Coming Soon

Hey people,

It's been a fun quarter being able to discuss movies. Next quarter I'll be returning but instead of cinema, I plan to have a few articles involving another mainstream media powerhouse... video games. Working in electronics at Fred Meyer in town and being a gamer myself, I want to share my memories and hear of what others can recall from the glory days and today. I'll be doing Top 10's for various aspects of gaming such as best innovations in gaming and the most horrible ways to die. I'll also take looks back at old console games and previews/various news of upcoming titles. If all goes well (and I hope it does), this should be a great experience. See you all next quarter. Game on!

Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey (1991)

Whoa! In the films that defined his image forever more, Keanu Reeves joined once again with Alex Winter to bring the world a sequel to one of the all-time greatest stoner comedies. The sequel follows the Wyld Stallyons some years after the end of their last excellent adventure through time. Evil robot versions of the boys have come to erase Bill and Ted from existence and create a new world in the image of their master De Nomolos. After being killed by the metal-head pair, the boys face off with Death to gain a second chance at saving their future and their girlfriends from certain doom. Heaven meets hell in this bizarre and drug-induced adventure that has alittle bit of everything. And that is why it's so great! Where else can you have two rockers become the world's saviors, play Twister with the Grim Reaper and then mug three people outside the gates of heaven? Reeves and Winters were born to play these roles and embody a certain innocence that is rarely seen in characters of today's cinema that makes them so endearing to the audience. The philosophical context is quite rich in spite of the over-the-top content behind it. The movie is also one of the few to feature George Carlin. Now all you have to do is look up the first film if by some miracle you haven't already. Don't fear the reaper.

Super Mario Brothers (1993)

In what would become the grandfather of all later video game related releases, Super Mario Brothers set out to do the impossible: turn a classic video game into a feature film. While many rightly argue that the film completely missteps its gaming roots for a more apocalyptic hell in the form of an alternative universe called the Mushroom Kingdom existing next to our own, you have to delve deeper into what the game itself really is at heart. Face it, it's an Italian plumber eating mushrooms to become gigantic and using flowers to shoot fire. Even worse is the concept of killing an enemy with your own body weight. Ouch! So in retrospect, it is easier to forgive the director for taking such a unique approach to the source material. Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo (huh, Leguizamamo...Luigi...fate?) are the plumber brothers battling the evil King Koopa (Dennis Hopper) to save Princess Daisy and the two worlds from his terrible reign. Come on, it's Dennis Freakin' Hopper! You have to love it! Odd as the whole premise seems, the execution while flawed is creative and artistic. The desolate utopian city under Koopa's thumb is much like a satiric look into the dark sides of humanity and society. Plus they have wicked technology like boots enabling you to leap across busy streets or Bob-ombs so tiny yet they scare the daylights out of everyone. Thank you Mario, for making drugs into video game and movie fun.

Speed Racer (2008)

Even if you don't remember the old Japanese cartoon, the Wachowski brothers of Matrix fame have kept everything about the original show intact for the live-action feature. Everything from the elongated and exasperated dialogues in which the plot is revealed in one breath, to the quirky tag lines and colorful characters. And who would be the one to jump behind the Mach 5? Emile Hirsch? The guy maybe seven other people would recognize from 2004s The Girl Next Door? How about Christina Ricci as Trixie? Perhaps best yet is casting John Goodman as Pops Racer. The film itself is a giant car-on-car kung fu picture. While the movie seems to constantly fail at keeping a serious tone of any sort, the over-the-top action sequences and constant blue screen backdrops make Speed Racer worth a viewing. It may not be poetry in motion but the movie runs its course without leaving you with the need to take a cold shower to wash away the stink of garbage cinema. If nothing else, the movie's rainbows of the color spectrum are the perfect means of calibrating your television to its best picture quality. Start your engines!

Flash Gordon (1980)

For those few who actually know of the film's existence, Flash Gordon is the definitive 80s science-fiction adventure complete with a soundtrack by Queen. Based on an old comic strip, the movie begins as energy waves start to pull the moon out of orbit threatening the earth's destruction. Dr. Hans Zarkov, football quarterback Flash Gordon and his friend Dale Arden board a rocket headed for the planet Mongo where the waves originated. They find the planet is ruled with an iron fist by Ming the Merciless, perhaps one of the most sinister bad asses of cinema, and only Flash Gordon can stop his brutal reign and save the earth from annihilation. If a football player from the New York Jets is our only savior, we are all screwed. The film succeeds due to the ridiculous nature of the plot, characters and kinky wardrobe balance out to be a satisfying guilty pleasure of film making. Even better in the film is the inclusion of the legendary Timothy Dalton as Prince Barin thus proving that with 'stache, he can do no wrong (unlike his brief Bond roles. I'm looking at you, The Living Daylights). Go, Flash! Go!

Deep Blue Sea (1999)

I'm sure we all remember when Spielberg's Jaws made it impossible to get anywhere near the kid pool in the back yard. A couple decades later, Renny Harlin tried his luck at recreating that same fear with his own take in his science-fiction shark horror film. Maybe horror is a strong word seeing as how there are no moments that scare the audience out of their seats but perhaps most horrifying is the idea of casting LL Cool J as an experienced chef and preacher. Deep Blue Sea involves a group of scientific researchers genetically altering sharks to harvest sufficient brain protein to cure Alzheimer's disease. When a tropical storm ravages the underwater facility Aquatica, the sharks take the opportunity to flood the site and seek out the skeleton crew left inside. Sharks that think? I can suspend my disbelief to a certain point but giving primal creatures such as sharks the ability to rationalise and coordinate is a little much. Despite all this, the film generally works. The sharks become the most interesting feature of the movie and often leave you wanting the poorly developed cast, including Samuel L. Jackson, to meet their toothy fate. It can't be held anywhere near the praise of Jaws but Deep Blue Sea does everything it sets out to do. It entertains us for a couple hours and even makes us laugh unintentionally or not. Isn't that the point?

And So It Begins

Welcome,
Here I am hoping to share my love of films with anyone willing to share it back with me. Please let me know what you think of the films I discuss, good or bad, and even suggest other titles to be looked into for praise or scrutiny. First up will be Deep Blue Sea.
Charlie Daehne