Rate the last film you watched out of 5

[Vimster]

Blood Vessel (2020) Shudder

Sometimes a good genre film makes up for a lack of originality with quality, and that's the case here. It's World War II and some survivors from a shipwreck come across a seemingly abandoned German ship, and end up fighting for their lives with what they find. It doesn't try to be more than it is, sticks to what it does best. Treads familiar ground and gets a tad silly towards the end but this is a quality production, entertaining, tense and gory in the right places.

 

3.5/5

[Monkeyboy]

Stalker (1979)

 

5 out of 5

[choddo]

The Dark Red (2018 I think)

 

3/5. Would have been 4 if they’d done something more interesting with the closing third. Up to that point I thought it was excellent.

[lolly]

The World's End

 

3rd entry in the "Cornetto  Thrilogy". Pegg, Frost and the usual ensemble mess around , fuck things up and generally have a bit of a jolly in the 3rd genre of the trilogy, Alien invasion.  It's a reflection on the process of getting older and the lives we lead in our forties as well as the nostalgia for our youth.

 

Personally I didn't like it , thought it was too light to have real impact in any regard, as the mild  meditation on aging or as a  knockabout comedy/action alien invasion movie.the characters were a lot weaker than in either Shaun of the dead or Hot Fuzz and subsequently  I gave less of a shit about them.

 

There are a few laughs  but quite liberally sprinkled , the middle 3rd is probably the best section of the movie and I was glad when it ended TBH.

 

2/5

 

 

[sandman]

Perrier’s Bounty 

 

With a stellar cast including Cillian Murphy, Jim Broadbent, Brendan Gleeson, Jodie Whittaker, Liam Cunningham, Domnhall Gleeson and Gabriel Byrne this is a pretty crap Irish gangster caper. Still, I really had fun with it, it was much better than I was expecting considering no one has ever heard of it. 
 

3/5

 

[Goose]

Anyone seen Boss Level yet? Frank Grillo relives the same day over and over, getting killed by assassins for some reason.

 

A bit Edge of Tomorrow meets Smokin Aces (which makes sense since Joe Carnaharn directed it)

[Tempy]

On 24/11/2020 at 06:59, Goose said:

Anyone seen Boss Level yet? Frank Grillo relives the same day over and over, getting killed by assassins for some reason.

 

A bit Edge of Tomorrow meets Smokin Aces (which makes sense since Joe Carnaharn directed it)

Yes and it's really good fun. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

Like Edge of Tomorrow, it plays out each repeat just differently enough in a way that keeps it interesting and fun. It is essentially Groundhog day as an action film, which you could say about Edge of Tomorrow, but this shares more than one similarity with the former in some of the plot beats, if only very minor.

 

Although there is some very iffy CGI, the action is well shot and choreographed and the movie whips along. The plot is paper thin and only serves to put Roy (Frank) in that situation, which is fine as the enjoyment comes from watching Roy's journey (over and over) and not a particularly clever plot. There are a couple of plot holes, as always with films like this, but it didn't spoil the enjoyment. I laughed out loud a couple of times.

 

Gibson is great if a little wasted in the role. I know he's a horrible shit but I still love him. Given his action movie chops I would have enjoyed to see him do more given the background of his character, but we only get a glimpse. He's more the cool/suave kingpin character in this.

Spoiler

He, like Roy, is military trained and they have a very brief fist fight but it's over too quickly. Gibson is an old man I get that, but it would have been good to see the fight last a bit longer. Show the old dog still has some fight in him. Even at his age I expect it from Gibson otherwise put someone else in the role if it's just a villain behind a desk.

 

I'm not overly familiar with Grillo outside of the Marvel films, but he's a decent leading man, charismatic and funny. I will check out more of his output. Perhaps not Jiu Jitsu 

 

I've got to give it a 4/5.

[Curtis]

 

On 24/11/2020 at 06:59, Goose said:

Anyone seen Boss Level yet? Frank Grillo relives the same day over and over, getting killed by assassins for some reason.

 

A bit Edge of Tomorrow meets Smokin Aces (which makes sense since Joe Carnaharn directed it)

I really enjoyed it. I'll admit i chuckled at pretty much all of his deaths which border on cartoonish, but they are still well handled by Carnahan, who i rate as a director. 

