Very Bad Things (1998) - "A prostitute is killed during a bachelor party and the attendees turn on each other as the wedding approaches."
Source: part of my "dark comedies" box set
I watched it because: getting close to the end!
IMDB: 6.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 41% Audience: 58%
story: 0/10--YES! That's right! The first zero. There is nothing redeeming about this one.
visuals: 5/10
costumes, hair & makeup: 4/10
acting: 2/10
intangibles: 0/10--this is a horror story of a movie idea. I was aghast. (And in response to the question, "Why do you watch movies that you do not like?", I can only answer that despite evidence to the contrary, I want to believe that all movies are worth seeing, and that I will like them in the end!)
overall: 2.2/10--please God may I never see another Cameron Diaz film
story: 0/10--YES! That's right! The first zero. There is nothing redeeming about this one.
visuals: 5/10
costumes, hair & makeup: 4/10
acting: 2/10
intangibles: 0/10--this is a horror story of a movie idea. I was aghast. (And in response to the question, "Why do you watch movies that you do not like?", I can only answer that despite evidence to the contrary, I want to believe that all movies are worth seeing, and that I will like them in the end!)
overall: 2.2/10--please God may I never see another Cameron Diaz film
I would recommend this to: no one I care about
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) - "John McClane travels to Russia to help out his
Max Payne (2008) - "Coming together to solve a series of murders in New York City are a police detective and an assassin, who will be hunted by the police, the mob, and a ruthless corporation."
Source: I own the DVD
I watched it because: getting close to the end!
IMDB: 5.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 16% Audience: 29%
story: 3.5/10--like every revenge story ever told, but condensed down into something you could tell in a comic book - or video game - format
visuals: 5/10--it is supposed to be stylized, but turned out dark and bleary. And it is very creepy how much Mark Walhberg looks like Matt Damon in this, especially on the cover art!
costumes, hair & makeup: 5/10
acting: 5/10--standout: Chris "Ludacris" Bridges (I.A. cop Jim Bravura) is really very good!
intangibles: 7/10--reading the above, it ought to be complete crap, but there is something about it that makes it more than the sum of its parts. By the time it was done, I actually liked it pretty well.
overall: 5.1/10
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) - "John McClane travels to Russia to help out his
seemingly wayward son, Jack, only to discover that Jack is a CIA operative working undercover, causing the father and son to team up against underworld forces."
Source: it is part of my Die Hard box set
I watched it because: the fifth in the series, and I had not seen it. Excited for a strong ending!
IMDB: 5.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 15% Audience: 40%
story: 5/10--insane
visuals: 7/10--Russia is very cool
costumes, hair & makeup: 6.5/10--nothing too fantastic. Bald guys, leather, fakey fake blood
acting: 7.5/10--standouts: of course I adored Sebastian Koch (Komorov). Also, Jai Courtney (Jack McClane) was a fun addition. I can see this franchise shifting over to him, maybe?
intangibles: 5/10--John McClane is ready to be done
overall: 6.2/10--all the things you love about the Die Hard movies, but stretched to their most ridiculous and crazy limits
I would recommend this to: any fan of the series, or of techy action movies that can be implausible
Source: it is part of my Die Hard box set
I watched it because: the fifth in the series, and I had not seen it. Excited for a strong ending!
IMDB: 5.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 15% Audience: 40%
story: 5/10--insane
visuals: 7/10--Russia is very cool
costumes, hair & makeup: 6.5/10--nothing too fantastic. Bald guys, leather, fakey fake blood
acting: 7.5/10--standouts: of course I adored Sebastian Koch (Komorov). Also, Jai Courtney (Jack McClane) was a fun addition. I can see this franchise shifting over to him, maybe?
intangibles: 5/10--John McClane is ready to be done
overall: 6.2/10--all the things you love about the Die Hard movies, but stretched to their most ridiculous and crazy limits
I would recommend this to: any fan of the series, or of techy action movies that can be implausible
Source: I own the DVD
I watched it because: getting close to the end!
IMDB: 5.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 16% Audience: 29%
story: 3.5/10--like every revenge story ever told, but condensed down into something you could tell in a comic book - or video game - format
visuals: 5/10--it is supposed to be stylized, but turned out dark and bleary. And it is very creepy how much Mark Walhberg looks like Matt Damon in this, especially on the cover art!
costumes, hair & makeup: 5/10
acting: 5/10--standout: Chris "Ludacris" Bridges (I.A. cop Jim Bravura) is really very good!
intangibles: 7/10--reading the above, it ought to be complete crap, but there is something about it that makes it more than the sum of its parts. By the time it was done, I actually liked it pretty well.
overall: 5.1/10
I would recommend this to: guys who like action figures
Scarface (1983) - "In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug
cartel and succumbs to greed."
Source: I have owned the Blu-ray for several months
I watched it because: we have had this on The List since the beginning, and finally got down to seeing it
IMDB: 8.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 81% Audience: 94%
story: 8/10--based on true events (i.e. the Mariel Boatlift) and an amalgamation of gangster stories including Al Capone's life
visuals: 8/10--horrifying violence, lush scenery (Miami, my spiritual home!), and some utterly terrific camera work
costumes, hair & makeup: 7/10
acting: 7/10--standout: Steven Bauer (Manolo Ribera) was both easygoing and scary, and Paul Shenar (Alejandro Sosa) made a very realistic quiet menace
intangibles: 6.5/10--there is a lot to kvetch about here. The effects are sketchy, some of the acting is amateurish, and both Pacino's and Pfeiffer's maudlin one-note characters get kind of old after the first couple of hours. But the film is a force, and it leaves an impression. That is what art is all about.
overall: 7.3/10
I would recommend this to: anyone with a strong stomach for blood, several hours to kill, and tolerance for the word 'fuck'.
Scarface (1983) - "In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug
Source: I have owned the Blu-ray for several months
I watched it because: we have had this on The List since the beginning, and finally got down to seeing it
IMDB: 8.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 81% Audience: 94%
story: 8/10--based on true events (i.e. the Mariel Boatlift) and an amalgamation of gangster stories including Al Capone's life
visuals: 8/10--horrifying violence, lush scenery (Miami, my spiritual home!), and some utterly terrific camera work
costumes, hair & makeup: 7/10
acting: 7/10--standout: Steven Bauer (Manolo Ribera) was both easygoing and scary, and Paul Shenar (Alejandro Sosa) made a very realistic quiet menace
intangibles: 6.5/10--there is a lot to kvetch about here. The effects are sketchy, some of the acting is amateurish, and both Pacino's and Pfeiffer's maudlin one-note characters get kind of old after the first couple of hours. But the film is a force, and it leaves an impression. That is what art is all about.
overall: 7.3/10
I would recommend this to: anyone with a strong stomach for blood, several hours to kill, and tolerance for the word 'fuck'.
[the title quotation is from Scarface]
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