What was the last movie you saw?

Robo Vampire 1988 - bad dubbing we got, and vampires that hop. Like bunnies they hop, arms outstretched, these weird vampires... but it's all about the drug trade baddies and the anti-drug agents, and a silver Robo guy, who... I can't quite remember, but he fights the vampires a few times. Hi-speed ridiculousness, bizarre sound FX, terrible dubbing and dialogue, set in Phillipines. To stop the vampires you can... put a piece of paper on their face, some money or something. Oh, there's a witch of some kind too, soulmate of Peter, who might be a vampire. Watch this one if you have a real need to feel confused.
 
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008)

I’ve seen this film several times, and I’m increasingly sure that it’s one of the best films of its type. It’s nonsense, but extremely well-executed nonsense, owing more to Labyrinth and Star Wars than the grumpy Batman films or the slick Marvel/DC franchises. After the slightly dull Lovecraft-and-Nazis theme of Hellboy, Del Toro is allowed much more creativity, and the end result is deeply silly but also visually terrific. The somewhat soapy concerns of the lead characters (should Hellboy grow up and be a dad?) make it feel more sincere: oddly, I found the fish-man romance more convincing here than in The Shape of Water. A few characters are underused, but overall it’s very decent. A shame we won’t be getting a third Del Toro Hellboy film.
 
Jack the Ripper (1959)

Completely fictional version of the infamous killer. We find out right at the start that his modus operandi is to walk up to a woman, ask her if she is Mary Clark or if she knows where Mary Clark is, and then kill her. Our hero is an American police detective sent to work with Scotland Yard on the case, which seems very unlikely. Among our red herrings are some doctors working at a hospital for women, who also do the autopsies on the victims. Since this is sort-of-kind-of a horror movie as well, there's also a mute, scarred, hunchback assistant to the doctors. One of the doctors has a pretty young niece working with the patients. She's the hero's love interest. Eventually we find out who the Ripper is, and why he wants to find Mary Clark.

Overall, a so-so mystery/thriller. There's some nice, atmospheric scenes. Screenplay by Jimmy Sangster, who wrote a lot of Hammer horror flicks. One of the victims (before we finally get around to Mary Clark) gets some characterization, while the others remain ciphers. She's a new can-can dancer (which seems oddly out of place in a Victorian music hall) who doesn't realize that part of her job involves bestowing her favors upon wealthy patrons. The copy of the film I watched includes scenes dubbed in French which must have been intended for European audiences, as they feature quite a few topless women in the dressing room of the music hall.
 
Hmmm, Your description of Jack the Ripper (1959) seems familiar, but just not so much that I could say that I had seen it. I looked-up the two costars, and only one of them was in anything I ever saw. This film does interest me: I might get around to checking PRIME to see if it is available.

Make Me a Star (1932) is about a small town's grocery delivery boy Merton Gill (Stuart Erwin) who wants to be a Hollywood movie star, just like his favorite cowboy. So, he goes to the casting office, where he meets 'Flips' Montague (Joan Blondell), who gets him a job as an extra in a Western. He flubs his line, and is tossed out. JB has pity, and gets him his own Western film, but it is a gag comedy, just the type of thing he hates.

His name, Merton, suggests that Red Skelton remade this story, as Merton of the Movies (1947). Yes, sure enough, both were based upon the same book.
 
Just watched The Green Book, a brilliant film set in the early sixties in the southern states of America, based on a true story. With racist undertones/overtones. Starred Viggo Mortenson. Rated by me 8/10.
 
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008)

I’ve seen this film several times, and I’m increasingly sure that it’s one of the best films of its type. It’s nonsense, but extremely well-executed nonsense, owing more to Labyrinth and Star Wars than the grumpy Batman films or the slick Marvel/DC franchises. After the slightly dull Lovecraft-and-Nazis theme of Hellboy, Del Toro is allowed much more creativity, and the end result is deeply silly but also visually terrific. The somewhat soapy concerns of the lead characters (should Hellboy grow up and be a dad?) make it feel more sincere: oddly, I found the fish-man romance more convincing here than in The Shape of Water. A few characters are underused, but overall it’s very decent. A shame we won’t be getting a third Del Toro Hellboy film.

