cult film freak: April 2014

Written by James M. Tate / 4/30/2014 / No comments / 2014 , cameron diaz , chick flick , comedy , don johnson , leslie mann , revenge

CAMERON DIAZ & LESLIE MANN IN THE OTHER WOMAN

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eXryB4Ihijs/U2Hc306R3hI/AAAAAAAAe5M/MOY9BF8AjMQ/s1600/the-other-woman-mann-636-380.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eXryB4Ihijs/U2Hc306R3hI/AAAAAAAAe5M/MOY9BF8AjMQ/s1600/the-other-woman-mann-636-380.jpg" width="157" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: ***</td></tr>
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At one point in THE OTHER WOMAN, Cindi Lauper's anthem “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” plays while the three main characters, an eclectic trio of victimized women, seek revenge on a cheating jerk... But by this time the real fun is over…<br />
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In fact it only lasts about twenty minutes, and most of the credit should be given to intentional scene-stealer Leslie Mann as Kate King, the wife of a rich, handsome guy named Mark, juggling an affair with a smitten and oblivious lawyer, Carly, played by Cameron Diaz, who steps to the side as Mann takes over, frantically coming unglued while assorting to every physical comedy gag in the book... but she pulls it all off like she wrote it! Soon enough the two begin to click; a friendship built on being screwed-over simultaneously. And when they discover another conquest in Mark's life, giving the title a double (and eventually, triple) meaning, the film goes slowly downhill...<br />
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Although it's still an entertaining ride, basking in pure escapism for the target female audience, but once the uncreative and childish revenge tactics occur –  from spiking booze with laxative to putting hair remover in shampoo – the camaraderie between Diaz and Mann is almost forgotten… Meanwhile, third banana Kate Upton as cliché dream girl, Amber, is just that: although sweet and likable, her character never amounts to much more than a "Barbie Doll" punchline, adding little to the mix. Yet by the end, when Mark gets his ultimate barrage of comeuppance, you’ll wonder if he deserved that much for simply being a multitasking cheat… But if you mess with three chicks in a chick flick, hell’s fury hath no limits.

2014, cameron diaz, chick flick, comedy, don johnson, leslie mann, revenge

CAMERON DIAZ & LESLIE MANN IN THE OTHER WOMAN

year: 2014 rating: *** At one point in THE OTHER WOMAN, Cindi Lauper's anthem “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” plays while the three ma...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/29/2014 / No comments / eighties , farrah fawcett , harvey keitel , kirk douglas , science-fiction

GALACTIC RINGFUL OF CINEMATIC INFLUENCES FOR 'SATURN 3'

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3WEoFi9lGWk/U1iQRBMhuOI/AAAAAAAAe00/dHc4A6M_ngs/s1600/saturn-3-thai-poster.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3WEoFi9lGWk/U1iQRBMhuOI/AAAAAAAAe00/dHc4A6M_ngs/s320/saturn-3-thai-poster.jpg" width="232" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Year of Release: 1980</u></td></tr>
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SATURN 3 is a relatively low budget, guilty-pleasure science-fiction thriller that borrows heavily from several impressively budgeted movies in more ways than plot and structure… <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a0j3yNjMOw8/WHmP3QDVmaI/AAAAAAAAvs8/BV4lWDrXfEoyhpV-OBLhpCih8is2WteOwCLcB/s1600/saturn-3-japanese-poster.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a0j3yNjMOw8/WHmP3QDVmaI/AAAAAAAAvs8/BV4lWDrXfEoyhpV-OBLhpCih8is2WteOwCLcB/s320/saturn-3-japanese-poster.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Japanese Poster</u></td></tr>
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In 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, for the voice of HAL 9000, Martin Balsam was originally intended for what Douglas Rains pulled off brilliantly but, according to trivia, director Stanley Kubrick felt the PSYCHO actor sounded too <i>New York</i>, which may explain Stanley Donan replacing Harvey Keitel’s voice with British stage actor and soon-to-be AMADEUS father, Roy Dotrice... And alright so there’s a big difference, since HAL was a faceless computer… Although Keitel’s Benson, who arrives at a remote base orbiting the planet Saturn, disrupting the idyllic existence of Alex and Adam (i.e. Adam and Eve) played by Farrah Fawcett and Kirk Douglas, is very mechanical himself, ironically in charge of creating <i>and</i> mind-controlling an 8-foot robot named Hector… And much like Kubrick’s ODYSSEY, the machine winds up taking over in a very unfriendly fashion. As far as staying in shape, Douglas (rfit jogs around inside the ship, like Gary Lockwood's Dr. Frank Poole, sans the shadow boxing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uz3qlJBrLNQ/WHmFgSciQKI/AAAAAAAAvss/6Erm4GqgoqcRo-YlbqK2NE-bo_mCCDqZACLcB/s1600/15941428_254944911601359_2531080034866155656_n.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uz3qlJBrLNQ/WHmFgSciQKI/AAAAAAAAvss/6Erm4GqgoqcRo-YlbqK2NE-bo_mCCDqZACLcB/s320/15941428_254944911601359_2531080034866155656_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Not a long time before this, Star Wars began THIS way...</u></td></tr>
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Now let's really start: The movie begins beneath an immense vessel moving slowly through outer space, reminiscent of the grandiose opening shot of STAR WARS… Other influences include THE BLACK HOLE, where a "mad scientist" wields a hovering killer droid/bodyguard; FRANKENSTEIN for obvious reasons; and last but certainly not least, ALIEN, the sci-fi horror where an impenetrable, indestructible adversary winds up chasing our heroes throughout a contained, claustrophobic interior, resulting in the entire third act of <i>that and this </i>movie. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hu0vboRqIX0/U1iQX3p59jI/AAAAAAAAe08/4y77ibauJWM/s1600/saturn-3-usuk-release-poster.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hu0vboRqIX0/U1iQX3p59jI/AAAAAAAAe08/4y77ibauJWM/s400/saturn-3-usuk-release-poster.jpg" width="257" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster Artwork</u></td></tr>
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The setup of SATURN 3 has Douglas and Fawcett in the far reaches of space generating food for a dying Earth... And you can bet that Bruce Dern's SILENT RUNNING astronaut would be very well pleased in their highly progressive efforts...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AzO-1wUzSTg/WHmTkz3RSJI/AAAAAAAAvtQ/TGzUbH78yooCq53c26vql3q1WFuj9-QXQCLcB/s1600/9gwlf1jx.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AzO-1wUzSTg/WHmTkz3RSJI/AAAAAAAAvtQ/TGzUbH78yooCq53c26vql3q1WFuj9-QXQCLcB/s320/9gwlf1jx.jpg" width="247" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Nuther Foreign Poster</u></td></tr>
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What's important is that two nice people are stuck with a man who'd committed a murder in the prologue.<br />
<br />But what matters is the exploitation element of Fawcett’s brief nude scene (and her simply being cast) aside, the robotic antagonist, brought to life by SUPERMAN production designer John Barry, is actually quite menacing and the tension builds throughout in a nice, steady, palpable pace within the sleek looking blue corridor interior: As for the humans on board, much like the relationship between Charlton Heston and Leigh Taylor-Young in SOYLENT GREEN, Douglas’s Adam, despite having deep feelings, is legitimately <i>using</i> Fawcett’s Alex for his job... she's merely around to keep him, you know, company (i.e. like "Furniture)... and there’s a worthwhile creepy element in the stone-faced Keitel wanting to share the goods. But setting this "love triangle" aside, the tension between Douglas and Keitel provides the most suspense. And a further homage: Douglas slowly reaching his fingers through a steel grate, about to lift himself up to save Fawcett, is very reminiscent of Orson Welles as Harry Lime at the end of THE THIRD MAN, attempting to rise from that famous British sewer.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3N-LnynSEag/ViQQnTTwEYI/AAAAAAAApgk/b7a6YT1sFr4/s1600/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-18%2Bat%2B2.37.07%2BPM.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3N-LnynSEag/ViQQnTTwEYI/AAAAAAAApgk/b7a6YT1sFr4/s320/Screen%2Bshot%2B2015-10-18%2Bat%2B2.37.07%2BPM.png" width="268" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Score: ***1/2 for Saturn 3</u></td></tr>
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In the co-lead, Douglas hams it up just a bit, his famous dimple-chin seeming ready to explode at times, even when he's not in a jealous rage or pitted against the steely foe...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VWHVFQhwt2A/WHmSIY4K6RI/AAAAAAAAvtI/EyQbg7xEzKMWKl2h_N-Hha9ff7pPB187gCEw/s1600/15966247_254962038266313_7795716837836489144_n.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VWHVFQhwt2A/WHmSIY4K6RI/AAAAAAAAvtI/EyQbg7xEzKMWKl2h_N-Hha9ff7pPB187gCEw/s320/15966247_254962038266313_7795716837836489144_n.jpg" width="255" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>There are actually good establishing shots</u></td></tr>
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Then again, when you’re stuck in space, overacting is often welcome, and even necessary: just ask William Shatner's original STAR TREK fans. And for those troubled and distracted by Keitel’s voice-replacement, he does seem possessed throughout the film (and to note: Keitel and Roy Doctrice are somewhat similar looking: like a pair of intense, stocky badgers): So perhaps it's not <i>really him</i> after all, and well, <i>all </i>other things aside, this is primarily, for better or worse, Fawcett’s ride, reacting as a three-way wishbone between two men and that formidable robot, the latter providing the true scene-stealing capabilities and keeping everyone, including the audience, on constant alert – making SATURN 3 an enjoyably entertaining curio despite its maligned reputation because, adding to the exploitive element is the mere curiosity factor of classic musical director Stanely Donen, who made SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, wanting an edgy science-fiction flick in his wheelhouse. Then again, two years following the very adventurous nostalgic double feature, MOVIE MOVIE, the old guy, despite his age, was at his final creative peak.

