Tubi Thursday: Godzilla vs Space Godzilla (1994)

 After a disappointing (but not terrible) Film last week, I wanted someone more reliable.

As such, let's jump back one Film from my last Godzilla Review and see how he battles a threat...from SPACE...Space...space...

This is Godzilla.

He's living on an Island, but G-Force wants to take him down.

A man named Yuki is really wanting him dead, even going so far as to make a 'magic bullet' to stop him!

This is Space Godzilla.

He's a crazy monster formed from Godzilla's cells exposed to radiation in space and combined with space cyrstals.

I have no follow-up questions.

After spending a bit of time setting up Yuki and Godzilla's rivalry (and the other Characters, I guess), the first match-up takes place.

Due to Space Godzilla's high reaction rolls, it injures Big G with his own blasts!

He also takes Little Goczilla (or Jr) away for maximum pathos.

Why it has a tractor beam is never quite explained.

Things are so bad that they bring out MOGERA, a Mech last seen in 1957's The Mysterians to battle it.

If you know the Band that based its name on said Movie, I hope you're enjoying your Medicare Part B Plans.

It all leads up to a prolonged showdown between the two creatures in a crystal-filled Tokyo.

Godzilla needs help, so Yuki and the others use MOGERA (split and together) to help turn the tide and the creature is defeated.

Yuki is (mostly) over his hatred now.
The End.

A pretty enjoyable Godzilla Film all around.

To be fair, some of the digital effects and use of a green/blue screen are...not always great.  Most work fine though.

Watching Space Godzilla fly around like a kite was unintentionally funny too.

I like the design of Space Godzilla.  How did he miss out on a return in Final Wars?
The bad guys were literally Space Aliens, after all!

The Human Plot was pretty interesting as well, with a newer focus on the lady having mental powers like telekinesis and Yuki's whole Arc.  It's not a letdown and it doesn't leave you wanting an immediate return to the Kaiju Action.

My only real critique, I guess, is that the fight between the two title Characters is mostly just blasting and standing still surrounded by crystals.  There must have been a way to make that more dynamic.

I think that maybe Godzilla's suit was getting worn out though, as shown by the tail in many Scenes.

Regardless, I still enjoyed this one a lot and now I need it on the best format ever- Laser MFing Disc!

The semi-finale to the middle run of Godzilla Films still holds up.  We need more of this two-horned Godzilla foe!

Shudder Day: Intruder (1989)

 As I near the middle of a long week of work, how about a Slasher set in a Store?

I've somehow never seen this Cult Classic, so let's check out...

In a small California town, a Grocery Store is engrossed in drama as one of their Employees has an ex-boyfriend show up and he's violent.

He's forced to leave and surely the drama ends there. 

They find out that the Store is going to be sold at the end of the Month.

The Staff isn't happy.
The Co-Owner (middle) is also not on board, but he has no choice.

What happens for the next hour or so is that the Staff all split up to do their jobs (like marking down all of the items).

As someone who has done 2 Store Closings, I get this.

I like Ted Raimi's chances of survival here.

Meanwhile, the ex-boyfriend (Craig) lingers about and seems to make his way in.

Oh, so he's the Intruder (not this one, Joe Bob) then.

The body count finally starts to rise.

If you've found this Movie in any form of physical media, you'll see it listed as Starring Bruce Campbell (who plays a Cop in the last Scene) and Sam Raimi.

The latter is the Butcher, who does not much until getting hung up on his own petard...I mean, meat hook.

Can our Final Girl stop the crazed killer?
Will you find a version that doesn't SPOIL who that is?

Well, here's one.

To find out how it all goes down, stream it now.

An enjoyable Slasher Film that checks all of the boxes.

Technically, Joe Bob doesn't quite agree, but that's all good.

The Film doesn't feature a bunch of big names.  It doesn't break the mold plot-wise.
The Title is also generic, but that was by design from the Distributor.

Given the setting and tone, I'd have gone with 10 Kills or Less.  Just saying.

Intruder, however, hits all of the right beats and has its own little quirks.

At worst, it is a bit cliche.
At best, however, it gives you everything you'd want out of a Slasher Film that is not part of a Franchise.

That and weird ass shots like the POV of...a Phone Receiver?!?

A fun Slasher Film that takes a bit to get going.  If you go into it looking for all of the tropes and a good time, they are both here.

Forgotten TV: 'The Outer Limits' Inspired Amazon's 'Upload?'

 Another Episode of this classic 1990s Show is up.

This time, it is an Episode about a man trying to help those suffering from various levels of brain death.
Can he help his 'Sleepers' as he goes to...

In the Cold Open, a man goes into a Coma and then leaves his room after waking up in the Hospital.

He goes down a hallway, but then sinks into quicksand!

A Scientist- Ralph Macchio- is studying people who are suffering from brain damage and aren't 'awake' in the conventional sense.

He thinks that he's making headway, but he needs another Patient.

A woman who is brought in meets the man in the strange Hallway.

She goes through the door- which he was afraid to- and discovers a small world made out of a combination of her memories and his.

I mean, he's not actually dead, but...this is a bit like 'Upload,' no?

Desperate to get results, Macchio drugs himself into a state where he can sync up with them.

After a few attempts, he's able to communicate with them and offer to bring them back.

He brings one man back...but then he dies.

He turned out to have a heart condition, but still.

He's told not to go near the patients- in the wake of a lawsuit- but he doesn't.

He goes back 'in' and guides the other Patients out 'the door' and they wake up.

Unfortunately, he's not able to get out.

He's all alone (provided you ignore the Crew Member in the background), but is determined to find his own way out.

The End.

