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Vultural

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Join date
19-Aug-2013
Last activity
19-Oct-2025
Posts
5,123

Post History

Post
#1451885
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Big Sur - 2013 - 7/10

Languid adaptation of Kerouac’s novel, focusing on a couple of stays at Ferlinghetti’s mountain cabin.
Slow going and meandering, yet enjoyable for fans of the author and the Beats.
Kerouac is older here, haggard, and well on his descent into alcoholism.
Opening paraphrase sums up the curse of fame and expectation -
“All over America high school and college kids are thinking Jack Kerouac is 26 years old and on the road hitchhiking, while there I am, almost 40 years old, bored and jaded,”
Might be difficult for those who know the Beats through movies, not their writings.

Post
#1451750
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Grand Budapest Hotel - 2013 - 6/10

Is it just me? How is this shaggy dog tale such a critical darling?
Narrative supposedly shows hotel in its glorious heyday, especially the ever attentive manager, and how it came to fall into the possession of the current, and possibly final manager.
Story itself is a series of onion like recollections, each more stylized, more fabricated the deeper memory probed.
Stunning set design counterbalanced by mannered performances of oddballs and kooks.
Anderson’s films are always worth a look, but the overall look and tone begin to feel repetitive.

Post
#1451749
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Ferris Wheel At Night - 2013 - 6/10
AKA - Yakou Kanransha // 夜行観覧車

Warning! This J-dorama is like a female hormonal tornado.
Family moves into exclusive, posh community they can barely afford.
Straight away, neighbors regard them with disdain and belittle them numerous times.
At school, the daughter is bullied. Across the street, a brutal murder.
No mistake, while seemingly a “chick drama," secrets and conspiracies increasingly predominate.
Perfect families, perfect neighborhoods, and those brittle, perfect facades that conceal so much.
Cleverly constructed to punch emotional buttons.

Post
#1451748
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Joan Rivers: A Piece Of Work - 2010 - 7/10

Documentary following the comedian for a year.
I had viewed this when it came out, but watched this time with her audio commentary.
In many ways, funnier, with merciless self awareness.
Rivers packs the commentary with jokes, one-liners, sarcasm, and confessions.
Sensitive souls, beware, there is foul language galore, as well as an early sequence of her sans makeup.

Post
#1451629
Topic
FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here
Time

The Stranger (Eyes Of A Stranger) - Maniac

Excellent, concise version of a middling slasher / stalker flick.
A serial killer prowls Miami streets, primarily at night.
The police are … what police? Only a perky TV newscaster seems interested.
Especially after she hones in on a suspect.

Filesize = 7.3 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC. Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS. No subs.

The image in this is pretty good, especially during night sequences.
Slashers were never demo time for crisp imaging.
The cuts boil the narrative down to bones and pulp, omitting several superfluous characters.
To be honest, most of the characters could have been jettisoned, all served as props to push plot.
The DTS is very strong, in fact, it is better than this film deserves.
At barely an hour, this dark thriller might conclude while you have a few cans left of your sixpack.

Post
#1451627
Topic
FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here
Time

Home Invasion (Don’t Breath 1 and 2) - Maniac

Excellent combination of two thrillers, with perfect segue from the first one to the second.

Filesize = 11 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080 AVC. Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS. No subs.

Continuing a trend within the community, the filesize is a whopping 11 GB.
(For me, I simply can’t burn a copy which I regret.)
The first film, better, fresher, is a hardboiled caper gone to hell.
As always with this editor, DB1 is trimmed to bare essentials. Not that viewers care about the “intruders” except to see how they will be dispatched.
The second effort launches with new ward, Phoenix, who has target stamped on her head.
Baddies are more lethal and Mr. Lang absorbs enough abuse to kill an elephant.
Early on, a news alert drops the hint about a missing medico. That should have been removed.
The sound mix in both films will satisfy you and annoy your roomies. The tiniest sounds are picked up, and when it roars, brace for complaints.
That said, the dialogue in the DB2 was always murky, and is no better here. Most of the villains mumble and seem incomprehensible. This is the sound designer, loading layers of audio yet forgetting to maximize dialogue. Being a source issue, don’t blame the faneditor.
The ending felt like quitting time. The original wasn’t much better.
Maniac wisely cut Phoenix, though the bit with the dog might have been a better outro.

Post
#1451625
Topic
FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here
Time

Blue Steel 44 (Blue Steel 1990) - Maniac

Rookie cop Megan interrupts a convenience store holdup, and accidentally awakens a germinating serial killer.

Filesize = 7 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080 AVC. Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS. No subs.

Straight off, this is not Megan’s story, so much as it is that of an increasingly violent exchange broker (an intense Ron Silver).
This edit is stripped to that narrative, it is extremely tight and works throughout.
Note should be made to the audio specs. The DTS is a beast.
Maniac has tweaked the gunfire which explodes from your speakers.
If you are watching this with the volume turned up, your neighbors will know.
This is an editor who continues to learn and up his game.

