2018
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
I was hoping for another Luc Besson film at least on par with The Fifth Element, but this was terrible.... more
Berberian Sound Studio
The only reason to watch this movie is to get a feel for how the sound design was created... more
Tomb Raider [2018]
Definitely better than the first Tomb Raider films. This reboot seems to be using the game’s reboot as inspiration. The plot... more
From Up On Poppy Hill
A cartoon drama from Studio Ghibli about a teenage girl who misses her dead father and raises signal flags for... more
Caged Heat
This should be a standard Roger Corman women in prison movie, but it was directed by Jonathan Demme and... more
Death Wish 3
What seriousness there was in the first Death Wish is gone. The violence is not terribly gorey but it’s ridiculous and... more
Black Magic
Black Magic is a strange mix of horror and bumbling romantic comedy. Nothing in this movie makes any sense and... more
The Kid with the Golden Arm
There are a few gory moments, but for the most part this was a rather ho-hum Shaw Bros. kung-fu... more
Excalibur
I’m not quite sure why this movie was so popular when it came out. I remember hearing that they... more
808
Another one of these sub-culture documentaries which follows the formula: Identify sub-culture, show the originators, show the people who... more
The Lady Hermit
Cheng Pei Pei is great in the excellent sword fighting movie about a master in hiding who takes on... more
Flying Guillotine 2
The head severing basket on a chain is back and is as ridiculous as ever. When we last left off, our... more
Samurai Cop
I’m sure I would have enjoyed this more if I had watched it with friends and alcohol. Samurai Cop is a... more
The Black Cat
I think this might be the fourth Italian horror movie I’ve seen that’s based on Poe’s story, The Black Cat.... more
Crippled Avengers
I assumed that they would have hired actual disabled people to star in this and expected it to be a little... more
The Dark Backward
It’s a quirky comedy. A quirkedy! Just about everything about this movie is deliberately strange. The plot is basically... more
The Tricky Master
I’m not sure if this is supposed to be a sequel to Tricky Brains, but it’s just as bad as... more
God of Cookery
Stephen Chow is an arrogant T.V. chef who is dethroned and must cook his way back to the top.... more
Love on Delivery
Man, Stephen Chow has been making the same movie over and over for more than two decades. Don’t get... more
What We Do in the Shadows
A decent entry in the never-ending series of mock documentary films. This one follows the mundane lives of three... more
Four Riders
Not all Shaw Brothers martial arts movies take place in ancient China. Four Riders is set in Seoul during the weeks... more
Saturn 3
I remember seeing this movie in the video store with its super-cool robot on the cover and thinking, “This... more
Green Room
The first fifteen minutes of this movie are noteworthy for accurately depicting what it’s like to be a touring... more
The Killer Is on the Phone
Not that it matters, but the title of this film has nothing to do with what happens on the... more
2017
The Last Jedi
I went into this having avoided the trailers or anything that could potentially spoil this for me. Despite its flaws... more
Grave of the Fireflies
This classic Studio Ghibli cartoon is about the horrors of war. But it’s really more about the horrors of... more
Seven Chances
I’ve never actually seen a Buster Keaton movie until this. Holds up very well and has some great scenes... more
Room
This starts as an engaging thriller and then tricks you by turning into a teary drama. A lot of... more
Free Fire
This was a movie that I really wanted to see. It’s directed by Ben Wheatley, who made the gangster-hybrid... more
Arrival
A sci-fi film about a bunch of space squids that communicate with coffee rings. Another blockbuster that steals plot... more
Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back
This would have been much better if it were just a cartoon instead of this live-action/CGI mess. There are... more
The Heroic Ones
This Shaw Brothers kung-fu swordsman epic is a bit of an overly long mess. The “heroic” characters are kinda... more
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
As much as I like horror, I am woefully unfamiliar with many of the classics of the genre. Amazon... more
Ex Machina
Fresh off of just seeing the new Blade Runner here’s another film dealing with the artificial intelligence. Only, this one is... more
Blade Runner 2049