eighties, farrah fawcett, harvey keitel, kirk douglas, science-fiction

GALACTIC RINGFUL OF CINEMATIC INFLUENCES FOR 'SATURN 3'

Year of Release: 1980 SATURN 3 is a relatively low budget, guilty-pleasure science-fiction thriller that borrows heavily from several im...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/28/2014 / No comments / 2014 , horror , jared harris , new hammer films

HAMMER FILMS PRESENTS THE QUIET ONES

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p1vxH_otbCU/U13lF9J0D4I/AAAAAAAAe40/wYnsfGheJZ0/s1600/the-quiet-ones-review-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p1vxH_otbCU/U13lF9J0D4I/AAAAAAAAe40/wYnsfGheJZ0/s1600/the-quiet-ones-review-1.jpg" width="185" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: **</td></tr>
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Ever notice that pretty much anything spoken in a British accent winds up sounding intelligent?<br />
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Well this is the case of the legendary and now revamped HAMMER FILMS, who years ago brought already-established icons to life ranging from FRANKENSTEIN to DRACULA and recently reentered cinema with THE WOMAN IN BLACK, to use the "documenting handheld camera<i> </i>device" but with a more clever twist.<br />
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Plot has a England University Professor Joseph Coupland, played by Jared Harris, hiring a fresh and naive student, Sam Claflin's Brian McNeil, to film an experimental paranormal research taking place inside a rural building...<br />
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The experiment centers on a young girl named Jane, who could very well be demon possessed, and along for the ride are two more kids: a flirtatious blonde girl and another young man... These two seem like the typical victims served up in any horror flick while the pivotal Brian is the blank slate/non-believer, so everything we experience will be through his eyes, and lens.<br />
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The handheld scenes occur either for the moment or as archive footage viewed by teacher and students within the grungy confides of a makeshift labyrinth... Their ultimate goal is to watch the changes occurring outside (and inside) poor Jane, and then try pinning down that naughty spirit causing all the havoc. Meanwhile, Brian has become smitten with the subject, and the professor, with a grand touch of sleazy sinister about him, has his own personal desires. <br />
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While much of the film is grainy and retro, there are sporadic bursts of intrusively modern CGI, causing an awkward imbalance that throws the intended super-reality out the window... And being set a year after THE EXORCIST haunted theaters, several mentions are made of it, a possible attempt to distract anyone from calling this a pale imitation...<br />
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Unfortunately, that's all THE QUIET ONES amounts to... Beyond the all-too-familiar demon possession, the scariest scenes entail, ironically, <i>quiet</i> moments that suddenly burst with a plunder of noisy bedlam, none of which amount to a worthy hypothesis or conclusion.

2014, horror, jared harris, new hammer films

HAMMER FILMS PRESENTS THE QUIET ONES

year: 2014 rating: ** Ever notice that pretty much anything spoken in a British accent winds up sounding intelligent? Well this is the...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/27/2014 / No comments / 2014 , john turturro , quirky , romantic comedy , sharon stone , woody allen

JOHN TURTURRO DIRECTS AND STARS IN FADING GIGOLO W/ WOODY ALLEN

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iKbocJLwk50/U1y5KLThpPI/AAAAAAAAe3M/5ibtVTb75QQ/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iKbocJLwk50/U1y5KLThpPI/AAAAAAAAe3M/5ibtVTb75QQ/s200/Picture+1.png" width="159" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: *1/2</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When times were good...</td></tr>
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There’s a scene in Woody Allen’s HANNAH AND HER SISTERS where John Turturro is chewing out Woody's character… Woody runs a comedy show and John’s a disgruntled writer, angry that some of his dialogue was altered: If only the real life Turturro was angrier now, because while FADING GIGOLO has Woody Allen in his neurotic New York element, he hardly has any good lines… Meanwhile, Turturro’s  Fioravante, an extremely mild-mannered florist who pal Murray, played by Allen, turns into a gigolo for the lonely and rich, is so subdued you'd think he was halfway into an afternoon coma.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z75ouucyjN4/U1y6C1b6QaI/AAAAAAAAe3c/nNhgnnyeHU8/s1600/8cef3ca4-5e83-47ff-8d88-2e70e05802fd_fadinggigolo_trailer_gs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z75ouucyjN4/U1y6C1b6QaI/AAAAAAAAe3c/nNhgnnyeHU8/s200/8cef3ca4-5e83-47ff-8d88-2e70e05802fd_fadinggigolo_trailer_gs.jpg" width="154" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stone in GIGOLO</td></tr>
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Surprising since even Turturro’s most laidback personas, like BARTON FINK, are full of passion and pinned-up energy, but here he simply goes through the motions. The fact he’s not your typically handsome male getting paid to sleep with beautiful women for a large sum of cash is mentioned, yet there’s hardly any obstacles for he or anyone else to climb. No awkward moments, nothing... it's all just too easy. And Sharon Stone (who made her debut in Woody's STARDUST MEMORIES thirty-four years ago), as a smitten married customer getting uncomfortably attached, doesn't lead anywhere. But she’s not the lady that matters… <br />
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Even the quirkiest of indie romances needs a typical love interest, and here it’s Vanessa Paradis as a Rabbi’s widow, Avigal. Although Turturro the actor never seems as smitten as the director… If you counted how many scenes involve Paradis staring in a forlorn yet lovely manner, you’d run out of fingers. And a side story involving a group of neighborhood Jewish crime fighters is too bizarre for words, or laughs.  <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K-NnqB8QDoU/VeioRllytqI/AAAAAAAAo2k/cWE5jnzdcmo/s1600/sharon%2Bstone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K-NnqB8QDoU/VeioRllytqI/AAAAAAAAo2k/cWE5jnzdcmo/s200/sharon%2Bstone.jpg" width="157" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stone in Stardust</td></tr>
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Leaving Allen as the intentional comic scene-stealer, but one can only talk so fast. Despite being an open book he has a mysterious living situation... Seeming like a Friar's Club member guest-starring on a sitcom, Murray resides with an African American family while it’s never sure if he’s married, or what the purpose of him having children, or grandchildren, or why did he decide to become a makeshift pimp in the first place, especially with such a strange choice for gigolo... And how on earth is Fioravante <i>fading</i>?  <br />
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Either way, this particular friendship is what's really supposed to matter, and yet Turturro and Allen had more chemistry annoying each other in HANNAH for one quick minute than in this self-aware ninety-minute misfire.

