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Learning from Las Vegas
Robert Venturi, Denise Scott Brown and Steven Izenour
Book
Upon its publication by the MIT Press in 1972, Learning from Las Vegas was immediately influential...
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated My Bloody Valentine 3-D (2009) in Movies
Jan 13, 2021
One of the avalanche of classic horror remakes to surface during the 00s, My Bloody Valentine (in "spectacular" 3D of course) isn't the worst of them by a long shot, but it still suffers from the soul-less-ness that the majority of them seem all to keen to pack in.
Its certainly more action packed and gory than it's 80s older sibling. The violence on display packs a punch for sure, some of it looks great, some of its looks terrible. The Harry Warden killer, much like the Michaels and Jasons of this remake era, is more of a machine than before. Relentless, brutal, faster, and pretty intimidating as far as these things go. It also packs in a fair amount of character development, which is a nice touch that gives the whole narrative some much needed gravitas, and the cast all do a good job with the by-the-numbers slasher-remake screenplay, with highlights being Jaime King and the ever reliable Tom Atkins.
You know how these things go though, and the simple fact is that this do over isn't as good as the original. It lacks the realness and charm (there's that word again) that the original had. There's a twist near the end that is designed to pull the rug out from under fans of the original, and it's actually a pretty interesting one, albeit executed poorly, and requires the viewer to really suspend disbelief in order to glaze over some gaping plot holes.
All in all, it's gory and fun enough to easily pass a couple of hours, and manages to feel like a homage to the original, rather than a straight up copy, and that I can respect, but ultimately, it's not a strong argument for the case of remakes.
Its certainly more action packed and gory than it's 80s older sibling. The violence on display packs a punch for sure, some of it looks great, some of its looks terrible. The Harry Warden killer, much like the Michaels and Jasons of this remake era, is more of a machine than before. Relentless, brutal, faster, and pretty intimidating as far as these things go. It also packs in a fair amount of character development, which is a nice touch that gives the whole narrative some much needed gravitas, and the cast all do a good job with the by-the-numbers slasher-remake screenplay, with highlights being Jaime King and the ever reliable Tom Atkins.
You know how these things go though, and the simple fact is that this do over isn't as good as the original. It lacks the realness and charm (there's that word again) that the original had. There's a twist near the end that is designed to pull the rug out from under fans of the original, and it's actually a pretty interesting one, albeit executed poorly, and requires the viewer to really suspend disbelief in order to glaze over some gaping plot holes.
All in all, it's gory and fun enough to easily pass a couple of hours, and manages to feel like a homage to the original, rather than a straight up copy, and that I can respect, but ultimately, it's not a strong argument for the case of remakes.
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) in Movies
Sep 28, 2021
Wowee! From the ridiculous to the sublime. This is how to make a Star Trek movie! If you were trying to bring back the action and fun of the original TV series, then what better than to bring back one of the original villains in a sequel to that story? And being able to cast the original actor (Ricardo Montalban) is just perfect.
Nicholas Meyer also clearly had the same frustrations about that first movie. The film barely pauses for breath. Interestingly, it clearly reuses footage from the original movie in travelling to the Enterprise in space dock, but cuts that 6 minute special-effects-porn-fest to about 20 seconds! It’s a striking comparison!
The movie “introduces” Kirstie (“Cheers”) Alley as Vulcan officer Saavik (although she was in a student-made feature the year before). She makes quite an impression. Also new to the series is Merritt Buttrick, playing Kirk’s son David. Sadly, like Khambatta from the last film, his Trek-voyage was to be short lived. Although he appeared in Star Trek III, he died of Aids just three years later.
The movie is also notable for launching the late James Horner onto the world stage as a leading film composer. Horner cleverly associates the “ship” in starship with a roistering seafaring motif that would be equally at home in a Hornblower movie as it is here. I remember leaving the cinema when this was released and heading STRAIGHT into HMV to buy the vinyl soundtrack!
There are very few things I can find to critique in this movie. It all holds up pretty well, even after nearly 40 years (MAN, I FEEL OLD NOW!) The only scene that perhaps grates with modern sensitivities is in the (supposedly comic) “lady driver” reactions from Kirk.
