Velvet Buzzsaw (2019)

March 21, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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I meant to have a western for tonight to mix things up, but I dropped the ball on the Netflix Disc rental round trip, so I had to last minute pick something that I’ve been putting off for a while. It intrigued me when I saw a trailer way back then, but something about it made me just keep pushing it back further and further when it came time to what I felt like watching. Perhaps it just needed to set for a while like all good art, or perhaps I just had questions about if it would hold my interest if it became too artsy. Either way, put down that brush because it’s time for the critics - tonight we check out Velvet Buzzsaw to see what it’s about.

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categories / horror, mystery, r, thriller
tags / Velvet Buzzsaw

Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)

March 14, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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This one comes recommended, so instead of being on the fence of whether or not to watch it, it’s on tonight’s docket. It’s not that I don’t like this type of movie - I mean, perhaps biographies made as Hollywood flicks and the inevitable entertainment inflation could be a little bit of a put off - but rather that I already know what I kind of figured the movie would go over, so despite the man behind the band I didn’t know if the interest was going to be there. Soundtrack wasn’t going to be a question - I enjoy the crap out of some Queen - just the drama. Still, a recommendation is a recommendation, so let’s find out if this movie is a drag or flying off like a rocket man. Tonight, we check out Bohemian Rhapsody.

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categories / biography, drama, music, pg13
tags / Bohemian Rhapsody

Black Sheep (2006)

March 07, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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And lo, death came rolling into town, and his fleece was white as snow. First thing you think of when you hear Black Sheep is probably that Chris Farley movie, and I wouldn’t blame you. Tonight though, we are talking about a little picture out of New Zealand, who thought “we need an awesome horror movie that says New Zealand, let’s make a sheep monster movie.” With only two things on the line - killer sheep and a fun accent - I can’t see where this one would go bad. I’ll be honest though, I have to intentionally restrain myself from all the sheep puns or we’ll never make it through the review, let alone the movie! Tonight we grab our shears and hope for the best, let’s roll Black Sheep.

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categories / comedy, horror, nr, scifi
tags / Black Sheep

Graveyard Shift (1990)

February 28, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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I found a bundle pack of Stephen King movies, and it contained a few of the ones that I really like. I should preface further - the ones I really like are generally the bottom of the barrel of Stephen King movies - minus The Shinning with Nicholson, we can all agree that one was great. I won’t necessarily make claims that they are great from a critical stand point - largely because I watch movies for fun and not to be critical. I won’t claim that they are great adaptations - heck, I haven’t read a single King writing yet. Regardless, there’s something about a dated movie about a giant monster bat mutant living in a basement as king of the rats that just strikes my interest on all the chords. Put on your totally irrelevant hard hats that aren’t worn at all in the movie about a monster in the textile mill, it’s time for Graveyard Shift.

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categories / horror, r
tags / Graveyard Shift

Deadpool 2 (2018)

February 21, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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Postponed due the holiday, a certain super powered person was getting impatient to be witnessed. The first came out, and it was enjoyable - much to plenty of peoples happiness, although perhaps making a character who somehow gives people an excuse to act like a butt hole so mainstream could be considered a misstep by others. This should be another case of “I see no reason why this shouldn’t be as fun as the first,” but I also can’t help but wonder if it will be able to keep up with the new and exciting considering how much of the first could be chalked up to the “newness” factor. Either way, the gun is dialed past the pop culture references, let’s see if we mere mortals can handle it or are going to end up broken like a fourth wall.

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categories / action, adventure, comedy, r, scifi
tags / Deadpool 2

Legend (1985)

February 14, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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So, this movie is a spur of the moment. The day of reviewing this is Valentines Day, and although I’m sure the originally slated movie would have worked fine, it isn’t every day that movie night falls on the same day as a holiday. Of course, of all holidays this is one that I’ve got probably the least motivation to watch the main themed movies - I just don’t dig straight romance movies. The only one that would come to mind that I’d willfully re-subject myself to is in fact The Princess Bride, but that’s already been done on here - so instead, I find another movie that has some romance at it’s core, but that despite all logic I still haven’t gotten to on here. Tonight, we get to see if a big, red, spooky devil Tim Curry is all horns and no evil - tonight, we watch Legend.

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categories / action, adventure, fantasy, pg, romance
tags / Legend

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

February 07, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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Solo is a movie I had no real interest in. It’s not that I had the thought of it being a terrible or boring movie, I just had no interest in the backstory of a character that worked fine as it is. It’s because of that I never bothered to see it until it came out on home video. Of course, by then you get all sorts of reviews in the positive, with a few off-kilter complaints like “the ship is too clean.” Surely, if the best people can complain about is the ship being clean, something must be right about it and eventually I had the hankering for a heist movie, so I thought “why not Solo?” To be honest, I had even intended to try and watch it in 4k, but some technical difficulties that require me to relocate my hardware prevented me from doing such. Apparently, I don’t have quite the luck of the main character - but more so than me, will his movie?

