Category: Watching

My brother-in-law and I like so many of the same movie genres that I’m often surprised by how often our opinions differ on most films.  To use his terminology, he’s a fan of movies heavy on “cheese”, where many “random” things happen, and there’s “fun gore”.  Not being a fan of gore, period, I don’t […]

At the time of this writing, the last movie Martin Brest has directed is Gigli, a movie justifiably reviled as one of the worst features ever released by a major studio.  When I saw that movie (in a theatre, no less), I was especially appalled by moments that, if they weren’t wholly improvised, had to […]

I wonder how Audrey Hepburn would fare as a star today.  In addition to being beautiful and having considerable talent, she has a certain goofy charm.  And there’s something about a gorgeous woman who can break out into a huge, silly grin.  The closest modern-day equivalent I can think of is Zooey Deschanel, even if […]

I’m not sure how 2002’s Treasure Planet started creeping onto my radar over the past year or so.  I was only vaguely aware of it during its theatrical run, and that was only because of how much money it lost.  And though I am a fan of animation, I don’t usually seek out Disney’s works, […]

So many British movie producers in the 60’s and 70’s tried to emulate the output of Hammer Studios and that’s not a bad goal to have in mind.  Unfortunately, too many of such movies failed to capture that undefinable magic that elevated the best work of the legendary studio above that of their peers. Such […]

Most people don’t make it a goal in their lives, but I knew from an early age that, if there was one thing I was going to make sure didn’t happen to me, it was to have children.  I won’t go into all of my reasons here, but one of them is so I wouldn’t […]

We all have thoughts that terrify us, things that make us go, “Why did I think that?” and then we try to move on.  Some artists embrace such horrific thoughts and this inspires art which makes most of us uncomfortable.  H.R. Giger specialized in gazing into the abyss and putting onto canvas what he saw […]

Since its inception, Hollywood has always loved making movies about itself.  That these pictures usually take pot-shots at the industry doesn’t discount the arrogance behind the endeavors.  Still, there have been many memorable movies in this mold, and I can now count 1937’s Stand-In among them.  At a time when most studio fare was light-hearted […]

1946’s The Razor’s Edge has a central conceit which I was dumbfounded to encounter in a major studio film of that vintage.  Tyrone Power plays a man disillusioned by war, who sets out to wander the world looking for answers.  He doesn’t even have questions, exactly.  “Since the war, I’ve been searching—searching for something I […]

I think there should be a genre of movies where the leading actress is some sort of professional, yet feels she has to bury her feelings in order to succeed.  You know, the whole “why can’t I be a [insert profession here] and a woman, too?” thing. In the case of 1963’s The Wheelers Dealers, […]

I never understood how Starship Troopers is supposed to be an anti-fascist film.  The whole thing seems pretty rah rah rah USA USA USA to me.  Maybe the message is clearer in Heinlein’s original novel, but I haven’t read it. 1998’s Soldier came out only a year later and I feel it had a similar […]

There are many people who seen vastly more film noir that I have, but I don’t know any of them personally.  And I have been slow to see some of the most legendary titles of this genre, as I simply wander through my stacks of blu-ray discs and get to the landmarks as they happen […]

One of my favorite short stories is The Jane Fonda Room by Jonathan Carroll.  In that story, the newest resident of hell selects from a list of possible punishments “The Movie Room”.  Jane Fonda is his favorite actress and so he will be shown her entire filmography.  And then the entire series of movies again.  […]

Waxwork surprised me by being better than I anticipated, so I was curious why it only has one sequel.  After all, many deeply terrible horror movies have spawned seemingly endless progeny.  I don’t feel I need to see Witchcraft to tell you it isn’t worthy of the sixteen installments that series has to date. 1992’s […]

William Castle is largely remembered for the horror movies he directed in the 1950’s.  To be more accurate, he’s legendary for the gimmicks he employed in select theatres for some of his features.  Things like the buzzers under the seats for The Tingler, or a skeleton on a wire flying over viewers’ heads at a […]