shawnmikedryer

The Coen's do it again, this time showcasing the ingenious writing skills the two possess with a dark witty satire about the cut throat business world. Surprisingly enough sprinkle a little Sam Raimi into the mix. As smart & cleaver as the narrative is the film is equally bizarre & never lets up the humor. The script in my opinion is a work of art & a masterful display of script writing.

The absolute definition of so bad it's good! It blows my mind the amount of pure absurdity this film brings but you can't look away. Definitely the idiot step child of marvel films but hey my four year old enjoyed it so its a win-win!

" The transformation is complete, i am now someone else. " (Kinda how i felt enjoying this😂)

" Try telling that to your insurance company! "

This is one of the great & actually more memorable 2000's comedy classics with a star studded cast of the genre at the time. Turn your brain off fun & a narrative that may be closer to non fiction.

This indie folk masterpiece is one most have probably never heard of. The genre lacks entries such as this with a rock solid script & rock star cast to back it up. It follows a story that is unconventional, enthralling, & very uncomfortable at times. It gives you the most unique & profound point of view other films would be afraid to address. Just remember you never know what someone is going through, a little compassion goes a long way. The originality of the soundtrack is prevalent and to this day i can jam these songs. Also give huge credit to the late Anton Yelchin and Billy Crudup they did great in this.

Requiem for a dream hits you like a shock to the system but ever so slowly & definitely surely. It effectively shows the true sequence of events that hard drug addiction almost always brings & director Darren Aronofsky displays these pitfalls in the most sickening but truthful way, not one punch is pulled. The score is equally chilling & pairs beautifully with some truly breathtaking cinematography thats delivered in a transformative way. The acting here is exceptional & you can really feel the weight of anxiety from the entire situation, the last 30 minutes are absolutely gut-wrenching.

An fun & engaging coming of age film thats pretty charming with plenty of laughs along the way. Newcomers Cooper Hoffman & Alana Haim are both excellent in their respective debuts the undeniable presence & chemistry shared by the two leads has this infectious energy thats interesting no matter how trivial the narrative is at any point. I also had a lot of fun with the cameo's with a line up of Tom Waits, Bradley Cooper, Sean Penn & even John C. Riley snuck in there. While its certainly not Paul Thomas Anderson's best output & several ends are left untied it's still a pretty entertaining hangout feature to sit back and enjoy.

A tale of eternal desire to right those who have wronged you. Frontiersman Hugh Glass is part of a fur-trap expedition, things go awry when the crew is decimated by angry homicidal native's. The last of the crew continue on but when Glass is mauled by a bear he's left for dead only after fellow crew member & former confidant Fitzgerald inadvertently murders his son. Glass somehow recovers on his own, regains strength & although heartbroken goes on a undying path of retribution to avenge his lost son. The cinematography is a sight to behold, a relentless bleak & harsh world is uncovered. The landscapes are absolutely gorgeous & the sets & wardrobe were incredibly accurate to the time period. DiCaprio & Hardy were both incredible, both characters portray good vs. Evil so well. I personally love every minute of this movie & the rewatch got an added bonus being in 4k Ultra HD, it looks better than ever.

After rewatching Gone Girl i feel like i appreciate it more than ever. This nail biting thriller has a very unique narrative that becomes intoxicating immediately as you can't look away from the decent into psychosis. This script is a masterpiece & i can't stress that enough, the twists & turns this takes you is exhilarating. Rosamund Pike is a psycho bitch possessed force of nature & the directions her character takes is just as shocking as ever. Also probably my favorite Ben Affleck role, his demeanor really fit's his character perfectly. My absolute favorite David Fincher film & his best film in my opinion.

Terry Gilliam's true masterpiece comes with the modern day sci fi classic in 12 Monkeys. In true Gilliam form we are served a whimsically wacky narrative with his aesthetic style written all over it. With this one you may have to hold on for dear life to understand, but unlocking the puzzle is part of the beauty of the film. Without question its a film that requires multiples viewings to fully grasp the unconventional visual display. Terry is a true visionary. Brad Pitt is exceptional here, one of the biggest Oscar snubs of all time. Bruce Willis is also fantastic & really channels some serious emotion matching well with Madeline Stowe who truly makes her on screen presence known in every scene.

One thing we've learned in the past when speaking of time travel is that there is usually an inevitability that is impossible to avoid.

A decent albeit unoriginal narrative, The Whole Nine Yards is a solid turn your brain off dark comedy. Matthew Perry's character comes off irritating but incredibly believable & Bruce Willis is great in this as well, he's deadly serious with just a hint of sarcasm.

