One Eyed Monster (2008) Horror/Comedy

One Eyed Monster (2008) - Oh what people think up! While snowed in at a cabin in the woods the crew of an adult movie is terrorized by an alien from outer space. Starring Ron Jeremy's dick, Amber Benson and Charles Napier and this piece of crap is funny in some ways but can not overcome the just horrible plot. The alien enters Ron Jeremy and then detaches from him, leaving him dead, using his penis as a way to try to breed. WhyBecause aliens have seen all the porn beamed across the airwaves for years and have seen Jeremy as the biggest reproducer of us all. The dick then goes about killing anyone who messes with it and trying to mate as much as possible. There are lots of serious line about how to stop the dick. The group realizes that getting the dick to cum will leave it vulnerable to an axe, so they devise a plan and attempt to execute it.

Rating (3.5)

Feast II : Sloppy Seconds (2008) Horror

Feast II : Sloppy Seconds (2008) - The monsters from the first movie are on the move and a new group of humans are trying to survive. Defined by their teeth and insatiable appetites for blood and sex the monsters are out in the day, descending on a small southwestern town. Biker Queen arrives at the bar from the first movie Feast (2005) looking for her sister Harley Mom (Same actress Diane Ayala Goldner) She only finds the bartender who tells her her sister was used as bait by Hot Wheels and now she wants revenge. Heading to a small town to find him with Bartender (Clu Gulager) tied to her bike she arrives after the town has been attacked by the monsters. Looking for a place to hold up, they run into several survivors and soon the group is hold up trying to think of a way into the jail, the place they see as the most secure building in town. In this mix is stories of survival, Honey Pie (Jenny Wade) is back and still trying to stay alive. Hobo is the uncle of Hot Wheels and won't let anyone in the police station. Several biker chicks, a love triangle and a couple key making small people all fight for survival.

This movie is a mess artistically with a weird dream sequence, a baby flying through the air in slow motion, cat fucking and the strangest, most gross out alien dissection I have ever seen. Unlike the first movie it lacked the frantic pace and thus was not as pure. Instead it was a mixed mess of bit thrown together but not quite making a whole.

Rating (3.6)

La Terza Madre (Mother of Tears) (2007) Horror

La Terza Madre (Mother of Tears) (2007) - The third in the series of The Mothers movies by Dario Argento, starring his lovely daughter Asia. In this installment an ancient urn is found and when opened releases an evil that is to bring about the fall of Rome. Violent acts increase and witches from around the world begin to arrive in Rome to perform the rituals to complete the fall. Sarah (Asia Argento) who inherited the power to stop the events from her mother finds herself the heroine. She is pursued by the evil followers and in the catacombs beneath Rome battles for good.

The movie written by five writers is poorly put together with clumsy exposition throughout. Our lead stumbles through the movie inevitably moving towards the climax with few proactive actions. This happens to her and then that happens to her and then the climax happens to her and then it ends with the ridiculous and silly laughing scene. The Police in the movie are an after thought and to some extent so is the plot. The lead detective shows up at the end to save Sarah but has barely been in the movie to that point.

The music as with many of Dario Argento's movies is over done but bearable. The gore scenes are exceptionally gross and I see that as a positive in what overall is a not great film.

Rating (4.9)

Surveillance (2008) Thriller

Surveillance (2008) - Jennifer Lynch, daughter of David Lynch directs this thrilling story of a couple killers in small town America. Bill Pullman and Julie Ormond star as a couple of FBI agents tracking coming to the police station in Nowhere America looking for details about the killers. Through the stories of witnesses the killings are shown. The crooked cop(Kent Harper) tells of how his deceased partner came to die. A junkie Bobbi (Pell James) tells of the attack from the position of her and her boyfriend (Also a victim). Little girl and very insightful Stephanie(Ryan Sompkins) shares how her family died at the hands of the murderers. Most of the conflict is through the FBI, Local tension and the witnesses telling their stories but not wanting to share all the details for various reasons. This is a "big twist" movie and in general I think the director did a decent job not revealing too much too early. I figured it out about ten minutes before it was revealed, but consider myself an astute film watcher. I wonder if others had an easier time in getting it. Overall the movie was a bit slowly paced and some of the characters were very unlikable, but the stories were interesting enough to hold my attention. The gruesome parts were just that and the killers were not developed enough to make them iconic. I think what was missing were the motivation of the killers. They just did what they did but there is no back story of how they reached this point, no reasons why they behave the way they do.

Rating (6.5)

School Killer (2001) Horror

School Killer (2001) - The story of six teenagers who attempt to spent the night at an old and apparently haunted school. Like his father did 30 or so years before Ramon (Carlos Fuentes) brings his friends to the closed down private school for adventure but only finds horror and death. Trying to solve the mystery of what happened to his father Alex and his friends may save these teen from a similar fate. Early in the film the characters referenced A nightmare on Elm street and one of the Scream movies in talking about how they are not as stupid as the teens in those films, hmmmmm...

Strange light when there is no electricity quickly leads to the classic, have sex and die scene. Soon there is running and screaming and a car that has flats and does not start. The tired going back into the creepy dark building, then more running and dying. The mystery was a bit interesting and seeing Paul Naschy as the evil security guard was cool. Overall though this is pretty standard stuff and for all their talk of knowing horror movies the characters in this one made the same mistakes.

The movie looks dark, and the sound and music was a bit grating.

Rating (3.8)

District 9 (2009) Sci-Fi

District 9 (2009) -Director and cowriter Neill Blommkamp has a winner on his hands. It has been a long time since I have seen a movie that was so enjoyable. I am a science fiction fan and District 9 delivers. After their spaceship become stranded hovering above Johannesburg South Africa. A million desperate aliens, are stranded for twenty years in a refugee camp called district 9. Prawns as they are called live in poverty scavenging trash in the wastes of the district. Wikus Van De Merwe (Sharlto Copley) is a government functionary in charge of moving more than a million alien refugees from their camp in district nine to a new facility 200 miles away is the protagonist. He comes across as both a competent civil servant and unaware dupe. (Elisa and I did have a conversation about how in the know Wikus actually is. They needed to make him sympathetic while still showing that he disregarded the aliens as much as anyone else.) He an everyone else seems racist towards the aliens. The callous nature of the approach to moving them re enforces the relationship. They are not human nor are they seen as equal or intelligent. A very interesting juxtaposition considering that their technology is so much more advance than ours. In fact there are governments and multinational corporations searching for a way to use the weapons from the aliens. Unfortunately they are bio engineered and only the aliens can use them. Shot in a style of gathered video it could have been slicker but I do think that the found footage approach did not take too much away from the story.
The rest of the plot centers around Wikus and what happens to him while moving the aliens. He finds a cylinder of black liquid and when it accidentally sprays him things start to change for him. I do not want to give away any more of the plot. Go see this movie!
I will say though, that the tension and action of this film grows from that point on. It transforms into a very good action film and is a great ride.
Rating (9.0)

Pontypool (2008) Horror/Thriller

Pontypool (2008) - Grant Mazzy(Stephen McHattie) is a has been shock jock trying to make a come back in a tiny town in Ontario. On this morning all hell breaks loose as a virus that lives in words spreads through the town causing the infected to kill and then commit suicide. How will he , producer Sydney (Lisa Houle)and technician Laurel Ann (Georgina Reilly) figure out the virus and inform the airwaves of how to beat it.

