Category: Movies

Clubber Lang vs Ivan Drago?

Posted on by

Brian Okert at El Tech O posted the drawing above with these questions:

Why do ya think Clubber Lang never stepped up to fight Drago?  And if they did fight… How do ya think that would have gone?

First question first: We don’t know that they never fought.  Perhaps they did but the result never made it into the follow-up Rocky/Creed films.

I like to think that after Lang lost to Rocky, he was devastated.  Lang had been destroying opponents and thought he was unbeatable.  After Rocky knocked him out, Clubber went into a period of isolation and self-reflection. He met a woman who worked with troubled youth.  She didn’t follow sports or know Clubber was a boxer.  They developed a relationship and Clubber began to work with the kids in an effort to help turn their lives around.  Lang had enough money from fighting to retire and he did so he could live a peaceful life with her. (Based somewhat on George Foreman’s life after boxing.)

Second question: If Lang and Drago had fought, how would it have gone?  The outcome would, of course, depend on how Sly wanted to move the story forward.  No matter who won, Clubber or Drago, then it makes sense he would have continued to fight and we would have heard more about him in the Balboa/Creed movies.   Since there was no mention of either fighting again, I think it is safe to assume they never fought.  But if they did fight, I’d give the edge to Drago… although Clubber would have always had a puncher’s chance.

Your thoughts?

Horror Movies to Amp Up Your Heart Rate! (“It’s the big one, Elizabeth!”)

Posted on by

Michele Debczak at Mental Floss posted the results of a survey to determine The 10 Horror Movies That Are Most Likely to Get Your Heart Racing.  I thought this was an interesting angle to look at horror movies.  Here’s how they got their list…

To compile their list of the most terrifying horror flicks, GIGACalculator.com showed movies to 150 first-time viewers while tracking their heart rates. The film selection was determined by a survey of 2500 self-proclaimed horror fanatics prior to the study.

Before you click over for the full story, here are the rankings of the top ten compared to how I would rate them.

Michele Debczak

Craig

1. Hereditary (2018)

1. The Descent (2005)

2. Saw (2004)

2. A Quiet Place (2018)

3. The Babadook (2014)

3. Us (2019)

4. Insidious (2010)

4. Saw (2004)

5. A Quiet Place (2018)

5. The Exorcist (1973)

6. The Descent (2005)

6. Insidious (2010)

7. Us (2019)

7. The Conjuring 2 (2016)

8. It (2017)

8. It (2017)

9. The Conjuring 2 (2016)

9. The Babadook (2014)

10. The Exorcist (1973)

*. Hereditary (2018)

* I haven’t seen Heredity so I didn’t include it in my list.

I’m surprised John Carpenter’s The Thing didn’t make the list.

“Dreamland” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

Posted on by

Here are the poster and trailer for Dreamland.  The poster shows some imagination and the trailer ain’t bad either.  (Update – I just learned that the poster is not official and was made by a fan!  What an awesome job she did.  Her name is Nicole Baroudi and you can see more from her by clicking the link! – Craig 10/28/20)

Academy Award® nominee Margot Robbie (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) “is fantastic” (Indiewire) in this “dazzling” (Hollywood Reporter) love story set amidst America’s struggle during the Great Depression. Eugene Evans (Finn Cole, “Peaky Blinders”) dreams of escaping his small Texas town when he discovers a wounded, fugitive bank robber Allison Wells (Robbie) hiding closer than he could ever imagine. Torn between claiming the bounty for her capture and his growing attraction to the seductive criminal, nothing is as it seems, and Eugene must make a decision that will forever affect the lives of everyone he’s ever loved. Travis Fimmel (Warcraft), Kerry Condon (Avengers: Infinity War) and Lola Kirke (American Made) also star in this “beautifully shot coming-of-age story” (Indiewire).

Featuring: Margot Robbie, Finn Cole, Garrett Hedlund, Travis Fimmel, Kerry Condon, Darby Camp, Lola Kirke

Kurt Russell Trivia!

Posted on by 

Photo by Gage Skidmore

Jake Rosen at Mental Floss presents 8 Fascinating Facts About Kurt Russell.  Here are three of my favorites…

2. KURT RUSSELL PASSED UP A CHANCE TO BE IN STAR WARS TO DO A TELEVISION WESTERN. (Since he hadn’t been offered either of the Star Wars roles he was up for, he made the right decision.  A bird in the hand… – Craig)

5. KURT RUSSELL WAS PAID TWICE HIS GOING RATE FOR STARGATE BECAUSE HE WAS CONSIDERED IMPOSSIBLE TO DISLIKE.  (Who doesn’t like Kurt Russell?  I went to see Stargate and didn’t particularly like it.  I went because I like Russell, so it was money well-spent by the Stargate producers. – Craig)

6. KURT RUSSELL MAY HAVE STEALTH-DIRECTED TOMBSTONE. (Turns out that Russell may have directed Tombstone the way that Stallone directed Rambo, First Blood: Part Two! – Craig)

“The Descent” – Trivia for this Under-rated Horror Movie!

Posted on by

Rob Hunter at Film School Rejects reminded me of a very good and very under-rated horror movie with his piece, 21 Things We Learned from ‘The Descent‘ Commentary.  Before you click over, here are three of my favorites and my thoughts on each…

10. Claustrophobia is a big aspect of the film’s fear, but Marshall had no clue how many people were affected by it until he started showing the film to audiences. (My wife does have a bit of claustrophobia and it was getting to her.  I don’t have any issues with closed in places and it was also getting to me! – Craig)

14. The sequence where the women see the crawler for the first time, via the night vision camera, was actually their first real glimpse of the creature. Marshall had kept the performers separate so the women wouldn’t see the costumed beasts beforehand. They had the lights off and brought the performer in, and then revealed him as the visibility returned — it went over well with screaming and running on the part of the cast.  (The Descent has one of the best monster reveals! You’ll love it! – Craig)

19. The young performer playing the “child” crawler also plays a child zombie in 28 Days Later (2002). (That kid has two of the best films of the decade on his/her resume! – Craig)

Mike Lynch Gets Carter!

