Joetampa90

Holy hell I was not expecting to enjoy this as much as I did. True 80's throwback hitting all the check marks... neon soaked, booming synth score, thick layer of film grain, total gore-fest. VFW feels like it fell right out of the gutter, and thats a great thing. Hard nosed dialogue delivered perfectly by grizzled old vets. Negatives would be it borrows a bit too much from Carpenter, becomes repetitive and the gang leader fails to feel menacing or bad ass enough for the role. Overall though one hell of a scummy ride. 7.5/10.

Messy and too self aware for its own good. The Kevin Smith universe jokes come a penny a dozen and a dozen a minute. "Kevin Smith" is said on screen what feels like 25 or so times. Reboot that could have been good further proves between Yoga Hosers and now this, Smith may have lost his touch for good.

Waves was deeply moving. I did not expect such a strong piece of cinema. Every single performance is amazing. It works as almost two films, with the second losing a little steam and veering off somewhat into things I didn't get enough depth to care about. But I can see the purpose of why they were there. I loved the cinematography, stunningly beautiful and unique. The soundtrack and score worked perfectly.

I've finished Honey Boy and have no idea why Shia LaBeouf felt the need to share this fairly uninteresting personal story. Hats off to him for writing and acting in this because it couldn't have been easy. But I have to ask why? Why did he think this story was unique or interesting enough to force an audience to endure it. The film is a straight forward biography. Shia played by Lucas Hedge's enters rehab at age 22, he's an out of control confrontational asshole. I think then he begins to reflect on his childhood at age 12 or they just splice it together this way it's never fully explained. Most of the film takes place when Shia playing his father a sex offender, alcoholic, child-abusing scum bag. While Noah Jupe plays 12-year-old Shia.

Honey Boy is, for the most part, various degrees of child abuse taking place mostly in a motel, with the occasional scene of older Shia in rehab being a total dick. Let me say, I would consider myself a mild Shia LaBeouf fan, I certainly appreciate a decent portion of his acting work. Now let me say, I did not give a crap about what was happening. I was never given a reason to care. The film had next to no depth. It's just scene after scene of Father being utterly horrible to son. There is a tiny bit of other stuff thrown in like boy Shia making a friend at the motel, but it's brief and never fleshed out. Once again there is no reason to care.

The best thing about Honey Boy is LaBeouf's performance, which is very strong. Jupe does a great job. Hedges's acting always felt a bit off to me in this work. Honey Boy feels like this film has no reason to exist. It brings nothing new to the slice of life sub-genre, It does not seem to bring with it any kind of deep message, and there is nothing special going on as far as cinematography or direction. I would say Shia was being a bit pompous to think that this was a story that needed a feature-length film to be told. I would recommend passing on watching this unless you are a super fan of Shia.

Wow. Eggers follow up to The Witch knocks it out of the park. The Lighthouse is a masterful piece of art like nothing I've seen before. Following Defoe and Pattinson as they tend a Lighthouse. The film wastes no time turning into a disturbing submersion into insanity.

The Lighthouse is undoubtedly an unconventional and bizarre film. Giving the viewer nothing more than two men in one location. The movie manages to pull it off masterfully. Defoe's acting is really one of, if not the strongest aspects of The Lighthouse. His scary ramblings, his facial expressions, his level of commitment to the role are all second to none. I believe so far from what I've seen he deserves the oscar for what would be Best Supporting Actor. A24 recently said they will campaign Pattinson for best actor. Make no mistake, Pattinson absolutely kills it too. However for me, Defoe is the true tour de force performance.

Despite not having a conventional plot, their are some plot points and it's all this film needed to stay cohesive. The imagery in the film is very unsettling and surreal. The dialogue is expertly written and pungent. The score and the sound of The Lighthouse is another strong point, loudly ominous... it works perfectly. The cinematography is beautiful. Everything is firing on all cylinders and it creates one hell of a ride.

The Lighthouse is surely a one of a kind work and one of the best psychological horror films in recent memory. It falls just short of a 10/10 masterpiece for me due some pacing issues and certain events in the film feeling meaningless and repetitive. That being said, The Lighthouse is a true achievement in cinema and currently the best of 2019 for me. I can't wait to see it again. 9.5/10.

