Action Direct

If you needed a reason why we need to donate to 3rd World countries...

noreply@blogger.com (Keanu Banderas) — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 00:10:00 +0000

This kid and his excellent summation of Commando should work out just fine for you.

Coenfographic

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 17:22:00 +0000

For those of you anxiously awaiting our review, Action Direct gives two thumbs up to True Grit.

Damn Bale!

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 21:42:00 +0000

Sequels Suck... It's Official

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 18:05:00 +0000

Scientific Accuracy in Sci-Fi

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 17:09:00 +0000

Found this over at Slashfilm. I don't like it when such bad light is shed on some of my favorite movie institutions... particularly in comparison to Apollo 13, which clearly falls outside the realm of sci-fi and therefore should be held to a different standard. Still, I do like the visualization.

Google Ngrams in Action

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 21:20:00 +0000

Impressive Body Counts

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 20:03:00 +0000

Ive not yet seen The Expendables. This poster is getting me more excited about it. Initial thoughts?

Via: Term Life Insurance

A Sad Keanu Cutout to Brighten Your Day

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:25:00 +0000

This hilarious and awesome picture of a sad Keanu Reeves has been bouncing around on reddit.com for awhile, ultimately resulting in this awesome cutout, which is now sitting on my work computer. Feel free to download at your leisure.

Review: Predators

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 05:02:00 +0000

Robert Rodriguez's Predators has been in the Action Direct cross-hairs for quite some time now. I personally have been quite apprehensive about the newest installment to the Predator franchise after having been brutally let down by AVP in the summer of 2004. Read on for a review of Predators (spoilers ensue, so beware).

There are far fewer examples of successful reboots in recent history than failed ones. And I for one am happy to say that Predators falls on the successful side of that all too hazy line.

Predators succeeds by transparently and unabashedly riding the coattails of the original film. Set in an alien jungle which is more than reminiscent of the Guatemalan selva of the original, the cast of this story is literally dropped into the film with little to no introduction. But who needs one? The audience, who by the way just paid $11 to watch a movie called "Predators", is presented with a squad of misfits carrying guns (one of which is a mini-gun) and walking through the forest. We immediately know exactly what to expect from this movie, and I for one was more than pleased when it delivered. Homages abound in this film; from Arnie style deadfalls and booby-traps to the lone guatemalan woman in the movie supplying folklore about el diablo que hace trofeos del hombre. It was like coming home.

Furthermore, Predators goes ahead and delivers us a couple of twists (but not so many as to deviate from what we are already comfortable with). I thought that hinting at a feud between different predator tribes was excellent. Not only that, it was genius to have the original predator species (ie the "ugly mother-fucker" from Predator) be the one dangling from a ceremonial predator obelisk. An unseasoned Predator fan might not realize that this is actually the predator of old, and that the ones hunting Adrien Brody et al are something different. Those of us in the audience who spent their formative years watching and re-watching two of our would-be and one of our wannabe American governors trek through the jungle felt like we were part of a little secret, and smiled inwardly for having been let in on it.

Lastly, I have to say (and I've spoked to a few who strongly agree) that the fight between the Yakuza gangster and the predator peon was epic. How many of you would have ever guessed that a predator would respect the laws of kinjitsu? I will say little more except that I never would in a million years have expected this fight scene to work. On paper it sounds absurd, but on the silver screen.... classic.

Okay, okay. I know that some of you are not the ardent action-fans and loyal subjects to the B-film throne as I am. And I will admit that there are a couple of flaws here. A buddy of mine noted that since Batman Begins, there have been a couple of actors who have (unsuccessfully) tried to replicate Bale's raspy, yet badass, tone. Adrien Brody has sadly joined these ranks. And some might say that Predators was a little too much like the original, and this may very well be the case. But one needs to remember something when watching a movie like Predators: this is a movie about an alien species that hunts humans for sport and that originally starred a former body-builder who is now the governor of California. View it through this lens and you will assuredly enjoy yourself...

Post-Script: I should have mentioned in here that Rodriguez did not actually direct this movie, although he did write the script. Predators was directed by Nimrod Antal of Armored fame

Let Me In...

