The Wachowskis' SPEED RACER (2008, IMAX) and Edgar Wright's HOT FUZZ (2007, REGAL THEATER) were my movie highlights of the week. The latter remains as close to a perfect action/comedy as could ever be made. Characters' names matching their professions, fast-cut editing with purpose, whip-smart dialogue, set-ups leading to payoffs galore, a murderers' row of U.K. thespians (Broadbent, Dalton, Woodward, Coleman, McCann, Freeman, Nighy, etc.) backing up Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright's time-tested energy/chemistry, perfect needle-drop tunes (a Wright specialty), and so on. It's unfair to judge Edgar's newest filmography ("Baby Driver," "Last Night in Soho" and "Running Man '24") against "Hot Fuzz," but them's the breaks. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
One of my biggest movie-going regrets ever was not watching "Speed Racer" on IMAX during its initial (critically/financially disappointing) '08 theatrical run, only finding out later on Blu-ray that this was something special. As multiple sold-out NYC shows during a three-day run at IMAX prove, the film has found its audience. Moments of genuine sincerity and earned pathos between Speed (Emile Hirsch), his parents (John Goodman and Susan Sarandon) and older brother Rex (Scott Porter and Matthew Fox, the latter delivering career-best work IMO) alternate with a young boy (Paul Litt's Spritle) and his chimp stealing candy, impressive-but-dated CG/digital effects of impossible-to-stage racing venues, and corporate intrigue with the racing/industrial complex (personified dead-on by Roger Allam's Royalton) likely to go over the head of most children. The Wachowskis threw the proverbial kitchen sink at this 60's anime live-action adaptation. It might not be perfect (Christina Ricci's Trixie, where are her parents? 🥰), but within its cinematic DNA "Speed Racer" nails what it feels like to be a boy obsessed with something that bonds you with your loved ones forever and shapes the man you eventually become. And on a giant IMAX screen with appreciative fans laughing with it at the appropriate times (even Spritle and Chim Chim get some big laughs!), the remastered version looks/sounds exquisite. "The Matrix"? Keep it, it's yours. I'm a "Speed Racer" man. 🫡😁
Rewatched NOBODY (2021, 4K UHD) and it was as entertaining as it could be, given it was the OG "John Wick" writer (Derek Kolstad) check marking his previous film's tropes. Bob Odenkirk plays (and acquits himself fine as) the secret badass whose bus brawl brings the wrath of Russian baddie Aleksey Serebryakov on top of his suburban camouflaged world. Nice to see Christopher Lloyd do fine comedic supporting work, but Connie Nielsen and RZA feel wasted in 'meh' roles. 'It's fine.' Say, do you know any Black Russians? 😉😅
Among its credits, BEAST ('26, THEATER) includes 'Russell Crowe's Entourage' for a bunch of folks. 😳 That's on top of Crowe's 'AND' acting credit, his co-screenplay writing credit, his producer credit (one of 35! 🧐) and too-many-to-count make-up, security, driver, etc. assistants. All that for, frankly, a phoned-in performance as the 'Mickey' trainer to Daniel McPherson's MMA-fighting 'Rocky.' A USA/Australia co-production filmed in Bangkok, "Beast" leaves no cliché/trope unused as it leads to an all-or-nothing MMA bout between reluctant family man (bearded dad-bod Daniel) and raging a-hole champ (Bren Foster, who also threw in decent fight choreography for free). Pass. 🙄
SALMAKJI: WHISPERING WATER ('26, SOUTH KOREA, THEATER) finds a group of Google Earth-type techies trying to map an area near a lake the locals fear is haunted by ghosts of people who drowned there. Bloodless 'PG-13' supernatural shenanigans ensue. Predictable stuff, but great use of fog and nighttime to create an oppressive mood. 🥶
FACES OF DEATH ('26, THEATER) is neither terrible nor a hidden gem. It's far beneath the quality l've come to expect from Shudder originals. Dacre Montgomery's online serial killer looks/sounds cliché, but Barbie Ferreira is an atypical (broken?) final girl. It's OK but feels hollow.🤨
Read or Not 2 - Here I Come (2026): It's fine, kills are cool, I had fun. The casting is great, but how dare they dispatch Kevin Durand that early?
