STRANGE DAYS (1995) - WAY AHEAD OF IT'S TIME KATHRYN BIGELOW BRINGS HANDS-DOWN ULTIMATE NEW YEAR'S EVE MOVIE W/ RALPH FIENNES & JULIETTE LEWIS

It's LA in the future and people's memories of specific events are bought and sold on the black market. They're called "playback" and you "jack it" into your brain, ya dig? Scumbag Lenny (Ralph Fiennes) is a dealer of such druggy material but has a dear friend (Angela Bassett) who wants to see him clean up his life. However, he can't get over an ex-girlfriend (Juliette Lewis in a total Holy Shit performance) who is really wrapped up in the underworld and she holds the key to why a famous rapper has been murdered. 

If any of that catches your attention so far, then dig in as Kathryn Bigelow, hot on the success of the magnificent Point Break, changes backdrops from the sunny beaches of Malibu to the gritty grime of downtown LA. The use of handhelds and production of action scenes in this movie is off the chart.. The story is a bit convoluted but never boring. Juliette Lewis' scenes fronting a rock band are to be seen to be believed, they're that good. That's not new ground for her of course but these scenes are stellar, not to mention her scene in Venice Beach. 

Angela Bassett really shows off her physical skills in fight scenes and Tom Sizemore is his usual very enjoyable self as one of Lenny's friends. An outstanding sci-fi that was way ahead of it's time, highly recommend. Not available in the streaming world, just DVD.  3.5 stars/5

Updated 12-31-23 - Happy to report Strange Days is now available in the streaming world but only on Max or DirecTV. 

MY TOP 7 MOVIE DISCOVERIES OF 2023 w/ trailers, rating, where to stream (THAT'S WHAT WE DO AROUND HERE, WE DISCOVER MOVIES!)

 As usual, not meant to be a comprehensive list or in any particular order but these are SEVEN that really made a great impression on me...happy holiday everyone, there will be one more post before we turn the calendar....cheers TR

WHITEWASH (2013) - Thomas Haden Church in a Canadian psychological thriller

3.0 stars/5   Tubi, Plex, Pluto, Popcorn

THE PERFECT HOST (2010) - Can't say enough about this quirky thriller, love it!

3.0 stars/5  Tubi, Plex, Vudu Free, Pluto

DEVIL (2010) - written by M Night Shyamalan, directed by John Dowdle

3.0 stars/5    Available VOD

FALL (2022) - every bit as vertigo-inducing and the two leads are great

3.25 stars/5     Starz, DirecTV, VOD

THE VANISHED (2020) - Anne Heche's second-to-last feature, a missing daughter mystery

3.0 stars/5     Prime Video, VOD

LIGHT OF DAY (1987) - charming rock n roll movie w Joan Jett & Michael J Fox

2.75 stars/2.75   watch full movie above or rent/buy on Amazon only

EMILY, THE CRIMINAL (2022) - Aubrey, Aubrey, Aubrey....'nuff said. 

3.5 stars/5    Netflix, VOD

CANDY CANE LANE (2023) - IT'S NOT EXACTLY AN INSTANT CLASSIC BUT IT IS COLORFUL, IMAGINATIVE AND ALWAYS GREAT TO SEE EDDIE MURPHY

 

Going to have to keep this one short and sweet which I'm sure will please a lot of people, but seriously this is a pretty decent Christmas film, a comedy-adventure-fantasy might be a good way to term it. Stalwart producer Brian Grazer was at the helm here and it shows. A fun and festive film based on the 12 days of Christmas, we highly recommend this one, Merry Christmas to all!   3.0 stars/5

The Little People

TWO DRUG ADDICTS BOTCH A ROBBERY AND FIND THEMSELVES IN A REAL NO-WITNESSES BIND IN "THE SURPRISE VISIT" (2022)

 
The mullet is back and wants money for drugs. 

The Surprise Visit is a more-than-effective suspense thriller about a couple of drug addicts who rob a rich lady's house thinking she's out of town and let's just say things don't go so well. There's serious choices to be made if they're going to cover their tracks. 

The legendary Eric Roberts has a supporting role here as the drug addict's father and as usual is excellent. There's a lot of great talent in the acting department here but the real star is the performance by up-and-coming Regan Ferrier. She kills it as the confused and delusional druggie's girlfriend suddenly swept into something she can't control. 

