Alien vs Predator vs Akira Kurosawa vs Sarah Michelle Geller


Yesterday, while my lovely wife was working to support me, I could find nothing better to do than pull a Chunn and watch some bad sci-fi. Mary Sleazy and I went to see Alien vs Predator.

AVP is not art, but it is certainly wild and crazy fun once the "monsters" took over. AVP will seem like a mindless romp to non-fans, but if you are steeped in the lore of the two series (and their attendant novels and comics) you'll find a lot to enjoy. The dialogue wasn't very good, but the writers probably didn't feel that the target audience would care....well, for me, at least, they were wrong. The dialogue and the character interactions were what set the first two Alien movies and "Predator" apart from other slasher/space/action films. The movie had it's problems, but it didn't suck.

After AVP, Ferlie and I settled down for a nice evening's Akira Kurosawa film. We saw "Kumonosu jô" aka "Throne of Blood", which is heralded as one of the best movies ever made. Well, I cannot agree with that assessment, though I did enjoy it. Artistically, it does eclipse AVP in several respects. For those who don't know, "Throne of Blood" is Kurosawa's telling of Shakespeare's "MacBeth". Some would argue that this is just another instance of some slanty-eyed S.O.B. ripping off the white man's work for their own evil, Asian purposes. Since my wife is Asian, I'd better not be one of those people. I should note, however, that my evil Asian wife did fall asleep during the flick, so interpret that how you will.

"Throne of Blood" is beautifully filmed in black and white, and the costumes, sets, and scenery are wonderful. There were very few movies made in the late 1950s that had such production values. The performances were quite good, but American movie-goers beware---they are very Japanese (so much of the stuff that is wonderful in the eyes of fans of Japanese cinema, will seem sorta goofy to fans of stupid crap like Van Helsing).

I am very much interested in seeing "Rashomon" which I see most often at the list of top Japanese films. Any recommendations?

Also, you must go look at www.doyouhaveagrude.com which is the site for the American-market re-make of "Ju-On", which was a pretty creepy. I don't know how "The Grudge" will be, but the Americanized version of "Ringu" was good, so I have high hopes, despite Sarah Michelle Geller's starring role.

Arthur, Lancelot, and "Those We Do Not Speak Of".

Last night, Ferlie, our friend Mary Sleazy, and I went to see King Arthur and The Village. We had heard bad things about both, and were pleasantly surprised in both cases.

King Arthur follows a pseudo-historic storyline about Artorious Crassus, a Roman Knight of mixed-Briton blood who, as the Roman Empire withdraws from the British Isle, decides to stay on, defend the Britons from a Saxon invasion, and become King. The movie, so long as you don't try to apply a rigid historic or logical judgement, does nothing terribly wrong. The performances are all at least competent, and the story and it's dialogue are acceptable. Even the (cough) kick-ass Guinevere wasn't too bad, until she's swing swords and going toe to toe with battle-hardened Saxon warriors. The costumes wouldn't satisfy the nit-picking of historians or SCA types, but they are not godawfully bad. The thing is, the movie does nothing really well. I'm not surprised to read that it isn't expected to make a profit. Better luck next time Jerry and Antoine, just try not to use the trite trench full of fiery goop set to light with flaming arrows, unless you're just determined to do a Beastmaster homage.

The Village was roundly criticized by almost everyone that I personally know (with the exception of Eugenius and Clovis). Ferlie and I enjoyed it immensely. Shyamalan created an intensely creepy atmosphere, and within it told an imaginative story with his trademark twist at (or near) the end. William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver may have resurrected (or re-defined) their careers with the supporting roles that they nailed. This is not a movie for the low-brow fan, or one for someone expecting great monster effects and gore.

Ferlotta and I saw The Bourne Supremacy the other night, and, while it's certainly not great cinema, it was a lot of fun. Matt Damon plays the Jason Bourne role well, and the supporting cast were close to flawless. Brian Cox even managed to (almost) make up for his terrible turn as Agammenon in Troy. If you want a fun, not-t00 stupid cloak and dagger flick, this is for you.

Putting the "F" back in Freedom

From The GateTree: The boys who made South Park are after liberal-scmiberals and terrorists, with a true Thunderbirds motif:TEAM AMERICA.