Rob Zombie is back with a sequel to what many consider his best movie 'Devil's Rejects'. 3 From Hell puts us back with Otis, Baby Firefly and Captian Spalding. Well, barely Spalding but he is in the film. This movie feels very pointless and aimless and suffers from a lot of questionable and silly writing/plot points. However, if you're a hardcore Zombie fan there is no doubt something here to please you.

3 From Hell does have a pretty strong first half. Starting by giving the viewer a fairly unsatisfying explanation as to how the Rejects survived the finale of the last movie. Then comes the prison escape which later shows to be a major plot point for the second half. I felt like this half had some great gore, some pretty interesting new characters and some funny moments too. However, to get back to my earlier point on silly writing... In the middle of what would be considered a very tense and dark part of the story, a clown shows up. A clown you would hire for a children's party, but there is no party going on... and why he pops in is never explained. We get 7 or so minutes of him being around and then that's that. It was very bizarre and way out of left field.

The second half of the movie is where the wheels really fall off. Throughout 3 From Hell you can sense the fact that Zombie was working with a low budget and it starts to show in the back half of the movie when Otis and company head to Mexico. You don't care about the revenge aspect because it felt slapped together. Things get more silly and more unrealistic than ever here. The final kill of the movie absoultely showcases the low budget and was frankly horrible, I'm talking something you'd see in a made for SciFi Network movie.

With this being said if you can turn your brain off and just enjoy it for what it is, maybe glorified fan service even... then you can come away somewhat satisfied. The gore, for the most part, was very strong brutal and enjoyable. The dialouge has moments of vile disgust as well. The characters are still fun even with some overacting and comically bad moments from Sherri Zombie. But make no mistake about it 3 From Hell is not a good movie.

Midsommar brought to us by horror prodigy Ari Aster could have been so much more. Most people are familiar with Ari for his breakthrough film Hereditary. A good percentage of people (myself included) found that to be one of the best horror movies of the decade and were clamoring for Ari's next work. In comes Midsommar a sunny acid trip to Sweden. Right off the bat, the audience is treated to a sorrowful pitch black opening, that while serving its purpose left more to be desired.

If you're reading this you know what Midsommar is about. We get a good hour of buildup before anything out of ordinary happens. Once that shockingly gruesome moment happens it's as if we've reached a crossroads. The director had a few different paths to take from there, and he took a more self-indulgent strange one. Unsettling music, obtuse camera work, trippy visuals, long drawn out scenes, head-scratching moments, a disfigured child, comical quips (both intentional and unintentional) Midsommar is a messy mixed bag.

This film could have been more than another beautiful to look at, but hollow art piece. Ultimately it's hard to call it anything more than that. We are left without explanations for some big things, some elements feel like they were thrown in for no real reason outside of being visually jarring, and a lot of this movie feels overlong and dragging. Often times taking itself way too seriously and feeling like it was trying too hard to be something it isn't. Characters felt empty, even given the long run time to aide in giving them more depth.

Just as these types of movies usually do we have some allegories here. We don't, however, have much horror at all. The viewer gets occasional feelings of dread and despair, but this is more of a drama than anything else which I'm not faulting it for, the marketing would just have you think otherwise.

I can see the appeal, and it wasn't horrible but Midsommar drops into some pitfalls that I can't forgive it for. I left the theater just wanting more ultimately unsatisfied with what I was given.

Holy hell was this one exceptionally bad. First off do not go into this movie expecting any kind of scary moments or really any horror at all. Secondly outside of Spencer (passable not great) do not expect anything but horrible acting. Thirdly this script is laughbly bad and cringe. Ma even blatantly rips off other material. You want to sit through 65 minutes of dull poorly acted unrealistic buildup? Followed up with what may be one of the least satisfying payoffs in "horror" history? Then go ahead and see Ma. But if your sane and like decent fun horror or even good horror please stay far far away from this pile.