 

I could pick it apart, but Tempy has already done that. Its throwaway fun, end of.

 

3/5

[Tempy]

Yeah I'm being a little generous with the 4 but it caught me in a good mood. It was just what I needed last night 

[ScouserInExile]

On 16/11/2020 at 15:10, ImmaculateClump said:

<The Platform>

Oh yeah, I really enjoyed this. A bit heavy handed with the old subtext, 

Its not even "heavy handed", there's a bit where the protagonist says "if we only took what we needed, there would be enough for everyone" and his cell mate just looks at him and says "what are you, a communist?". I seem to remember it happening a couple of times like that. Great film, though.  Really great. 

On 23/11/2020 at 07:23, lolly said:

The World's End

 

3rd entry in the "Cornetto  Thrilogy". Pegg, Frost and the usual ensemble mess around , fuck things up and generally have a bit of a jolly in the 3rd genre of the trilogy, Alien invasion.  It's a reflection on the process of getting older and the lives we lead in our forties as well as the nostalgia for our youth.

 

Personally I didn't like it , thought it was too light to have real impact in any regard, as the mild  meditation on aging or as a  knockabout comedy/action alien invasion movie.the characters were a lot weaker than in either Shaun of the dead or Hot Fuzz and subsequently  I gave less of a shit about them.

 

There are a few laughs  but quite liberally sprinkled , the middle 3rd is probably the best section of the movie and I was glad when it ended TBH.

 

2/5

 

 

I kinda liked World's End. The thing I think it does better than any other film I've seen is to stick a pin in all those "cool man child slacker" films. Its not just that "normal people" think that Pegg's character is an arsehole for having never grown up - and its pointed out he was a bit of an arsehole to begin with - but also that he's realised he's a complete arsehole as well. Slightly ruined the point with the ending, like,  but still.

[JamesC]

Mute. 

 

This was quite well done, with good performances and a nice Cyberpunk setting but ultimately I just didn't enjoy it very much. 

It's dressed up as a smart techno thriller but really it's just a simple revenge film. It felt really sleazy and I don't know why the pedo sub plot was necessary. 

3/5

 

JoJo Rabbit. 

 

I loved this. Genuinely funny but also poignant and actually quite subtle in places. Probably my favourite film I've seen this year. 

5/5

[Ry]

The Nightingale - 4/5

 

Very very had to watch at a couple of moments in particular (if you have seen it you know what) but its a beautifully shot film with a stunning performance from the lead. 

 

I was engrossed from beginning to end. 

[Orion]

12 hours ago, Tempy said:

Yes and it's really good fun. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

Like Edge of Tomorrow, it plays out each repeat just differently enough in a way that keeps it interesting and fun. It is essentially Groundhog day as an action film, which you could say about Edge of Tomorrow, but this shares more than one similarity with the former in some of the plot beats, if only very minor.

 

Although there is some very iffy CGI, the action is well shot and choreographed and the movie whips along. The plot is paper thin and only serves to put Roy (Frank) in that situation, which is fine as the enjoyment comes from watching Roy's journey (over and over) and not a particularly clever plot. There are a couple of plot holes, as always with films like this, but it didn't spoil the enjoyment. I laughed out loud a couple of times.

 

Gibson is great if a little wasted in the role. I know he's a horrible shit but I still love him. Given his action movie chops I would have enjoyed to see him do more given the background of his character, but we only get a glimpse. He's more the cool/suave kingpin character in this.

  Hide contents

He, like Roy, is military trained and they have a very brief fist fight but it's over too quickly. Gibson is an old man I get that, but it would have been good to see the fight last a bit longer. Show the old dog still has some fight in him. Even at his age I expect it from Gibson otherwise put someone else in the role if it's just a villain behind a desk.

 

I'm not overly familiar with Grillo outside of the Marvel films, but he's a decent leading man, charismatic and funny. I will check out more of his output. Perhaps not Jiu Jitsu 

 

I've got to give it a 4/5.

 

Thanks I enjoyed this. Not sure about the ending though.

 

If you want more Frank Grillo B-movie badassery check out The Purge - Anarchy. You dont need to have seen any of the other Purge films. I saw it recommended on here and really liked it.

[Tempy]

I know what you mean...

