absolutebadasses

AMERICAN MADE (2017) : Doug Liman
Tom Cruise, Sarah Wright, Domhnall Gleeson, Jesse Plemons

on the Movie Screen TOM CRUISE has few equals, the man is a bonefied action star, a charasmastic movie magnet, a film icon and in my eyes one of the Greatest Movie Stars that’s ever lived – ok so now I have that off my chest what did I make of his second movie with filmaker Doug Liman AMERICAN MADE is a film based around a true story of pilot come drug runner Barry Seal – films that fly under the radar & deliver the goods are few and far between yet American Made succeeds big time – from the time I sat in my seat in the jam packed screening to it’s final credits time flew – there’s a darkness, a terrifying story being told yet you can’t help but smile, laugh and at time clap your way through proceedings, the pace is electric, the locations pleasing on the eye and attention to detail superb – it seems Liman and Cruise are a match made in movie heaven and with this being there second picture together only whets the lips for a third ★★★★

BLADE RUNNER 2049 : Denis Villeneuve
Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis

In 1982 Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner was one of my first Science Fiction crushes, it’s still in My Top 20 movies of all time so when I heard a sequel was coming, I was sceptical but then something changed….. it was announced that Canadian filmmaker Denis VILLENEUVE was set to direct, the talent behind some of my favorite movies in recent years Prisoners, Enemy, Sicario and Arrival and I instantly knew that this film when it arrived would be worthy of the name Blade Runner – and as I’m sat here typing my thoughts, still giddy with the excitment felt viewing the movie for the second time with a little Hans Zimmer playing in the background I’m actually struggling to find the words on how bloody great Blade Runner 2049 actually is – it’s a picture that’s more than a homage laid sci-fi sequel, this is filmmaking on a grand scale, Deakins use of color and light is quite overwhelming, a small but fine example of this is them early scenes between K and Morton, the way the scene is lit, it’s mood that’s transformed to the screen adds greatly to this tense, titanic and very relevant encounter – along with the movies obvious masterclass in sound & imagery Blade Runner 2049 is a film that carries a wicked cast, with 4 amazing ladies hugging the limelight and making this sequel extra special – Ana de Armas is eye catching as hologram Joi, so much so you start to believe she’s actually real – Mackenzie Davis is simply WOW as street girl Mariette with her homage strewn outfit and amazing hairstyle – and then there’s Lt. Joshi a tough ass cop played by the remakable Robin Wright who’s perfectly cast and last but not least Dutch actress Sylvia Hoeks who is MESMERISING as Niander Wallace’s creation Luv, she’s quite the badass and those scenes with K near the end of the movie are so unbelievable I left half my finger nails in the arm of the chair – Overall Blade Runner 2049 is not only the best movie sequel since Cameron’s Aliens it’s also a thought provoking slice of original storytelling that sucks you in, captivates and excites like no other movie has this year ★★★★½

Views On Weinstein

Posted by absolutebadasses on October 19, 2017

Posted in: Views. Tagged: accusations, actors, actresses, blog, cinema, film geek, films, Gwyneth Paltrow, Harvey Weinstein, hollywood, Jennifer Lawrence, Katherine Kendall, love movies, Mira Sorvino, monster, movie fan, movies, Name Names, Naming Names, quentin tarantino, reese witherspoon, Romola Garai, Rosanna Arquette, Rose McGowan, Zoe Brock. Leave a comment