S. Craig Zahler has brought us two previous movies, both strong. Dragged Across Concrete is his strongest. We follow two detectives in Vaughn and Gibson who are suspended without pay for using excessive force. Gibson is too hard on his luck and fed up to take it lying down. He uses a connection to get a tip on an out of town drug dealer to rob. Mel brings his reluctant partner (Vaughn) on for the job as well. Their acting is undoubtedly on par and I enjoy their on-screen chemistry even if it is in a no-nonsense dry type of style.

The film opens with neither of those two men on screen, instead, we get a very enjoyable and sometimes humorous introduction to another important character, Tory (Johns). From there the film begins to unfold in Zahler's brand of a slow burn. Dragged is a film that takes it's time and creates an engrossing atmosphere and story. There are scenes of dialogue that go on for quite some time but I was always engrossed and very much enjoying the style of writing and banter on display in this script.

Make no mistake about it though, this work does have some great action and edge of your seat moments. Executed above the current Hollywood bar for action set pieces in this type of film too. The last 50 minutes of the movie is downright amazing and so very tense. I really loved how everything wrapped up as well.

Dragged Across Concrete does so many things correctly, which includes shocking you. One extended side character scene is so heinous and downright nasty, it almost felt as though Zahler was taking it a bit far just for the sake of it. However, this kind of disturbing approach to cinema is something I appreciate.

Possibly this is a film for a certain kind of moviegoer, someone who appreciates the more hard-nosed tough aspects of the genre. But don't let that stop you from seeing it. Despite some predictability and maybe a touch of going too far just for the sake of it. I think that when the smoke clears on a stacked year of releases in 2019, we'll have one of the years best here. Maybe it falls short of being a masterpiece...but it does not fall short of being absolutely fantastic.

When I first saw the trailer for Serenity back in summer 2018 I was certainly intrigued. Then it was pushed back many months from its original release date but I still looked forward to finally seeing the movie. Well I can say now that after some thought, I enjoyed the film. It was spoiled for me mildly in the sense that I knew an off the wall twist was in the cards. Boy was that twist a wild one.

Serenity starts out a little wonky with the first 20 minutes or so having some unintentional laugh out loud moments. However once it gets going it becomes very intriguing and had me fully engaged. When the left field insane twist is revealed, I was impressed by the sheer nerve of it all. Sure it's beyond over the top, but having the audacity to do it is a thing to admire.

The acting is both good and bad at times. The whole movie always just feels a little off and bizarre, which I somewhat appreciate. Make no mistake about it though this work is not a masterpiece. Serenity has its share of faults and the ending could very well be one of them in some ways. Besides that it's also a messy script with some big head scratchers and horrible lines.

With that being said we need more wide release movies with quality actors taking chances and giving us something original. In a way the film is throwback to the 70's and 80's when we saw wide released movies taking experimental chances.

Go give it a watch, love it or hate I think this work is something any true film fan will tip their cap to.

Glass, where do I begin? Unbreakable was fresh and well written. Split was offbeat and fun. Glass is dull and forced. You may think Glass is going to be an epic action packed show down between good and evil, but in reality its more of an over the top character drama. The action is few and far between, but the yawns are a plenty.

Willis mails his performance in, as he has been for the better part of 2 decades. Jackson does his thing fine. McAvoy picks up where he left off in Split with the same strong performances. One main issue here is the execution of putting all the pieces together. It never feels epic, it never drops your jaw, its just kind of like "here you go".

M Night wanted something epic and you can tell, but it really just does not work. The end feels forced, silly and frankly absolutely atrocious. There is honestly no one I'd recommend this movie to, as the guy I went with is a huge fan of the first two and did not enjoy Glass at all. 2019 gets off to a rocky start with this one.

Suspiria where do we begin? Let me start with what little good we get out of this pile. The camera work is excellent with many uneasy zooms and abstract movements and shots. The acting is of quality. There is some wonderfully done body horror sprinkled in.

Now the negatives. Suspiria could use an editing and compacting of about 45 minutes. It feels like it just goes on and on. I have nothing against a long movie, as some of my favorites are well over 2 hours. But when you are presenting me dryness on this level there is going to be a problem. Suspiria comes across as a film that wants to be deep cutting high brow cinema, but falls flat every step of the way. The final act (before the snoozer of an epilogue) offers unsettling imagery and is nice to look at, but left me scratching my head and unsatisfied.

