TEXAS CHAINSAW 2
This may be one of my favorite horror films now and certainly one of my favorite slasher films. Stretch is a great character and the radio show reminds me of the my other favorite "the Fog." The nightmare chase sequences at night and through some of the more interesting sets are dream-like and memorable. A sexually charged sequence with a chainsaw and Stretch makes for a scene that is both funny and important in the language of the genre according to slasher expert Carol Clover, the woman who invented the label of the "final girl" more on Clover's writings below.
HANNIBAL TV SERIES
THE ENTIRE SERIES. Hannibal is an excellent show because it pieces together elements of the procedural cop drama with something "new." Hugh Dancey, Laurence Fishburne and Mads Mads Mikkelsen deserve top honors for their work the entire show. The ending is one to be remembered and everyone invloved with this should be damn proud that they made something very unique and special. Out of 40 episodes only about 5 were too slow for me that is a strong ratio!
PEEPING TOM
"Peeping Tom" is a dated slasher example and it is fun to watch just for that reason. Strange and WAY ahead of its time.
NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS
A cool film with Patricia Arquette kicking ass in dreams using flips and super-powers.
NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET 4: THE DREAM MASTER
I think "nightmare" is always imaginative and even fun, I do not always enjoy the plots and the characters. This one has an ensemble cast of goof actors...and a similar plot to part 3.
NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET 5: THE DREAM CHILD
Another extension of an earlier plot that was both enjoyable and repetitive.
A NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET
This was a fantastic reboot. it took many of the striking visual elements of the original film and packaged it into something new and sleek. Cool film.
BLOOD AND BLACK LACE
Giallo films always have leather, INTENSE color, beautiful women and violence. I may have seen one too many Dario Argento films before viewing this one but the recognizable style blends together into what this one aims to achieve, something I feel I have seen already.
HATCHET 2
The HATCHET films are one thing: FUN. "Hatchet 2" is just as much fun but it is different than part 1 because there is less characters to be interested in. These films rely heavily on gratuitous violence and sex to sell the film and that is what makes them fun but not for everyone. The "Hatchet" films should not be taken seriously. I think it works in this context because it doe not take the ridiculous nature of the plot too seriously.
TERROR TRAIN
Jamie Lee Curtis does a slasher on a train, some fun moments and the obligatory shot of breasts and more. I do not find this one to be anything beyond a retooling of the same teen-slasher plot elements.
CHILDREN OF THE CORN
A classic that should be seen because so many people reference it.
THE SHAKESPHERE BOOK OF BIG IDEAS
Shakespeare is a critical figure to study in the world of classic writing and literature. I think the most interesting elements of his stories are the themes and the flawed lead characters. The concept of the TRAGIC FLAW is one to be explored in greater detail.
WHEN A STRANGER CALLS
The film that "Scream" director Wes Craven based his opening scene on and in many ways, made it more famously known. This is an important film for its influence on the horror genre, specifically the "break-in" slasher film, like "Black Christmas."
AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD
An interesting journey that Werner Herzog, through great struggle, brought to life - often getting screamed at by lead actor Klaus Kinski. Herzog's first major feature film debut.
THE GREAT BEAUTY
A visual sensation, "The Great Beauty" is a discussion of Fellini's work and relationships, death, legacy, wealth, sex, love and art.
EYES WIDE SHUT
My least favorite Kubrick film, "Eyes Wide Shut" is sexually charge and beautiful. It is not as "dangerous" as some of his other work.
JACKIE BROWN
Probably my least favorite film by Tarantino, Jackie Brown is long, talky and slow. I am always interested in his great characters and it seems like a change of pace for him that quickly seemed to get a course correction back in action with "Kill Bill."
KILL BILL: VOLUME 2
Watching Volume 2, I am impressed by the action and the visual choices that create a unique genre experience.
CHUNKING EXPRESS
"Chunking Express" by writer/director Kar-Wai Wong is a masterpiece. It is about love and relationships. The film captures an elements of longing and day-dreaming I have never seen before while being incredibly sensual and beautiful.
TEOREMA
Probably the closest thing to visual poetry imaginable.
SCREAM
Exploring SCREAM 1 again, I notice the heavy use of steadicam and canted angles to get energy into the frame.
MIFUNE THE LAST SAMURAI
Mifune is a legend and this film expands on his relationship with the legendary Akira Kurosawa.
DONALD RIETCHIE COMMENTARY "RASHOMON"
A connection to nature and a simple use of characters, Donald Ritchie discusses "Rashomon" in a special commentary brought to you by the amazing Criterion Collection.
GRANT TV SERIES MINI-SERIES
Grant is EXCELLENT in a word including cinematography, acting and story.
HELLO DOLLY
The musical genre is not one I often enjoy outside of "Moulin Rouge," a personal favorite, but as far a classic musicals go, "Hello Dolly" is one to behold and love.
CARNIVAL OF SOULS
"Carnival of Souls" is a classic horror film with a cult following. It is visually entertaining and innocent.
FEAR CITY TV MINI-SERIES
The mafia in New York City seen from both sides, in this documentary the FBI has a way more interesting story to tell.
