A few reviews . . (film or TV) — Page 131

Tarantula - 1955 - 6/10

So, this isolated desert laboratory is experimenting to enlarge lifeforms for food.
Outstanding, if you are growing huge wheat sheaves or super-colossal shrimp.
But when a spider gets exposed to the growth hormone, away it goes, and away it grows.
Chowing down on livestock and moronic humans who don’t know to run from a gigantic arachnid.
As a kid, I found this notion plausible, growth hormone, I mean.
Still a good late-nite monster flick, one of the better bug ones (yes, and a spider ain’t no bug).

Flat - 2018 - 7/10

Driving home from a trip, Matt detours into Joshua Tree.
Off the main highway, his car has a breakdown.
Coming to assist is not the sweaty, fat, hairy mechanic our driver expects.
Great little short. Well acted, well shot, sharp dialogue.

Subs = https://subscene.com/subtitles/flat/english/3142560

Empire Of Light - 2022 - 6/10

Hilary is the duty manager of the Empire Theatre.
Word has it that the theatre will premier a new film, “Chariots Of Fire.”
Time, 1981, place appears to be Margate, a seaside town.
The theatre has a staff of 6-7, which takes one back to before video rentals slashed attendance.
Hilary sees a therapist who inquires about her Lithium dosage.
Like most, she feels numb; like many, she skips her meds from time to time.

Although other films are referenced, and there is a feast of posters, old photos, lobby cards, this is essentially a character study.
Hilary soon bonds with new hire Stephen who has seen his own dreams crushed amidst racism, sexism, violence.
The film bites into several topics, without getting too obvious or righteous.
Rapier like, making points, stepping back.

Rulers Of The City - 1976 - 6/10
AKA - I Padroni Della Città

Tony is a low level enforcer, busting heads when marks fall behind in protection payments.
He is actually a small fish in a second rate group.
The bigger unit belongs to Scarface (Jack Palance), who cheats the group out of money.
Taking the initiative, Tony cons Scarface big time, and sets off a gang war.
Contrary to how it sounds, this is played with a light touch.
True, beatings and killings abound, and there is a lengthy shootout in the slaughterhouse.
Nevertheless, the pace moves like quicksilver, Tony has charm, and the film is fun.

Naked Poison - 2000 - 5/10
AKA - Shou xing xin ren lei// 獸性新人類

Office lackey Man Chi is bullied and taunted by colleagues and superiors.
Instead of approaching girls, he prefers upskirting and peeping at neighbors.

A spineless milquetoast, who, despite that, longs for the clout of authority.
After grandfather dies, Man Chi takes over the medicine / herbal shop.
And concocts a potent aphrodisiac. Females devolve into sex starved slaves.
Cat III nasty boasts a lot of soft core ruttings, and sticky business when potion side effects hit.
Not as lurid as it pretends to be. I imagine Cat III was given because of the unsavory undertone.

Ilsa: She Wolf Of The SS - 1975 - 6/10

Ilsa, Nazi commandant of a POW camp, tortures female captives, exhausts menfolk.
Warning to men, this is not a female to disappoint. You better have endurance.
As for female prisoners, Ilsa is a doctor who experiments with pain thresholds.
Expect flesh and fluids in mean exploitation.
Thus said, I have viewed this several times. It is “superior” to the in-name sequels.
Not that you will listen, if you see / buy one Ilsa, you’ll get ’em all.
Hey! If the prison camp looks familiar, it was Stalag 13 in “Hogan’s Heroes.”

The October Man - 1947 - 6/10

After a horrific train accident, Jim suffers a fractured skull and is institutionalized for a year.
Upon release, he makes small steps. A new job, room in a boarding house.
Yet, when one of the roomers is murdered, and with Jim’s history, police suspect him.
Dark looking Noir about the innocent man … or is he innocent?
Fine Hitchcock type, although Hitchcock would give the police half credit for intelligence.
Police in this are especially inept, quick to frame and curtail investigations.

Samurai Rebellion - 1967 - 7/10
AKA - Jôi-uchi: Hairyô Tsuma Shimatsu // 奪命劍

The local lord, displeased with his mistress, forces her to marry the son of a swordsman.
Surprisingly, the young man, Yogoro, and girl, Ichi, enjoy each other and fall in love.
Two years later, the lord changes his mind, and wants Ichi back.
By any means necessary.