This movie is a slow burn, taking its time in an attempt to gain the momentum needed to make its plot leap. I am not sure that it really pulled it off. From reporting the crowds at a local doctors office to the crowds showing up, not much happens. I have to say I was not sold at this point. The solution was "retahded"(A Boston term meaning stupid).

The camera work was totally stationary on this small set movie, with no camera movement at all just cuts to different shots. The acting was okay and the concept not horrible. The execution of the solution needed more fleshing out. We have the story get bigger and bigger but then there is a 4 minute sequence where they figure out the virus and counteract it. It was way too easy. The action in the movie consisted of infected whacking themselves against hard thing. Oh and "Kill is Kiss."

Rating (4.8)

Tres días (2008) - (Three Days) Drama

Tres días (2008) - Listed on the cable as Before the Fall I think the translation should be "Three Days", This is a drama disguised as a Science Fiction movie; Or at least that is what you would think from the description. We Join Alejandro (Ale)(Victor Clavijo) on the day he learns that a meteor is going to hit the earth in three days. Governments have already tried the Armageddon and Deep Impact ways to stop it but they have failed. So now the governments of the world are telling the populous that the party is over. Ale is apathetic in general and this news only makes him more so. With him is his mother "The Widow"(Marilo Munoz) who brings him back to reality by immediately thinking of her grandchildren. She goes rushing off to another family members home through the chaos of the streets in the small Spanish city. Ale wants to say "fuck it" but it is his mother and he is compelled to follow her as already discord is everywhere. They make it to the family home as the last member is committing the suicide that goes with murder suicide. So sad. Rosa sees from the TV that the prisons are being taken over by inmates. This is where things get interesting. She use to have two sons and one helped stop Lucio (Eduardo Fernandez), a serial killer of children. The son dying as he did. The killer sent to prison for life, 20 years earlier is now sure to escape. He promised on his arrest to get the family of the young man who got him captured. Now Rosa thinks about the kids of her dead son out at the country house. She convinces Ale to drive her to see that they are alright. She is sure that Lucio is on his way there.

When they arrive through the fleeing masses to the isolated country house all seems fine except the parents who went into town never came back. The children not having a working TV do not know the end of the world is coming. Rosa against Ale's reluctance decides not to tell the children. The tension then builds as Lucio heads to the house, Rosa struggles to keep the news from the children and Ale does not know whether he should continue to contribute to the charade.

Lucio arrives and it is here I will stop relaying the plot. It is tension filled with action and worth every minute.

What is this movie about though? What would you do in the same position? Ale was ready to just give out and live his last few days on earth quietly at home. He instead though showed that family prevails for him and is compelled into action. Later he is confronted with the emotions of figuring out if he is strong enough to defend the children and if he can be as brave as his brother was. Rosa, reacts immediately for protection of family, even though in three days it won't matter. She is a true character with no doubt in her beliefs. Lucio even though he knows there is no future spend his final days stalking the family. His mental illness determining for him that what was started 20 years before must be completed. Is there a fight worth fighting and dying if there is no future? That is essentially the question this film asks us.

This movie was quiet in the first half with at times really over the top music. The second half is exciting thrilling.

Rating (8.3)

The Descent (2005) Horror

The Descent (2005) - The year before this movie hit theaters in the USA my family and I were spending a couple weeks in Cuernavaca Mexico, at the Encuentros Spanish school, and living with a family when not in class. We were really tired of the nonstop Spanish and needed to find some way to hear English just for a little while, you can only watch so much TV in Spanish before tuning out. We decided to go to the big fancy mall in the city to see a film. In English with Spanish subtitles. While the girls went to see some romantic comedy or something I found the movie The Descent. I already knew the director Neil Marshall from his great Dog Soldiers so I was excited that I was going to get to see a new movie from him. It was just what I needed to see, a claustrophobic, exciting horror movie with lots of gore. I love this movie, I have seen it seven times now and enjoy it each time. Smartly paced with excellent scares it build to an exciting action filled climax and then leaves you thinking with a ending that does not explain everything completely. This being the international ending, which is different than the US ending.
After loosing her family in a car wreck Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) rejoins her female adventure group for a caving expedition in the Appalachian mountains. Sarah is still feeling the effects of the deaths of her husband and daughter is taking medication and having horrifying dreams. Juno (Natalie Mendoza) who secretly had an affair with Sarah's late husband, struggling with the guilt of it wants to organize a special trip to bring the group closer together. She without telling the group leads them to a cave that has never been explored before. Things go horribly wrong when the way they just past collapses leaving the group stuck under the mountain. As they attempt to find a passage out they realize they are not alone in the cave. Living in the system is a group of humanoid creatures evolved for living in the dark. The bat people stalk and start killing the party and very quickly the women are in a fight for their lives.
Spoilers: The ending in the US version of this film has the main character escaping from the caves and pulling over on the side of the road. She sees her friend Juno (dead at this point) sitting next to her and screams, the movie ends. This is the happy ending, Sarah escapes being the only survivor of the expedition.
In the international version after Sarah screams in the truck she wakes up still in the tunnels. You hear the sounds of the creatures and see her hallucinating her daughter blowing out a birthday cake. In this ending you are brought back to some of the exposition dialog, where the effects of darkness can be hallucinations, paranoia, etc. It could be that the women were trapped and then Sarah broke and killed all her friends and the creatures and all were just her minds way of dealing with the craziness. Or that there was indeed creatures and although she fought then off and sacrificed Juno to them that she never found the way out of the caves and it ends with her still trapped.
Either way this movie kicks ass and I loved it. Even after seeing it multiple times I still sit enthralled with this one.
Rating (9.0)

The Girlfriend Experience (2009) Drama

The Girlfriend Experience (2009) - Sasha Grey plays Chelsea, a high end call girl who tries to balance a relationship with Chris (Chris Santos) and look after her business. Written by David Levien and Brian Koppelman and directed by Steven Soderbergh it is a movie about intimacy and pretend intimacy and whether we can tell the difference. Do we need there to be a difference or is the act of seeming intimate equivalent to actual closeness? Chelsea played with very little affect is struggling with this question and I think Soderbergh sort of leaves it for the audience to decide at the end. There are a mix of relationships to look at here, a trainer to his clients, a call girl to her clients, the call girl to her boyfriend and the call girl to a client she hopes will be more. Shot in beautiful digital the movies is edited uniquely and I am not sure the best order. My personal reaction to the movie was that I didn't really care about the characters. I recognized the questions being posed but really don't connect to the world created to explore them. So I was left a bit flat, interested in the subject but not the story.
Rating (6.0)