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 16:26:00 +0000

Im not sure how many of you got the chance to watch the Swedish vampire film Let the Right One In, directed by Tomas Alfredson since its release in 2008. Really creepy and really good (available for streaming on Netflix for those interested). It was sufficiently badass that the USA movie making machine has decided to remake it. This usually leads to a film which is inferior to the original in story and character development and far superior in special effects. You be the judge of which is more important. In any case, here is the trailer for the Let the Right One In remake, Let Me In, starring Chloe Moretz of Kickass fame. Enjoy.

Michael Cera == Jason Bourne

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:39:00 +0000

Watch the 2010 MTV Movie Awards at MTV.com!

Iron Baby

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 27 May 2010 21:27:00 +0000

Hilarious.

Predators: 'Nuff Said

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 15:46:00 +0000

The SXSW Film Festival is going on, and I am once again not there. However, it is not surprising that such greats (and Austin regulars) like Robert Rodriguez are in attendance and have decided to give sneak previews of their latest projects. Have a look below at 2 glorious minutes of the latest Predator franchise installment, Predators. Let us hope and pray that this movie undoes the damage of AVP and AVP: Requiem.

TRON!

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 20:36:00 +0000

Holy smokes! The new Tron Legacy trailer is now available for your viewing pleasure! And it looks sweet!

It has been a while since we made mention of the new Tron movie, coming soon to theaters near you. But for some time there has been deep rumblings on the blogs about this second installment of the now classic sci-fi. I'd suggest that you hold onto your butts in the coming months, as Disney is bound to rev up the advertisement as we near the release date (not until December of this year).

Thanks to Brandon for bringing this trailer release to my attention! Check out both the trailer for the original Tron and the latest release for Tron Legacy.

When Sci-Fi Let's You Down: Runaway (1984)

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 05:39:00 +0000

My faithful readers know that I am a man who loves sci-fi action, particularly of the 80s and 90s. Tonight, I decided to have a go with the film Runaway (1984) starring Tom Selleck and Cynthia Rhodes. This movie had all the promise of being a solid sci-fi action movie; kind of a Bladerunner or an I, Robot type. The Netflix synopsis goes something like:

Sgt. Jack Ramsey (Tom Selleck) is the police robotics expert on the case when evil genius Dr. Charles Luthor (Kiss front man Gene Simmons) unleashes his reprogrammed androids.

In the end, Runaway was a bit of a let down, despite Netflix's predicted 3.3 stars rating based on my personal preferences. Seeing Gene Simmons as Luthor, criminal mastermind and murderer, opposite Selleck was reasonably entertaining. But other than that, not a whole lot of note to mention...

...that is, aside from the epically un-scary robots which are supposed to comprise the impartial hand of said criminal mastermind. Now, I don't normally like to get down on older movies for having crappy "futuristic" technology, but I can't help myself with this one. Runaway seems to go to great lengths to show its audience that toaster ovens with 357 magnums are assuredly not scary.

The fact of the matter is, well-before Runaway's release, Ridley Scott and James Cameron were doing a hell of a job creating sci-fi films which have definitively passed the test of time (think Alien and Terminator). Director Michael Crighton has no excuse for creating this refuse. Have a look at the clip below to see just what I mean...

Movies I'm Looking Forward to Seeing: Splice

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:07:00 +0000

Sundance is going on right now, and, as one might expect, there is chatter abound about lots of different films on the blogs. One of these is the film Splice, directed by Vincenzo Natali (director of Cube and a number of Earth: Final Conflict episodes, for those interested). I heard about this movie a while back when they released a short clip (below) online, and remember thinking that it looked good. Of course, keeping track of potentially awesome sci-fi movies is only a hobby (sigh), and thus the movie almost instantaneously fell off of my radar.

But now it has aired at Sundance, and the reviews are coming back that it is both awesome and a bit disturbing... Splice hits theaters February 24th, and I can't wait. Check out the clip below and give me your impressions when you get a chance.

