As many of you know, I am a fan of Amazon Prime video selections. Let’s take a look at what I’ve been watching. They aren’t all great….in fact, this time I call it 50/50.
Here’s a list of my picks:
F/X 2
More cartoony than the first, but also more fun. I point to the inclusion of more screentime for Brian Dennehy as the main reason and some excellent action set pieces that make Rollie into a SPFX version of MacGyver. Strong acting holds the movie to the earth as the outlandish elements pile up. Don’t think about it later, but enjoy the heck out of the ride. Hang on! 9/10 https://amzn.to/3pJq8QW
The New Mutants
What a disappointing mess. Just not interesting, sub-par effects, dull and unlikeable characters…what else would you want? Something better to do with your time is the answer. 3/10 https://amzn.to/2UtUjwY
Top Gun
Recently revisited this with the 3D conversion, and while the conversion was cheap and cut rate, the original film still shines through. It may be dated these days, but still has good action scenes (even if you can’t tell where the jets are going half the time) and a nice tale of friendship with Maverick and Goose. If you haven’t seen it yet, catch it before the sequel hits the screens! 7/10 https://amzn.to/32PpmYA
The Dead Don’t Die
This is probably the most disappointing film I have watched all year…and it is November. Listen to this cast: Bill Murray. Adam Driver. Tilda Swinton. Steve Buscemi. Danny Glover. Rosie Perez. Stacked, right? You figure at least half of these actors would read the script before they take a film. I can only guess they either have some serious meth habits to support or they didn’t read the script. At all. The very convincing trailer makes this look like a great zombie satire like “Zombieland” or “Sean of the Dead”. What do you get? Awkward long held shots with stilted dialogue (expertly delivered, but still poop) and trying to palm itself off as clever. I read one review online that they thought the line about going back to “the things they did in life” was clever. Uhhhhh….that’s been part of the whole zombie thing since Romero first rolled some Z-boys into a mall. To add to the juvenile fourth wall breaks to make it seem meta, it makes a half-hearted stab at political commentary that actually made me sad for the screenwriters. Don’t waste your time. I should have heeded the warnings. 1/10 https://amzn.to/3pATkcP