VHS and Betamax You Have Recently Rented

[Lorne Malvo]

The Wrecking Crew - Really good fun this. I'm not a big Jason Momoa fan but him and Big Dave have great chemistry together. Completely obvious from the start where it's going but it's a laugh getting there. Surprisingly violent, too - the car/motorbike/helicopter scene being the highlight. It's one of those weird action films though where the last fight scene is by far the weakest. Also, they had a perfect reason to leave us with some sequel bait and literally threw it away - but in this case I want a sequel! 

"Wuthering Heights" - I've heard a lot about this being the ultimate divisive Marmite film, so naturally I landed somewhere in the middle and thought it was quite decent but nothing special. I think the quite annoying marketing has informed a lot of opinions on this - strip all that away and you're left with an entertaining enough bodice-ripper that's nowhere near as pervy as it thinks it is. It goes without saying, but I'm going to say it anyway; good grief, Margot Robbie. 

Crime 101 - It's Heat but not as good. Still, it turns out something half as good as Heat is still really fucking good. Chris Hemsworth is miscast as a shy, somewhat awkward anxious crook having something of an existential crisis, but this is still a pretty good time. Bart Layton needs to make more films.

Whistle - Corin Hardy is crap and this is shit. A sub Final Destination premise/'rules'/mythology, shite CGI scares that arn't scary in the least and a tacked-on 'youth pastor who sells drugs to kids' subplot that was just baffling; it felt very much like a horror film straight out of 2005. It's not completely terrible, Dafne Keen and Sophie Nélisse have good chemistry together. But that's not enough to save it.

Edited February 16 by Lorne Malvo

[gmoney]

I saw Crime 101 yesterday and I agree that it's generally a good time. Wasn't that fussed with Hemsworth but pretty much everyone else is in great form. Also recommend not thinking too hard about the plot as I doesn't quite hang together, but it was enjoyable overall. 

[johnnyboy]

Sex, Lies, and Videotape

The cover of this would always call to me from the shelves of Virgin Megastore but I'd avoided its siren song to this point.  I'm glad that I did miss this as a teenager as I would have been disappointed by the lack of boob in it given the title.

Good sexy drama, but sexy with words.  It's very dialogue heavy so probably not one to watch whilst second screening.

[SuperBacon]

16 minutes ago, johnnyboy said:

Sex, Lies, and Videotape

The cover of this would always call to me from the shelves of Virgin Megastore but I'd avoided its siren song to this point.  I'm glad that I did miss this as a teenager as I would have been disappointed by the lack of boob in it given the title.

Good sexy drama, but sexy with words.  It's very dialogue heavy so probably not one to watch whilst second screening.

Absolutely fit cast as well. Andie Mcdowell and Laura San Giacomo are gorgeous in it.

[Merzbow]

18 minutes ago, johnnyboy said:

Sex, Lies, and Videotape

The cover of this would always call to me from the shelves of Virgin Megastore but I'd avoided its siren song to this point.  I'm glad that I did miss this as a teenager as I would have been disappointed by the lack of boob in it given the title.

Good sexy drama, but sexy with words.  It's very dialogue heavy so probably not one to watch whilst second screening.

I adore this film and James Spader so much I'm recording a whole album about it... but recording interviews on microcassette.

[gmoney]

Just got back from Wuthering Heights. Forgive my ignorance, but all I knew about the story going in was gleaned from the song by Kate Bush. This is not as good as that. But then almost nothing is. This was however pretty good I thought. Properly trashy and lurid, meant as compliments. At one point it was shaping up to be fantastic, but it got pretty repetitive in the final third and lost a lot of air. 

[SaitoRyo]

Tender Mercies

Had to watch this one again after reading that Robert Duvall has passed. It's still perfect and he's still perfect in it. I love everything about it and it only seems to get better on every rewatch. 