Coffy (1973) Drama

Coffy (1973) - This is a "blaxploitation" vengeance film starring Pam Grier as a nurse, Coffy who pays back the Mother F$%^ers who hurt her little sister by selling her drugs. Coffy tries to balance her life as a nurse with her night time activities posing as a prostitute in order to get close enough to the drug traffickers to kill them. The story is pretty straight forward and Coffy has little trouble infiltrating the crime organization. Being an exploitation movie the script written by director Jack Hill does not try very hard to have more than one level. There are some common blaxpoitation lines about how society won't defend minorities so they have to do it themselves. It has the standard black man drug lord, King George (Robert DoQui) but naturally the guy really in charge is white. This is common for this brand of movie. The higher up is a mobster named Arturo Vitroni played by Allen Arbus, a great character actor who was in some of my favorite M.A.S.H. episodes as Major Sidney Freedman, an army psychiatrist. Also playing a thug is legendary horror actor Sid Haig. The film is straightforward and there is enough street justice to make it enjoyable, but as a film it leaves a lot to be desired.

Rating (5.4)

Dead Snow (2009) Horror

Død snø (Dead Snow)(2009) - The opening shots of a girl, Sara (Ane Dahl Torp) running through the snow, with dark human shapes coming, and eventually capture her, for lunch. She owns the cabin that she is going to meet her friends at for a snowy spring break. She doesn't make it but her friends do, poor souls. Dead snow is about this group arriving and partying as they wait for their recently eaten hostess. While they are enjoying themselves a strange guy, The Wanderer(Bjorn Sunquist), comes by the cabin and gives us a premise for what will happen the rest of the movie. He tells the kids of the Nazi occupation during WWII. The soldiers were cruel and greedy. They stole the gold of the villagers and treated them poorly. When the war turned the village rose up and killed many of the soldiers. The Colonel escaped with their gold and some of his soldiers into the mountains and are rumored to still be there. Then the wanderer is off to find his own fate at the hands of the zombies. Why is it people always ask if there "Is somebody there?" when they are alone and hear a noise? In the cabin The Group finds the German gold in the floor and now we all know what is going to happen.
The next day Sara's boyfriend decides to head out on the snow mobile to look for her. He comes across the tent of the wanderer and realizes bad things are about. He continues looking for Sara instead of heading back to warn his friend, but does not get too far before falling through the snow into a snow cave.
From here on the movie gets better and better with the Zombies coming after the kids. The tension and action take step after step up, through the third act all the way until the final survivor realizes the way to obvious conclusion. Included is the death of some characters, splitting up when they shouldn't, fighting back and a snowmobile with mounted machine gun.
Now I really liked this movie but of course there are those hanging questions left that take off some points.
1. If the German Gold draws the Germans how did it get under the cabin and why wasn't Sara's family slaughtered by them years before?
2. Why was Sara killed? Did she prior to the start of the movie find the gold? If so why hike across the mountain to the cabin, she must have known the story of the Nazis?
3. Why did Sara boyfriend keep looking for her instead of getting back to warn friends and get help? The Wanderer was obviously murdered and help was needed instead of looking for a needle in a haystack.
Rating (7.7)

Run fatboy Run (2007) Drama / Comedy

Run Fatboy Run (2007) - How do you prove to the women you left at the alter that you have changed and should get a second chance? Train and run a marathon in three weeks. This is the basic premise as Dennis (Simon Pegg) tries to win back the heart of Libby (Thandie Newton) after leaving her pregnant on the alter seven years earlier. She has met a new guy Whit (Frank Azaria) who runs and through a bunch of comic scenes Dennis promises not only to run the marathon but to finish. First there is that whole smoking, drinking and not being in shape at all thing to deal with. Dennis's best friend Gordan (Dylan Moran) and neighbor Mr Goshdashtidar (Harish Patel) help him train and his landlady ups the stake by saying he can stay at his place even though he is behind on the rent if he does it. This movie is about upping the ante and Gordon does his part by making a bet on Dennis with his bookies for 5000 pounds at good odds. So the pressure is on for Dennis, save his place to live, save his friend from his bookies, and get the girl, but when whit becomes engaged to Libby he is going to give it up. Only the arrogance of Whit brings him back to the race. In the race Whit trips Dennis as the too struggle to beat each other in the first mile. they both go down. Whit is carted off to the hospital but Dennis gets up and continues the race on a badly sprained ankle. You can probably guess the rest as the local TV stations pick of the story of the lone injured runner trying to finish the race.
There was very little surprising about this movie and I have to say I was a bit bored by it at times. Dramedy is a tough sell and when it is this formula it is doubly tough.
Rating (6.0)

Space Jam (1996) Comedy

Space Jam (1996) - Michael Jordan stars as himself, playing alongside of a host of Looney Tunes characters from Warner Brothers trying to defeat the Monstars in a game of basketball. If the Tunes lose they become slaves on an off world amusement park. If they win the basketball talent stolen from NBA players Shawn Bradley, Mugsy Bogues, Larry Johnson, Patrick Ewing, and Charles Barkley get returned and the aliens go home. This was one of joy's favorite movies as a kid and inspired her to be both Patrick Ewing and Mugsy Bogues one Halloween. Naturally I was the bottom half of Ewing. The movie is cute and fun although the acting by the athletes, including Larry Bird were so rigid. Still the movie is enjoyable.

Rating (7.2)

Tenebre (1982) Horror

Tenebre (1982) - Dario Argento wrote a great murder mystery in 1982 and it is worth the time to watch and enjoy. In this wonderful movie we have author Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa) going to Rome to promote his latest book Tenebre. Quickly he is questioned by the police because a murder has taken place following the description of one in his book. We are left to puzzle at who the murderer is and I have to say through the movie I had several suspects. This movie is more complicated than average and my guesses were wrong. The camera angles are really well done and the killing scenes tense and brutal. There was this one strange sequence where we get an external view of a cubist house the second murders will take place in but we spend way too much time covering the outside of the house. weird? When the murderer is revealed more twists ensue. In the end I was just delighted that I could be so wrong and that the plot was so well put together. It is rare to have such a well filmed and plotted movie from this era. I purposely did not give anything away because anyone who reads this blog should go out and get this movie.

Rating (8.8)

Dead & Rotting (2002) Horror

Dead & Rotting (2002) - When three men accidentally cause the death of the son, pet of a local witch, she seeks vengeance. They hire a couple stoners to scare the old lady but the druggies instead boil the old women's cat, who transforms into her son at times. So she transforms from an old hag to a very hot Debbie Rochon, fucks their brains out of the 3 guys who hired the stoners, to acquire some vaginal gue to raise rotted corpse henchmen. Then captures each of the men and turns them into living but rotting captives in her house. One of the stoners and the last of the three men get some mojo to use against her from another local witch, a former stripper named Rose (Tammi Sutton). They do away with the witch and live... well not happily but they survive.