As far as low-grade cheesy films go Blind Fury is on the higher spectrum & is wholly entertaining. It's undeniably 80's through & through, holy drug dealin mullets! This unique story follows Nick Parker, blinded Vietnam Vet turned highly trained swordsman who returns home to visit his old war buddy Frank but instead stumbles upon his wife & son. Only to learn his buddy owes a substantial amount of money to a crooked Casino in Reno, now Nick is tasked with protecting the young boy but to also find the whereabouts of Frank to warm him of whats in store. Ruger Hauer is a legend & plays this role to perfection, he really makes a street swordsman a bad ass in a cool way. Its sure super over-the-top from the beginning but never ceases to be entertaining as even rewatching its still a super fun time.

The Mothman Prophecies is a Spellbinding supernatural thriller if i've ever seen one.

The cinematography combined with the superb score creates this unnerving Ominous tone. Richard Gere plays a man hell bent on uncovering the truth and as the mystery unfolds the story keeps you glued to the screen. Over the years this film has held up very well, we get a terrific leading man in Gere who plays this role beautifully as he out performs in a less familiar genre for him. Pairing him with Laura Linney was a perfect choice, whenever these two team up its usually a great movie. The rewatch ability is great with this, even after multiple viewings i'm still uncovering & discovering more things that i either missed or overlooked. The tension is built so well that it sets up a chaotic and spectacular climax and an end that leaves me in awe. Can we seriously get a Blu Ray or 4K UHD upgrade of The Mothman Prophecies already!!

Kalifornia succeeds in its stylish allure with a real dark grungy side to it. This film profiles serial killers in an intriguing way trying to shed any sort of light on the maniac mind and what makes them stir. Brain, played by David Duchovny & his wife are the educated, privileged journalist couple on the road investigating old serial killer murder sites when they pick up a simple country couple. Juliette Lewis is the innocent sweet young woman with her boyfriend Early, played by Brad Pitt whose a dimwitted sociopath clearly haunted by a troubled past. As we progress on the trip we see Early become more and more unstable and his vicious and violent tendencies come to face, Brain learns he may have a killer in his back seat. Brad Pitt plays the unhinged and cold hearted psychopath frighteningly well and certainly one of his better performances.

Season one of Titans series was pretty exceptional, building great origin stories across the board and made for an interesting storyline. The dark atmosphere is this shows calling card along with brutal and bloody R- rated fight scenes they look awesome.

Season two the show seems to lose its spark, the story becomes messy and the writing was not good. It salvaged itself with a few new additional characters to get excited about (mini spoiler; Nightwing) along with the cliff hanger.

Season three begins with a force and the story is super interesting and exciting from the onset. The brutally the gave this show a name is back and back with a force as well. Only 3 episodes in and i'm totally pumped to see where we go and if we can re capture the magic of season one.

I loved this very different slasher, i also loved the fact the movie could have ended early if he just grabbed the television remote, straight 80's cheese and i'm all for it!

This is a wholly engaging, silly yet serious when it needs to be foreign classic of a film. Brimming with naturally placed physical comedy throughout and really never appears to try too hard. As always Jackie Chan is excellent but his frequent counterparts during the 80's in Biao Yuen & Sammo Hung deserve immense credit as well with very solid fight sequences as well. The final fight between Jackie Chan & Benny The Jet is a masterpiece of a performance and could easily be regarded on of the best on screen Martial Artist fights in the history of cinema, truly incredible. Even then Jackie adds just a pinch of humor making him one of a kind in every sense of the word.

" I'd like to think if you're seeing me you're having the worst day of your life. "

Nightcrawler has this groundbreaking narrative that becomes more and more intoxicating as we progress. It gets downright disturbing at times, it's a very enthralling storyline. This film also features a solid score, exceptional cinematography, and the acting is superb. Especially Jake Gyllenhaal who gives an unconsciously brilliant performance as Louis Bloom, a aspiring crime journalist in California who is on full tilt willing to do anything to achieve his goals, he's a manipulative sociopath. Menacingly intelligent is another way to describe Jake as he descends into his madness.

" The true price of success is what somebody's willing to pay for it. "

We also get a great supporting cast with Riz Ahmed, Rene Russo, & The Late Great Bill Paxton. The unsettling fact of the matter is how accurately this caricature of a crime journalist may describe people in that industry in the real world, probably more often than not. It goes to show you should never mess with the natural order of things. The absolutely thrilling climax is equally gut renching, Jake is a utter maniac. This film has some of the strongest rewatch-ability out there.

" I'd never ask you to do anything i wouldn't do myself. "

This was an absolute blast! The fight choreography and several seriously death defying stunts from the Legend himself Jackie Chan alone is worthy of an 8/10. The script leaves much to be desired but came off surprisingly hilarious throughout. It's over the top cheesy goodness and i love how we get to see an Indiana Jones type of role from Jackie and its honestly some of his best work, i mean seriously he could have died while filming about 5 times he's an absolute madman.

