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A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985)
1985 | Horror
There are a whole bunch of reasons to love this sequel to one of the most iconic horrors of all time.
From the get go, it deserves respect for trying something different. It doesn't just rinse and repeat the events of the original, with the whole possession plot being an inspired direction to take.
Mark Patton as lead character Jesse is an absolute riot to watch. He will go from suave ladies man, to high pitched screaming and sweaty scream queen in an instant. The homo-erotic undertones are hilariously brilliant, and make for a breath of fresh air in a genre, from an era, that was usually awash in a sea of boobs.
The supporting characters are all pretty likable as well, giving the audience an entertaining cast to watch when the big bad isn't on screen. Talking of which, Robert Englund's Freddy Krueger is pretty damn intimidating in this one, and is the subject of some all timer shots for the franchise.
The practical effects, especially in Jesse's transformation scene are quite something as well.

All in all, Freddy's Revenge is an over the top and enjoyable sequel and deserves more love than it gets!
  
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Darren Fisher (2454 KP) Aug 10, 2021

Spot on review. An underrated classic.

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Tommy Wiseau recommended Casablanca (1942) in Movies (curated)

 
Casablanca (1942)
Casablanca (1942)
1942 | Drama, Romance, War

"Casablanca. You see, Casablanca remind me what we have within The Room, some of the phrases. For example, I say, “Oh, you make my day,” or, “You are tearing me apart,” or whatever. I’m talking about the other movie as well, just paraphrasing some of those phrases. You see, The Room, people never give us credit, okay? And now everything turn around because people now, and especially the critic, which can be very tough as you probably… Including your company. But, again, let me explain something here. Hopefully you guys print this. Please don’t misquote me, but it’s nothing wrong to criticize anyone, included film, play, whatever. But it is wrong when people started doing not just a critique but get into sort of hatred mode. You know what I’m saying? So I think it’s very important to understand the structure what I present, related to The Room now, I presented 14 years ago, based on my vision, which people did not expect it, this kind of vision, because it was, basically, it was different cookie cutter from Hollywood. I said this many times, but as you know, I’ve been ignored but fans embrace that."

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Andy Gill recommended Good Times by Chic in Music (curated)

 
Good Times by Chic
Good Times by Chic
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I love the production, how they orchestrated those grooves. And Bernard Edwards was a genius bass player, how he came up with that riff that's so often copied. Again, it was just their interpretation of black American funk music. Those guys were supposed to produce the fourth [Gang Of Four] album. And I'd met with him, Bernard Edwards; by the time we'd got to the fourth album, he had died at that point. But I'd met with Nile Rodgers a couple of times, talking about doing a Gang Of Four record. And while that process was going on, Bowie's Let's Dance came out. So not unreasonably they asked for an extra per cent or something, you know, because their stock had just gone up a lot, which I thought was to be expected. But my manager said, ""Oh, we can't do that"", and I feel fairly confident that he was taking a backhander from the people who did do it in the end. I think Hard could have been great. As it was, there were some great songs on that album, but the production doesn't quite get it right."

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Sean Lennon recommended Shakara/London Scene by Fela Kuti in Music (curated)

 
Shakara/London Scene by Fela Kuti
Shakara/London Scene by Fela Kuti
2000 | World
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"The thing that blows my mind about Fela's records is that he can just write two 15 minute songs, and they don't feel at all indulgent. It's all in one key but it never bores you. The tension is like slow, tantric sex, it just builds and builds. He knows how to capture a vibe and hold it tight so the intensity keeps building before it explodes. I don't know why 'Lady' is my favourite track, but personally it hits me really hard. I listen to it all the time, and I find the lyrics really entertaining too. It's his version of a feminist album I guess, he's talking about how 'the woman eats the meat before the man…' I guess that's a symbol of liberation. Meanwhile he has his nine wives singing the backing vocals. He's more than a musician, he's a superman. He almost took over Nigeria and his compound was a separate city, he had his own laws, it's amazing that music can be that powerful. I'm a huge fan of his, He's an example of how music can almost start a revolution."

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Method Man recommended Frailty (2002) in Movies (curated)

 
Frailty (2002)
Frailty (2002)
2002 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller

"I love that movie. I love the premise behind it. I love how we all thought that the father was insane, and then it pays off in the end. I don’t want to put spoilers in there for people who haven’t seen the movie. Great freakin’ movie.The bottom line is, any time you put Powers Boothe in a movie… This f—in’ guy, man. I just love Powers Boothe. I don’t care what you put him in. When he was on Deadwood, he killed it; Sin City, whatever. He was the best part of Sin City 2, if you ask me.Just the premise of God instructing this man, and do we really believe that this guy is talking to God? Is it true? Is this some form of abuse with these kids? They even did something from the Bible: “He gave his life so that his son could live,” type of thing. There’s so many levels to that freakin’ movie, man. And [Bill] Paxton did an excellent job. First time directing a movie. Oh, and the “God’s Hand” killer. I love that name, too."

