DEPRESSEDcherry

Laughably bad amateur movie. I'm not sure if it's so bad it's good, but it will provide laugh-out-loud moments...for the wrong reasons. This is basically a Dirty Harry rip-off, it straight up just copies scenes throughout, albeit in a way that looks like adults playing make-believe rather than making a movie. Still, it looks like they had fun making it. It's probably worth watching just to see how bad it is, maybe with some mates while getting drunk... I definitely recommend the drunk part.

Obnoxious narcissistic teens attempt to solve a string of murders on campus, as one after another from the same class are knocked off. The rest of the world around them seems somewhat oblivious to the gruesome crimes, but it's ok, these trendy forensic science students have what it takes. Whether it's hacking the FBI, performing autopsies, or fixing satellite communication, this bunch of pretty face MTV haircuts can do it all. Everyone is unlikable in this movie, especially the angst-ridden, spray painting, grunge mannequin that is the lead character. There's a strange moment where the entire class applauds her after making some fairly basic observations, it's as if the movie whats to stop and applaud itself. The whole Jack the Ripper angle is tiresome and forced, it matters little and the movie seems to realise this as it reaches its end. This is all played dead serious and it's nowhere near as clever as its wants to be, the movie perfectly reflects its obnoxious characters. Any claims of ambiguity at the end can just as easily be dismissed as a mess of a finale, it's all style over substance. As an early 2000's slasher it's barely worth a passing glance, any movie that features Kelly Brook should always be approached cautiously.

Wings Hauser directs himself behind a desk while two rookie detectives deal with a new designer drug hitting the streets. Problem is, beyond the opening scenes the drug becomes irrelevant. It's reduced to just a thing in a case, the very thing the movie is named after could be anything or nothing at all. The pair of unconvincing detectives are matched by a couple of equally unconvincing bad guys, one has a peculiar voice while the other hams up every word of dialog. There are characters who just disappear or are abruptly removed, with little to no recognition by anyone, and moments that have no relevance or meaning beyond padding out a scene. The ending manages to step things up to something mildly entertaining, Wings finally shows up and does the bare minimum. The whole movie just feels unconvincing and at times borderline amateur.

This is a good movie, it looks and sounds good, has good action and acting, good characters and story... it's a good movie. But, it's not a standout movie. It's too much like the movies that paved the way towards this being made. It's Beverly Hills Cop, Lethal Weapon, and 48hrs. It's a buddy cop, fish outta water, and culture clash. It has the loud police chief, the reluctant partner, and the class divide. It's an action, thriller, and comedy. Sometimes serious, sometimes not. The problem is it doesn't reach anywhere near the heights of any of its predecessors, and it actually struggles to pull everything together. The balance of comedy and thriller is just off, it's goofy one moment and throat-slashing serious the next. Edwards and Whitaker are both good actors, but neither one is funny enough to carry the humor or convincing enough when the guns come out. It's not a classic but, it's a good movie.

Secret society affair that can't quite decide whether its goal is to be strategic or sadistic. Drifts by without ever really giving you a sense of why it's happening, other than to serve the movie itself. The characters are all unlikeable at some point, which leaves you with no one to route for. It also seems to hope you forget that the main guy does actually do something really terrible, to begin with.

A long-form TV adaptation of Truman Capote's book of the same name. It's presented well, but perhaps more intent on staying true to the detail of the book than keeping the audience entertained or in suspense. The story could most likely be better told in half the time, but if the real-life crime and the people behind it are of intrigue then this is worth a watch.

Probably of more appeal to those who went to summer camp during the 70s and 80s, the value is high for anyone seeking a hit of nostalgia. It's more amusing than laugh out loud funny, and the plot follows a standard road in a fairly loose fashion. Bill Murray in his first starring role makes this a more interesting watch, as does the realisation that it was filmed during an actual camp season.

The finding a bag full of money storyline seems to be the modern-day equivalent of digging up buried treasure, this is another one of those stories. It follows the usual routine of everything and everyone falling foul of their greed and temptation. To be fair, it's done well, especially considering it's a TV movie. It doesn't push any limits, but it's nicely put together. Worth a watch if you like such predicaments.