Simmering buildup of corroding clan loyalty, honor, and whether to obey a despotic leader.
By the final half hour, tensions boil over and blood begins to flow.
Possibly too slow for impatient types.
The theme of bully leaders ordering followers and retainers to do their dirty work while they reside in comfort still resonates.

An Easy Girl - 2019 - 6/10
AKA - Une Fille Facile

Sofia arrives in Cannes to visit her younger cousin, Naima.
Naima, torn between going into acting or becoming a chef has her head turned.
For Sofia doesn’t really work. She is attractive and knows which parties and yachts to crash.
Sofia is a high class moocher. Not quite a call-girl, yet she receives very expensive gifts.
Muddled, empty-headed coming of age film, packed with nudity and boffing.
A few of the actual actors have more interesting experiences than these characters.

War Of The Satellites - 1958 - 5/10

Every time the Space Agency tries to place a satellite into orbit, boom!
Soon we learn, the Spiral Nebula Ghana has banned humanity from exploring space.
They take telepathic control of the agency chief.
Cheapo Roger Corman has no real plot, dime store sets, and only two of the players can act.
No matter. This moves like mad. You can only register one implausibility before another displaces it.
Thrilling entertainment when I was a kid. Even now, watchable.

Magnum Force - 1973 - 7/10

Inspector Harry Callahan returns in this, in many ways, more violent sequel.
Thanks to good lawyers and lenient courtrooms, criminals are escaping justice.
Only, not quite. A small unit is single-handedly dispensing judgment. Lethal judgment.
The message here is more heavy handed than Dirty Harry.
Might makes right. Agitprop. Be aware of this and you should appreciate this one.
The poliziotesschi Execution Squad came out a year before and I wonder if that informed this film.

The Bravados - 1958 - 7/10

Douglass arrives in the small town to watch a hanging.
Four outlaws. The men Douglas had been tracking after they murdered his wife.
Instead of a hanging, the men escape, and Douglass leads the posse.
Hard-edged, violent Western of obsession and self-righteous vengeance.
Gregory Peck, who I usually view as a pompous ham, is exceptional as the man blinded by fury.
While not listed as such, this is a terrific Noir.
I grew up on the black & white version, and that is how I prefer to view this one.

Mystery 101 - 2020 - 6/10

Hallmark whodunit film series, far above their usual fare.
Professor Amy Winslow teaches crime fiction at the local university.
Detective Travis Burke relocates from the big city, unaware of the crimes and murders in the sleepy community.
These programs rely on the charisma and chemistry of the lead characters.
Most flail somewhere between smirking and smarmy.
In Mystery 101, the players look, act and behave like adults – not arrested adolescents.
The puzzle plots are fair to good, and the character arc reaches a nice conclusion.
Except – the canned Spam IQ of Hallmark tacked on an incongruous 30” cliffhanger.
Before the canceling the series.

Razor Blade Smile - 1998 - 5/10

Eileen Daly parlayed her intro-host role for Redemption/Salvation Films into this attempt.
Lilith, turned vampire 100 years earlier, works as an assassin.
Targeting members of the (trendy in the ‘90’s) Illuminati.
Despite being a vampire, she relies on firearms (or sword).
Her wardrobe is leather or vinyl to display her silicone boost.
Flashy at times, other moments beyond cheap.
Nevertheless, the cast seems to be having fun with moronic script.

Night Shift - 2023 - 6/10

Dheeraj works as a cabbie, working himself to exhaustion.
He has not met his quota and must keep driving, then picks up a fare hurrying to reach the airport.
Unaware she is a troublemaker, an instigator. Who claws into his loneliness.
Hindi short is a moody Noir, using conversation to push the story.

The Girls At The Back - 2022 - 7/10
AKA - Las de la última fila

Solidarity. The sort that only best friends, childhood friends, often share.
So, when one is diagnosed with cancer, they all shave their heads and go to the beach.
They have agreed not to discuss the C word, and to take dares.
Step out of their routines, their comfort zones.
Brief series one should not rush through.
Flashbacks surface and disappear without warning. As do internal conversations.
The women, in their 30’s, are full of life, and more perceptive about friends than themselves.
Chick drama. γνῶθι σεαυτόν

Destination Moon - 1950 - 6/10

Pioneering SciFi of early rocket to the Moon.
(Not to forget Méliès (1902), Lang (1929), others.)
This one is heavy on science, or Hollywood science, with technical difficulties explained.
Characters are stuffy at times, and the narration seems docudrama.
The effects are pretty good, the Moon sets inspired, as is the photography.
Even unexpected drama and conflict from time to time.
What surprises is how accurate some of the predictions were.
Slowish, but worthwhile for fans of 1950’s SciFi.

