Since I was a little kid, I’ve been a fan of Japanese giant monster movies. When I’d watch them on TV during Saturday afternoons, I’d always be disappointed if the movie didn’t feature Godzilla or Gamera. There weren’t many of them but they did exist. One such movie is 1970’sContinue Reading
While watching Last Action Hero, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Demolition Man. Both featured big action stars (Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, respectively.) Both films came out in 1993 when big-budget action hero films were starting to slip at the box office. Both take a satirical look atContinue Reading
I’ve regularly made fun of Nicolas Cage for never meeting a script he didn’t like. Or, more likely, a paycheck. Mr. Cage has been in 20 films in the last five years, including this month’s The Old Way. Even though he’s won an Academy Award, he’s sometimes viewed as aContinue Reading
Inspired by a story his grandfather told him, Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicolas Cage) searches for a treasure hidden by the Knights Templar. Following a string of clues centered around the Declaration of Independence, Gates, along with his assistant, Riley (Justin Bartha) and National Archives curator Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger), attemptContinue Reading
While browsing Criterion Collection titles at my local Barnes and Noble, a fellow shopper recommended The Sword of Doom. His opinion was totally unsolicited but I entertained him by looking at the cover. I am by no means knowledgeable about samurai films but the synopsis on the back of theContinue Reading
In 1501, somewhere in Europe, a band of mercenary soldiers led by Martin (Rutger Hauer) is double-crossed by a nobleman named Arnolfini (Fernando Hilbeck.) Initially promising Martin and his men riches if they recapture the town from which he’d been ousted, Arnolfini changes his mind. Once they’ve claimed the townContinue Reading
When Dr. Jan Benes, a scientist carrying Cold War secrets inside his brain, is nearly assassinated, a medical team and their submarine are miniaturized and injected into his blood stream to help save him. Sounds completely plausible, right? That’s the plot-line of 1966’s Fantastic Voyage. The film opens with aContinue Reading