This is the type of movie that you rented on VHS from your local store back in the day, consumed with junk food and a few beers, and then perhaps evaluate your life choices after the night is done. The point being, this is not a movie to take at all seriously. It's a camp throwaway affair, poorly conceived and put together. If you start to think at all while watching this, you'll be struck by how tragic a state the careers of Martin Kove and Maryam d'Abo must have been at the time. It's a step just above amateur, as in the very next step. Only really worth a watch if you have a passing interest in bad movies.

If some scenes look familiar and feel out of place it's because they are, this movie uses footage from both Navy Seals and Iron Eagle. Anything of its own making is poorly put together and at times frustratingly bad. Most of the movie is taken up by the misfit bunch of characters goofing around, falling out, and eating lunch. The basic story is simple and could have been decent if told well, but this movie just feels cheap and lazy.

Written in part by a journalist who has dedicated much of his career to this true story, it unsurprisingly doesn't deviate from the perspective that the conspiracy the movie presents is true. It may well be the case that the version of events on offer here is the truth, unfortunately, that doesn't guarantee a well-told story. The quality is a little rough around the edges. For a movie so focused on a real-life story, it's really lacking in telling that story. Everything just tends to drift by from scene to scene with very little fleshed out. It gives the impression that the makers were overly cautious, and as such used as little creative license as possible. This movie presents its story at the expense of entertaining you. The main cast do put in a good shift and work well with what they're given. Don't be fooled by the cover as Angelina Jolie isn't in the movie for long, but she does steal the show when she appears. The ending might well be as far as the story goes at the time of filming, but it won't leave any satisfaction.

Basically that scene in Cliffhanger where they steal the money from a plane in mid-air, except in this case it's most of the movie. It's not as terrible as it is predictable, but it's very direct to video quality will probably frustrate more than it charms. Henriksen bookends the action by mostly standing around, while Lorenzo gets lost in the crowd most of the time. The early 2000's look and presentation will probably give off some nostalgia vibes these days, although it might be more along the lines of what were they thinking?

Incredibly fast-paced car chase caper that never lets up from the off. Apparently shot in just 15 days, which would explain the frantic chaos throughout the movie. It's surprisingly well put together, Ron Howard knocking his first feature-length directing effort out the park. The crashes arent really that special, but there sure are a lot of them.

A mix of Stripes and Police Academy, and very much TV movie quality. Most of the jokes fall flat as it runs through its standard formula. There's even room for those pesky Russians (it is the 80s remember). The lead character takes a while to warm up to, and his prematurely receding hairline could be a distraction. His wingman passively tags along for most of the time, aside from a cut and paste romance subplot. If you've exhausted all that Police Academy has to offer then perhaps give this a try.

Are prisoners actually allowed to send and receive audio letters to multiple people at a time or anyone at all? Is this really something a prison would entertain, especially if the guards have to listen to every single second of every tape? It seems kinda ridiculous whether it be legit or not, but that's the general setup here. The downside to this premise is a slow tedious build-up of these 'letters' being narrated to us while we watch Swayze trapped in his cell. The first half of this movie drags along with little reward, so much time is given to such a simple idea to explain. Things do pick though in the second half with the movie transforming into an enjoyable, yet somewhat predictable thriller. It never endeavors to explore its possibilities too much beyond a cat and mouse chase, and there's a feeling of a lot of story left on the table with this one. Ultimately the movie is too hampered by its beginnings that it all descends into a bit of a rush to finish it off towards the end. The supporting cast is as you expect, but the recipients of his 'letters' could have been fleshed out more. Swayze is fine, reliable, but somewhat passive throughout.

A straight-to-video knock-off of Con Air and Under Seige 2, which doesn't have the budget or ideas to pull off anything beyond what you might see on daytime TV. It's packed full of character actors who aren't given much to do but do keep things rolling along sufficiently. Roy Scheider seems to be enjoying the chance to play a nasty bad guy but unfortunately gets lost in the crowd as the movie progresses. Dorian Harewood is not your stereotypical action lead, but he actually suits the character's reluctant participation well. Clint Howard is his usual creepy weird self and plays a pointless yet entertaining character. Don Swayze does his thing and is underused, and it's sad to see Keith Coogan reduced to such a minor side role. This movie is fine if you set your expectations low and still have a thirst for such outings beyond what it models itself on.

