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Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966) in Movies
Nov 10, 2020
The plot: Four English travellers arrive at a tiny hamlet in the Carpathian Mountains and ignore warnings from the locals not to travel to Carlsbad, the domain of Count Dracula. A dark, driverless carriage arrives to take them to the sinister castle, but they discover too late that they have been lured there to provide the blood which will allow Dracula to rise from the grave once more.
Dracula does not speak in the film, save for a few hisses. According to Christopher Lee: "I didn't speak in that picture. The reason was very simple. I read the script and saw the dialogue! I said to Hammer, if you think I'm going to say any of these lines, you're very much mistaken.
Screenwriter Jimmy Sangster disputed that account in his memoir Inside Hammer, writing that "Vampires don't chat. So I didn't write him any dialogue. Christopher Lee has claimed that he refused to speak the lines he was given...So you can take your pick as to why Christopher Lee didn't have any dialogue in the picture. Or you can take my word for it. I didn't write any.
The film was made back to back with Rasputin, the Mad Monk, using many of the same sets and cast, including Lee, Shelley, Matthews and Farmer. Shelley later remembered accidentally swallowing one of her fangs in one scene, and having to drink salt water to bring it back up again because of the tight shooting schedule, as well as there being no spare set of fangs.
Its a decent Dracula film.
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8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown
TV Show
8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown is a crossover between the panel games 8 Out of 10 Cats and...
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Great Balls of Fire (1989)
Movie Watch
Upstart rock 'n' roll singer Jerry Lee Lewis (Dennis Quaid) has just cut a record at Sun Studio....
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Lee KM Pallatina (951 KP) rated the Xbox 360 version of Bully: Scholarship Edition in Video Games
Feb 10, 2021
In stereotypical fashion the students are divided into groups, nerds, preppies, jocks etc
The game follows newcomer Jimmy Hopkins, an aggravated teenager with an attitude problem who's about to discover what its like to be on the receiving end.
Filled with errands from both teachers and students & classes to pass like maths, geography, science & Gym and a GTA style gameplay and control system, bully has overtook its original canis canem edit pre gen console release with new characters and additional missions, with an array of costumes & weapons aswell as a perfectly annoying antagonist named Gary and a beautiful ending.
Bully created a gaming cult.
developed by Rockstar Vancouver and published by Rockstar Games
released on 17 October 2006 on PS2
Developer: Rockstar Vancouver
Composer: Shawn Lee
Writer(s): Dan Houser; Jacob Krarup
Platforms: Android, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, iOS, Microsoft Windows
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Rory Gallagher: His Life and Times
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Chris Sawin (602 KP) rated Cop Out (2010) in Movies
Jun 22, 2019 (Updated Jun 23, 2019)
To tell the truth, I wasn't looking forward to this film at all. I'm a pretty big fan of most of Kevin Smith's work, but he didn't write the film. It could be argued that he did write Jersey Girl and that could be considered a bomb, but his films usually average about $25-$30 million anyway. A Kevin Smith film isn't really about bringing in a large amount of money at the box office. His charm is in his writing, especially the dialogue and interaction between characters. There's a very specific audience his films will appeal to and none of them have really branched away from that. But him not writing this one made me think, "Eh. Not sure what that'll be like since he didn't write it." When it comes to Bruce Willis, I've never talked to anyone who dislikes him entirely. There always seems to be at least one of his films everybody enjoys. Die Hard, The Fifth Element, and Sin City are just a few off the top of my head. The real buzz-killer for me though was Tracy Morgan. He's just never been funny to me. He was beyond lame on Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock has never been able to hold my attention for very long. Not to mention all the trailers for Cop Out didn't make me laugh. Thankfully though, first impressions can be so very wrong.
One of Cop Out's biggest charms is that it feels like a buddy cop comedy you've seen before, but have forgotten how much you enjoy it. The film feels similar to a 48 Hrs or Beverly Hills Cop film. Bulletproof is also a good example. Cop Out is pretty much what you expect when it comes to roles Bruce Willis chooses as it's pretty much no different than his role as John McClane on the surface, but he's a lot funnier this time around. As far as Tracy Morgan goes, the funniest thing I could remember him saying was his one line in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back ("Man... I don't know what the f--- you just said, Little Kid, but you're special man, you reached out, and you touched a brother's heart.") until this film. He was downright hilarious at times. The only person who was funnier than Morgan was Seann William Scott who stole every scene he was in. Even though Kevin Smith didn't pen the script this time around, it still feels like a Kevin Smith film. It could be due to the fact that Jason Lee has a small role in the film, but I like to think it's because Cop Out offers the same kind of comedy you'd find in a Kevin Smith film with a bit more action. It also took me forever to place Scarface from Half Baked as Poh Boy.
