For my money, Dr. Strange is probably one of the most uneven characters in the Marvel gallery ever created, while others of his ilk are basically one sided. Spider-Man was too whiny for me, Iron Man was too weak, and Fantastic Four was much too irritating to enjoy, but Dr. Strange is a character with great potential that had a comic series that was as dull as day old bread. Yet, this character‘s appearances in other series were exciting, and his television movie from the seventies was also decent. I just hope the live action adaptation gives me a reason to enjoy the character again. For now, here‘s another direct to DVD Marvel movie, “Doctor Strange: The Sorcerer Supreme,” an unofficial prequel to the movie. “Doctor Strange” is thankfully a step in the right direction, depicting the mythos of Doctor Strange as a murky and dark world filled with eerie sights and demons.
Tag Archives: Fantasy
Alabaster (2007)
One of the aspects of Brandon McCormick’s “Alabaster” that I enjoyed was his unflinching willingness to completely hit the ground running in a world of surreal characters. Like many other existential dramas, “Alabaster” is a film comprised of many elements, all of which are leading somewhere. I won’t give anything away for you, but immediately, I could sense that “Alabaster” and its variety of odd characters and symbols was inevitably going to come together to say something. And quite honestly, I was riveted.
The Medium (2007)
What Wydeven possesses in “The Medium” is a keen eye for visuals that compliment the story he’s attempting to tell within the space of only twenty-two minutes. “The Medium” is a rather interesting tale that starts off with much less of an impact than we’d ever suspect, and Wydeven takes what could have been a boring film, and adds an eye for detail, even with the apparently limited scenery. What the real appeal is of “The Medium,” is the detail.
Sheena #1
All I know about “Sheena” is that she’s very much like a female Tarzan, except she had a few movies, a really bad television series in the end of the nineties, bears a supernatural twist to her, and–oh yeah–she’s really hot. From the beginning, we’re being set up for another evil industrialist tale, and that’s the gist of “Sheena.” Issue one chronicles the return of Sheena in the midst of a major destruction of the Val Verde jungle at the hands of Cardwell Industries. Shifting from past and present, we follow the rise and fall of Harrison Cardwell, a young man who fled to Val Verde to escape the government of the US and built a crooked empire, inevitably losing everything he cherished.
Night at the Museum (2006)
Ben Stiller’s career can almost be paralleled with Eddie Murphy’s. Both started out providing original and edgy comedy, and were almost under-appreciated in their ways. Both finally debuted in film starting off once again providing us with a refreshing look at the comedy genre, and both have completely revamped their image starring in nothing but rehashed really bad movies, that are now leading into family films. It was really only a matter of time for Stiller. The man’s career, beyond “The Ben Stiller Show,” has been mostly abysmal. “Night at the Museum” is not the worst film out there for family entertainment, but damn, it sure is mediocre. There’s barely a single laugh in the entirety, and what chuckles do arise, come from the British nationality.
Deep Throat (1972)
Doctor: Having a clitoris at the bottom of your throat is better than having no clitoris at all.
Linda: That’s easy for you to say! Imagine having your balls on your ears!
Doctor: Well… then I could hear myself cumming!
You know it, you love it, you pretend not to know what it is in front of certain company, it’s “Deep Throat,” a movie that’s become so utterly famous that it’s also helped to define the oral sex technique that’s like average fellatio, but amps it up a notch. I won’t sit here and explain the difference between regular blow jobs, and deep throating, because I know that you know what the actual difference is, no matter how much you deny it in the end. “Deep Throat,” much like “Debbie Does Dallas,” is one of the porn classics that really go beyond its genre. This is a film that’s become a staple of pop culture and really did shake everyone up to their boots for the simple fact that it was a huge hit. And for the fact that the success for the film was less about the film’s quality, and more on the gravitas it brought with it to seedy movie theaters. I mean what’s not to like about it? It’s only an hour long, features hardcore sex scenes, the late great Linda Lovelace, and has a title that pretty much describes the entire plot.
Three…Extremes (Saam gaang yi) (2004)
I can’t tell you how long it’s been since we’ve had a great anthology horror film. It’s been a while, because I really can’t remember the last great anthology film we were given in theaters or home video, but “Three… Extremes” is a surefire breath of fresh air for the horror genre, and one that thankfully did not go unappreciated. I’ve waited a long time to finally see this film, and apparently the wait was utterly worth it, in the end. Take three excellent Asian directors, and let them go hog wild on-screen with rarely a step back into discretion. Fuck “Masters of Horror,” these three directors take you to school. In these three incredibly directed tales, we’re taken through the ringer of the three extremes of humanity.