Kzins Don't Dance

[zrath]

o/~ Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome... o/~

Welcome to this all-dancing, all-singing, all-flixing post!
Okay, maybe not all-dancing and all-singing.
After all, Kzins don't dance! Miaou! :D

First, a heads-up for the cinephiles looking to add a few choice morsels to their DVD collections.
Best Buy has some pretty cool low-price Deevs this week, and here's a partial list:

$8.99 will get you such wonders as "The Illusionist", "Robocop 30th Anniversary Edition" (2-discs),
"12 Angry Men", "A Bridge Too Far", "Fight Club", "Office Space", and "Transporter 2" (wacky!).
$6.99 will get you some tasty titles like "Children Of Men", "Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas",
"Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels", "Smokin' Aces" and "Serenity". And you also get a coupon for up to
$7.50 off on admission to upcoming Universal theatrical releases like "The Incredible Hulk", "Wanted",
"Hellboy II: The Golden Army", "The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor".

And finally, $4.99 will get you things like "Good Night And Good Luck", "Capote", "Syriana", "The Doors",
"Once Upon A Time In Mexico", "Spiderman 2", "L4yer Cake", and "Caddyshack".

I didn't list all the movies, just the ones I deemed interesting in my biased view. :)
Make sure to check the Best Buy flyer or website for the complete list.
Also, be careful about "Children Of Men". It's available in both Widescreen and Full Screen versions,
but the printing on the label is kinda subtle, so check the front cover, top section to make sure.
Yeah, you can guess which movies I bought. :)
I got "Children Of Man", "The Illusionist", "Robocop", "Fear And Loathing", and "Good Night".
And I had one of those BB Rewards certificates, so I lopped off $20 off the top.
I am a smart shopper. :)


And now, FLIXING!!!
I look at my queue of -flixing stuff and I'm amazed at how long it's been since I've seen some of these.
A lot of stuff has piled up in the past 8 months or so. Oh well, better get to it...



Theaterflixing:
Blade Runner: The Final Cut - The REAL Director's Cut this time! We mean it! :D
The late Sibling and I saw this in November '07 in a nice new theater at the Westside Pavilion.
It was projected in a 24-bit digital format whose crispness made our eyes water. It was awesome.
Not much else one can say, really. I still like the narration in the theatrical version, but I'm a weirdo.

Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix - aka Render Unto Harry a Mofo Break Already!!
I mean, seriously, how much shit does Potter have to put up with? Poor guy.
We probably saw this around Christmas, yeah, good timing. :)

I Am Legend - Vincent Price! Charlton Heston! Will Smith! Hmmmm, that's not right.
The third stab at making a film of the book, and from what I hear, it's still NOT the book.
The first stab was a 1964 Italian production called "The Last Man On Earth", starring Vincent Price.
It was full of badly-dubbed Italian zombies and it was produced by Robert L. Lippert.
Yes, THAT Robert L. Lippert. The MST3K crew is well acquainted with his output. Let's ask them:
Tom Servo: "It's a Lippert film."
Crow T. Robot: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!"
There you go.
The second stab was that wonderful '70s hamfest "The Omega Man" with Charlton "Damn Dirty Apes" Heston.
I haven't seen it in a while, but I think my brother liked it. He had a thing for those post-apocalyptic
films like that and "Soylent Green", "Escape From New York", "Mad Max" and "Planet Of The Apes".
So now, we have this newjack version, with Will Smith. I've been known to semi-jokingly refer to the
Fresh Prince as Will "I am physically unable to shut the fuck up, ever" Smith.
But you know what? He's learning to shut up. It's gonna take him a while, but I'm seeing definite progress.
And we liked this film. A lot. It's really well-put together, and Smith did a good job.

Across The Universe - Dragon Wars
You're probably looking at that and thinking: "Wow, that's a hell of a double-bill!".
My brother went to see "Across The Universe" because music was his life and he loved The Beatles.
He gave the movie high marks and I'm sorry I couldn't go see it with him.
While at the theater, he snuck into "Dragon Wars", and, urrrrrrrrrrr, didn't give it high marks.
I rented it later out of sheer curiosity and all I can say is "Yeesh..."
It was so bizarre! The lead looked more like an Italian male model you see on billboards.
It was a complete mess. Everybody acted like an idiot. The CGI looked kinda videogamey.
So yeah, not very good. :P

Iron Man - "Oh come on, this isn't the most embarassing thing you've caught me doing."
I've mentioned going to see this in an earlier post and really liking it.
And yes, I really REALLY liked it! I can't wait to get it on DVD!
Robert Downey Jr. is perfect! Tony Stark is not one of those characters that's easy to cast.
I mean, when talking about who should play who in movies, it's easy to think of actors that fit most of
the major superhero characters. But Tony Stark? That's tricky. Well, it was tricky. Now we have Bob! :D
So yeah, excellent!

Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull - This ain't your father's Indy!
So I went to see this with some friends and we had a great time. The film was really fun.
I got home and poked around teh Intarweb and found all sorts of whiney wankery about the film.
I could only stare and laugh at losers who whinged that Indy had "hammy acting", "over-the-top action",
and was "totally unbelievable". Urrrrrrrr, are they aware this is an Indiana Jones film? Just checking!
And then, there was the unreasoning Shia Lebeouf hate. Look, I like the kid, he's got moxie.
He should really change his name though. I keep wanting to type "Leboeuf" (the ox, the beef).
So anyway, while the film is not perfect, it IS fun and it IS entertaining, and that's what movies are for.
Have fun out there!


Publicflixing - aka DVDs from the local public library

Chinatown (1974) - "Very nosy, little kittykat..."
Yes! I've finally seen it! And it's fantastic! And no wonder it's such a revered classic.
I already dig noir films and this is a really great addition to the genre.
That's it! What can I say that's not been said before? I've got nothing...

The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951)
Saw this once in France, and decided to see it again in English.
Theremins ahoy! My goodness, they don't make them like that anymore. Well, they try but fail.
And yes, there's a remake of this classic in the works. With Keanu Reeves as Klaatu.
Well, he's certainly weird and wooden enough to play ol' Klaaters.
We shall see...

Dazed And Confused (1993)
This is a movie by Richard Linklater, that guy who later made a name for himself by doing live-action
movies that are run through Photoshop to look like animated films ("Waking Life", "A Scanner Darkly").
I watched 20 minutes of it, got bored, turned it off. It was some crap about high school in the '70s.
That's right! Not even the presence of Milla Jovovovovovovich, Matthew McConaughey, Ben Affleck or
Parker Posey could keep me interested in this piece of hick high school shenanigans.


El Dorado (1966) - "It's The Big One With The Big Two!" (original poster tagline)
Oh wait, which one is this!?!? It's a western. Yes, it's a remake of "Rio Bravo" (1959)! I remember now!
Directed by Howard Hawks and starring JOHN WAYNE and ROBERT MITCHUM!
Also, James Caan and Ed Asner.
I grabbed this probably because it was a remake of "Rio Bravo", which I had Netflixed a while back.
What's weird is that both movies were directed by Howard Hawks and both movies have the Duke!
"Rio Bravo" had John Wayne (gunslinger), Dean Martin (drunk sheriff) and Ricky Nelson (the kid).
"El Dorado" has John Wayne (gunslinger), Robert Mitchum (drunk sheriff) and James Caan (the kid).
The storylines are the same and some of the scenes are identical.
"El Dorado" is shorter, but "Rio Bravo" is funnier and, I think, overall more enjoyable.

The Godfather Parts I, II, III
I was a kid when these came out, so I never saw them.
I checked out all three over a two-week period and watched them with the late Sibling.
Again, some really good stuff in there. The first two films are pretty awesome. The 3rd is okay.
Your film education is incomplete if you have not seen these. I'm happy to have filled that gap. :)

Gunga Din (1939)
A goofball, a tank, and a wolf. That pretty much describes the three leads in this film.
Cary Grant is the goofball, fun to be with, Sgt. Archibald Cutter.
Victor McLaglen is the tank, a huge and strong man with a heart of gold, Sgt. 'Mac' MacChesney.
And Douglas Fairbanks Jr. is the wolf, always chasin' the ladies, Sgt. Thomas 'Tommy' Ballantine.
And what of Gunga Din? Well, he's just an Indian water-carrier who dreams of being a British soldier.
He's played by white guy Sam Jaffe (later of "The Day The Earth Stood Still" and "The Asphalt Jungle").
The studio wanted Sabu but he was unavailable. Sam Jaffe apparently told a journalist that he told
himself "think Sabu" to help get into character. And I gotta say, it mostly worked.
So, based on the Rudyard Kipling poem, kinda feels like a Three Musketeers in India buddy movie.
Lots of action, lots of laughs, a high body count and pretty much fun all the way around! :D
Not bad!