Your Dad's Captain America

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 13:52:00 +0000

I just read on /film that Albert Pyun's Captain America (1990) is available to watch in full on Hulu. Hulu's description of this movie is as follows:

Superhero foils Red Skull and saves the president.

That sounds about right.

Although this version of Captain America doesn't have the best reputation among superhero-action film aficionados, it nevertheless played a pivotal role in my early perception of America's most patriotic of masked vigilantes. I remember watching this old movie with Keanu as a child and thinking that it was awesome. Of course, I may not think so now if I watched it again (which I will tonight). But I think it's important to remember that comic books have undergone a huge transformation in the past century. This film is a but a landmark on this long road.

You can watch Captain America in full below.

UPDATE:

Thanks to Albert Pyun, the man himself, for directing me to this interview about Captain America... where can I sign the petition?

2009 in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:16:00 +0000

Well, another year has come and gone, and with it, a series of reasonably good new action films. There were some surprising highs and some disappointing lows in '09. Below we discuss a few of our favorites and also lament a couple of tragedies*.

1. Star Trek

I should say up front that I am NOT a Trekkie. I had my stint with the Next Generation as a kid, and I watched Deep Space Nine for a time. But I never was a big Kirk and Spock kind of guy. That being said, I'm no fool and I knew going into this what were the major faux pas to be avoided. JJ Abrams managed to give us a new take on an old franchise and simultaneously maintain a sense of continuity. This installment of Star Trek gives us a pseudo origins story of some of our favorite characters. The story centers around a crazy Romulan named Nero (played by Eric Bana), who after having his planet destroyed by a rogue exploding star, travels back in time with the intent of destroying all federation home planets. Unfortunately, despite Nero's best efforts to alter the events of history, Kirk still ends up on the Enterprise with the old crew (Spock, McCoy, Scottie, and so on). With a little help from Future Spock, Kirk and his crew stop Nero and bring balance back to the universe.

I was a big fan of this movie for a number of reasons. First, the casting was superb. I thought McCoy and Spock were particularly well done. Second, Leonard Nemoy's presence was a necessary common thread to create a believable origins movie (unlike Wolverine (see below for discussion) ). And third, being a huge Lost fan, I really enjoyed JJ Abrams time travel/alternate reality plot line. In retrospect, it was the only way that Abrams was going to appease Trek fanatics and create something that wasn't garbage. Next up on Abrams plate is a new Mission Impossible movie... let's see if lighting will strike twice.

2. District 9

District 9 is by far my top pic for 2009. I can't tell you how pleasantly surprised I was with my viewing experience of this movie. Essentially, District 9 tells the tale of a group of refugee aliens who find themselves hovering above Johannesburg emaciated and in need of help. Over the course of a number of decades, the aliens (affectionately referred to as "prawns" due to their distinctly shellfish-like appearance) entrench themselves in a network of shanty-towns in the city. The story centers on Wikus Van de Merwe, played by Sharlto Copley, who is given the responsibility of relocating the prawns to a government camp away from the city, both out of sight and mind. Unfortunately, during the process, Wikus is exposed to an alien substance which slowly but surely has him transforming into one of the prawns. Wikus quickly finds himself between worlds, untrusted by the prawns and wanted by the humans for his valuable alien-human hybrid dna. The parallels between District 9 and South African apartheid are obvious and make this movie all the better.

I think that the reasons I liked this movie are (1) the main actors were not a bunch of superstars, making it that much more believable. (2) Most of the alien effects relied on costumes rather than CGI. Thank christ. And (3) District 9 doesn't reinvent the wheel. The main themes borrow from South African history and the sci-fi components are tried and true (i.e. sweet battle mechs and gigantic alien craft hovering over a major city). Overall, a fantastic movie. Hopefully we'll be seeing more of these off-the-beaten-path type films in the years to come, particularly given this movie and the success of the low-budget Paranormal Activity this year. Fingers crossed.

3. The Watchmen

If you are anything like me, you had high hopes for this movie. I've now seen it twice and still have mixed feelings. For those of you who don't know, The Watchmen is about a group of vigilantes who come out of forced retirement after a series of masked crime fighters are killed. Heavy on Cold War themes and thick with original and titillating imagery, The Watchmen is a classic which is worth the read, even if you are not a comic book kind of a person.