There is not a lot here and the filming is less than Hollywood standards. Lots of Blue light for night and candle light for interiors. The acting is not great but everyone is trying and the story is standard fair. No nudity unless you count the one flash of Debbie's breast in the beginning, and that is countered by seeing the hags breasts so that it is a wash.

Rating (3.3)

Fido (2006) - Horror/Comedy

Fido (2006) - This lighthearted take on life after the zombie wars is a real pleasure. Set in a idealized 1950's after a war not with the Germans but with the undead is a pleasure to watch. Space dust brings the dead back to life and society is now living in fenced in Ossie and Harriet communities where everyone pretends everything is fine. They also prepare their children at an early age to be ready in case a grandparent dies and needs to have their zombie brains blown out. Zombies have been domesticated with special collars the blocks the need to devour human flesh. This makes the zombies a servant ready to order.

K'Sun Ray is Timmy Robinson a boy who befriends his domestic zombie Fido (Billy Connolly). Introduced into the family by Helen, Timmy's Mother (Carrie-Anne Moss) Fido is a great playmate for the picked on little boy. When things in the community go horribly wrong Fido helps protect the family. This was a very funny and enjoyable movie with just the right tone to play off the 50's. Wonderfully directed by Andrew Currie.

Rating (7.9)

Halloween (2007) Horror

Halloween (2007) - This 2007 Rob Zombie remake of the original 1978 John Carpenter classic explores the childhood or Michael Myers, how he got to be the unstoppable killer he became. Incredibly brutal in the violence Zombie is unflinching in showing a killer without conscience. What we do not get is really how young Michael got to be the heartless character he is portrayed as. Other than a neglectful mother but one that does care there is not real abuse, or violence so why does he turn out so evil? It would have been better if the impacts of early childhood trauma, showed a causation to the murderer in adulthood. It is also impossible that the escaped Michael would have such an easy time tracking down hius now adopted sister, Laurie Strode (Scott Taylor-Compton) while she is baby sitting. Also wasn't she the one person he didn't want to harm as a child killer? There is more nudity in this one than the one I remember and the basic message the movie portrays is... "If you are a teenager and having sex, a bit maniac will come and butcher you." Still the movie does carry some punch for what it is, a slasher movie.

Rating (6.1)

Les démoniaques (Demoniacs) (1974) Horror

Les démoniaques (Demoniacs) (1974) - "Curse of the Living Dead" Jean Rollin creates a story of revenge but really an exploitation movie designed to show T & A. A group of thug pirates, Tina (Joelle Coeur), Captain (John Rico), Bosco (Willy Braque) and Paul (Paul Bisciglia) set lights on the shore to draw ships to the coast and crash on the rocks. Then they steal the flotsom that washes ashore. On the night of this story two young blonds (Lieva Lone & Patricia Hermenier) stumble to the shore in there night gowns exhausted from surviving the shipwreck. The pirates rape them on the shore before they escape. Making it to a local island that is supposedly haunted the girls meet the devil (Miletic Zevomir) who will help them get revenge. Most of the movie is barely watchable and pretty much there so you can see Tina's body. It is a fine body but the movie is just really poor. The character are bad and the acting and action worse.

Rating (2.2)

Star Trek (2009) Sci-Fi / Action

Star Trek (2009) - Director J. J. Abrams creates an alternate timeline where Star Trek can live without all the baggage of the past while still respecting those past stories. After some origin stories for Kirk and Spock we get into the meat.

In this time travel tale we see an alternate version of how the crew comes together in Star Fleet. All ending up at the academy and then after a crisis calls the cadets to service early to the starship Enterprise. There was plenty of lore for Trekies and a compelling story of revenge to create a good action movie.

In this one I do not need to complain about the certain outcome because frankly I was too occupied with my geeking out about the crew to feel the inevitable success and tidy wrap up of the story. I was taken out a couple time by the silly comedy bits thrown in to break up what was a fairly tense story. First was Kirk getting on the Enterprise with the help of McCoy who injects him with a vaccine that will make him seem sick so McCoy can take him to sickbay. The Mickey Mouse hands and other symptoms were dumb. It happens just when the tension needs to be ramping up and cuts that in a negative way. There is also a sequence when Scotty is transported into a cooling tank and Kirk frantically tries to get him out as he travels the tubes holding his breath. It is played for comedy but I did not like the timing. Nero (Eric Bana ), a Romulan who in the future watched his planet destroyed by a supernova and blames Future Spock for not acting quickly enough to stop it. Both Future Spock and Nero are pull into the impossibly quick to develop Black hole that the Supernova becomes and are transported back in time instead of obliterated by the pressures of entering a black hole. Nero has a plan to destroy Vulcan to punish Spock by making sure he is in a position to watch but not stop it. The story was decent enough and the pacing was excellent a real tribute to Abrams. The cast was very capable and captured the essence of the original characters without over doing it.

Kirk (Chris Pine)- Right on as the younger more rebellious James T Kirk. I loved at the end when he nailed an imitation of the William Shatner Kirk entering the bridge.

Future Spock (Leonard Nemoy) - This is Spock, All Hail Spock!
Currant Spock (Zachary Quinto) - Played nicely with a bit more emotion which is appropriate in the Spock timeline and besides he is banging Uhura, that's bound to illicit some emotion.

Uhura (Zoe Saldana) - More outfront than in the series and well played. I liked that her confrontation of Spock about ship assignment she won with logic very appropriate.

Scotty (Simon Pegg) - Too tiny a role. Real shame.

Bones McCoy (Carl Urban) - The most right on portrayal that was living and breathing McCoy. It was just a joy to watch.

Checkov (Anton Yelchin) - eh, mostly just okay.
Sulu (John Cho) - Okay I guess, did you know Sulu fences?

Rating (8.2)

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008) Sci-Fi / Action

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008) - Hellboy (Ron Perlman) is back for another go round with his mates, Liz Sherman (Selma Blair), and Abe Sapien (Doug Jones)trying yet again to save the world. In this episode the villian is Prince Nuada (Luke Goss) an underworld elf trying to piece together the three pieces a crown that will give him control of the indestructible mechanical Golden Army. When this happens he plans to take over the world above. Naturally this will not sit well this the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense so Hellboy and his friends are sent out to stumble upon the plan. Although I did not dislike this movie I have to say it was much the same as the last. Liz and Hellboy are having relationship problems, there are seemingly unbeatable odds that get beat in the end. Blah blah blah. Still director Guillermo del Toro made a serviceable Sci-Fi action movie and could be worth your time. Unfortunately the action formula does not give the viewer the dread that the hero can fail and thus the impact is dulled.
Rating (7.5)

Altered (2006) Horror/Sci-Fi

Altered (2006) - In this dark little horror film, four guys connected to an alien abduction get back together when three of them capture one of the aliens years later. Trying to survive the repercussions of that capture is what this movie is about. Wyatt (Adam Kaufman) is the abductee that the aliens were afraid of because of his resistance to there experiments. When his friends bring an alien to his door and being followed by scores more Adam is in the position of having to stop running from this horrific past.

