Recently watched movies

[Mike Covell]

Being ill over Christmas and not having the concentration levels I usually have I caught up on some DVD's.

Spiderman
Spiderman 2
Spiderman 3
Dark Knight
Hancock
Space Monkey's
Kung Fu Panda
Eight Below
Mamma Mia
Forbidden Kingdom

and many more!!

[Mike Covell]

Cockney Crime Caper "Layer Cake" was on TV last night, there wasn't a lot more on, so I settled down and sent the wife to bed. I have it on DVD and have seen it many times, but it is a nice easy going caper.

There are some wonderful shots of London in there too, including "The Gherkin" under construction!

[Vila]

Last night I watched a BBC production of "Hound of the Baskervilles" with Tom Baker as Holmes, as well as the new "Incredible Hulk" movie. Both had the same drawback; the scenes set at night were so dark that I might as well have been watching them on Radio!

What was odd about the BBC "Hound..." was that I'd seen it on PBS TV decades ago and everything was clearly visible! I wonder if that TV edit for the US had been exposure enhanced so that we dumb Yanks wouldn't complain about the original's "artistic" lack of studio lighting?

Vila

[Mike Covell]

The wife and I sat and watched Elf yesterday, it made me feel real Christmassy!! Lovely family film!!

[sdreid]

Van Johnson died yesterday at the age of 92. He was one of the last major survivors of Hollywood's old star system that broke down in the early 1950s mostly due to television. Van's acting career actually went all the way back to the mid 1930s and included stage, radio and TV as well as films. He was known for his "goody-two-shoes" roles although in real life he stole Keenan Wynn's wife - hey, nobody's perfect. Thanks for the memories Van.

[sdreid]

Correction-Ann Savage is in her 80s

[Magpie]

Saw Raw Meat this past weekend, a 1970's flick featuring survivors of tunnel workers buried in the Underground in the 19th century by cannibalism. Soundtrack was pretty horrid. Donald Pleasance was good as the police inspector but overall the film was not worth the time wasted watching.

They should that on the Drive-In channel here all the time, and every single time it's been on I haven't been able to watch it

[Blackkat]

oooo I'm a big Indian Jones fan as well. I also love Halloween the original. Not many horror movies bother me, but Michael Myers is soooo creepy. It is a bit cheesy but that character just freaks me out. John Carpenter has had some great movies no doubt.

[Mike Covell]

Reminds me of the old version of FOG. I recommend the new version, don't waste your time on the older one.

Ooh, thats a bit controverstial! I love the "Original" version of The Fog, it's a John Carpenter film, so it is both cheesy, cliched and full of amusing moments, but there is also the odd hints of horror, and John's own musical score. The man is a legend!

Halloween, is one of the finest horror movies ever made, The Thing, god, everyone can remember when the head grew legs and scurried off screen! Escape from New York, was fantastic, the guy is a genius.

I have yet to see the remake of The Fog, but it's already plummeting in price on DVD over here, a sign that not many units are being sold.

I love old skool cheesy horror, Shivers is another fave, sadly remade, but it was awful, and The Stuff, about a natural yogurt that blows you apart from the inside!!

I made the wife watch Indiana Jones 4 the other night, she enjoyed it as much as me!

[Blackkat]

Reminds me of the old version of FOG. I recommend the new version, don't waste your time on the older one.

[bodiam]

Raw Meat

Saw Raw Meat this past weekend, a 1970's flick featuring survivors of tunnel workers buried in the Underground in the 19th century by cannibalism. Soundtrack was pretty horrid. Donald Pleasance was good as the police inspector but overall the film was not worth the time wasted watching.

[sdreid]

The other was Beverly Garland. She's probably remembered most as the wife of both Bing Crosby and Fred MacMurray in TV sitcoms as well as many television series guest appearances. She was always sexy as a panelist on Mike Stokey's Stump the Stars too. My memories of her though are as the actress in film noir classics like D.O.A., when she was still going by the name Beverly Campbell, and in Roger Corman exploitation movies such as Swamp Women. She also always looked delicious in the wonderful low-budget 1950s science-fiction movies including Not of this Earth and It Conquered the World. I always thought she was a hottie. Beverly was an 82 year old widow and until now I always held out hope that she might be interested in dating a younger man.

Both women died Friday.

[sdreid]

Speaking of under-appreciated actresses, we lost two last week. The first was Dutch-born Nina Foch who had limited success as a supporting actress in melodramas like Executive Suite as well as some sword-and-sandal movies such as The Ten Commandments. She also had an extensive career as a guest star on many TV series. Nina was 84.

[sdreid]

I watched My Winnipeg last night. The film is a sort of beatnik style pseudo-documentary so it's not for everyone. A treat is the appearance 1940s film noir actress Ann Savage who proves that she can still command the screen. She's in her late 70s now and looks every bit of it but there's still something strangely alluring about her. I hope we get to see more of Ann in the future.

[Chicaner]

I just watched Tropic Thunder on DVD - it was okay.