I really like the two Hellboy films, (I like the first better than the 2nd), along with Wonder Woman and Dark Knight these are my favorite recent comic-book movies. Most film directors , these days, are fans of comic book fantasy, but Del Toro has a deeper understanding and love of the fantasy form beyond the comic pages. I think Del Toro's finest film is Pan's Labyrinth , followed The Devil's Backbone. He has an art house sensibility coupled to street smarts about genre fiction. Even tho I liked Shape of Water I felt he got an Oscar for a body or work not exactly for that movie.
I am not real fond of Pacific Rim, still Del Toro shows his enthusiasms and sense of humor , alas he was only a producer on the Rim sequel and the drop off really showed.
I have no idea why he made Crimson Peak!
 
Jack the Ripper (1959)

Completely fictional version of the infamous killer. We find out right at the start that his modus operandi is to walk up to a woman, ask her if she is Mary Clark or if she knows where Mary Clark is, and then kill her. Our hero is an American police detective sent to work with Scotland Yard on the case, which seems very unlikely. Among our red herrings are some doctors working at a hospital for women, who also do the autopsies on the victims. Since this is sort-of-kind-of a horror movie as well, there's also a mute, scarred, hunchback assistant to the doctors. One of the doctors has a pretty young niece working with the patients. She's the hero's love interest. Eventually we find out who the Ripper is, and why he wants to find Mary Clark.

Overall, a so-so mystery/thriller. There's some nice, atmospheric scenes. Screenplay by Jimmy Sangster, who wrote a lot of Hammer horror flicks. One of the victims (before we finally get around to Mary Clark) gets some characterization, while the others remain ciphers. She's a new can-can dancer (which seems oddly out of place in a Victorian music hall) who doesn't realize that part of her job involves bestowing her favors upon wealthy patrons. The copy of the film I watched includes scenes dubbed in French which must have been intended for European audiences, as they feature quite a few topless women in the dressing room of the music hall.

Wish this had of been a Hammer film, Hammer was at the top of their form in 59. This is a competent movie , helped , as always by have a stock of good British actors to use, Hammer really benefited from this. I remember this film as being a bit exploitive. This story was based on one of those theories that The Ripper was a doctor... one almost expected Sherlock Holmes to show up! Holmes does show up in 1965 in a Study in Terror , another Ripper story where Jack is apparently a doctor. Then in 1969 we get Murder by Decree , with Christopher Plummer and Holmes and James Mason as Watson, this best Holmes vs The Ripper movie I know of. One of Bob Clarke's films, Bob Clarke later made that gem Christmas Story from Jean Shepherd's story.
 
Watched Captain Marvel last night usual super hero film with a slight difference. Baddies try to outsmart hero, only for the hero to make a comeback. After the ending the baddies will comeback again. Plenty of action. Rated 7/10.
 
Del Toro has a deeper understanding and love of the fantasy form beyond the comic pages. I think Del Toro's finest film is Pan's Labyrinth , followed The Devil's Backbone. He has an art house sensibility coupled to street smarts about genre fiction.

I agree - that seems like the best of both worlds to me. Hellboy 2 feels like a fantasy film, not a superhero film, which is a good thing as far as I'm concerned. It also helps that Ron Perlman is very good in both. There's a sense of sympathy (especially in Golden Army) that's lacking in other comic book films, where people make manly noises about duty and destiny but it all sounds hollow. I saw a trailer for the new version yesterday and it seems we're back in fairly dull territory.
 
