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Showing posts from June, 2018

Zodiac: Why David Fincher’s movie about the unsolved Zodiac murders is a masterpiece

People love mysteries and the greatest payoff of watching a mystery movie is how they uncover it in the end. In the case of a murder mystery people wait till the end to see who the killer is. But what about the movies that ends without solving the mystery? David Fincher’s Zodiac is a murder mystery that disturbs the audiences with its ambiguous ending. Did they find the killer? May be yes, may be no. Because the audiences are denied the privilege of a payoff the movie will stay with them even after finishing. Zodiac, for sure, will stay with the viewers for a long time. Based on real-life Zodiac murders Zodiac is documentation of the investigation into the real-life murders committed by a man popularly known as ‘the Zodiac Killer’ in California from the late 1960’s to early ‘70s. To this date the serial killer is known only as ‘Zodiac Killer’ as the police failed to crack his identity. Zodiac the movie Clint Eastwood’s 1971 crime thriller Dirty Harry ha...

Valak is coming to get you: The Nun trailer unveils the darkest chapter of The Conjuring universe

                                                                                                     What did you see?                                                        I saw a Nun ... This is how they introduce the villain of the new horror movie The Nun in a creepy teaser trailer just released. It's the story of Valak, the nun-like creepy demon that sent chills down your spine in Conjuring 2. In the trailer, the makers of The Nun play some gimmicks. At the very opening moment of the teaser trailer they put out an advice for you in a big font:           ...

'My Life as a Dog movie director' : Top dog movies by Lasse Hallstrom

Every filmmaker has an obsession. Master of Suspense Alfred Hitchcock loved blondes . His leading ladies were blondes: Tippi Hedren, Grace Kelley and many others. Michael ' bayhem ' Bay is obsessed with many things: the lamp posts, explosions, and the epic spinning shot( watch The Rock, Bad Boys, Transformers franchise). Our center of discussion is Lasse Hallstrom, the Swedish director of well-known films like What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), The Cider House Rules (1999),  and Chocolat( 2000). Since we are talking about directors' obsession, what's Hallstrom's obsession? The answer is 'dogs'. If you go through his filmography, you can see certain titles that are about dogs. The director loves dogs and made three movies that are about man's relationship with dogs, one of them fetched him Best Director nomination for the Academy Awards. Hallstrom with his cast Let's see what the are: My Life as A Dog (1985) 'This is not ...

Watch Amazons' Gringo(2018) if you love crime comedies with a complex plot

If you are a fan of crime comedies like The Nice Guys ( 2016 ) and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang  ( 2005 )  do not forget to watch Gringo (2018). Gringo sheds light on the ever-growing greed of corporate firms in America and elsewhere in the world. But it doesn't preach on the vices of the corporate firms. Gringo's aim is not to enlighten you about the bad deeds they do. A greedy corporate entity serves as the perfect backdrop for violence and betrayal. Gringo shows how these firms kill people that work for them. It shows how cold these big guys are. And director Nash Edgerton uses dark humor to tell his story. The director's decision to tell the story through characters is what makes the movie work. There is a naive protagonist Harold Soyinka (David  Oyelowo) who works for a pharmaceutical company run by his friend Richard Rusk(Joel Edgerton). Harold's wife is cheating on him with his boss Rusk. But he doesn't know it. He doesn't get it even when hints are...

Netflix's horror flick 'The Ritual' is creepy and moody but a one-time watch

Deep, dark woods and a cabin inside have been among the most recurring horror movie tropes from time immemorial(try streaming slasher flicks like Friday the 13th and its sequels ) . And there will be a group, mostly couples, who go camping inside the woods. The Ritual(2017 ) incorporates all the above tropes into its plot albeit with a difference: it's an all-male group. The Ritual is a British horror film distributed by Netflix. At the core, the movie directed by David Bruckner, is about male friendship. And the consequences of not standing up for your friends when the situation demands. Four friends-- Phil, Dome, Hutch and Luke--go hiking in the mountains of Sweden. They go hiking in Sweden not to enjoy the vacations. They want to honor the final wish of their murdered friend Rob. Among the four Luke, played by Rafe Spall, seems not okay. He appears like lost in thought, or brooding.  Luke carries within him the pain of guilt. He was there with Rob in a pub...

First Trailer of HBO's Robin Williams documentary is an emotional tribute

Robin Williams was one of the most funny people on the earth. He made people laugh. But his tragic death made everyone cry. HBO is making a documentary about Robin Williams, who took his own life in August 2014. The documentary has a very interesting title-- Robin Williams Come Inside my Mind . And on Thursday HBO released the trailer for the documentary. The trailer is very emotional. It brings back our memories about the actor. The first trailer shows Robin Williams' various performances on stage. We can also see many other eminent people commenting about the great entertainer. Comedy legend Steve Martin says about Robin Williams, "On stage he was the master...". "Off-stage, I just felt he was holding himself together," Martin adds. There is Williams' own voice: "Every person is driven by some de--(stammering)..Deep secret." Eric Idle says: "He made all people laugh and laugh and laugh." The trailer touches the pers...