Companion (2025): As advertised by everybody around here, it's very good. Gotta love the "friends in a cabin, and chaos ensues" type of movie. I love douche Jack Quaid. I knew absolutely zero things on the movie, other than "it's good", so yeah... If you've seen it, you know what I mean.
Shadow (2018): If you've seen a Zhang Yimou film, you know what to expect. Beautiful cinematography, slow pace, longing dialogues. Some fight scenes, but not as extravagant as other of his movies. I guess he wanted a break from The Great Wall (which I like, but was panned by everybody).
Point Blank (1967: Just out on glorious 4k from Criterion. Steven Soderberg is a big fan of this movie, and you can see that love in the movie The Limey, plus he recorded a commentary with John Boorman. My favorite trivia for this movie is this: Lee Marvin called a meeting at the studio with the bigwigs to confirm that he had final approval over the script, casting, and more. They said yes, and he replied, "I defer those approvals to John", and then he walked out of the meeting.
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985): I don't know if it's a hot take, but I prefer MM3 over MM1. It's silly and weird, and it's 2 movies, but that's why I like it. It starts as a Mad Max movie, then turn into Hook somehow. I guess George Miller missed his kids. We still can't skip the crazy-over-the-top chase sequence to close the movie. Always the best part.
Evil Dead (2013): You see, it's a metaphor for trauma. Once you get past the intro, they discover the thing, and get into the k1ll1ings, the real fun starts. Jane Levy is awesome too. Not my first watch, but last time was a long time ago. And yes, I got the Shout 4k set (Steelbook not less), because my OCD dumbass had to have everything with the title Evil Dead on 4k. The lack of new extras from the old blu-ray is disappointing though.
Evil Dead Rise (2023): Why the heck not. I've never seen it and it was right next to the other one on Amazon. And I splurged for the new Arrow edition, because that's how I roll, go big and go broke. Another usual slow opening, introduce everybody and their trauma, then it gets good. They even manage a r@pe tree equivalent (without the r@pe), even if they're in a building. I like the 'stuck in a building' subgenre of movie, whether it's horror, or action.
Ohio! 🤗
ReplyDeleteThe Wachowskis' SPEED RACER (2008, IMAX) and Edgar Wright's HOT FUZZ (2007, REGAL THEATER) were my movie highlights of the week. The latter remains as close to a perfect action/comedy as could ever be made. Characters' names matching their professions, fast-cut editing with purpose, whip-smart dialogue, set-ups leading to payoffs galore, a murderers' row of U.K. thespians (Broadbent, Dalton, Woodward, Coleman, McCann, Freeman, Nighy, etc.) backing up Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright's time-tested energy/chemistry, perfect needle-drop tunes (a Wright specialty), and so on. It's unfair to judge Edgar's newest filmography ("Baby Driver," "Last Night in Soho" and "Running Man '24") against "Hot Fuzz," but them's the breaks. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
One of my biggest movie-going regrets ever was not watching "Speed Racer" on IMAX during its initial (critically/financially disappointing) '08 theatrical run, only finding out later on Blu-ray that this was something special. As multiple sold-out NYC shows during a three-day run at IMAX prove, the film has found its audience. Moments of genuine sincerity and earned pathos between Speed (Emile Hirsch), his parents (John Goodman and Susan Sarandon) and older brother Rex (Scott Porter and Matthew Fox, the latter delivering career-best work IMO) alternate with a young boy (Paul Litt's Spritle) and his chimp stealing candy, impressive-but-dated CG/digital effects of impossible-to-stage racing venues, and corporate intrigue with the racing/industrial complex (personified dead-on by Roger Allam's Royalton) likely to go over the head of most children. The Wachowskis threw the proverbial kitchen sink at this 60's anime live-action adaptation. It might not be perfect (Christina Ricci's Trixie, where are her parents? 🥰), but within its cinematic DNA "Speed Racer" nails what it feels like to be a boy obsessed with something that bonds you with your loved ones forever and shapes the man you eventually become. And on a giant IMAX screen with appreciative fans laughing with it at the appropriate times (even Spritle and Chim Chim get some big laughs!), the remastered version looks/sounds exquisite. "The Matrix"? Keep it, it's yours. I'm a "Speed Racer" man. 🫡😁