I agree - that seems like the best of both worlds to me. Hellboy 2 feels like a fantasy film, not a superhero film, which is a good thing as far as I'm concerned. It also helps that Ron Perlman is very good in both. There's a sense of sympathy (especially in Golden Army) that's lacking in other comic book films, where people make manly noises about duty and destiny but it all sounds hollow. I saw a trailer for the new version yesterday and it seems we're back in fairly dull territory.
I noticed the new Hellboy was directed by Neil Marshal , I don't think Marshal has the sensibilities of Del Toro but he did a good job with the two big battle episodes of Game of Thrones he directed. So I don't know.
Have to say I stopped reading superhero comics in about 1953 when I was 13 in favor of prose , almost exclusively prose science fiction. I did keep reading EC comics , I loved the Harvey Kurtzman MAD and Tales of Crypt and Weird Science , so on, those comics had a much too shortened run, their demise is still a stupid story.
I was 20 years old when Marvel came along , so those comics have been off my radar from the beginning, even tho I picked them up in the years since, they have no entertainment value to me.
I have watched the Marvel and DC comic book movies in the last 10 or more years, got to say most are well made and some are good, but they sure don't engage me. Dark Knight did, because of a remarkable performance and Wonder Woman did because of a unique framing, but I don't go to comic book movies these days the leave with a Meh feeling. Especially a feeling of been-there-done-that.
I wish there were more films like The Martian or Gladiator , action films that really did entertain me fully.
Even tho, a 'art house' movie like Green Book (I know that was not a strict art house) entertain me more.
I guess we will never see a big scale serious movie like Lawrence of Arabia again?
 
Tennessee Champ (1954) Willy Wurble (Keenan Wynn) is a fight manager, and Happy (Earl Holliman) is his washed-up half-wit ex boxer servant. WW has to flee a poker game on a riverboat because he had been cheating. As he flees in a row boat, he encounters Danny (Dewey Martin), who is fleeing because he mistakenly believed he had killed Sixty Jubel (Charles Bronson / Charles Buchinsky), during a brawl. WW realizes that Danny has potential to be a great boxer, and while knowing that Sixty is alive, uses Danny's fear of arrest to force him into boxing in other States. The final fight is against Sixty, using the name The Biloxi Blockbuster, which Danny did not realize was Sixty.

So, CB has the physique of a boxer, ripped, 6 pack abs, etc. Dewey Martin does not seem like he belongs in the ring. Not flabby, just not ripped either. That Dewey Martin's character could defeat CB's, seems unlikely. Looking at his filmography, he was in very few films I have seen. We was in both TTZone & TOLimits, in stories I know well, but his face just does not seem familiar.

Danny is a very religious man, frequently quoting Bible verses. WW uses his faith to inspire him that he can win the fight, and trick him into other things. Sarah (Shelley Winters), Wurble's wife opposes his conning Danny into doing things he otherwise would not.

A fairly entertaining film, I have no interest in boxing, but such stories do interest me. Keenan Wynn usually has roles as untrustworthy characters, and for some reason he is appealing as such.
 
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Key Largo. Superb suspense yarn in which John Huston announces to the film going community that Hitchcock ain't the only guy who can do this type of thing and lets Edward G. Robinson give a performance that should have won an Oscar. (Claire Trevor evidently did and it's easy to see why.) Lean and mean with no wasted footage. Oh, and Bogart's as cool as ever. I could be wrong but O swear I saw Jay Silverheels unbilled at least judging from his voice.
 