I’ve tried to like the original Blade Runner. I’ve watched it several times, in several different “official” final, FINAL and... more
Women Aren’t Funny
Bonnie McFarlane’s documentary sets itself up as an investigative report into the supposed bias against women in comedy. It... more
Star Trek Beyond
The destruction of this venerable brand continues in this latest reboot sequel. This is not the contemplative sci-fi of... more
Return of the Evil Dead
The follow-up to Tombs of the Blind Dead is only slightly less bad than the original in that there is more... more
Tombs of the Blind Dead
Spain’s answer to Night of the Living Dead is slow moving and pretty stupid. These aren’t straight-up zombies. They are the... more
War for the Planet of the Apes
The third and final(?) Apes reboot sequel isn’t quite as epic as the title suggests. All in all, I... more
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Pretty daring for a mainstream big budget sequel to be mostly subtitled. Kiddies, if you download this from the... more
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
I watched this with the intention of seeing the third film in the theater soon thereafter. As far as... more
Black Christmas
Very well done proto-slasher film with a star-studded cast. Despite the title, Christmas doesn’t play much of a role... more
Grand Slam
Grand Slam is a reasonably amusing heist film with the usual tropes of assembling of the team, a complicated heist,... more
Wonder Woman
One of the better super hero films I’ve seen. The limited scope of the plot helped center the focus... more
Revolver
A euro-crime thriller/drama about a prison warden who is blackmailed into letting a prisoner escape. Boasts a wonderful score by... more
Kidnap Syndicate
A 70s euro-crime film from Italy featuring a barely-there performance from James Mason. Mason is out of the film... more
Miami Connection
This one is mostly noteworthy for its wacky premise of new wave rock band karate masters fighting motorcycle ninjas.... more
Spirits of the Dead
Only the last of the three stories in this horror anthology is worth watching. It’s directed by Frederico Fellini... more
Hundra
This third-tier fantasy movie starts out great, gets really boring, then ends on a slo-mo high note. The Morricone... more
Hairspray
We watched this movie because my kid was in a local production of the musical version and I wanted... more
My Young Auntie
A bright and colorful comedic kung-fu movie about a young widow who was tasked with protecting a family fortune... more
The Duke of Burgundy
The only reason I knew that this movie existed was a YouTube review of the soundtrack by Sean Rowley. The music is... more
The Greasy Strangler
Although I was entertained for the most part, it’s hard not to see that this movie desperately wants to... more
10 Cloverfield Lane
A good premise that sorta spoils itself by being a pseudo sequel to Cloverfield. A least there is no shaky-cam.
The Neon Demon
Although billed as a thriller, this is just art film garbage. I guess the point is to show of... more
Sorcerer
The reason to watch this is the crazy pyrotechnics and stunts and gritty 70s style. Worth it for the... more
Blind Woman’s Curse
A surprisingly good Japanese martial arts/gangster film. The time and setting, with a mix of cars and kimonos, is... more
Ms .45
This one casts itself off as a female version of Death Wish complete with two uncomfortable assaults of the lead actress... more
John Wick
Now that the sequel is in theaters, I thought I should see the original since since a lot of... more
Clan of the White Lotus
This is a strange Gordon Liu movie in which he wants to avenge the friends who died at the... more
2016
Rogue One
My first thought after walking out of the theater was, “huh, I don’t know a single character’s name from... more
The Suspicious Death of a Minor
A forgettable Italian police drama starring a guy who looks like a young Victor Davis Hansen. Plot was something... more
Shaolin Tamo Systique
This was a strange disjointed kung-fu movie about a female wannabe Shaolin disciple who is taken under the tutelage... more
The Witch
This movie felt like a Hans Baldung woodcut brought to life. Set in a dark New England forest in the 1600’s,... more
Inglorious Basterds
I was expecting something a bit more action packed. Instead this movie is just a series of scenes of... more
Mascots
Christopher Guest has created another fake documentary about a bunch of characters trying to win a contest. This time... more
Dracula 3-D
I have finally gotten around to watching Dario Argento’s most recent movie’his 3-D take on the Dracula story. Everything... more