People are calling this work polarizing, however I feel the ones who are calling this a masterwork are so far off base they're either new to cinema or just fall in love with anything obtuse and artsy. This is simply not a good film.

Overlord seems to have been marketed as a world war 2 horror film which turns out basically false. What we have here is a sometimes plodding world war 2 action work with constant been there done that tropes.

The good. Some fun action pieces, some solid gore effects , and overall it kept me interested for the most part so a decent time waster I guess?

The bad. Some weird sci fi elements that feels so cartoonish and over the top at times. The acting is very sub par as I've heard of none of these guys in the film and it shows why. No one is really likable aside from Boyce but even his timid stammering at times makes him kind of a meh character. Very cookie cutter in many ways right down to a guy running from an explosion just in time.

Overall Overlord had a decent premise. It's somewhat similar to 2013's Frankeinstien's Army and is extremely cliche in all the war elements. It can be fun at times here and there but I'd call it a miss fire and a bust 5/10.

When I first saw the trailer for this movie months back it was hard to not see some similarities from Larry Clark's teenage slice of life movies from the late 90s and early 2000s. Once I saw the movie I was pleased to see while some parts may be influenced by Clark, the Mid 90s stands on its own as true winner.

Much like Clark did, Hill has brought in some kids who have no acting experience here to play Stevie's crew. They all really knock it out of the park and add to the sense of realism. The film is short and sweet setting up the main points quickly and then taking some great turns, some of which are a bit dark. I was a big fan of Lucas Hedge's character and how the dynamic of him and Stevie plays out. The soundtrack also is really quite amazing and adds a lot to the film in some scenes. Also Mid 90's may have the best jump scare of the year!

Some people may complain that while the film does have good characters, setting and so on, it lacks a standard plot. While this is true I'd argue that it sets out to tell the story of Stevie in a realistic fashion and gets the job done. While Mid 90s does have some shortcomings like some cliches and some heavy predictability, I didn't feel like they hindered the film much. A strong 8/10.

There was an odd buzz surrounding this film, that in my opinion was totally unmerited. It just scratches the surface of the story and embellishes some things. I'm someone who is not a fan of The Room because, well it's really bad. That being said I really wanted to see what Franco had to offer here as far as unpacking what the hell caused the debacle of a film. Really Disaster Artist was an empty look and borders on biography and parody. I found the end to be very very overdone and from what I know, entirely fabricated.

Wow what a total failure of a film. I'm not sure what this movie was setting out to do but entertain was surely not it. Here is an example of what to expect in this pretentious art piece. 10 minutes of dialogue free shots of a woman doing the dishes, some kitchen chores, eating a whole pie then going to bed. None of these things are done in a way that justifies them being on screen let alone being on screen for more than one minute.

This film could have been compressed into a 10 or 15 minute short film and it would have maybe got a 7/10. In it's current form the only thing saving it from a 1 is solid enough cinematography and a good score.

Wow mother! was a real wild ride. I stumbled out of the theater in awe. I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like it. It is really nice to see directors like Darren Aronofsky take chances like this. What you get in mother! is one part drama one part horror six parts insanity.

The story does not take any time at all to get going, it becomes completely crazy about an hour in and the final 20 minutes will leave you shocked. While I was not totally floored by either main stars performance the acting was surely great.

The problem with mother! is, taken at face value it's totally ridiculous. The things that end up transpiring are absurd and over the top to say the least. Therefore mother! will surely be a polarizing movie. As a small example I went with 3 other people to see it, including myself it was a 50/50 love hate outcome.

As far as the shocking moments in the film, they are a real doozy. There's one scene in particular that will certainly repel some people. In my theater of about 20 or so people a woman basically ran out during this part. When we left she was waiting outside visibly shaken and yelling at her boyfriend. For me as a person who loves it when films push the envelope and cross boundaries, I was delighted by it all.

While mother! is the most audacious original movie of 2017 taken at face value it could be a real bust for some people. After reading into the meaning of the film I'd say I like it even more. I'm giving it an 8/10. A great movie.