Posted on by

Check out Sly Stallone as Jack Carter by Mike W. Lynch!  This was Mike’s first time drawing Sly and he nailed the likeness.

Mike Lynch had a contest for a free drawing and my buddy, Ron Wendt aka
Darth_Rawn won.  Instead of getting a piece for himself, he asked for the Stallone piece above to gift to me!  Ain’t friends great?

You can see more of Mike’s art using the two links above (Instagram and Twitter).   Thanks to Mike and Ron for a sweet addition to my Stallone art collection.

“I’m Your Woman” – Crime Drama Poster and Trailer

Posted on by

Here are the poster and trailer for I’m Your Woman.  I like the looks of both and plan to check out the movie!

In this 1970s set crime drama, a woman is forced to go on the run after her husband betrays his partners, sending her and her baby on a dangerous journey.

Starring: Rachel Brosnahan, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Arinzé Kene, Frankie Faison, Bill Heck
Written By: Julia Hart
Directed By: Julia Hart
Produced By: Jordan Horowitz, Rachel Brosnahan

“O.I.” – Some Ideas are Dangerous! Check Out this Fun Short!

Posted on by

O.I. is one of the best short films I’ve seen in a while.  Hats off to all involved!

Barry has a unique problem. He came up with a truly original idea. And sharing it has consequences.

Chris revisits the Tiki bar where he made his first ever deal. He wants to celebrate the biggest deal he’s ever made by drinking down memory lane. It is early morning and there is only one other customer, Barry, and the Barman.

Barry is drinking to forget and is in no mood to celebrate anything. Only Chris’ offer of free drinks for a week if he can’t solve Barry’s problems makes Barry change his mind. Barry has a unique problem. He came up with a truly original idea. And he is the only one immune to it. Chris doesn’t believe a word of it and is determined to prove Barry a liar and win the bet.

Written & Directed by N’cee van Heerden

Tax Collector (2020) / Z-View

Posted on by

Before we get into my review of Tax Collector, let me say that I’m a David Ayer fan and after seeing the poster and trailer for Tax Collector back in July, I posted them both saying that I looked forward to seeing the movie.

ComingSoon.net  recently had a contest for a free DVD of Tax Collector.  I entered and won a copy.  That copy is what I am reviewing.

Tax Collector (2020)

Director: David Ayer

Screenplay: David Ayer

Stars:  Bobby Soto, Cinthya Carmona, Shia LaBeouf, Jose Conejo Martin, Cheyenne Rae Hernandez, George Lopez and Brian Ortega.

The Pitch: “David Ayer is ready to make another movie!”

Tagline: From the Creator of  “Training Day” and “End of Watch”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

David Cuevas (Soto) and his crime partner, Creeper (LaBeouf) are tax collectors for a crime lord known as The Wizard.  They collect a 30% tax on all illegal gang activity in the city.  If the money isn’t on time or the count comes up short, Cuevas and Creeper resolve the issue so it doesn’t happen again.

Cuevas is living a double life of sorts.  He has a beautiful wife and two children. He wants to be a good husband and father.  The life Cuevas lives has given him a nice house, lots of money and respect, but the things he does to earn them are hard to justify.  While Cuevas is a religious man, his partner, Creeper has come to terms with who they are and what they do.

Things go smoothly until a Conejo (Martin), a rival gang lord, returns to the city with intent to take over the Wizard’s operation.  Conejo meets with Cuevas and offers him a choice: join Conejo or Cuevas and his family will be killed.

To tell more would be to give away too much.  The movie contains more than a few twists, but it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone going to see Tax Collector that there are scenes of brutal violence.  If you’re a fan of David Ayer, then you know what to expect.

As a screenwriter, Ayer got my attention with Training Day.  As a director, it was with Street Kings.  Then as a writer/director he brought us Harsh Times, End of Watch, Sabotage (one of Arnold’s best), and Fury just to name a few.  Ayers’ films take us into a world where men are placed in violent situations and there are consequences to their actions.

I’ve never been a big Shia LaBeouf fan, but man, he owns every scene he is in.  His character, Creeper, is a stone cold killer, and LaBeouf was perfect for the part.  Remember No Country for Old Men and the character Anton Chigurh played by Javier Bardem?  Remember the universal praise Bardem rightly received?  I’d rate LaBeaouf’s performance at the same level.

Other standout performances include Cheyenne Rae Hernandez as Gata and  Jose Conejo Martin as Conejo.  It was also cool to see George Lopez playing against character and Brian Ortega from the UFC in a supporting role.

I really liked the Tax Collector.  If you’re a David Ayer fan, you probably will as well.


Rating:

RIP: Conchata Ferrell

Posted on by

Conchata Ferrell passed away yesterday as a result of complications following a cardiac arrest.  She was 77.

Best known as Berta on Two and a Half Men, this is just one of her 131 acting credits!  Check out all the appearances.  What a career, but even if Conchata had only been on Two and Half Men, her career would have been made.  She was perfect in that role.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Conchata Ferrell’s family, friends and fans.

“The Informer” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

Posted on by

I like the poster but REALLY like the trailer for The Informer.  I’ll be looking forward to seeing it!

An ex-convict working undercover intentionally gets himself incarcerated again in order to infiltrate the mob at a maximum security prison.

Starring: Joel Kinnaman, Ana de Armas, Rosamund Pike, Common and Clive Owen
Directed by: Andrea Di Stefano