as a middle aged man and a huge fan of the movies I have to say I am absolutley disgusted, livid and so damn angry by the Harvey Weinstein scandal that has rocked the entertainment arena these last few weeks – reading the accusations by actresses throughout the globe has left a sour taste in my mouth and made me sick to my stomach thinking what other perverts, sexual predators lurk behind their masks of power – and just to be clear I feel Weinstein is the tip of the iceberg, there are others who have abused or humiliated and this has to be stopped – and in my opinion the only way to do this is for the victims of abuse (and there are many) to start naming names, bring these creeps out into the public domain and stop making oscar like speeches whether that be on social media or at luncheons expressing on how you don’t feel alone anymore and start helping the less fortunate who look up to a lot of these big stars by publicly naming the directors/producers etc who assaulted you when you were younger? Reese Witherspoon recently came out and said she was assaulted multiple times when she was 16 – has she named those who abused her NO why not? surely if the likes of an A lister came out and named her abuser this would give others less prominent the strength to make the same stand. Another is Jennifer Lawrence who usually never shy’s away in shouting from the rooftops over equality in pay for actresses etc but did she name the producers who she recently claimed degraded her when she was much younger? no she did not and why? I also don’t understand actresses who not only have come out and talked about their abuse but in recent years have been seen in the company of their abuser smiling, arm in arm? if it was me I would be miles away from the creep – YES my heart breaks for these ladies but the truth also needs to be heard, why have the majority stayed silent for so long? why take in some cases hush money and the promise to further ones career whilst altogther helping your abuser to victimise others? Shame on you all for allowing this to happen and Shame on those the likes of Quentin Tarantino who recently announced that he had knowledge of some of the Weinstein accusations and did nothing, I am sure he is not the only one either who knew what was happening, why would you stay friends with or keep your mouth shut knowing that this monster was at large choosing instead to turn a blind eye. Wouldn’t it be so refreshing for stars to come out and say “YES you know what I was abused when I was younger and then name & shame their abuser” NOW that’s what I call being corageous…..

MOTHER ! (2017) : Darren Aronofsky
Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer

a little Polanski, slices of Kubrick but mostly MOTHER ! is Darren Aronofsky at his twisted, nightmarish best – those who knock the creativity on the big screen then take a good look, admire and be blown away by this original slice of movie making, the big screen was made for this. Javier Bardem is great as the mysterious husband but who would have dreamt up Ed Harris & Michelle Pfeiffer as a married couple? Aronofsky did and let’s thank the gods, they ooze chemistry, drip intrigue and look so bonkers together it’s unreal. Overall Mother! is a powerful, emotional and stunning piece of original movie making – the star of the movie is Jennifer Lawrence who is in my opinion one of the screens modern great film stars, she captivates her audience with boundless energy, natural beauty and raw emotion – she truly does give Aronofsky’s Mother! it’s heart ★★★★½

WIND RIVER (2017) : Taylor Sheridan
Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Jon Bernthal

WIND RIVER is directed by the talent that is Taylor Sheridan the filmmaker who penned Sicario and Hell or High Water – the film is based on a true story and covers the dark, terrifying subject matter of the disappearance of young women in an indian reservation town in Wyoming – although Taylor Sheridan deserves the plaudits for his smart script & direction kudos must also go to Ben Richardson for his photography that captures the harshness of the terrain and simplicty of each character – this is Jeremy Renner’s best performance since Hurt Locker, he really is a quality actor who gives a towering display playing this humble, loss driven wildlife tracker who finds the body of a girl in the snowy terrain – Renner is backed up onscreen brilliantly by the impressive, natural Elizabeth Olsen who once again demonstrates her ability to inhabit a character making it believable to us the audience, her FBI character is one of determination and will stop at nothing to uncover the truth – Wind River is a haunting, gutsy thriller ★★★★

IT (2017) : Andy Muschietti
Jaeden Lieberher, Bill Skarsgård, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard

I absolutley loved Stephen King’s IT and was a huge fan of the 1990 mini-series so when I heard that Andy Muschietti was bringing it to the big screen and the fabulous talent of Bill Skarsgard was playing Pennywise the Clown I was intrigued, excited and pretty much beside myself counting down the months to opening – well having now seen the movie I can honestly say that Muschietti has delivered the goods, not only does the film do justice to King’s novel but it will scare the holy moly out of you, it’s more brutal, uncompromising than the 90’s mini-series, it’s also jam packed full of typical King humor, great music and some inspired casting in the form of the Losers Club – for me Skarsgård deserves some award love for his dark, twisted portrayal of Pennywise the dancing clown, the menace of his vocals and his terrifying appearance certainly scared me and was actually pretty acurate to the book – I was also blown away by the lovely Sophia Lillis who is destined for greatness, her Beverly was played like a John Hughes character, sweet, aluring exterior with a gritty tough interior – them difficult scenes with her onscreen dad and the bloody bathroom were handled with a self assured maturity that will no doubt make her a huge star in the future and I must also mention the young Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard who was dynamite as Richie, his expressions and funny one liners erupted the cinema in laughter on several occassions, he was so good – overall IT is a refreshing R Rated Horror Movie that will give you night terrors as you eagerly await it’s sequel ★★★★½

“Samurai Manji has taken a lot of lives, both innocent and guilty, and now lives life in feudal Japan as a criminal. After being cursed with immortality until he kills enough evil men, Manji meets a young girl who enlists him to be her body-guard. Swearing loyalty, protection and vengeance against the group of sword fighters who slaughtered her family, the unlikely duo set on a remarkable quest of to make right against those who did them wrong.” – HOLY SHIT this looks all kinds of BADASS AWESOME – can you believe that this is Takashi Miike’s 100th movie – of recent times I have been left breathless by this Japanese filmmaker, his own brand of chaos raining down with movies such as Thirteen Assassins and Yakuza Apocalpyse both ballsy & breathtaking in their execution so if his latest Blade of the Immortal comes anywhere close to these two gems then this film guy will be elated – Blade of the Immortal is based on a Japanese manga series by Hiroaki Samura and looks visually stunning – hope you enjoy the trailer….

Saturday Night Live’s Taran Killam directs Arnold Schwarzenegger, Cobie Smulders and Bobby Moynihan in action comedy KILLING GUNTHER and judging by the below trailer this could be one hell of a night eating popcorn and chuckling your way through some rather stupid but fun slapstick comedy – Arnie plays Gunther (the world’s greatest hit-man) but is in deep deep trouble, a bunch of disgruntled assassins decide they want him dead and that’s where the fun really starts…..

Tobe Hooper (1943-2017)

Posted by absolutebadasses on August 29, 2017

Posted in: Views. Tagged: film blog, film fan, filmmaker, films, horror legend, iconic, leatherface, movie geek, movie news, movie time, movies, poltergeist, salems lot, scary movies, texas chainsaw massacre, the fun house, tobe hooper, tobe hooper texas chainsaw, vhs. Leave a comment

TOBE HOOPER (1943-2017) – directed one of the truly great films of our time, and in my eyes the scariest, most brutal raw ride into terror that i’ve witnessed – THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE stills gives me chills as it did when I first came across it as kid watching it on video over a friends whilst his parents were at work – I was HORRIFIED it gave me NIGHTMARES but it also started my love affair with all things horror – you will be missed but your legacy of horror such as TEXAS, THE FUN HOUSE, SALEM’S LOT, LIFEFORCE and POLTERGEIST will continue to entertain and inspire a new legion of fans forever…..

Sam Shepard dies aged 73

Posted by absolutebadasses on August 1, 2017

Posted in: Views. Tagged: actor, actor made of stern stuff, cinema, film blog, film star, films, jessica lange, movies, paris texas, playwright, Sam Shepard, samshepardRIP, star, the right stuff, theatre, thunderheart, writer. Leave a comment

the gravelly voice, handsome looks and steely gut driven performances is what I think of when someone mentions SAM SHEPARD yet this guy had so much more in his locker, a talented playwright, a veteran of the stage and writing credits that include the sublime film Paris, Texas – in recent times we had the pleasure of Sam’s acting talent as papa Rayburn in the brilliant Bloodline and although his screen time was limited his quality in each scene shone through – for me my favourite Sam Shepard roles include Thunderheart, The Assassination of Jesse James and of course the brilliant The Right Stuff – he will be missed down here but I’m pretty darn sure that he’ entertaining the masses up there….