2014, john turturro, quirky, romantic comedy, sharon stone, woody allen

JOHN TURTURRO DIRECTS AND STARS IN FADING GIGOLO W/ WOODY ALLEN

year: 2014 rating: *1/2 When times were good... There’s a scene in Woody Allen’s HANNAH AND HER SISTERS where John Turturro is che...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/25/2014 / No comments / 2014 , david belle , paul walker , remake

PAUL WALKER AND DAVID BELLE IN BRICK MANSIONS

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LqCEUdKWk6c/U1n824vAzgI/AAAAAAAAe2E/DyhqvwVBfdQ/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LqCEUdKWk6c/U1n824vAzgI/AAAAAAAAe2E/DyhqvwVBfdQ/s320/Picture+1.png" width="231" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: ***</td></tr>
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Here’s a movie for anyone wanting cinematic closure from the late Paul Walker, at least until his final FAST AND FURIOUS… And it can also serve to quench SPIDERMAN fans since David Belle’s resilient criminal Lino leaps around in the same frantic fashion...<br />
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BRICK MANSIONS is named after an extremely dilapidated part of town that no one wants to talk about or deal with, especially politicians... It's become a dangerous harbor for RZA’s drug dealing villain, Tremaine, who hijacked a neutron bomb and is threatening to blow up the better parts of Detroit if he’s not given a large sum of money…<br />
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Sounding more like James Bond than an energetic action thriller, MANSIONS is actually an urban Kung Fu flick that gives Belle a chance to show off his hyperactive fighting skills to a mainstream American audience.  <br />
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That's not to say Walker’s vengeful cop Damien doesn’t pull his own weight… Ironically and not surprisingly, he’s into really fast cars: This ranges from driving them around to hanging off the back when someone else is driving. And while this is a substantial Paul Walker vehicle, providing the actor his usual slowburn to hot tempered persona throughout, it feels like he was highlighting Belle's talents, who co-starred in the original French movie, DISTRICT B13, rather than sustaining his own FURIOUS fan 
base. <br />
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The best scenes occur when Walker and Belle work as a physically synchronized team within the heavily guarded location (reminiscent of the urban fortress from Walter Hill’s TRESPASS, with taller buildings), eventually fighting an eclectic mix of brainless heavies. Meanwhile, the rap-blasting brawls supersede the peripheral threat of that ticking bomb strapped to a rocket, a plot device ultimately serving a clichéd 11th hour twist that, in bringing together the Good, Bad and Ugly, makes everything else seem futile... But it's a fun ride before they get all serious.

2014, david belle, paul walker, remake

PAUL WALKER AND DAVID BELLE IN BRICK MANSIONS

year: 2014 rating: *** Here’s a movie for anyone wanting cinematic closure from the late Paul Walker, at least until his final FAST AND ...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/24/2014 / No comments / drama , george clooney , michael o'keefe , thriller , tom wilkinson

GEORGE CLOONEY TAKES IT EASY YET EDGY IN MICHAEL CLAYTON

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I6-5SR6aYV8/U1imkhk64UI/AAAAAAAAe1k/lP-VKtXIdzw/s1600/2007_michael_clayton_001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I6-5SR6aYV8/U1imkhk64UI/AAAAAAAAe1k/lP-VKtXIdzw/s1600/2007_michael_clayton_001.jpg" width="143" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2007 rating: ***1/2</td></tr>
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Tom Wilkinson’s Arthur Edens, a high priced and very effective corporation lawyer whose conscience may have got the best of him, is mad as hell and he’s not going to take it anymore...  Or maybe he's just gone completely insane...<br />
<br />
So the Firm sends in Michael Clayton, played by a smooth, cold and calculating George Clooney, a “fixer” that can make sure problems don’t wind up in court. In a nutshell, Michael is a professional hit man who kills problems, not people. <br />
<br />
Finding this particular task not so easy, Clayton investigates why Edens had a nervous breakdown inside a meeting room – something having to do with a chemical company’s weed killer that somehow killed farmers... And while an always capable Tom Wilkinson does a good job acting, his character, from the very start, is obviously enlightened to some kind of bitter truth, taking away from the suspense that might have prolonged the more intriguing aspects of Clayton being lost in the dark, snooping around for clues.  <br />
<br />
Deliberately slow paced like the cerebral thrillers of the 1970’s balanced with a dash of Film Noir, MICHAEL CLAYTON centers on a slick fish swimming in a pool of sharks – and even the sharks are afraid of him: One person points out how lawyers think he’s a cop, while cops think he’s a lawyer...<br />
<br />
But with business and debt troubles, he has to eventually manipulate his Firm, providing George Clooney a better than average performance despite a somewhat forced <i>gotcha</i> finale that turns an alternative suspense yarn into a somewhat mainstream one.

drama, george clooney, michael o'keefe, thriller, tom wilkinson

GEORGE CLOONEY TAKES IT EASY YET EDGY IN MICHAEL CLAYTON

2007 rating: ***1/2 Tom Wilkinson’s Arthur Edens, a high priced and very effective corporation lawyer whose conscience may have got the ...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/23/2014 / No comments / 2012 , documentary , morton downey jr

ÉVOCATEUR: THE MORTON DOWNEY JR

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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2012 rating: **1/2</td></tr>
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In the late 1980’s, Morton Downey Jr. entered the daytime talk show circuit as a chain-smoking firebrand screaming at guests, backed by a noisy and adoring audience who insiders nicknamed The Beast. And over a decade after his death, MDJ is subject of this interesting, involving yet distractingly biased documentary about the quick rise and even quicker fall of a television personality whose countenance was that of a bullying bull dog…<br />
<br />
The film begins by showing clips of Morton Downey Sr., famous in the 1930s as a singer on stage and screen, and his dancing girl wife. The filmmakers chose to insert the words DADDY and MOMMY when referring to their subject’s parents, so right off the bat Junior’s getting bashed in a subtle way: Which is fine since no one would care about a propaganda piece… And the Downey legacy truly deserves a slap or two... But when a ten minute segment compares him with the modern <i>Neo Cons</i> (including Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity), while ominous music grinds in the background, you get the feeling there’s something deeper here than a retrospective on a – for use of a better word – “groundbreaking” talk show host.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poster Artwork</td></tr>
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<i></i>In a politically-correct world of the bland yet pioneering Phil Donahue and his more successful upstart, Oprah Winfrey, Downey’s persona was a breath of fresh-hot air. Much like conservative screamer Wally George, Morton would have guests, from lawyers to feminists, that were set up to be thrown off in a vicious manner – the unpredictable element of just when each victim would fall through the floorboards was part of the show’s perpetual anti-charm.<br />
<br />
Sporadic cartoons of Downey, usually shown as a hotheaded dragon with glimpses of a disapproving father’s ghost, are scattered throughout the interviews, mostly taken from ex producers and writers of his show, adding to the anti-Downey slant, although these subliminal attacks are sporadically countered by his musician best friend and daughter.<br />
<br />
Downey wound up losing ratings, and his show, eventually faking a skinhead attack in a public restroom, something so desperate and pathetic it's the perfect conclusion to a somewhat loaded documentary that, despite the built-in gripe against conservative media... a noisy alternative to a much larger yet more subtle platform... even the stuff that makes Junior look awful is, at times, equally sympathetic. Perhaps the filmmakers are torn like Rodney Dangerfield’s character in BACK TO SCHOOL, confoundedly describing Sam Kinison’s neurotic, screaming history teacher in two sentences: <i>“He really seems to care… About what I have no idea.”</i><br />
<i> </i>

2012, documentary, morton downey jr

ÉVOCATEUR: THE MORTON DOWNEY JR

2012 rating: **1/2 In the late 1980’s, Morton Downey Jr. entered the daytime talk show circuit as a chain-smoking firebrand screaming at...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/21/2014 / 1 Comment / franchise , horror , interview , larry zerner

