Category: Movies
“Lifeboat” (1944) directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Tallulah Bankhead, John Hodiak, Walter Slezak & William Bendix / Z-View
Lifeboat (1944)
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Screenplay: Jo Swerling, story by John Steinbeck
Stars: Tallulah Bankhead, John Hodiak, Walter Slezak, William Bendix, Mary Anderson, Henry Hull, Heather Angel, Hume Cronyn, Canada Lee and William Yetter Jr.
Tagline: What happens when six men and three women are alone in an open boat ?
The Plot…
During a World War II a submarine sinks a passenger ship, but is also sunk. There are only eight survivors. They end up in the same lifeboat. Introductions show they’re from diverse backgrounds. There are three ship workers, a famous columnist, a rich man, and three ship passengers (one a mother whose baby was killed in the attack).
When they see another man attempting to get in the lifeboat, they assist him. The last survivor turns out to be a German soldier from the submarine. The initial thought is to kill him. Luckily for him, the vote is to spare his life.
Lost at sea, with little food or water, the odds of survival are slim. What none know is one of them has secrets that could get them all killed.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Lifeboat was nominated for three Academy Awards…
- nominee Best Director – Alfred Hitchcock
- nominee Best Writing, Original Story – John Steinbeck
- nominee Best Cinematography, Black-and-White – Glen MacWilliams
It was a rough shoot completed in a gigantic water tank. The actors were in a free-floating boat constantly sprayed with water and a mist concoction of water/oil/dry ice. Twice production had to be stopped due to actors’ illnesses and injury.
Lifeboat has no musical score which was unusual for the time.
Alfred Hitchcock originally wanted his cameo to be a dead body floating in the water. It was changed and Hitch’s image appears in a newspaper ad.
William Bendix steals every scene he’s in.
Lifeboat (1944) rates 5 of 5 stars.
“Life” (2017) starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson & Ryan Reynolds / Z-View
Life (2017)
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Screenplay: Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick
Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ariyon Bakare
Tagline: Fear life. Not death.
The Plot…
An unmanned probe returns to the International Space Station with soil samples from Mars. The six astronauts aboard the station are surprised to find a single cell organism in the soil. As they experiment with the sample it begins to grow exponentially. It escapes it’s container and devours a lab rat. Then the creature turns its sights on the astronauts.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Director Daniel Espinosa said the twist ending is in the spirit of The Twilight Zone and Night of the Living Dead.
I hate it when movie characters repeatedly make stupid decisions. Especially when they’re supposed to be intelligent.
Life (2017) rates 3 of 5 stars.
“Gladiator II” – The Trailer is Here!
Except for the music, I think that the Gladiator II trailer works. I’m not expecting the sequel to be as good as the original, but so far I like what we’re seeing.
From director Ridley Scott, watch the new Official Trailer for #GladiatorII starring Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen, Joseph Quinn, and Fred Hechinger – Only in theatres November 22.
“Rambo: First Blood, Part II” by Tony Stella!
Tony Stella created this amazing art for the reprint cover of Rambo: First Blood, Part II.
“Gladiator 2” – The Poster is Here!
Today we get the Gladiator 2 poster. Tomorrow the trailer. Lookin’ good.
Marv by Ben Oliver!
Marv from Frank Miller’s Sin City is one of my all-time favorite characters. I love seeing artists do their “take” on the big lug. Today we have Marv by Ben Oliver.
“The Killing” (1956) directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Sterling Hayden / Z-View
The Killing (1956)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Screenplay: Stanley Kubrick; dialogue by Jim Thompson; based on CLEAN BREAK by Lionel White
Stars: Sterling Hayden, Coleen Gray, Jay C. Flippen, Ted de Corsia, Marie Windsor, Elisha Cook Jr., Joe Sawyer, James Edwards, Timothy Carey, Kola Kwariani, Dorothy Adams, James Griffith, Joe Turkel, William ‘Billy’ Benedict, Charles Cane, Robert B. Williams and Vince Edwards
Tagline: These 5 Men Had a $2,000,000 Secret Until One of them told this Woman!
