Ranking the "Fast" Films

Since 2001 Universal has released 7 movies that take place in the "Fast and Furious" universe. Starting with what can now be considered a "humble" entry the series has turned into one of Universal's biggest franchises. And with the series' latest Furious 7 taking in $143 million in the US box office over the weekend it shows no signs of stopping. To mark the occasion I've decided to share my ranking of the films. Lists like these are always subjective and I'll preface mine by saying that my order doesn't necessarily indicate which film I think is the "best" of the series; it's more the order I'd watch them in if I was grabbing one off of my movie shelf to watch.

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2013

October 26, 2013

The annual Exhumed Films 24 Hour Horror-Thon is the highlight of many a movie fan's year. For the 7th year in a row the fine folks at Exhumed delivered films, trailers, shorts and some surprises over the course of 24 hours. This year the program included 14 and 1/2 films.

Everything or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007

2012 was a very good year to be a James Bond fan. Celebrating 50 years of Bond as a cinematic character the year brought books, new home video releases, a brand new Bond movie, and a wonderful documentary that explored the entire 50+ year "career" of Bond, James Bond.

Everything or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007 is the intensive doc that was long overdue. It's all here*: Bond's beginnings as the literary creation of Ian Fleming, the struggle to bring him to the silver screen, and the recasting that occurred when it was time for Bond actors to move on.

Every Bond actor is present to varying degrees. Original Bond, Sean Connery is mostly seen and heard via archival interview material, while the others seem to sit for brand new interviews. Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, and Pierce Brosnan all share stories about their time as Bond. It is wonderful to hear them all, but Brosnan might be the most satisfying. He tells of how he had and lost the role prior to Timothy Dalton and of the phone call that he took that ended his day's as Bond. The most welcome interview though is George Lazenby. The man who played Bond in only 1 film tells of his quest to play the character and the reasons that he didn't return. Daniel Craig is also present but beyond his blonde hair there isn't much said.

The other real treat in Everything or Nothing is the focus on the series original producers Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman.The portions that look at these two men and their involvement in the series make for some of the most interesting viewing. Current producers Barbara Broccoli and her half brother Michael G. Wilson are of course on hand to share their experiences, but the involvement of Harry Saltzman's children Hilary and Steven was a welcome surprise. The portion detailing Saltzman's exit from the franchise was fascinating to watch.

Far from a puff piece or promotional tool for the new movie, Everything or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007 is an excellent look at the remarkable history of James Bond.

Everything or Nothing:The Untold Story of 007 is now available to stream via Netflix.

* Although the unofficial Bond film Never Say Never Again and the "Playhouse 90" version of Casino Royale are mentioned there is no coverage of the 1967 spoof.

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2012 Part 4

6:20am - Trailer Reel #10: Dune, Weird Science, Life Force, Starman, Back to the Future (teaser), Inner Space, Critters, Invaders from Mars

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2012 Part 3

 12:15am - Trailer Reel #6: Star Wars (1981 re-release) , Dragonslayer, Time Bandits, The Empire Strikes Back (1981 re-release), Scanners, Superman II, For Your Eyes Only

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2012 Part 2

5:45pm: During Xtro I ventured outside to get some dinner. Exhumed had coordinated some local food vendors, and I'd been looking forward to this aspect of the event. Earlier in the day The Dapper Dog served up what looked to be some delicious hot dogs.

I was in a mood for a burger though and Spot Burgers was eager to deliver. I ordered their signature and an order of cheese fries.

Yum!

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2012 Part 1

October 27, 2012

The annual Exhumed Films is officially an "event". After selling out in record time back in August the event finally arrived. I got to the International House around 10am and the line had already wound its way to the back of the lobby. Ticket pickup was  a breeze at the box office and long before we entered the theater at 11am we already had our wristbands and program listing the amount of films and some hints to as what they might be.

I can't say enough about the coordination. From directing us to cheap parking to bringing actual food vendors out (more about that later) the staff at Exhumed have really made this already great event even better.

As we worked our way into the theater we were handed a goodie bag. It had some candy and a pack of Bernie Wrightson trading cards. Cool and unexpected!

Safety Not Guaranteed

Now this is a well-crafted trailer!

