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Near Dark (1987)
Near Dark (1987)
1987 | Horror, Mystery, Western
Bill Paxton (1 more)
Lance Henrikson
Finger-Lickin' Good!
Near Dark- is a great neo-western horror film about vampires. It was directed by Kathryn Bigelow, it was also her debut film.

The plot: Cowboy Caleb Colton (Adrian Pasdar) meets gorgeous Mae (Jenny Wright) at a bar, and the two have an immediate attraction. But when Mae turns out to be a vampire and bites Caleb on the neck, their relationship gets complicated. Wracked with a craving for human blood, Caleb is forced to leave his family and ride with Mae and her gang of vampires, including the evil Severen. Along the way Caleb must decide between his new love of Mae and the love of his family.

Vampire films had become "trendy" by the time of Near Dark's production, with the success of Fright Night (1985) and The Lost Boys (1987), the latter released two months before Near Dark and grossing $32 million. Kathryn Bigelow wanted to film a Western movie that departed from cinematic convention.

The combination of the genres had been visited at least twice before on the big screen, with Curse of the Undead (1959) and Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966).

Bigelow knew (and later married) director James Cameron, who directed Aliens (1986), a film that shares three cast members (Paxton, Goldstein and Henriksen) with Near Dark. Actor Michael Biehn was offered the role of Jesse Hooker, but he rejected the role because he found the script confusing. Lance Henriksen took over the role. A cinema seen in the background early in the film has Aliens on its marquee and Cameron played the man who "flips off" Severen.

Its a classic and a cult film.
  
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Lorene Scafaria recommended The Master (2012) in Movies (curated)

 
The Master (2012)
The Master (2012)
2012 | Drama

"The Master is masterful. It is such a beautiful portrait of a relationship between two people in very different places in their lives. The power dynamics between them and the love between them, that is kind of indescribable. The bond that forms [between] them is different than you’d have with your spouse or your children or your parents, a true bond that is that kind of friendship that can bail you out of trouble and also get you into trouble. And I think it’s Philip Seymour Hoffman’s finest performance, I think it’s Joaquin Phoenix’s finest performance and, of course, I think PTA [Paul Thomas Anderson] is one of our greatest directors, if not the greatest director. I just love every aspect of the storytelling. I am always interested in a leader, whether it’s a religious leader or a cult leader, someone who finds a following and a flock, someone who, you can look at them one way and they’re a fraud, a charlatan, and look at them another way and they are close to God. I find that really intriguing. I find that kind of attention from a person like that is very interesting and intoxicating and it was certainly something I was thinking about when working on Hustlers. [I] was thinking of Ramona and Destiny’s dynamic in that way… when one person is holding the wheel and one person is in control, you know, and the other person may not be able to fall in line in all the same ways. What happens when that person turns away from their leader and no longer feels aligned with them?"

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300 (2007)
300 (2007)
2007 | Action, Drama
There's a few Zack Snyder films that I genuinely like, and 300 is one of them. It's 100% style over substance, it's overly gratuitous in the sheer amount of slow motion, but it's pretty enjoyable.

Some of the shots are expertly crafted recreations of the graphic novel by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley, and as such, is a damn faithful adaption of a cult classic comic series.
The visual effects are stunning at times, and the sepia tone it's draped in lends a lot to its overall feel (even if it's a subject of criticism from many)

Gerard Butler takes the lead as King Leonidas of Sparta, in what has arguably become his most well known roll in the years following. It's easy to look over his thick Scottish accent (in ancient Greece...) when he's playing the character with such enthusiasm. Most of his lines have become highly quotable, even familiar to those who have never seen the film. 300 would be a much lesser film without his involvement.
Rodrigo Santoro carves a striking figure as primary antagonist Xerxes, his androgynous look and demonic-like voice providing a memorable villain.
The cast is rounded out by the likes of Lena Headey, David Wenham, Dominic West, and an early role for Michael Fassbender, a sturdy ensemble cast.

The set pieces are pretty thrilling, and results in a movie that blurs the fantastical, with a real life historic battle. It's an interesting mix that works well.

300 is a film that throws big sloppy buckets of testosterone at its audience, whilst simultaneously flaunting a silly amount of homoerotic undertones and CGI pectoral muscles, and it's great.
  
Old School (2003)
Old School (2003)
2003 | Comedy, Documentary
Terrible Pacing Wasn't the Only Thing That Ruined the Story
After a man catches his girlfriend in an orgy, he moves into a new house near a college campus to get his life back together where shenanigans ensue.

Acting: 10

Beginning: 10

Characters: 3

Cinematography/Visuals: 10

Conflict: 5
One of the laundry list of misses for me in Old School. It felt like one big party movie which is fine provided there is some kind of conflict driving the story a la The Hangover. Because of the lack of conflict, I had no interest in rooting for the main character. Any conflict scenes that did exist felt forced and unnecessary.

Entertainment Value: 7

Memorability: 6
While there are a few memorable scenes that had me cracking up, the movie as a whole reminded me that I had seen better comedies. The wedding singer was hilarious as well as the funeral for Blue and I can think of at least two more strong comedic moments that had me cracking up. Unfortunately the sum of its parts didn’t really amount to much.

Pace: 4

Plot: 3

Resolution: 5
A resolution that didn’t really blow me away. To be fair, even if the ending had been better, it wouldn’t have been enough to save the movie as a whole. It was already too far off the rails at this point for me.

Overall: 63
Many tout Old School as a cult classic and I can understand why. There are quite a few moments that got the job done making me laugh. As a whole, it just wasn’t enough for me.
  
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