Lady Whirlwind - 1972 - 6/10
AKA - Tie Zhang Xuan Feng Tui // 鐵掌旋風腿

Ling is pursued and beaten by workers at the gambling den. Why? Who knows.
He is left for dead on the beach.
Three years later, Tien appears in the casino, asking about Ling.
When threatened, she beats the hell out of everyone.
Eventually, she tracks down Ling who has taken all this time to recuperate and train.
“Don’t kill me now!” he begs. “I want revenge on those gamblers.”
Shaw Brothers flick has a LOT of overlong fight scenes.
Angela Mao as Tien Li-Chun is the best thing here, followed by a mess of sneering villains.

Beyond The Summit - 2022 - 6/10
AKA - La Cima

Mountaineering porn.
Height of off-season, Mateo begins his ascent of Annapurna.
Barely a day in, he makes a mistake and winds up rescued.
Instead of sending him to a clinic, Ione watches him eat her food, take her dog, boast about his ambitions.
Finally, he tackles the ice face again. This time, middle of the night.
Gorgeous scenery undercut by Mateo’s complete lack of intelligence.
He is rash, foolish, obstinate, incapable of planning.
Oxygen? Who needs oxygen at 22,000 feet. God will help me.
Narrative is third rate, aimed at pre-teens (no disrespect to this age group).

Sherman’s March - 1986 - 7/10

Ross McElwee’s documentary about the South, focusing on the ramifications of the Union Army under William Tecumseh Sherman and their ruinous march from Atlanta to Savannah.
Instead, however, McElwee veers into his disastrous relationships with females.
Seemingly from one loony girlfriend to another. We’re talking seriously oddball belles.
All of whom he films obsessively, constantly. I’m amazed none shot or bludgeoned him.
Throughout, this is laugh out loud funny. Burt Reynolds obsessing? Please!
Thing is, this “doc” is really Southern. Deeply Southern.
Such DNA is almost essential for “getting this”.
Probably overlong at 2+ hours.

Langrishe, Go Down - 1978 - 6/10

Three middle aged sisters live on the family estate in declining circumstances.
One tends the garden, the animals, the kitchen.
Another, more literary, keeps a journal, keeps records, writes countless letters, unsent.
The third, Imogen (Judi Dench), reads, attends cinema, starts an affair.

With Otto Beck (Jeremy Irons), a perpetual student who has rented the back cottage.
He is brainy, dismissive and a mooch.
Imogen seems desperate, perhaps for a relationship, perhaps for an escape.
Based on a Pinter work, this would benefit from an audio restoration.
Otherwise, quite good if dour and a bit confusing.

Let The Corpses Tan - 2017 - 7/10
AKA - Laissez Bronzer les Cadavres

The heist goes off flawlessly.
Armored truck shipment of gold bullion. No survivors, no witnesses.
A hitch-hiking family is given a ride, however.
By chance, they are planning to visit where the robbers are hiding.
Suspicions are already mounting when cops arrive.

Arthouse crime thriller, drenched in bold colors, steeped in blood and sweat, chopped into visual fragments.
A surrealistic dream / nightmarish vibe pervades the film.
Viewers must sort through memories, baggage, delusion, hallucination.
In the heat, everything, everyone, reduces to primal essence.
Last film to date from Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani.

Darker - 2022 - 7/10
AKA - Donkerster

After Rhena’s father tucks her into bed, he heads into the woods and disappears.
The forest is forbidding, perhaps haunted or cursed.
Undaunted, Rhena hurries in, then begins to listen, really listen.

She defies the god, Atlas, earning repercussions.
Terrific folk horror short from the Netherlands.

From Hell It Came - 1957 - 4/10

No, not one of your in-laws.
Kimo is accused of murdering his father, king of the island.
He vows revenge of the true evildoers, is killed, then stuffed into a tree trunk.
Is Kimo dead? Hold on, friend. This South Seas island has been receiving radioactive fallout.
You guessed it. The tree trunk starts shuffling forth, seeking revenge.
El cheapo jungle horror is laughably bad.
A killer tree stump. Really? Who ponied up the cash for this one?