Across 110th Street
Having blunted the needle on my iTunes from playing Bobby Womack’s title song so much I thought it was... more
Tremors
For years I have heard about the cult status of this movie and I could have sworn I have... more
Police Assassins
Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock’s debut film is corny and very dated but it was everything I expected (meaning,... more
The Mermaid
Apparently, The Mermaid was the highest grossing movie in China last year. The 40 different conglomerates listed in the opening credits... more
Ant-Man
Bleh, these super hero movies need to end. While can’t say I was bored by Ant-Man, it just felt ho-hum... more
Satan Met a Lady
This early version of The Maltese Falcon is played as a comedy. The basics of the story are still there (it’s... more
Ong Bak
Fantastic Thai martial arts movie about a monk’s apprentice going to the big city to retrieve his small village’s... more
Tricky Brains
Having seen the horrible Fight back to School I wasn’t expecting much from this early Stephen Chow comedy. This one at... more
The Maltese Falcon (1931)
This early version of the Hammet novel hits most of the same plot points of the later version but the acting... more
The House on Haunted Hill
While it had one or two actual jump scares in it (a rarity for American films of this vintage),... more
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter
Amazon recommended this movie to me probably because I have watched a lot of Kung-Fu movies lately? I think... more
The Mist
I knew most of the story of The Mist from an abridged book an tape that we listened to as kids... more
Red Queen Kills Seven Times
This is the follow up to Emilio Miraglia’s The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave. Red Queen sits more firmly in the... more
The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave
This one’s a strange Gothic horror and giallo hybrid. Meaning, lot’s of cool 70’s décor within an ancient castle.... more
The Flying Guillotine
A reasonably good martial arts movie that borrows a lot of its plot structure directly from The One-Armed Swordsman. The... more
Fight Back to School
Stephen Chow could not save this tone deaf action/comedy. Made in the late eighties, there are maybe two or... more
The Hateful Eight
This was my least favorite of all the Tarantino films I’ve watched (I still haven’t seen Inglorious Basterds). Even Death Proof, which... more
A Chinese Odyssey (Parts 1 & 2)
Long before he directed Journey to the West, Stephen Chow starred in this version of the Monkey King’s story. The... more
8 Diagram Pole Fighter
This is a gorgeous martial arts film which features an all-star cast of Hong Kong action heroes (most of... more
The New One-Armed Swordsman
The One-Armed Swordsman was a good, arty swordplay epic with a lot of character focus. The sequel ditched the character stuff and focused... more
The Five Deadly Venoms
Master is worried that his five former students are too powerful and may do evil so he sends his... more
Five Fingers of Death
A rather brutal kung-fu flick centered around competing schools in the lead up to a fighting competition. Lot of... more
Return of the One-Armed Swordsman
The sequel to the memorable One-Armed Swordsman is less about character development and more about action (Duh… you could say that... more
Shaolin Intruders
Finally, a Shaw Bros. martial arts film that hits all the right buttons: interesting characters, plot twists, colorful design... more
The Deadly Breaking Sword
I wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be a good guy, but the title character is a swordsman... more
The Shadow Whip
This was a decent martial arts film notable for four things: a snowy, wintertime setting; exciting fights with many,... more
Legendary Weapons of China
This is a weird one. It starts off with a display of magical cloaked fighters in which two are... more
A LEGO Brickumentary
I’ve written before on this Web site how there is a standard documentary being produced these days that shows the “community” that... more
Dragon Gate Inn
Looking back over the string of martial arts films that I have viewed over the past few months, I’d... more
The One-Armed Swordsman
When I started my immersion into Shaw Brothers kung-fu, I knew I would eventually see this film. It apparently... more
Painted Faces
I recognized most of the story here from having read Jackie Chan’s memoir, I Am Jackie Chan. It’s the story... more
Return to the 36th Chamber
The first follow-up to The 36th Chamber still features Gordon Liu in the lead role, but it’s mostly a parody of... more