[RIDDUM_N_STYLE]

Watched a few films these past two days

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - the OG film, still a classic nearly 4 decades on

Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things - Bob Clark zombie/vampire film, been wanting to see it for a while but it’s a massive let down, the cast are hugely unlikeable and the effects aren’t great either

Better Man - Robbie Williams’ life played out by an anthropomorphic monkey, it shouldn’t work but it really does, equally part funny and emotional while slightly twisting aspects of his career. It does great at replicating certain moments like the Knebworth gig, calling out Liam Gallagher at the Brits, the deskinned scene at the end of the Rock DJ and the emotions of Nicole Appleton being forced into aborting their baby by All Saints’ management but others are a bit far fetched or misordered

[SaitoRyo]

Something to Talk About

This was alright. Not great. Not bad. Just fine. Which is a shame, because it has a hell of a cast, including Robert Duvall, Gena Rowlands, Julia Roberts and Dennis Quaid. It's basically about infidelity and how rich white people actually have real problems, you know. Underwhelming overall, but some good stuff in there regardless.

No Man's Land (1987)

Really liked this. Another 80s gem. This one is about a sports car thief (Charlie Sheen) who befriends an undercover cop sent to infiltrate his operation. Easy story, cracking score, some decent car chases and a good amount of suspense. It's also one of those films that gives you a good look at 80s LA, which is always nice.

The Vanishing (1993)

Started off intriguingly enough but lost its way and became a derivative slasher, unfortunately. Kiefer Sutherland becomes obsessed with the disappearance of his girlfriend (Sandra Bullock) after she randomly vanishes while stopping into a gas station during a road trip. Jeff Bridges plays the creepy villain. First half of it I liked, but it really does go off a cliff and the very final scene is so, so cheap. I should have watched the Dutch original, which was made by the same director and is supposedly much better.

[Devon Malcolm]

56 minutes ago, SaitoRyo said:

I should have watched the Dutch original, which was made by the same director and is supposedly much better.

It is far, far better. Highly recommend it.

[Devon Malcolm]

The Secret Agent (cinema)

Kleber Mendonca Filho's films are just my thing and this sprawling political drama set in 1970s Recife especially so. Reminiscent of quite a few of the Italian political films of the 70s, this flew by even at 160 minutes. I never want to see that fucking cat ever again though.

Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up (cinema)

Not classic Looney Tunes by any means but consistently funny and respectful of the originals. The voice work is fantastic, Mel Blanc would have been pleased, I think.

A Special Day

This cropped up in the Name the Film thread courtesy of @LaGoosh the other day and it's a superb film. The sound design reminded me of The Zone of Interest in a way even though the stories are very, very different. Brilliantly acted, haunting ending.

The Chronology of Water

Kristen Stewart's debut as director is a predictably artsy film, but also very well structured, paced and shot. She's clearly got talent for this. Really tough to watch at times but I was  impressed and surprised by how much I liked it. A career best turn from Imogen Poots, too.

The Dutchman

Ridiculous thriller that shows potential as a sleazy erotic flick at the beginning before degenerating into pure bullshit. I love Kate Mara but this was a struggle even for her and she's the only good thing about it.

Code 3

If this had stuck to being a comedy I think it would have been very good indeed because there are some funny parts to it. But as soon as it turns on the drama it doesn't work at all. Rainn Wilson is really good though, and I do like Lil Rey Howery.

Man of Iron

Polish political drama, the follow-up to Man of Marble. Even more powerful and striking, charting the turbulent political landscape in the country in the early 80s and late 70s. One of the best things I've watched for ages.

The Outfit (1973)

Watched in tribute to Robert Duvall. No nonsense, laser-focused crime thriller, absolutely my sort of thing and one of the better examples of the type you'll get. Should be far, far better known.

Sansho the Bailiff

One of those monuments of cinema that, when you sit down and watch it, makes you feel like there's something wrong with you when you don't like it. I just have never liked this sort of misery porn stuff and I don't care if it's a 1950s Japanese film.

Twinless

Real potential here that's largely lost on two really poorly written male characters. Some funny moments but it's mostly saved by Aisling Franciosi's turn. The film should have been about her.

