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Kevin Phillipson (10021 KP) rated Slither (2006) in Movies
Jul 22, 2018
Nathan fillion (2 more)
Michael rooker
Creature effects
Homage to all those alien invasion movies we all watched when we were young james gunn who would go on to make guardians of the galaxy vol one and two made a brillant sci fi horror with plenty of refences to other movies both nathan fillion and michael rooker and elizabeth banks lead the cast. The creature effects are amazing. Thimbs up
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Slither (2006) in Movies
Jan 9, 2018
Cheesy gruesome goodness (1 more)
Practical effects
Before writer/director James Gunn made us familiar with Star Lord and Rocket, he wrote and directed this fantastic creepy gory thriller starring Nathan Fillion, Elizabeth Banks and Michael Rooker.
The film starts out with a similar first act to The Blob, then quickly goes its own way. Slowly, little, juicy caterpillar creatures make their way through the small town and infect the inhabitants while the main creature infects another group of townspeople.
You have to like B movie quality cheese and gore to enjoy this movie, but I thought it was a lot of fun. The actors definitely do not take it too seriously, but you find yourself squirming in your seat once all hell has broken loose.
I return to the film often when I need to lighten my mood.
The film starts out with a similar first act to The Blob, then quickly goes its own way. Slowly, little, juicy caterpillar creatures make their way through the small town and infect the inhabitants while the main creature infects another group of townspeople.
You have to like B movie quality cheese and gore to enjoy this movie, but I thought it was a lot of fun. The actors definitely do not take it too seriously, but you find yourself squirming in your seat once all hell has broken loose.
I return to the film often when I need to lighten my mood.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated The Suicide Squad (2021) in Movies
Aug 5, 2021
James Gunn returns with the sequel to 2016’s Suicide Squad. This time, the nefarious company woman Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), returns to Belle Reve to recruit the next iteration of Task Force X. Initially, we are introduced to the new recruits: Savant (Michael Rooker), Blackguard (Pete Davidson), Javelin (Flula Borg), Mongal (Mayling Ng), T.D.K. (Nathan Fillion) and The Weasel (Sean Gunn). We meet our favorites from the first film: Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Captain Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney). They have signed on to be dropped into a small island nation, Corto Maltese.
This country, just taken over by a military coup has a lab with a 30-year secret weapon. Ms. Waller offers them years off each team member’s sentence to “Save the World”. Or, in this case, infiltrate Corto Maltese to find and destroy the project. Our hapless but highly skilled group lands and takes on heavy fire.
Meanwhile, we have Team B led by Bloodsport (Idris Elba), Peacemaker (John Cena), Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior), Polka Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), King Shark (The physical, John Economos with the voice of Sylvester Stallone). As the separate teams go forth and bond in violence, we find out more about their personal childhood traumas that made them the criminals they have become.
This sequel has James Gunn’s DNA all over the film. He raised the bar from the first film by providing bright, visual treats. The action is violent in a cartoonish manner that buffers the impact when one looks at the many ways one can dispatch a human. The story goes from sarcasm, dry wit, demented clown to the stooges’ physical hilarity. As we watch the Squad fight their way across the island, there are points where these characters are skilled killers despite the humor in their murderous madness.
I was laughing throughout the film, it certainly felt like a panacea for these challenging times. Pay attention, there are little moments of snappy comebacks that feel like they’re from old-school Mad Magazine. The pace runs steadily which helps the dissonance become more impactful. The Suicide Squad was not boring, it was very entertaining and such a campy ride. FYI: there are TWO after-credit scenes.
The Soundtrack is so very good from the first shot, to the after credit, shotsThis Summer Blockbuster certainly delivers the entertainment.
4.75 out of 5 Stars
This country, just taken over by a military coup has a lab with a 30-year secret weapon. Ms. Waller offers them years off each team member’s sentence to “Save the World”. Or, in this case, infiltrate Corto Maltese to find and destroy the project. Our hapless but highly skilled group lands and takes on heavy fire.
Meanwhile, we have Team B led by Bloodsport (Idris Elba), Peacemaker (John Cena), Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior), Polka Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), King Shark (The physical, John Economos with the voice of Sylvester Stallone). As the separate teams go forth and bond in violence, we find out more about their personal childhood traumas that made them the criminals they have become.
