Demons 2 (1986, Lamberto Bava)

Pretty much the same thing as the first film (which you can read my thoughts about it here) only instead of a closed in movie theater being attacked by Demons, it is a start of the art apartment building which is sealed shut. It's once again just an excuse for style and set pieces which are always amusing. The only thing is that since this is the 2nd time around everything that felt fun and original about the first film just feels like more of the same ol' thing this time around.

It's still fun, though.

- **1/2

Overnight (2003, Tony Montana & Mark Brian Smith)

"A documentary on the rise and stumble of Troy Duffy, the bartender-cum-filmmaker who was swept up by Miramax's Harvey Weinstein to turn his script for The Boondock Saints into a feature film. "

The plot summary up above this sentence sums up the film perfectly. We get a behind the scenes story of one of the greatest falls from stardom that is painful to watch but doesnt make you feel bad at all for the "victim" since he deserved everything that happened to him.

Troy Duffy is a dick and we find out how much of a dick he can actually be in an hour and 20 minutes. It's good to at least watch it once in order to find out that a person so dillusional can actually exist, but thats about it. Nothing too special but nothing bad at all.

This is basically it. Yup, this is my full write up.

- **1/2

The Mighty Peking Man aka Goliathon (1977, Meng Hua Ho)

"A couple of hunters decide to try and capture a legendary giant ape and bring him to Hong Kong."

I saw this movie about 5 years ago when I decided to rent it just because it was released by Rolling Thunder Pictures and it had a really cool cover. I watched it and hated it. Well, I didn't really hate it but I just didn't find anything worth liking in the movie and even though it was a giant monster movie I thought it was boring.

Now that some years have passed and I have watched more movies I was anticipating seeing this on the big screen and seeing if my feelings towards the movie would change. They did but not by much. I still don't like it all too much and I still fail to belong to the small cult that love it. I did however find it more enjoyable now but still cant applaud it.

Why I still don't like it is because this is a King Kong rip off. This is why I just don't like it. It's literally like a warped scene by scene copy of King Kong. The only difference being that instead of stop motion animation or animatronics we get a man in a suit. We also get a jungle woman who loves the giant ape and spends the whole film half naked. It's not as cool as it sounds.

There is not much more to say. Its fun at times and the final showdown between the ape and Hong Kong is pretty tame compared to other kaiju films. The film does however have a sense of coolness to it all and is fun to watch at least once but I still cant find myself to love it or even like it too much.

- **1/2

Wild Guitar (1962, Ray Dennis Steckler)

"Boy comes to California to become a rock star. Boy becomes an overnight success. Boy meets the troubles that come with fame"

This is the joy of just having a lot of time and being extremely bored. I went downstairs to watch some TV because there was nothing to do and the first thing I did was check TCM to see what they were showing, the first thing I do always of course, and there was just a film named "Wild Guitar" that was about to start in a couple of minutes. I didn't know any of the actors or had never heard of the film but decided to at least check out the first couple of minutes just because the title of the film sounded cool and the year it was made in guaranteed the movie to be something interesting at least,

As soon as the movie began in black and white with some funky looking greaser guy riding along on his motorcycle meanwhile his guitar is strapped on the back on the bike and the titles appear over him I knew I was hooked and would watch it to the end.

Wild Guitar is a "B movie" that I am pretty sure played in a lot of Drive-Ins in its day and was made for the sole purpose to entertain teens. I would group it in with films like Beach Party and what not. The films where a bunch of teens just run around, party, and fall in love The only difference with this film is that we get more of a story to go along with the general story of two young folks falling in love. it also doesn't hurt that the film is pretty rock and roll and has a little bit of style to go along with it

The real surprise to me though was when during the middle of the movie I saw the TCM logo appear in the lower corner of the frame but it was instead the TCM Underground logo which immediately made me think "wait....what?" since this is TCM's cult movie block. It turns out that the lead actor in the movie has a strong cult following and having only seen this movie and Eegah, which is one of the worst films I have ever seen, I am now curious to see the rest of his 4 movies.

Wild Guitar is a fun little "B movie" that is very innocent and naive. It's a fun time capsule of the early 60s and you just cant help but smile though it. Plus....its just rock and roll. Just look at these pictures!

- **1/2

This is from Eegah but just look at this guy.

Fast Food Nation (2006, Richard Linklater)

"An ensemble piece examining the health risks involved in the fast food industry and its environmental and social consequences as well."

Richard Linklater is one of the most interesting directors working right now. He goes up there with Soderbergh as directors who try to get the biggest bite from every single personal project they do. The problem always comes with the question of "Can they chew it?"

They also both try to do big mainstream success' in order to try and fund these personal projects. The thing that is sad is that most of the time these personal projects fail to deliver the ambitiousness that they promised. I have learned to not trust Soderbergh all that much and I have learned to trust Linklater a lot more. Fast Food Nation falls into Linklater's personal projects, but it sadly doesn't deliver like his other more personal work.