Spoiler

It ended so suddenly I was a little disappointed. It’s open ended so you can obviously choose your own ending but part of me was kind of expecting him to die. He saved his wife and his son, grew as a person and sometimes it’s good when a movie goes against expectation. However, I’m also a soppy shit so wanted him to be with his family.

Still enjoyed it though.

 

Thanks for the recommendation. I’ll check it out.

[Monkeyboy]

Godzilla vs. Hedorah

 

I like Godzilla movies that have a bit of a message, and in this one it’s the damage we’re doing to the environment by polluting the oceans, which creates giant sludge monster, Hedorah. Who then proceeds to give Godzilla something of a battering, the biggest I’ve seen him take so far.

 

You see the human cost of monster fights, more so than the previous movies. But tonally it’s an odd one in the series. You have horror sitting next to breezy Austin Powers style nightclub scenes. But it also seems to be aimed at kids.

 

Still, I like the underlying environmental message, and the scene where Hedorah increases his powers by toking on some giant chimney stacks.

 

3½ out of 5

[glb]

Military Wives - 2/5

 

A well-meaning but ultimately haphazard story of the first military wives choir. Good cast, shame about the messy way the choir portrayed.

 

This is Your Death - 2/5

 

A half-interesting idea about reality TV but the makers lacked the wit, or conviction, to really make something notable. As it is, just a tawdry bit of reasonably polished nonsense.

[Ry]

On 24/11/2020 at 06:59, Goose said:

Anyone seen Boss Level yet? Frank Grillo relives the same day over and over, getting killed by assassins for some reason.

 

A bit Edge of Tomorrow meets Smokin Aces (which makes sense since Joe Carnaharn directed it)

 

Where is this available to watch? 

[Monkeyboy]

The Tale of Zatoichi

 

4 out of 5

[Tempy]

21 hours ago, Ry said:

Where is this available to watch? 

 

I think only Hulu or the high seas at the minute.

[cassidy]

I took a trip on the High seas and watched Boss level. Fucking loved it. Yes it's nonsense but it's a cracker. 

 

5/5 

[Vimster]

Homeboys (1992)

Cheapo straight-to-video trash from AIP cashing in on the gangster films popular at the time like Colors and Boyz N The Hood. Pretty slack in all areas, limp attempts at social commentary, predictable at every turn right down to the very last shot, literally. Not much worth bothering with here.

 

1/5

[Lying Cat]

I just watched Possessor and I enjoyed it a great deal. My gut reaction is to give it a 5, but I suspect on a rewatch it's going to be a 4.

 

Beautifully shot with some absolutely brutal scenes, I sort of wish there had been more time to explore the concepts laid out in the second half of the film, but as the run time was a very civilised 1 hour 45 minutes, I think it's a great cut.

[Ry]

4 hours ago, cassidy said:

I took a trip on the High seas and watched Boss level. Fucking loved it. Yes it's nonsense but it's a cracker. 

 

5/5 

 

Arrrrrrrr

 

I'm off to the Bay! 

[Ry]

Red Heat - 4/5

 

My love for Arnold is hard to hide, but I love this film, the chemistry is there man. James Belushi was great when I was a teen and still enjoyed him here. 

 

Films like this remind me of a glory day of action cinema and make me nostalgic for films of old rather than just fucking marvel movies. Bring back the silliness. 

 

The film has one of my favourite one liners (one worders?) of all time, that reminds me of happier times when me and my brother would reenact the film....

 

"cocaineum?"

 

Raw deal is next.... That's an 11/5 automatically. 

[Stig]

Fire in the Sky (1993)

 

A few weeks ago on my podcast we did an episode about what things scared us in real life and in media. One of the guys mentioned that he saw this film when he was young and it scared the shit out of him, so much so that he couldn't handle anything to do with aliens.

 

The set up for this film is six Loggers from a small town in Arizona see a bright red light in the woods on their way back home after a day of felling trees. One of the men becomes entranced by the light and wonders towards it. Something happens to him and the rest of the men, fearing he's dead drive off scared. This man then goes missing.

 

What follows on from that is about as TV drama movie as you can get as the small town begin to turn on the other five and accuse them of lying about the UFO and begin to think there’s been a murder and cover up. None of it’s “bad”, the acting and script are perfectly serviceable and on the level you'd expect, but as I said it's about as early 90s direct to TV as you can get.