Key Largo. Superb suspense yarn in which John Huston announces to the film going community that Hitchcock ain't the only guy who can do this type of thing and lets Edward G. Robinson give a performance that should have won an Oscar. (Claire Trevor evidently did and it's easy to see why.) Lean and mean with no wasted footage. Oh, and Bogart's as cool as ever. I could be wrong but O swear I saw Jay Silverheels unbilled at least judging from his voice.
I saw the part where EGR chambers a round in a .45 auto, tosses it to HB, and dares him to shoot him. Challenging him that since he is a tough guy, it should be easy, etc.
Bogart declines, but only because he is not going to stick his neck out for somebody else. Another guy grabs the gun, and points it at EGR, pulls the trigger, only to realize it is empty. :confused: But, unless I am wrong, the trigger will not even pull, unless there is a round in the chamber! :unsure: Moreover, going through the motions of pulling the slide back when the gun is empty, should not convince anyone, as after it has exhausted its ammo, that is the position it should default to:
50749

But, this is a frequent error in many movies and TV shows.
Other than that, the film is wonderful.

D.O.A. (1949) Frank Bigelow (Edmond O'Brien) is a notary or, at least notarizes documents, among other things. How much trouble could befall one in such a profession? :unsure: Paula Gibson (Pamela Britton) is his secretary, who also loves him. 6 months ago, he had notarized a bill of sale for iridium, and as it was nothing unusual, he promptly forgot about it. But the villain did not forget.

So, he goes to the big city to get a break from the office, and as the occupants of the hotel room across the hall are celebrating with door wide open, they invite him in for drinks. Next he goes to a bar, for more booze. an hour or so, later, he has stomach pains. The next day, he goes to a doctor, and is flabbergasted when the physician tells him he has at most, two weeks to live. There is iridium in his system, attacking his organs. If he had come 12 hours earlier, they could pump his stomach, & save him; but now, it is too late. He flips them off, storms out the door, to find another physician, for a 2nd opinion. Same thing; he is doomed.

So, now, having no better way to spend his final hours, he goes searching for his killer. False leads, etc., more than a few people who are involved, but only one who did the deed. Goes to the hotel room where the celebration was, but new occupants. Goes to the bar, nobody knows anything.

Good supporting cast, most of whom are unfamiliar to me.
Majak (Luther Adler), as the boss of the gang involved with the iridium; Chester (Neville Brand), the henchman will really enjoy killing him. But, apparently, these guys knew nothing of the poisoning. Brand seems somewhat familiar, but I cannot be sure. Anyway, he is a nut, with a gleeful expression, as he tells O'Brien of how slowly and painfully he will die. Makes the Joker look like Mr. Rodgers.

A NOIR ALLEY presentation, replete with the intro & closing remarks, etc. Very well done, but the film itself was likened unto a WB cartoon. Among other things, Muller noted the slide whistle / wolf whistle, which sounded every time the guy sees a pretty woman, which I, myself found so unexpected, but there it was, even in the closed captions.
 
Evil Dead II (1985)

Still head and shoulders (ha!) above the lesser efforts in the ED franchise, and I never tire of watching it. In fact on this occasion it was due to spending the last few weeks watching the TV version "Ash Vs Evil Dead", and I thought it would be nice to dig up (ha!) this classic once more.

Bruce Campbell was born to be Ash - even though he is not a great actor, he really does put body (ha!) and soul into the ED series; and he certainly excels here.

4/5
 
So, CB has the physique of a boxer, ripped, 6 pack abs, etc. Dewey Martin does not seem like he belongs in the ring. Not flabby, just not ripped either. That Dewey Martin's character could defeat CB's, seems unlikely. Looking at his filmography, he was in very few films I have seen. We was in both TTZone & TOLimits, in stories I know well, but his face just does not seem familiar.

I recall Martin from The Thing (from Another World) and TZ episode or two. He was slated for stardom with a couple of big roles, I think, but too fond of alcohol. (Seems like a lot of the guys that showed up in the late '40s and '50s had similar stories.)

Randy M.
 
D.O.A. (1949) Frank Bigelow (Edmond O'Brien) is a notary or, at least notarizes documents, among other things. How much trouble could befall one in such a profession? :unsure: Paula Gibson (Pamela Britton) is his secretary, who also loves him. 6 months ago, he had notarized a bill of sale for iridium, and as it was nothing unusual, he promptly forgot about it. But the villain did not forget.