All in all this was okay, with the story being somewhat original and the cast doing their jobs well enough. Still in the end though I was not particularly taken with the plot and outcome. I kept having that what are you stupid, reaction to the situation.

Rating (5.1)

Dance of the Dead (2008) Horror

Dance of the Dead (2008) - Ghosthouse fast becoming a "go to" company for inexpensively made but decent horror brings you Dance of the Dead. It is prom night in the small nuclear powered town in middle America. Girls in gowns guys in tuxes get together for that most special of big let downs. Something is happening though in the cemetery near the nuke plant and it is more than kids making out. Somehow the plant has the dead rising from the grave and looking to feast on flesh. Jimmy, Lindsey and a group of Sci-fi geeks first try to save the prom and then destroy the Zombies and in the end maybe find love.

This is a fun little movie with many of the cliche high school stereotypes, but in a way it works. It never takes itself seriously and make a fair comedy/horror movie out of the simple subject matter. There isn't anyone you know here but the movie is fun and passable.

Rating (6.3)

Lips of Blood (1975) Horror

Lips of Blood (1975) (Lèvres de sang)- Jean Rollin directed this slower story a man seeking to reconnect to his childhood and the vampire he is destined to be reunited to. Frédéric (Jean-Loup Philippe) is haunted by the images of some ruins he visited as a child and starts a journey to find them. Someone is trying to prevent this from happening, who could it be? His over protective Mother (Nathalie Perrey) advice is to forget the past but Frédéric can't do that. His dreaming leads him to a tomb where he releases a group of scantily clad female vampires who seem to aid him and terrorized him in his quest. When he finally finds the vampire from the past, Jennifer (Annie Belle); his mother comes to him and says that she has been protecting him from the Vamps and he must help her put an end to them. She and her friends had long ago trapped the vampires and now wish to burn them. He is assigned to get Jennifer's head for this purpose. He does not bring the real head and instead frees the beautiful Jennifer to be her lover. She turns him and they sail away in a coffin. (not kidding here)
The movie making is standard for the time period with heavy music and blue and red lighting for effect. There are no special effects besides the lovely bodies of the beautiful vamps. The nudity is more casual than pornographic. Subtitled pay attention or you will miss the reveals. Very straight forward compared to some of Rollin's more abstract work.
Rating (6.5)

Hatchetman (2003) Horror

Hatchetman (2003) - This one is about a group of strippers who work and live near each other, who are being picked off by a hatchet killer. Boyfriend of stripper Claudia (Cheryl Renee) and cop Sonny Banner (Jon Briddell)works somewhat in trying to solve the murders before all the strippers are dead. The movie has gratuitous breast shots from attractive stripper actresses. Would loved to see more of the lovely Molly (Nina Tapanin). The plot is thin and if you watch many horror movies like I do you knew who the killer was after about 15 minutes. The acting if you can call it that was dreadful and the gore affects were just awful.
Rating (2.4)

The Zombie Diaries (2006) Horror

The Zombie Diaries (2006) - This is a loosely put together piece made to look somewhat like found footage of a Zombie outbreak in England. Although I get the whole found footage approach the production, sound in particular played against that. If you are sound tracking it why make us put up with shakes and purposely poor camera work to tell the story. You couldn't tell the story and have it look good? Directors Michael Bartlett and Kevin Gates have a decent idea but never fully tell it with the footage they use. Anyway the story jumps around letting us live through the outbreak of the Zombie disease and follow survivors, ending with the really cruel sad ending that left you wondering why they bothered. Since it was done piece meal story wise you never really invest in anyone and often wonder why a camera is running at all. Since some of you may want to see this less than exciting movie I will not give away the mean and useless ending. Let me just say many more zombie movies have been done better and actually told more interesting stories.
Rating (4.7)

Sugar (2008) Drama

Sugar (2008) - Made in 2008, but playing this year Sugar is the story of Miguel "Sugar" Santos (Algenis Perez Soto), a Dominican baseball player in the Kansas City Royals minor league system. The story follows Sugar from his humble roots to an Iowa minor league team and onto NY city. The story was compelling enough relaying the machine that is Dominican baseball. Players are plucked before they graduate high school to attend baseball school. They are worked and worked and if not high enough quality dumped back into the poverty of their home towns. The players see baseball as a way to move their families into a better life and so the players and families see it as a real opportunity.
Sugar raises from the Dominican camp to sign and play in Iowa for a single A team. He is put up with a family, Earl (Richard Bull)and Helen Higgins (Ann Whitney) entering a world where he does not know the language so the simplest things are difficult. The directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck do a nice job of showing how alien Iowa is to Sugar. I thought it was a nice touch to stop the subtitling when Sugar was telling Anne Higgins (Ellary Porterfield) the story of his scar in Spanish. We get to share the her disorientation with not knowing the language.
Sugar after some initial success begins to have trouble and at the same time sees how the system chews up and spits out players. His friend Jorge Ramirez (Rayneil Rufino) is cut loose while fighting through an injury. When sugar is injured he decides to leave the team before they cut him. He heads to NY City following Jorge. Again the direction is great here. Since the city has a large Dominican and immigrant population Sugar walks into a world where he fits in. The rest of the movie is about Sugar struggling to find a new balance in NYC. Ending with him playing city baseball with Jorge and many other former minor league players.
The messages about the baseball machine was a bit cliche at times but Sugar's story was compelling and I enjoyed the movie even with its slower pace.
Rating (7.8)

Witch's Sabbath (2005) Horror

Witch's Sabbath (2005) - Horror movies come in all shapes and sizes and this one pushed the limits of what I appreciate. I see value in all movies, people making movies work hard to get stories made and distributed. BUT it is difficult for me to find too much positive about this one. Witch's Sabbath is about a coven of witches who run a strip joint called "Sin and Skin". They need to kill 666 victims with a weird metal glove in order to bring into this world their dark lord. We join the story as they close in on the magic number. Skin maven Syn DeVil plays the leader , Auriana and they story centers around customer couple Damien (Eric Coffin)and Eliza (Christine Cowden), and their friends Seth and Amber? Can I even remember? Anyway The dialog was stunted and didn't flow, the actors read there lines and in the end the monster Lord was a horribly done piece of crap. The video was cheap and the lighting primitive, mostly red and blue hues cast on the background. There is a significant amount of booby in the strip club scenes. This one was not very good I am afraid.
Rating (0.7)

