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The Last Man on Earth (1964)
The Last Man on Earth (1964)
1964 | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
9
7.1 (8 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Vincent Price (0 more)
What It Takes To Survive
The Last Man on Earth- is a excellent, fantasic, phenomenal movie. Thats all about surviving and survival. Being the only human alive. The Last man alive. And Vincent Price is that man and he is perfect and excellent. He usually plays a villian, now you see him as a anti hero, someone good, but bad.

The plot: The survivor (Vincent Price) of a global epidemic battles a race of zombie vampires in an adaptation of Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend."

This film is based on the 1954 novel I Am Legend by Richard Matheson. Which would be later a film that would star Will Smith in 2007. A underrared film.

This film is excellent and fantasic. Plus you have Vincent Pricr which is a huge plus in my books.
  
Tower of London (1962)
Tower of London (1962)
1962 | Horror
8
5.3 (3 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Vincent Price (0 more)
Haunted Memories
Did you know that Vincent Price appeared in the 1939 version of "Tower of London" with Boris Karloff and Basil Rathbone. I thought that was intresting. Anyways this version adds the horror element to it mixed with historical drama and it does a good job. The drama added with the horror combines well.

The plot: In 15th-century England, Richard III (Vincent Price) desperately wants the throne, but his ailing brother, King Edward IV (Justice Watson), instead bestows it upon his other sibling, Clarence (Richard McCauly). This sends Richard into a homicidal rage, resulting in Clarence's murder and the deaths and torture of many others who could keep the crown from the crazed man. But as the mayhem continues, Richard's sanity slips, and the ghosts of the murdered men begin to haunt the beleaguered royal.

Aside from the historical setting, the movie is not connected to the 1939 film of the same name, starring Price, Basil Rathbone and Boris Karloff.

The movie was meant to be the first of a three-picture contract between Corman and Small. Corman later called the movie:

"The most foolish thing I’ve ever filmed. Every night he [Small] would come to see me or call me. The script was changed, reworked without my consent. Lots of strange things were happening all the time, and finally I asked him to tear up our contract. He realized he wouldn’t get anything worthwhile out of me and tore it up. I have nothing against Eddie Small. He’s an old man who had lots of success during the thirties, and who doesn’t know that times have changed".

I thought it was a really good film.
  
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Lee (2222 KP) rated Greed (2019) in Movies

Jan 29, 2020  
Greed (2019)
Greed (2019)
2019 | Comedy, Drama
5
7.0 (4 Ratings)
Movie Rating
On the Greek island of Mykonos, preparations are well underway for the lavish Gladiator themed 60th birthday party of multi-millionaire and 'king of the high-street', Sir Richard 'Greedy' McCreadie (Steve Coogan). A journalist turned biographer (David Mitchell) is on hand to document McCreadie's life story and some of his interviews with various acquaintances and family members combine with present day events to form a mockumentary style movie which gives us a closer look at how he went from ruthless young schoolboy to ruthless self-made millionaire.

It's 5 days until the party. Construction on a huge wooden Colosseum is progressing slowly, and a nearby caged lion is to be involved in a series of gladiator themed games for the event. Although, as McCreadies moody teenage son (Asa Butterworth) snarkily points out, it was actually tigers that featured in the movie Gladiator and not lions. Discussions are also taking place as to where the firework display will be and where Fatboy Slim and Coldplay will be performing, overseen by McCreadie himself, all fake tan and bright white teeth. His first wife (Isla Fisher) arrives with her new partner and everyone is under pressure to be ready in time.

We're taken right back to the beginning and Richards public school years. A rather unpleasant young Richard (Jamie Blackley) is back-chatting his teachers and playing cards with the other students for money. When his mother (Shirley Henderson) is called into the school, there is a heated exchange in the headmasters office and Richard ends up leaving the school. We then follow him out into the big wide world, wheeling and dealing in the fashion business, confident and persistent until he has managed to land himself a small shop and enough stock to start undercutting some of his nearby rivals. It's not long until Richard is heading out to Sri Lanka, meeting up with sweatshop managers in order to play them off against each other for the lowest possible price in order to secure himself a huge profit. As Richard grows up into the version played by Coogan, there continues to be a steady stream of different clothing shops, big ideas, dodgy deals and plenty of mishaps for him to tackle in what are some of the films funnier scenes.