Based on early reviews it's a fun little movie as well. It opens in theaters June 8th.

CageCrazy

On Friday night I watched Drive Angry for the first time since it was in theaters last year. It was shot in 3D and was full of all kinds of ridiculous 3D gimmick shots. This is the 3D that I love. The DVD was not in 3D so I was treated to all of this 3D goodness in 2D. I still enjoyed it a heck of a lot more than I did in theaters.

Movie Monday: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2009) & (2011)

With the American version opening in theaters in a few weeks I finally decided to watch the 2009 Swedish film The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

The Captains

William Shatner's The Captains tracks down the 6 actors who have played the lead role of Star Trek "Captain" on TV and film and through a series of interviews gets to the bottom of why they chose the role and how it impacted their life and career. As a concept it sounds wonderful. In its execution it's phenomenal.

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2011 Part 4

5:30am: "Be cool. Just like this."

11th Feature: Blood Diner (1987)

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2011 Part 3

12:25am Trailer Reel #4: "Oddball Trailers"
Previews of coming attractions for: The Car, Mutant, The Creeper, Parasite (3-DF), The Stuff, Mill of the Stone Women, Sugar Hill, Computer Killers

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2011 Part 2

6:40pm: Dinner Break

The Three Stooges in "You Natzy Spy!", The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977): Edge of Reality (making of), Tom and Jerry in "Yankee Doodle Mouse".

Exhumed Films' 24 Hour Horror-Thon 2011 Part 1

October 29, 2011

12:15pm: "Sometimes you scare me."

After a brief announcement and a series of giveaways we jump into the first feature. The Exhumed bumper plays (with live in theater soundtrack).

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

Fifth in a series of posts that will offer a review of the newly released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray. I'll be avoiding detailed plot rundowns as I assume that most reading have seen the movies. If you haven't be warned that these reviews may contain spoilers.

Entry 1 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Entry 2 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
Entry 3 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Entry 4 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back. I'm not sure that I really have to write anymore. Released in the spring of 1980, many fans consider Empire to be the best of the series. I definitely agree. Not tasked with establishing a universe or wrapping things up Empire is the quintessential Star Wars movie.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope

Fourth in a series of posts that will offer a review of the newly released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray. I'll be avoiding detailed plot rundowns as I assume that most reading have seen the movies. If you haven't be warned that these reviews may contain spoilers.

Entry 1 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Entry 2 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
Entry 3 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope changed the face of cinema when it opened in theaters in May of 1977. Of course at that time there was no "Episode IV - A New Hope" in the title. With no continuity to get lost in or prequels or sequels to worry about audiences were able to sit back and enjoy a cinematic game changer.

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

Third in a series of posts that will offer a review of the newly released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray. I'll be avoiding detailed plot rundowns as I assume that most reading have seen the movies. If you haven't be warned that these reviews may contain spoilers.

Entry 1 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Entry 2 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones

The anticipation level was high when Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge of the Sith arrived in theaters in 2005. We all knew where the story was going and this would be the film that finally got us there.

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones Blu-ray Review

Second in a series of posts that will offer a review of the newly released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray. I'll be avoiding detailed plot rundowns as I assume that most reading have seen the movies. If you haven't be warned that these reviews may contain spoilers.

Entry 1 can be found here: Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace

When Star Wars: Episode 2 - Attack of the Clones was released in 2002 I pretty much knew what to expect. The Phantom Menace had established that the prequel films would ramp up the goofy aspects of the series. In retrospect no one should have been surprised. After all Lucas had filled the original Return of the Jedi with many goofy moments, and the '97 special edition added even more nonsense. Lucas was clearly going in a different direction than anticipated and we could either jump off or buckle up and enjoy the ride. Like most fans I buckled up.

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace Blu-ray Review

First in a series of posts that will offer a review of the newly released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray. I'll be avoiding detailed plot rundowns as I assume that most reading have seen the movies. If you haven't be warned that these reviews may contain spoilers.

Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace was released in theaters 16 years after the last entry in the series, Return of the Jedi, and 2 years after the Special Edition re-releases. Needless to say many fans could not wait.