Stitches (2001) Horror

Stitches (2001) - A low budget horror movie which takes the tried and used story of a Demon trying to take the souls in a boarding house to prove herself to the Devil. She takes the form of Miss Albright (Elizabeth Ince) and goes after each persons soul through their weaknesses getting them to agree to give up "anything". The story is pretty bland in execution with very little tension or even a bit of concern about how it will all come out. You know from the beginning that the demon will find a tricky way to get them all and she does. Mostly because the demon is the main character and everyone else is a bit player. If the story had focused on the people in the house you may have been fool more about how the story would end. Still Tempe and Full Moon does a competent job at making horror movies so it had some value.
Rating (3.7)

The Fanglys (2004)

The Fanglys (2004) - This was my second low budget horror movie of the weekend and this was seriously low budget. The story centers around a myth and reality of a family called the Fanglys who each Halloween go on a killing spree in a small Texas town. This was extremely low budget with camera work and feel of a high school video class. What is remarkable is the plot and executions was better than my first more accomplished movie "Demonic". At least the simple myth come to life plot made sense and the characters moved through it with an attempt at doing something good. It wasn't good but that I think is just the nature of this super low budget horror. A group of people attempt to spend the night in the haunted woods as a Halloween prank. The Witch Fangly and her crazy family do their best to kill them, so it is a "Who will survive" story. There is a second really unexplored plot of the Sheriff and his deputy wanting to cover up the killings. Why you ask? because he didn't want no outsiders from the State police snooping around asking questions. Through this subplot you learn the Fanglys have been around for generations and the town has hidden the deaths. Really no good reason was ever given.
Rating (1.7)

Forest of the Damned (2005)

Forest of the Damned (2005) - I saw a version of this movie called "Demonic" and I have to say of the two horror movies I watched this weekend this was worse. The plot is basically a roadtrip gone wrong. A group of young adults off on a camping trip get lost and end up stuck in the forest. Unfortunately for them the woods are occupied by angels gone bad. Thrown out of heaven and because they are lustfull, the angels kiss and then rip your throat out. Now normally I wouldn't complain about a movie where a bunch of women walk around naked looking for love and food but this particular execution of the idea was just awful. The star Tom Savini plays a strange part of a man who saw his parents killed by the sirens but for some reason stays in his house hoping to see them himself. He comes across as just a crazy warning the kids not to look in their eyes. Of course this was not needed since there was a crazy man character who already warned them. He also spent a good part of his part capturing a couple kids to use as bait so he could see the sirens again. What? Makes no sense I know. The angels were not very attractive and the characters of the victims were not very likable. The plot went no where and without any character arcs for any of them. Just wierd.
Rating (1.5)

El Norte (1983) Drama

El Norte (1983) - This stunning movie is about the decision of two Central American (Guatemalan) Mayan indians to travel north to the United States put a human face on immigration. Beautifully shot I recently viewed the BluRay edition. Although the film was innocent in its approach, it captured the idea that all illegal immigrants are not here for economic reasons, and thus we have to be more nuanced in thinking about our borders. There are a couple of scenes that were over the top in how simplified they were or that had over done music, but in general it is a touching and sad story of a brother and sister struggling for a better life.
Rating (7.9)

Hellboy (2004) Action / Sci-Fi

Hellboy (2004) - Another comic adaptation with more personality and likability than the Watchmen but without the depth or intelligence. Hellboy (Ron Perlman) centers around the title character, a demon who was brought to this work while young in WWII. He now works for the FBI in a unit that includes an aquatic being Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) and a girl with blue fire Liz Sheman (Selma Blair), who fight mystical beings on earth.
The story is about Hellboy of course and he in the end can choose to be what we have seen in the early movie or a Demon who brings hell onto earth. In the middle is a plot that will get him to that choice. There are nasty monsters and fighting and explosions and running and screaming. It is a fantastic story and the action is grand. I can't say I loved the movie but I have some respect for the skill of the director Guillermo del Toro and actor Ron Perlman. In the end though it is just a comic book action flick enjoyable but not filling.
Rating (7.6)

Watchmen (2009) Action

Watchmen (2009) - Depth of story, action and a world close to real but not entirely makes this adaptation work for the most part. Watchmen is a comic collectors classics for its layered allegory. Written in the eighties it takes the action hero of comics and turns it on its head. Heroes are not the superhuman variety we see in Superman, X-men, or Spiderman, instead they are thrill seeking, sociopath vigilantes dispensing there own justice. One true superhuman exists,created in classic experiment gone bad style, Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup) sees the workings of the universe and can manipulate matter to his will. His existence changes the geopolitical America of the movie, instead of losing in Vietnam, we win with his help. Nixon wins reelection and then changes the law so he can stay in office five times. The Russians seeing the limitless power of Dr. Manhattan redouble efforts to build a nuclear deterrent against the US. This is where the story starts, with the USA and Russia moving ever closer to while mutually assured destruction.
The movie begins with the death of a vigilante named The Comedian (Jeffry Dean Morgan), a nihilistic ass wipe who has been working for the government over the years doing black ops. Someone breaks into his apartment and beats him before throwing him out the window. Masked heroes have been on the outs in society with the passing of the Keene Law outlawing then but one who refused to stop was Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley), who wears a mask of changing black blobs pattern, thus the name. He is the black and white of our story and the main protagonist in trying to solve the death of the Comedian.
Dr Manhattan become less human as the years go on and thus less interested in the destiny of the race and after breaking up with his girlfriend, and masked adventurer Laurie Jupiter (Silk Spectre)(Malin Akerman) he leaves earth for Mars. The Russians seeing the chance to gain some dominance move into Afghanistan bring them toe to toe in a risky nuclear showdown with the US.
Meanwhile Rorschach, Silk Spectre, and Night Owl (Patrick Wilson)try to solve the death of the comedian. Their paths move closer and closer to billionaire Adrian Veidt known as Ozymandias (Matthew Goode). He is the worlds smartest man and another former hero. Behind his plot is a plan he sees as for the good of human kind. The Comedian found him out and had to be eliminated. His plan is to have a Dr. Manhattan imitating explosion in NY City, with the desired affect of having the entire world unite against him and forgetting there distrust of each other.

It happens just like this, and our three hero protagonists are powerless to stop him even though they get to his Antarctic headquarters in time. Veidt who idolizes Alexander the Great sees his actions as similar to how Alexander approached the Gordian Knot. He is thinking outside the box and although great sacrifice is being made, 7 million people killed, he sees it as a way to end the nuclear threat and unite the world.

In the end only Rorschach can not tolerate this approach and declares he will never compromise and keep his mouth shut about the events. He loses his life for this as Dr. Manhattan eliminates him leaving a blood angel in the snow.