We Bury the Dead

Aussie zombie drama with Daisy Ridley doing superb work in the lead. Really surprised by how sombre and slow-paced was here, easily one of the best zombie films of the last 20 years. 

Angel Terminators 1 and 2

The sequel is the better of the two but they're both fast-paced and enjoyable Hong Kong actioners. Moon Lee is incredible in the second one. Both worth a look.

Spotlight

No idea why these political / journalism dramas are such a comfort watch for me. Especially ones about nonce priests. This is always such an engaging watch though with a top class cast and it doesn't belabours its points. Excellent film.

[CavemanLynn]

On 2/16/2026 at 8:55 AM, Lorne Malvo said:

The Wrecking Crew - Really good fun this. I'm not a big Jason Momoa fan but him and Big Dave have great chemistry together. Completely obvious from the start where it's going but it's a laugh getting there. Surprisingly violent, too - the car/motorbike/helicopter scene being the highlight. It's one of those weird action films though where the last fight scene is by far the weakest. Also, they had a perfect reason to leave us with some sequel bait and literally threw it away - but in this case I want a sequel! 

Agreed. I watched this last night, and it's a real old school Saturday night actioner. Big Dave and Jason Momoa have great Tango & Cash of the Islands chemistry, and the personal stuff was really straightforward and effective. Trips wishes he looked as good as Batista does in Shield riot gear here.

It was a good time, but there's an even better slapstick family actioner here if they cut out the unnecessary swearing and a few of the overly violent kills. One second Momoa's swinging henchmen around like cricket bats, crotching them on doorframes, but then cheese graters come out and guys are getting their open mouths smashed on table edges. One character intro involves a one character pointing out how much he swears, but this doesn't really ring true when everyone's screaming FXCK and saying "asshole" when they can't think of a punchline. Only a minor niggle, considering I've spent a paragraph on it, and I'd be well up for the Animal and Aquaman bringing justice to various holiday locations, especially if we get more of Morena Baccarin looking sun-kissed.

[SaitoRyo]

Cohen & Tate

Yet another one for the overlook/underrated 80s genre jam pile!

I really, really liked this. A lot. It's about two hitmen, played by Roy Scheider and Adam Baldwin (no relation to Alec, Daniel etc.), who kidnap a kid that witnessed a mob killing. They're supposed to take him from Oklahoma back to Texas, but a series of fuck ups and the kid pitting their opposite personalities against each other makes it a lot more difficult than it should be. 

Just a very well-made, lower-budget, 85-minute thriller and a strong directorial debut for Eric Red, who wrote The Hitcher, Near Dark and Blue Steel.

[Lorne Malvo]

A wildly contrasting double-bill at the cinema this weekend;

Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die - An anti-AI film that's so shit it almost made me side with AI. In all seriousness, it starts off quite well with a strong premise, I applaud the fact it's got some genuinely mental parts and it's never boring. But that doesn't make up for the fact that it's also not good in the slightest and the last 30 minutes are absolutely dreadful. I like Sam Rockwell more than most of you on here but can't deny he's completely miscast in this.

Wasteman - A really strong promising debut feature from Cal McMau. David Jonsson plays a prisoner who gets lumbered with an headcase of a cellmate. Jonsson is really good in this, it's got an authenticity to it (coming from someone who has never done time so what do I know) and unlike the previous film the last 30 minutes are a gutwrenching tense affair. Great film. 

[SaitoRyo]

China Moon

I am going through a thing with 80s/90s neo-noirs at the minute, as they are a real comfort watch for me. China Moon is, on the surface, a by-the-numbers noir where you pretty much know exactly where it's going to go ten minutes in. There's really nothing new here, but that familiarity is comforting (at least to me). It's also very well made and features some stellar performances from Benecio del Toro, Madeline Stowe and, in particular, the vastly underrated Ed Harris. It's great watching him when he starts to realise that things aren't what he thought they were in sticky, corrupt Florida.