Al Pacino joins Tarantino's next movie about Manson Murders that has Di Caprio, Brad Pitt in the lead

Al Pacino This must be the best news both Tarantino and Al pacino fans have been waiting for: The Godfather trilogy and Scarface actor has confirmed he will act in the upcoming movie directed by Quentin Tarantino.  The Pulp Fiction director's upcoming movie is titled Once Upon a Time in Hollywood . The film takes place in 1969 just before the Manson Murders.  Charles Manson, the cult leader, directed the Manson Murders Leonardo Di Caprio and Brad Pitt play the lead roles. Margot Robbe plays actress Sharon Tate ( one of the victims of the Manson Murders). Di Caprio and Pitt Tarantino has arrranged an ansemble cast to blow up the movie screens this time:    Brad Pitt,  Burt Reynolds, Tim Roth, Kurt Russell ,  Michael Madsen ,  Timothy Olyphant,  Margot Robbie,  Damian Lewis, Luke Perry, Emile Hirsch, Dakota Fanning, Clifton Collins Jr, Keith Jefferson  and  Nicholas Hammond .

Best of Netflix: Nicolas Cage's 8mm is an underrated mystery thriller

8 mm (1999) starring Nicolas Cage is one of the most harrowing films streaming on Netflix  (The movie is written by 'Seven' writer Andrew Kevin Walker!). Harrowing, mainly because of the milieu it portrays--the world of pornography and snuff films. At the start of the film we are introduced to the protagonist Tom Welles ( played by Cage), a private eye who is renowned among his clients for his ability to keep their secrets to himself. This quality of discretion fetches him an assignment offered by the widow of a rich industrialist. She is intrigued by one of her husband's secretly kept possessions- a tape, a snuff film. The film in the tape depicts the brutal murder of a young girl by a man in mask. Some other men are enjoying the bloody act and their faces are also unclear. The widow wants Welles to investigate the mystery behind the tape and ensure the girl is still alive. Some viewers are likely to be repulsed at this point as some scenes from the snuff fi...

Psychokinesis, now streaming on Netflix, is the most genuine superhero movie ever

A down-to-earth superhero movie, that's the best way to describe Psychokinesis, a funny South Korean movie that is now streaming on Netflix. It is perhaps the first Korean superhero movie. Psychokinesis understands what makes a superhero movie and simply play to that game. No gimmicks, no extravaganza.  Almost every superhero movie tells the story of an underdog who at some point in life realizes his real power and sets out to save the world. In Psychokinesis the underdog is a middle aged father who abandons his wife and daughter. This is a slap to Hollywood's definition of superhero. Can you imagine Peter Parker as an elderly guy? The hero's name is Shin Seok heon played by Korean actor Ryu Seung-ryong.Shin is a flawed character. A true underdog. He reminds me of Gene Hackman' s character in The Royal Tenenbaums . A father who ruthlessly abandons his family and returns to them years later only to find that he doesn't matter anymore in their lives. And hi...

Suspiria color debate: Finally, the world starts talking about the missing red, after 'Movie Streamerz'

The newly-released teaser trailer of Suspiria created a 'big', 'hot' fuzz on June 4. The online news websites and social media platforms celebrated the 'terror', or 'scare' factor of the trailer. Everyone celebrated the shock value, Dakota Johnson and Tilda Swinton. "Dakota Johnson is unrecognizable..."; Some media went gaga for Tilda's transformation as an elderly man . Of course, transformation is not a new thing for Swinton who is known for her unbelievable makeovers, e.g. Snowpiercer, Trainwreck, We Need to Talk about Kevin, The Grand Budapest Hotel. However, no one really cared about the look of the film. It appeared that the 'look' became overlooked amidst the flood of praises for the trailer. Movie Streamerz is one of the few movie websites that wrote about the lack of vibrant color in the remake by Luca Guadagnino. Movie Streaming God had written that the presence of red color was the key factor...

Suspiria Movie Trailer review: The original's stunning Red color scheme missing in remake's trailer

There was a time in my life when I desperately searched every online streaming platform (this is just before the era of Netflix, Hulu or Mubi) for Dario Argento movies. I had read a lot about him, mainly from the Great Directors section of the film journal Senses of Cinema, which elevated my curiosity. Luckily some of the best films of the horror master (Tenebre, Inferno, Phenomena) were streaming in YouTube. I started with his giallo flick The Bird with Crystal Plumage. I liked it. Then some movies later, I found myself watching Suspiria(1977) in YouTube. (check out the movie clip below...) The experience was surreal and scary at the same time. Surreal because of the movie's stunning visual style, exquisite set design, and a haunting soundtrack (by Goblin). It appealed to me especially because Suspiria addressed one of my personal fear: I am scared of closing the windows at night as I fear someone,( a thief, or a psycho..may be...LOL) will try to grab me from outsid...

5 reasons to watch Unsane, the horror film shot on iPhone

If you have a Netflix subscription go and check to see whether Steven Soderbergh's Unsane (2018) is streaming there, or try if a DVD/Bluray is available. Or if it is still playing in theaters in your neighborhood go and watch this thriller. It's worth your time. Yes, I am talking about 'that movie', which was shot entirely on an iPhone. However, Unsane is not the first movie to be shot with an iPhone, it is Tangerine(2015) directed by Sean Baker. Perhaps Tangerine might have given Soderbergh the idea to shoot his next movie with an iPhone. Here are the top reasons to watch Unsane: 1. The Crown actress Claire Foy Claire Foy is best known for portraying Queen Elizabeth II in the Netflix series The Crown . In Unsane she portrays Sawyer Valentini. She starts a new job to escape a stalker who has been persistently troubling her for two years. She seeks help from a counselor in the nearby hospital but she unwittingly signs some papers that get herself ad...