Greed takes a real scatter-gun approach to plots and scenes, which for the most part don't really work. There is a completely pointless and dull subplot involving a reality TV show that's being filmed on and around the beach, with another concerning a group of Syrian refugees who have the cheek to be camped out on the beach where the party is due to take place. We zip back and forth in time, occasionally dipping into a hearing regarding Sir Richard's tax avoidance antics over the years and there's never really enough time, or enough of a decent script, to make any of it very interesting or funny. The character of McCreadie, who is clearly loosely based on Topshop CEO Philip Green, is basically just a variation of Alan Partridge, slightly different voice, some extra swearing and anger thrown in, only less funny. The movie even features Tim "Sidekick Simon" Key from the Partridge shows as an exasperated employee, trying to keep the building of the Colosseum on track with a diminishing workforce. There are plenty of celebrity cameos shoehorned in too and the whole thing is just very hit and miss. But mostly miss.

Greed concludes by showing us some pretty sobering facts and figures. We're informed that the 26 richest men in the world hold more wealth than that of the 3.6 billion poorest combined. We learn just how little the women in countries such as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh earn in return for their long days putting together high street clothes, while the biggest names in retail turnover millions in profits each year. And we hear about the plight of the Syrian refugees trying to make their way to Greece. The greed and injustice of it all really hits home, and it does so far more effectively here than during the the rest of the movie.
  
All of Me (1984)
All of Me (1984)
1984 | Comedy, Sci-Fi
Wonderful physical comedy performance by Martin
Over the history of cinema, there are certain Director/Lead Actor pairings that are perfect for each other. John Ford/John Wayne, Alfred Hitchcock/Jimmy Stewart, Martin Scorcese/Robert DeNiro, Steven Spielberg/Tom Hanks all come to mind. Add to that the inspired comedic pairing of Director Carl Reiner and the great Steve Martin.

Starting with THE JERK (1979), Martin and Reiner would make 4 films together the last of which was the 1984 comedy ALL OF ME starring Martin and Lilly Tomlin. And like all Reiner/Martin comedies this one is smartly written with heart and a physically comedic performance by Martin that must be seen to believed.

Martin stars as Lawyer Martin Cobb, an aspiring musician who views his lawyer job as a means to support his dream of becoming a musician. Lilly Tomlin co-stars as one of Martin's clients - a dour, serious millionaire who's dying wish is to have her soul transferred into the body of a younger woman. When the transfer goes wrong, Tomlin finds herself inside Martin's body and the two polar opposites spar each other whilst inside the same body.

A pretty ridiculous premise that is executed wonderfully under the watchful Direction of Reiner. He pushes the premise far - but not too far - focusing (wisely) most of the attention of this movie on Martin and his body's maniacal behavior as both Martin and Tomlin wrestle for control of his body.

Martin, of course, is perfectly cast in a role that was tailor made for him. His physical comedy skills are well used by Reiner and the scene of Martin walking down the street in control of the left side of his body while Tomlin is in control of the right side of his body is worth the price of admission right there. But Martin brings a heart and warmth to his character as well as his well known personae of a person who thinks he is the only sane one in the room - where, in fact, he is the INSANE one.

Tomlin fares less well in her role - being trapped (literally) inside Martin's body and is only seen as reflections in a mirror. Here character is the polar opposite of Martin's, so while Martin is "wild and crazy", she is dour and buttoned up - and this doesn't do her any favors.

Special notice needs to be made of Richard Libertini's turn as Prahka Lasa, the well-meaning "yogi" who is the conduit of the body switching soul. His limited English, earnest and well meaning almost steals the film from Martin.

All in all, an enjoyable evening at the movies which showcases Reiner's ability as a Director and Martin's ability as a gifted, physical comedian very well.

Letter Grade: B+

7 1/2 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)