As you may know, we here at Action Direct are big fans of the comic book and posted numerous times in anticipation of this movie. Early buzz had us believing that director Zack Snyder was going to give us something true to the graphic novel. Unfortunately, I think he may have gone a little too far. The Watchmen book is short on good animation, but remains a classic due to its phenomenal storyline. Snyder's take is heavy on the visual and pays less attention to the story, which to me is a problem. Ultimately, I think that this movie falls short, although it is clearly entertaining visually and probably worth watching on Blu-Ray. But for the die-hard fans out there, be ready to be a little disappointed.

4. Zombieland

Zombieland is, as you might imagine, about zombies. We aren't given a whole lot of information about how it began, but little is needed. By now, we the public are well-versed in the possible subtexts resulting in a zombie-ridden world. In this particular version of zombie induced post-apocalyptica, Tallahassee and Columbus (Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg) are loners who form an unlikely alliance. The duo soon encounter Wichita and Little Rock (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin), a pair of sisters who have somehow managed to survive. The four set out cross-country on an antic-packed journey to the west coast, discovering along the way that while there may be safety in solitude, companionship is priceless...

I don't know about you, but I had a hell of a good time watching Zombieland. The driving philosophical motif in this film is the following: "you've got to appreciate the little things". Although movies like the Dawn of the Dead remake and 28 Days Later taught us to respect zombies, it is Zombieland that teaches us that sometimes, you just have to laugh about your situation, even if that situation is killing fat zombies. Definitely go see Zombieland if you haven't yet.

5. X-Men Origins: Wolverine

This year's top candidate for biggest disappointment is X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which is supposed to retell the story of Wolverine, one of the most beloved of Marvel characters. Instead, we are handed a pale of semi-solid poop. I don't understand why the film industry insists on "improving" comic book story lines. Actually, I do understand why ($$), but that doesn't make it okay. It's as if a couple of dudes bought one or two Wolverine comic books over the weekend, skimmed them, and then got together on Monday to brainstorms plot twists which would make Wolverine's origin better.

The truth is, I should not have been so invested in this movie to begin with, particularly after the shit they pulled in the most recent X-Men movie. Here are some of the worst moments in this movie:

When Gambit spins his bo staff over his head to "helicopter" down from a rooftop. Are you kidding me?
When Sabertooth asks Wolverine, "Do you even know how to kill me?".... sigh.
When Stryker shoots Logan in the head with the gigantic Magnum, thereby erasing his memory and tiding up an otherwise discordant film franchise. I just hate that shit.

Maybe I'm being too hard on this movie, but in today's film climate, when franchises like Batman and Iron Man are making concerted efforts to create super hero movies which don't suck, I just expect more.

* Note that I am not including Avatar here. I know that it technically was released in 2009, but I haven't seen it and, frankly, have been a little bit disgusted by the hype.

6. Terminator Salvation

While Wolverine topped out 09's shitlist, a close second would have to be the much anticipated Terminator Salvation. This has proven to be yet another heartbreaker in a line of disappointments. The Terminator series, which climaxed long ago with Terminator 2: Judgment Day, will have to continue to hold its breath for a worthy follow up to its first two installments. A disjunct, rather unfeasible storyline combined with some over the top special effects (some of which brought Arnold out of retirement) made what was intended to be a gritty, post apocalyptic action film into just another big bang FX movie churned out of the Hollywood shit machine.

One of the biggest surprises that I encountered during the movie was that I found Christian Bale's character line (becoming the grown version of John Connor) to be rather overblown and underwhelming, yet relative newcomer Sam Worthington (Marcus Wright) was able to deliver some excellent scenes throughout the first half of the film as an amnesia ridden wanderer in a world he no longer recognizes. However, his "strong heart" was not enough to pull the rest of the film out of the mud and, in the end, leaves this film as a fun Dbox experience but certainly not the salvation to the franchise that we had all hoped for.

