Been on a film-bender these last coupla months...as always foreign flicks are watched in original language with subs. All pictures in DVD or Bluray on our 3x2m projector screen.
in rank order:
Transformers: The Movie (1986) - a rare 10/10. Unironically one of the greatest movies of all time. And i don't care for the franchise normally, but this film is a real one-off. I had a few whiskeys, sure....still, what a ride! Chockfull of memorable scenes, each with their own mythology. Stirring soundtrack, imaginative story, first-class voices, surprisingly grown-up dialogue at times...and one of the greatest Big Bads in sci-fi (voiced by Orson Welles). First-watch on HD Widescreen...intimate cut, the chopped-bits off the top & bottom weren't missed. ps - the modern CGI efforts are obviously crap.
Us - 9/10. Thrilling chiller with Twilight Zone-esque story, biting humourous edge and an outstanding performance from Lupita. Haven't seen Get Out yet, gonna have to move that up the Watchlist.
Ju-On: The Grudge (2002) - 9/10. Saw the american one a while back, was decent enough. But this one...wowzers. Multiple times got those scare chills down my back. Trippy and genuinely scary.
The Innocents (1961) - 8/10. Really effective, well-played...some proper disturbing subtexts.
Galaxy Quest - 8/10. Watched this after recently going through all the TOS eps & movies. Bang-on!
Ben Hur (1959) - 8/10. What an epic. Big handful of memorable scenes and well-written characters.
Avengers: Infinity War - 8/10. The first Marvel movie i've seen. First modern superhero flick generally, i think. Watched in 3D, was very neat! Great blockbusting entertainment...i didn't feel like i needed to know much backstory, either.
Fargo - 8/10. Nicely filmed, eccentric 'pulp-fiction'...elevated by the charming pregnant policewoman character.
Quo Vadis (1951) - 7/10. Another 50's Epic. First hour was a melodramatic slog, but then picks up and excellent last hour. Ustinov is mesmerising as Nero.
The Woman in Black (1989) - 7/10. Saw the modern one with the miscast Daniel Radcliffe a few years ago...forgettable and dull. This one was much better: they really did their homework with the production, and that one scene is bonechilling as hell (you know which one i mean if you've seen it). Not a fan of the ending, mind.
The Thief of Bagdad (1940) - 7/10. It's the flick where Disney's Aladdin got most of its inspiration. Super charming & likeable romp. Impressive blue-screen effects work. Very light fluff overall, could be a good one to watch with the kids (probably age 8 up).
The Fog (1980) - 7/10. Effective moody but modest small-town horror.
The Ten Commandments (1956) - 6/10. That God character is a bit of a killjoy. Heston has presence in spades. Fun old romp but dialogue can be a bit tiring.
Killer's Kiss - 6/10. Early Kubrick. Some tidy camera work, including one great knockdown scene. Otherwise average noir stuff.
The Seventh Seal - 6/10. Been wanting to see this for decades. Drags in the middle, the famous Death character is underwhelming. A couple of great scenes make it worth checking out.
Rashomon - 6/10. My first Kurosawa. Bit underwhelmed, tho' interesting premise and one fantastic scene with the 'possessed' witch character.
Godzilla (2014) - 6/10. Could've been great. That one scene with Ligeti blasting out over parachuting troopers is a keeper. Some other interesting bits about, otherwise formulaic average ride with boring forgettable characters.
Black Sabbath (1963) - 6/10. The flick which inspired the band name! Anthology of three short stories: The Phone Call one is insipid...skip. The Vampire one has cool atmosphere, but otherwise very dated. But deffo check out the final short about the Corpse...effective classic horror vibes.
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto (1954) - 5/10. Watchable enough, but not enough to recommend it. Silly fight scenes. The two sequels are meant to be a tad better.
Avengers: Endgame - 5/10. Now this one was really made for the fans. I didn't know nor care about all the character stuff going on, and the wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey nonsense cheapened the deep philosophical motivations of Thanos. Dragged on too. Some cool scenes dotted about, still. Not arsed enough to check out more Marvel, i've a feeling Infinity War is a one-off. Tho' quite fancy Doctor Strange 3D for spectacle's sake.
Mannequin - 5/10. Silly goofy über-80's fluff. Not bad, not particularly good either. Kim Cattrall, tho'...woof!
From Beyond - 5/10. 80's practical-FX horror. Interesting premise and cool effects, but thin narrative and basic dialogue.
Exodus (2014) - 4/10. Another Moses flick...inferior to the 50's one. 'God' is a tyrant, and inexplicably played by a young boy (shades of Mass Effect 3 here). Clumsy editing, boring colours and a supremely dull Christian Bale. The plague scenes were good.
Dark Water (2002) - 4/10. Painfully slow, too much reliance on child-acting, underwhelming ending. Some bits had decent atmosphere.
Terminator: Genisys - 4/10. This was so bad I almost gave up...picked up slightly in the second half. Characters are bottom-draw. There's a CGI vehicle pile-up which felt so cartoony...compare that with the proper vehicular stuntwork from T2. Sad.
City of the Living Dead (1980) - 3/10. Some random bits of ok gore doesn't save this amateurish effort.
Technotise (2009) - 3/10. The 'next Akira', they said. No.
Dune (1984) - 3/10. Jaysus...what a disaster. Some nice music, at least.
Final Fantasy: Advent Children Director's Cut - 2/10. The Greatest Game of all Time gets a horrible CGI-anime sequel.
Prince of the City (1981) - 2/10. One of the most boring slogs ever made. Had to skip forward...it was still never-ending. The same director made good films like Serpico & Twelve Angry Men...not sure what he was thinking here.