FRIDAY THE 13TH 3D FEATURES LARRY ZERNER

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nl3eJ7KAqWY/U1SvJl-BSKI/AAAAAAAAeug/r3KJicyd4uk/s1600/jason3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nl3eJ7KAqWY/U1SvJl-BSKI/AAAAAAAAeug/r3KJicyd4uk/s320/jason3.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1982</td></tr>
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In the world of franchise sequels, the number three can be magical… or not...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iQhV6e15Y30/XXV4yApmquI/AAAAAAABHCY/ULrNLGg37NoZSRMEaEjee9eGlA0QQqPwgCLcBGAs/s1600/z.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="528" data-original-width="580" height="291" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iQhV6e15Y30/XXV4yApmquI/AAAAAAABHCY/ULrNLGg37NoZSRMEaEjee9eGlA0QQqPwgCLcBGAs/s320/z.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I can't go skinny dipping. I'm not skinny enough."</td></tr>
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So let’s forget SUPERMAN or BACK TO THE FUTURE 3, which, despite their maligned reputations, weren't that awful, actually, but center on, before venturing to the subject at hand, a few third entries that really worked, like NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS, a sequel with an extremely corny title. In fact, years ago, as a stoned teenager, while half-enjoying the MONSTERS OF ROCK stadium concert that included Metallica, The Scorpions and Van Halen, the lead singer of Dokken, before breaking into the newest track, shouted: “You’re all Dream Warriors!”<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dn178LC4DXk/U1TW-x1Rt8I/AAAAAAAAewE/b2JvbyEgnPQ/s1600/jason2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dn178LC4DXk/U1TW-x1Rt8I/AAAAAAAAewE/b2JvbyEgnPQ/s200/jason2.jpg" width="160" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Awesome F13D Artwork</td></tr>
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A cringe-worthy moment for anyone listening, but the movie itself is pretty awesome as Freddy Krueger takes down a bevy of troubled, sleepless kids in a mental hospital… And another decent third is DEATH WISH 3, in which Charles Bronson goes from rogue vigilante to neighborhood watchdog with more ammunition than a third world army, and we can also mention ROCKY 3, IRON MAN 3 and… well let’s just get to the point already…<br />
<br />
Steve Miner, who co-produced the first two groundbreaking flicks piloted by Sean S. Cunningham, stepped up to direct the third FRIDAY THE 13TH, and it’s a whole lot of fun. Lighter in tone yet still sticking with the body count camp counselor template, there’s an eclectic assortment of likable characters – not all fantastic actors but each has a distinguishable personality so their individual demise becomes that much more memorable, and meaningful… <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gDfLJIE88vA/U1SxYFfIQDI/AAAAAAAAevI/_VUPYYmXjiM/s1600/dkimmell27415911si9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gDfLJIE88vA/U1SxYFfIQDI/AAAAAAAAevI/_VUPYYmXjiM/s200/dkimmell27415911si9.jpg" width="141" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dana Kimmell surviving</td></tr>
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Not everyone dies, though, and this is hardly a spoiler – we all realize at least one or two survive in each FRIDAY flick, and here it’s the lovely Dana Kimmel as Chris Higgens, a quiet girl contrasting with more confident and sexual gal pals. Although Chris herself is no prude. Her boyfriend Rick, played with stone-faced precision by Paul Kratka, makes the most of a literal role in the hay… The location being a farmhouse near the infamous Camp Blood where everything began...<br />
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Also included are an annoying pot-smoking married couple, a romantic duo, and a bullying biker gang, the latter who really deserve their painful deaths, but the real scene-stealer is a tubby red-haired young man named Shelly… <br />
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Larry Zerner, who is interviewed below, plays a practical joker that lives to scare the ladies… especially because he can’t get any of them in bed. In one scene he’s asked to join in on a skinny-dipping break, wherein Shelly replies: “I’m not skinny enough.” But what he lacks in confidence, he makes up for in cheap thrills... <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YyX-WyV6Poc/VHU_X5lMeOI/AAAAAAAAlFI/THJGZV4GMFQ/s1600/Friday-the13th-Part-3-1982-Rachel-Howard-David-Katims-Larry-Zerner-and-Catherine-Parks1.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YyX-WyV6Poc/VHU_X5lMeOI/AAAAAAAAlFI/THJGZV4GMFQ/s1600/Friday-the13th-Part-3-1982-Rachel-Howard-David-Katims-Larry-Zerner-and-Catherine-Parks1.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smokin' with Zerner</td></tr>
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One ingredient in Shelly’s bag of tricks is… <i>drum roll please</i>... a hockey mask! In part 2, the first film where Jason Voorhees is the actual killer, the mud-trudging wraith wears sackcloth over his sinewy face…<br />
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So Zerner’s Shelly gave Jason his persona, which lasted many other films, reboots, and still remains an iconic fixture of the horror genre…<br />
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The 3-Dimensional gimmick aside, which, in those days, meant that objects were pointed or shoved at the screen so that audiences, wearing cheap colorful paper glasses, could move their heads back and moan, “Woah,” this is a sequel that didn’t have the blood-gushing exploitation factor of the first two entries, but played tongue-in-cheek so to not take itself too seriously and yet is still quite intense and formidable so the audience feels danger lurking… around… every… corner!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mBZEz-u__-4/U1TLw7t2t_I/AAAAAAAAevY/bfuH65P_tG8/s1600/main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mBZEz-u__-4/U1TLw7t2t_I/AAAAAAAAevY/bfuH65P_tG8/s1600/main.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>An Interview with Larry Zerner</b></td></tr>
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<i>THE FOLLOWING INTERVIEW WITH SUBLIMINAL HORROR FILM ICON LARRY ZERNER WAS TAKEN FROM A POST TRANSCRIBED LONG, LONG AGO, WHEN THE BLOG FIRST BEGAN, AND WAS MOVED HERE... SO FORGIVE ANY ANNOYING USE OF QUOTE-MARKS OR FADED PHOTOS, OR WHATEVER ELSE YOU WOULDN'T SEE IN OTHER MORE RECENT ENTRIES...</i><br />
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<i>One
  night, in a place known as Hollywood, a young man named Larry Zerner was hired to pass 
 out flyers for a new action film THE ROAD WARRIOR, the sequel to MAD MAX... Spotted by a casting agent for the  
upcoming third film in FRIDAY THE 13th franchise, Larry was asked to  
audition, and as destiny would have it he landed the role as "Shelly",
  the comic relief who wears disguises, including a HOCKEY MASK...</i><br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">How did you feel getting the part in a movie and what did your friends think?</span></span><br />
<br />
I thought it was great.  It was my first film so it was a real surprise.  My friends thought it was cool.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Did
  you have to learn to juggle for the film or did you already know how? 
 About how long did you two have to juggle for that scene? </span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Night of the Jugglers</td></tr>
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I was a pretty good juggler before I was cast in the movie. The
  script originally called for us to hit paddleballs, but that wasn’t  
working so they changed it to juggling because they knew I could do it. 
  Jeffrey wasn’t as proficient as me, but we practiced and he did pretty
  well… The scene in the movie probably took half an hour of juggling, 
on  and off.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">When you 
 first appear in the hockey mask, popping out of the lake to scare the  
girl – how many takes did you do for this? Was it cold in the water? </span></span><br />
<br />
It was very cold in the water. We filmed that in March in the middle of the night so it was freezing.  I think we did about three or four takes.<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: black;">Where was Friday the 13th part 3 filmed? And how long did it take to film the whole movie?</span> </span></span></span><br />
<br />
The
  whole film took about 12 weeks. Most of the film (the house and cabin)
  was filmed at the Valzuet Movie Ranch in Sylmar. The liquor store is  
about 45 miles north of L.A. in Green Valley. Vera’s house is somewhere 
 in Sylmar.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Kevin O'Brien</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shelly
  has some classic lines – “I’m not going skinny dipping… I’m not skinny
  enough”, “Being a jerk is better than being a nothing”… Do any stand 
out  as a personal favorite? </span></span><br />
<br />
I’ll have to go 
with  “I’m not an asshole, I’m an actor.”  Now that I gave up show 
business  for law I like to say “I’m not an actor, now I’m an asshole.”<br />
<span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Of all the actors/actresses, who did you hang out with most on the set? </span></span><br />
<br />
Probably Tracie Savage, Jeffrey Rogers and David Katims hung out the most.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1Yr1krkNbI/AAAAAAAAAOU/uUHQ01zN8ME/s1600-h/traciesavage.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428574600221177266" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1Yr1krkNbI/AAAAAAAAAOU/uUHQ01zN8ME/s200/traciesavage.jpg" style="float: right; height: 85px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 200px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Zerner knifed?</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Did you have a crush on any of the actresses? </span></span><br />
<br />
I had a big crush on Tracie and every day I would ask her to marry me (she never accepted).<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who did the special effects makeup and how was it working with this person? </span></span><br />
<br />
Doug
  White did the makeup and did a great job. My death scene was the only 
 SE makeup for me but it was a lot of fun putting the latex on and  
looking like my throat was cut.  Then they ran balloons from my throat, 
 out my back to some tubes full of blood so they could make the wound  
look like it was gurgling blood.  Good times!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YreTCx37I/AAAAAAAAAOM/dAC3AfNI7HE/s1600-h/AliAliAli.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428574200349712306" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YreTCx37I/AAAAAAAAAOM/dAC3AfNI7HE/s200/AliAliAli.jpg" style="float: left; height: 173px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 200px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick Savage as Ali</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">When the biker, “Ali”, breaks the glass to the VW bug, did you get cut at all? How many takes for this scene? </span></span><br />
<br />
No.
  If you watch the scene, you can see that they do it in pieces. First, 
 Ali’s breaks the glass (and the camera is where we would be sitting).  
Then they filmed us from the side and just threw (candy) glass on top of
  us.  So it’s not really dangerous at all.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">An
  important purpose of your character Shelly was to provide a legendary 
 hockey mask for a legendary villain – did you have any idea how  
important this would become? </span></span><br />
<br />
Of  course not. 
Who could know that the hockey mask would become an iconic  symbol?  I 
did know enough to ask them if I could keep the hockey mask.  But they 
said they needed it. I should have stolen it; it would have  been worth a
 fortune.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">There  is a 
long take when you are first introduced, getting out of the van  and 
then walking up slowly, and then scaring your friends – was this  
difficult to do? </span></span><br />
<br />
It was tough because it was  
one of the first things we shot and I was still getting used to the  
camera. That scene is probably my least favorite and I wish I could go  
back and do it again.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YAIzF0RRI/AAAAAAAAAKU/PWbWF6IXD2A/s1600-h/death.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="163" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428526551995270418" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YAIzF0RRI/AAAAAAAAAKU/PWbWF6IXD2A/s200/death.jpg" style="float: right; height: 102px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 200px;" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Zerner demise?</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span>How was it working with the awesome cult director Steve Miner? </span></span><br />
<br />
Steve
  was great. Of course at the time he wasn’t a cult director as he had  
only directed Part II. I ran into Steve a few months ago at the golf  
course and we spent a nice afternoon reminiscing. He had a lot of fond  
memories of the movie.<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Was
  there a big opening night screening with you and the other actors? 
What  did you think seeing yourself in 3D when you first saw the movie 
in  theaters? </span></span><br />
<br />
There was a cast and crew 
screening a  week before the official opening (but I had seen a preview 
screening  even before that). Seeing myself in 3-D was strange. You 
understand that  it’s you on the screen, but it seems like someone else 
who just looks  like you… As for opening night (Friday, August 13, 
1982), I went with my  friends to Westwood and saw the 8:00 show with a 
sold-out crowd.  That  was a lot of fun because the people were 
screaming at all the right  moments.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tZn9idpeVIY/VHVD93AJeHI/AAAAAAAAlFU/ecoxXTgYATo/s1600/screen-shot-2012-10-08-at-9-59-36-pm.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tZn9idpeVIY/VHVD93AJeHI/AAAAAAAAlFU/ecoxXTgYATo/s1600/screen-shot-2012-10-08-at-9-59-36-pm.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Nick Savage</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: black;">Y</span></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: white;">ou</span> played dead twice… Is this harder than it looks? </span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
I only had to pretend to be dead for about 10 seconds, so that’s not too hard. But I think I could have done a better job.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Prior to being cast in Friday the 13th, were you a fan of horror films (or of the Friday the 13th films)?  </span></span><br />
<br />
I was a big horror film fan before the film (but more a DAWN OF THE DEAD fan).<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">What part did you play in HADLEY'S REBELLION and what was the film about? </span></span><br />
<br />
HADLEY'S REBELLION is a terrible movie starring Griffin O’Neal (Ryan’s son) 
who  plays a high school wrestler. I played one of the other high school
  students and had about four lines in it.  It’s not worth watching.<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Has anyone ever confused you with a similar looking actor named Gary Springer who appeared in DOG DAY AFTERNOON and JAWS 2? </span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YBgn0tomI/AAAAAAAAAK8/2GzTzfbYIQM/s1600-h/16336-9839.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428528060799230562" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YBgn0tomI/AAAAAAAAAK8/2GzTzfbYIQM/s200/16336-9839.jpg" style="float: left; height: 150px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 200px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not Larry Zerner</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I certainly see a resemblance between me and him and once or twice  
people have asked me if I was in JAWS 2. I wonder what he looks like  
now.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Was acting something you wanted to continue doing? </span></span><br />
<br />
I certainly would have continued if I could have. But some things are not meant to be.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">You
  have since become a copyright lawyer – how did you get into this  
profession and what are some of your favorite aspects of the job? </span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YBHdTdm0I/AAAAAAAAAK0/3pGm-CxWSoI/s1600-h/n57852599198_1892708_3974.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428527628478683970" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3EY6QL0puIo/S1YBHdTdm0I/AAAAAAAAAK0/3pGm-CxWSoI/s200/n57852599198_1892708_3974.jpg" style="float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 156px;" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larry today</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
When
  acting wasn’t working out, I decided to go to law school and really  
enjoyed it. My practice is entirely entertainment law and my favorite  
part is representing writers whose scripts have been stolen. I represent
  a number of people in the horror movie industry such as Dan Farrands  
(writer of HALLOWEEN 6) and I was the production attorney for the new  
F13 documentary His Name was Jason which comes out February 3, 2009. If 
 you’re interested in more information about my firm, visit  
<a href="http://www.zernerlaw.com/">http://www.ZernerLaw.com</a>...<br />
<span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Would
  Shelly, if he lived, have been able to successfully sue Jason for the 
 rights to the Hockey Mask which Jason stole from him? </span></span><br />
<br />
Actually,
  Shelly couldn’t have sued Jason because even though he owned the 
hockey  mask, he did not own the rights to the design of the mask.<br />
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franchise, horror, interview, larry zerner