7. Inglourious Basterds

In Quentin Tarantino's latest addition to his bloody repertoire, he takes on one of the most visited backdrops of modern action film: World War 2. While the scenery may be a common thread in the action genre, the style with which it is presented is uniquely Tarantino's. As we have already posted at length on Basterds, I won't spend too much time rehashing our analysis, but as a landmark in 09's cinema, Basterds has brought us some of the most memorable and entertaining theatrical moments of the year. From the intensely anticipatory opening farmhouse scene to the comedic and ultra violent burning of the french Cinema, Tarantino delivers his trademark nods to spaghetti westerns and samurai flicks of the 60s and 70s while continuing to deliver excellent casting and an amazing soundtrack. If you haven't taken the time to watch this one, do yourself a favor and reserve a few hours of time on a Tuesday night, pick up a copy of Inglourious Basterds and prepare to be scalped.

What to do in case of a Zombie attack?

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 03:11:00 +0000

Have you ever wondered how a zombie outbreak might go down in your neighborhood? Do you know where the closest gun store/mall is? And, do you know of a secondary entrance should the front door be mobbed by angry zombies?

These are pressing questions that you should have answered long ago. For those of you preparing your little ones for the inevitable, I suggest using the this zombie simulator. Impressing upon them the importance of readiness should be top priority. Complete with blood puking, ass-hauling zombies, being familiar with this simulator is one of many precautions that we should all be taking.

Make no mistakes, evil exists.... be prepared.

UPDATE

Not surprisingly, this subject has been of late getting some serious press. Head on over to NYTimes read an interesting, and somewhat bleak, assessment of our odds...

Happy Birthday Empire

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 04:00:00 +0000

In celebration of its 20th birthday, Empire magazine has done a sweet spread of actors posing as some of their most (in)famous roles. This one is by far my favorite....

Head over to Empire to see 'em all.

When Dreams Become Reality

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:36:00 +0000

As it turns out, while Steven Seagal was showing the world creative ways in which one man can break another man's arm on the big screen, he was also training a select group of Louisiana police officers in creative ways in which one man can break another man's arm... for real.

A&E's latest series, Steven Seagal: Lawman... for real.

Tauntaun Innards are Cozy

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:48:00 +0000

I don't know about you, but the first thing that enters my mind every time I see Han cut open his tauntaun to warm Luke with its innards is, "Mmmm, that looks cozy."

The good folks over at Thinkgeek.com have gone ahead and taken it one step further. Now your young one can sleep "in the belly of the beast"... literally experiencing the warmth (and smell) of the inside of a tauntaun*.

* Snow rebel uniform/helmet not included.

Scalping, Revenge, Feet, and the Bear Jew: Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds

noreply@blogger.com (bruce) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 19:32:00 +0000

Today you're in for a real treat. Joining us for what will likely be the first of many action related collaborations is our very own Zatoichi, a close friend and fellow action junky of the highest degree. Today, Zatoichi and myself will be delving into the clearly troubled mind of Quentin Tarantino as we discuss his latest film, "Inglorious Basterds". Note, the following will likely contain a number of spoilers which you might wish to avoid until actually seeing all 2 hours and 32 minutes of the film.

Zatoichi: After a string of Tarantino films that have been either awesome, but with too much chop and hack (Kill Bill, Death Proof) or not so awesome (Jackie Brown), I walked into Inglourious Basterds with sweaty trepidation. Would the author of Pulp Fiction, a consciousness transforming film and among the best ever made, be able to live up to my hopes?

As in his other films, Tarantino has built his story on a theme that has been used many times over (Reservoir Dogs: Heist gone wrong; Pulp Fiction: Hood gets involved with Boss's wife; Kill Bill: Revenge Epic). This time, he uses what may be the most overused setting in all of film and literature for the past sixty years: WWII epic. Going into the film, you wonder how Tarantino is going to deal with subjects such as the holocaust or Hitler, both of which are extremely tricky, and must be dealt with carefully, at the risk of audience alienation. The tactic in the past has either been humor: Chaplin's The Great Dictator (1940), or Dark, Brooding, Drama: Der Untergang (2004). Further, it seemed impossible that he could breathe new life into a subject that had been exhausted from every angle by almost every great director that has ever lived. Amazingly, Tarantino effortlessly navigates this impossible subject with signature violence, dialogue, and, most importantly, humor. It's easily his funniest film.