The Plot…
Johnny Clay (Hayden) has been a crook his whole life. Now he’s ready to settle down and marry Fay (Gray). Johnny has planned one last score. It will be big. Two million dollars big. He’s going to knock over a race track.
Johnny has put together his team: two race track workers in need of cash, a cop on the take, a sniper and a pro wrestler. Johnny has planned for every contingency… except one.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
The Killing is arguably Stanley Kubrick’s best film. Kirk Douglas loved it so much, he got Kubrick to direct Douglas’ next film, Paths of Glory. Two years later, when Douglas fired Anthony Mann early in the filming of Spartacus, Douglas turned to Kubrick to finish the film.
The studio didn’t like the non-linear structure of The Killing. Re-editing only made things more confusing. So it was released in the non-linear form Kubrick wanted. Quentin Tarantino claims The Killing is a huge influence on the format of Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction.
Kola Kwariani (the chess playing pro wrestler) and Stanley Kubrick would often play chess in a chess/checker lounge as shown in the film.
In a film full of memorable co-star performances, Timothy Carey stands out for his uniquely strange acting.
The Killing (1956) rates 5 of 5 stars.
“Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” (2024) starring Eddie Murphy / Z-View
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024)
Director: Mark Molloy
Screenplay: Will Beall, Tom Gormican, Kevin Etten; story by Will Beal; based on characters created by Danilo Bach and Daniel Petrie Jr.
Stars: Eddie Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser, Bronson Pinchot, Kevin Bacon, Luis Guzmán, Christopher McDonald and Steven Berkoff
Tagline: None.
The Plot…
When Detroit police detective Axel Foley (Murphy) receives a call from his old pal P.I. Billy Rosewood (Reinhold), Foley learns that his grown estranged daughter’s life is in danger. Foley arrives in Beverly Hills. He discovers that an attempt on his daughter’s life was made and Billy is missing.
As Axel digs into the case, he uncovers a conspiracy going to the highest levels. Now both Axel and his daughter are targets.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Will Beal, who came up with the story and co-wrote the screenplay, is a former L.A. cop turned writer. Beal’s L.A. REX is excellent.
Steven Berkoff, who played the villain in the original film, has a brief uncredited cameo as a motorist.
This is director Mark Molloy’s first feature film.
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F hits all the right beats for fans of the series. It has a plausible reason for Foley to return to Beverly Hills. It brings back characters in a way that works. It gives Foley a daughter (that wasn’t mentioned in Beverly Hills Cop III, although she would have been born). It references the past films, even going so far as to say that Foley’s third case in Beverly Hills wasn’t his “finest hour”. Beverly Hills III was easily the least favorite of the series. It uses the famous Axel F theme from the original Beverly Hills Cop by composer Harold Faltermeyer.
For some reason Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F works when it shouldn’t. When we see Axel driving a snow plow through the city, destroying dozens of vehicles, we ignore the fact that this would probably injure or kill pedestrians as well. We accept the fact that he is able to keep his job.
When he gets his “partner” to steal a helicopter and fly down Beverly Hills Streets the only damage is to vehicles. People are never hurt. That’s why Axel and Bobby walk away from a helicopter crash without even a limp or bruise.
The same is true when there is a shoot-out on a crowded Beverly Hills Street. Only the bad guys die. I guess it is because in a Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F shootout, the bad guys fire dozens of shots and always miss. Later when Axel is hit, the bad guy was shooting at his daughter and Axel jumps in front of her.
The fact that we are able to ignore these things is evidence that Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F works.
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024) rates 4 of 5 stars.
“First Blood” Limited Edition Print by Tony Stella!
Tony Stella created this beautiful alt poster for First Blood. It is now being sold in a limited variant edition by Apollo Gallery.