FRIDAY THE 13TH 3D FEATURES LARRY ZERNER

year: 1982 In the world of franchise sequels, the number three can be magical… or not... "I can't go skinny dipping. ...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/20/2014 / No comments / 2014 , kevin sorbo , religious

KEVIN SORBO CREATES A BIG BANG PERFORMANCE IN GOD'S NOT DEAD

<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5-yNFx53qkY/U1QNel2-yjI/AAAAAAAAeuM/pYscGYgz258/s1600/2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5-yNFx53qkY/U1QNel2-yjI/AAAAAAAAeuM/pYscGYgz258/s1600/2.jpg" width="143" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">rating: **1/2</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In GOD’S NOT DEAD, Kevin Sorbo plays Professor Radisson, a college philosophy teacher who politely demands that his students write this movie’s title on paper before venturing further into his contemptuously biased course… So one kid winds up scribbling “god” with a small g, and wouldn’t it be humorous if Sorbo’s character asked if this referred to Hercules?<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vLa2LJR4oPU/U1QNeYklMRI/AAAAAAAAeuI/fCWu6dwIazg/s1600/1.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vLa2LJR4oPU/U1QNeYklMRI/AAAAAAAAeuI/fCWu6dwIazg/s1600/1.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Well there’s another student who decides not to write down anything, and Josh Wheaton, played by a subtle yet effective Shane Harper, isn’t giving in… Despite the class being an important one, he'll put his future on the line and argue against the anti-God stance… And the prof takes him up on it… An understatement…<br />
<br />
For what seems like the rest of the semester, young Wheaton is given the chance to argue the existence of God over the Big Bang Theory… Which is fine enough within a Christian movie, and the young actor in lecture mode, starting out like a flushed novice before getting more comfortable "on stage," is effective… But what’s completely unrealistic is there’s no longer any philosophy class at all... The entire semester becomes Wheaton addressing the students while Radisson looks on with a cocky grin: How on Earth does he hand out grades? <br />
<br />
In the antagonist role, Sorbo’s performance is surprisingly good and, in the personality department, to use a collegiate term, highly <i>persuasive </i>– and he’s not the only 90’s TV hero in the mix… Also on board is SUPERMAN Dean Cain as a jerky businessman... like the other "villains," including a strict Muslim father, he's far from Christian… Especially Cain's girlfriend, an Internet reporter who loathes DUCK DYNASTY and then, after finding out she has cancer, begins to question her own non-belief.  <br />
<br />
While the ending, taking place at a Christian rock band's concert, is corny and predictably propagandist, and Radisson's fate provides a much too easy out (while tying loose ends with a side-character pastor), our two persistent leads – the Christian student and the Atheist teacher – make GOD’S NOT DEAD an entertaining debate… for either side.

2014, kevin sorbo, religious

KEVIN SORBO CREATES A BIG BANG PERFORMANCE IN GOD'S NOT DEAD

rating: **1/2 In GOD’S NOT DEAD, Kevin Sorbo plays Professor Radisson, a college philosophy teacher who politely demands that his stud...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/18/2014 / No comments / 2014 , cillian murphy , johnny depp , mindtrip , morgan freeman , rebecca hall , science-fiction , thriller

JOHNNY DEPP AND REBECCA HALL IN TRANSCENDENCE

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wyQQTp6xbJU/U1DjR1YtjFI/AAAAAAAAes0/KQdNxCcosYg/s1600/Transcendence-data-cloud-of-Johnny-Depp-movie-poster.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wyQQTp6xbJU/U1DjR1YtjFI/AAAAAAAAes0/KQdNxCcosYg/s1600/Transcendence-data-cloud-of-Johnny-Depp-movie-poster.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: *1/2</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It should come as no surprise that a mindtrip experience would begin in Berkeley, California… And with a mellow Jorma Kaukonen acoustic track chiming from a record player into a lovely garden, one wouldn’t expect TRANSCENDENCE to be so modern and technological…<br />
<br />
Even Johnny Depp’s brilliant Dr. Will Caster seems above such trivial matters as The Internet… With a voice sounding like a slightly buzzed Walter Cronkite impersonating an upper-class British snob, Depp is not only a guest star but doesn’t seem all there. Even when alive and kicking, before becoming part of a computer creation involving reanimated brainwaves, the Depp role could have been played by anyone…  <br />
<br />
And speaking of wasted casting, let’s breeze past filler roles including Morgan Freeman as a doubting scientist and Cillian Murphy as an FBI Agent… The real lead is Rebecca Hall as Caster’s wife Evelyn, who, carrying her late husband’s brain and voice via computer, sets up a gigantic research station in a town so small there’s hardly room for one horse. <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VOBMJ9acsIw/U1DjrdWN0-I/AAAAAAAAetA/TMHT2zKxsFA/s1600/Quah2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="199" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VOBMJ9acsIw/U1DjrdWN0-I/AAAAAAAAetA/TMHT2zKxsFA/s1600/Quah2.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Got Jorma?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
All the work misleads us into thinking something nefarious will happen… For it seems that Caster, whose flickering image appears anywhere his wife roams within the white-walled underground compound, isn’t exactly himself: he could very well be a monstrous computer taking over the world!<br />
<br />
Which all very much sounds like a potentially decent sci-fi thriller… But after a rushed military attack we’re left with a preachy message that could have been titled AN INCONVENIENT MATRIX... <br />
<br />
At least Jorma’s meditative <i>Genesis</i> is spun once again. If anything else, TRANSCENDENCE serves as an outlet for the Jefferson Airplane (and Hot Tuna) guitarist to be heard as a solo act in a big budget mainstream film... Although this particular white rabbit leads us absolutely nowhere.<br />
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2014, cillian murphy, johnny depp, mindtrip, morgan freeman, rebecca hall, science-fiction, thriller