This sequel has James Gunn’s DNA all over the film. He raised the bar from the first film by providing bright, visual treats. The action is violent in a cartoonish manner that buffers the impact when one looks at the many ways one can dispatch a human. The story goes from sarcasm, dry wit, demented clown to the stooges’ physical hilarity. As we watch the Squad fight their way across the island, there are points where these characters are skilled killers despite the humor in their murderous madness.
I was laughing throughout the film, it certainly felt like a panacea for these challenging times. Pay attention, there are little moments of snappy comebacks that feel like they’re from old-school Mad Magazine. The pace runs steadily which helps the dissonance become more impactful. The Suicide Squad was not boring, it was very entertaining and such a campy ride. FYI: there are TWO after-credit scenes.
The Soundtrack is so very good from the first shot, to the after credit, shotsThis Summer Blockbuster certainly delivers the entertainment.
4.75 out of 5 Stars
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
Wow. Just wow. It feels like there are no words that could describe how great Guardians of the Galaxy is. This is the first movie in a while where I walked in with high expectations, and yet they still managed to exceed them. OK. Enough gushing. Time to get to the dirt.
Guardians, while a movie about a group of people, follows Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) as he loses his mother and then is suddenly whisked away (kidnapped) by an (at first) unknown space ship. Then we fast forward 26 years later and we see what the young kid who couldn’t handle the death of his mother has become. A quick-witted, sort of goofy, outlaw who likes to refer to himself as Star Lord. He double crosses the same people who have helped raise him to be the man he has become, and so sets off a series of events that brings Star Lord, Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper), Groot (Vin Diesel), Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Drax (Dave Bautista) together to go an insane adventure in an attempt to save the galaxy. In order to do this, they must stop Ronan, a Lieutenant in Thanos’ army, from obtaining a mysterious orb. The gang comes together through unlikely circumstances, and ultimately work very well together as a team, but do they have what it takes to get the job done?
This movie is all around genius. While I did have high expectations for the film, I was a little reticent about James Gunn directing. He has not had anything on this scale in the past, but man did he knock it out of the park. Every element of this world was working together perfectly… the soundtrack and score helped set the quirky, adventurous tone of the film. The cinematography combined with the visual effects was captivating. The acting was superb, with the standout being Dave Bautista as Drax. Who knew he had it in him? Apparently James Gunn did. But every actor played their part as if it were meant for them specifically. If I have one gripe in the department, it’s that Nebula (Karen Gillan) did not have as much screen time as she should have. You also some surprise supporting cast in their too with the likes of Michael Rooker, Djimon Hounsou, Glenn Close and Benicio Del Toro, the movie is definitely Gunn-ing for gold. (I am so sorry. That was cheesy I know).
We saw this movie in 3D. I am not a big fan of “everything has to be 3D”, and typically space-based movies tend to overdo the 3D effects. However, I think that the 3D in this movie was slightly understated, which is a definite good thing. Sure, there were scenes that you could tell were made specifically because it would be shown in 3D, but they didn’t make you sick of the effect 5 seconds into the scene. It was very artfully done, and not too overwhelming for a space film.
This is definitely the film to see this summer. Great action, good story arch, great setup for the next movie, and a multitude of tie-ins to the other Marvel universe films. I am definitely going to be seeing this in theaters again, especially since we did not get the bonus scene at the press screening, and it will be a definite buy on Blu-Ray. Even in 3D.
I also wanted to address the rumor of Nathan Fillion being in this film. No, he is not Nova. However, he is in the film. But blink… and you will miss it. I am curious to see if anyone else can find him in the film. Please let us know in the comments!
Guardians, while a movie about a group of people, follows Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) as he loses his mother and then is suddenly whisked away (kidnapped) by an (at first) unknown space ship. Then we fast forward 26 years later and we see what the young kid who couldn’t handle the death of his mother has become. A quick-witted, sort of goofy, outlaw who likes to refer to himself as Star Lord. He double crosses the same people who have helped raise him to be the man he has become, and so sets off a series of events that brings Star Lord, Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper), Groot (Vin Diesel), Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Drax (Dave Bautista) together to go an insane adventure in an attempt to save the galaxy. In order to do this, they must stop Ronan, a Lieutenant in Thanos’ army, from obtaining a mysterious orb. The gang comes together through unlikely circumstances, and ultimately work very well together as a team, but do they have what it takes to get the job done?