Post
#1451624
Topic
FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here
Time

Hitler: Memories Of The Past (Triumph Of The Will) - Maniac

I reviewed this several years ago at another site.
At the time, I voiced serious issues I had with the result. Insufficient subtitles.
Maniac overhauled his edit and delivers a superior second version.

Filesize = 4.32 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC. Audio = 192 kbps 2-Channel stereo AC-3. Subtitled throughout.

The image for Riefenstahl’s 1934 film is sharp, the quality for “Night And Fog” less so, and “Memory Of The Camps” runs fair to poor. This is source material so do not blame the editor.
One watches the 1934 Nuremberg rally unfold, and then the narrative shifts to the camps.
This is jarring, and well done. The blunt juxtaposition of pomp and pageantry, and atrocity. Words vs. deeds.
The speeches are now subtitled, which vastly improves the contradictions of “the coming Reich” and “what the Reich became.”
Music additions were mixed for me. I thought the opening, aerial sequences worked, and the score for the closing was haunting.
At barely an hour, this ought to be mandatory viewing.

Note: The original V1 is available at another fanedit place. Don’t get that one. Go to Maniac’s own site.

Post
#1451623
Topic
FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here
Time

Thirst (Raw - 2016) - Maniac

This gory, cannibalistic shocker is tightened and pushed to carnivore maximum.

Filesize = 4.5 GB. Video = 1980 X 1080p mp4. Audio = 317 kbps, 2-Channel AAC. Subtitled throughout. Hardsubs.

The gurgling narrative is boiled down to its essence of meat and ravening hunger.
Odd conflicts and personal dramas are gone from this.
Instead, Justine’s first year at vet school doesn’t mess around. She does, though.
Yet her ride is plunging down a descending roller coaster, one permanently in the twisting tunnel.
One of the surprising joys of this cut is how funny this film is.
That is Maniac’s droll gift, highlighting the gruesome humor throughout.
Much of the over the top antics are laugh out loud. (Perhaps that says more about me.)
Editors, check out opening and closing credits.
Warning! If you are new to Maniac’s edits, this is NOT the one to begin with.
And this, like others, may be an acquired taste. Ha, sorry.

Post
#1451546
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Web Of Deception - 1989 - 6/10
AKA - Jing Hun Ji // 驚魂記

Lawyer Lin, planning to emigrate to Canada, is being blackmailed.
Her friend and assistant, May, might have motive.
In addition, May’s friend Queenie has a desperate financial need for her convict sister.
Then, during a stormy night, everyone winds up in Lin’s dark home.
Muddled Hong Kong thriller has an improvised, cobbled together feel.
As if they had a sketch, rather than a script.
Juicy dual role for Joey Wong, especially as the crazy, vengeful jailbird sister.
No great shakes but will divert Hong Kong fans for an hour or so.

Post
#1451545
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Phantom Thread - 2017 - 7/10

Austere take on the Pygmalion fable.
Dressmaker for London’s high end takes on new girl as model.
He is extremely fastidious, the only soul who understands or who can communicate with him is his sister.
Leisurely paced, desaturated color scheme, the narrative steps along by nuances.
Character study of man with complicated mother issues, the irony being his incredible eye for enhancing female appearance compounded by his tendencies to wound them.
Sound mix is noteworthy. Concentrated silence marred by the tiniest activity.
This will not be for all tastes.
First Paul Anderson film I have actually enjoyed since Boogie Nights.

Post
#1451544
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

The Hoodlum - 1951 - 6/10

Ma pleads with the parole board, “He’s a good boy. He’s learned. Please, he’s my son!”
So junior get released, then starts working at his brother’s gas station.
Conveniently located across the street from the bank.
Grade-D Noir with hard as nails, Lawrence Tierney.
Main supporting cast are terrible, including Tierney’s brother, Edward.
Guys portraying the heist crew are fine, and the caper was creative.
Film clocks in at barely an hour, packing bullets, betrayal, and sleaze.
Okay for Noir diehards or Tierney fans.

Post
#1451421
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Army Of Shadows - 1969 - 8/10
AKA - L’armée des Ombres

French Resistance during the German occupation of World War II.
This focuses more on the tedium, the tension, and the loneliness of key members.
Individuals seem to be constantly on the move, relocating from one “safe” house to another.
Missions are small, try to rescue a pilot, deal with a betrayer, recruit, and missions often fail.
Help comes from ordinary people, while armed troops scrutinize the populace.
No lengthy gun battles, pyrotechnic explosions, bombastic heroic music.
Everything is understated and weary.
There are the Germans, the Vichy collaborators, and the weasels.
Lack of glamour possibly evokes the Occupation and Resistance better than other films.