Nicholas Meyer also clearly had the same frustrations about that first movie. The film barely pauses for breath. Interestingly, it clearly reuses footage from the original movie in travelling to the Enterprise in space dock, but cuts that 6 minute special-effects-porn-fest to about 20 seconds! It’s a striking comparison!
The movie “introduces” Kirstie (“Cheers”) Alley as Vulcan officer Saavik (although she was in a student-made feature the year before). She makes quite an impression. Also new to the series is Merritt Buttrick, playing Kirk’s son David. Sadly, like Khambatta from the last film, his Trek-voyage was to be short lived. Although he appeared in Star Trek III, he died of Aids just three years later.
The movie is also notable for launching the late James Horner onto the world stage as a leading film composer. Horner cleverly associates the “ship” in starship with a roistering seafaring motif that would be equally at home in a Hornblower movie as it is here. I remember leaving the cinema when this was released and heading STRAIGHT into HMV to buy the vinyl soundtrack!
There are very few things I can find to critique in this movie. It all holds up pretty well, even after nearly 40 years (MAN, I FEEL OLD NOW!) The only scene that perhaps grates with modern sensitivities is in the (supposedly comic) “lady driver” reactions from Kirk.
Lee (2222 KP) rated Blair Witch (2016) in Movies
Aug 14, 2017
Yeah, I preferred this to the original...
The original Blair Witch movie came out in 1999 (wow, where has the time gone?!) in the good old days when you could get hold of a US DVD import in the UK before a movie was even released on UK cinema screens. I remember The Blair Witch Project being released in the UK on Halloween, the same day that the US DVD was delivered to my house! I excitedly sat down to watch it that evening with my family while everyone else had to go out in the cold rainy weather to watch it at the cinema, and I remember at the end of the movie we all kind of looked at each other as if to say “is that it…?!” All the hype, all the usual crap about it being absolutely terrifying and the scariest movie ever made and it was just a bunch of people getting spooked in the woods! To be fair, it wasn’t that bad, but it just wasn’t as scary or as fantastic as we’d been led to believe. The movie spawned a forgettable sequel and since then, despite being done to death, far superior found footage movies have come along and done it all a hell of a lot better. Then, out of the blue in July last year, a movie which had been previously marketed as ‘The Woods’ was revealed to actually be ‘Blair Witch’. The trailer looked OK, not great but interesting enough. But, once again we’re being subjected to all the usual marketing crap about it being terrifying and the scariest thing you’ve ever seen… blah, blah, blah…
James Donahue is the brother of Heather, who was one of the central characters in the first film. We join him 22 years after the original, as he prepares to lead a new bunch of characters into the Burkittsville woods. They meet up with a couple of young locals, who offer to be their guide, and off they head, into the woods where their video footage will later be discovered. This time round, the array of cameras capturing the footage has vastly improved. As well as the standard handhelds, we’ve got ear piece cams, drone cams, night cams. All offering new and interesting ways to capture the action.
Things mostly follow a similar path to the original – strange noises, weird stuff happening with time, thinking you’re heading in one direction when you’re going around in circles, juddery camera movements where it’s difficult to tell what the hell is going on. But… you do actually see things this time, the noises that you hear are terrifying, the characters are far more interesting and believable than those in the original. And the final act when we find ourselves back in the house from the first movie is seriously the stuff of nightmares.
Director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett, both have an excellent recent track record (see You’re Next and The Guest) and their influence on this movie has taken this story to another level. This is a far superior movie to the original and yes, it is truly terrifying.
James Donahue is the brother of Heather, who was one of the central characters in the first film. We join him 22 years after the original, as he prepares to lead a new bunch of characters into the Burkittsville woods. They meet up with a couple of young locals, who offer to be their guide, and off they head, into the woods where their video footage will later be discovered. This time round, the array of cameras capturing the footage has vastly improved. As well as the standard handhelds, we’ve got ear piece cams, drone cams, night cams. All offering new and interesting ways to capture the action.
