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If it wasn't for the sheer fact that DANGEROUS MEN premiered in four theaters back in 2005, it would have easily and cleanly won the award for Worst Film of 2015. It would also win Best Guilty Pleasure and maybe even make it on to my Best of 2015 list as well. Though my viewing of it was widely helped by an equally appreciating and bewildered crowd, I do think it is safe to say that DANGEROUS MEN is a great addition to the "so bad it's good" pantheon and a new top pick in the world of WTF cinema. Journeying through this unspoiled is the way to go so I will have to be discreet about any further details. It starts off with the makings of a revenge thriller and then goes insane as writer/director/producer/composer John Rad tries to salvage whatever he was trying to do. You get some of the greatest hits of Z-grade filmmaking: bad environmental transitions, random sex scenes, a person clearly reading from his script, badly edited-in explosions, tattoos that rub off, and rock climbing. All that plus Black Pepper, who has to be one of the worst villains in movie history. Thank you Drafthouse Films, for making me laugh at bad art, again.
FINAL REVIEW: 1 / 5
Want to find out what movies are heading to Netflix Streaming? I got your back.
Upcoming Netflix Streaming Titles
11/27 - Kuch Kuch Hota Hai
11/28 - Best of Enemies, The Best Offer, A Perfect Man
11/29 - Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films
12/1 - #DeathToSelfie (2014), A Christmas Star, Amnesiac, CBGB, Christmas Wedding Baby, The Chronicles Of Riddick: Dark Fury, Cradle 2 The Grave, Darkman, Jenny’s Wedding, Practical Magic, Ray, See You In Valhalla, Stir Of Echoes, Stir Of Echoes: The Homecoming, That Touch Of Mink
12/2 - Station of the Cross*, Tangerine
12/3 - Matt Shepard Is a Friend of Mine
12/4 - A Very Murray Christmas
12/5 - A Case Of You, Dinosaur 13
12/7 - Vampire Academy
12/8 - One & Two, Phoenix, Xenia
12/9 - Trailer Park Boys: Drunk, High And Unemployed Live In Austin
12/11 - The Ridiculous Six
12/14 - The Da Vinci Code
12/15 - Drown, Time Out Of Mind
12/16 - Fresh Dressed
12/18 - F Is For Family (Netflix Original Series), Making a Murderer (Netflix Original Series)
12/19 - Chloe and Theo
12/20 - Leo The Lion, Magic Snowflake, Santa's Apprentice
12/22 - Queen Of Earth
12/23 - Invisible Sister
12/24 - Dawn of the Croods (Netflix Original Series)
12/31 - Manhattan Romance
What to Watch This Week
I have been waiting for a long, long time to see Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films. It's already out on video but it being on Netflix is a perfect fit for it, as many would likely take a gander and/or have a laugh with its journey through 80's movie-mania. And if you have three hours to spare and want to see one of the most popular Bollywood movies of all time, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai is where it's at.
New Streaming Titles I Previously Forgot to Mention
Korean black comedy A Hard Day, which is getting quite a cult following recently among critics, and perennial rom-com favorite Kate and Leopold.
I'll see you again next Friday.
THE CONNECTION looks at the French side of "The French Connection", showing how a massive drug syndicate impacted the city of Marseille with a large influx of heroin and corrupt business dealings and how highly motivated judicial magistrate Pierre Michel led a police unit to break the racket up. Those searching for something along the same lines of the great 70's police procedurals, including the William Friedkin masterpiece that it wishes to stand next to, will find some substance to partake with but will find themselves disappointed by the overall plot. The script hits all of the stale crime tropes, including such boring favorites as the roughed up illegal busts, the public killings, the smoky late nights with files, the disgruntled and nervous police wife, a higher-up saying "you're over the line!", the main villain saying "I see myself as a businessman", and a scene where someone tells a personal story before then viciously injuring their prey. The movie makes up for its story shortcomings with a pulsating musical score, fluidly moving cinematography, stylish direction, and perfectly fine performances by Jean Dujardin (as Michel) and Gilles Lellouche as kingpin "Tany" Zampa. A cool and gritty tale that isn't totally fresh yet still delectable.
FINAL REVIEW: 3 / 5
Want to find out what movies are heading to Netflix Streaming? I got your back.