This movie is all around genius. While I did have high expectations for the film, I was a little reticent about James Gunn directing. He has not had anything on this scale in the past, but man did he knock it out of the park. Every element of this world was working together perfectly… the soundtrack and score helped set the quirky, adventurous tone of the film. The cinematography combined with the visual effects was captivating. The acting was superb, with the standout being Dave Bautista as Drax. Who knew he had it in him? Apparently James Gunn did. But every actor played their part as if it were meant for them specifically. If I have one gripe in the department, it’s that Nebula (Karen Gillan) did not have as much screen time as she should have. You also some surprise supporting cast in their too with the likes of Michael Rooker, Djimon Hounsou, Glenn Close and Benicio Del Toro, the movie is definitely Gunn-ing for gold. (I am so sorry. That was cheesy I know).
We saw this movie in 3D. I am not a big fan of “everything has to be 3D”, and typically space-based movies tend to overdo the 3D effects. However, I think that the 3D in this movie was slightly understated, which is a definite good thing. Sure, there were scenes that you could tell were made specifically because it would be shown in 3D, but they didn’t make you sick of the effect 5 seconds into the scene. It was very artfully done, and not too overwhelming for a space film.
This is definitely the film to see this summer. Great action, good story arch, great setup for the next movie, and a multitude of tie-ins to the other Marvel universe films. I am definitely going to be seeing this in theaters again, especially since we did not get the bonus scene at the press screening, and it will be a definite buy on Blu-Ray. Even in 3D.
I also wanted to address the rumor of Nathan Fillion being in this film. No, he is not Nova. However, he is in the film. But blink… and you will miss it. I am curious to see if anyone else can find him in the film. Please let us know in the comments!
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Super (2011) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
When I first heard about Super, written and directed by James Gunn, my first thought was “Dwight (from The Office) will be a superhero?” However what I saw on the screen was anything but Dwight, it was 75% awesome and 25% “I can’t believe they did that!”
The film begins with Frank (excellently played by Rainn Wilson) happily married to Sarah (Liv Tyler) who is a recovering drug addict. The happiness is shattered when Sarah begins using again, thanks to Jacques the drug dealer (Kevin Bacon) and then one day she disappears. Frank searches for Sarah and eventually finds her under the control of Jacques. Unable to get her away from Jacques, Frank goes to the police for help. Unfortunately because Sarah left on her own accord, no law has been broken (except for the drug stuff) so they are unable to help him.
Frank tries to move on, but without Sarah life seems meaningless. Then in his darkest hour he has a vision of The Holy Avenger (Nathan Fillion). Heeding the vision, Frank becomes The Crimson Bolt, pledges to fight crime and to save Sarah. There is just one small problem – Frank has no idea how to be a superhero. Research is needed, so off to the comic book store he goes, of course, and there he meets Libby (Ellen Page). Libby advises him which comics to read that have superheroes who do not have powers. Armed with this knowledge, The Crimson Bolt officially begins fighting crime in the most unusual of ways and not too long after, Libby becomes Boltie, his trusted, sexy sidekick.
This very entertaining, action-filled, dark comedy has more twists and turns than a game of Chutes and Ladders, and it will keep you glued to the screen until the end. Will they save the city from villainy? Will they save Sarah’s bacon? (Sorry, with Kevin Bacon playing the bad guy I couldn’t resist.)
Super has a different take on the superhero genre than what I’ve seen in past movies. Only Rainn Wilson could have properly portrayed the uniqueness that is Frank/Crimson Bolt and the same goes for Ellen Page in regards to Libby/Boltie (possibly the best sidekick ever). To make a long review short, let me sum up this way, everyone in the movie no matter the length of their part did an amazing job in their role. With that said, my only wish was that the story would have allowed for more screen time for Gregg Henry (Detective John Felkner) and a musical number for Fillion’s Holy Avenger. if you liked Fillion as Captain Hammer in Dr. Horrible’s Singalong Blog, then you’ll love him in this role. But those things would have most likely thrown off the perfect balance of action, humor and character interaction that made this movie so enjoyable.
