What if I told you that Europe has its own Conan the Barbarian series? What if I told you this series was mildly successful enough that it warranted three additional sequels to its name? What if I also told you that each of the films in the series were also as ridiculous and cheesy as the original Ator? Well folks, thanks to the Italians and the success of Conan the Barbarian that one faithful month in 1982, the Italians decided they needed to cash in on the who swords and sorcery game with their answer Conan. What we got is nothing short of terrible, but truly amazing z-movie knock-offs.
I wanted to re-up this old, old review of this movie for today, mainly cause I am going to be hosting a small little gathering at my place in which we watch Harry Potter movies and drink Harry Potter inspired cocktails. Yeah, that’s about the best thing in the world in my eyes, watching a great series (or whatever we manage to get through) and drinking alcohol. Probably one of the reasons why I work at the Drafthouse. Anyways, when I was going back through my old reviews for the site, which I promise myself I will be writing more as I go out to the theater a lot more, I am rather shocked by the sheer length of my reviews. Man I was relatively verbose back then and probably still am. Oh well.
Well today’s post is the final chapter of the series and in my eyes, a very fitting end to the franchise. I could do without the prologue in which the kids dress up as adults cause that took me right out of the ending itself, but a climatic battle scene, wizard on wizard action and a culmination of years of setup and story to get to the final showdown. Yeah, I can say that it is one of the best of the series and the most compelling with the stakes laid out on the table.
So enjoy my original, long ass review and have a good day,
The final chapter in the series ends where it all began over a decade ago. There is a lot invested in the final film of the series. All the characters, all the stories, and all the buildup to the end is laid out for us in Part 2 of the Deathly Hallows. I have been a fan of the series since the beginning and seeing this general progression in the series tone and subject matter is fascinating. I have watch the characters grow older, the tone grow darker and that slow push to the final confrontation is what we have all been waiting for. So does the final act of the series live up to the build up that audiences have been waiting a decade to see? If you read the book series, then you already know what to expect. For fans of the film, it is about having a solid closure to the series. Overused phrase up ahead…lets make magic!
This isn’t so much a movie as it is a web series that makes us yearn for this to be made into a movie. Sometimes, this is all we are going to get and we better like it. The Halo series is, I better tread lightly here so as not to offend fanboys and arm-chair warriors of the internet, a great series. I remember many a lan parties where I would get together with friends and play pistols on Hang Em High or whatever other maps there were. I remember the story of Halo, right up till I stopped playing after Halo 3. Sure some will decry that I am not a true fan to give this movie a fair shake or be well versed to accurately talk about the series itself as anything Halo means the legion of fanboys come out to defend it. Well they can screw off as my movie of the day post is more about bringing attention to some stuff I like to watch and this certainly was one of them. It makes me wish that an actual Halo movie be made, but that probably won’t happen. So enjoy the series and see what there is after the jump.
It’s The Rock! Holla! Christopher Walken is also in this movie as well as the scene chewing villain of the movie, which is the primary reason I picked this movie for today. The Rundown is actually one of my more enjoyable, not really a guilty pleasure, but a movie that is really just a popcorn flick and that is all. It does manage to have a little of everything in it with some drama, lots of comedy, and pretty decent action sequences, that are a bit too cartoony in some instances. But hey, it’s still a great movie to sit back and watch The Rock, Walken, William Scott and Dawson do their thing.
This is pretty much a SyFy television movie should look like. Don’t get me wrong, I love shitty SyFy original movies, but man, Dragonheart is like the movie they should have made cause it is both ridiculous and highly enjoyable. I remember checking out this movie in the theater when I was like 11 and to tell you the truth, I thought it was the greatest thing in the world. IT HAD FUCKING DRAGONS! I mean IT HAD A DRAGON! Plus Quaid just chewing up the scenery and Sean Connery lending his voice talent to bring that dragon to life with a Scottish accent. So damn awesome.
So apparently by the amount of talk on twitter and facebook posts, Point Break is going to officially be remade for a modern audience. Now I am always there to basically deride Hollywood of the fact that they don’t have any creativity anymore. Believe me, I am no less thrilled about the latest remake than the next person and I await the day when they decide to remake a movie that is less than a year old. Well I decided that I should commit to memory and this blog, a movie of the day post about one of my favorite action films out there.
I hope you all are ready for some more animal cuteness cause it’s time for Milo and Otis. Yes the movie with a pug nosed puppy and his curious cat friend. I don’t have anything to say about the movie since in all honestly my brain will slowly devolve into mush as I watch the two lead frolic and play with one another as they are on the adventure of a lifetime.
Today’s Movie of the Day post will be a reblog of my original review for the movie.
I will admit my original review was not the kindest in terms of my love of the film. Initially I think that the reboot fell a bit short along with some shortcomings due to the story. But after repeated reviews of the movie, I have come to enjoy the new direction that they are taking, mainly because the star, Jeremy Renner, is impressive in this movie. A lot more emotive than the Damon Bourne was. Renner manages to propel you along with the story through his particular actions and also with the physicality that he brings to the series. It’s a nice attempt that I think will yield better sequels down the line, but there is some work to be done to get to there. Overall, my opinion on the movie has changed for the better and I enjoy it a lot more than I originally did.
Well, enjoy the snippet of the review and click more to read the whole review!
While the plot is needlessly complicated, it is sharp enough to keep jumping fluidly between action scenes and plot development. It is still a movie about a guy trying to score drugs, but at least the brief action sequences serve up some intensity. The final closing action sequence goes on for a bit longer than it should, but it also borrows from several different chase scenes from The Bourne Ultimatum and even a James Bond film, Tomorrow Never Dies. It feels too familiar, while exciting, but it just goes on a bit longer than needed, drawing out the anti-climatic showdown between Cross and newly implemented agent.
My love of The Goonies is probably greater than that of a parent and their newborn child. I don’t think that I could ever like something more than this movie. I wouldn’t say it defined my life, but The Goonies is the movie that got me into cinema. It’s the reason I love watching and writing all things cinema. I can quote this movie with the best of them. I own this movie on multiple formats. I can do the Truffle Shuffle, which is also a sad statement on the state of childhood obesity. Ke Huy Quan will never be referenced by me as Short Round, but as Data. I will be a Goonie for life.