“Daylight” (1998) starring Sylvester Stallone and Amy Brenneman / Z-View
Daylight (1998)
Director: Rob Cohen
Screenplay: Leslie Bohem
Stars: Sylvester Stallone, Amy Brenneman, Viggo Mortensen, Dan Hedaya, Jay O. Sanders, Karen Young, Claire Bloom, Barry Newman, Stan Shaw, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Renoly Santiago, Renoly Santiago, Danielle Harris, Trina McGee, Marcello Thedford, Jo Anderson, Mark Rolston, Rosemary Forsyth, Luoyong Wang, Tony Munafo, Nestor Serrano, Rob Cohen and Sage Stallone
Tagline: HOLD YOUR BREATH
The Plot…
When an explosion seals a tunnel beneath the Hudson River, time is running out for the few survivors. Despite it being a suicide mission, ex-NYC Medical Services Chief Kit Latura (Stallone) goes in. As the air dwindles, the water levels rise and tempers flare, Latura and the survivors search for a way out.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Daylight was nominated for one Academy Award
- nominee Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing – Richard L. Anderson, David A. Whittaker
Daylight is the second time that Sly and his son Sage appeared together in a movie.
Cameos include: director Rob Cohen as a businessman and Associate Producer Tony Munafo as a waste truck driver.
Stan Shaw, who plays a Transit cop trapped in the tunnel also played the boxer named Dipper who gets Rocky’s locker in Rocky.
Daylight is a throwback to the disaster movies like The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake and The Towering Inferno.
Daylight (1998) rates 4 of 5 stars.
“The Last Front” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!
1992 looks like a winner. Has Tyrese Gibson ever come across so thuggish? Plus one of Ray Liotta’s last performances.
From writer/director Julien Hayet-Kerknawi, starring Iain Glen, Sasha Luss, Julian Kostov and James Downie.
THE LAST FRONT – In Theatres August 9
RELEASE DATE: August 9
DIRECTOR: Julien Hayet-Kerknawi
CAST: Iain Glen, Sasha Luss, James Downie, Julian Kostov
“Dead Heist” (2007) / Z-View
Dead Heist (2007)
Director: Bo Webb
Screenplay: Anghus Houvouras, Eric Tomosunas, Bo Webb
Stars: Big Daddy Kane
Tagline: The perfect heist…the wrong night.
The Plot…
When a small town bank robbery goes sideways due to the start of a zombie apocalypse, the thieves and cops find themselves fighting for their lives.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Made on a micro-budget and it shows.
Loved the idea, not so much the execution.
Dead Heist (2007) rates 2 of 5 stars.
Sly Stallone as Jack Carter by Derec Donovan!
This Jack Carter piece was created by Derec Donovan through his Whatnot page. I’ve been a fan of his for years. Derec’s western/zombie mashup, Trigger Mortis should be on every cowboy/zombie fan’s bookshelf. This is my first piece by Derec, but hopefully it won’t be my last.
“Last Man Standing” (1996) written & directed by Walter Hill, starring Bruce Willis / Z-View
Last Man Standing (1996)
Director: Walter Hill
Screenplay: Walter Hill based on Yojimbo by Akira Kurosawa
Stars: Bruce Willis, Bruce Dern, William Sanderson, Christopher Walken, David Patrick Kelly, Ned Eisenberg, Alexandra Powers, Ken Jenkins, Ted Markland, Leslie Mann, Patrick Kilpatrick, Luis Contreras, Raynor Scheine, Tiny Ron, John Paxton, Michael Cavalieri, Matt O’Toole and Michael Imperioli
Tagline: There are two sides to every war. And John Smith is on both of them.
The Plot…
John Smith (Willis), a prohibition gun thug, is on the lam. Smith is headed for Mexico when he stops in a small nearly deserted border town. Two rival gangs, one Italian, the other Irish, have run most of the townsfolk off. The two crews have an uneasy truce. But both gangs are looking for a way to wipe out the other.
John Smith sees easy money in his future. It’s risky, but Smith plans to work both sides with neither realizing it. The best laid plans…
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
Last Man Standing, like A Fistful of Dollars, is based on the Japanese film Yojimbo directed and co-written by Akira Kurosawa. Many think that Kurosawa based his story on Dashiell Hammett’s RED HARVEST. Kurosawa says that his film was actually based on Hammett’s THE GLASS KEY.
Last Man Standing has a John Woo feel to it.
Last Man Standing (1996) rates 3 of 5 stars.
