Revenge like anything is best served when in intricate doses. Batman, The Punisher, Freddy Krueger, they didn’t elicit their revenge in bouts of quick murder and or suicide. They instead withheld the final blow for as long as they possibly could and made the experience about as painful and immensely grueling as possible before the final closing shot. That’s the case for “I Saw the Devil” one of the most finely tuned revenge films ever created. It’s not just a movie about a man on a rampage looking for the monster who destroyed his life. It’s about a man embracing his inner most monsters and destroying the life of the man who took great pleasure in ruining his.
Category Archives: Movie Reviews
TRON: Legacy (2010)
After the massive box office bust that was “Tron” it was surprising that Disney would ever invest in another movie from the property again. In many ways while the film was a failure, the concept was merely ahead of its time and it deserved another chance at box office gold and a fan base. Even decades after the film caught on with cult buffs and garnered a fan base, the success of another “Tron” is still in doubt and with this sequel, it’s all still a gamble. Especially in the age of cynicism where CGI epics are a dime a dozen. “Tron Legacy” isn’t so much about a game and the user that masters it as it is a son re-connecting with his dad.
Xero: Two Disc Edition (2010)
Director Jack the Zipper’s “Xero” is one of the most artistically inclined bits of girl on girl porno ever conceived, it’s a masterful and visually brilliant pornographic film that is clearly just about the girl on girl sequences, but also has something to say with its depiction of sex scenes. Clocking in at an hour long, “Xero” is an endless stream of women going down on one another and engaging in heavy cunnilingus but this is all depicted in a single barn setting through the eyes of a dark haired woman. This dark haired woman is being tormented by an appetite for women that’s insatiable.
Ninja (2009)
If you’re looking for a big hunk of eighties ham and cheese perfected by Michael Dudikoff with “American Ninja,” you have to look no further than the 2009 ham and cheese feast known as “Ninja”! From start to finish this movie is based around some of the hammiest acting I’ve ever seen and is centered on some truly cheesy storylines that have about as much originality as a Jean Claude Van Damme Movie. Hell, the little boy in me loved the whole ninja mysicism behind Scott Adkin’s starring vehicle matched with the blundering storyline that was about predictable as you can imagine if you have your eyes wide open throughout the first twenty minutes, but for all intents and purposes the Isaac Florentine actioner is not intent on being a masterpiece of action cinema.
A Mind Beside Itself (2011)
Director PJ Starks has managed to create something of a very gripping and heartbreaking short film that doesn’t exactly lead audiences where one would expect. All along I suspected director Starks was going for an exploitative horror twist, but in reality the gut wrenching turn that ensues is far from horror and more horrific. But while the center piece is the overall hook to the story, “A Mind Beside Itself” is a testament to the power of grief, and the endless nightmare that is regret and guilt. Regret that we didn’t appreciate our loved ones while we had them. And guilt that it’s much too late to do anything about it. Tristan is a man who has just met the love of his life and they’re experiencing an amazing romance that will define his life forever.
Secrets of Sex (1970) (DVD)
You either know it as the title “Secrets of Sex” or the more aptly titled “Bizarre,” as director Antony Balch’s sexploitation horror anthology is clearly a film that lives up to such a title. Synapse re-releases this seventies gem in the guise of a sexploitation movie, but don’t be fooled. It is very much a horror film of the truest nature that’s reliant on the appeal of sexuality to lower the audiences guards. “Secrets of Sex” is such an unusually surreal piece of genre work that uses sex and the awakening of our sexual natures as a tool for incomparable horror. And through that it tells various stories through the mouth of an inexplicably placed mummified corpse that has seen the battle of the sexes waged for too long.
Zombies! Zombies! Zombies! – Strippers vs. Zombies (2008)
A group of strippers, two hookers, a bouncer, and a pimp run in to a strip club after hours. The start of a funny joke? It’s the premise for “Zombies! Zombies! Zombies!” a surprisingly well made and entertaining horror comedy considering the miniscule budget that it works on from the minute one. Notice how the strip club is the same exterior as the ice rink from the prologue. But who cares? “Zombies! Zombies! Zombies!” is a classic grind house throwback that features a group of mismatched survivors and malcontents going up against an endless horde of the walking dead.