Sir-Final_Thoughts-No_Review

Flash Gordon, a famous comic strip character created in the 30s by Alex Raymond as King Publishing's entry into the Sci-Fi genre after the successes of Buck Rogers and John Carter, Warlord Of Mars gets the movie treatment in 1980 from producer Dino De Laurentiis.

A fascinating note to mention is George Lucas was apparently turned down in his pitch to direct this and went on to make some movie called Star Wars instead. Another notable name attached was Italian influential powerhouse director Federico Fellini (!?) whose production never got off the ground. Instead it is helmed by Mike Hodges whose is known mostly for 1971's Get Carter and Damien: Omen Part II. Oh my what could have been.

A cult favorite since its release, and parodied in a memorable Family Guy episode, its also well noted for its famous theme song by the band Queen. Some notable actors also include Ingmar Bergman favorite Max Von Sydow and a pre James Bond Timothy Dalton.

As for the movie itself, overall pretty campy. Enjoyable for sure but never hits its ceiling. Alot of kinetic editing will leave you having to fill in the gaps yourself which for me always hurts. The plot also feels rushed. A really good Flash Gordon story needs more than this runtime of 114 minutes to make a real impact and it really could have been more. The acting and directing are not always the best, but I felt it didn't really matter here. I was looking strictly for entertainment which was for the most part attained.

Feels like this movie and another Di Laurentiis Sci-Fi epic a few years later. Dune were hampered from being great by significant studio interference which sucks. Dune thankfully got its due diligence well over 30 years later

Worth a watch for its pop culture signifcance.

Not a best picture candidate for sure, but definitely an enjoyable romp of a movie made with good intentions and a strong effort to really make it play out like a comic book.

A Warren Beatty double duty as the main actor as well as director, Dick Tracy is a well known comic book character dating back to the 1930s, a detective with a very colorful rogues gallery and sporting a trademark yellow trenchcoat and hat and a police transmittor watch.

The cast has a VERY notable collection of some of the best actors ever! Two of who were in other memorable movies also released in 1990, Misery and Goodfellas. Another two who acted with Beatty in one of my favorites Bonnie & Clyde, and another two who were both in the first Godfather. And of course Madonna! At the peak of her powers and one year fresh off a high profile divorce from Sean Penn, looking to transition to acting a bit more and does a lovely job as Breathless Mahoney.

I found it very fun, extremely vibrant with colour (the colour schemes of the buildings as Pacino's character exits into the street halfway in), and thought the story was overall pretty good and left no loose ends and had a happy ending. The comic book violence was certainly a nice added touch as well, and honestly how could you go wrong with music by Danny Elfman? Instantly recognizable from the opening credits. Plus a soundtrack mostly made with Madonna songs including an academy award winner (Sooner or Later).

This is certainly a movie I think will age well. Not perfect but you shouldn't be looking for perfection here anyways.

A fascinating achievement by Hiroshi Teshigahara, Kobo Abe and crew is the film Woman In the Dunes. Art house films at their finest right here. A black and white beauty where the environment can almost be classified as the star. Countless images of sand will fill the screen and its symbolism to the themes the movie presents is key in many ways. If you're tired of Hollywood fanfare, and the same old formula over and over; japanese cinema offers plenty of different flavours to satisfy a craving for something else.

Briefly explaining the movie, an entomologist (the study of bugs and insects) who is also a teacher, travels out to a remote village by the coast in an area surrounded by dunes to find those rarer insects like antlions and sand beetles. He decides to take a nap and wakes up to find he has missed the last bus back to the city. Desperate for shelter for the night, he accepts an offer by the villagers to stay in the lodgings of a sole woman, and her hut just so happens to be in a sandpit! From this point on, the movie unfolds in countless cerebral layers that examine themes of existentialism, despair, and hopelessness, among others. It's psychological horror in a way that doesn't rely on shocks and scares, but harsh realism that really puts the fear into you. Its very well told and paced and it held me in a grip to find out the fate of these characters. Eiji Okada as the entomologist and Kyoko Kishida as the woman are wonderful actors and are the main characters with whom we interact with the most. Hits of surrealism throughout this only add to its allure.

I'm quickly becoming a fan of director Hiroshi Teshigahara. The Face of Another (considered his other highpoint after this) is next on the list. His use of shots and angles here create a work of art. How easy it could have been to turn this into a clunker (usually movies filmed in mostly one location don't tend to be too exciting like Schumacher's Phone Booth or Herzog's My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done) but he molds it into something too strange to be ignored, and too beautiful to look away. Weird movies like these I absolutely want to eat up all the time. A remake, thankfully there hasn't been any, would only damage its potency. It has a satisfying conclusion and it should be left at that.

A must watch gem! This may in fact be given a 10 in the future, I am definitely on the fence.