New Films, New Options, New Rumours....

That's great. F. Paul Wilson is a great writer and his Adversary Cycle (The Keep is book one) is a great read.

I have still to see the original version of the movie.
 
It's a long time since zi last watched it, but I wouldn't call the movie of The Keep awful, it's just very poorly edited and (the only copies I've seen) didn't have very clear viduals. A quick look on Youtube and there's a cleaned-up 4k intro to the movie, which mskes it look much more light it should have done.

Apparently the director's original version was around 210 minutes, which was eventually reduced to 96 on cinematic release. This gives you an indication of just how butchered the movie is, and why the director (quite rightly) would disown it.

With a 4k clean up, and with some of the missing material added back in, it still has the potential to be a great movie. But we probably won't see that.

As it is, the finsl 96 minutes does not do any justice yo yhd book on which it us made. It's a confusing mess; however the lead actors, the visuals and the movie lend the movie a very creepy, ethereal atmosphere that any newer mivie is likely to eschew.

Think the theatrical version of Lynch's Dune, or Alien3. Yes, the it has been destroyed on the cutting room floor, but for all that the creepy atmosphere still makes the movie worth watching. Just be prepared to be disappointed if you have read the original book.
 
paranoid marvin said:
Apparently the director's original version was around 210 minutes, which was eventually reduced to 96 on cinematic release. This gives you an indication of just how butchered the movie is, and why the director (quite rightly) would disown it.
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I don't know about the director but it was the writer, F Paul. Wilson who disowned it
 
AE35Unit said:
I don't know about the director but it was the writer, F Paul. Wilson who disowned it
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Probably because the 96 minute movie doesn't tell the story of the book. It's too short, and it tells.

This is from memory, as it's some years since I last watched it. There are redeeming qualities, but mainly through winsering what could have been. It has a very weird, ethereal quality to it and some of the visuals particularly of the Keep itself, stay in the memory. It was apparently partly filmed on location in Wales.
 
I saw a trailer for the new Joker film yesterday that was literally one minute of a man weeping in the rain, with a blue filter over the camera. I like the way that every Batman film has to be longer and "darker" than the previous one. It's like the Four Yorkshiremen sketch set in Gotham.

"In my version, Alfred is played by a pile of old rags, and Batman sits in his cave and just growls at himself for three hours."
"That's nothing! In my Batman film, Commissioner Gordon is reimagined as a heap of dead rats and it's nine hours long."
"Dead rats? Dead rats? You were lucky! My Batman would have been overjoyed to find a heap of dead rats! In my film, Batman sits in a sealed room for thirty-eight hours, punching himself in the face. There's a black cloth over the lens, that's how dark it is. And if you tell that to Adam West these days, he just won't believe you."
 
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Toby Frost said:
I saw a trailer for the new Joker film yesterday that was literally one minute of a man weeping in the rain, with a blue filter over the camera. I like the way that every Batman film has to be longer and "darker" than the previous one. It's like the Four Yorkshiremen sketch set in Gotham.

"In my version, Alfred is played by a pile of old rags, and Batman sits in his cave and just growls at himself for three hours."
"That's nothing! In my Batman film, Commissioner Gordon is reimagined as a heap of dead rats and it's nine hours long."
"Dead rats? Dead rats? You were lucky! My Batman would have been overjoyed to find a heap of dead rats! In my film, Batman sits in a sealed room for thirty-eight hours, punching himself in the face. There's a black cloth over the lens, that's how dark it is. And if you tell that to Adam West these days, he just won't believe you."
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There are times when I miss the Adam West's Batman...
 
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The Batman films are particularly bad examples of what I think of as "Gloomy Man Films", a genre pioneered by David Fincher, Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve (all of whom are genuinely good directors and have made really good stuff). A Gloomy Man Film is very long, completely humourless and ideally has no female characters. They tend to be slightly monochrome. They are immensely popular with a certain kind of male amateur "film critic", the sort of guy who has a Youtube channel called something like "True Secrets of the Screen Geniuses (no gay woke libs allowed)".
 
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Coming Out Friday, May 24, 2024​

The Garfield Movie​

A cynical and lazy orange cat named Garfield interacts with owner Jon Arbuckle and fellow pet Odie, a dog.


Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga​

A prequel to 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road.


Sight​

An inspiring true story that looks at what it means to see beyond one’s self. The film traces Dr. Wang’s journey from a young boy facing persecution in communist China, to becoming one of the leading eye surgeons in America and developing an innovative technology that restores sight in millions of people

 
I wouldn't mind a revival of I Know What You Did Last Summer, as the Netflix or Amazon revival I seen just wasn't that good. There was actually a third movie released, but while it was supposed to be a sequel, Ben Willis was more like a ghost. None of the original cast returned, but they briefly hint that Julie was either killed by the fisherman, or disappeared.

I think he got her in her bedroom in the second film, along with Ray. It just abruptly ended, so you don't know if she was dreaming.
 
The NYT has a periodic feature

Five Science Fiction Movies to Stream Now."​

The August 30 edition lists:
Kalki. 2898. Available on Netflix and Amazon Prime video
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From India, a film by Nag Ashwin, a previously Academy Award nominated director, It mixes action with Hindu mythology, predicting the birth of a savior of humanity. The review is quite positive, stressing it's unique (for westerners) blend.

Arcadian. Available on YouTube.
1725901668009.png

Nick Cage stars in a post apocalyptic adventure focusing on survival - and
monstars. Quoting, " This is a lean, effective story of survival and sacrifice — and Cage, if you must know, is wonderfully restrained."

The Blue Rose. Generally available for purchase.
1725902316136.png

A modern film noir, with young detectives. The review is mixed, saying that the acting is all over the place
Also, quoting: "The movie takes big swings. Some of them crash but enough of them land to make Baron someone worth following."

Sanitatem. On Tubi.
1725902806611.png

From 1918. A post apocalyptic film set in Germany. The riview is mixed, using a description of the main character as engaging in "Gloomy meandering."
It also says, quoting, " The film foreshadows a big plot point in a clumsy manner, but its slow, pensive pace offers a detached take on survival that’s surprisingly poetic at times."

Tomorrow's Game. On YouTube.
1725903901602.png

Quote, "Sci-fi sports movies don’t make up a thriving subgenre: - - - Now the directors Jonathan Coria and Trevor Wilson’s family-friendly combination of time travel and baseball is at the very least giving the streaming platforms’ algorithms something new to feed on." A kid goes back to 2002 to see his uncle break a barrier as the first Dominican player in US major league baseball. The reviewer was not carried away, but he did appreciate this treatment of prejudice and sports. Other reviewers loved this family oriented film. As a baseball junkie, I will probably watch it.
 
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I saw a trailer (maybe YouTube?) yesterday for Sonic the Hedgehog 3, I'm sure he said December this year
 
Rodders said:
That's great. F. Paul Wilson is a great writer and his Adversary Cycle (The Keep is book one) is a great read.

I have still to see the original version of the movie.
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Rodders , I think you're UK based . It's occasionally screened on Film4 .
 
Peter A said:
I wouldn't mind a revival of I Know What You Did Last Summer, as the Netflix or Amazon revival I seen just wasn't that good. There was actually a third movie released, but while it was supposed to be a sequel, Ben Willis was more like a ghost. None of the original cast returned, but they briefly hint that Julie was either killed by the fisherman, or disappeared.

I think he got her in her bedroom in the second film, along with Ray. It just abruptly ended, so you don't know if she was dreaming.
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Peter A , enjoyed the first two , but thought the third was awful .
 
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