 

Where the real beauty in the film lies is the payoff with the alien abduction. If you ever watch this, stick around for that because I'm honestly not surprised this scared my friend. You get a really good amount of time in the ship, with the aliens and the experiments. It will make you feel very uncomfortable as it does a really good job with the horror element.

 

It really feels like someone had this brilliant idea, blew all the budget on it and then had to film some TV drama around it to fill time. But because they nailed that one idea it all feels worth it.

 

3/5

 

 

[Vimster]

Exit Speed (2008) Amazon Prime Video

The plot is the synopsis: a group of passengers on a bus hold out against a gang of nomad bikers. That's it and frankly it doesn't really need to be much more. Worth it for the surprisingly bloody and satisfying last 25 minutes or so which, for this sort of low-budget action, was a pleasant surprise. Mid section managed to not sag into a mawkish mire, with regular attempts by the bikers to get the drop on the group. There have been mention of Speed and Mad Max but this felt more like a western or zombie siege movie. Shame about the TV movie-grade music that makes it feel cheaper. Not a waste of time generally though.

 

3/5

[Vimster]

Kevin And Perry Go Large (2000) Amazon Prime Video

This was so late-90s I nearly paid 5 Euros for a bottle of water. The sounds, the clothes, Ibiza as a holiday destination for anyone under 25, it was all there. Full disclosure, I had drank the best part of a bottle of wine before watching this, and frankly that is probably advisable as this was a pretty flimsy comedy that couldn't even stretch to the 88 minute running time. A few good gags here and there at the expense of our pubescent anti-heroes, and it tried its best to extend beyond its TV roots. But this is so rooted to the times it's difficult to imagine how anyone born beyond the narrow window of the target audience would find anything worth watching. If you have any recollection of that superclub period it might be worth a watch. James Fleet and Louisa Rix do their best as the out-of-touch parents, and Kathy Burke was always great as Perry. Rhys Ifans steals it for me as the cliche shitbag DJ.  Alcohol probably helped.

 

3/5

 

[Silent Runner]

Run

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8633478/

 

Steven King was raving about this one recently but that's not a always a good thing. It's a two-hander about a young girl, a wheelchair user, and her mother who live in a remote house isolated from the rest of society. The daughter begins to suspect her mother is up to something suspicious and that she's hiding something from her. So she tries to investigate but is stopped at every turn. 

 

This was decent enough but nothing special. There were some silly contrivances and some scenes stretched credibility but the 90 minute run-time flew by. Once it's shown it's hand there's nowhere left for it to go but the two leads are good, it looks nice and it doesn't over stay it's welcome. 

 

I don't think it will appear on any best of the year lists but it was all right. 

 

2.5/5

[sandman]

18 hours ago, Vimster said:

Kevin And Perry Go Large (2000) Amazon Prime Video

This was so late-90s I nearly paid 5 Euros for a bottle of water. The sounds, the clothes, Ibiza as a holiday destination for anyone under 25, it was all there. Full disclosure, I had drank the best part of a bottle of wine before watching this, and frankly that is probably advisable as this was a pretty flimsy comedy that couldn't even stretch to the 88 minute running time. A few good gags here and there at the expense of our pubescent anti-heroes, and it tried its best to extend beyond its TV roots. But this is so rooted to the times it's difficult to imagine how anyone born beyond the narrow window of the target audience would find anything worth watching. If you have any recollection of that superclub period it might be worth a watch. James Fleet and Louisa Rix do their best as the out-of-touch parents, and Kathy Burke was always great as Perry. Rhys Ifans steals it for me as the cliche shitbag DJ.  Alcohol probably helped.

 

3/5

 

I watched this a couple of years ago. I was far to geeky to visit a nightclub when I was a teenager, let alone going to Ibiza. And I blinking loved the film, just brilliant from start to finish, I was laughing so hard I fell off my chair at one point.

[mash]

Under Suspicion (1991) Caught this on Talking pictures, which specialises in old British TV and films. 

 

It's one of those films no one seems to make anymore. A neo noir set in Brighton at the end of the 50s. A satisfyingly labyrinth plot with femme fatales, dead ends the obligatory twist. I really enjoyed it.  4/5