Starring Miley Cyrus as a private detective, So Undercover is a film you have probably never heard of, and even if you had, if you are above the age of six you know to stay away. This is the kind of movie you really have to wonder what was going through the studio's head when they green-lit it. My guess is they already had a poster made, and then realised what a stupid idea … [Read more...]
Review: Home Alone (1990)
Despite dropping out the Christmas Zeitgeist in recent years, Home Alone remains one of the most quintessential festive films of recent times. It's simultaneous charm and subversive comedy belie the ˜Disneyfied' veneer to produce a film that not only engenders the fabled ˜Christmas Spirit', but one that spawned a decade-long infatuation with the genre of child-focused … [Read more...]
Review: In Bruges (2008)
Fucking Bruges. You'll hear this several times, from various characters in this superb black comedy from writer/director Martin McDonagh (responsible for the excellent Seven Psychopaths). It's hard to find a pairing of words that better summarises the unique appeal of what is one of the strongest debuts of any recent British film-maker. … [Read more...]
Review: Christmas with the Kranks (2004)
When their daughter joins the Peace Corps, the thought of a Christmas alone worries Luther and Nora Krank (Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis). A chance spotting of an advertisement makes Luther realise that if they don't spend all the money they usually spend of Christmas, they can instead takes a Caribbean cruise and still end up better off. Thus the Kranks decide to skip … [Read more...]
The Raid (2012, Indonesia) review by That Art House Guy
The Raid is not just any action movie “ it's a rare and curious thing, being an Indonesian movie directed by a Welshman (Gareth Evans). Its premise is simple “ a SWAT team are sent to a derelict apartment building in Jakarta where a notorious drugs baron, Tama has set up his HQ. Seemingly untouchable by the police, the block has become a haven for all manner of undesirables, … [Read more...]
Review: Ikiru (1952, Japanese)
Akira Kurosawa tends to be best remembered for his period samurai films, particularly Seven Samurai, often considered one of the best films ever made. His films set in the modern day have consequently been rather overlooked, which is a real shame. Ikiru, meaning to live, is one of his best, rivalling Seven Samurai for the top spot, and is particularly noteworthy because it was … [Read more...]
c: The Film (2012) review by That Film Guy
Based on the popular television character played by Leigh Francis comes Keith Lemon: The Film. Keith Lemon has moved to London to make a fortune from his invention Securipole. While at an invention convention he is given a new mobile phone that "has no buttons." With help of The Fixer, Archimedes (Verne Troyer) Lemon markets the phone by sticking a lemon logo on the back and … [Read more...]
Howling IV: The Original Nightmare (1988) review by That Film Geek
Howling IV: The Original Nightmare represents the first involvement in the Howling franchise of Clive Turner, as the co-writer and producer of this film, he also has a small cameo in this film. Remember the name, he'll come up in other Howling films. The film is a reasonably faithful adaptation of Gary Brandner's original Howling novel, which means it shares more than a few … [Read more...]
The Marsupials: The Howling III (1987) review by That Film Geek
When the budget is too low to go big, and you don't have the talent to be clever about it, you have to go camp, and this goes so camp it's untrue. Directed by Phillipe Mora, also responsible for Howling II, The Marsupials: The Howling III takes the Werwolf series to Australia for this truly terrible outing that is the lowest ebb for the series until the disaster that is The … [Read more...]
Howling II (1985) review by That Film Geek
Despite the many sequels to Joe Dante's brilliant 1981 werewolf film The Howling, Howling II is the only one which directly follows or references the events of the original. It also seems to have two subtitles, either 'Your Sister is a Werewolf' which gives away a big and utterly pointless plot point or 'Stirba: Werewolf Bitch' which is more to the point. … [Read more...]