Movies
A police thriller that's just a little too basic. Not a big Eastwood fan and the dreary 70s cinematography doesn't do the film any favors, but the action scenes are solid and the plot is entertaining enough. Should've been a bit shorter, a better lead actor definitely would've helped, but it wasn't all that terrible either.
One of Tarantino's favorite classics. It's not too surprising, considering the level of cheese present here. And sure enough, it gives the film a bit of extra charm, if you like US classics that is. You may expect big hairdos, burly men, and funky car rides (with ultra-fake projections of course). Two contract killers get a new hit assigned to them. It's a smooth job, but maybe a little too smooth. Their hit didn't even try to run away when they showed up to kill him. They get suspicious and decide to dig a little deeper. Their investigation gets them to Sheila and Jack, two dangerous people. I was happy to see this film was in color, even when the colors were pretty kitsch. The characters and plot are cheesy, but Siegel leans into it, which amps up the entertainment level. There are some fun car chases too, other than that, I didn't get a whole lot out of this film, but at least it was never boring.Read all
The original Body Snatchers is a rather simple and functional horror film. It's not very moody or scary, instead many things are dryly told and expressed. Apart from the soundtrack maybe, though volume seems to be its main weapon in a failed attempt to be engaging. There's not all that much to like here, unless you really dig classic horror fare.
John Wayne's final film is about a vigilante who has only a limited time left to live. It's an appropriate premise and a nice farewell for one of the biggest Western stars, but as someone who doesn't care for the genre, it's also a pretty huge drag to sit through. This was not my kind of film. J.B. Books is a feared man, a gunfighter who survived all of his adversaries. He's just a mortal one though, and after a visit to the doctor, he is told he only has a couple more months to live. Books settles in a nearby inn and hopes to spend his last days in peace, but that's too much to ask. With Wayne, Bacall, and Stewart the cast is full of famous names, but none of them I consider great actors. The cinematography is dreary, I never cared much for the drama, and the action scenes felt forced. It is a noteworthy entry in the aging antihero niche though, so people who like that should this one a go.Read all