Want to see everything that is wrong with modern art house? Watch Dark Night then. Don't get me wrong there is plenty of modern art house I enjoy. But there are things that give it a bad rap. If you're interested in seeing what they are over the course of this movies run time then give it a go. I'm just gonna lay out the issues with this movie. Boring, paper characters, long scenes of meaningless drivel, lack of plot, lack of beginning middle and end, lack of really anything that makes for a good movie. A bad Harmony Korine knockoff, and if you're making movies that knock off a director with some real miss fires in there catalog you should probably find another profession.

So dull so meaningless so bad Dark Night falls flat everywhere.Don't watch this instead watch Van Sant's Elephant or Solondz's Storytelling as an example of how to pull of a film in this genre properly. 2/10. Horrible.

When I finished I Stand Alone, I got up and looked into the mirror. My mind still racing from the intense final act. I looked at myself and muttered "why". Why does this type of film exist. Why do I seek out and watch these types of movies. Why. I've got answers for both now. Movies like this exist because they have to, and because there is disturbed film makers like Noe out there willing to put together this kind of art.The reason I seek out these movies is also another reason as to why they exist. To invoke thought and emotion.

I have seen a murderers row of shocking disturbing cinema. From Serbian Film to Ken Park all the way down to Salo if it fits the sub genre I've likely seen it. I Stand Alone is not only one of the most disturbing movies I've ever seen, it's one of the most disturbing "disturbing" movies I've ever seen.

The Butcher is such a piece of sh*t, mentally ill and disturbed character. I never once felt sorry for him or felt anything aside from hate towards him. He's an example of some of the worst human garbage on the planet and you have to take a step back and say "people like him actually exist" which makes me want to vomit. Whether he is speaking about how meaningless and shitty life is or pummeling his unborn child to death The Butcher is scum.

I Stand Alone can surely come across as a meaningless pretentious shock piece with no message or merit aside from "look at how vile this movie is". I can completely understand this opinion and would not argue with someone who held it. I would say yes it is a drama but really it's a horror movie. At the very least its sometimes horrific.

The final act begins with a warning telling audiences to leave the theater and hit the road. I kind of wish I took this advice. This part is an unrelenting look into the mind of a madman and his sadistic ramblings and acts, as well as some heinous gore.

I can say surely that I will never revisit this movie, and if you'd like a free DVD copy of it feel free to message me and you can take mine off my hands. That being said it should be seen by any... I don't know "hardcore" film fan? It's a good movie but it's also a bad movie, if that makes sense. I'm giving it a 7 which is about as high as I go for this type of film.

Movie goers expectations for horror movies must really be in the dumps. I see glowing reviews for this movie and am left in disbelief. This movie is total garbage. This movie is basically everything that is wrong with big budget horror. CRAP. Recycled themes, been there done that jump scare tricks, CGI rubbish. This hunk of junk has all the bad over used things you'd expect from a modern day paranormal horror movie.

Bad acting, check. Horrible forced jump scares, check. over use of children, check. Poor blatant CGI, check. I can go on but I think you get the point here, avoid this movie like you would a leper. I also want to mention that I feel like the R rating here is not merited outside maybe one scene that could have been cleaned up for the PG13. I believe the R rating was a hoax tactic to get more horror fans who generally shun PG13 movies as well as younger crowds who want to see it just for the sake of seeing an r rated movie in the theater. All in all this movie stunk, please save yourself the time and money and pass on this one. 3/10. Bad.

I was never looking forward to Logan Lucky nor am I really a fan of director Soderbergh but I also did not have low expectations for the movie. I kind of went in expecting a decent time maybe giving the movie a 6 or 7. But I got more than I bargained for here thanks to three awesome performances, a perfectly paced movie as well as a great script.

Tatum, Driver, and Craig present three strong performances as southern criminals with generally good intentions. I really enjoyed Driver's one armed dim witted character Clyde Logan. Young Farrah Mackenzie could definitely be a star in the making. However I did not enjoy Seth MacFarlane as Max Chilblain one bit. In my opinion he flat sucked.

