Category Archives: List Junkies

Our Top 10 Films of 2015

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I have to admit, 2015 was a great year for movies. We saw a huge glut in horror films, the welcome ongoing resurgence of the anthology film, Tarantino smashed in to theaters with his new film, and audiences told Hollywood which type of nostalgia is genuine, and which is just exploitative crap trying to take our cash. Some nostalgia like “Creed” and “Goosebumps” were a success, while other efforts like “Jem and the Holograms,” and “Tomorrowland” bombed big time inspiring groans and eye rolls. Most of all we saw the return of “Star Wars,” the “Jurassic Park” series, and the Western. To add some pleasing news to the latter, Kurt Russell was a part of two of the most talked about Western entries of the year. Long live Snake Plissken.

As always our commitment to covering the indie film world has prevented us from watching every movie in 2015. Especially now with many films available on various formats in digital and physical form. It’s tough to keep up. But out of the large array of films we saw in 2015, these were the best.

GREAT MOVIES that almost made the cut includes the horrific We Are Still Here, the darkly funny and creepy The Visit, the underdog superhero flick Ant-Man, another Marvel Cinematic Universe installment The Avengers: Age of Ultron, the shocking and haunting dramatic thriller The Gift, the meta horror comedy adventure Goosebumps, the wonderful feature film adaptation of Charles Shulz’s comic strip The Peanuts Movie, the beautiful Pixar animated drama Inside Out, the gory Tarantino mystery The Hateful Eight, the sequels Fast and Furious 7 and Mission Impossible Rogue Nation, the entertaining horror anthology Tales of Halloween, the gripping documentary Call Me Lucky, and Ridley Scott’s exciting survival drama The Martian. Now on to the Top 10…

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Our 5 Choice Indies of 2015

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Cinema Crazed is pretty much a one man operation, so as always, we weren’t able to watch every single film sent to us this year. We have so much to do, and so little time to do it in, but we try our damndest to watch everything that comes down our pipe. The year has been good for indie filmmaking, as Hollywood are taking more and more chances on indie filmmakers and budding storytellers.

As with every year, this is a list of the five best Indies we saw in 2015. While there were many A+ Indies, these five stood out and stuck with us for a long time.

While a few of these movies can be viewed online legally for free, we encourage you to buy these films. Buying them helps the filmmakers, it helps them go on to make another movie you might enjoy, and it helps the small companies that are funding these directors and excellent storytellers. The indie film community needs as much support as it can muster up. Without Further ado… Continue reading →

5 Reasons why I’d Rather Be in “The Monster Squad” than “The Goonies”

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“The Goonies” turn thirty this year, which marks a fun anniversary of one of the most iconic family films of the 1980’s. To this day, the film is considered a masterpiece by many, even brandishing its own sequel coming very soon. I figured why not celebrate “The Goonies” by undermining its legacy and praising its knock off “The Monster Squad,” instead? Ain’t I a stinker? I’ll be honest, while “The Goonies” is a very good movie, at the end of the day I’d rather watch Fred Dekker’s “The Monster Squad.”

It’s harder edged, it’s much more entertaining, has more imagination, and it holds up against the rose colored glasses of nostalgia. Goonies never say die, but The Monster Squad kills the fuck out of monsters and bad guys. Here are five Reasons why I’d rather be in “The Monster Squad” than “The Goonies.”

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5 Reasons Why I’m Looking Forward to the Return of MST3K

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I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty psyched to see “Mystery Science Theater 3000” coming back. With the help of Kickstarter, fans have made their presence felt, by helping to fund a few episodes of the reboot of “Mystery Science Theater 3000.” Original creator Joel Hodgson plans to change some elements, while also keeping many concepts the exact same for devotees. Hopefully with this new series, it’ll launch a brand new series fans can enjoy, while also converting a new generation of fans that can carry the torch of MST3K for many more years to come.

This is five reasons why we’re looking forward to the return of MST3K.

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Five Great Jeremy Renner Performances

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Jeremy Renner earned his stripes just like a lot of people in Hollywood and has been playing bit parts for years. After years of forgettable supporting roles, and playing the heel in movies like “SWAT” to the in vogue stars of yesteryear like Colin Farrell and Michelle Rodriguez, he’s finally earned his place as one of the biggest and most marketable stars in Hollywood. Renner has displayed a keen persona that often makes him suitable for roles like military men, police officers, and the like, but he’s also capable of playing regular Joes. Renner is one of the more likable actors in Hollywood filling his resume with an array of blockbusters and prestige pictures. There are five of our favorite Jeremy Renner performances, so far.

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Five Reasons “Saving Christmas” is the Best Movie in the History of the World

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Believe the hype. “Saving Christmas” is one of the most bafflingly awful movies ever made. And while I can kind of see the distorted logic behind making this kind of movie, nothing about it makes any kind of sense. Every time you think the movie almost understands where it’s heading, it just completely flies off the rails and injects some truly remarkable moments of lunacy. Star and producer Kirk Cameron is so sure that his movie will finally convince people that Christmas is Christian and only Christian that he begins the movie with a monologue about his agenda for the movie. There are only about five characters in the movie, including one really creepy Santa, and they’re all portrayed by a truly horrific cast of performers.

“Saving Christmas” is much too certain about itself to be considered satire, and often much too campy to be taken seriously. Kirk looks dead certain he knows more than anyone about religion and Christmas, and doesn’t mind flaunting it throughout the film, but then he literally ends the movie on our cast break dancing during a Christmas party. In a slow motion montage. Again, I’m almost certain it’s meant to be taken with a tongue in cheek, but I’d wager Cameron intended the climax to be taken seriously, much like the message behind “Saving Christmas.” The movie is much too baffling and surreal to trash it completely, so I just couldn’t help but itemize five observations about this oddity.

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Fanged Fucks: Top Five Favorite Vampire Movies

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This Halloween I’m celebrating the holiday by re-visiting some of my favorite vampire movies. Vampires have been one of my favorite monsters, and I’ve seen every title I could get my hands on from Dracula 1931 to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I have typically have a soft spot for vampire movies, and have quite a large list of films about bloodsuckers that I can’t boast about enough. While I have a large library of films from the sub-genre I’d love to re-visit someday, I narrowed it all down to five of the best vampire movies I’ve ever seen. These five have constantly popped in to my repertoire time and time again, and never wear out their welcome. These are my five best vampire movies of all time.

What are some of your favorite vampire movies?

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