Thumbs up for The Surprise Visit which also has a cool ending, streaming now on Tubi & Amazon Prime.  3.0 stars/5

THE INCOMPARABLE LIN SHAYE IS THE LANDLADY FROM HELL IN "ROOM FOR RENT" (2019)

 
If you answer an ad and see this woman open the door then run in the other direction fast as you can.

The incomparable Lin Shaye stars in Room For Rent, a B-movie thriller that debuted at Sedona Film Festival in 2019. It's a simple, no-frills suspense yarn that lets the story and Shaye's performance carry the weight. The end result is quite a decent 81-minute watch. Shaye rents a room in her house to a young man (Oliver Rayon) and starts to come on to him in various creepy ways. If you've ever been in any roommate situation that didn't turn out well then this flick will make your skin crawl more than once. 

Room For Rent currently streams on Tubi, Freevee and Vudu Free. Check it out! 2.75 stars/2.75

ANDES SURVIVORS RELOADED - "SOCIETY OF THE SNOW" (2024) PROMISES TO BE PENULTIMATE VERSION OF THE GREATEST SURVIVAL STORY THAT EVER WAS

 

Is it January 4th yet? I can't wait for this one! Those of you that have been around the blog a while probably know my fascination with this story. In the mid-'70's when the book Alive came out I was a senior in boarding school and would read the book after lights out, we're talking flashlight under the blanket, the whole bit. 

A quick refresher on all three features available up to now on this story - Alive (1993) and the highly regarded documentaries I Am Alive (History Channel 2010) and Stranded: I Come From A Plane... (2007.)  

Alive (1993) was a great director choice in Frank Marshall and wonderfully produced, shot at the original site and all that. But the A-listers, Ethan Hawke especially, skewed the authentic vibe of the tragedy into something way too Hollywood for the occasion. 

This new Netflix film is directed by J.A. Bayona and so far looks to correct a lot of those wrongs in Marshall's version. It's in Spanish with all unknown actors and is being released simultaneously with a book of the same title which comes out today. Both media attempt to tell the story in a modern day context as well as more philosophical, what was going through their minds at the time this all happened back in 1972. 

The trailer looks very authentic, and there are articles about the technical achievements here including shooting the plane on three different locations including a pulley system where it could rotate etc. Looks to be a good one, too bad it's on Netflix but I'll break down this one time. Plus, it'll give me an excuse to watch The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs again, perhaps the greatest Western ever made, certainly the best Western anthology ever made. ;-)

Editor's Correction - The book Society Of The Snow came out in 2008, not this month. 

SAY IT AIN'T SO, RYAN O' NEAL PASSES AWAY AT AGE 82

Say it ain't so, Ryan O' Neal in Barry Lyndon. 

One of the most iconic actors of the '70's, Ryan O' Neal has passed at 82. Read more about it here. 

For those of us in the over 55 category, it's like losing an old friend, we grew up with this guy!

One of the all-time greats, you will be sorely missed, enjoy the ride. 

O' NEAL CREAM O' THE CROP

Barry Lyndon (1975) 

As he usually did with his actors, Kubrick worked extensively with O' Neal and probably pushed him to the brink and back but absolutely got an unequaled iconic performance.  5.0 stars/5

What's Up Doc? (1973)

Screwball comedy was new territory for O' Neal when he teamed with Barbra Streisand for this now classic comedy. There is so much other great talent in this film like Madeline Kahn and Kenneth Mars but the two Taureans, Streisand and O'Neal, were just sublime together. 3.5 stars/5

The Thief Who Came To Dinner (1973)

Unless you happen to own the VHS of this (in which case you're sitting on a couple hundred dollars) you're likely S.O.L. in being able to see this. One of the most obscure '70's flicks, it was television producer Bud Yorkin's second foray into features and is a great comedy that also features Warren Oates. 3.0 stars/5

Irreconcilable Differences (1984)

O' Neal worked for scale because he believed in the project and later said in an interview he considers it some of the best work he ever did. We agree. And besides O' Ryan the film also features an Oscar-worthy bordering on snub performance by Shelly Long and the first outing of Sharon Stone (as a brunette.) This rating will surprise some but I'm not kidding- 5 stars/5

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