Category: Movies

Big Fan… But Don’t Like Most

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I’m a fan of zombie movies. The funny thing is, there are probably only three that I really like… and one of those isn’t really a zombie flick.

Ok, before we go further, and to put your mind at rest, they are
1] Night of the Living Dead
2] 28 days later and
3] Dawn of the Dead [the re-make].

Yeah, I know… 28 days isn’t truly a zombie movie.

Yes, I know… it’s blasphamy to leave out the original Dawn of the Dead.

And yeah, I have seen other zombie movies.

The problem with most of them is that they simply become gore fests. They don’t have interesting characters. They focus only on how gross it is that the dead are eating the living or how cool it is when a zombie gets shot in the head.

And while it’s true that many [if not most of the] people who dig zombie movies are there simply to see the zombies eat people and get blown away, that’s not what I like about the genre.

What appeals to me is the world out of control aspect. I like seeing how the survivors come together from different backgrounds and with different ideas on what should be done next if everyone is to survive.

I’m looking forward to Land of the Dead. I hope that it’ll be more like Night than Dawn or Day. You see, a little gore goes a long way in my book.

That’s probably why I don’t like most zombie movies, but love the genre.

Aliens… Monsters…. UFOs and a Very Big Universe

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When I was a little kid, I used to love movies and tv shows about aliens coming to Earth.

If we were lucky, they were friendly and intelligent like Michael Rennie in The Day that the Earth Stood Still. He even looked human.

Then again, so did the aliens in the 60’s tv show The Invaders. [I haven’t seen an episode in years, and wonder how it would hold up.]

Sometimes the aliens were simply monsters out to wipe us out, like in the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers or War of the Worlds. [And, yes, I’m really looking forward to the update by Spielberg and Cruise.]

Occasionally, there would be just one alien. And boy, were we lucky that there was only one if the alien ended up being like The Blob or The Thing.

Growing up, I not only liked movies and tv shows about aliens, but I also read and watched programs about UFOs.

I still do.

Think how cool it would be if we could find definitive proof of intelligent life in outer space. Uh… as long as they weren’t out to wipe us out.

As I get older, I stil retain that sense of wonder about life in outer space. Most likely it’s out there. It’s just that the universe is such a huge place.

Don’t believe me? Click HERE and see.

“Strange Days” / Z-View

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If you were to ask me, right now, to name my top ten favorite murder mystery movies, sci-fi movies, and love stories, one movie would make all of these lists.

Don’t believe me? OK, then ask me… Really… Ask me.  Would one of you please ask me?

Ok. Thanks.

The movie that makes all three lists is Strange Days.  Bet that surprised you.

 

 

 

Strange Days was made in 1995 from a story by James Cameron, a screenplay by Cameron and Jay Cocks and directed by Kathryn Bigelow.

 It stars Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, Michael Wincott, Vincent D’Onofrio, and Glenn Plummer.

I watched Strange Days again last night and re-remembered just how much I love it and how cool it is that it works in all of the genres that I mentioned at the start of this post. I’d really like to discuss it here, but my guess is that many, if most of you haven’t seen it.

 

 

 

You see it really didn’t do gangbusters at the box office. Heck, I didn’t even see it until it came out on video.

Maybe some of you have seen it and want to talk about why you like or don’t like it.

 Maybe some of you who haven’t seen it want to learn more about it. If so, you can click HERE to see the teaser trailer, or even HERE if you want to purchase a copy for your collection.

“Strange Days” rates an A

One Last Bullet for 2004

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I hope that everyone made it to this side of 2005 with a minimum of damage. 2004 was a good year and I’m hoping for even better things in 2005. But before we leave ’04 completely, I thought I’d give a brief rundown of some of the highlights entertainment-wise [at least for me]…

Movies: I loved the Dawn of the Dead re-make and The Passion of the Christ. [Kinda strange that they were both about people who rose from the dead.]

Collateral was very good and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and The Chronicles of Riddick were fun rides.

Several of the best movies that I saw in 2004 were older movies that I discovered on DVD or cable. The original Metropolis was stunning even 77 years after it was made. And you know I love the whole tough guy – noir genre, so seeing movies like On Dangerous Ground, Brute Force and The Big Heat made my day.

TV: The Shield, 24, Survivor and West Wing continue to make my “Must See TV” list. And although Alias still hung in there, ER fell from the ranks. Lost soared to the top of the list and I enjoyed Boston Legal when I caught it.

Novels: The best were Portrait of a Murderer: The Jack the Ripper Case Closed by Patricia Cornwall, Double Play by Robert Parker, Sensei by John Donohue, and Rain Storm by Barry Eischer.

Comics: My favorite comic of the year was Grave Digger: The Scavengers by Christopher Mills and Rick Burchett. The writing and art meshed perfectly to create a comic that’s impossible not to enjoy. If we don’t get more Grave Digger stories from Mills and Burchett, then there’s no justice.