So the movie was well made and although it did not have the depth of the book I though it did a fine job anyway. It was beautiful to look at and the action was crisp and well thought out. They change a couple things, in the book Ozymandias creates an alien creature who he sends to destroy NY City but here we have him setting Dr. Manhattan as the alien. This somewhat works. What was unfortunate was the choice to have the masked avengers be more superhuman than they were in the book.

In the theater I saw the movie in the sound was so loud I had to wear earplugs the entire movie. The movie craft being good I think some of what turned me off was the same as when I read the book. It is outdated, with the big Russian, US conflict not being today's primary theme. Also the characters in the book and movie are just not very likable. I was not cheering for anyone to succeed and in an action movie this is an essential need.

The ending leaves you thinking but you may ask who cares.

Do not fear the blue penis.

Rating (7.7)

Paris, je t'aime (2006) Drama

Paris, je t'aime (2006) - This collections of 18 stories about Paris was an enjoyable morning watch. Like most multi-part features some of the stories are hits and others misses. I loved that the threw in a vampire story (segment "Quartier de la Madeleine") staring Elijah Wood and Olga Kurylenko. Most of the stories did a great job of not only showing the lovely city but giving unexpected twists in the 2-5 minutes they had to tell their tale. I also liked the sad story of the young mother having to drop her child off in daycare so she could travel across the city to care for another persons child. Included the lovely actress Catalina Sandino Moreno.
Rating (7.8)

Hell on Wheels (2007) Documentary

Hell on Wheels (2007) - This interesting doc about the start of the Austin Texas roller derby league, is a testament to how shared love and hard work can make dreams happen. The league started and then split as a few of the women could not share leadership. As the league grew in popularity the original founders and team captains closed the leadership and created a corporation. The skaters each paying $25 a month to participate revolted with 65 of the eight women leaving and forming an alternative league, The Texas Rollergirls. The original group continues as the Texas Lonestar Roller Girls, but what is important is both groups continue to succeed.
I saw this film atthe Regent Theater in Arlington MA with Local Roller girls the Boston Derby Dames league. It is good to support local women in whatever sport they choose to do and roller derby is one cool sport. The movie itself was interesting in showing the conflict in the leadership of the league and how easy it is to have a love of a sport become an intractable disagreement in who and how it should be lead.
Rating(7.7)

Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982) Sci-Fi Marathon

Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982) - The second and best Star Trek movie. William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and the crew are in battle against Khan (Ricardo Montalban) in a great tale of revenge vs. strategy. Khan was stranded on a planet 15 years before but escapes when Chekov (Walter Koenig) comes across his group while surveying the planet in the hopes of using it to test the Genesis device. Khan captures and uses Chekov to get off the planet and capture the ship Reliant to use to hunt down and kill Kirk. The battles scenes are great and Star Trek is so classic. It was amazing to hear 700 people at the marathon yell "KHAN!" with Kirk. Just excellent.
Rating (8.7)

I Married a Monster From Outer Space (1958) Sci-Fi Marathon

I Married a Monster From Outer Space (1958) - A young man is taken and an alien that looks like him takes his place. His bride notices the difference, even though those around her tell her it sometimes happens after marriage. Like in the other pictures eventually the townspeople figure things out and the day is saved.
What I liked: This movie fit the alien invaders theme and the aliens taking shape of people we know.
What bothered me: Wow the ideas about the PAINS of marriage are all over this flick. Guys commiserate about the old ball. The women act as if a prize is caught and there never seems to be true love in the relationships.
Rating (3.6)

Transformers (2007) Sci-Fi Marathon

Transformers (2007) - Michael Bay's painfully hollow action movie based on the children's toy set / cartoon characters who come from outer space to hide in our society as gas guzzling muscle cars, trucks, tanks and jets. When the robot need to not be vehicles they transform into robots with weird eyes. The story centers around a cube that contains energy that turns normal electronic devices, cell phones toasters etc. into little evil killing machines. There are two groups of robots, one good and one evil looking to get their hands on the cube. Caught in the middle of this war are the humans. Shia Lebeouf, Megan Fox, and Josh Duhamel do there parts to aide the good robots. There is lots of vehicle chases, transforming, explosions but remarkable little death. You can guess how this vacuous piece of crap ends.
Rating (3.6)

Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988) Sci-Fi marathon

Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988) - Several people go to investigate a meteor sighting but instead find a spaceship in the shape of a circus tent. In this tent are aliens who look like clowns. They capture humans with their cotton candy guns. Once in the cotton candy cocoons, the humans break down into a fluid the clowns can drink through a silly straw. Our heroes, Mike (Grant Cramer), Debbie(Suzanne Snyder), and Officer Dave(John Allen Nelson), with the help of the goofy Terenzi brothers (Michael Seagel & Peter Licassi), attempt to fight the Klowns and save their town.
What I liked: I have to admit this is one of my favorite silly sci-fi movies. I own it and watch at least twice a year. Creative, original and full of humor it is a pleasure for me. Now most people I know are not so enamored so take it as a warning that my rating is higher than everyone Else's for this movie.
Rating (8.6)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) - This first remake of the Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) where we are left with the feeling we can fight the aliens, this is the pessimists view of the story. More paranoid and frightening than the original, this 1978 version leaves no doubt we lose this battle. Staring Donald Sutherland, Leonard Nimoy, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum, and Veronica Cartwright, it is a suspenseful version of a classic. Aliens invade the earth in the form of plants whose pods develop into a human with a shared consciousness and no emotions. Our heroes wage a battle to get the word out but it becomes more and more apparent that you can't trust the government. The final scene of the yell will stay with you for a long time.
What I liked: This is a great remake, paranoid and futile for the characters it really lives my my personal ball park. The acting is pretty good and you can't beat the story. Where the first may have been a metaphor for communism this one seems more of a metaphor for the US.
Rating (8.4)

Repo Man (1984) Sci-Fi Marathon

Repo Man (1984) - Punk Otto (Emilio Estevez) falls into a job with a group of auto repossession professionals and through this work gets wrapped up in the plot to get a car that has alien bodies in the trunk. Naturally there are many people looking for the car. It is also a story about growing up and making choices about your life.
What I liked: The movie is funny and philosophical. It also capture a real punk attitude, has a great soundtrack including, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Iggy Pop and Plugz. So many great characters showing a unique profession to tell a story.
What didn't work: Ending was out there. Debbi, (Jennifer Balgobin) was just dreadful.
Rating (7.2)

Thing From Another World (1951) Sci-Fi Marathon

Thing From Another World (1951) - What a good story, not as good as the John Carpenter remake "The Thing" but still this is a great story about a group of airmen and scientist on the North Pole who find a spaceship and then an alien in the ice after a meteor (ship) crashes into the ice. When the alien who is brought back in a block of ice is accidentally thawed, it soon becomes a struggle for survival.
What I liked: The story works very well with a very good struggle for the characters who have to not only battle the alien but the elements of the North Pole.
What didn't work: The acting is eh, and the female character is written poorly.
Rating (6.7)

