Monday, October 31, 2011

The Thing (2011)



In college, one night I caught a movie that had stayed off my radar for my formative years. John Carpenter's The Thing (1982). It was a great mix of shadow, paranoia, gore effects. I don't feel I'm over selling it that it's the perfect horror movie*.

When it came out in 1982 it was a box office failure. The movie starts with a dog being hunted by my people**. So, almost 30 years later you want to know what happened before the events of that movie? Well here it is.

The story of that first group in Antarctica is told in both a similar tone and characters. The movie is one part prequel one part remake. Gone are all the practical effects. In is the CGI. If the 1982 movie wasn't so good, I would probably thing more of this movie. But it lives under a dark shadow. As it were, it doesn't belong in the same breath as An American Werewolf in Paris or Blues Brothers 2000***.

The biggest complaint I have with the film is the way the monster acts. In the '82 version it wants to hide and only attacks when it knows it can win or is backed in a corner. In the 2011 movie it attacks and explodes and spears people. This is not the same monster. Which is disappointing because that was one of the scarier things about The Thing.

Did you enjoy it?
I would have enjoyed it more if I didn't love the 1982 movie so much.

Would you see it in theaters again?
No.

Would you buy it?
No.

Would you rent it?
No.

Would you watch it if you saw it was on TV?
Eh, maybe back to back with the '82 version on Netflix Instant


*Playing in Chicago this Friday and Saturday (see you there?)


**Norwegians, can't live with them, can't understand them so you shoot them in the eye.


***I didn't come up with that comparison. See what Harry Knowles thought of the movie.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Killer Elite


Based on a true story. That is always a loaded statement. Unless it is a documentary, the lines are always going to be gray. We have Moneyball on one side and this movie on the other. While I do believe it is based on a true story, aren't most works of fiction outside of horror and fantasy?

So, we're in the 80's. We've got some assassins for hire. They make their kills look like accidents, or ambushes, whatever the job calls for. We have some old British spies running some game that gets them money (not super clear to me). And we have a de-throned king of Persia (not sure where he's from).

But let's back up. The title of the movie is terrible. It might as well have gone straight to video (but I think it might still be in theaters). The book it's based on is called The Feathermen (named after the secret old dude society). Not much of a better title itself.

How they got DeNiro, Statham and Clive Owen (and the hot girl from CHUCK) in this movie, I have no idea. It must have been better in the script than what ended up on screen. Not that it is terrible. But a month later I'm trying to remember much about it. I think Dracula from Blade 3 plays a big sideburns dude.

But the action is well choreographed. There are some nice twists. It could have been worse.

Did you enjoy it?
Surprisingly, yes.

Would you see it in theaters again?
No.

Would you buy it?
No.

Would you rent it?
No.

Would you watch it if you saw it was on TV?
Maybe.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

...Two Months Later...

You know when they cut to a later date in time in movies and tv shows? Well, previously on Krull Nugget...


Happy two month anniversary, baby!

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark


Remember the movie "The Gate"? I don't remember a lot about it, but I remember it really scaring me as a child. Little mini sized troll demons chasing after kids. Scary. Well, there is a new version of that. I guess the screenplay is based on an old TV movie about these creatures.

DBAotD also is like Gremlins. The monsters in this case, aren't really trying to eat you, they're just kinda d-bags. They get the main little girl into trouble and cause general mayhem. The opening scene contains one of my worst fears, broken teeth. Even without showing anything, its pretty nerve racking.

And the end has a neat little twist that I really didn't see coming. Overall, a fun little scare of a movie. Worth seeing (or renting since it is out of theaters now).

Did you enjoy it?
Yes.

Would you see it in theaters again?
Maybe at a midnight screening, someday.

Would you buy it?
No.

Would you rent it?
Yes.

Would you watch it if you saw it was on TV?
Yes.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Moneyball (with Jonah Hill Q&A)


Moneyball- the book is very good. But just like Fast Food Nation, how do you take a book with a lot of stats and information, and turn it into a Hollywood blockbuster. Well, Brad Pitt doesn't hurt.

Of course, there were a lot of people involved in the Sabre Metrics revolution. So, instead of those guys, you get Jonah Hill playing a cobbled version of all of them. But it does work well and gives Brad someone to play against. Jonah and Brad against the machine.

Those who don't know the story, it is revolving around the poor (cash poor) Oakland A's who put together a team of "bad news bears" based on different stats than people are used to (in the baseball world). It made for quite an engaging story. It doesn't have a Cinderella ending, which is always a plus.

Jonah was on hand for a Question and Answer session after the movie. He was very funny but the microphone kept going in and out, which was annoying. My crummy pictures of the event below.

Did you enjoy it?
Yes.

Would you see it in theaters again?
No. I only read the book once too.

Would you buy it?
No, not an A's fan.

Would you rent it?
Maybe.

Would you watch it if you saw it was on TV?
Eh.





Monday, October 3, 2011

Contagion



Best way I can think to describe this movie? If Outbreak and Traffic got it on and had a baby. In my case, that is a compliment on both counts. You get to see a wide variety of characters and locations as they are affected by an outbreak. You get the family closest to the virus (Matt Damon / Gwen Paltrow). We have the CDC and WHO working to figure it out (Winslet / Fishburne / Cotillard). And you get the crazy blogger (this is the two thousand teens, Jude Law).

It is very good at being scary and realistic. That is also its downfall. People just die, as to be expected. But its so cold and procedural, you're not sure if you care. Also, with so many characters, you tend to focus on some more than others (Marion Cotillard is gone for the whole middle section of the film).

At the end, you do have a fun little bit, that I won't spoil, about how this whole virus got started. Good movie for what it is.

Did you enjoy it?
I did.

Would you see it in theaters again?
No.

Would you buy it?
No.

Would you rent it?
No.

Would you watch it if you saw it was on TV?
No likely.