Fast Food Nation is one of those films that you just can't pinpoint where it went wrong. I don't agree with most critics and film geeks who hated it. I felt it had enough good things going for it to not make it a waste of time. Still though, I just can't praise as much as I would like to. The main thing that the film has that I had problems with was it's multiple storylines. 1 storyline is genius and great: Greg Kinnear as a fast food executive finding out why the new beef patties are filled with cow shit. The 2nd storyline is pretty good: Mexican immigrants working at a slaughterhouse. The problem is the 3rd storyline: a teen who works for a fast food place who starts becoming a rebel.

The problem with the 3rd storyline is that it lacks any of the seriousness that makes the first 2 storylines intriguing. This one just comes off as a filler story and doesn't really add that much depth to the film . Unless if you consider the basic message of "Fast Food places suck!" depth. There is also more time wasted with a kooky crazy rebel uncle than there is with the actual "protesting" of the fast food company. It also doesn't help that there is more time wasted with this plot than there is with the great plot dealing with Kinear.

The only other problem I had with the film was it's "ohhhhhhhh...." type of script. There are plenty of scenes in this film that end with a line or two that are supposed to leave the audience stunned and in deep thought. It fails at both and just comes off as forced writing. The ending to the film made me cringe and also came off as a "ohhhhh....how brilliant!" type of ending. It's just too self conscious and you can't help but think that Linklater thought that he had the greatest ending ever.

However, the moments leading up to the ending are brilliant. The final sequence in the film is brutal and adds a very serious and shocking end to the film. I wish the film would have ended right here instead.

Fast Food Nation is far from the great film it thinks it is. It's very ambitious and means well but comes off a little bit too much of an idea that was not as brilliantly executed as it could have been. Still though, it's a good film and is intriguing enough to keep you interested until the end.

- **1/2

Arabian Nights (1942, John Rawlins)

"Kalif Haroun is in danger and the only people who can save him are a group of actors and a dancer who was told by the stars that she would be the wife of the kalif"

This is one of those classic swashbucklers where the plot really doesn't matter all that much. What matters is how many great sword fights and action scenes the film can pack within in it's short runtime. It's also great to look at all the classic "epic sets" and sweeping shots of the locations where the film is set. In this one we are treated to some sweeping shots of the desert.

The other main thing that makes all these classic adventure films worth watching is the glorious 3 strip technicolor. Bright and dark colors play as much a part in the film as everyrthing else. If you are a film buff you can't help but get a kick out of how the colors are used in these films. Arabian Nights was the first Universal film to use 3 strip technicolor and you can tell that they were trying to get the most "oooohs" and "ahhhs" out of the audience. The impact of the colors has aged perfectly and still serves it's purpose to amaze the viewer.

Now, having said all that, Arabian Nights is not one of the best of this era. It plays out like a B film and doesn't have the extra punch to make it that memorable. The film lasts about 85 minutes and it feels like 15 mins. Normally that is a good thing but not in this case. This film moves beyond fast. How fast? Well, the final line is not even finished being said and the credits are already up on the screen. The film moves so fast that you might be lost at times as to what exactly is going on.

Arabian Nights might not be the best example of these classic adventure films. but it's a nice quick film that serves it's pupose to entertain. Plus, any of these classic technicolor films are a must for film buffs.

- **1/2

Pink Floyd The Wall (1982, Alan Parker)

"A troubled rock star descends into madness in the midst of his physical and social isolation from everyone."

Wow. I don't even know where to start with this one. The plot summary doesn't do the film's story justice. There is much more to this film than "A man goes crazy" Well, that is the basic plot but there are layers upon layers going on in this odd film. There is little to no dialouge and everything is told through images and surreal animation sequences set to Pink Floyd's music. The film is truly a visual masterpiece. Every single shot is well thought out and goes perfectly with the music. The animation sequences are also something else and have to be seen to be believed.

So, did I love the film? Not at all. Did I like the film? Kind of. The problem with this film is that there is so much going on and everything moves at such a manic pace that it is hard for the viewer to be sucked into it. Instead, the film alienates it's viewer and you are instead left outside of the loop and just scratching your head at what you are seeing.

Even if the film doesn't make much sense it's worth watching just for the brilliant cinematography and all the animation sequences. Plus, it really is one of those films that you have to see to believe.

- **1/2

For Your Consideration (2006, Christopher Guest)

"Three actors learn that their respective performances in the film "Home for Purim," a drama set in the mid-1940s American South, are generating award-season buzz."

This is another comedy by the genius that is Chrisophter Guest and just like all his other comedies, this also stars the same group of actors. Sadly though, this one doesn't live up to it's potenial and doesn't measure up to his previous work Still, it's a pretty good film.

Catherine O'Hara gives an incredible performance as the aging actress who's main dream is to get an oscar. John Michael Higgins is also great and steals every scene he is in. Everyone is in top form, the problem is the story/script. The one-joke premise gets old pretty quickly, and when it starts to get old the film speeds up all of a sudden to a rushed climax. There are some great little bits here and there but everything is so rushed that we don't get any big payoff's. The dialouge, even though still hilarious, at times comes off a little bit too much as a weak improv between the two actors.

Even with all it's flaws For Your Consideration still packs in more chuckles and laughs than most recent comedies. Plus, it's always a fun experience seeing Christopher Guest and his group of actors go all out. It's also worth watching just for Catherine O'Hara's performance.

- **1/2