“Hurricane Heist” (2018) directed by Rob Cohen / Z-View

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Hurricane Heist (2018)

Director:  Rob Cohen

Screenplay: Scott Windhauser, Jeff Dixon; story by Anthony Fingleton, Carlos Davis

Stars: Toby Kebbell, Maggie Grace, Ryan Kwanten, Ralph Ineson, Jamie Andrew Cutler, Ed Birch, James Barriscale, Erik Rondell, Mark Rhino Smith, Brooke Johnston  and Ben Cross

Tagline: The storm of the century… the heist of a lifetime.

The Plot…

A well organized group of thieves plan to rob a Federal Reserve money shredding facility in the small town of Gulfport, Alabama.  The crooks are going to do so under the cover of a Category 5 Hurricane heading for the evacuated city.

Standing in their way are two individuals: Treasury agent Casey Corbyn (Grace) and a National Weather Service meteorologist named Will (Kebbell).  If the thieves don’t kill them, the hurricane might.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Hurricane Heist isn’t as bad as reviews might lead you to believe.  It has excellent effects/scenes/stunts, but they get crazier as the movie goes on.  Still, I enjoyed it.  As always, your mileage may vary.

Hurricane Heist (2018) rates 3 of 5 stars.

“Legend of the Lost” (1957) starring John Wayne & Sophia Loren / Z-View

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Legend of the Lost (1957)

Director:  Henry Hathaway

Screenplay: Ben Hecht, Robert Presnell

Stars: John Wayne, Sophia Loren, Rossano Brazzi and Kurt Kasznar.

Tagline: Wayne Tangles with Loren…In the Adventure that’s Hotter than 1000 Suns!

The Plot…

Paul Bonnard comes to Timbuktu looking for a guide.  Bonnard’s father left him a map to a lost city full of gold and jewels.  Bonnard hires Joe January, an experienced guide.  The day before they are to leave, Bonnard meets Dita.  She’s beautiful, but is willing to steal or use her looks to make money from men.  Bonnard and Dita talk through the night.  The next day she asks to go with Bonnard and Joe.  Both men refuse to take her. The trip is much too dangerous.

Dita finds a way to join Bonnard and Joe.  Once she is discovered they are too far into the desert to take her back.  There’s no denying the attraction between Joe and Dita.  This coupled with low rations and even less water will lead to dangers no one saw coming.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

When director Henry Hathaway was asked why John Wayne’s character dresses like a cowboy, Hathaway replied John Wayne’s characters always dress like cowboys.

Legend of the Lost (1957) rates 3 of 5 stars.

“The Gorge” starring Miles Teller, Anna Taylor-Joy and Sigourney Weaver – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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The poster and trailer for The Gorge starring Miles Teller, Anna Taylor-Joy and Sigourney Weaver have won me over.

Deal me in.

The world’s most dangerous secret lies between them.

Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy star in The Gorge — premiering February 14 on Apple TV+
https://apple.co/_TheGorge

Two highly-trained operatives (Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy) are appointed to posts in guard towers on opposite sides of a vast and highly classified gorge, protecting the world from an undisclosed, mysterious evil that lurks within. They bond from a distance while trying to stay vigilant in defending against an unseen enemy. When the cataclysmic threat to humanity is revealed to them, they must work together in a test of both their physical and mental strength to keep the secret in the gorge before it’s too late.

An Apple Original Film, “The Gorge” is directed by Scott Derrikson and written by Zach Dean. Hailing from Skydance Media, “The Gorge” is produced by David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Don Granger for Skydance, alongside Scott Derrickson, C. Robert Cargill and Sherryl Clark through Crooked Highway as well as Adam Kolbrenner, Zach Dean and Gregory Goodman. Miles Teller executive produces.

HATCHET GIRLS by Joe R. Lansdale

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Joe R. Lansdale has a new Hap & Lenard tale set to premiere on August 19, 2025.  It’s titled HATCHET GIRLS.  Here’s the lowdown…

Hap and Leonard never go looking for trouble, and yet trouble, in the more vicious and ridiculous of forms always seems to find them. Your next dose of pitch-black comedy, mystery, and mayhem has arrived, just as the best friends may finally be calling it quits.

When Hap and Leonard are called in on a strange request (subduing a meth-hopped hog) by a desperate young lady, they quickly learn this woman is part of a fringe group: The Hatchet Girls, who have pledged their allegiance to a crazed and grudge-bearing leader bent on bloody societal revenge. The timing couldn’t be worse to be caught in such a vile, sticky wicket of a case: both boys are wrapped up in their domestic lives: Leonard is in the midst of wedding planning with fiancee, Pookie. And meanwhile, Hap and Brett are hard at work on their new home. Homemaking bliss will have to wait as Hap and Leonard are driven to stop the danger in its tracks and better understand the group’s mission and the plans they have already set in place for helter-skelter esque mayhem.