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People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm by A Tribe Called Quest
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm by A Tribe Called Quest
1990 | Hip-hop, Rap
1.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"This 1990 masterpiece is very much a travel album. It has all the hallmarks and some of the pitfalls of a life on the road: the single 'I Left my wallet in El Segundo' is a case in point. The advice lyric 'I don't eat no ham'n'eggs cuz they're high in cholesterol' in the classic cut 'Ham'n'eggs' is another highly unusual call and response rhyme - but again paints a true picture of the perils of a road life spent in diners. Over the course of the album we visit Lucien in Paris and traverse around the world of music with a zillion samples of classic sixties and seventies rock and soul albums. It's always optimistic and wide eyed - the best way to travel. I was talking to my friend Ben the other day about how this is my favorite Tribe album - (most people seem to prefer The Low End Theory?) - but I learned so much about music through this record - The songs are great and it's one of those albums that drags you into a different universe and world view and changes you for the better."

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Message from the Country by The Move
Message from the Country by The Move
1971 | Psychedelic
6.5 (2 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I love Roy Wood. Once again, we're talking about songs. He couldn't be constrained; he had to be different. He wouldn't just grow his hair and look like a troll, he'd dye it purple. He'd always take things one step too far. We worked with him, playing at Irving Plaza in New York, and we told him we'd had a hit with 'California Man'. "Well, I want to do my version." Hell, do our version! Roy was obtuse, while Jeff Lynne was more of a rocksteady kind of guy, which I think is why Jeff ended up being more successful, because they're both talented beyond belief. Two guys from Birmingham: "Let's work together!" The next day: "Maybe not such a great idea!" Because Roy would want to have 80 saxophonists, and they'd have to be girls. The difference between Roy and Jeff is that Jeff would want to have a band who could get out there every weekend. Roy's his own worst enemy: he's the most underappreciated of the pop geniuses, but not by me. But if he were any more successful he'd never talk to me."

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Laetitia Sadier recommended Creekside by Lori Goldston in Music (curated)

 
Creekside by Lori Goldston
Creekside by Lori Goldston
2014 | Alternative, Indie
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I saw her at a Mississippi Records evening at Café Oto. I went there because the guy from Mississippi Records had somehow inherited 700 hours of footage by a man who woke up one morning, I think in the 80s when the technology of hand-held cameras had just appeared, and he felt like he had a mission to go and film people, poorer people, and how they expressed themselves, artistically and spontaneously. So we're not talking about people who were trying to make records, just people who play the guitar and sing or whatever, just musically expressing themselves. And that man felt like these people would soon disappear, that society would disappear and it would be extinct. And I think he probably had a very strong intuition that proved to be right. I think technology will soon take us away from just picking up a guitar and singing some songs, spontaneously. It's refreshing because we don't see that on TV, where everything is manufactured and filtered. It felt so good for my brain and my senses to be connected into that, and to witness all of these expressions."

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Public Image: First Issue by Public Image Ltd
Public Image: First Issue by Public Image Ltd
1978 | Punk
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I prefer Metal Box, but this is a wonderful album and it just shows you where Lydon was culturally at that point in time. And he was obviously a bright fella. In interviews he was always talking about bands like Hawkwind and Can, so you always knew he was going to come from the left field, but the album didn't sound like anything else. I mean, Wobble's bass, Donut [Jim Walker]'s drumming, Keith Levene's guitar. I saw them play and Keith Levene had that metal guitar and he broke string after string during every song, Wobble was just sat down, and the whole thing just captured the bedlam but it just wasn't delivering what people were expecting. If you listen to 'Religion', it is just so cutting and stark and amazing; he channelled all of the anger that he had in a way that he couldn't with the Pistols because he wasn't being manipulated. He was cynical by this point because of the way he'd been treated and all the bullshit, and it all came out on this album. It was a game changer, this album."

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Species (1995)
Species (1995)
1995 | Sci-Fi
Ahh Species. A film I loved to watch when I was a young teen for...research purposes...
It's a bit rubbish really though isn't it? Watching it again now, it's pretty much a bunch of characters talking their way through a manhunt, strung together by regular moments of nudity.
It's suitably corny, boasts some terrible CGI (effects that may have been good back in the 90s, I honestly don't really remember) but in spite of all this, it's still pretty entertaining.

It's cast boasts the likes of Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina, Marg Helgenberger, Forest Whitaker, Michael Madsen, even a young Michelle Williams...it's pretty stacked. Natasha Henstridge of course plays the creature, and gives the role a sense of empowerment rather than exploitation.
The rubber suit aesthetic of the alien is pretty awesome (in the parts where it's not haunting CGI) and it has a pretty decent music score.

I fully see why a lot of people consider Species to be trashy, but honestly, it's a fun slice of 90s (as fuck) sci-fi horror. Enjoy it for what it is and just pretend the sequels don't exist.