Frank Miller basically re-thought how we look at Batman today. Everyone from Bruce Timm to Christopher Nolan has taken a cue from the master writer who completely re-worked Batman for the modern era where the camp was no longer present and the grim takes on morality and justice became ever present in what we know as the character so well. “Batman: Year One” attempts to take the original Frank Miller graphic novel and transform it in to a small film that does its job in telling the tale of two forces of good that would walk in to Gotham City almost at the same time and become a true force of nature in changing the law and transforming the seedy underworld in to a haven for cowards and thugs.
Tag Archives: Revenge
The Three Musketeers (2011)
You can usually tell when you’re watching a Paul WS Anderson film. For one, you can often hear him salivating at the presence of his wife Milla Jovovich, an untalented waif of a woman who Anderson persists in turning in to an action star, placing her on the highest of pedestals. And secondly, most of the best fight scenes are filtered through some of the most painful slow motion imaginable. I’m still not sure what Anderson fetishizes more at the end of the day, Milla or slow motion, but surely enough he revisits both corners with his re-working of “The Three Musketeers.” Anyone expecting a sophisticated, adult, and masterful adaptation of the Alexandre Dumas novel will have to wait a lot longer as Anderson is mostly content with subjecting audiences to a brutally infantile and wholly bland version of one of the greatest stories of all time.
Chainsaw Sally (2004)
Chainsaw Sally is one vengeful woman. As a resident of Porterville, she’s the quiet librarian who takes her work much too seriously, and loves to strike down anyone who makes her work more difficult than it has to be. By day she’s an authoritarian bookkeeper who takes pride in her work, but by night she’s a wicked avenger for women wreaking havoc around her town and mutilating anyone that crosses her path. Be they folks who have forgotten to return their books, or womanizers at bars, she is never afraid to wreak unholy vengeance upon her victims and she does so with glee and a giddy laugh to boot.
Frat House Massacre: Special Edition (2008) (DVD)
Sadly, I think director Alex Pucci’s grindhouse slasher film entitled “Frat House Massacre” will just be mistaken for other shelf fillers out on the market, and that’s a damn shame. A few years ago when we finally had the chance to pop in Alex Pucci’s throwback to seventies revenge thrillers, we were floored. Finally after a few years of touting the film to websites, Mr. Pucci’s slasher revenge thriller gets the treatment it deserves by Synapse Films. They pull out all of the stops for this re-release of “Frat House Massacre” enlisting 5.1 Surround Sound, and a bevy of extras including two new commentary tracks and a Making Of featurette.
Chromeskull: Laid to Rest 2 (2011)
I didn’t enjoy “Laid to Rest” as much as other people did, for the simple fact that as a slasher it featured some of the most annoying and difficult to root for characters ever created, with a character named Chrome skull who had potential but was sorely wasted. “Laid to Rest” was a missed opportunity to conceive something of a unique slasher franchise and it failed big time. “Chromeskull” however is an even bigger waste of time, as it never knows what to do with the premise, nor can it completely connect the first film to the second film without it feeling like cheap fan service.
Nikita: The Complete First Season (DVD)
I didn’t think it was actually possible, but the CW and Warner actually managed to create yet another “La Femme Nikita” television series, and one that has managed to be the most entertaining yet. After the critically panned “Point of No Return” and the instantly forgettable Peta Wilson vehicle “La Femme Nikita,” I was admittedly very skeptical a network could tackle the Luc Besson action masterpiece and provide a watchable spin on it. Admittedly season one of “Nikita” isn’t perfect. The first three or four episodes meander in to romance melodrama and the writing is pretty clumsy all things considered, but once the season and the show finds its footing it manages to be a rather entertaining and dark spy thriller. Maggie Q finally gets her due leading the series “Nikita” which takes a new spin on the Luc Besson picture of the same name.
Shrunken Heads (1994)
I remember seeing the preview for “Shrunken Heads” back in 1994 during the end of a double feature from the video store and even then I thought the idea was a weird one. A kids movie about disembodied shrunken heads getting revenge on their murderer is unusual. “Shrunken Heads” is a strange god awful movie, but one that affords itself some nostalgic value so while it is a waste of talent and resources, it’s not totally a waste of time. Whether it’s Danny Elfman’s involvement as the sound track artist, or Meg Foster curiously cross dressed as an Italian mobster with a pomp haircut, every single move to this movie is confusing and often times disorienting.