VICTOR CROWLEY
A very funny film that stays almost entirely in one place, insaide an airplane. It does not take itself very seriously and we are happy to see our friend Q from "Impractical Jokers" here! Why the hell not?!
MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN
After 20 years, Norton has made his film. I think it is a solid detective story and he is top-notch in it. The script is very good and I think the film appears to be too bright. It never quite gets the "mood" right.
THEY'LL LOVE ME WHEN I'M DEAD
An important story for a director to study about both Peter Bogdanovich and Orson Welles.
I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO
James Baldwin remains one of my favorite authors, I am glad I caught this one. Baldwin is a truly important American and he should be discussed even more than he is.
IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE
Another of Kar-wai Wong's masterpiece films.
CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
A paranoid and fascinating look at crime and guilt for killing someone.
DEMONS
"Demons" is another paranoid and interesting study. Both books by Dostoevsky should be study as they have fascinating characters, crime elements and truths to share. The thing we are challenged to do, is to both sympathize with and ultimately reject the novel's characters. This does not mean we forget them, on the contrary, we remember them as "tragic" and learn from their failings.
THE ART OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS
If you are ever having difficulty on a project or trying to get in a creative frame of mind, the work of the folks who work on Peter Jackson's films is one THE BEST AND MOST INSPIRING PLACES TO LOOK. An unbelievable document in cinema, Peter Jackson's team deserves to be memorialized in those amazing behind the scenes features and these books (of which there are many).
HALO MYTHOS
Halo lore is more interesting in reading it than it is in the games when you just play them, attempting to skip the entire time and "shoot more bad guys." This book made me interested in the lore as it is vast and fascinating.
BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL
Master Morality of the Greeks and Slave Morality of the Christians is interesting. I have my disagreements with the text but I do think the point it is making is interesting. Long believed to be a "nazi" document, Nietsche's sister utilized it in a way to further the Nazi agenda after his death. the text was never meant to be used this way. More than anything is a declaration of freedom, that a person can learn to decide things for themself using logic.
THE STORM OF THE CENTURY
An interesting story, King is great at characters, dialogue, plot and details. This makes his writing feel like a world that exists and "an experience."
THE ROAD TO WIGAN PIER
One of the most interesting books I have ever read on class struggles, "The Road to Wigan Pier" should remind us modern Americans that we actually have it pretty damn nice in this world for the most part. These coal miners lived in what most of us would consider the worst case scenario in life. These men live in devastating poverty, do physically exhausting work, live cramped (especially with children) and are at tremendous risk. George Orwell is a master storyteller in both his fiction and his essays.
PROM NIGHT
Another Jamie Lee Curtis slasher with an interesting twist ending. Great disco sequences that show off Jamie Lee Curtis' dancing - a talent she later became very famous from notably in THE "True Lies" scene and others.
MARATHON MAN
I got this poster in another language by accident but look at how great that title is. Dustin Hoffman, one of the best "character" leading men is at some of his finest in this absorbing thriller by legendary genre filmmaker, John Schlesinger. "Marathon Man" is dark and exciting with a plot that moves as fast as its marathon running leading man. The sequence where he is asked "IS IT SAFE?" is haunting and memorable in a horror-film like torture sequence that is similar to the early 2000 "Saw" and "Hostel" franchise craze, what was deemed "torture porn." Here the violence is more subdued but the paranoia and fear on the streets of New York City capture the same spirit of "Taxi Driver" and other films of its kind. Thrillers of the mind and the body, we feel Hoffman's physical and mental state in over-drive, firing at all levels...the film is a great achievement on this level alone. We are running with him.
STELLA DALLAS
An interesting film showing the struggles of divorce in the modern marriage as well. Stella Dallas is a tragic hero, she never quite redeems her daughter love or lives the fancy life she dreamed of as a young woman. Barbara Stanwyck is top-notch in this film.
VALENTINE
A film that reminds us that sex sells and stars a beautiful group of women who are also interesting characters, I think. The acting is good in places and the slasher film element is strong and so much fun in the way that "Urban Legends,"Final Destination" and "Scream."
HATCHET 3
Danielle Harris is in top form as a badass final girl and I loved the "Hatchet" series as a whole. These films are funny, scary, cool and address the elements of the slasher genre that have been around since the 70's in fun ways. These films play with our expectations of the slasher genre and it is fun.
COFFEE AND CIGARETTES
An interesting experiment in low-budget film and the random conversations themselves are fascinating. The film works in the same way "Slacker" does, we go from one conversation into another, in the end we are left with an interesting commentary on both ever day life and things that are less ordinary.
BLACK NARCISSUS
A stunningly beautiful film which visuals far exceed everything else in the film as a whole, "Black Narcissus" is a masterpiece to behold. Some of these shots look like paintings.
THE STOLEN
Alice Eve is a great actress so that is why I would watch this one. The film itself is more of a drama/western than an action film and it appears to be geared towards people looking for that kind of film. Personally I was sort of amped to see Alice Eve kick cowboy ass...but that is not what this film is, it is more like a novel.
THE SEVENTH SEAL
A stunning concept that is beautifully executed though not something I would venture to see again.