Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

Sarah (7798 KP) rated Doom (2005) in Movies

Dec 19, 2019  
Doom (2005)
Doom (2005)
2005 | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
6
6.2 (22 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Entertainingly bad
Doom is one of those films that perfectly fits the "so bad it's good" category. It might be pretty ridiculously, but it's entertainingly so.

I vaguely know the game, aka watched my brother play it when we were younger as I was too scared to play it myself, so I can't really compare this to the game. As plots go it isn't a bad one although it's let down by a rather poor script and some questionable special effects at times - which arent helped by the fact that this film is nearly 15 years old! Alhough the horror aspect is quite good and there's a decent amount of gore. It's strange seeing Dwayne Johnson and Karl Urban in this as they both look so young! And it's good to see Johnson's acting skills have improved since this too... the cast overall are very good and decent, and it's a shame they're a little let down by other things in this film.

By far my favourite bit of this film though is when they recreate the game with the first person shooter scene. It's an absolute riot, so much fun and I almost wanted to mark this a little higher just because of this scene.
  
Spider in the Web (2019)
Spider in the Web (2019)
2019 | Thriller
Lacking of All Entertainment Value
An aging spy goes on one last mission of redemption. His mission: Make a horrible movie that you watch once and once only.

Acting: 10

Beginning: 1

Characters: 0

Cinematography/Visuals: 8

Conflict: 3

Entertainment Value: 4

Memorability: 1

Pace: 4

Plot: 6
The story is one of the best things about Spider in the Web. However, that’s not saying much. At its base, it still manages to get bogged down with confusion, not just with story but with character motivation as well. I spent just as much time successfully following along as I did scratching my head at some of its more confusing moments.

Resolution: 3
I think a huge part of why I hated the ending was because I was still lost by the time I got to it. What are the stakes? Why should I care? These are two simple questions that can make or break a movie if not answered correctly.

Overall: 40
Don’t let that 75% Rotten Tomatoes score fool you. In fact, you would be better served looking at the audience score. Spider In the Web is bad. Real bad. Not All About Steve bad, but enough for me to say it’s a total waste of almost two hours to sit through it.
  
Bare-Knuckle Love (Rabid Mongrels MC #1)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I've been having a hard time getting into books lately--both paperback and e-book--so I decided to go and download some free short stories of Amazon, and this was one of them.

Admittedly, I'm a little wary of what they might be like. I've read some good freebies and I've read some pretty bad freebies. Luckily this falls into the first category for me.

First off, it made me cry twice. That very rarely happens in most M/M stories I read and the fact that it's rather dark in places--more like patches--makes it extra unusual. But I really liked their story and how their romance came about. Anyway, the first time was the dog thing. The second, it was Jason's thought in the last fight.

Secondly. There was a darkness to it but I really liked Hyde. The way he sort of tried to stop too bad a thing happening to Jason after he lost them the money made me melt a little. It was sweet. He might have been President of the MC but he wasn't an altogether bad guy.

Thirdly. Just how despite it being a short story I was a sucker for the romance between these two guys.

I look forward to more instalments with these two.
  
SAS: Red Notice (2021)
SAS: Red Notice (2021)
2021 | Action
The *potential* of the cast (0 more)
The script is dire: awful dialogue (1 more)
A truly wasted cast
Psycho vs Psycho: but poorly delivered
Oh my word, SAS: Red Notice is disappointing.

A really interesting cast, and the opportunity to do a mix of "Die Hard", "Daylight" and the finale of "Mission Impossible". And a novel take of 'good psychopath' vs 'bad psychopath'. But it's just so poorly delivered.

True that some of the McNab-guided action scenes feel refreshingly authentic. But the script is clunkingly bad (a discussion with a French girl on top of the train... #shudder) and there are story segues that shock (in a bad way): at one point our hero (Sam Huegen - most recently very good as Paul Newman in "For Olivia") walks out of a French vineyard into a winter wonderland with 6 inches of snow! Did I miss the wardrobe???!

After "Twist" this is yet another dire Sky Original movie, this time with a wasted cast. In particular, BAFTA Rising Star Noel Clarke needs to start making better film choices before getting a reputation for being in duffers.

(For the full graphical review, please check out One Mann's Movies here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/03/13/sas-red-notice-another-sky-original-duffer/ ).
  
Species II (1998)
Species II (1998)
1998 | Mystery, Sci-Fi
4
4.8 (5 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Species II adds more of everything that made the first one such a success, but unfortunately with lesser results.