JOHNNY DEPP AND REBECCA HALL IN TRANSCENDENCE

year: 2014 rating: *1/2 It should come as no surprise that a mindtrip experience would begin in Berkeley, California… And with a mellow ...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/16/2014 / No comments / 2014 , brenton thwaites , horror , karen gillan , mindtrip , suspense

KAREN GILLAN & BRENTON THWAITES IN OCULUS

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8xEKtcIRbGc/U07eXR1GzJI/AAAAAAAAer8/q3b57kEyKTQ/s1600/1.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8xEKtcIRbGc/U07eXR1GzJI/AAAAAAAAer8/q3b57kEyKTQ/s1600/1.jpg" width="152" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
Horror film starlets, often known as scream queens, are naïve, shrill victims until, after enough punishment, they get a second wind and turn the tables on their aggressors…<br />
<br />
But Karen Gillan’s Kaylie Russell is, from the beginning, assertive and actively intent on stopping her adversary… At least in the present time.<br />
<br />
To say Kaylie and her brother Tim grew up in a dysfunctional family is an understatement... Since we’re given all the information up front, it’s not a spoiler exactly: dad killed mom after mom had gone toothless and berserk...<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fQXjx5SBQkU/U07eXgo9UyI/AAAAAAAAer4/x98KXPnwF7w/s1600/2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fQXjx5SBQkU/U07eXgo9UyI/AAAAAAAAer4/x98KXPnwF7w/s1600/2.jpg" width="152" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">rating: **1/2</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Sporadic flashbacks of the younger siblings eventually coincide with the main story, where Kaylie, who still owns the house where really bad things occurred, is dead set on facing and exposing her foe, which, in this particular case, is a mirror: all to prove her parents weren’t so crazy after all.  <br />
<br />
Billed as a horror flick, OCULUS is really a paranormal mystery/suspense… The mystery involving an investigative Kaylie and her reluctant brother figuring out just how much power that antique mirror – able to hypnotize and then slowly kill humans, animals and plants  – still has inside the house… And the suspense is always palpable, making the audience ready for the next sudden chill: ranging from glimpses of an ominous wraith to screaming hallway chases...  <br />
<br />
But it’s not all terrifying... There are bits of dark humor, mostly centered on Kaylie’s determination: she’s so stubborn, strong-willed and even cruel you can’t help but to laugh. And, countered by her passive brother played by Brenton Thwaites, whose somewhat limp performance pales to sis, this is really her show... Through thick and thin, she alone keeps us entertained…  <br />
<br />
Too bad the frightful moments are few and far between. And when the demonic presence is finally revealed, appearing outside the mirror image, it has a few friends along, taking away from what could have been a much more contained, and thus way scarier, mindtrip rollercoaster ride.

2014, brenton thwaites, horror, karen gillan, mindtrip, suspense

KAREN GILLAN & BRENTON THWAITES IN OCULUS

year: 2014 Horror film starlets, often known as scream queens, are naïve, shrill victims until, after enough punishment, they get a se...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/15/2014 / No comments / 2014 , ivan reitman , jennifer garner , kevin costner , sport

IVAN REITMAN DIRECTS KEVIN COSTNER IN DRAFT DAY

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHbqLKRMOoo/U0zIjYJHwmI/AAAAAAAAemM/anGIsyfwfBM/s1600/draft-day-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHbqLKRMOoo/U0zIjYJHwmI/AAAAAAAAemM/anGIsyfwfBM/s320/draft-day-poster.jpg" width="214" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><b>year: 2014 rating: **</b></span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's 2014, and Kevin Costner returns in one of several "comeback" vehicles…<br />
<br />
Just yesterday he was a slowburn action hero in THREE DAYS TO KILL, and now he only has one day, that’s right, DRAFT DAY, where Costner’s brooding Sonny Weaver Jr., the Cleveland Brown’s general draft manager and son of the recently-departed beloved ex-coach, has to make an extremely important decision… <br />
<br />
Although you’d never know Junior has anything on the line, at least not during the talky first half as director Ivan Reitman – in revitalizing the split-screen device by having characters invade the frame of the neighboring square – centers more on glossy aesthetic than moving the story along.<br />
<br />
Weaver's peripheral romance with Jennifer Garner’s executive lawyer, Ali, is dull and pointless, as are the conversations with his opinionated mother (played by Cult Film Freak’s favorite actress, Ellen Burstyn). In the lead, Costner remains in the kind of mellow mode he’s gotten away with in the past, and now just seems lethargic, hardly commanding the screen at all. <br />
<br />
But Kevin and sport's fans alike, have patience: behind the meetings and phone-calls there's an actual plot unraveling, which, surprisingly, is more like Clint Eastwood’s TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE than MONEYBALL: when a lucrative quarterback seems the <i>all too perfect</i> candidate to save The Browns, not only is there a light at the end of the tunnel, but an actual tunnel is formed… <br />
<br />
Thus DRAFT DAY gets somewhat intriguing: as the minutes tick down to the televised event the film's named after, we learn more and more about the desired QB’s Achilles’ heel (which only Weaver can spot), adding a mysterious element to a story that’s all talk and no play otherwise.

2014, ivan reitman, jennifer garner, kevin costner, sport

IVAN REITMAN DIRECTS KEVIN COSTNER IN DRAFT DAY

year: 2014 rating: ** It's 2014, and Kevin Costner returns in one of several "comeback" vehicles… Just yesterday he was ...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/14/2014 / No comments / action , heather menzies , made-for-TV , marvel comics , reb brown , seventies , superhero