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categories / action, adventure, fantasy, pg13, scifi
tags / Solo: A Star Wars Story

Cold Skin (2017)

January 31, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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It’s cold outside. I saw a movie name when browsing, and was pitched as it having monsters in it to deal with. Sometimes, that’s really all it takes to decide on watching a movie - and when it comes to it, the box art is pretty snazzy as well. I will give it to Netflix and a lot of these digital services for video these days, they at least help keep the feel of the old rental place perusal, where you could literally look at a picture and title and go “yep, that’s for me tonight.” If they add a “back of the box” feature, then it’d be pretty dang perfect. Who knows what we are getting ourselves into, grab a scarf and let’s dive in with these “web footed humanoids” to find out

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categories / action, horror, nr, scifi, thriller
tags / Cold Skin

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)

January 24, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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You thought that fantasy kick was super short lived after that military-based movie from last week didn’t you? Ha! You’ve been played, for I’m still on a fantasy kick and all shall suffer my opinions because of it! Alright, perhaps that was a bit more dramatic than necessary, but I did have a slight hankering for a little something that mixes the two. Most people herald the middle-aged Mummy films as the best the old dried up wrapper has to offer and despite the fact that I wouldn’t say I thought the newest entry was as bad as others might think, they don’t have a terrible statement either. What was it that caused those movies to be so enjoyed over the rest, and why is it that the first one I’m doing for the site is the last of that bunch? Maybe it’s just a curse bestowed for raiding the old tombs of movies so much, or maybe it’s because hidden gems of fun? Tonight, we check out The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.

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categories / action, adventure, fantasy, horror, pg13, thriller
tags / The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

12 Strong (2018)

January 17, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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If it comes in the queue, it gets a view. I’ve enjoyed myself a military real story movie before, and they generally aren’t bad. Granted, you never really can tell how much of it is the real story and how much has been amped up for viewing entertainment, but either way if it’s a good movie it entertains regardless. More than anything else though, it was the whole “horse soldiers” pitch that sold me on adding this to the queue in the first place - named actors and the likes were largely all just a side note. Is it any good? Hopefully the horse doesn’t say neigh.

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categories / action, drama, history, r, war
tags / 12 Strong

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire (2017)

January 10, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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It’s been a hot minute since I watched one of these. Heck, to be honest I’m not ever sure I saw the third one, only to figure out that there was a fourth and apparently work on a fifth. Well, perhaps thankfully I’m in a fantasy sort of mood - only time will tell if that’s actually something I should be thankful for. Still, dragons and fire and swords are bound to show up in one way or another, and who doesn’t like listening to Patrick Stewart? Get your lighter’s out, it’s time for a Dragonheart movie.

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categories / fantasy, pg13
tags / Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire

The Predator (2018)

January 03, 2019 / Ken Rupracht

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Something is missing at the start of this year. Perhaps it’s more missing from last than this, but if there’s one movie franchise I can really get behind in terms of fandom, it’s that of one big ugly alien hunter. There’s has been a bunch so far - up until the newest, there was three in the “cannon” and two in the crossovers, as well as god-knows how many fan made films and plenty of games on computers or tabletop, comics, and novels to flesh things out further for those who couldn’t get enough. This race even had the chance of standing up against the Batman (and losing, as anyone not Batman tends to do against Batman). The first trailer I had seen for this new entry has me worried, but after hitting the theaters and checking it out I had fun - only to find out that I was apparently quite the minority in my stance. Well, it’s out for home ownership now, and it’s time to turn off that cloak and tackle it like a man. Will my enjoyment stand up to the initial response, or will I find myself buried like a side character in hot dismembering plasma? It’s time to revisit The Predator.

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categories / action, adventure, horror, r, scifi, thriller
tags / The Predator

Kin (2018)

December 27, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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Science Fiction is always fun in my book - those visions of the future or things to come just intrigues the mind in ways more plausible then the average magic and drama. The genre hasn’t usually done all that great in the box office outside of the huge mainstays like Star Wars or Star Trek, but regardless I’ve always enjoyed it. Cue one day when watching a trailer compilation to keep up on what’s getting released down the line and I stumble across this movie of a kid finding a alien gun, and I’m already all in and adding it to the list of things to watch. Could be terrible, could be great, but it’s got some shiny visuals based on the trailer, and sometimes that’s really all it takes to draw you in. Let’s see how strong the familial bond is with this one, today we look at Kin.

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categories / action, pg13, scifi
tags / Kin

The Christmas Chronicles (2018)

December 20, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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I’ve made it pretty well known at this point that I’ll give almost any movie that employs Kurt Russel a chance when it comes to viewership - even if it’s not a movie I would otherwise watch. The man can act! Here is one of those cases, and also a return to form from a while back when I really hit heavy the Netflix Originals in reviews. It’s the time for giving and family fun, and despite the sparse amount of snow in the world outside my window lately, that means Christmas is almost upon us - and my tolerance levels of yule joy haven’t much changed. Despite my propensity of avoiding the overly-happy and at times mind-numbing holiday movies that flow from channels like Hallmark like an open wound, Kurt drags me into the cheer regardless of if I want it or not - and all that’s left is to find out if this thing is a present of fun or a ho ho horrible time. Let’s take a look at The Christmas Chronicles.