The film begins with Frank (excellently played by Rainn Wilson) happily married to Sarah (Liv Tyler) who is a recovering drug addict. The happiness is shattered when Sarah begins using again, thanks to Jacques the drug dealer (Kevin Bacon) and then one day she disappears. Frank searches for Sarah and eventually finds her under the control of Jacques. Unable to get her away from Jacques, Frank goes to the police for help. Unfortunately because Sarah left on her own accord, no law has been broken (except for the drug stuff) so they are unable to help him.
Frank tries to move on, but without Sarah life seems meaningless. Then in his darkest hour he has a vision of The Holy Avenger (Nathan Fillion). Heeding the vision, Frank becomes The Crimson Bolt, pledges to fight crime and to save Sarah. There is just one small problem – Frank has no idea how to be a superhero. Research is needed, so off to the comic book store he goes, of course, and there he meets Libby (Ellen Page). Libby advises him which comics to read that have superheroes who do not have powers. Armed with this knowledge, The Crimson Bolt officially begins fighting crime in the most unusual of ways and not too long after, Libby becomes Boltie, his trusted, sexy sidekick.
This very entertaining, action-filled, dark comedy has more twists and turns than a game of Chutes and Ladders, and it will keep you glued to the screen until the end. Will they save the city from villainy? Will they save Sarah’s bacon? (Sorry, with Kevin Bacon playing the bad guy I couldn’t resist.)
Super has a different take on the superhero genre than what I’ve seen in past movies. Only Rainn Wilson could have properly portrayed the uniqueness that is Frank/Crimson Bolt and the same goes for Ellen Page in regards to Libby/Boltie (possibly the best sidekick ever). To make a long review short, let me sum up this way, everyone in the movie no matter the length of their part did an amazing job in their role. With that said, my only wish was that the story would have allowed for more screen time for Gregg Henry (Detective John Felkner) and a musical number for Fillion’s Holy Avenger. if you liked Fillion as Captain Hammer in Dr. Horrible’s Singalong Blog, then you’ll love him in this role. But those things would have most likely thrown off the perfect balance of action, humor and character interaction that made this movie so enjoyable.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Slither (2006) in Movies
Aug 14, 2019
Mixing elements of The Blob, The Fly, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Night of the Creeps and countless other horror films, the new Horror/Comedy Slither has oozed its way into theaters with a mix that will likely delight hardcore horror fans.
The film is set in a small southern town and features the usual mix of horror film stereotypes. There is the Chief of Police named Bill Pardy (Nathan Fillon) who watched over the sleepy town while secretly holding a torch for the lovely Starla Grant (Elizabeth Banks). The only issue is Starla’s older husband Grant (Michael Rooker), who is not only a very prosperous man, but took Starla in when she was younger and provided for her.
Of course there are also the stock characters of the loud and obnoxious Mayor of the town (Gregg Henry), who is more trouble than he is good and spouts a string of profanity and insensitive remarks that would make a Drill Instructor blush. Add to the mix the various assortments of yokels, deputies and towns folk, and you have a setting ripe for invasion.
The invasion arrives in the form of a meteor that breaks apart in the atmosphere save for a small segment that lands harmlessly in the woods. Unfortunately, an organism has hitched a ride on the meteor and in short order a parasitic organism has infected Grant causing him to exhibit odd behavior and have a ravenous desire for large amounts of meat in all forms.
Despite the changes, Grant still has his eye firmly on his wife and as the changes become more and more radical, he becomes even more fixated upon his wife.
Eventually Grant’s odd behavior and ongoing transformation has him on the run from the authorities who organize a manhunt to bring him in and end the carnage in his path.
Naturally things do not go as planned as before long there are hordes of slug like creatures unleashed upon the town whose entire purpose is to infect the town making zombies out of all who are infected.
As if all of this was not bad enough, Bill must figure out how to protect those uninfected people as well as search for a way to end the devastation at all cost.
