Father's Day 007 Special

On Father's Day, I took my dad to see both of the Timothy Dalton 007 features that were showing at the local movie house. Not knowing that it would be that crowded, since Timothy Dalton is a very underrated Bond in my opinion, I was dead wrong when I got there. So many people showed up for it and it was pretty cool! It was practically a full house! Now, these weren't the Sean Connery films or anything, in which case I'm sure every seat would have been taken, but still nonetheless it was the Dalton movies and it was just nice to see so many people come and see his movies. Of course when we got there, there was a screaming little girl asking her father, "Daddy, are these scary movies? Daddy? Daddy! Max took my seat!" I was automatically thinking to myself, Now why on Earth would you take your kid to a Bond movie? Especially the dark ones with Timothy Dalton? Anyway, as the feature started, everything took off pretty well and the theater was pretty quiet, including the little girl. I swear, that girl's voice was so loud you could hear it several blocks away! Anyway, onto the experience. Before the movie started, there was a guess star Q&A with former Playboy playmate Diana Lee-Hsu, who had a minor part in Dalton's second film, *Licence to Kill. Talking about how she got the job, she also mentioned how they used her for the opening credits scene. As she was explaining how they had to cover her private parts for the sensor, she explains, "They had to cover my twin peaks [breasts] and my hidden valley [vagina]." Naturally, the audience laughed at her politically correct use of the terms. I mean, there were several little kids in the audience so it was just as well, and naturally they didn't get it. Heck, the kids were probably sleeping by the time she was done with the interview. After she left, the first Dalton film started. The Living Daylights. It was great fun and brought Bond back to the Connery days with a gadget filled Aston Martin. When Dalton was first seen on the screen walking the Gun Barrel, everyone in the audience applauded including me and the first dramatic zoom in of Dalton also garnered great applause. This is what makes a Bond movie so fun to watch in a theater. You are surrounded by fans and no matter who the actor is playing Bond, you still cheer for him. Now, unfortunately I'm not sure how audiences reacted to George Lazenby's Bond, but that's a whole different story that I'm not going to get into at this point. Anyway, after watching The Living Daylights, Robert Davi was another special guest from Licence to Kill. He played Franz Sanchez, the main antagonist to Dalton's Bond. Coming in with a hat and a lot of jewelry, Davi talked about his experience on the film and also talked about his personal carer as an actor-turned singer. Anyway, after the questions in the audience were asked and all that, he started sighing autographs. At this time, it was already like around 10:30 and the movie was two hours and ten minutes, so things had to get cracking. So, while he was signing, the lights went down and we got right to the next film, Licence to Kill. The second film is honestly my favorite of the Dalton movies in that it is far more memorable and the villains are much more interesting. If you do watch this movie, be on the lookout for a 22 year-old Benicio Del Toro as Davi's henchman Dario. Anyway, when the last movie was over, we headed home and it was about 1am. And of course, summer school started the next day but who cares...it was a Bond special! lol **If you're wondering why I spelled Lisense with a "c", it's because that is the spelling the film used. They kept the British spelling for some reason.

The Shining

Now, here is a movie to see. It falls in the horror category however it is far more of a psychological film. The film takes place in 1980 and focuses on Jack Torrance, played by the great Jack Nicholson, and his family. A troubled writer and former teacher, Jack has made a big break in watching over an old luxury hotel called the Overlook for the entire winter. While the entire staff of the hotel leaves for the winter, it's just Jack, his wife Wendy (Shelly Duvall) and their troubled young son Danny (Danny Lloyd) who are left to care for it. Jack is quite happy to have obtained such a great privilege to watch over such a large hotel, however Danny is not so happy to be there. Something strange is going on in his mind and he has visions that tell him something bad will happen if he stays there. Being isolated in the hotel causes Jack to become malevolent and dangerous. What will he do? Will there be death? Why did he really want this job in the first place? My review for the film is going to follow this so just a warning, if you have not seen the movie, please do not continue reading. *** This is by far one of my favorite horror films. Why do you ask? Well, it is not really a horror film, but in fact more of a psychological thriller. I guess when Stanley Kubrick made this film, it just fell under that because the author of the book, Stephen King is a horror novelist...for those of you who did not know. Opening up in a long stretch of road, we see a yellow VW Beetle driving all alone through winding roads up along the Denver, Colorado mountains. It is just chugging along and seems to be getting good speeds actually. This is when the credits roll and there is some very creepy music in the background. It really fits. It makes you feel uneasy, as what most Stanley Kubrick films do. Slowly getting closer to the bug, you notice that it is driving quite fast. It is determined to get to it's destination and whoever is driving it will push it to the limit until it gets there. Eventually, it arrives at a hotel up in the mountains. The Overlook Hotel. At the interview, the manager, played by the late Barry Nelson, tells Jack Torrance that it can be stressful to look after such a big place over the winter. He tells him how in 1970, there was a couple that came to look over the hotel. A couple with their twin daughters and "at some point he must have had a complete and mental breakdown. He run amok, and murdered his wife and kids." Jack seems taken aback by the story but assures the manager that "it's not gonna happen to me." Foreshadow!!! When the family arrives at the hotel, the first few days are pretty good. They have all this space to run around and do whatever while Jack can finally relax and work on his writing in peace and quiet. Danny and Wendy meanwhile explore the outdoors and check out the huge hedge maze in front of the hotel. Eventually, as days ago on, Jack does not work on his writing but instead lacks sleep and begins to grow facial hair. Something is seriously wrong when he and Wendy have an argument. Apparently Danny was found with a torn shirt, and given the past accident that Jack did to Danny when he came home drunk, she automatically assumes it was he who did it. Jack, stressed about it and just wandering the great halls of the Overlook, and eventually ends up in the Gold Room. The Gold Room is a great ball room that is the place for many guests, of the elite no doubt, to come and party. Anyway, Jack sits at the bar and says that he would "do anything for a drink. I'd sell my goddamn sole, for just a glass of beer." He seems to get his wish because once he looks up, there is a malevolent bartender whom he addresses as Lloyd, and suddenly asks for a drink. Jack says, "Hi Lloyd! A little slow in here tonight." Lloyd replies, "Yes it is Mr. Torrance. What'll it be." And Jack, not in the least bothered by seeing this ghost, says, "Well, I just happen to have two 10s and two 20s in my wallet." So, paying Lloyd Jack then takes down the drink and feels so relieved. He has the eyes of a demon. Explaining his problems to Lloyd, Jack then looks down and then all of a sudden Wendy runs up to him saying that Danny is in trouble and that he saw an old lady in a bathtub trying to attack him. "Are you out of your fucking mind?!" Then, Jack goes and has a look in the room. Nothing is there but then all of a sudden when he looks in the room, he spots a gorgeous women stepping out of the bathtub and walk towards him. He stands in amazement and they begin to make out. Then, when he opens his eyes, the gorgeous woman turns into an old hag and just starts laughing at him. When he returns to Wendy, she asks him if there was anything in the room to which he replies, "No." Then, he begins to tell Windy that Danny might need some help. When an argument ensues, Jack becomes much more distant and is practically never seen by Wendy or Danny. Eventually he is just by himself in this massive hotel and then comes across the man who had killed his family and himself previously. Delbert Grady is his name, and he convinces Jack that he must kill Danny because Danny has a special gift known as the Shining and that the ghosts of the hotel do not like that he must be "corrected." The same goes for his wife. So, Jack become possessed by the ghost and goes on a killing spree. This is when Jack snapped and becomes just a malevolent killing machine. "No sir, not gonna happen to me." In any event, Danny and his mom run for help and try to escape, however every possible attempt does not succeed because the ghosts tell Jack what to do to block all the exits. It's also snowing outside so there is no one to help that for miles and miles and miles since the hotel is on top of a mountain. Eventually, Jack goes outside and is hunting for Danny with an axe in the hedge maze. While Jack is able to find Danny thanks to his footprints in the snow, Danny gets the upper hand and makes marks with his feet confusing Jack and eventually he escapes with his mother and Jack is left for dead. The next morning, Jack is frozen alive. So, this is the story of the Shining. There are of course many more details and events that I may have overlooked but this is just the general gist of the film and why you should see it. This is my favorite Stanley Kubrick film. Read on and please comment below!