The story is perfectly paced and really quite engrossing. Starting with the character building, then into the heist plan, then the actual heist, and of course the aftermath. I was never checking my watch nor did my mind ever drift during the movie. I was actually really loving the ride and had one of the best times at the theater all year. I went with a rather large group of 7 or so friends and every once in while I'd look over to see smiles plastered on there faces. I had a big grin through out this film myself.

Logan Lucky does have some minor hiccups which include any scene involving MacFarlane, the prison riot scenes, especially an unneeded and silly 2 minutes Game of Thrones bit that felt forced and left me scratching my head. But overall Logan Lucky is a pretty great movie and gets an 8 from me.

Finally De Niro takes a break from hack comedies and mailed in roles for direct to red box garbage films! He delivers his best performance since "Jackie Browne" here as real life super villain Bernie Madoff. The movie itself is a long winded and sometimes trudging look at Madoff's life beginning when he comes clean as essentially a scam artist. De Niro transforms into the ultra rich and short tempered Bernie masterfully. I'm happy to see this after years of writing him off as a guy who'd lost his touch and just does it for the money. This is especially important to see with his upcoming reunion with Pesci and Scorsese in "The Irishman" looming.

As a film I'd say this work gets the job done and serves its purpose well. Veteran workman director Barry Levinson who's three plus decade catalog includes all sorts of movies has made a pretty good movie here, possibly one of his best ever? It does not really wow you in anyway but it's also by no means bad. I especially enjoyed the scene in which Bernie attempts suicide with his wife and ends up hallucinating.

The Wizard of Lies gets a 7 out of 10 which on my scale makes it a "good" movie, but it surely falls short of greatness with it's mostly straight forward and often dragging delivery.

Good Time is a gritty dirty crime thriller staring Pattinson in what is easily his best performance to date which should be considered for the Oscar nomination. Pattinson channels Vincent Gallo's Billy Brown character in some ways from the great movie "Buffalo 66". He really nails the role of somewhat eccentric possible sociopath that is Connie. However staying on the note of performances it would be a total overlooking to not mention Benny Safdie's absolute knock out performance of mentally handicapped Nick. This performance easily rivals some of the greatest mentally handicapped renditions of all time. I wish we saw some more of Nick who kind of disappears till the very end of the movie after the first 30 minutes or so.

Now that I've covered the performances let me get to the cinematography and score. Both of which are of very high quality. The original score is easily the best of the 2017 releases. The score is very effective in delivering the message of intensity and anxiety when things pick up. Also, the closing credits Iggy Pop "The Pure and the Damned" is a perfect and sad choice for whats going on during the credits.

The story is a great ride with some amazing side characters that come and go through out. I'm sure if you are reading this review you are aware of the plot so there is no need for me to rehash what the film is about. But for an NYC crime drama this ones up there with some of the heavyweights of the sub genre. It's frantic but sometimes mellow and blends dirtiness with the good intentions of Connie in a way that comes out really well.

I'm giving the movie an 8, its just short of a 9. I'm not gonna go with a 9 due to the somewhat non-ending end and the lack of Benny's "Nick" after the first 30 minutes. I felt more Nick would have added to the tone of the film if every now and then as Connie was struggling to get things done we saw brief scenes of Nick continuing to have a hard time in jail here and there.

Go out and buy a ticket to this movie and support this kind of cinema because it deserves it.

What a total piece of garbage Lemon was. My god. From the over done art house approach to the monotone boring protagonist this movie was absolute trash. I can appreciate an abstract or absurd comedy such as "The Comedy". But what makes this one fall flat on it's face is the fact that it just seems like it's being abstract for the sake of it rather than being a comedy that happens to be weird. It's also incredibly dull and is by NO means a legitimate piece of art house cinema. AVOID this movie you will be glad you did.

On paper this movie had the potential to be something great, sadly it falls short of even being good. Brigsby Bear comes off as a try hard uplifting hipster tale. We've all seen it before the social outcast trying to fit in and the nice people who accept him. I wish the movie focused on Mooney's time in the bunker instead of focusing mostly on his character when he escapes lockdown. I'd like to have delved more into the motive behind capturing him and creating Brigsby as well. In the end the movie is forgettable and cheesy which is a real let down because the material could have surely produced an 8/10. Instead it gets a 5/10. Not a good one.