West Country slackers, brooding heroes, a coven of witches, and a Gonzo journalist - just some of what has been setting the tone of my August 2016...
Click "READ MORE" below for this month's looks, sounds, vibes & flavours...
Wednesday 31 August 2016
Sunday 14 August 2016
Batman v Superman: Critic's Whipping Boy...
First of all: I have not seen the theatrical cut of Zack
Snyder's latest smash-em-up blockbusting extravaganza – my first exposure to Batman
v Superman: Dawn of Justice has been in the 'Ultimate Edition' extended
cut, which adds 30 minutes of footage not found in the original version seen in
cinemas.
My first impression of the movie, however, was the stunning
critical backlash it received. The sheer hatred it drew from film critics
seemed to step beyond the parameters of reasonableness after a while. Indeed,
the lambasting that Suicide Squad has received from critics feels like
more of the same – a 'media narrative' with clickbait intentions. Considering
the mess that was Green Lantern, and the excessive destruction of Man
of Steel, some of the criticism aimed DC's way has been justifiably earned
– but to this degree? It's ridiculous – but a sensible middle-ground
opinion doesn't yell “DRAMA!” nor does it suck in curious surfers of the
web. As much as we know that article titles featuring phrases like “and
people can't handle it” or “what they look like now is unbelievable”
are nothing short of completely asinine, the curious cat inside us all still
itches and our index fingers click those links.
The truth of Batman v Superman, though, is that it
absolutely does not deserve the blood-soaked drubbing it has received. The 'too
long, didn't read' answer to “Was Batman v Superman unjustly savaged?”
is YES. But that is not to say Snyder's heavyweight effort isn't flawed –
because it most definitely is.
But let's not fart around any longer and get stuck in...
Click “READ MORE” below to continue...
Labels:
2016,
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batman v superman,
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henry cavill,
movie,
problems,
review,
screenshots,
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unfair,
zack snyder
Monday 8 August 2016
Suicide Squad (David Ayer, 2016) - a level-headed review...
What's it about?
Following on from the events of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, the government approves a plan to weaponise a rogues gallery of villains and meta-humans to provide a counterstrike to powerful potential enemies. Kept in-line by explosive implants injected into their necks, the ragtag bunch of bad guys take on the badder bad guys in David Ayer's (Fury, End of Watch) riposte to Guardians of the Galaxy and Marvel's propensity for goody-two-shoes.
Who would I recognise in it?
Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto, Joel Kinnaman, Ben Affleck, Cara Delevingne, Jai Coutney, Jay Hernandez, Viola Davis, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood, and more.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
Let's get something dealt with right off the bat, shall we? The backlash from professional critics (a loose term, so it seems, from a scan of Rotten Tomatoes) has been negative to the nth degree. Overblown would be one way to put it, asinine would be another, desperate for clicks and web traffic and attention would be yet another. Frankly, the whole charade - started with the film crit armageddon that faced Batman V Superman - draws film criticism into disrepute. Each snarky thumbs down seems to be trying to say something more preposterously over-the-top than what came before, rather than tackling the film in a fair and sensible manner. Some of the sheer and unbridled hatred that has been levelled at Suicide Squad is nothing short of downright silly, and completely clouds legitimate critiques (observations that might prove useful to Warner Bros, David Ayer, et al in the future) and makes the whole thing look like an utter farce...
Click "READ MORE" below to continue...
Labels:
2016,
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batman v superman,
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deadshed,
deadshot,
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film,
harley quinn,
jared leto,
joker,
level headed,
margot robbie,
movie,
review,
screenshots,
suicide squad,
will smith
Wednesday 3 August 2016
Slave Girls From Beyond Infinity (Ken Dixon, 1987) DVD Review
Find more
exploitation reviews here.
“Big Movie. Big production. Big girls.” In
space no-one can hear you scream … but there's plenty of hairspray! Let's be
honest, can you ever live up to audience expectations with a title like that?
Once slammed as “indecent” by a U.S. Senator, Ken (Zombiethon)
Dixon's $90,000 VHS-era exploitationer isn't shy about coming forward. A cheap
and cheerful sci-fi adventure flick, with a cast who spend most of the movie
either in ragged bikinis or skimpy lingerie, Slave Girls From Beyond
Infinity isn't aiming for P.C. Plaudits in the slightest – it just wants to
give you a fun time. Think along the lines of Sorority House Massacre 2
– and set your expectations accordingly...
Click “READ MORE” below to continue the review and see more
screenshots…
Labels:
1987,
88 films,
brinke stevens,
caps,
carl horner,
cindy beal,
deadshed,
don scribner,
dvd,
elizabeth kaitan,
exploitation,
film,
ken dixon,
quotes,
review,
screen,
screenshots,
slave girls from beyond infinity,
VHS
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