The Film Corner

[Unorthodox]

Dollar movie with Alec:

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I have this love/hate relation with Marvel movies.  They keep bringing in characters I just HATE.

Dr Strange is the latest.  Like Iron Man, I find the character an insufferable ass. 

However, Marvel has crafted a rather enjoyable popcorn film with him, though it's becoming quite formulaic lately.  Fortunately that formula is adding a healthy dose of comedy to the mix. 

[Unorthodox]

Beware the Slenderman

HBO documentary revolving around the girls who stabbed their friend.  Analyzes the origin and mythos of Slenderman as well.  Wasn't anything shocking I didn't really know already, but I spend an inordinate amount of time studying these things.  Though it featured really creepy stop motion clips of some pied piper movie/special.  I gotta find that film. 

Also inadvertently explains the clowns. 

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[Elok]

Dr. Strange is boring, but made an important contribution to society by way of serving as the inspiration for Dr. Byron Orpheus.

[Buster's Uncle]

Trianna is no Clea.

[Unorthodox]

Trianna is no Clea.

Her absence doesn't help the film.

[Unorthodox]

I haven't seen it, but know it's right up my alley.  Just thrilled with the news Split has passed $100M and is #1 for the second week in a row.  Hoping Hollywood gets the clue these are the types of horror films people show up for, not the rated R for the sake of getting an R rating torture porn crap. 

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[Unorthodox]

I haven't seen it, but know it's right up my alley.  Just thrilled with the news Split has passed $100M and is #1 for the second week in a row.  Hoping Hollywood gets the clue these are the types of horror films people show up for, not the rated R for the sake of getting an R rating torture porn crap. 

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Uno's SPLIT review:


Friday night, 7 PM.  Full theater still several weeks after release.  Felt good. 

Most the audience was 30+, few teens.  Relatively strange for a horror movie. 

As a horror movie, this was rather fairly paint by numbers.  AND M KNIGHT PLAYS IT STRAIGHT.  This is KEY. 

The acting is what makes this movie tick, and we're fortunate to get someone at the top of their game in James McAvoy, and a really good supporting roll from Anya Taylor-Joy as well. 

Knight keeps the movie on the horror movie pace near perfectly, though I've seen some complaints about this from some reviews, they've forgotten what the traditional pace IS by the new jump scare every 2 minute BS. 

The plot revolves around Kevin's personalities and his psychiatrists' belief that they really ARE 23 different people.  The world, of course, has a more traditional interpretation of the split personalities.  It is this belief that drives 3 of the personalities (who we spend most the movie with, the others are cameos at best) to attempt to PROVE they are different by bringing out person #24 who provides the climax.   

I'm going to tag this.  It's "the twist".  It's also what convinced hEt to go see the movie, and didn't lessen the viewing for us in the slightest, but others would have different reactions. 

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The film plays it out straight, and the final scene reveals it's all been a setup for a sequel as Split is essentially Unbreakable 2.  This is the villains origin story.  And Bruce Willis, as David Dunn is made aware and supposedly going to track down Kevin, who is loose.

Uno's gore rating:

Mola Ram's heart scene is worse than anything you'll see, but there's plenty of IMPLIED gore. 

CAUTION:

It's PG-13, but there's some VERY HEAVILY implied childhood sexual abuse. 

Special shout out to West Dylan Thordson.  Relatively new composer did a MASTERFUL job on the soundtrack.  Lots of dark ambient music that is JUST off, and keeps the mood exactly where it needs to be, and hearkens back to The Shining just a bit.  I could see myself actually using this soundtrack. 

[Unorthodox]

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/movies/split-tops-box-office-again-as-rings-falters.html?_r=0

“Rings,” which cost $25 million to make, arrived to a disappointing $13 million in domestic ticket sales, extending a troubled box office run for Paramount Pictures. The last entry in this supernatural horror franchise, “The Ring Two,” collected $35.1 million over its first three days in 2005, or $43 million at today’s ticket prices.

Note to film companies: 

This is the modern age.  Us movie fans, ESPECIALLY HORROR MOVIE FANS, have SEEN the foreign originals.  We'll go watch an american remake that is fairly true to form (ring), and you might fool some folks into going to it's sequel even though you butcher the story (Ring two), but don't expect us to get excited about you utterly ignoring the story line of a beloved horror icon in favor of your attempt to capture the teen market.  (Rings) 

[Rusty Edge]

I probably only average a couple of first run movies a year any more. One while on the fishing vacation, and another in winter when we go on a cruise. Not like in the '80s, when I watched scores of them.  I'm not much of a critic. So For what it's worth-

"HIDDEN FIGURES"

I was interested since my visit to NASA/Cape Canaveral in December. It's about the Mercury program, segregation, discrimination against women and blacks, and about making yourself indispensable  in the face of emerging technology. The three main characters worked as "calculators" for NASA.

Maybe my wife ( who is no space geek, she skipped the trip to Canaveral ) could identify with the struggle, because she describes it as one of the best movies she's ever seen. Usually she falls asleep. Today she didn't, because it was that interesting to her.

I really liked it, but then I like all movies about the space program, so I don't know how to put it in perspective, other than to say, If you like space program movies, too, you should go see it.

[Unorthodox]

I probably only average a couple of first run movies a year any more. One while on the fishing vacation, and another in winter when we go on a cruise. Not like in the '80s, when I watched scores of them.  I'm not much of a critic. So For what it's worth-

Oh, I hear that.  We usually hit the dollar theater (ok, it's $2 a ticket now) when movies have been out a while.  Usually a couple weeks before they hit DVD.  It's actually a nice theater. 

We get to 3 at most, and probably wouldn't have gone to this if we didn't have a gift card from Christmas. 

[Rusty Edge]

Not that I go on a cruise every year, either. Lots of times we'll say "We want to see that one!" But we won't go the first week or two when it's crowded. By then RL intervenes, and we forget to go.

Part of it is that with my inner ear disorder, I can't stand to watch stuff with these flying camera angles, Transformer and super hero movies as examples. Same for 3D, although I used to love it.

[Unorthodox]

Mines more of a wanting to make the movies a family event.  3 kids, wife, me, it's not cheap to make it to a first run movie. 

We would have hit Rogue One, but my parents had their surgeries scheduled at that point and may as well wait for the dollar house at this point. 

[Unorthodox]

MOANA

Dollar movie with the daughter. 

Definitely attempts a mixture of potty humor, slap stick and self aware humor.  IMO Tangled did a better job of that lot.  Not quite as good as all the reviews made it out to be, really, but by the book NON PRINCESS disney movie.  (did we really need to be continually reminded this is NOT A PRINCESS?)

Wife and I disagree on this villain. 

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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93lrosBEW-Q" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93lrosBEW-Q</a>

The guy was a one crab joke factory.  When defeated he cries "but did you like my song?"

[Spacy]

I did like the coconut dudes, though. 

[Unorthodox]

Rogue One hit the dollar movies...


I'm glad I waited for the dollar movies...