Netflix’s 2018 surprise hit “Birdbox” was a pretty good movie that skated on thin ice from minute one since it was accused of aping the concept for “A Quiet Place.” But the efforts of a sequel have firmly placed it as a movie better off left as a one and done horror film. “Barcelona” is considered kind of a sequel and kind of a spin off, but in reality it’s kind of a glorified pilot. I don’t know if Netflix is planning more sequels down the road, or a TV series, but “Barcelona” feels like the first of many incoming spin offs. And it never once feels like a complete movie, but only a buffer and promise of things to come. And as a follow up to the original, it fails epically assuring I won’t be back to see how they further develop this premise.
Five Great Movie Fights Set on Trains
One of the best scenes of “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” is the big fight scene staged in and on top of a train, and it brought to mind some of the better train fights ever staged in film. There have been many as it’s been one of the more classic tropes in fiction, so I listed five of my all time favorites.
What are some of your favorite fights on trains or public transportation?
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)
It’s exciting that after seven films, “Mission Impossible” still gives audiences the good old fashioned action movies that were prominent in movie theaters. Christopher McQuarrie’s treatment of the “Mission: Impossible” has never been over stylish which amplifies the old fashioned feeling of his take on Tom Cruise’s epic movie series, and I love it. There are spies, and mysteries, and chases through streets, car chases, femme fatales, a classic macguffin, and even a massive fight staged on, in, and on top of a moving train across Europe. It’s vintage adventure movie serial cinema amplified with a huge budget and some wonderful performances all around.
Director Spotlight: Your Friends & Neighbors/Possession/The Shape of Things/Nurse Betty (DVD)
Neil Labute is one of my favorite directors, he’s a man who specializes in making movies about the ugliness of humanity, and he never really aspires to pull punches. Before being sadly well known for his god awful “The Wicker Man” remake, Labute delivered on some unique arthouse cinema, all of which garnered some big star power. They acted as the cushioning for the inevitable upsetting story that Labute would unfold for us. I guarantee you at least one of these movies in this “Director Spotlight” DVD from Mill Creek Entertainment will make you want to punch something out of sheer anger.
Western Wednesdays: Silverspurs (1936)
SYNOPSIS:
Janet Allison [Muriel Evans] returns home to Loma to discover that the town she grew up in has become overrun with bandits and outlaws. One such outlaw is Art Holden [Robert Frazer], referred to as “Silverspurs,” whom Janet takes an immediate disliking to. Janet, while waiting for her father at the train depot, witnesses a holdup wherein a large sum of money is stolen and the depot attendant killed.
Continue reading
Vultures (2023)
Writer and Director Jacob Thompson’s “Vultures” is a short teeming with feature film potential. There isn’t a ton of exposition or extrapolation on the world he’s unfolding, but considering the limited budget, I think we get the point pretty well. Thankfully with a lot of good editing and direction we catch on almost immediately and garner a glimpse in to a pretty terrifying world.
The Black Mass (2023)
In the winter of 1978, a group of students were the victims of a serial killer, this story based on true events revolves around the students and the other victims in their area.