So, he goes to the big city to get a break from the office, and as the occupants of the hotel room across the hall are celebrating with door wide open, they invite him in for drinks. Next he goes to a bar, for more booze. an hour or so, later, he has stomach pains. The next day, he goes to a doctor, and is flabbergasted when the physician tells him he has at most, two weeks to live. There is iridium in his system, attacking his organs. If he had come 12 hours earlier, they could pump his stomach, & save him; but now, it is too late. He flips them off, storms out the door, to find another physician, for a 2nd opinion. Same thing; he is doomed.

So, now, having no better way to spend his final hours, he goes searching for his killer. False leads, etc., more than a few people who are involved, but only one who did the deed. Goes to the hotel room where the celebration was, but new occupants. Goes to the bar, nobody knows anything.

Good supporting cast, most of whom are unfamiliar to me.
Majak (Luther Adler), as the boss of the gang involved with the iridium; Chester (Neville Brand), the henchman will really enjoy killing him. But, apparently, these guys knew nothing of the poisoning. Brand seems somewhat familiar, but I cannot be sure. Anyway, he is a nut, with a gleeful expression, as he tells O'Brien of how slowly and painfully he will die. Makes the Joker look like Mr. Rodgers.

A NOIR ALLEY presentation, replete with the intro & closing remarks, etc. Very well done, but the film itself was likened unto a WB cartoon. Among other things, Muller noted the slide whistle / wolf whistle, which sounded every time the guy sees a pretty woman, which I, myself found so unexpected, but there it was, even in the closed captions.

You beat me to it. I watched this over the weekend, and it's essential noir, it's ending inevitable and dark, but at times it's so over-heated it's almost self-parody. Glad I finally watched it after hearing about it for years, but I can't imagine watching it again any time soon.

Randy M.
 
You beat me to it. I watched this over the weekend, and it's essential noir, it's ending inevitable and dark, but at times it's so over-heated it's almost self-parody. Glad I finally watched it after hearing about it for years, but I can't imagine watching it again any time soon.

Randy M.
I agree, the slide whistle just made me wonder if there was a defect in the recording. But the way Muller covered this guy's frantic running around and questioning everyone, made it seem almost funny. I am fairly certain that there is an episode of GET SMART that parodies this film.
 
I recall Martin from The Thing (from Another World) and TZ episode or two. He was slated for stardom with a couple of big roles, I think, but too fond of alcohol. (Seems like a lot of the guys that showed up in the late '40s and '50s had similar stories.)

Randy M.
He was in TTZ's I Shot an Arrow in the Air, and TOL's The Premonition, as the pilot of the experimental plane that is frozen in time. I just finished watching TOL,s 2nd season a few weeks ago. Good ol' HULU! This guy has a great face, but is just lacks distinction. Easy to forget, etc.

High Sierra (1941) I had seen this more than a few times, so I ran the Muller before & after parts, and skipped the film. That was Bogart's dog! I was surprised at that, because I had seen a short film on TCM about training animal actors, & it hardly seems like something one would do with the family pet. :unsure:


Anyway, the film opens with the Governor signing a pardon for Roy Earle (Bogart), who, upon release from prison, joins a gang, & begins planning a big heist. Recidivism. So, the bad guys drive to the target, a hotel. While en route, they meet a family including a young woman whose foot is deformed. HB has pity, & pays for corrective surgery. But this makes the family too familiar with the crook, and the family's dog, will play a critical role later.

Said to be HB's breakout role, I thought that was The Petrified Forest (1936), but there are almost 30 films between The Petrified Forest (1936) & High Sierra (1941), including a Western, The Oklahoma Kid (1938), a horror film, The Return of Doctor X (1940), and a few with him as antagonist to Cagny & EGRobinson. In fact, Petrified Forest was rather early in his film career. Shows how much or little I knew.
 

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