VHS and Betamax You Have Recently Rented

[SaitoRyo]

Roadgames

Stacey Keach is an American truck driver working in Australia when a serial killer starts picking off women along the highway. Jamie Lee Curtis hitches a ride and the two try and track down the killer. 

It's a good, well-made film that was mis-sold as a slasher when it's really more of a Hitchcockian thriller. It builds tension well and the performances are decent. 

Last Stop in Yuma County

I really enjoyed this one, which sees a couple of violent bank robbers wander into a diner everyone is forced to sit in while they wait for a delivery of gas. 

A very effective, low-budget thriller with some familiar faces that takes place primarily in one setting. It could easily be a stage play due to the plot and location, but the direction is really good and they keep things interesting as the film moves at a brisk pace and everything's wrapped up inside 85 minutes. 

[mim731]

Speak No Evil

A decent little thriller, maybe a bit too slow of a burn to get to where it wants to go and the "twist" is telegraphed and is full of plot holes, but it sets up a genuinely anxious final act. Probably falls into the average category without a mad, utterly menacing performance by James McAvoy who is genuinely great, properly menacing and always seemingly on the edge of exploding. Also he got properly hench for this role, which adds to it. Wouldn't say it's worth shelling out for at the cinema necessarily, but worth a watch when it's on the apps.  

Madame Web

Jesus, even for a comic movie that was shocking. Just wooden acting, underuse of it's cast, dodgy CGI and a silly, silly story.  

[BomberPat]

The Return of Captain Invincible

I've been pitching this for our bad movie group for a few weeks, but either the dice roll chose someone else's film, or I've not been around to pitch it. Finally got to it last night. There's two Richard O'Brien-penned songs in this that I love and, aside from the broad strokes of the story, I'd basically forgotten the rest of it.

Alan Arkin is Captain Invincible, a washed up 1950s superhero, disillusioned with the state of the modern world, and living as a homeless alcoholic in Australia. Christopher Lee is his arch-nemesis, Mister Midnight, and after Midnight steals a secret Hypno-Ray from the United States government, Captain Invincible has to be brought back, and learn how to use his powers all over again.

It's very ropey, with a paper-thin plot (the Hypno-Ray barely matters as a plot device, and I'm halfway convinced it's only there so they could rhyme it with "Hip Hip Hooray" in one song) and some absolutely bizarre directorial decisions. But Alan Arkin is a good laugh in the main performance, Christopher Lee is having perhaps the most fun he's ever had on camera, and there's two or three phenomenal tunes (and one or two decent ones) that justify the entire rest of the movie, particularly Lee's final number.

I took a lot of joy in the group chat of everyone else watching the film discover that it's actually a musical when the first song starts up twenty-five minutes into the movie. 

[Devon Malcolm]

3 hours ago, mim731 said:

Speak No Evil

A decent little thriller, maybe a bit too slow of a burn to get to where it wants to go and the "twist" is telegraphed and is full of plot holes, but it sets up a genuinely anxious final act. Probably falls into the average category without a mad, utterly menacing performance by James McAvoy who is genuinely great, properly menacing and always seemingly on the edge of exploding. Also he got properly hench for this role, which adds to it. Wouldn't say it's worth shelling out for at the cinema necessarily, but worth a watch when it's on the apps.

Didn't really care for the original and had no intention of seeing this but I will because Mackenzie Davis.

[johnnyboy]

On 9/9/2024 at 6:26 PM, Frankie Crisp said:

Trap (2024)

”Dad, put me in one of your films”

”But you can’t act”

”Okay, make the film intentionally shit”

It wasn't good, but I did have fun with the positively manic acting.

Also, in what I hope was entirely intentional (as if it wasn't they stumbled into something astonishing)...

Spoiler

They cast Hayley Mills as someone trapping a parent.

I hope M Night goes for more cryptic crossword casting instead of twists in the future as with half as many twists this would still have had three times too many.

[Jazzy G]

Had another trot through the Robocop movies (1-3) at the weekend when I saw they being removed from Prime at some point in the next 30 days. Verhoeven puts some great movies out, and Robocop is a banger. The satire, the over the top violence, so enjoyable from beginning to end. 

Irvine Kershner tries his best with the second one, but the writing lets it down. The bit where Robocop gets reassembled with all the new prime directives and turns into Robo-PSA présenter is amusing, and it's a country mile ahead of the third one. It's just a shame it didn't have anything from the original score in it. 

Robocop 3 is pretty bad, but it was always going to be when they decided they wanted it to be targeted at the same audience as the animated series. It doesn't help that Peter Weller is away making Naked Lunch. Robert Burke gives it a try, but he's not great, and doesn't have the best material to work with. The removal of the violence etc also leads to a massive tonal shift. 

I've never seen the 2014 one, or the Prime Directives series (which I hear is supposed to be decent). 

 

[WyattSheepMask]

28 minutes ago, Jazzy G said:

Had another trot through the Robocop movies (1-3) at the weekend when I saw they being removed from Prime at some point in the next 30 days. Verhoeven puts some great movies out, and Robocop is a banger. The satire, the over the top violence, so enjoyable from beginning to end. 