Alien Raiders (2008) Sci-Fi Marathon

Alien Raiders (2008) - A supermarket at the end of a day in small town of Buck Lake Arizona is invaded by an armed group. They shoot a stock boy and start rounding up customers, each checked by the armed men. Unfortunately before they can check everyone the local police are notified and a stand off begins. The "Raiders" hold the remaining citizens and workers hostage while trying to figure out which ones are actually aliens from out of space. These parasitic invaders attached to the brain stem of the human victim and look for others like them so they can mate and spread across the earth. Raider leader Aaron Ritter (Carlos Bernard) with his crew, Kane (Rockmond Dunbar) and Sterling (Courtney Ford) and others try to find the aliens before they run out of time and the police storm the store. Captives, Whitney(Samantha Streets) and others attempt to find a way to escape before the test to see if they are aliens which involves milk and losing a pinkie finger. Will the Raiders find the remaining aliens in time or is the earth doomed.
What I liked: Taught and suspenseful this was a really well done movie. Other movies have been done in a supermarket, a small space. This one does it well. It is also a who will survive as the monsters fights back trying to survive.
What didn't work: Well I would have liked more possessed human monsters. You didn't get a lot of the special effects shots.
Rating (8.1)

At the marathon the director Ben Rock came in for a Q&A. This was an entertaining piece where we got to hear about his luck in getting actors and getting the movie shot in 15 days. I heard him say as he was signing mini posters and giving out swag (severed fingers) that this was the first time he has been asked to sign autographs. BONUS: Ben Rock stayed the whole Sci-fi marathon, this was excellent and shows his love of movies.

Runaway (1984) Sci-Fi Marathon

Runaway (1984) - In the near future policeman Sgt. Jack Ramsay (Tom Selleck) and his new partner Officer Karen Thompson (Cynthia Rhodes) have the job of stopping runaway robots. Usually a mundane job things get hairy when Dr. Charles Luther (Gene Simmons) starts making killer robots. As the police close in Dr. Luther goes after a whistle blower, Jackie Rogers (Kirstie Alley)and then Ramsay's son Bobby (Joey Cramer). Ramsay must beat the Doctor and his fiendish inventions before his son is killed.
What I liked: Gene Simmons in his totally over the top bad guy. The movie holds up okay over time and has a bit of decent action in it. The robots are not great but in the end the good guys win and the truly bad guy is done in by his own robots.
What didn't work: Robots simple, Simmons was over the top but really bad.
Rating (6.3)

Logan's Run (1976) - Sci-Fi Marathon

Logan's Run (1976) - Logan (Michael York) is a "Sandman" in a futuristic society where people live in Domes and life is forcibly ended at 30 years old. Sandmen hunt those people who attempt to run instead of committing the accepted suicide in the "Carosel". Logan is given the assignment of becoming a runner in hopes he can find and eliminate the "Sanctuary" successful runners have created. With a rebel, Jessica (Jenny Agutter) Logan runs and is chased and there is much of that and eventually makes his way out of the dome and into the outside world. Seeing that the world had healed since the events that required the domes, Logan returns to tell the society people no longer need to die at 30 and can leave the domes.
What I liked: I liked Farrah Fawcett, first acting badly and then dying. I loved this movie...as a kid.
What didn't work: Oh this film was slow and just has not aged well. From the poor miniatures of the dome cities to the robot "Box" the effects are just awful. There is no humor and little suspense. Really didn't like it that much.
Rating (4.8)

Chrysalis (2008) Sci-Fi marathon

Chrysalis (2008) - In a future earth the government is collapsing as the environment has gotten so bad nothing grows. A group of scientists work to modify plants to grow in the new world. On of them, Smith (Glen Vaughan) falls sick and a Chrysalis forms over his body. As he is transformed scientist argue over should he be killed with Hartley (John Klemantaski) saying he should because you do not know what he is being transformed into. Rockwell (Darren Kendrick) saying they should let him develop and possibly the evolution that saves the human race.
What I liked: It ended
What didn't work: Everything! It was a story in a small space, it had poor acting, it sucked eggs and did not really have very good arguments either way. Just boring and plodding all the way through.
Rating (0.9)

It Came From Outer Space (1953) in 3-DSci-fi marathon

It Came From Outer Space (1953) - This is a classic and in the Red and Green 3D it was just wonderful. A meteor crashes near an old mine and soon people are acting strangely and disappearing. It is a spaceship. The Sheriff in town eventually does something and a couple John Putnam (Richard Carlson) and Ellen Fields (Barbara Rush) keep the climax from becoming horribly violent by entering the spaceship.
What I liked: One of the great Sci-fi classics of all time. The 3D was very good, I first saw this movie flat and never noticed it had 3d framing but you could not miss it in this print and boy it really worked.
What doesn't work so good: Well it is choppy and the acting is not great.
Rating (7.8)

Alien Trespass (2009) Sci Fi Marathon

Alien Trespass (2009) - This wonderful ode to "It Came From Outer Space" wonderfully done with the love of old style Sci-Fi shining through in every frame. Aliens are invading a small town in the Mohave desert and astronomer Ted Lewis ( Eric McCormack ) sets out to investigate. Aliens capture and impersonate the towns citizens. These Ghotas are bad news, good thing there is another Alien out trying to hunt them down. Urp, the alien hunter helps to solve the problem of the ghotas and fix his ship so he can leave the earthling alone with the lessons they have learned.
What I like: Since I like old sci-fi I really liked the feel of this film. Not played for laughs but definitely with an eye on the movies of the past this film was a fun visit to the past.
What didn't work for me: It was good fun but the acting was just okay. Since it was in the more corny Sci-Fi style there was not allot of room for the actors to work. The story really determined the acting.
Rating (6.5)

Burning the Future: Coal in America (2008) Documentary

Burning the Future: Coal in America (2008) - I am so conflicted by this good documentary about mountaintop removal coal mining and the effects of this activity on the people of West Virginia. It is a crime the toxic poisoning that is going on in coal states with the invention of mountaintop removal mining. Slurry ponds that contaminate water, coal dust that sickens residents, loss of jobs as the innovation requires less people to perform, it is all bad. I push down that little part of me though that is cold and uncaring, the part that says "You get what you vote for." I must not listen to the part of me that knows these same people boldly and proudly supported the Bush administration. His policies sped up the development of this type of mining and those people who thought he was so great are now paying for that folly. I push those negative thoughts down and keep thinking about the fact we are born into our lives they don't choose where they come into this world. Coal is all these people have know and it is horrible that the new methods are ruining their lives. The US gets 51% of its electricity from coal and this movie reinforces that we need to move to wind and solar sooner better than later. Although the movie is heavy handed, the harm done in the name of coal is staggering.
Rating (7.8)