Heathers (1989)
It's one of those '80s films I completely missed.
After seeing it on many a friend's favorite movie list, I decided to check it out for myself.
And. Oh. My. God.
This movie takes no prisoners.
The language is unbelievably foul and totally surprising for a film of that era.
It's like (excuse the Trek analogy) Mirror Universe version of a typical John Hughes film.
It's mean and sarcastic, and doesn't sugarcoat anything. It actually shows the kids the way they really
were, instead of some happy '80s We Are The World hippy bullshit vision seen through rose-colored lens.
And ironically, this makes it a more honest film than its contemporaries.
Definitely worth seeing if all the '80s films you've seen are like "Breakfast Club" and "Valley Girl".

Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006)
I actually saw the first "Ice Age" film in the theaters and I really enjoyed it.
I missed this one when it hit the theaters and settled for watching it on DVD.
It was also pretty good. I mean, it's not Pixar. And really, only Pixar is Pixar. :)
But, dang it, I think it's pretty good, and I'd rather watch that then Shrek anything any day!
(I really just don't like Shrek)

Mysterious Island (2005) - Patrick Stewart! Kyle McLachlan! Last seen together in "Dune"!
And boy, they let you know it! In the commentaries, both Patty Stew and Kyle Mac go on and on about being
glad to be working together again, huzzah! So this is a miniseries adaptation of the Jules Verne classic.
Escapees from a Civil-War-era Confederate stockade snag an observation balloon and wind on an island.
There's weird stuff going on, like giant-sized everyday critters. What's up with that?
Captain Nemo is involved (that would be Patrick Stewart in this case).
I don't remember much. It was probably decent enough.

Planet Of The Apes TV Series (1974)
As mentioned before, my late brother had a great fondness for "Planet Of The Apes", so he asked me to
check out the TV series from the library. He watched all the episodes, I watched bits and pieces here
and there and occasionally rolled my eyes. The show seemed to be pretty much done as a western.
A couple of astronauts and some apes travelled from settlements, having adventures and helping people.
Any furher, I cannot say.
Primer (2004) - If you like movies where nothing happens, you'll love this!!
Also, if you like people talking, you're in for a treat! People do nothing but talk in this!
Talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk.
Okay, seriously, it's basically two science geeks talking about something they're working which may or
may not be a revolutionary power source. And the film is really tough going at first because that's all
you see and it doesn't get vaguely interesting until you're, I don't know, 45 minutes into the film?
And then, finally, something happens! The film messes with your mind. Everything you've been watched
before is put into an entirely new perspective. So it's not a complete waste of time.
It's a good film to turn on and listen to while doing something else.
And like I said, it's tough going at first. But it is somewhat interesting.

The Sword In The Stone (1963)
Yes, I saw all the old Walt Disney movies when I was a kid.
In French.
So I sometimes check out an old classic and watch it in English, for the first time.
The late Sibling dictated the choice of this particular film. It was one of this favorites.
Merlin reminds me of Panoramix, the druid character from the Astérix comics. They look very similar,
but Merlin has more of a goofball personality. Panoramix is a more together sort of man.
Another aspect reminiscent of Astérix is the anachronisms in the film. Merlin turning up in shorts, t-shirt and shades
at one point, for example. Astérix frequently slipped in modern bits into its Roman-era setting.
So anyway, fun Disney flick, but a little too much singing for my taste.



Wow, that was a slab!
Me brain hurts...

More when I've recovered...

Comments

[paka.livejournal.com]

Yay! Major points for watching Heathers and Gunga Din. I absolutely loved both of them.

[pelzig.livejournal.com]

Speaking of DVDs on the cheap, the Dollar General stores around me had Bandai label anime DVDs for 2 for $6.00. Might be worth a look at your nearest one to see if this was a local thing or a national store product. :)

[zrath.livejournal.com]

According to Dollar General's website (http://www.dollargeneral.com/OurStores/Pages/StoreLocationsMap.aspx), California is too cool to have any stores there.
Actually, so are 14 other states.
Oh well...

[pelzig.livejournal.com]

Doh! :(

[snapes-angel.livejournal.com]

A remake of The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951)? Run for the hills! They did not completely botch Children of the Damned (I'll say that in favor of remakes in general, and I have copies of both versions), but I am leery of such films.