Last film you saw, vol. 6

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

Harry and the Hendersons (1987)

"The basement. You'll love it! It's like a cave. With a pool table."

Night Moves (1975)

"Well, the world is getting smaller, the kids are getting younger and I'm getting drunk!"

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012) ...
It does put me in the mood to read a good biography, though.

I read and watched those and felt like they were fine, but not particularly deep. It also left me with a desire to dig more into the real history, which I don't think I did enough about.

[Agent Purple The Illustrated Man Find all posts View Profile Close Agent Purple]

You can't fool me, Space Cop: I know you watched Harry and the Henderseons because James Rolfe reminded you of its existence with his latest Rental Review!

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

King Solomon's Mines (1950)

"There was one argument he neglected to use.
-Oh, what was that?
Money.
-It's a very good argument."

The Undying Monster (1942)

"I tell you there's something in there, even if there ain't."

My werewolf pick for this month's full moon by Agent's recommendation.

You can't fool me, Space Cop: I know you watched Harry and the Henderseons because James Rolfe reminded you of its existence with his latest Rental Review!

Yep. It was actually in my queue in a group of movies to re-watch some day and the talk put me in the mood to check it out again. That Rental Review series is great. Reminds me of my teen years when I lived a block away from a video store and would talk movies with the manager who occasionally gave me posters and such too.

[robojac Corps Honor Guard Find all posts View Profile Close robojac]

A Quiet Place (2018)

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

The Commitments (1991)

"Soul is the music people understand."

Death Wish (2018)

"People rely on the police to keep them safe. That's the problem. The police only arrive after the crime has taken place. That's like. Trapping the fox as he's comin' out of the hen house. If a man really wants to protect what's his. He has to do it for himself."

This was better than I expected, though not up to the original classic.

[Mister.Weirdo Guardian of the Universe Find all posts View Profile Close Mister.Weirdo]

My The Wife Review.

https://dailyuv.com/feed/967789?location=norwich-vt

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

Oliver! (1968)

"Fagin, this sausage is moldy!
-Shut up and drink your gin."

50 today (funny to think all the kids are now 60+). Been many years sine I saw it, but I picked it up cheap a while back.

Conan the Barbarian (2011)

"When a Cimmerian feels thirst, it is a thirst for blood. When he feels cold, it is the cold edge of steel."

[robojac Corps Honor Guard Find all posts View Profile Close robojac]

Jurassic World (2015)

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

[Rifftrax] Star Trek (2009)

"Busweiser?! The future sucks."

Kill or Be Killed (2015)

"Diente Dulce!
-Damn, sounds pretty good in Mexicano."

[robojac Corps Honor Guard Find all posts View Profile Close robojac]

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

Star Trek Beyond (2016)

"I ripped my shirt again."

Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)

"If it isn't Captain James Tiberius Perfect-Hair."

[Mister.Weirdo Guardian of the Universe Find all posts View Profile Close Mister.Weirdo]

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

Cosmos: War of th Planets (1977)

"I feel this is my first victory over machines."

AnothSo boring (and I probably have a higher tolerance for slow sci-fi than most). It did, however, pre-date Demolition Man with the idea that shared virtual sex will replace the real thing in the future. The music was decent.

Warriors of the Wasteland [aka The New Barbarians] (1983)

"We have been chosen to make others pay for the crime of being alive."

Italian ripoff of Road Warrior with some good bits.

[Agent Purple The Illustrated Man Find all posts View Profile Close Agent Purple]

Man of Tai Chi (2013)

"You owe me a life."

While the police attempt to take down an illegal fighting ring, the mastermind hunts for his next prime star. He finds one in a delivery man who practices tai chi, which traditionally is not used for fighting. As the protagonist fights more and more, he risks losing himself to bloodlust and disgracing his art.

The directorial debut of Keanu Reeves, who also plays the villain. I think Reeves did a solid job for this, because there isn't a wasted scene and the pacing is very good. You also get excellent fights and the camera work for them is steady and clear, not something amateurs would do (Bourne saga).

The main character has a great personal arc he goes through, transforming from a respectable if troubled young man into a ruthless, narrow-minded bastard before coming to grips with the kind of person he's been turned into. It's a really well-told fall from grace/rise from disgrace, and you genuinely see the hurt in his master's eyes when he goes too far, having pretty much completely lost his way and forgotten his lessons.

The style of the film is very distinct: you have a natural look, which you see best at the tai chi temple and in the "urban jungle" of Chen's apartment/city; and then you have this man-made austerity and starker urban tone as shown by Keanu's office/home and fighting arenas. It's very telling that the stage where Chen recovers his identity is basically a garden party/outdoor fighting ring.

Keanu as the villain is just utterly ruthless. This guy is basically Lex Luthor, this ultra-modern and trendy workplace and house, playing headgames with the cops because he's leagues above and ahead of them. His motivation for running an illegal fighting ring is also pretty savage, and Reeves's portrayal really cold and heartless, very impersonal and the exact opposite of Chen (which, in a way, is exactly the undertone that is given via Chen's fall from grace, that losing his way will turn him into a monster like Reeves). Yes, he seems a little wooden, but he's still fairly well written and again, his persona is an inversion of Chen's and the way of tai chi, so you can't really say he's poorly handled).

I really am glad I caught this, because I almost skipped it based on the somewhat-generic description Netflix gave; the story really is much better than it sounds.

Highly recommend.

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

Happy People: A Year in the Taiga (2010)

"Of course, a good craftsman will make good skis using good wood. Getting around in these is sheer pleasure. You might have factory-made ones. If you and go into the Woods, you'll drop dead from fatigue after 15 kilometers."

Get Smart (2008)

"I'm telling you what we're not, we're not people who jam staples into other people's heads, that's CIA crap!"

I thought this was decently funny, but I'm only passingly familiar with the original series.