So those Candyman sequels...

Eventually, that new Candyman movie might come out, so in the meantime, I decided to check out 2 and 3. It's only taken me so long because I really don't care about Candyman at all, and that's not a knock at Tony Todd. That dude is great, but is Candyman great? 😦

Here we have a supernatural "horror icon" who kills anyone who says his name. Kinda like that one guy who's name you don't say above a whisper. You know, MADMAN MARZ?! Well, once you say it, you're basically screwed so you might as well be his victim.

While the first movie is mostly about his urban legend and is mildly engaging, part 2 is a Louisiana story that elaborates his backstory. Not the worst movie, but not impressive either. Then came along part 3. Damn, these movies were so 90s, they come off as incredibly dated. I probably prefer part 3 to part 2 and here's why:

Our protagonist is a blond bimbo with perky nips. That's about it. I'm not quite sure why Daniel Robitaille's descendents are super caucasian, but who cares. I'm sure we'll get plenty of racial reparations and white guilt in the new movie, which will probably do as every franchise does now: ignore the sequels and be a direct sequel to the original only. Part 3 also featured Jsu Garcia / Nick Corri from Elm Street 1 fame, who looks the same as he did in Elm Street 15 years earlier.

This series was born in the 90s and died in the 90s. Even as DTV and crap-quality as part 3 was, I did like the concept of the ending, in that they killed his legend and it finally stopped him.

Fingers crossed that the new one doesn't suck.

Source Code (2011) 6/10

A government program sends an (almost) brain dead soldier back in time to stop a terrorist attack.
One of those movies that I knew about, heard was really good, but never got around to watching.
Never been a fan of time loop stories (Groundhog Day an exception). Looks like I have another to add to the list.

My Sister's Keeper (2009) 7/10

A couple with a daughter suffering from cancer have another daughter medically engineered to be a donor to her older sister.
This was the next movie in the stack, and once again, I was surprised at how much I liked it. Has strong potential to be a tear-jerker, unless you are cold and emotionless like I claim to be.
Another star-studded cast: Cameron Diaz (really good), Alec Baldwin, Jason Patric, Joan Cusack, Emily Deschanel (Bones), and Little Rock herself, Abigail Breslin (as the younger sister, and did an excellent job with the part).

Dusk Of The Dead (1980)

I was too high and/or lazy to get up and get my copy of Hell of The Living Dead off the shelf the other night but found it on the Youtube under this title. Been a while. I don't think I've ever enjoyed a viewing of this movie quite so much. In fact, after a dozen or so viewings over the years, I think this may finally be my new favorite Italian exploitation/horror film, replacing Burial Ground... or was it Beyond The Darkness? Yeah, fuckin' A! This one has it all: Stolen music from Dawn Of The Dead and like 3 other movies, a genuinely apocalyptic atmosphere that is somehow not ruined by all the retarded dialogue. Plus, a whole lot of gore. And they manage to squeeze in some scenes sorta making it a jungle cannibal epic as well. I love Hell Of The Living Dead aka Dusk Of The Dead. Do YOU? If not, what Italian films do you love?

Black Snake Moan (2006)

I don't care if she was a crab-infested whore. I would totally let her have her way with me.

Horror Celebrity Death Matches

What are some good ones? I was watching one of the Resident Evil movies the other day, and it made me think of this. "The Axeman," AKA The Executioner Majini, from Resident Evil: Afterlife, would be pretty good to watch in a celebrity death match with Pyramid Head from Silent Hill. Actually, that's a bad one to start this thread with, because it's pretty hard to beat... I'm sure some of us can come up with something good, though. What comes to mind for you?

Wait, one other one would be Jody from Amityville Horror versus Tony from The Shining... I'm not sure quite how they would do that.... maybe a death match of wits?

Seriously, anything come to mind for anyone?

3:10 to Yuma (1957) 7/10

A farmer is tasked to get the leader of a murderous gang to Yuma to face justice.
One of those few movies where the original didn't vastly outshine the remake. Both were very good.
Glenn Ford is the standout as Ben Wade. He could have been smoother, but it wouldn't have been easy. Van Helfin did a great job as the reluctant hero, thrust into a position he didn't want to be, but forced to in order to try and save his farm.
Great story that really didn't need to have a lot of action. The best scenes were between Ford and Helfin in the hotel room.

Ninja Cheerleaders (2008) 6/10

Three cheerleaders need to rescue their sensei after he was kidnapped, all while stripping to pay their college tuition.
Why this only has a 3.3 on IMDB I do not know. It was fun, funny, had decent acting, and three hot girls (though we don't get to see them strip down).
Plus it has George Takei.

Zombi 3!

It's been years since I watched this, so I felt a need to dust off the dvd, and I'm glad I did. This movie was a blast. Basically the culmination of Italian zombie movies. It's as if Fulci actually understood the genre for a change, and he understood it perfectly!

This movie wastes no time getting started. We have an outbreak after a sabateur steals a military virus, spreads the love at a nearby resort, and bam! Zombies galore.

What surprised me is how competent this movie was. Some of the scenes were pretty intense. Freaky even, like the gas station zombie in the beginning and how fast he was moving while swinging a machete at the girl. The zombies in this movie aren't predictable. Some shamble, some flail about, and some of them give us good fight scenes and nice kills made even better by the movie's groovy score.

Those fight scenes were pretty great actually. Our protagonists include a few military guys who have scenes where they alone must survive and escape the horde, and since they're not complete dumbasses, you might actually find yourself rooting for them. And even then, they sometimes get overrun, because the zombies in this movie are some volatile bastards.

Not only is this movie action packed, but there's loads of fog and atmosphere. The plot isn't original at this point, but it pulls from all the best sources: Romero's Dead trilogy, The Crazies, Nightmare City, and Return of the Living Dead. There was a good effort in getting the right vibes for some of these scenes, and that struck such a chord with me that, dare I say, this is top-10 zombie material, better than Zombi 2, and probably Fulci's most entertaining movie ever.

#Review

Playing for Keeps (2012) 5/10

A former soccer star tries to get back into his ex-wife and son's life.
Pretty star-studded flick. Gerard Butler, Jessica Biel, Uma Thurman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Dennis Quaid, Judy Greer.
Pretty average movie in this genre. A few touching father/son scenes, and the ever present misunderstanding. And Uma Thurman in her underwear.