The 9th film from Quentin Tarantino, aka ONCE UPON A TIME . . . IN HOLLYWOOD, takes us back to 1969, and a land of fragile dreams, transactional relationships, and the manifestation of the dark side of it all in the form of Charles Manson (Damon Herriman). Manson himself has but a cameo in the… Read More »
CRAZIES, THE
THE CRAZIES, a remake of the 1973 George Romero flick of the same name, is a nicely written, well acted, and perfectly directed entry into the jump-and-scare subgenre of horror. Set in the sleepy Iowa town of Owen Marsh, which is the emblematic of the heartland and its all-American values, it takes little time to… Read More »
CRAZIES DVD, THE
Some remakes pay perfunctory respect to the source material, but THE CRAZIES DVD release does more than that. It is a proper homage to the man who made it possible, George A. Romero, and the sub-genre of political horror that he pioneered. There amid the usual deleted scenes and how-we-did-it featurettes, is THE GEORGE A.… Read More »
I AM NUMBER FOUR
For a film focused on teenage angst and invaders from other planets, I AM NUMBER FOUR shows a curious tameness. Based on the book by Pittacus Lore, directed by D.J Caruso, who made EAGLE EYE and DISTURBIA so much fun, co-scripted by Marti Noxon of Buffy fame, co-produced by Michael Bey of blowing things up… Read More »
HITMAN
Sometimes all it takes is one great image. From there the fertile imaginings of a visionary filmmaker can build a story that is a compelling, even wondrous, cinematic experience. Alas, that is not the case with HITMAN. The image is of a striking bald guy (Timothy Olyphant) in a well-tailored black suit striding about with… Read More »