💢 My Thoughts 💢

" Never trust nobody Caine Manual, Page one chapter one "

An absolute action packed Sci-fi thrill ride from start to finish. Dolph Lundgren is seen at the pinnacle of his action hero prowess, this is my favorite Dolph picture. The 80's themes are still very prevalent (which i love) in the film although it was released in 1990.

" Oh i see a space gun, so you guys are right on top of things. "

The films premise is interesting and inventive enough to keep you engaged and entertained the whole way. The main villain is one that i had a lot of fun with, a sort of new age Predator character. Dolph can obliterate evil in a final showdown with the best of them! Not to mention the classy one liner after the final killing blow, ICONIC!

" And You go in pieces, Asshole! "

The gripping tale of Jamal, an orphan of Mumbai and a boy who grew up in the slums. Now as an adult Jamal has a chance to change his life forever when he becomes a contestant in the Indian Version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, giving him a shot at 20 million. As Jamal reaches each question we learn more about his story and how his personal experiences living in the slums with violence and heartbreak growing up helped shape him and how each helped him attain the knowledge to answer each question correctly. Certainly delivers some heartfelt and breathtaking moments and Dev Patel is a revelation, this film without question deserved Best Picture.

Dylan O Brian is pretty exciting in the beginning of the film, it really could have used more of him he was excellent and Pretty great outing from Mark Wahlberg his acting is precise with what he's given to work with. Very ambitious plot tries a little too hard to be the next mind bending sci fi epic and comes off a tad pretentious given how muddled the story becomes, a lot of things don't exactly add up. Jason Mantzoukas or better known as Raffi seems to make everything he touches a bit better and his comedic nuisances are felt throughout. Antoine Fuqua is still great at making the action sequences super exciting but i just didn't find myself that interested in any of the characters. As we go on the film gains momentum in its stupidity, the smart cool vibe it was going for comes off a bit dull and uninspired. A lot of turn your brain off gun play and explosions, which are great but the story offered minimal memorable substance.

The ending loses its luster being so cgi heavy.

Another stylistically told Guy Ritchie tale with all the twists, turns, & double crosses we've come to expect in his movies. The dark atmosphere bodes very well, the script is fantastic & the cinematography is top notch. Jason Statham is a human wrecking ball as he does his best John Wick impersonation, the mystery shrouding his character is very interesting early on. The only nitpick i'd have the story structure seems to take a major shift midway. It was nice to get a better sense of the mysterious man's motives and who he's really aiming for but initially it got pretty confusing but grew on me once it picked up steam again and delivered an ending that we hoped for in a very Guy Ritchie style fashion. Not his absolute best work but a pretty satisfying action flick none the less.

Rian Johnson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt reunite and once again team up to create another fantastic film. Another great performance from Bruce Willis and this is one of the last films where his heart still looks in it. I remember seeing this back in theaters but really had forgotten how truly unique and awesome this film is. Years later i still find this story pretty spell binding being about time travel we've seen it all just about while Looper does a great job at paving its own way. Loved the shift halfway from badass Looper hitman story to supernatural like thriller that becomes more of a mystery the more you think you've got it all figured out. Even with a rewatch i still can't help but feel ill-prepared for the wild twist at the end for a satisfying conclusion.

A very original 80's gem with a very suave stylistically brilliant approach to the story. Gorgeous cinematography and score that creates this cool vibe creating some mesmerizing action sequences through-out the film, a true forefather to the film Drive years later. The slow pacing is perfect with the type of deep characterization we get with the main character Frank, played by James Cann, an ex convict hot head who refuses to use this heist lifestyle as a means to an end but is a hard fate to escape when after years in prison you've garnished a type of life mantra to not care about anything as a means of survival, " Where nothing means nothing. " The story builds and builds to a pretty exciting ending and one of the most satisfying ones. For Michael Mann this was a tremendous debut using the neo-noir style with ease.

An absolutely incredible film, with an exciting inventive plot, gorgeous sets and scenery, poetically violent action sequences, and an all around immaculate direction by director Tony Scott with Quentin Tarantino writing. Another amazing aspect to the film is the soundtrack, what a nostalgic trip. Christian Slater plays the perfect nerdy anti-hero and one that you can't help but root for and secretly want to be! Patricia Arquette is also fantastic with an absolutely exceptional performance by Gary Oldman, although he only grabs a couple scenes but boy talk about electric! This is why Oldman is a legend. Also worth noting James Gandolfini's superb outing, the man was diabolical. All this culminates to one of the best " Mexican stand-offs" i've ever seen. A perfect film inside and out!