Things mostly follow a similar path to the original – strange noises, weird stuff happening with time, thinking you’re heading in one direction when you’re going around in circles, juddery camera movements where it’s difficult to tell what the hell is going on. But… you do actually see things this time, the noises that you hear are terrifying, the characters are far more interesting and believable than those in the original. And the final act when we find ourselves back in the house from the first movie is seriously the stuff of nightmares.
Director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett, both have an excellent recent track record (see You’re Next and The Guest) and their influence on this movie has taken this story to another level. This is a far superior movie to the original and yes, it is truly terrifying.
Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated The Quatermass Experiment (2005) in Movies
Sep 14, 2020
The first U.K. Maned mission to space vanishes off course only to return with two two of it's three crew missing and the third unable to communicate. As Professor Quatermass and his team try to find out what happened they discover that they come to realise that the rocket may have returned with more than they first thought.
As remakes go This one is quite good, it follows the same basic script as the original and the modernisation (mostly) works. The film doesn't go for much in the way of monster effects, relying instead on building atmosphere and tension which helps it keep the feel of the original 1955 version. It also helps that the original writer, Nigel Kneale, was also consulted on this remake.
This version of the film does have a very (modern) British feel to it which is mostly from the fact that is was made by the BBC so has actors that have appeared in other BBC sic Fi shows, most noticeably David Tennant and Mark Gatiss.
I do have a couple of problems with this film though, firstly the main set, used though tout the first half of the film does look to much like a,well film set. The hospital ward, MoD offices and press conference room all appear to be in the same building and, in fact in one scene, the camera pans from one room to the next making the whole thing look as if it was set up in a warehouse or large stage, which it probability was for filming but you shouldn't realy notice that in the finished film.
The other issue was some of the costumes. The film seems to be set in time it was filmed (2007) but some of the costumes don't seem to fit. One reporter looks like a 'teddy boy' whilst one looks like she's from the 20's and there's a scene with 80's/90's looking goths (Yes I know there are still goths but the look has changed a bit through the decades, as with most looks).
I can't quite work out if the remake looses anything from the original, in some ways the threat seems bigger but the ending seems less climatic. The final scene takes place in an art gallery instead of a church but this is due to a slight change in some of the symbology in the film (and probably because the BBC have had complainants when they have blown up churches in the past).
The original had scenes that stuck with me ( I was quite young when i first saw it) and I feel that the remake doesn't have this effect, although that could just be my age now. However the remake does up the tension and it does feel that there is more riding on Quatermass' success
Apart from those points the film is good. Fans of the original will recognise it for what it is but new views won't need any knowledge of the original to watch it.
As remakes go This one is quite good, it follows the same basic script as the original and the modernisation (mostly) works. The film doesn't go for much in the way of monster effects, relying instead on building atmosphere and tension which helps it keep the feel of the original 1955 version. It also helps that the original writer, Nigel Kneale, was also consulted on this remake.
This version of the film does have a very (modern) British feel to it which is mostly from the fact that is was made by the BBC so has actors that have appeared in other BBC sic Fi shows, most noticeably David Tennant and Mark Gatiss.
I do have a couple of problems with this film though, firstly the main set, used though tout the first half of the film does look to much like a,well film set. The hospital ward, MoD offices and press conference room all appear to be in the same building and, in fact in one scene, the camera pans from one room to the next making the whole thing look as if it was set up in a warehouse or large stage, which it probability was for filming but you shouldn't realy notice that in the finished film.
The other issue was some of the costumes. The film seems to be set in time it was filmed (2007) but some of the costumes don't seem to fit. One reporter looks like a 'teddy boy' whilst one looks like she's from the 20's and there's a scene with 80's/90's looking goths (Yes I know there are still goths but the look has changed a bit through the decades, as with most looks).
I can't quite work out if the remake looses anything from the original, in some ways the threat seems bigger but the ending seems less climatic. The final scene takes place in an art gallery instead of a church but this is due to a slight change in some of the symbology in the film (and probably because the BBC have had complainants when they have blown up churches in the past).
The original had scenes that stuck with me ( I was quite young when i first saw it) and I feel that the remake doesn't have this effect, although that could just be my age now. However the remake does up the tension and it does feel that there is more riding on Quatermass' success
Apart from those points the film is good. Fans of the original will recognise it for what it is but new views won't need any knowledge of the original to watch it.