Irvine Kershner tries his best with the second one, but the writing lets it down. The bit where Robocop gets reassembled with all the new prime directives and turns into Robo-PSA présenter is amusing, and it's a country mile ahead of the third one. It's just a shame it didn't have anything from the original score in it. 

Robocop 3 is pretty bad, but it was always going to be when they decided they wanted it to be targeted at the same audience as the animated series. It doesn't help that Peter Weller is away making Naked Lunch. Robert Burke gives it a try, but he's not great, and doesn't have the best material to work with. The removal of the violence etc also leads to a massive tonal shift. 

I've never seen the 2014 one, or the Prime Directives series (which I hear is supposed to be decent). 

 

Robocop is one of my absolute favourite films.

Youmight have seen it already , but if you’ve not caught the Robodoc series that’s on Prime yet that’s definitely worth a go if you’re in the midst of a Robocop fix

[gmoney]

30 minutes ago, Jazzy G said:

 've never seen the 2014 one, or the Prime Directives series (which I hear is supposed to be decent). 

 

The Canadian TV movie ones? They're not decent at all I'm afraid, they're absolute shite. The most notable thing about them is the guy playing Robert Cop has such a massive hooter when he's got the helmet off you spend the rest of the time wondering how he gets it back on over it. 

[Jazzy G]

They're all on Prime. I might force myself through them because I'm something of a masochist. 

[gmoney]

I did the very same thing, so I can't blame you. 

[johnnyboy]

7 hours ago, WyattSheepMask said:

Youmight have seen it already , but if you’ve not caught the Robodoc series that’s on Prime yet that’s definitely worth a go if you’re in the midst of a Robocop fix

It's a proper deep dive.  Infinitely more enjoyable than the TV movies, Jazzy.

 

[SaitoRyo]

Border Radio

Black-and-white indie film featuring people from the LA cowpunk scene of the 1980s. I enjoyed it, even if I didn't think it was particularly 'good' or anything. Has a certain charm to it, sort of like an alt-country Clerks, where you can tell it's mates trying to create something primarily for themselves on a shoestring budget. Very much indebted to Jim Jarmusch's early stuff in terms of its look and rambling narrative.

Silent Rage

Some mad bastard scientists bring a mentally ill man on the brink of death back to life and give him super strength and regenerative powers, turning him into an unstoppable, Frankenstein-like creature. Only local sheriff Chuck Norris can stop him now! 

This was another one that I enjoyed watching but didn't exactly think it was decent. The tone is all over the place, going from small town comedy hijinks to slasher film to love story within the space of about ten uneven minutes, but it doesn't get dull or outstay its welcome by much. 

[Merzbow]

Cuckoo

Messy, full of interesting yet half baked ideas and the surrealism isn't good enough to paper over the cracks yet Hunter Schafer makes it more than watchable.

Yes, I have a crush. It needed another hour of just her and her girlfriend..

Dan Stevens is on the verge of being hilariously bad here, the German accent is stupidly cartoonish.

[Bellenda Carlisle]

I saw a mystery preview of The Substance like a week ago. I love elevated B movies, well made films with good casts but with B movie sensibilities and freedom to do mad shit, this was definitely that. 

It was totally my bag and it was almost perfect but there were some decisions that kind of muddled whatever the message of the film was supposed to be, not that I really care. There was also a whole section that i thought i would have loved if i read the script but was slightly off the mark for me in actuality. I won't say any more cos no one's seen it yet. 

Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley were grear, it's an extremely sexy film and Sue is probably the second hottest character* I've ever seen on screen.

*

Spoiler

 

Beetlejuice 2

this didn't offend me, it reminded me of listening to post reunion Pixies album, it's fun enough and you're happy your old faves are still alive and trying but there's a magic bond with stuff that's important to you from the past that is almost impossible to recapture. 

I was surprised that for a film that took 30 years to make the story wasn't tight at all, it could have been vastly improved with a couple of tweaks. Catherine ohara was brilliant as ever Justin Theroux was terrible, underwritten and completely boring and useless. I think the story with Jenna Ortega and the neighbour boy was so rushed, it coukd hsve been the backbone of the story, it was the best part. The soul train was shit and cringe and Steven K Amos looked like he was hating every second of it. Monica Belucci was completely pointless but looked cool, i just wish it had all come together a bit more cleanly. It was fun though and i did like that it felt like it had some early tim burton kind of experimental stuff in it.

There was one thing that is a pet hate of mine that is so offensive to do in a long awaited sequel that it never occured to me that they'd show it, although it was tastefully done and one of the better bits of the film 

Spoiler

Showing BJ's origin as a human! I couldn't believe they went there.

Also there was way too much focus on the dad, it was weird. just say he's dead and move on. I definitely need to see it again because i was too focused on thinking about if it lived up to itself that i couldn't let loose and enjoy it.

[Merzbow]

8 minutes ago, Bellenda Carlisle said:

I saw a mystery preview of The Substance 

Seeing that on Friday and can't wait, but barely anywhere seems to be showing it and also Strange Darling which comes out the same day.