REB BROWN AS CAPTAIN AMERICA IN TWO 1979 TV MOVIES

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BT40gZEwe-U/U0w6V8eylQI/AAAAAAAAek4/cGoDASRS2Qc/s1600/REB.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BT40gZEwe-U/U0w6V8eylQI/AAAAAAAAek4/cGoDASRS2Qc/s320/REB.JPG" width="192" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1<u>979 part one: *** part two: **</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><b><i></i></b></span></span>With a cool motorcycle, iconic uniform, and the boomerang shield, Captain America reigns: more of a bionic Evel Knievel than the traipsing comic book hero...<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JZC2Oh2II2o/WS0VjwWmjtI/AAAAAAAAx5g/eRqYQRfBcMsdAo_eWUYfBAFcsbP5thIGACLcB/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="372" data-original-width="432" height="275" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JZC2Oh2II2o/WS0VjwWmjtI/AAAAAAAAx5g/eRqYQRfBcMsdAo_eWUYfBAFcsbP5thIGACLcB/s320/2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Reb Brown as Captain America... beachside</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
But first he’s Steve Rogers, a budding artist fresh out of the Marines, cruising the coast in a groovy fan for leisure, but the bad guys want him dead and the good guys want him… super, despite the fact Reb Brown’s a big guy to begin with: so the transformation is nothing like the original, which morphs a skinny wimp into a muscular stud. And Brown’s performance is surprisingly monotone given energetic turns in BIG WEDNESDAY, UNCOMMON VALOR and especially CAGE. At a certain point you'd think he needs coffee more than a shield: In the patriotic red, white & blue uniform, Reb looks the part, and this TV movie builds up the plot… about a Militant’s threat to detonate a neutron bomb… and takes forty five minutes for our hero to assume his identity and then kick in gear. The best scenes occur during the latter part of the second act: involving Cap riding that motorcycle around, dodging bullets and beating up thugs. Then, when the ante is upped, and Steve Forrest takes the villainous forefront from thug Lance LeGault, things get a bit too heavy-handed although it's always cool whenever Captain America puts his foot down.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0KasnD-lrPw/U0w64VgNC7I/AAAAAAAAelI/B7L2DjsjzNs/s1600/ff562f_2ff85deeb89f3b228d065b5e4ac028eb-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0KasnD-lrPw/U0w64VgNC7I/AAAAAAAAelI/B7L2DjsjzNs/s1600/ff562f_2ff85deeb89f3b228d065b5e4ac028eb-1.jpg" width="130" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Flyin' High</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The follow-up, DEATH TOO SOON, starts off with some neat action – Captain America completely out of the bag without any explanations – but a majority of the film flags beneath a thick plot involving Christopher Lee spreading an age-accelerating gas, and then extorting the government into paying him for the antidote. There are just a few action scenes where Captain America and his motorcycle go to work – but alas, not much work’s to be done: just a lotta talk about world domination.<br />
<br />
Heather Menzies, the ingénue from the first, is replaced by Connie Selleca, while Len Berman returns as the scientist who’d granted the powers (handed down by Steve’s father, the original Captain America). And yes, this is extraordinarily dated – with music even CHiPs would consider corny… but it’s simple fun: like how a child’s mind registers a comic book rather than a grownup’s progressed interpretation.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uup7Dwf5n5I/U2Xb9bubIeI/AAAAAAAAe8I/OBqAqunkg60/s1600/captain-america-sentinal-of-liberty-dvd-review.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uup7Dwf5n5I/U2Xb9bubIeI/AAAAAAAAe8I/OBqAqunkg60/s320/captain-america-sentinal-of-liberty-dvd-review.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Reb Brown reflects Captain America</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><b>Were the two movies, CAPTAIN AMERICA and DEATH TOO SOON, supposed to be followed by a weekly series?</b></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Yes... And what happened is THE INCREDIBLE HULK was running at the time, and Marvel Comics, when they got down to it… they were charging twenty-five hundred dollars an episode, a licensing fee for THE HULK, okay…  </i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The Shield of Captain America</u></td></tr>
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<i>And then they got around to us, and CBS wanted to buy it for fifteen episodes, and they said they wanted fifty thousand dollars a licensing fee per episode… </i><i>So they didn’t do it… They just took the budget away… They could not do the CAPTAIN AMERICA series, only the two made-for-TV movies, and I ended up riding my motorcycle around the living room...</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><b>And what was Captain America's shield made of?</b></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>That was plastic… The reason they had it be plastic is so I could see through it… And in the new Captain America, they had the titanium… But they had to make it so that I could see through it, and you could ride the motorcycle and still see through it...  </i><br />
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action, heather menzies, made-for-TV, marvel comics, reb brown, seventies, superhero

REB BROWN AS CAPTAIN AMERICA IN TWO 1979 TV MOVIES

1 979 part one: *** part two: ** With a cool motorcycle, iconic uniform, and the boomerang shield, Captain America reigns: more of a bio...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/09/2014 / No comments / christopher lloyd , deforest kelly , eighties , franchise , leonard nimoy , nineties , science-fiction , sequel , seventies , star trek , william shatner