Upcoming Netflix Streaming Titles
11/20 - Jessica Jones (Netflix Original Series), Some Kind of Beautiful
11/24 - Guidance, A Hard Day
11/25 - Home
11/26 - Zipper
11/28 - Best of Enemies, The Best Offer, A Perfect Man
11/29 - Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films
12/2 - Tangerine
12/3 - Matt Shepard Is a Friend of Mine
12/4 - A Very Murray Christmas
12/11 - The Ridiculous Six
12/18 - F Is For Family (Netflix Original Series), Making a Murderer (Netflix Original Series)
What to Watch This Week
Jessica Jones. Need I say anymore about the next much-hyped series from Netflix and Marvel? And hey, put on Home to placate the kids while you fumble over the turkey and other Thanksgiving dishes.
New Streaming Titles I Previously Forgot to Mention
Disturbing feminist art indie Felt; claymation brings to life one of the absurdist Israel-Palestine disputes in The Wanted 18; a certain famed Swish artist is profiled in Dark Star: H.R. Giger's World; and the film that had everybody scratching their heads when the trailer dropped, Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List.
I'll see you again next Friday.
Want to find out what movies are heading to Netflix Streaming? I got your back.
Upcoming Netflix Streaming Titles
11/13 - Call Me Lucky, John Mulaney: The Comeback Kid, W/ Bob and David (Netflix Original Series)
11/14 - Blue Caprice, Dior and I
11/15 - People, Places, Things; Soaked In Bleach
11/18 - River (Netflix Original Series)
11/20 - Jessica Jones (Netflix Original Series)
11/25 - Home
11/26 - Zipper
11/28 - Best of Enemies, The Best Offer, A Perfect Man
11/29 - Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films
12/4 - A Very Murray Christmas
12/11 - The Ridiculous Six
12/18 - F Is For Family (Netflix Original Series), Making a Murderer (Netflix Original Series)
What to Watch This Week
Two big Netflix exclusives, the first being W/ Bob and David, which reunites former Mr. Show creators Bob Odenkirk and David Cross. Hopefully, it feels good. The other is John Mulaney: The Comeback Kid, the first live special from the former comedic wunderkind after his infamous sitcom attempt. Judging from the early material, it looks to be a winner.
New Streaming Titles I Previously Forgot to Mention
The Sundance doc fave The Wolfpack.
I'll see you again next Friday.
FBI agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) volunteers to join up with some Department of Defense agents in snuffing out a deadly Mexican drug cartel. Unfortunately, she finds herself constantly in the dark and practically handcuffed on each and every perilous mission. SICARIO is another straight-up dark thriller from director Denis Villeneuve, whose previous film PRISONERS has grown critically with time. As with that movie, Villeneuve and screenwriter Taylor Sheridan examine the insatiable lust for criminal justice, starting off in a quaint American suburb in Arizona before then bouncing between the Mexico-America border. It balances between its liberal and conservative agendas nicely thanks to some shocking gut-punches; tying up some cartel lieutenants with legal drama is far more frivolous than just taking a main head out of the picture and you can't always cheer on the results-driven army unit when they often cross international and moral boundaries. Similar in the veins of TRAINING DAY, the film's theming of having its main protagonist be a sponge for the "new laws of the west" is very beneficial for the viewer, as we identify with the internal struggle of Kate and the lack of information being given, including the true purpose of Kate being attached to the assignment. Blunt expertly captures a character that is smart and talented but way in over her head, willing to fight and kill yet emotionally shaken by how the blood is being spilled. Josh Brolin does a fine job as a snarky and manipulative officer but he is outshone by Benicio del Toro, who disturbingly plays a world-beaten tagalong that is actually far more warm and deadly that he lets on. However, the real star of the film is Roger Deakins, whose masterful cinematography creates some magnificent tableaus, shadow-filled dangers, alien-looking landscapes, and fantastically revealing pans and tilts. He can't fully overcome the arduous hurdle of making night vision work in an action scene but he does the best he can. The movie does falter towards the last act when Kate endlessly harps on the lack of arrests and truth-filled reports, removing further characterization for her and turning her into one-dimensional talking parrot, but it's perfectly clear that Villeneuve is noting that that there is no clean strategy in this scenario. As hauntingly delivered by a character at the very end, "this is a land of wolves now."
