Bad Taste

  I'm no stranger to pre-Lord of the Rings Peter Jackson. I watched Dead Alive (a.k.a. Braindead) and I loved it. Bad Taste is like, even more low budget. Which may actually turn off some viewers. I must insist, give it time. It may look terribly boring and cheap at first, but give it time. It gets better by the minute. It'll have you grossed out in no time at all. Which is a good thing. When low budget gore, that actually looks fake, still manages to be gross and effective,  I happen to love it. And that's what Bad Taste is. Gross and effective. And also a hell of alot of fun.

  Aliens have landed, they can look like us, and they find human flesh and organs to be delicious... when regurgitated and prepared right apparently... Yes. That says 'regurgitated'. Yep. So it's up to a hapless band of... alien... fighter... guys? To grab their walkie talkies, their ski masks, their machine guns, and their endless supply of bullets, stop the aliens from turning Humans into galactic fast food, kill them all, and generally save the day. The movie gets more fun as it goes on. It's just wonderful by the end. And by wonderful I mean, shootouts that seem to go on and on, aliens running amok, explosions, gore galore, and plenty of good clean fun overall. Hah.

  I can't say any of this looks specifically -well made-. Modern audiences, spoiled with CGI, may just see a cheap looking old movie. But when you consider when it was made, and how much they had to make it, it's rather impressive! And that, for me, is where alot of the fun lies. I can't resist wondering exactly how they pulled off each bloody effect. Some are obvious, some, not so much. It's really fun. I suggest Bad Taste if it's your kind of movie. It's really not for everyone. Some may be turned off by the extreme gross factor, and others may simply be unable to appreciate it. But for those who can, ther's a bloody good time to be had.

Django Unchained

  Hot damn. Quentin Tarantino has done it again. He's crafted a popcorn movie that sizzles with passion and raw entertainment, but this time also has some emotional heft to it. People hate slavery, and they love heroes with a cause, and what better than to have a black hero freed from slavery to get back at his oppressors and save his wife from a cruel plantation owner? Now that... is a movie.

  I've been looking forward to Django Unchained on principle alone since it was announced. A Tarantino western? Hell yes. And even with sky high expectations, I was NOT disappointed. The movie has a special energy to it. It's electrifying, and fundamentally entertaining. Also before I get any further into the review, I want to address the use of the word "nigger". Well, mainly I want to address people bitching about it. Okay, grow up. Seriously. It's the racist south. In slavery days. What did you expect them to call black people? African Americans? Right... cause that's totally plausible. And, bitching about the violence? It's a QT movie. Seriously. Anyways...

  'Satisfying' is the word I'm looking for. Django is a satisfying movie. It's a big action packed western with a good solid hero and he has incredible on screen presence. You instantly root for this guy. For a hero to be so instantly endeared to the audience is rare. Foxx doesn't betray this either. His performance is spot on. He provides a sympathetic character who can dole out fantastic lines and kick all kinds of ass.  His bounty hunting partner, played by Christophe Waltz is awesome as always. I think it's impossible not to like this guy. In any movie. Hero or villain. He provides many a laugh in the movie. But it's well done. Did you expect anything less from QT? The movie definitely has it's fair share of laugh out loud humor, and it's well placed. In a pretty bloody movie, dealing with such a grim subject, humor is definitely needed, and delivered.

  So, pretty much Django is a superhero. But not in the flashy boots, mask, and cape sense. In the sense that he's an unstoppable force in this movie. He blazes through the flick, wasting bad guys, escaping from tight spots, getting into massively bloody shootouts and basically being amazing. Instead of being silly, it's just super damn fun to watch. With a sizzling soundtrack, and trademark QT dialog (which isn't his best, but still really damn good. Not great. But really damn good.) Django Unchained is a must see. Some may not be able to stomach it, but I'm not going to withhold my full on recommendation on account of the bluntness of the movie. Both in violence and reality.

  These are just first thoughts. I may have more to say about it when it's not 7:30 in the morning. Yikes. Oh. And the original Django, Franco Nero, has a cameo. Sweet. I'm so proud that I caught it. Now I want to go watch the very original flick. I think I might just do that. Tomorrow of course. Or... later? Whatever. Great movie. All around. See it.

Triple Feature

  Nothing quite like this movie. The closest I can come is to say... it's like... Evil Dead 2 meets Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. And even that doesn't come close enough. It's impossible to spoil this movie for anyone. Not because it's so good they'll like it regardless, but telling anyone ANYTHING about what's in the movie is not going to make ANY kind of sense unless they've sat through it themselves. Much like the also awesome Detention, John Dies' is simply off the wall. It's protagonists are incredibly likable too. So it's fun to watch them trip through alternate dimensions, get high on reality-bending drugs, fight evil creatures, and save the universe. It's a fantastically warped, hilarious, scary, and gory adventure of a movie that crackles with a unique energy all it's own.
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  Headhunters is a fantastic thriller that will keep catching you off guard and surprising you throughout. I don't feel much like dwelling on the fact it's a foreign movie. I think people get hung up on that. I saw a man at a local video rental store get pissed off because the movie he was going to rent was foreign. Wh... I detest that logic. If you can even call it that. Headhunters is akin to The Fugitive, paired with the kinetic energy of The Bourne Identity, but with an angle all it's own. I've seen it twice, and both times it's just as thrilling. It has a bit of pacing issues that are much more apparent upon a second viewing, but it's so engaging and mysterious to keep me coming back for more. The intensity of this movie is palpable, and it's edge of your seat, visceral thrills are amazing. Thrills that are quite in fact, scarce in most Hollywood thrillers being churned out these days. Not one to miss.
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  Pontypool is an excellent horror movie with none of the usual cliches that accompany them. I have less to say about this one than the others because saying just one little thing, can be too much and that can spoil it. Pontypool is a blazing work of creepy originality. It has personality, and is truly unnerving. It plays with horror conventions and turns em on their ear, and in the process gives us a true treat of a movie. Some may say it has pacing issues. I however disagree, it has set the pace it means to. I really recommend it!