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categories / adventure, comedy, family, fantasy, pg
tags / The Christmas Chronicles

Operation Red Sea (2018)

December 13, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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It seems like lately China has been really opening up and sending all sorts of movies our way state-side. I was never opposed to a good foreign flick before - foreign horror introduced me to all sorts of variations on creatures like the Hopping Vampire or takes on ghosts that were familiar but different, or even on actual events played up a bit more fantastically such as the Dyatlov Pass incident. Admittedly, sometimes my eyes are lazy and I just can’t find the mood to read a movie and I’ll stray away, and one could argue about the need to read subtitles drawing my eyes from the screen and potentially missing little details, but that’s where things come around today. Operation Red Sea is an action entry, and I’m chomping at the bit for some rock and ready battles.

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categories / action, drama, nr, thriller, war
tags / Operation Red Sea

The Shape of Water (2017)

December 06, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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Another installment of “waitstaff recommends.” Now, I like me monsters of all kinds, and del Toro has given me plenty of those sorts to enjoy over the years I’ve known of him as a creator. One would think that in turn this movie would have already been in my queue before this, but to be frank it largely was marketed as a romance movie from anyone I had heard speak of it review-wise and well, if we couldn’t guess from previous entries, I’m more of a dumb action and cheesy horror kind of person so I had passed it up. Still, when it comes up as a recommendation, who am I to decline? Let’s see if it can live up to it’s praise or if I find something to be fishy, let’s check out The Shape of Water.

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categories / action, drama, fantasy, r, romance, thriller
tags / The Shape of Water

I Feel Pretty (2018)

November 29, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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I have no business reviewing this movie. It’s not my genre, it’s not my style, and it’s something that even without watching I know that I’ve already ended up seeing enough that it might as well be made with a cookie cutter in the film room. Still, I like to play a game I call “Wait-staff recommends”, and if I get a waiter or waitress to give me a movie recommendation then it’s only right of me to watch it regardless of if it fits into my preferred mold. The best part of the situation is I go in with low expectations, so the movie should have only up to go - not that it’s saved some of the movies I’ve seen. The worst case scenario is that it is in fact perfectly mediocre and I have to do battle with my brain to find anything to really talk about afterwards. Well, let’s find out if this one is pretty and witty or lame.

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categories / comedy, pg13
tags / I Feel Pretty

Hot Fuzz (2007)

November 22, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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I swear I’ve already done this review. I had to check no less than three times, referencing my excel log, checking the website search function, and each time I checked it showed that I hadn’t done it yet. I know I’ve watched the movie a few times now, but the fact that the entire review part is deja vu just won’t cease. Alas, perhaps that’s the problem of doing this for over two hundred movies and still watching movies I like repeatedly regardless - sometimes my head just gets things a little mixed up. Thankfully, that gives us a great excuse to play policeman-officer so throw on the lights, here comes the fuzz.

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categories / action, comedy, r
tags / Hot Fuzz

The Meg (2018)

November 15, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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I’ve watched a lot of shark movies. You wouldn’t really know it just browsing entries here - most of them are what I call “tub movies” - in which you loaf around in a bath, hot tub, pool, or whatever bucket of water you can fit your fleshy self in and flip on a movie. I’ve seen sharks in tornadoes, genetically mutated sharks, sharks in the sand, sharks in the snow, giant sharks, and cg sharks so bad they wouldn’t scare a two year old. When I saw the initial trailer for The Meg, I said to myself “yep, gonna watch that eventually.” While I took on the long wait for rental to be available, I didn’t hear the greatest things about it from the more review-oriented folks, and the few actual people I knew that saw it seemed to have a fun enough time. Well, it’s time to see if this ginormous toothy boat of a flick can swim or sink.

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categories / action, horror, pg13, scifi, thriller
tags / The Meg

I Sell the Dead (2008)

November 08, 2018 / Ken Rupracht

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Comedy is something that’s made it’s way into movies all over the place. Generally speaking, I’m actually pretty okay with this, as a good joke can do wonders towards heightening entertainment value - although comedy being such a subjective thing it’s also sometimes really hard to pull off for a mass-appeal. At the same time, I hadn’t thought of until recent this recent year the implications that can come with comedy - or rather, the theoretical question of “Can there be too much comedy in a movie?” Extensively, the answer to that is yes - if you are going for a serious, heart-impacting emotional moment too much comedy surrounding it can drastically effect in a negative way said moment. Still, everyone wants to laugh, and when the movie is made to cater to comedy such as this entry, there shouldn’t be a ghost of a chance towards the comedy being a problem - only if the jokes fit my particular style. Settle in at the old pub for a pint, tonight we check out I Sell The Dead.

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categories / comedy, horror, nr
tags / I Sell the Dead