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Reviews
Cobra (1986)
Epic action film from the 80's
Just a few small spoilers to explain what I mean.
I'm not your typical 80's action movie guy as I was born in 1996. 80's action films easily make up 90% of the movies I watch. Since you're reading the reviews of Cobra, you most likely also dig action movies. So, to cut to the chase, watch this film. If it's been awhile, watch it again.
Every time this film cuts to one of those vintage scenes where Sly is cruising the road in his car or motorcycle as music is blasting, for over a minute, with fabulous camera angles & scenery, I am grinning ear to ear. Pure 80's.
A thrilling cop movie that's different than a lot of those buddy cop movies. One, it's mostly just Sly, but two, it's an extremely intense villain. A damn serial killer. It gets a bit "horror-y" for an action film but it doesn't get overly gory like you'd see in a horror film. It also stays action packed.
I also just got done watching the first three Rambo movies this week & I was hoping to see some explosions in this one, of course there were. I was glad to see that. Epic chase scenes. One is when Cobra is in the back of a pickup with a machine gun as he's mowing down guys on dirt bikes and the dirt bikes are flying all over the place.
You also get a bit of romance in it as it just so happens to be a beautiful woman Cobra is protecting & they start to flirt & crush on each other.
The thing I loved most is that this seemed to be a perfect role for Sly. Sly could be Sly. Sly was Sly. He was Cobra, but he was Sly.
The ending scene was a dramatic masterpiece. I love the word exchange by both the Night Slasher & Cobra. & then the finishing move.... Wow. All I'll say.
I'm so grateful for men like Stallone. This movie rocks.
Lethal Weapon (1987)
It seems as if one needs to go back in time to find the action movie gems
I was born in '96. The past couple years I've been really into the older movies from the 80's & 90's. There's something so much more real in them. I had never seen Lethal Weapon before so I gave it a go.
Man, the feelings in this movie are DEEP. From a woman jumping off a building to a Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) contemplating suicide and going through the loss of his wife. His job keeps him going, & he's really good at it. He's a young BA with shooting skills that would contest with, or be even better than, Navy Seals. He's a little bit crazy but he's a young and wild man that puts his own touch and style into everything he does. Then he's paired with the perfect partner, Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover), the family man who has been a cop for 20 years. He gives me such a grounded vibe. He's the more levelheaded one out of the two. They go from barely liking each other to some heartfelt connections. A lot of action & hardship brought them close.
There's a lot of things in this movie that connected with me in a deeper personal way that's hard to explain.
The one liners are great. "I'm too old for this sh*t". The action is unbelievable. The scene where they were at the shooting range put a huge smile on my face. The ending scene with Mel & Gary Busey is so strange but it's something so unique that I'll never forget it.
It's a great movie. I don't write a lot of reviews but I watched this last night & it's so good that I just wanted to jot down some of the first thoughts that pop up into my head. Onto Lethal Weapon 2 tonight!
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
"Not a must see avenger movie" my A-double
The last several evenings I've been watching all the "Avengers" movies in order. The first Iron Man came out when I was 12 & I have never seen it until yesterday. I remember watching the first Avengers movie in my home town small theater with my buddies in high school but I went to go with my friends, not because of the movie like most of them did. I hadn't "got" the whole Marvel/Avengers/Superhero thing yet.
Anyways, I recently watched Spider-Man Homecoming with my nephew to give it a shot. I did like the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man & that's basically the only superhero movies I enjoyed or even tried. So, I liked Homecoming & I liked seeing Tony Stark in it which got me curious about the whole thing.
So... back to this review... as I'm going through my list of movies I REALLY wanted to get to the first Avengers movie as quick as possible. I read about how The Incredible Hulk was the film that made the least amount of revenue, the Hulk character changes actors from Norton to Ruffalo, it's slower paced, & most Avengers fans don't really care for it.
I skipped this movie but before I got to the first Avengers (which I have yet to watch again since that time in the movie theater with my friends which I hardly remember) I had this strong urge to just go ahead & watch it. I am so glad I did. Perhaps it's because Bruce Banner story is so intriguing to me. I love those, "good guys on the run from the crooked law" stories since the Wild West times. This is what that is 100%. Bruce is a survivor who has been hanging out in South America & travels all the way north living homeless, wandering, exploring, seeing all sorts of different cultures, & surviving while trying extremely hard to be responsible about his hulk condition & keep it under control without getting caught by the army who wants to use his condition as a weapon.
I won't get into any spoilers but just know that this is NOT a skip movie in the Avengers story. I thoroughly enjoyed it & I'm interested to see how Ruffalo carries on Bruce Banner's story in these upcoming Avengers movies that I have yet to watch.
The Last Starfighter (1984)
This may be the definition of a "feel good" movie
I have been on an 80's binge during the evenings lately & I must say, what a time period of film making.
"Greetings, Starfighter. You have been recruited by the Star League to defend the frontier against Xur and the Ko-Dan armada."
I think a lot of people love this movie because we can relate to Alex Rogan. He's a young man, figuring out what he wants to do, doesn't want to stay in his home town. I could feel that he simply just didn't want to be another brick in the wall in life. He didn't want to do what everybody else is doing. It turns out he's super good at Starfighter & who would have thought that that'd change his life & he'd get a chance to save the frontier. It goes to show that you never know. Look at the world nowadays, if one focuses hard enough on something they enjoy & are good at, & put enough time in it - you can make a serious difference & even make it your career.
I don't want to put any spoilers in this review but that's the gist of it.
