So i've gotten through another 10 (although i'm slowing down it seems!)
1) Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning (Danny Steinmann, 1985): This might just be the worst one yet. There's a real nastiness to this one. Normally, i'd be all over it, but there was something a little too "try-hard" here.
2) The Witches (Nicolas Roeg, 1990): I can't remember if I watched this as a child or not, but even as a 35 year old, this was a pretty creepy movie! I love the fact this this was a kids film directed by such family fare as 'Performance', 'The Man Who Fell To Earth' and 'Don't Look Now'!!
3) Witchery (Fabrizio Laurenti, 1988): AKA La Casa 4. Fuck me, this was dire. When David Hasslehoff was the best thing about it (!), you know there's something wrong here. Maximum marks for the awful special effects though. I still have La Casa 5 to go through...!! In Italy, The Evil Dead trilogy were known as La Casa 1 - 3, so this is an unofficial sequel in the same way that Zombie Flesh Eaters was known as Zombi 2 in Italy (Zombi of course being known as Dawn of the Dead elsewhere in the world). Which reminds me...I got my 7-disc edition of Dawn of the Dead today <3
4) Iron Fisted Monk (Sammo Hung, 1977): This was my first Sammo Hung movie and even though I was mega sleepy watching it (8% beer and starting at 10:30pm can do that), it was great fun. It's a bit disturbing this was classed as a comedy when there is some pretty nasty sexual violence scenes.
5) Journey to the Shore (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2015): Another great film from Kurosawa (2 great Kurosawa's!). This was a gentle paced ghost romance drama. It dragged a wee bit towards the end, but it comes highly recommended!
6) The Howling (Joe Dante, 1981): I am a little ashamed to admit that I always watch films with subtitles on at home, even if it's in English. I hate mis-hearing something as I stop concentrating on the film trying to work out what was said. I had difficulty with this film as there were no subtitles and it was a pretty poor transfer, so the sound was often muddy. I also feel asleep, so sadly couldn't rate this as much as i'd like. A shame, as I do like Dante's work.
7) U2: eXPERIENCE + iNNOCENCE - Live in Berlin (Matt Askem, 2020): I am a huge U2 fan; they were one of the first bands I got into and 20 years later, I still love them. This was the 2020 fan club gift; a 24 track, 140 minute concert of their final show on their 2018 tour. I was lucky enough to see them a few weeks before this show (and being a fan club member, got a cracking seat), so this was a joy to relive. Even if their recent works aren't among their best, there's no doubting their live credentials. Songs that don't work so well on record have a new lease of life live. I've seen them 3 times (in 2015, 2017 and 2018) and hope I can see them more!
8) Bruce Lee: The Curse of the Dragon (Fred Weintraub & Tom Khun, 1993): It's always strange watching old documentaries as they can age pretty badly. I finished my Bruce Lee boxset and there were 3 feature length documentaries from the 70's - 90's. This might be the best of them, but even at 85 minutes, it barely scratches the surface of his extraordinary life.
9) Bloody New Year (Norman J. Warren, 1987): My goodness, I thought Witchcraft was cheap, but this British horror is even cheaper! I quite liked the first half, but quite frankly, it drags so bad and it's not scary in the slightest. It's a fun little film, but of the 5 films I've seen of Warren's, this was the weakest by far.
10) Beautiful New Bay Area Project (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2013): A 30 minute short film that seems to combine social commentary, romance and some pretty brutal martial arts. It's a bizarre little film, but kinda fun. Kurosawa is mostly known for his horror films, but of the 3 i've seen so far, all have been of different genres.
I just watched the Cannes cut of Dawn of the Dead (the 140 minute version) and it was glorious. It's so odd, because I always find this film a little too overlong and padding, but it's still a cracking film. It better be since it cost me £65!
On the one hand, you can tell that there was so much interference, but on the other hand, it just felt all over the place. A shame as the previous film 'The Fox and The Hound' was beautiful. I burst into tears every time I watch it, because I have a basset hound myself. The 70's Disney films have a rough-hewn charm, but I have to say it's the 30's, 50's and modern ones that do it for me mostly.