Life changes, midnight sneaks, and dark encounters with misguided dames who yell “Chop, Chop,” lead Hap and Leonard into one of their darkest adventures yet.

Pre-orders are available now.

“Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey” (2024) / Z-View

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Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey (2024)

Director:  Joe Berlinger (Eps. 1-3)

Tagline:  None.

The Plot…

In a crime that rocked the nation, six year old JonBenet Ramsey was reported as kidnapped.  The kidnappers left a long ransom note (reported as looking like mom’s writing; written on mom’s writing pad) asking for $188,000 in exchange for the safe return of JonBenet.  ($118,000 is the amount that dad received as a Christmas bonus and is an odd amount to request at any rate.)

The police came.  So did family friends who received word of the kidnapping.  The police allowed everyone in the house.  An officer suggested that dad check the house again.  Dad found JonBenet bound with her mouth tapped on the floor in a downstairs play room.  Dad took the tape off her mouth and brought her upstairs.

The case made national news.  Speculation ran wild.  The parents and JonBenet’s nine year old brother became the main suspects.  The parents reported behaviors seemed suspicious.  A grand jury was paneled.  No one was ever charged.

This documentary explores the mistakes the police made, the evidence that was withheld and the push to make JonBenet’s parents the main suspects.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

It’s a shame how the reporters were not given the full facts of the case.  The only reason that occurred was to put pressure on JonBenet’s parents.  Much was made of the ransom note (and it still needs to be explained) but handwriting experts said it was NOT her mother’s writing.  That was never to my knowledge reported.  Much was also made about there being no footprints in the snow near the broken window that the killer supposedly used.  While there was some snow in the front of the house, there was no snow on the ground near the window side.  So of course there were no footprints in the snow.  There were many things like this that is pointed out in the documentary.

We also learn of several child molesters that were considered suspects.  One even had repeated phone calls admitting to killing JonBenet.

This documentary is an eye-opener.  Not into who actually did the killing, but how the public’s perception of the killing was manipulated.

I hope someday we do learn the truth and the killer is brought to justice.

Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey (2024) rates 4 of 5 stars.

“American Primeval” directed by Peter Berg, starring Taylor Kitcsch & Betty Gilpin – Two Posters and a Trailer are Here!

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We are on a roll today.  Here we have two posters and one trailer for American Primeval.  Peter Berg directed this six episode limited series that premieres on January 9, 2025.  Starring Taylor Kitsch and Betty Gilpin.

Deal me in.

Only one goal matters: survival. Taylor Kitsch and Betty Gilpin star in American Primeval, a gripping new limited series from director Peter Berg.

Coming Jan. 9, 2025, only on Netflix.


“The Testament of Dr. Mabuse” (1933) directed by Fritz Lang / Z-View

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The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933)

Director:  Fritz Lang

Screenplay: Thea von Harbou, Fritz Lang

Stars: Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Otto Wernicke, Oscar Beregi Sr., Gustav Diessl

Tagline: Fritz Lang’s masterpiece. The most tremendous film of the present.

The Plot…

Hofmeister, a disgraced ex-police detective, uncovers an underworld criminal organization.  Barely escaping with his life, Hofmeister calls police Inspector Karl Lohmann.  As Hofmesiter lays out what he’s discovered, the connection is cut.  When Hofmeister is found, he’s gone insane.

Inspector Lohmann finds clues indicating that Dr. Mabuse is the mastermind behind the underworld criminals discovered by Hofmeister.  Lohmann is puzzled to learn that Dr. Mabuse went mad ten years prior.  He’s been housed at Professor Baum’s asylum.  Dr. Mabuse, locked in his cell with no outside contact, spends his days writing comprehensive plans for heists.  Mabuse’s cell is full of them.  Making things even stranger, since no one has access to these plans, is that they’re being used to commit crimes.

How can that be?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

The Nazis banned showing of The Testament of Dr. Mabuse because it might “incite people to anti-social behavior and terrorism against the State”.

Director Fritz Lang said that he was called to a meeting with Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda for the Nazi Party.  Goebbels said that he and Adolph Hitler were fans of Fritz’s earlier movies but his latest films (M and The Testament of Dr. Mabuse) could be interpreted as against the Nazi Party.  Goebbels then offered Lang the opportunity to direct films for the Nazis.  Lang said he would consider the offer.  He left Germany not long after this meeting.

Fritz is a master a direction, use of sound (talkies were still relatively new) and tension building scenes.

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) rates 5 of 5 stars.