P R O M E T H E U S

WHAT A FUCKING LETDOWN! I was so disappointed with this movie. I mean, damn...A film in a genre that hasn't been touched by Ridley Scott since his epic 1979 classic, Alien, you'd think it would be something great! But, it was just dry... I guess my expectations were just too high. But yeah, this movie was going to be the major comeback to the Alien series of films. Although this film is not a direct prequel, it is obviously still in the same universe as Alien and it was going to explain a lot of the unanswered questions that were raised in that film. Now, having this story take place about 100 years or so before Alien, this is basically the back story of our existence as a human race. Who created us? Why are we here? What is our purpose to fulfill? Well, these questions are to be answered when a ship by the name of Prometheus, is funded to go up into space with a limited crew and discover the secret of the universe. Now I don't care for this crew at all. Mainly because there is nothing really interesting about them. This is so different from the original movie. Now, you have a group of really boring people who are in space mining for ore and don't care about anything other than just getting paid and going back to Earth. It's a job for them. They don't care. In this movie, you have that same type of group, but these people are explorers more or less, yet they are still not really in the mood to explore the unknown. They are just there to be there. We have no reasoning as to why they were the ones chosen or how they differentiate between one another. It is very bleak and bland. Yes, they have differences here and there, but overall you just don't care about this crew. Now, the same thing has been a problem with the Star Wars prequels. What makes the original Star Wars so great, is that it has characters who are funny, interesting and fun to watch. Han Solo, now he is the most bad-ass pilot in space. Who wouldn't want to be him? And Luke? Dang, he sure comes a long way to find himself and we are with him through the three films. As for the prequels? Hmmmm...Obi-Wan? Oh yeah, how interesting and DRY he is. And Anakin? Didn't you just want to kill him to stop him from crying every fifteen minutes about being held back? Anyway, back on the topic. My point is, the characters in this film are just uninteresting to me. You are constantly reminded that you are watching a movie and you feel like you are watching the film as opposed to being in there with the crew like you are in the first movie. Anyway, back to the story. The crew then discover an alien head and what do they do? They bring it on the ship. Examining the head, it is discovered that it is merely a helmet. Inside that helmet comes what appears to be a very human-like head. Hmm...what's the worst that can happen? The head is suddenly put in a cage and it explodes. Later, on board the Prometheus, one of their crew is then infected and mates with another crew member which in tern impregnates her with an alien from the planet. She has it in quarantine and we don't see it until much later in the film when it has grown and expanded. Now, that is actually getting something. You think the alien is going to escape and wreck havoc among the crew, but does that happen? No. It just stays in that room. The rest of the crew just sit around not doing anything and basically one crew member turns out to be a robot and it is his mission to sabotage the crew. This is what happens in the first film. I'm telling you this is like the same movie just more modern with a younger crew. Now, as for the effects of the film, they are spectacular! The sets really bring that vibe from the Alien film, if not in a big more modern way. The computers are of course more advanced even though it takes place before Alien and the atmosphere on the planet is just so realistic. For that, I will have to give the film props. But, unfortunately, effects and graphics can not make up for a poor script. I recommend anyone see this film so they can have their own interpretation of it. I would love to get your responses.