he had live saving surgery to remove it. Unfortunately this year it came back, not sure how or why. His heart problems gave us the most troubles, and he was on daily medication at least twice a day and this had been the case for years. He even used to suffer bad skin allergies when spring time came around, and a few years ago he had to have 7 teeth removed. He had spine problems due to his age, and he had ligament problems as well. So he had been through a lot, and it is amazing he almost made it to 14 years.
He's given me 14 years of loving memories and experiences and he has been through all the highs and lows with me. I am going to miss him so much, it is still sinking in that he's gone. I feel like I have lost apart of myself, and like with a huge loss it will take a lot of time to get over. I still think he's out in the backyard and I go to let him in and remember he isn't there. I will miss my little one, and he'll be in my heart forever.
In two weeks I will get his ashes, and I think I am going to keep them close to me, he deserved nothing less then that.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Super Podcast Ep 14 - Top 5 Worst & Best WTF Film Moments w/Tony Lang (JoBlo News Writer)
Welcome to Episode 14 of the Super Podcast, this latest installment is another top 5 where we over two topics. Now when I saw we, that means myself and my guest Tony Lang from JoBlo.com. This isn’t just any Top 5, infact we discuss two Top 5’s, Worst and then Best WTF Moments in films. Now you might be asking yourself WTF on that, haha! Well WTF Moments, are moments that either make or break the film. You might be watching a great film and a line is spoken or something happens to just completely throw the film out the window. Or a moment happens that makes you sit up and notice and the scene is so great it sticks with you. This is what we discuss and I think you’ll enjoy it.
Highlights include:
- Tony introduces himself and we basically kiss each others asses haha
- We get started on the Worst WTF Moments, and some picks are rather funny.
- As we get to the middle of our list, I think our choices are just getting us worked up.
- Our number 1’s are easily moments which are not pleasant and if you liked them, I would love to know!
- Moving on to our great moments, it is clear just how moved we were by the scenes.
- Tony picks a scene to a film he didn’t really think was that great, mine I loved.
- I make a really bad joke, and we move along with our list and it gets very passionate.
- Our number 1’s clearly mean a lot to us, and they do stand out.
- And much, much more!
I would like to thank Tony again for joining me for the show, taking the time out to have a good chat with yours truly. Head over to JoBlo and check out Tony’s articles and give him the love or hate he deserves for his work. As always I love to get feedback and hear what your picks might be so feel free to drop me a line at marceyness@gmail.com or leave me a comment. Stay classy!
Friday, November 6, 2009
Tribute to King Of The Kickboxers
What really sets this film a part from others, it is just so much fun! Everything about it is great, the storyline, the acting, the humor, the action, it all just comes together so well and it has the right blend that just makes it work. It is hard to just not gush over how awesome this film really is.
If you are looking to get started in checking out martial arts films of the 80's and early 90's this is the perfect one to start with. I would also recommend checking out Loren's other films, he is so fantastic and his martial arts skills are tops!
Check out Loren in this great interview!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
American Ninja 1, 2, 3 & 4
It is no secret, I love action films, specifically I love martial arts films. The 80's and early 90's gave us some very special ones, they are in a league of their own. I had heard about a series of films called American Ninja, and it has been on the to see list for the better half of this year. So finally, decided to sit down and watch 1 through 4 (still need to track down 5). So what did I think? Did they live up to expectations? Yes and no, but I will get to that ... lets move on to ...
American Ninja (4/5)
First off, I enjoyed the heck out of this film, it had all the ingredients I look for in a martial arts film. Over the top and silly storyline, check! Ninjas, check! Hero, check! Questionable acting, check! So whats this about? I don't even feel like going into it, just know it has Michael Dudikoff as Joe this pretty boy army guy with amnesia who happens to be a ninja to fight the ninjas. That's basically all you need to know, you don't go into a film like this for a fantastic plot line and great character development. You go in wanting action, a few laughs and NINJAS! I got all of that and then some.
The only fault with this film is it does take itself a bit too seriously, and you get those moments of unintentional laughs, but it just seems to work anyway. The end show down is legendary, and this film has a high re-watchable value. It isn't on par with the likes of King of the Kickboxers or No Retreat No Surrender but it is a good fun film and I enjoyed it. And in the end that is all that matters!
American Ninja trailer, complete with original title!
American Ninja 2 (3.5/5)
Joe and his trusty sidekick, black Rambo Curtis Jackson just can not seem to stay away from them Ninjas. New bad guys who employ Ninjas need to be dealt with. The storyline is even more outrageous, but at least this time around it does not take itself as serious and it knows what kind of film it is. Again it is a lot of fun, and the Ninja's just seem to be more stupid. I sat back and enjoyed them getting their asses handed to them by Joe, he really does kick ass.
Michael Dudikoff really settles into the role and he comes off a lot more natural this time around and Steve James just seems to be having so much fun too. Storyline is really bad, it was better in the first film but it doesn't stop this from being a fun ride and an enjoyable film.
American Ninja 3 (3/5)
So we have a new hero for the film David Bradley as Sean, who happens to be another american ninja, meets up with our sidekick Curtis Jackson to take on ... evil ninjas! Yes, the same old thing again with a wacky storyline, but lots of fun to be had. The ninjas seem to get dumber with each film but then it is fun to see the good guys beat the shit out of them.
David Bradley is as good as a replacement as any for Michael Dudikoff, he wasn't half bad with his acting and his martial arts skills are fantastic, after all he was a karate champion just like in the film. Again this film doesn't take itself seriously and it helps the enjoyment of it, because you just take it for what it is.
American Ninja 4 (3/5)
Pretty much the same as above, silly as heck storyline, even dumber ninjas, but we get both David Bradley and Michael Dudikoff in the same film and teaming up towards the end. The beginning we get David Bradley and his adventures and then in the second half we get Michael Dudikoff's, and then it all comes together right at the end.
Again the storyline is silly beyond belief, but it makes it that much more fun to watch. Theres even a crew of Mad Max extras in the film to add to the craziness. It is hard to write a review of the film without giving too much away, best way to watch these films is to dive in head first.
Awesome Film Poster Of The Day #96
American Ninja
Okay so some people might think this poster sucks, but c'mon it is all sorts of 80's martial arts awesomeness!