Slither is a film that strives to blend horror and comedy but seems better suited to be a comedic send up of the horror genre. Unlike the “Scary Movie” series, it does not come in as a parody but rather presents itself as a horror film, yet one that seems devoid of any real suspense or frights. There is plenty of gore, violence, and other mayhem in the film, but at my advanced screenings the vast majority of the film garnered laughs from the audience rather than shrieks.
Since there were several segments of the film that were obviously intended to create laughs such as the zombie family trying to coax their uninfected daughter out of hiding by proclaiming she is missing out on family fun day, and a very gory, yet humorous outcome for a yokel who decides to stand down a very infected Grant armed only with a pistol.
James Gunn who did such a good job with the “Dawn of the Dead” lets it all out as writer and Director for Slither, but seems unsure if he is trying to make a comedy or a horror film with comedic elements. To me the film works best as a comedy as the over simplified resolution combined with the strained performances and simple plot as well as the genuine lack of any suspense or scares seriously undermined this film for me as a horror film.
That being said, if you look at the film as a gross out comedy set amidst a generic horror backdrop where the plot, acting, and other pitfalls were designed elements, then the film works.
If you are looking for a bad horror movie with some funny moments, than Slither may indeed be your thing, as it is either a very bad horror film, or one of the best satirical tributes of the genre to date. I choose to pick the latter.
The film is set in a small southern town and features the usual mix of horror film stereotypes. There is the Chief of Police named Bill Pardy (Nathan Fillon) who watched over the sleepy town while secretly holding a torch for the lovely Starla Grant (Elizabeth Banks). The only issue is Starla’s older husband Grant (Michael Rooker), who is not only a very prosperous man, but took Starla in when she was younger and provided for her.
Of course there are also the stock characters of the loud and obnoxious Mayor of the town (Gregg Henry), who is more trouble than he is good and spouts a string of profanity and insensitive remarks that would make a Drill Instructor blush. Add to the mix the various assortments of yokels, deputies and towns folk, and you have a setting ripe for invasion.
The invasion arrives in the form of a meteor that breaks apart in the atmosphere save for a small segment that lands harmlessly in the woods. Unfortunately, an organism has hitched a ride on the meteor and in short order a parasitic organism has infected Grant causing him to exhibit odd behavior and have a ravenous desire for large amounts of meat in all forms.
Despite the changes, Grant still has his eye firmly on his wife and as the changes become more and more radical, he becomes even more fixated upon his wife.
Eventually Grant’s odd behavior and ongoing transformation has him on the run from the authorities who organize a manhunt to bring him in and end the carnage in his path.
Naturally things do not go as planned as before long there are hordes of slug like creatures unleashed upon the town whose entire purpose is to infect the town making zombies out of all who are infected.
As if all of this was not bad enough, Bill must figure out how to protect those uninfected people as well as search for a way to end the devastation at all cost.
Slither is a film that strives to blend horror and comedy but seems better suited to be a comedic send up of the horror genre. Unlike the “Scary Movie” series, it does not come in as a parody but rather presents itself as a horror film, yet one that seems devoid of any real suspense or frights. There is plenty of gore, violence, and other mayhem in the film, but at my advanced screenings the vast majority of the film garnered laughs from the audience rather than shrieks.
Since there were several segments of the film that were obviously intended to create laughs such as the zombie family trying to coax their uninfected daughter out of hiding by proclaiming she is missing out on family fun day, and a very gory, yet humorous outcome for a yokel who decides to stand down a very infected Grant armed only with a pistol.
James Gunn who did such a good job with the “Dawn of the Dead” lets it all out as writer and Director for Slither, but seems unsure if he is trying to make a comedy or a horror film with comedic elements. To me the film works best as a comedy as the over simplified resolution combined with the strained performances and simple plot as well as the genuine lack of any suspense or scares seriously undermined this film for me as a horror film.
That being said, if you look at the film as a gross out comedy set amidst a generic horror backdrop where the plot, acting, and other pitfalls were designed elements, then the film works.
If you are looking for a bad horror movie with some funny moments, than Slither may indeed be your thing, as it is either a very bad horror film, or one of the best satirical tributes of the genre to date. I choose to pick the latter.
Andy K (10821 KP) Jul 22, 2018