Danger Zone is more on the comedy/drama side than crime/noir, if anything.
A saxophone leads a boat renter to be slugged in with two different types of cases, one is literal, and the other leads to something much more serious. The film which is just under an hour is essentially two stories in one, which made the pacing seem rather fast. The film seems to prioritize its delivery of witty one-liners above all else. Not to suggest that it soured the story, because it made a would-be boring and forgettable film a bit of a contrary to the two. Furthermore, to enhance the silliness, there are several instances where certain actors would either awkwardly throw objects at Denny or snatch firearms out each others hands, among other examples. Much of the drama (especially during the climax) in the film is quickly resolved.
Denny's sarcasm attributed him as the only memorable character of the bunch. He's the one who delivers the one-liners while also being seemingly aware of what the writers make him go through a bit of a fourth wall break. Besides him, the rest of the cast are as bare-bores as the plot itself. At least the awkward finger pointing can be entertaining given the film’s weak resolution.
The director doesn't do retakes apparently. There's one scene in particular that could only be described as Denny trying to appear cool. Well, that only narrows it down so little. Were it not for the attempted trick shot he plays off when picking up the phone, this quick scene would've been forgettable. Besides this scene in particular, the fast pacing of the film leads to many scenes that rapidly transition between each other, reinforcing the forgettable notion of the story. It ties back into the story’s main focus which is to deliver one-liners, but much of the dialogue and additionally the soft music helps reinforce the "less serious" feel of the film.
Danger Zone definitely plays out as a fair warning to anyone having to put up with Denny's one-liners.
I Wake Up Screaming but with less direction. There's not much else to set itself apart from the original since the plots are nearly identical. The film is slightly weaker in nearly every aspect with the exception of the music choice, which isn't as egregious.
Much like the original, it suffers from a weak ending. For Vicki's case, it's rather corny instead of outright underwhelming.
The title makes it seem like a slasher film when it's not.
From waitress to supermodel, Vicki Lynn becomes yet another a victim of Hollywood. The only notable aspect of the film (for me at least) when it comes to the plot is the strong hook and use of flashbacks. The beginning of the film is engaging, but towards the end random elements and plot points are incorporated all at once which makes it difficult to follow. Whether it'll be a romance, a murder mystery, or an attempt at comedy, it feels disjointed. Furthermore, the amount of flashbacks and perspectives don't really help with making the film all that coherent.
Despite the shabby plot the characters are a strong point. The dynamic between the two sisters with one being constantly pissed off and the other smug stood out. There's a great deal of emotions that are especially exaggerated during the interrogations. Additionally, the series makes a few attempts at witty one-liners but the only one that stuck was the one referring to the men as wolves, since they act as such.
There's some pretty good camerawork when it comes to transitioning from one scene to another one close by during the interrogations. A few of these scenes would involve a lot of great lighting, with the most notable of the bunch being the lined shadows the blinds produce on one of the interrogator's faces.
Minus the gratuitously misleading title, the film was acceptable. The film started out strong, but the quality of it diminished as the story progressed, especially near the end.
It's always interesting to see a movie of the past take place in the past.
The film itsef is a pretty good heist thriller that is well executed in terms of what it tried to accomplish. The plot is both the best aspect of the film while still being largely straightforward. The story centers on a group of Irish nationalists who devise of a plan to rob an English bank as a means to make a political statement. The story can be seen as one about trust, as Mr. Norgates was recruited for his Irish roots while he was befriending one of the bank guards. The best part was all of the planning, as Mr. Norgates can be pretty sneaky. Perhaps the stakes could be a bit higher though since much of the tension reserved towards the end.
A large focus is on the plot itself, so the characters as individuals are a bit weak. The characters are interesting not for who they are, but for what they do. The only character that was memorable was Mr. Norgates, but this was mostly due to the cast constantly saying his name. His body has also probably never seen a razor before. There's a hint of romance between two of the characters, but it's very minimal, so it doesn't add to the story's tension, or 'stakes,' at all.
The cinematography isn't that notable, but it does its job. Some of the props, which includes the little bank model the characters all sit around was pretty cute.
Overall, it's a fun film but it's a bit lacking in some areas.
It seems like any other stereotypical slasher film, but it was more of a precursor for me, and almost certainly the entire genre as well.
The story begins as a unique setup for a horror film because it showcases a failing would-be-marriage. The two's deliberate actions, which includes the temporary cheap hotel stay and the face sucking, temporarily shield them from the problems that arise once they become conscious of the time. And so, fed up with the present direction of her life, secretary Marion Crane selfishly pockets a large sum of cash entrusted by her job when given the chance. Thereafter, a strange set of encounters ensue which would lead her to make important decisions on the spot. The worst of these unfortunate events would be the weather as it forces Marion to pull over for the right and rest at motel ran by an adult man with a strange relationship with his mother. All throughout, Psycho does a great job at making every ordinary, and yet unordinary decision thrilling.
Norman is an interesting character to say the least. He's charming but still awkward enough for a few of his issues to be on display. As the owner of a motel that doesn't see many visitors, a common and yet rate sight of his grin should be enough to welcome any potential visitors. Mostly residing within the comfort of his mother's presence, his conversations with Marion help flesh out the more timid side of him. So far, everything feels wrong, but in the right kind of way.
Psycho really nails it when it comes to atmosphere. To enhance the atmosphere, the music itself fits in with it so well that its presence almost feels cheesy. Additionally, a lot of clever editing would prove to be beneficial as its famous match cut seamlessly transitions from one scene to the next.
My only issue with this film is that it spoonfeeds the audience with information about why everything happened near the end. Otherwise, it's a great film that'll make the viewer fear even the most basic of daily routines.
The film does a good job at appealing to the notion that modern life is pointless. It's interesting, yes, but it doesn't really go anywhere… which makes the film feel just like the themes it tries to present. It fulfills its purpose but it drags on for practically no reason.
The concept of the movie and the idea it tried to present were decent, but the execution was nothing more than a generic critique of capitalism. The setting is weak, and because of this, events in the movie tended to repeat themselves. The characters are bland, as they all felt tropey and the dialogue between them is uninteresting. Towards the end of the film, it can be entertaining at times when the characters decide to either embrace their animalistic nature or challenge their living conditions. Ultimately, it was entertaining for an hour before the mediocrity set in.
A satire popularized by hormonal and "ambitious" teenage boys for both the right and wrong reasons. Certainly, he is of course cool; his status as a cultural icon is well deserved and shouldn't go unnoticed. While he is the film's main appeal, at the end of the day, much of his character is merely a tool for American Psycho's substanceless shock factor.
Overall:
Bateman = cool sigma male
The rest of the movie = meh
The appeal of living same day over and over again while retaining prior knowledge to escape the mundaneness of modern life as a form of irony is a fun concept. Seeing the parallels and differences between what Phil did and what I would do is a good strength given premise as well. Phil himself, in terms of both his personality and occupation as a weatherman are good choices for a protagonist / antagonist. It's refreshing to see someone more egoistic and cynical take a spin at it and not hold back as much. In addition, some its messaging is also thematically powerful; sometimes, things are not in our control. The movie is held back a bit by a few pacing issues and its really cheesy and predictable ending.
Die Hard is a movie that can be described in one word, average. The movie centers around a generic plot-armored macho guy that is able to withstand a barrage of attacks from a group of men trying to hunt him down. Due to the nature of this film's characterization, the film drags out its terrorist plot that would have realistically ended several minutes in. While the amount of gunfire and explosions are flashy, it ultimately leads to its execution of it becoming as watered down as the rest of the movie's contents. Oh, and don't forget the face sucking.