Cop Out is surprisingly funny and incredibly entertaining. Give this film a chance even if the trailers may not be doing anything for you. I felt the same way and wound up thoroughly enjoying the film. After a long, stressful day at work, an R-rated comedy with a lot of laughs is one of the best ways to relax and this film offers just that. It's a great film to go into with no expectations other than to just have a good time.
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The Man in White Boots: The Biography of Alan Ball, the Youngest 1966 World Cup Hero
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It is a special footballer who wins the World Cup as a 21-year-old and ends a two-decade career as...
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The Hunt Fish Journal
Podcast
The Hunt Fish Journal is a educational podcast hosted by Greg Barnhart, Dan Stapleton and Jerry...
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BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Anatomy of a Murder (1959) in Movies
Nov 30, 2018
Directed by the great Otto Preminger, AOM is often referred to as the finest courtroom drama ever filmed. While I need to give that some thought, I will say AOM is right up there as one of the finest examples of a courtroom drama.
Starring Jimmy Stewart as "country lawyer" Paul Biegler, who is brought in to defend Army Lieutenant Manion (Ben Gazzara). Manion is accused of murdering a man that raped his wife (Lee Remick). The central mystery isn't "did Manion kill the man" (he did), it is more of "did he kill his wife's rapist or lover" and "will Biegler get away with the temporary insanity plea".
This is the kind of plot that we've all seen a dozen times on standard TV shows, but back in 1959, this type of film - and trial - was quite new and fresh and this film was "scandalous" in it's use of frank language. Remember, this is 1959 in Eisenhower "Happy Days" Americana, so hearing words like "bitch, panties, penetration, slut, sperm, bitch and slut" was quite shocking and led to many protests of the film.
Those who were turned off by the language and frankhandling of the subject matter lost out on an intriguing, well-acted, well-written and well-directed courtroom drama, where the verdict is up in the air right up until the foreman of the jury says "We, the jury, find the defendant..."
Jimmy Stewart is perfectly cast in the lead role of Defense Attorney, Biegler. Stewart brings an instant likableness and every man integrity quality to the role. His Attorney is down-to-earth but whip-smart, able to crack a joke to lighten the mood or explode in rage at an affront at a moment's notice. He goes toe-to-toe with Prosecuting Attorney Claude Dancer (a VERY young George C. Scott). Dancer is everything that Biegler is not, crisp, well-polished and arrogant. While it would have been very easy to paint these two characters as good (Stewart) and bad (Scott), Director Preminger and screenwriter Wendell Mayes shy away from this and show these two as fierce competitors playing a very serious game of chess - and this works very well, indeed. Both Stewart and Scott were nominated for Oscars for their work as Best Actor and Supporting Actor respectively.
The Supporting cast is superb, featuring such 1950's/early 1960's stalwarts as Arthur O'Connell (also Oscar nominated as Stewarts's alcoholic law mentor), the always good Eve Arden, Orson Bean and Katherine Grant. It also features three character actors in small roles (witnesses in the trial) who you would recognize from other things - Murray Hamilton (the Mayor in Jaws), Howard McNear (Floyd the Barber from Mayberry) and Joseph Kearns (Mr. Wilson in Dennis the Menace).
Special notice needs to be made for Lee Remick as the sultry and flirtatious woman at the core of the film. Remick is superb in this role, and that is fortunate, for if she wasn't believable in the "would she or won't she" role that she is asked to play, then the film could have easily fallen apart. But the real bright spot in this film is the scene stealing Joseph N. Welch as the Judge in the case. His performance as the judge is the perfect "third leg" to the Stewart/Scott stool, balancing charm, folksiness and strength in even portions (depending on what is needed to balance the other two).
Otto Preminger (LAURA, STALAG 17) is a Director who's name is beginning to fade into the dust of the past - and that's too bad, for he is a strong director who knows how to frame a scene and pace a film. Even though AOM is 2 hours and 40 minutes of talking, it never feels long or slow.
Two other aspects of this film need to be mentioned - the "jazz" score by the great Duke Ellington (which won a grammy) is perfectly suited to the themes and mood of this film and the opening title sequence (and movie poster) is reminiscent of an Alfred Hitchock film - and that is because they are done by frequent Hitchock contributor Saul Bass.
Nominated for 7 Oscars (it won zero, falling to the juggernaut that was BEN HUR that year), ANATOMY OF A MURDER is an intriguing courtroom drama that also opens the door to performers of the past. Well worth the time investment, should you run across it (it is frequently shown on TCM).
Letter Grade: A
9 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)