A cheap knockoff of Silence of the Lambs with nowhere near the depravity, horror, or intrigue it hopes to emulate. The movie quickly shifts its focus onto Ally Walker's character, which would be fine if it wasn't at the expense of everyone else. Martin Sheen is relegated to a side note after about 20 minutes and Ron Perlman is only just in the movie. Everyone just seems to be standing around doing nothing while the new hotshot investigator plays mum to a young boy in a mental ward. There's far too much time spent with this boy and this is where the story falls down. Also, the casting of the boy is an unnecessary distraction so easily avoided. The story comes across as ill-thought-out and scatty. Ally walker's character is claustrophobic in sewers big enough to drive a car through, but not in a locked basement or mental wardroom? Why is the boy even locked away like a prisoner? Why has it taken the discovery of several child victim body parts for the police to take proper notice of several missing children? The initial suspect is swiftly disposed of once he can't be used to mislead the audience and the conclusion to the movie borders on the ridiculous. In the end, it feels a long way off from its beginnings.

TV movie quality flick. Doesn't go too deep but it passes the time if you enjoy mild airline investigatory drama. Lacks suspense and a big ending. Cheryl Ladd is enjoyable alongside a reliable supporting cast, but no one is given that much to do.

This is a great example of how to get the pacing and story of a movie completely wrong. It takes an hour to set up a very simple premise and then we get about 25 minutes of pay off. The bulk of which is done via a montage during a pointless live music scene, from a band who have nothing to do with anything in the movie, and they're used twice to pad out the running time. It actually feels like three movies mashed together. We start with a biker gang doing a drug deal gone wrong, then it morphs into a romance, with the gang member now shopping for groceries. Before finally, we get a rushed revenge of sorts at the end. The story we get is rushed and clumsy, lacking focus and direction. There is so much that needs to be fixed here, you'd end up with a completely different movie if you tried.

It's very hard to recommend this movie beyond a general nostalgia for the '70s. It's a limp lazy effort that offers very little in the story, characters, humor, or even action. The race itself feels small, despite what we're meant to believe. There's very little interaction between the few participants we see in the movie, the focus more so being the personnel duel between just a couple of them. If you're thinking the crashes make up for things, think again. The stunt work is nothing special, mostly just fireball explosions and a final ridiculous pileup. A pleasant surprise was the screen time afforded to Dick Miller, a familiar face who pops up a lot during the '80s and '90s as a character actor. He actually has something to work with here and takes his chance well. Carradine seems to spend most of the movie falling off the road, he does what you expect of him, but it's very by the numbers. Ultimately this feels like a long boring car ride despite its short running time.

The first thing that struck me when watching this was how on earth the lead actor got the job. He has to be one of the worst I've seen, honestly, he delivers his lines like he's in a school play. Then I found out he's married to the director, who is also the writer. Aside from all that this very much wears its influences on its sleeve, it's mostly 50's style B-movie horror. A monster movie that begs and borrows ideas from its predecessors. It's not very good to be honest, it's badly edited, poorly lit, wastes its location, has weak monster design, and of course the terrible wooden acting from the main character. There's also out of place voice-over moments early one where we hear the lead characters inner thoughts, really odd. Also, we hear a radio broadcast every now and then telling us about a storm that is never actually in the movie, completely pointless. Landau, Ferrer, and Buzzi are actually ok in their supporting roles and ultimately carry the movie. Not surprisingly the director didn't go on to have much of a career, a case of too much imitating over innovating it seems.

Wonderfully ridiculous over the top 80's revenge actionfest. It's the usual Hauser standard, rough around the edges, not well made, a bit cringy, but a lot of fun. If you're into the genre and era then it's worth a look.

It's another one of those movies where an innocent bystander ends up with the bad guy's money and tries to get away with it. This one ain't that bad though, has its ups and downs but is well put together. A good solid 90's action thriller that has been lost in the crowd and long forgotten, but it's worthy of your time.

An ok movie that starts off well but loses its way towards the end. Has an impressive looking cast but everyone is somewhat underused, asides from Dennis Hopper, who as director pushes himself centre stage around the halfway point. Jodie Foster in particular is wasted as her character goes from resourceful resilience to doe-eyed sidekick with Stockholm syndrome.

This movie has the kind of 80's esthetic that the likes of Stranger Things can only dream of reproducing. It holds up really well and, could have been a bigger success if perhaps a few flaws had been ironed out. The simple story is acted well, has great effects, and once it gets going is relentless. It's weighed down by the first 45 minutes, which seem to take forever in getting the story up and running. Aside from that, there's enough fun here to be worthy of just the one sequel that followed.