I enjoyed the old-school CGI & the comedy bits in it like when him, his beta test, & his brother are in the room together. I also enjoyed Centauri a whole lot. He is like this wise guru dropping gems of wisdom throughout the adventure.
Anyways, if you want to feel good & perhaps even get a bit of a spark, watch The Last Frontier. This is one I'll be buying on blu ray.
Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
It's all in the reflexes
This was the funnest film I've seen in awhile & now I'm going to check out the rest of John Carpenter's films the rest of this week to see if he's going to be one of my favorites up there with Coen Brothers & Tarantino. From this film, it seems like it may be that.
If you like originality, tales of good vs. Evil, simple yet brilliant screen effects, Chinese culture, Kurt Russell, & vintage 80's action with the occasional comedic one-liners, this should be on your watch list. This movie just had a feel to it. Not sure why this popped into my mind but sort of like if you've ever been to Disney world & sat in one of those canoe/boat rides that wides through the river caves & there's all sorts of creepy things & creatures.
I love the simplicity of 80's action films & the realness. It just feels real & authentic. It feels like all the people involved have a soul. You know? They're not like some of these people nowadays who sell their soul to Hollywood & are all pushing agendas it seems.
This is just a whole lot of fun. The uniqueness of this movie is sort of on a Shanghai Noon level, which I also loved.
The camera angles were superb, the fight scenes were striking & long, the outfits were incredible, & the colors were vibrant.
"The check is in the mail"
Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
A sobering tale
As an individual that has had his spouts with alcohol going on month benders of all day drinking as a young man, it's just a sobering film. Sure, it's fun & witty, but - I won't get into the ending.
It shows that none of us really know what to do here on earth so we'll go to any length in order to get by, even if it means killing ourselves by slowly drinking to death or taking risks (getting physically hurt/killed, STD's, etc) with prostitution. It's a good reminder that everybody is just another person & a lot of people fall into a situation & don't really try to get there on purpose. I loved how it showed that at the deepest of his alcoholism, or at her prostitution, you could see their inner human being & love shine through. That's warming to see. These were characters that had trouble, but they were real & they both needed each other. It goes to show how important love is but no matter how much another person can fall for us, it can all end poorly if we can't love & take care of ourselves.
All in all, I recommend it. I'm a 90's baby so this came out a year before I was born. The only Cage movie I really know about is the popular National Treasure that I saw many times as a young kid. It was interesting see Nic in this light. There is a bunch of cussing but what I get out of it between him & Elisabeth is rawness. This whole movie just feels rugged & raw. It doesn't sugarcoat life because in real life, it's not sugarcoated.
Pretty Woman (1990)
It's incredible
Every now & again I am searching & researching movies & for some reason I'm attracted to something & I don't really know why. I have never seen this movie as it was released six years before I was born & being a dude, I guess I just never thought of giving this a try, especially by myself. I'm more of an Arnold action movie & Sandler comedy movie guy. So I was just looking at movies & deeply researching them for about 15-20 minutes & didn't think too much about it after Pretty Woman popped up. I just hit play.
Let me tell you, all of a sudden I hit pause & 45 or so minutes passed & I thought, "what in the heck?!" It felt like 5. It's such a captivating movie that has a brilliant flow to it. It's not much of a movie where you jump to different scenes or follow several side stories. It's straight forward & flows magically.
This is one of those movies that gives someone hope that there is indeed a right one out there for you & that we're all just here struggling & trying to find a deeper meaning to life. Every now and again, if you just flow with life, you'll find the right flow that seems to answer all your wildest dreams & prayers.
Yeah, yeah, it's just a movie... but it's hopeful & the story & lessons in it were really personal to me.
I think anybody could like this movie & finish it feeling refreshed & like you spent your time wisely. I love movies where you feel like you're gaining something.
I'm glad I watched this movie.
Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005)
This movie is hilarious
Today is the first day I've ever watched it & it's already up there as an all time favorite. I was born in '96 & all of my favorite comedies seem to be Sandler & his friend's movies as well as that era. I haven't seen anything released in the last 5 years that was this funny. This is some original comedy & it's genius. Is it a bit cheesy? Of course, but the way it's done is incredibly funny. The script had me laughing out loud many times & I haven't done that for awhile so it was refreshing. This is some free speech, original, anti-woke, over the line hilarious stuff. This is the type of comedy my friends laugh at & used to always laugh at growing up & it's just not displayed like this anymore in modern movies. Hope this kind of comedy comes back! Deuce is the man!
How Do You Know (2010)
A flowing movie about decision making.
8.5/10.
I watched this based off a review here by sunam007 which got me intrigued.
This movie gave me a similar feeling of being on acid. Do you ever feel like you're watching the perfect movie to tie into your own life at the perfect time? This was one of those movies/moments for me. It was like being a kid at Sunday morning church & it could have been like you & the preacher were at the service alone and he was talking directly to you.
Life is all about decision makings & seeing how those decisions lead you to where you are today. "How Do You Know" captures that as well as I've seen recently in a movie. The characters just seemed to roll with life so well, following a feeling, that ended up leading them to a splendid ending. It was a lesson in intuition, taking chances, going after the girl, wearing your heart on your sleeve, & not being timid.
This was a perfect movie for a guy like me. I'm relatively young, single, thinking about a woman I'd like to be with, & in a transition in my life. This movie talked to me in a way I can't explain all that well. It was late at night, I had a small edible, put my phone down, & gave it all my attention. It was a special moment & I hope that someone can relate to what I'm trying to say here. Give it a shot. It's better than the reviews. You may just learn something & it may just take something from the screen & connect it into something going on in your life. It sure did to me.