Post
#1451420
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

The Wave I Ride - 2015 - 6/10

Surfing doc of Paige Alms, one of the few, very few, females riding big waves.
More than most surf films, this is a character study. Don’t go here for loud music, hyper cut, surf porn.
Paige’s training, injury, support crew, home life, community work, jobs.
Yes, jobs. Being a girl, she doesn’t get the sponsorship that the boys get.
The sport is segregated male / female.
Money also tends to flow to riders working the shore, or – especially – those who model for boards and suits, showing sculpted backsides.
As in many spheres, talent and ability generally lose out to sex appeal.
Paige is genuinely likeable, if a little New Agey.

Post
#1451419
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Le Week-End - 2013 - 6/10

Film references and pays homage to Goddard’s Band Of Outsiders, and features cues by cult fave Nick Drake, yet Le Week-End remains a frustrating, pale reminder.
Narrative follows an older, professorial British couple who return to Paris for their 30th anniversary.
Their original honeymoon room has changed … or perhaps they have.
They bolt, and book the executive suite in a posh hotel.
Bickering, whining, accusations and atrocious behavior soon flow thick and fast.
The scenery was enjoyable - hell, I appreciated the story - a frayed marriage at the end of its rope.
Yet, I disliked the couple. Intensely.
Once they started running, without paying, from every place they went, short-changing waiters, cooks, maids, etc…, “working people,” it was hard to be sympathetic toward them.

Post
#1451313
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Los Angeles Overnight - 2018 - 6/10

Shaggy dog yarn.
Failing, barely working actress overhears a whispered conversation during her waitress gig.
What she caught was a secret, a clue, a puzzle. She needs assistance in solving.
She should have realized bad guys would find her.
Plot is nothing new, characters are oddballs, though not needlessly weird.
Surprise in this sunny Neo Noir is the waitress/actress who is determined to remain in Los Angeles, praying for the mythical big break.
Her desperation to not return to Ma n Pa and the hometown, pushes her actions.

Post
#1451312
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

My Past - 1931 - 6/10

Steel tycoons, partners, one old, one young, fall for the same showgirl.
Bebe Daniels is the alluring Doree, Joan Blondell her sharp chum.
This Pre-Code has nude swimming, bedroom action, adultery, casual morality.
“Ultra modern” girls, says one gent, are here today, gone tomorrow.
The first half is racy, the second stodgy. Lewis Stone’s as fading sugar daddy is the most sympathetic.
Trappings throughout of furs, jewels, champagne, seem like a dimly remembered take on the half lit world of the Roaring Twenties, swept away two years earlier.
Look for the book Daniels reads, “The Maltese Falcon,” which would be her next film.

Post
#1451311
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Évocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie - 2012 - 6/10

Documentary of trash talking talk show host who chased fame from the rabble.
His TV show, which I well remember, barely lasted two years.
Meteoric rise followed by hurtling crash.
I knew he was involved in the 60’s surf music scene, but that was not mentioned.
Instead, the doc showed his childhood home, a stone’s toss from the Kennedy family.
From leftie to songster to demagogue to has-been.
Curiosity flick. Better if you have a fondness for belligerent types.

Post
#1451238
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

Midnight Hair - 2014 - 5/10
AKA - Yèbàn Shūtóu // 夜半梳頭

Such a tantalizing title. Especially for a yarn featuring newlyweds.
Film is, however, Chinese horror, and a throwback to old school Hong Kong.

Happy couple moves into grand home. Within ten minutes you realize the joint is haunted.
Soon enough, the bride sees a pale ghost, the husband grows troubled.
So what do they do? They stay put. Well, it is a really nice house.
Story plods along like a drunken tortoise, past fog, creepy shadows, and jump scares.
The male actor (clearly a high school drama dropout) does IT or something. His gifted companion prances about in skimpy dresses, sheer negligees, tight tops, while exploring posh, dust-free, interiors.
Subs were embedded Chinese over English, and just as ridiculous as HK subs from the 90’s.
Pedestrian narrative, poor ending. Might rewatch though, because I enjoyed that home.
It was huge - especially by Asian standards. And richly furnished.
How could they afford that? (Yes, there was an explanation.)

Post
#1451237
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

In The Courtyard - 2014 - 7/10
AKA - Dans la Cour

Just before the concert, the band singer is fed up, and walks.
He is old, he has no professional skills, he is unsuited for most work.
The building complex needs a janitor, however.
French drama, with comic touches, is of the inhabitants, their obsessions and flaws.
Catherine Deneuve nominated for a Cesar as the wife whose anxiety over a wall crack deepens as the fissure itself.
Not necessarily a downer, but most of the characters are disappointed with themselves and despondent.

Post
#1451236
Topic
A few reviews . . (film or TV)
Time

The Howling Wind - 2020 - 6/10

Early on, radio broadcasts alert listeners that the unusual winds are turning humans deadly.
When gusts wail, lock the doors and let no one inside.
So what to do when you are barricaded, alone, then discover an intruder.

Well, in this short, there are long conversations. Interrogations.
The caliber of acting is high in this, the photography top notch.
And yet, for most of us, the 12 gauge would have boomed at first sight.