A good example is The Ridiculous Pipe that Waltz's character smokes in the opening. It's in shocking contrast to the look and feel of the film to this point, and especially to the pipe of his opponent. Tarantino has the reserve to present it without mention. And while the film is hysterical it also manages gut-wrenchingly-beautiful and profound, such as Laurent's character's escape (in absolutely the most effective homage to John Ford ever achieved (despite fifty years since The Searchers came out)). The masterful linking of these two examples in the film illustrates one of the director's greatest strengths - the tight juxtaposition of horrific tragedy with uproarious comedy.

Casey: I'll come right out and say that I liked Inglorious Basterds. It helped that I was in need of a dark cool place to rest my head after a night of kilts and boot daggers followed by an early morning drive through the robust landscape of western Massachusetts.

To a certain extent, I agree with what Zatoichi has to say. Tarantino certainly succeeds in juxtaposing the horrific and the slapstick, although I worry that he takes one or two too many steps in the direction of the latter, particularly in the end scene in the movie theater, when Pitt et al infiltrate a Nazi movie premier as supposed Italian cameramen. It feels over the top to me. But I'll concede that Tarantino did a fantastic job of navigating a well-explored bit of cinematic terrain (i.e. WWII). Specifically, there were two things that blew my mind about this movie:

First, I knew coming into this movie that Tarantino had taken a few liberties with history, but had no idea the extent to which his exaggerations and fantasies had gone. Tarantino essentially takes the story that he wants to tell and then proceeds to tidy it up with historical context. It is really pretty interesting, especially since he (unsurprisingly) makes no apologies for doing so. I had never given much thought to this before I saw this movie. In general, formula-based historical fiction frames a fictional story against a historically accurate backdrop. The story is often times incidental to the actual events of history, or, in the best cases, somehow cleverly tied in with what we accept as true. In IB, what we know to be true about WWII is tossed to the wayside to make room for Tarantino's version of reality.

Second, this movie makes it very clear that Tarantino has mastered the art of drawn out stationary scenes with impeccable dialogue. Think Vincent Vega sitting in a booth with Mia Wallace at Jack Rabbit Slim's, and then imagine that Jack Rabbit Slim's is a basement pub in the middle of occupied rural France. Then go ahead and imagine that Marilyn Monroe and Richard Nixon are actually a famous German actress/spy and a Nazi officer with an ear for phoney accents, respectively. Somewhere in between you arrive in the ballpark of where Tarantino takes you in IB. Unfortunately, this has the effect of making IB feel to me much more like a string of polished short films with recurring characters than a full length film. Has Tarantino ever done any shorts?

All that being said, I appreciate the intricacies of the story and Tarantino's continued effort to build up the Tarantino Universe of characters. Plus, I'm in awe of the way he disposed of all of the important high-ranking Nazi officers, including the Fuhrer himself. Excellent.

Zatoichi: It is tremendously freeing that Tarantino violates history. For me, the conclusion was inevitable, and maybe I should have guessed that he would be so irreverent with history, but I didn't, and the effect was spectacular.

One of the most lasting images is of Hitler, laughing hysterically during the screening of the film within the film. The film he's watching with the rest of the Third Reich isn't funny. It's about a single Nazi killing hundreds from a watchtower, and the only thing that ever happens is that he keeps shooting people, and they keep missing him (well, except that at one point he takes the time for some intricate wittling). Hitler laughs like he about to choke to death throughout. While this is hysterical, it adds a levity to our impression of the evil of Hitler that maybe shouldn't be there.

It hadn't occurred to me that the slapstick was too much, though I can see why you say so. I thought Pitt, in particular, pulled it off, and that the film works within the rules that Tarantino has set up for himself (which arent many). The physical comedy isn't much more ridiculous than the dialogue, violation of history, or improbabilities of the plot.