FINAL REVIEW: 4 / 5
Several sufferers of sleep paralysis recount their experiences with the disorder and the surreal unknown beings that haunt them repeatedly. Documentarian and horror enthusiast Rodney Ascher conducts these interviews and intercuts the harrowing verbal tales with reenactments that may cause you to sprint to the stop button. THE NIGHTMARE is a very effectively unique blend of horror and documentary but its substantial worth may be as fleeting as a dream. I enjoyed how Ascher and even his curious subjects explore how and why these terrible hallucinations happen to them specifically, their various reactions to the phenomenon and how it affects their current and future lifestyle, and how it happens all over the world yet no one has a definitive answer or cure. I also liked that there's even a chapter where the people try to find answers through popular films, most notably A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and INSIDIOUS, allowing Ascher to repeat some of the same visual trickery that made ROOM 237 a delight. Though Ascher does relish the frights he gets to deliver, making each and every scene of night terrors a beautiful-shot ordeal, he also intriguingly chose to routinely reveal the facades of the entire production. The recreations are deliberately done on a big soundstage, the same "shadow men" pop in every similar story (one even literally walks from one set to the next and waits for his cue), and the interview portions often have the crew visible or performing deliberately showy maneuvers. This creative idea does give the viewer a chance for relief from the "boos", while at the same noting how indistinguishable these individual incidents truly are, but this sense of comedic tone does make you ponder why you are sitting through all of this. For example, it very hard to take the film serious or even enjoy it when one segment has a guy talking about how aliens tickled him as a baby and they are shown to be guys in rubber suits. The scares and artifice can only go so far and by the time you move on from THE NIGHTMARE, you realize it doesn't really stay with you at all. That is unless you have your own sleeping issues or let the fear consume you.
FINAL REVIEW: 3 / 5
This documentary chronicles the life and times of one of television's most beloved yet unsung heroes of all time. Still going strong as the 8 feet tall, kid-brained icon despite his noticeable hunch and ever advancing age, Spinney comes across as a genuinely warm man who loves to travel and still see the bright side in life. Him and his wife wisely kept a large collection of home movies and cartoon doodles, which the makers were permitted to use to wonderfully flesh out the proceedings and give us a taste of the Jim Henson era. The film sadly underdevelops Spinney's 2nd influential role as Oscar the Grouch, the yang to Sesame Street's yin and a character that would most likely not be present if the show was created in today's environment. However, the makers did this both to keep focus on the yellow bird's impact on pop culture and how Big Bird and Spinney are practically one and the same; a distressing road story at a college campus helps underline this fact solidly. Though I was really moved by the film and often tearing up (the funeral of Jim Henson and Spinney's role in it is utterly devastating), I have to admit that it does seem to deliberate play with the viewer's emotions a bit. The musical score is so incredibly syrupy throughout the entire picture, I felt I needed a large order of pancakes to counterbalance it all. Additionally, the makers tend to sloppily mess up Spinney's rich history in the editing: his high school days are far removed from the section about his childhood, they explain how he operates the cumbersome costume way too late, the part about Jim Henson's death feels anticlimatic, and it just ends on a heartwarming yet odd final note. Nevertheless, I AM BIG BIRD: THE CAROLL SPINNEY STORY is a beautiful look at a man who helped make the world a better place to live in.
FINAL REVIEW: 4 / 5
Want to find out what movies are heading to Netflix Streaming? I got your back.
Upcoming Netflix Streaming Titles
11/6 - Care Bears & Cousins (Netflix Original Series), Master Of None (Netflix Original Series), Safelight
11/12 - Anna Karenina
11/13 - Call Me Lucky, John Mulaney: The Comeback Kid, With Bob and David (Netflix Original Series)
11/14 - Blue Caprice, Dior and I
11/15 - People, Places, Things; Soaked In Bleach
11/18 - River (Netflix Original Series)
11/20 - Jessica Jones (Netflix Original Series)
11/26 - Zipper
11/28 - Best of Enemies, The Best Offer, A Perfect Man
11/29 - Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films
12/11 - The Ridiculous Six
12/18 - F Is For Family (Netflix Original Series)
What to Watch This Week
I adore Aziz Ansari from his stand-up comedy and role as Tom Haverford on Parks and Recreations. Master Of None is his attempt to follow in the footsteps of Louis C.K. and create/star in his own series. Semi-based on his life (his real parents play his character's elders), the work looks to be a real treat.
New Streaming Titles I Previously Forgot to Mention
The controversial voodoo mystery Angel Heart; mutated bees attack people in the horror-comedy Stung; the Knight and Day that we deserved to have but with Bollywood stars, Bang Bang; awful Stephen King film that sadly has stuck with me, Thinner; Roy Andersson returned this year with A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, another one of his Swedish absurdist comedies; the return of British cult series Black Books; and Netflix's experimentation with their "5 Minute Favorite" line, bite-sized episodes of their kids shows designed to please parents and cut down on kids who want to watch one more before going to bed.
I'll see you again next Friday.