My favorite graphic novel of the year was The Wicked West by Todd Livingston, Robert Tinnell and artist, Neil Vokes. Anyone who is a fan of westerns, horror or simply great graphic novels would love The Wicked West.

My favorite on-going series were The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard [which just keeps getting better and better] and 100 Bullets by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso.

Blogs: Mark Evanier’s News from ME is required reading daily. He’s funny, informative and blogs don’t get any better. Jeff Parker’s Mystifying Oracle and Mike Wieringo’s blog don’t appear daily but when they do, they’re worth a read.

Breakfast: Was a three hour marathon session [and NO, we weren’t eating the whole time] with my ole pal Jim Ivey last week. Jim will soon be 80 and we hadn’t been able to get together in quite a while. Christmas Break seemed like the right time to clear my schedule and make a trip over to see “Jimbo” and I couldn’t have asked for a better time. Jim seemed to enjoy it too. ; )

Now… on to 2005!

Anyone Going to SAHARA?

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The official site for Sahara has opened up with a Quicktime trailer.

While it looks like it’s going to be a fun movie, it doesn’t quite give me the feel I had when I read the bestseller of the same name by Clive Cussler.

For one thing Matthew McConaughey seems a bit young to be playing world adventurer Dirk Pitt. But if they’re looking to build a tentpole out of this series, then younger is probably better.

The other thing that jumped out at me as a bit diferent than the book is how funny Steve Zahn is as Pitt‘s sidekick is. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a good mix of humor in the book, but the trailer really played it up… which again, may not be a bad thing.

And Penelope Cruz is always a plus!

Sin City Trailer

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Oh, man! I just can’t wait
to see Sin City up on the big screen.

If you’re a long time ZONE reader, you’ve [repeatedly] heard how much I love
Frank Miller’s Sin City.

You also already know how juiced I became when I heard that Miller was teaming [as
co-director] with Robert Rodriguez to bring Sin City
 to the big screen.

Then the cast started coming on board… Mickey Rourke, Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Benicio Del
Torro, Rosario Dawson, Elijah Wood…

How could it get any better?

Take a look at this trailer and you tell me!

“Cinderella Man” – Bad Title, Good Movie

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Cinderella Man [hate that title] came in under the radar.

I should have seen it coming. It stars Russell Crowe and Rene Zellweger… is directed by Ron Howard… and is the story of how Jim Braddock shook the boxing world back in the ’30’s.

Still somehow, it slipped by me until I saw the trailer.

I’ll bet it doesn’t get missed come Awards time.

War of the Worlds

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Cruise and Speilberg are teaming to remake “War of the Worlds” as a big summer movie… you just KNOW that it’s gonna rock.

The new trailer is out. I really like how the voice over works. Using the original lines with this updated version is creepy… still, the trailer left me wanting more.

Which could be a good thing.

Especially if the movie is as good as I’m hoping it’ll be.

Flight of the Phoenix

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Flight of the Phoenix premieres this Friday. And although I won’t be able to see it opening day, I am planning to catch it on the big screen.

If you haven’t heard about it or seen the trailer check it out.

Doesn’t it look like a fun movie?

Dennis Quaid isn’t usually one of the first actors I think of when talking about favorite actors, but he probably should be. Quaid has a habit of picking good projects and I think Flight of the Phoenix will be another to add to his list!

 

"Batman Begins" Teaser Disappoints

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The “Batman Begins” teaser has been popping up everywhere. Click HERE and you can see a larger version of it.

I’m looking forward to the new Batman movie.

I think that Christian Bale [as Batman] and Christopher Nolan as the director are exciting choices. I even think that the poster is well done, with a nice design and colors.

I just don’t think that it gives us the right “feel” for Batman.

First of all, why the heck is Batman hanging his head? “Batman Begins” is supposed to be Batman at the start of his career. He should be excited about going out to kick criminal butt… or at least to “strike fear into the heart’s of evil-doers.” Instead he gives off the vibe of that famous picture/statute of the Indian who’s at the end of the “trail of tears.” [And don’t get me started about that image.]

Also, what’s with the clouds and sky? Batman is an urban hero. He needs to be on a rooftop or in a gritty alleyway at night… not among the clouds and sunshine.

Still, I have high hopes that “Batman Begins” will be an excellent movie.

Brute Force

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Brute Force may be one of the best movies that you’ve never heard of.

Made in 1947, Brute Force is a hard boiled prison drama starring Burt Lancaster as a criminal plotting an escape from prison and the sadistic Captain Munsey [played perfectly by Hume Cronyn].

If you’re a fan of noir, then you should give Brute Force a look. If you’ve seen it, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

“Brute Force” rates a B