BEAMING INTO THE ORIGINAL CAST STAR TREK MOVIES

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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Reviews of the Original Star Trek Movies 1979-1991</u></td></tr>
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<i>The original STAR TREK series is a miraculous enigma: it only lasted three seasons and grew more popular throughout the years, spawning countless spinoffs and a reboot, making TREK perhaps the greatest cult franchise of all time...  </i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">year: 1979 rating: **1/2</span></u></td></tr>
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<i>A decade after the original series came to an end, and after over ten years with an animated series in-between, Trekkies got these handful of films with the original cast... some of the films are better than others but all are pretty entertaining in their own right, winding up on the big screen by the success of STAR WARS paving the way... </i><br />
<br />
<i>Although it wasn't initially meant to revitalize TREK onto the big screen, it happened, and, here's what Alan Dean Foster has to say about creating/writing the rudimentary MOTION PICTURE: </i><i>"Gene Roddenberry  gave me a two-page outline titled ROBOT'S RETURN and asked 
if I could  expand it," author Alan Dean Foster, who also adapted the STAR TREK cartoon into LOG BOOKS: "I developed a long treatment I called IN THY 
IMAGE. This was  to be the opening episode of the new, revived network series. They then  decided they wanted to open with a two-hour movie for
 TV, and I again  expanded and revised the treatment, which subsequently 
became the basis  for the film..." This collected bagful of reviews, covering all six STAR TREK original-cast movies, were taken from individual archives, each written in various stages, and some opinions have changed, especially with this review...</i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>ORIGINAL STAR TREK CINEMA</u></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><u>STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE</u>: </span>Veteran director Robert Wise brings to the big screen the beloved characters from the classic '60s sci-fi TV show that, although it didn't last very long, snowballed into an even larger cult following throughout the '70s, enough to merit (thanks to STAR WARS, which made outer space bankable) a <i>motion picture</i>: too bad it had to be this one...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sZhkux5xt5I/W0DFo4rDEWI/AAAAAAAA3dQ/GChTfvIMGYEkFS_l_hZs024g8Vb54cz9ACLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-07-07%2Bat%2B6.52.09%2BAM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1448" data-original-width="454" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sZhkux5xt5I/W0DFo4rDEWI/AAAAAAAA3dQ/GChTfvIMGYEkFS_l_hZs024g8Vb54cz9ACLcBGAs/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-07-07%2Bat%2B6.52.09%2BAM.png" width="125" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Stephen Collins</u></td></tr>
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William Shatner, as Captain James T. Kirk, returns to the Enterprise with a solemn bitterness, as does McCoy, with a fake beard and even grumpier than his boss... And finally Spock, duller than even a Vulcan should be... As they set out to intercept a giant mysterious cloud destined to blow up earth. A slow-paced  side-story involves the new young Enterprise commander, played by an otherwise talented 
Stephen Collins, and a sexy bald woman as grumpy as the rest 
of the cast...
 especially when she becomes a robot, or something possibly non-human.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L8quqR9t2HU/W0Jp9KcAoxI/AAAAAAAA3g4/l-hBtN4UpFAS1r-UHQbok7M287U0nQxdACLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-07-08%2Bat%2B12.42.23%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="671" height="286" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L8quqR9t2HU/W0Jp9KcAoxI/AAAAAAAA3g4/l-hBtN4UpFAS1r-UHQbok7M287U0nQxdACLcBGAs/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-07-08%2Bat%2B12.42.23%2BPM.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>New new guy and old new guy bonding</u></td></tr>
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Most of the film has the crew standing on the bridge, gazing out in 
awed-wonderment at all the expensive, and impressive, special effects...<br />
<br />
The only thing somewhat worthwhile. But the eye-candy gets stale quick since there's nothing "solid" to chase it with, and we're finally led to a limp twist ending that tries hard for Kubrick inspired wonderment but ends up pretentiously stale...<br />
<br />
If this were a condensed forty-five minute 
episode of the original series, it'd still be a throwaway, lacking the 
mysteriously brainy chess match that made the show so endearing, 
interesting, and fun. Kirk, having no chance at outsmarting this 
particularly formidable "alien,” must simply <i>learn</i> about it... so 
where's the challenge?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OtKJ9JUfKuU/U0RI8D8TILI/AAAAAAAAebU/eqctxr_0ALQ/s1600/khan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OtKJ9JUfKuU/U0RI8D8TILI/AAAAAAAAebU/eqctxr_0ALQ/s1600/khan.jpg" width="143" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>1982 rating: ****</u></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><u>STAR TREK: THE WRATH OF KHAN</u>:</span><b> </b>What probably makes KHAN the fan favorite of the STAR TREK films, featuring the cast of 
the original television series, is not only the villain, played 
wonderfully by Ricardo Montalban... returning from
 a beloved episode titled THE SPACE SEEDS... but the fact 
there's a real challenge for Captain Kirk.<br />
<br />
An important aspect of any 
key Trek plot is how Kirk and crew... as one mind and body with various 
traits all serving a single frame...
 has to overcome an impending element out to destroy them. There's no 
attempt to save the human race or an over-done sense of awe like the 
first movie, but rather, a head-to-head grapple based on pure vengeance 
that doesn't neglect the mental element, essential to the franchise, and there's a perfect mix of brain and brawn, and a side-story involving 
Chekov and his new Captain, played by Paul Winfield, adds a nifty 
peripheral factor. The only drawback is the far-fetched "Genesis" 
project, and while it's extremely important to the plot, for some 
reason, with all the fun of watching Kirk and Khan as loggerheads, 
doesn't mean much in the end. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">1984 rating: ***1/2</span></u></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><u>STAR TREK: THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK</u>:</span><b> </b>It’s said that <i>every other </i>original cast TREK movie is good, beginning
 with WRATH OF KHAN. So with that rock-skipping theory in place, the 
only decent Trek flicks are two, four and six... Not true! <br />
<br />
Part three, while merely serving as a 
wedge between two and four, has some terrifically intense moments: like the 
crew "stealing" the Enterprise from dry-dock; or a Vulcan, having lined 
up three people, walking behind each, choosing which to kill. Meanwhile, the lack 
of Spock throughout most of the film gives other characters a chance to 
shine a bit...<br />
<br />
Sulu beating up a six foot bully soldier is a hoot and 
McCoy, moved to second-banana, gets particularly more attention as he 
channels Spock's personality, turning him into a punch-drunk 
"spaced-out" loon (what Spock would become in part four). And Christopher 
Lloyd, as a menacing rogue Klingon, is almost too perfectly cast and 
somewhat dated today... Sure he overacts... but it's Star 
Trek!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Christopher Lloyd's Devil Dog</u></td></tr>
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Plot has the crew out to find Spock's body that was left in a coffin on a revived planet, all the while battling the nefarious Lloyd. The "Genesis" concept, introduced in part two, is a bit far-fetched even for sci-fi... But seeing this sublime invention destroy itself lends more believability to the entire concept. <br />
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Directed by Leonard Nimoy, this outing, 
although ultimately filler, is pretty entertaining, and at times 
borrows from the Star Wars universe: like when McCoy's 
looking for illegal transport in a Cantina full of strange-looking 
aliens, or Lloyd's pet monster-hell-dog, seeming right out of Jabba's 
palace.<br />
<br />
The last twenty minutes, showing in detail the Vulcan ritual
 in bringing Spock back to life, is long-winded and suited for hardcore 
Trekkies only. And yet, despite the flaws, this is a decent enough entry that
 blows the <i>every-other</i> theory to smithereens.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">1986 rating: ****</span></u></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><u>STAR TREK: THE VOYAGE HOME</u>:</span> The concept of humpback whales saving the planet is hokey and, at times, environmentally preachy, but one of the great things about 
part four is the entire cast getting their own special time on screen, 
filling out their abilities like in no other Trek film.<br />
<br />
Our story begins
 with an odd spaceship resembling a giant link-sausage carrying an 
illuminating fooz-ball, trying to read the ocean to make contact with 
what Kirk and Spock realize are extinct humpback whales. So the crew 
must go back in time (by circling the sun... not an easy feat) to the 
20th century/mid-1980's to find the whales and bring them home before 
the vessel blows up earth. The crew takes to the streets of modern 
day San Fransisco and not only must find the whales, but a container in which to hold the “beasties” (as Scotty describes them), <i>and</i> 
something nuclear to fix the Klingon ship inherited from the previous 
film.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Culture Spock</u></td></tr>
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In this thoroughly involving journey we really get to know the 
side-characters: Scotty trying to 
communicate with a computer by speaking into the mouse is hilarious; Sulu knows his stuff as a helicopter pilot; and Chekov is given a nail-biting mission.
 On the forefront, William Shatner's acting is less contrived, his speech not as halting, 
and HOME is possibly his best performance in all the Trek films.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Scotty beams Mac to the Future</u></td></tr>
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The 
moments where Kirk plays off Spock, punchy from having been resurrected 
in the last outing, are hilarious. And Catherine Hicks, as an idealistic, 
uptight and beautiful whale researcher, is a terrific addition – and we 
get to see Kirk's famous ability with the ladies at a more mature, 
genuine level.<br />
<br />
The highly progressed 23rd Century humans dealing with 
20th century chumps is not only fun but downright insightful: kind of 
how Spock sees advanced humans in the 23rd century, giving the crew a Vulcan-like perception into our very own "primitive" society. And a fantastic pre-climax, rescuing a dying Chekov from a hospital, is suspenseful and humorous – especially as McCoy critiques our "medieval" surgical 
methods. So while WRATH is, technically, the best of the series, VOYAGE HOME is personal favorite and the peak of the franchise.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6hLhjqyja2M/W0FSk3yd_TI/AAAAAAAA3es/7JBqE0VX7dAVqJXLZo7MH2mF16XijjYAwCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-07-07%2Bat%2B4.52.40%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="448" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6hLhjqyja2M/W0FSk3yd_TI/AAAAAAAA3es/7JBqE0VX7dAVqJXLZo7MH2mF16XijjYAwCLcBGAs/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-07-07%2Bat%2B4.52.40%2BPM.png" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>year: 1989 rating: ***</u></td></tr>
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<u><span style="background-color: white;">STAR TREK: THE FINAL FRONTIER</span></u> and THE MOTION PICTURE have something in common: Both are thoroughly maligned and, upon initial viewing, lack the adventurous elements that make the other Trek theatricals worthwhile… And yet they also attempt to be more low-key and cerebral like the classic, groundbreaking television series, and FRONTIER is, for the most part, a far superior episode than its predecessor…<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Spock & Kirk Go Climb A Rock</u></td></tr>
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<span id="goog_902584852"></span><span id="goog_902584853"></span>There are several problems, most having to do with uneven, awkward direction by William Shatner, who doesn’t allow the story to flow like his co-star Leonard Nimoy did for SEARCH FOR SPOCK and especially VOYAGE HOME... Also, the budget seems much lower this time around... Then again, this adds to the nostalgic value, bringing us back to basics:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Asian posters rule</u></td></tr>
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The lackluster opening desert sequence, establishing the film’s troubled antagonist Sybock, a Vulcan in search of God, is bland, overwrought... And then we change location to Yosemite, where a middle-aged overweight Kirk climbs a mountain before falling to his near-death and, at the very last minute, is rescued by a hovering Spock: like a Roadrunner cartoon...<br />
<br />
And then... get this... Kirk, Spock and McCoy attempt to sing <i>Row, Row, and Row Your Boat</i> around a campfire: Cringe-worthy moments that feel nothing like science-fiction... But the ball gets rolling once Sybock takes over the Enterprise to reach this “final frontier” to literally meet his maker, and the ragtag crew has to work together, as captives on their own vessel… This following a fun, horse-riding siege on a primitive planet, where the gang initially meet the rogue Vulcan… And in that role, character-actor Laurence Luckinbill delivers an antagonist both formidable and sympathetic. <br />
<br />
Through all the ups and downs, it's the last act that really matters, a mind-trip conclusion at the brink of the galaxy where, once again, Captain Kirk has to make a decision that can make and break everything, providing enough suspense and camaraderie that not even the "merrily" return of <i>Row, Row, Row Your Boat</i> can diminish.<i></i><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cZWdR_h39M4/U0RJdUWi3qI/AAAAAAAAeb0/UjVeVbu1UG8/s1600/lastone.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cZWdR_h39M4/U0RJdUWi3qI/AAAAAAAAeb0/UjVeVbu1UG8/s1600/lastone.jpg" width="152" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>1991 rating: **1/2</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white;"><u>STAR TREK: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY</u>:</span> Not a terrible movie, but seemed too much like NEXT GENERATION in its 90's squeaky-clean-TV special-effects, while a much too obvious modern commentary on politics, bringing the 
viewer out of the 23rd Century... like Spock mentioning Richard Nixon... is downright distracting...  <br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VYYi3XPYq5c/W0FVpLnqpeI/AAAAAAAA3fU/G32fH2AmIBEiOR6x5X0kGc5_IrWhjVvXQCLcBGAs/s1600/dc-comics-star-trek-vi-the-undiscovered-country-issue-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="302" data-original-width="262" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VYYi3XPYq5c/W0FVpLnqpeI/AAAAAAAA3fU/G32fH2AmIBEiOR6x5X0kGc5_IrWhjVvXQCLcBGAs/s1600/dc-comics-star-trek-vi-the-undiscovered-country-issue-1.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>DC Comics Adaptation</u></td></tr>
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Meanwhile, The
 Klingons quote Shakespeare (hence the title) and their benign planet 
way-too-obviously represents the just-fallen Soviet Union... This feels like STAR TREK invading C-SPAN, or vice versa... And other 
distractions include Sulu as the captain of his own ship, something Takei wanted for many years; a pointlessly
 intrusive cameo by Christian Slater; and the feeling
 that the original cast are simply going through the motions...<br />
<br />
In all, COUNTRY is more of a courtroom drama than a mission of any kind: Basically A <i>Bridge</i> too far... Standard orbit, and nothing more...<br />
<br />
But not entirely shabby either... There are moments of suspense and good performances... After all, you've got Christopher Plummer on board and they brought back KHAN director Nicholas Meyer to close the book on the original STAR TREK movie franchise.

christopher lloyd, deforest kelly, eighties, franchise, leonard nimoy, nineties, science-fiction, sequel, seventies, star trek, william shatner

BEAMING INTO THE ORIGINAL CAST STAR TREK MOVIES

Reviews of the Original Star Trek Movies 1979-1991 The original STAR TREK series is a miraculous enigma: it only lasted three seasons an...

JMT

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