Dr Dystopian (526 KP) rated Netflix in Apps
Jan 8, 2018 (Updated Jan 8, 2018)
Wide variety of content (3 more)
Netflix original content
Replacement of services like sky
Ease of use
Price increases especially for 4k content (1 more)
Can have a lot of lower quality content at times
Best on demand service in the UK
A great app that is a perfect substitution for main stream cable or satellite services that isgreat for watching what you want when you want and is a fraction of the price without being limited to a single location.
Tonnes to choose from and plenty of Netflix original content that keeps getting better and better.
The only negatives are that there have been some price rises and that in order to have 4k services you have to take the top package which is designed for 4 concurrent users, a 2 user 4k service would have been a nice option.
Tonnes to choose from and plenty of Netflix original content that keeps getting better and better.
The only negatives are that there have been some price rises and that in order to have 4k services you have to take the top package which is designed for 4 concurrent users, a 2 user 4k service would have been a nice option.
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Halloween (2018) in Movies
Feb 28, 2019
Michael Myers is back but unfortunately for him so is Laurie Strode!
Contains spoilers, click to show
I was on board with this as soon as I saw the trailer showing a more grizzled badass Laurie and that really is the highlight of this film. There are 2 twists in this film. 1 is quite unnecessary but leads to quite a glorious head squash which is the standout bit of gore. The second twist is excellent, paying homage to the original we get scenes similar to those from the first but roles reversed so that Laurie takes Michael's place and is stalking him showing her evolution from victim to prepared survivor/hunter. So yeah not a perfect film but a really solid effort. Hopefully leads to a new run of films with Laurie and her brood.
Another dull Netflix original
I really would like to find a Netflix original film that is actually impressively good, but I'm afraid this seems to be impossible and sadly IO is no different.
End of the world scenarios are nothing new, although this at least finds a more interesting and unique take on what happens to us all when the earth dies. And it has a decent (yet very minimal) cast too. The problem is that the film doesn't really seem to go anywhere and when it does, its dull and predictable. It's only on for 90 minutes but it plods along at such a dredgingly slow pace and nothing really happens. Its taken a promising premise and turned it into a rather boring film, which is a shame as with a little more excitement and action this could've been much better.
End of the world scenarios are nothing new, although this at least finds a more interesting and unique take on what happens to us all when the earth dies. And it has a decent (yet very minimal) cast too. The problem is that the film doesn't really seem to go anywhere and when it does, its dull and predictable. It's only on for 90 minutes but it plods along at such a dredgingly slow pace and nothing really happens. Its taken a promising premise and turned it into a rather boring film, which is a shame as with a little more excitement and action this could've been much better.
The Craggus (360 KP) rated Dumbo (2019) in Movies
Apr 4, 2019
Dumbo (2019) has a surprisingly metatextual moral for the House of Mouse
In seeking to carve out something new for this reimagining, Director Tim Burton – and screenwriter Ehren Kruger – find themselves leaning too heavily on the original version early on, racing through its main plot points in a brisk half-hour blighted by too many things which happen because they happened in the original story. It’s all a little bit inorganic, feeling rushed and forced in order to get us to the point where we’re telling a new story. A plethora of supporting characters are introduced but then barely used and while this version broadly switches the focus of the story away from the animals and on to the humans, those humans remain as crudely drawn and superficial as the forgettable background characters of the 1941 animation...
FULL REVIEW: http://bit.ly/CraggusDumbo19
FULL REVIEW: http://bit.ly/CraggusDumbo19
Dean (6925 KP) rated Fast & Furious (2009) in Movies
Jun 28, 2018
Original cast members (1 more)
Cool cars
Back on track
At last the majority of the original cast are back for a true sequel. It's great how some of the film relates back to what happened in the first and some of the locations are still the same. I heard mixed reviews of this but I thought it was great and the 2nd best in the series now after the first. Even Han from Tokyo drift makes a brief appearance at the start to tie things in a bit. There is plenty of action and cool cars and a great street race scene thats better than the 1/4 mile race of the first. There are rumours there could be a couple more yet, if they get the cast to stay together and a good story it could make for an even better film.