Rewatched NOBODY (2021, 4K UHD) and it was as entertaining as it could be, given it was the OG "John Wick" writer (Derek Kolstad) check marking his previous film's tropes. Bob Odenkirk plays (and acquits himself fine as) the secret badass whose bus brawl brings the wrath of Russian baddie Aleksey Serebryakov on top of his suburban camouflaged world. Nice to see Christopher Lloyd do fine comedic supporting work, but Connie Nielsen and RZA feel wasted in 'meh' roles. 'It's fine.' Say, do you know any Black Russians? 😉😅
Among its credits, BEAST ('26, THEATER) includes 'Russell Crowe's Entourage' for a bunch of folks. 😳 That's on top of Crowe's 'AND' acting credit, his co-screenplay writing credit, his producer credit (one of 35! 🧐) and too-many-to-count make-up, security, driver, etc. assistants. All that for, frankly, a phoned-in performance as the 'Mickey' trainer to Daniel McPherson's MMA-fighting 'Rocky.' A USA/Australia co-production filmed in Bangkok, "Beast" leaves no cliché/trope unused as it leads to an all-or-nothing MMA bout between reluctant family man (bearded dad-bod Daniel) and raging a-hole champ (Bren Foster, who also threw in decent fight choreography for free). Pass. 🙄
SALMAKJI: WHISPERING WATER ('26, SOUTH KOREA, THEATER) finds a group of Google Earth-type techies trying to map an area near a lake the locals fear is haunted by ghosts of people who drowned there. Bloodless 'PG-13' supernatural shenanigans ensue. Predictable stuff, but great use of fog and nighttime to create an oppressive mood. 🥶
FACES OF DEATH ('26, THEATER) is neither terrible nor a hidden gem. It's far beneath the quality l've come to expect from Shudder originals. Dacre Montgomery's online serial killer looks/sounds cliché, but Barbie Ferreira is an atypical (broken?) final girl. It's OK but feels hollow.🤨
Youtuber Patrick Willem made a whole video about Speed Racer and how awesome it is. The 4k is coming out later this year, can't wait
DeleteRead or Not 2 - Here I Come (2026): It's fine, kills are cool, I had fun. The casting is great, but how dare they dispatch Kevin Durand that early?
ReplyDeleteCompanion (2025): As advertised by everybody around here, it's very good. Gotta love the "friends in a cabin, and chaos ensues" type of movie. I love douche Jack Quaid. I knew absolutely zero things on the movie, other than "it's good", so yeah... If you've seen it, you know what I mean.
Shadow (2018): If you've seen a Zhang Yimou film, you know what to expect. Beautiful cinematography, slow pace, longing dialogues. Some fight scenes, but not as extravagant as other of his movies. I guess he wanted a break from The Great Wall (which I like, but was panned by everybody).
Point Blank (1967: Just out on glorious 4k from Criterion. Steven Soderberg is a big fan of this movie, and you can see that love in the movie The Limey, plus he recorded a commentary with John Boorman. My favorite trivia for this movie is this: Lee Marvin called a meeting at the studio with the bigwigs to confirm that he had final approval over the script, casting, and more. They said yes, and he replied, "I defer those approvals to John", and then he walked out of the meeting.
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985): I don't know if it's a hot take, but I prefer MM3 over MM1. It's silly and weird, and it's 2 movies, but that's why I like it. It starts as a Mad Max movie, then turn into Hook somehow. I guess George Miller missed his kids. We still can't skip the crazy-over-the-top chase sequence to close the movie. Always the best part.
Evil Dead (2013): You see, it's a metaphor for trauma. Once you get past the intro, they discover the thing, and get into the k1ll1ings, the real fun starts. Jane Levy is awesome too. Not my first watch, but last time was a long time ago. And yes, I got the Shout 4k set (Steelbook not less), because my OCD dumbass had to have everything with the title Evil Dead on 4k. The lack of new extras from the old blu-ray is disappointing though.
Evil Dead Rise (2023): Why the heck not. I've never seen it and it was right next to the other one on Amazon. And I splurged for the new Arrow edition, because that's how I roll, go big and go broke. Another usual slow opening, introduce everybody and their trauma, then it gets good. They even manage a r@pe tree equivalent (without the r@pe), even if they're in a building. I like the 'stuck in a building' subgenre of movie, whether it's horror, or action.