It obviously has a bigger budget this time around, the spaceships in the opening shots look pretty decent (even if they are plastered with product placement), it's has noticeably more gore, more nudity, more tentacles flying out of nipples, more Marg Helgenberger, more full body shots of the aliens, but have no doubt, this sequel is the epitome of guilty pleasure trash - it's obviously a bad film, but is so much goddam fun.
The bad CGI is a slight improvement on the first film, but I can respect the numerous practical effects in use, and the aliens seen near the end look both silly and quite horrific (good old H.R. Giger). The dialogue leaves a lot to be desired, but when you have lines like "They could fuck the human race into extinction" being thrown around, it hard to not ironically enjoy yourself.

Ultimately, Species II is a worse film than it's predecessor (which is hardly a masterpiece in the first place) but it's loud, dumb, gory, sci-fi action that equates to that age old saying - it's so bad, it's kind of good.
  
The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go (1970)
The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go (1970)
1970 | Thriller
3
3.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
'It'll make you think of Dr No!' promises the poster for this almost indescribable comedy-thriller written and directed by Burgess Meredith. It didn't make me think of Dr No: it made me think of what it must be like to take hallucinogenic drugs while suffering from a bad case of the flu. The details of the plot are almost enough to defeat the English language - suffice to say that the key turning point in the story comes when the Buddha (who also narrates the story) uses his mystic powers to turn villainous Chinese-Mexican Mr Go (James Mason - yes, it's James Mason trying to play a Chinese-Mexican) into a benevolent philanthropist.

It's not just that the film is bizarre and incoherent, with plenty of gratuitous nudity, and European actors cheerfully playing Asian characters: it's also that the production values are incredibly primitive. It's almost like watching pornography without the sex (or so I would imagine). Not one element of this film is robust enough to elevate it into 'so bad it's funny' territory. It's just bad. That said, Jeff Bridges made his film debut in it, which presumably goes to show that even the least promising starts can lead to a distinguished career. But even so - for masochists and the troubled only.
  
The Lost Tapes 2 by Nas
The Lost Tapes 2 by Nas
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Rating
Nas is a legendary emcee from Queensbridge, New York. Not too long ago, he released a lavish audiovisual for his “No Bad Energy” single, released via Mass Appeal Records.

“I’m oblivious to you skeptics. What you hear you ain’t ever hear ’til I repped it. Iridescent heroes essence, please clear the exits. I chase demons outdoors, force ’em to hear the message, air ’em out. Heard some people discussing my whereabouts. Yeah, it’s been a few sightings of me, a fair amount. Never seen much, but yet I’m never in the house. Move in style, wild, exciting when I do step out.” – lyrics

‘No Bad Energy’ finds an introspective Nas detailing facts about his legendary status, his brother Jungle’s musical success, and the sacrifices his father had to make to make ends meet.

Later, he raps about other rappers who rap about other people’s lives. They never shot anyone but be shooting people in their rhymes.

Also, Nas drops gems like, “What doesn’t come out in the wash comes out in the rinse”, and “Whoever put you in the position to have a say-so should be questioned them self.”

‘No Bad Energy’ is featured on Nas’ “The Lost Tapes 2” album.
  
40x40

Awix (3310 KP) rated Jason and the Argonauts (1963) in Movies

Oct 5, 2019 (Updated Oct 5, 2019)  
Jason and the Argonauts (1963)
Jason and the Argonauts (1963)
1963 | Fantasy
Corny but much-loved mythological fantasy film. Jason and his men go in search of a magic sheepskin, occasionally with the aid of the gods but without the assistance of modern special effects. A strong, mostly British cast do the usual sterling work while imported stars Todd Armstrong and Nancy Kovack stand around being obviously dubbed.

The script is, to be honest, all over the place: it's episodic, the writers seem to have been making it up as they went (the most memorable character wanders out of the movie half way through), and Jason doesn't actually complete the mission he sets himself at the start (maybe they were hoping for a sequel). However, for a bad movie this has some of the most wonderful special effects ever put on celluloid, namely Ray Harryhausen's brilliant hand-crafted animation. Any amount of stodgy non-acting and dubious costume design would be a small price to pay for sequences like the ones with the bronze titan Talos, the Hydra, or the mob of skeletons at the end (the skeleton battle is such a breathtaking achievement it should really be playing on loop in art galleries around the world). They don't make them like this any more. Even the bad bits are kind of bad in a good way.
  
40x40

Andy K (10821 KP) Oct 5, 2019

I need to watch this again!

    Rabbit - Habit Reminders

    Rabbit - Habit Reminders

    Productivity and Lifestyle

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    Drink more water! Stand up straight! Take a walk! We all want to develop good habits, but sometimes...