I think we were both surprised by how strong and original the film was. It breaks all the rules that it has to to allow Tarantino to tell the story that he wants to tell. Pure entertainment, lasting impressions, and the best dialogue he's written in years.

Quentin Tarantino's Top 20

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:34:00 +0000

Hey folks, long time no see. My apologies, but the last couple of months have been a little hectic and have not left as much time for action related rhetoric as I would like. But I came across this today on /Film, and thought that I would share it with you.

Here we have Quentin Tarantino listing his top 20 movies made since he became a director in 1992. At the top of his list is Battle Royale, which I have to admit is one badass movie. The other nineteen come in no particular order, but do include cinematic greats such as Unbreakable and The Matrix, among others. I also like that he included The Host, which I thought was actually a really great monster movie.

There are a few in here that I have not seen and will certainly add to my list (I can't believe I haven't seen Police Story 3!). I was also pissed that Katheryn Bigelow's Point Break wasn't in there, until I realized that it was made in '91, and Tarantino was quickly redeemed in my eyes...

Any that you would add to the list?

PS- I saw District 9 yesterday and it was rad.

Violent Sci-Fi Action Recommendations

noreply@blogger.com (Casey) — Sat, 09 May 2009 20:53:00 +0000

So I logged onto Netflix yesterday to find that my first recommended genre was "Violent Sci-Fi Action". Have I been watching so much violent sci-fi that the Netflix algorithms picked up on it? Has anyone else encountered such specifically tailored recommendations on Netflix?

Anyway, being that my girlfriend has been out of town, I have in fact been watching an inordinate amount of Sci-Fi. I thought that I would fire off a couple of titles in case you too find yourself without your significant other for an extended period of time and have a hankering for 80's Sci-Fi action.

The Thing (1982):

I may have caught this one on the the tail end of our Kurt Russell celebration. The truth is, I'm surprised I had never seen it until now. In this early eighties sci-fi action/ horror flick, a team of American scientists in Antarctica are faced with the realization that an alien lifeform which absorbs and then replicates any living thing it pleases, has infiltrated their ranks. Now it's up to Russell and friends to figure out who is still human and who is waiting to suck out his brains the first chance they get. Pretty good thrills coupled with gross-you-out special effects, this little guy is a gem for the fan of classic sci-fi.

Outland (1981):

This was actually one of the violent sci-fi's that Netflix recommended. I had never heard of it and thought I would give it a shot. Overall, a pretty good experience. This one tells the story of Marshall O'neil, who makes it his job to clean up an outer ring mining colony. Turns out the general manager, played by Peter Boyle, has been flooding the colony with a dangerous narcotic which boosts productivity in his workers but has the unfortunate side-effect of turning them into psychotic killers. O'neil quickly finds himself the target of an assassination attempt, which he, having made few friends on the colony, has to quell all my himself. Kind of a sci-fi detective story, which I thought was both gritty and frank. Quite enjoyable.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985):

This one needs no introduction. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is the third and final installment of the Mad Max films. Most people consider this movie to be the worst of the three. While they may be right, that by no means makes this a bad movie. On post-apocalyptic Earth, folks either fend for themselves on the open road or take refuge in one of the few "civilized" establishments. Barter Town is one of these. Powered by an army of swine, Barter Town is ruled above by Aunty Entity (Tina Turner) and below by Master Blaster (who is actually two people). Max stumbles into town after having had his team of camels stolen. To get 'em back, he makes a deal with Tina to kill Master Blaster, but after seeing Blaster's sweet face, busts the deal. Unfortunately, in Barter Town, bustin' a deal means facin' The Wheel. He is soon exiled to the desert where he is taken in by a starry-eyed tribe of kids who together return to take back what's theirs and to let Tina know who really runs Barter Town. Strong sci-fi and, as always, great western-like chase scenes with dune-buggies.

Also on the list:

The Road Warrior (1981)

Sgt. Kabukiman, NYPD ( 1996)

Serenity (2005)

Have you seen anything good lately?