A strong and endearing Episode really anchored by Macchio.

The idea is pretty simple- a guy is trying to save people in a strange environment.  He uses science that sounds close enough to ours to not be hard sci-fi (so no warp drives, etc), but also with enough leeway to be something plausible for the story.

As noted, there have been many Shows and Movies that have touched upon/sounded like this one.  Even so, the simple explanation here works.

You don't get too deep into lore and anyone can follow this.

There's just enough here for the hour long runtime to hook you, but not be so dense that it might lose you.

All in all, this is a simple, yet effective tale that never got a Sequel (which a few of these did).

I should also mention that the Lead Guy in the, well, coma group was once a very young Superman in 1978...

Next time, some people manage to find a workaround for death.  I'm sure that there's no danger there!  See you then.

Forgotten Sequels?: 'The Sixth Sense' Has a Sequel...in Book Form!

 I see dead Sequels!

The Sixth Sense was a massive hit and made M. Night Shyamalan into a big time Director.
Within a year, it got a Sequel.

So why does nobody talk about it?

Well, because it was a Book released by Scholastic and marketed to kids.

It was...

As noted, this follows the Film.

For a quick recap, a kid named Cole learned that he could see Ghosts.
He worked with a Therapist to deal with issues.

That guy turned out to be a Ghost as well and vanished.

Now the actual Plot...

Cole has adjusted (somewhat) to his powers and regained a bit of his social life.

All is well until he's on a Field Trip to a Museum and a plane crashes right nearby!

This is a Book and this is from 'Know1ng'

Cole and his friend Jason make the mistake of saying that they saw it.

This gets them questioned by a Cop and then all sorts of attention at School.

Cole soon starts to see many Ghosts from the crash, including a 'broken' Nurse, a Russian man and a friendly girl.

'Ghost Ship'

Cole befriends the girl ghost- Marissa- while working with the Cop to figure out what happened and wake up a comatose girl (aka Marissa's Sister).

Along the way, the Cop reveals that his long-missing Brother could also see Ghosts.
Sure- why not?

In a series of twists, Cole learns that the girl's Mom has been dead this whole time, that the Russian guy didn't do it and that the comatose girl could ALSO see Ghosts.

She was following a Ghost into the cockpit- specifically the Ghost of the Russian Guy's Brother!

Yep, a Ghost did it.

'13 Ghosts' (Remake)

A decent Book, but I should make things clear.

I was probably *about* the right demographic for this Book when it came out...in 2000.
It is fairly short (140 pages or so) and done on VERY big Font.

Now if you're asking why a Drama not made for kids/teens has a Book written explicitly for them, you are asking the right questions.

I will also point you to Cartoons from my youth based on Robocop, Mortal Kombat, Rambo and Savage Dragon.

High points- they nail Cole as a Character and give him a decent Arc here.  They do more with the Ghosts appearing on a consistent basis than the Film did.  A few references to Willis' Character does tie things together.

Low points- too many twists in the final section.  If you get hit by a water balloon, you remember it.  If you get hit by a dozen more in a few minutes, you won't remember that first one quite so much.

They also brought in TOO many people that could see Ghosts.  It's like they couldn't think of new things to bring to this Story, so they just did 'Person sees Ghosts' and 'Someone was a Ghost all along' again.

I suppose I should also mention that there are TWO more Books, meaning that there are *technically* more parts to The Sixth Sense than M. Night's actual Trilogy (Unbreakable, Split, Glass)....

It's a fun, forgotten piece of history regardless of how good or bad the Book may be.  When even I somehow didn't know that these existed, what does that tell you?

Import/Export : The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2009)

 3 Books.  4 Films.  1 dead Author.

This is The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo, specifically the Original Film from Sweden.  It got remade quite famously in 2011 by David Fincher.

That Remake, however, didn't get a Sequel to finish the Story. 
Hell, America officially only got Fincher's version of the 1st Book and then a lone Film based on a Book not written by Stieg Larsson.

He had a good excuse.

If you don't know, the Plot involves a defamed Reporter named Michael (in English) being hired to solve a decades-old Mystery for a rich family.  He teams up with Lisbeth Salander and they discover just how crazy things are.

This Original version was made for $13 million, as opposed to the alleged $100 million for Fincher's version.  Is it (does Math) one 7th as good?

To find out, read on...

Michael Blomkvist (played by Michael Nyqvist) is a Reporter who just lost a big case of defamation to a rich guy.

His punishment is a big fine and 6 months in jail.

Lisbeth Salander (played by Noomi Rapace) is a Hacker with a dark past and is not exactly loved by the law.

She does research for some rich folks and looks up Michael.

He's hired by a rich, old guy who wants him to solve the disappearance (and likely murder) of his Niece...in 1966.

Cue the evidence wall.

Meanwhile, Lisbeth's new Ward takes over and he's abusive.

He strikes her, ties her to the bed and, well, you can figure it out.

After she recovers, she gets her revenge.

She gives him what he gave her (again- you can figure it out) and then forcibly tattoos a message on his chest about what he did as a permanent reminder.

(The Remake has a follow-up Scene with him being chastised for considering having his tattoo removed.  This doesn't)

Lisbeth works the case on her own and makes a big discovery in the case.

She makes it so that he can find and recruit her, which he does.

Their relationship is...complicated.

The whole case ends up being about an abusive cycle of a killer raising his own killers.

One of the Uncles knows that they are close and tries to kill Michael.

Lisbeth saves the day and then makes sure that the man dies in a car fire, triggering memories of how she burned her abusive father to death in his car (making her a 'ward of the state').

They also find out that the girl was NOT one of her victims.

More digging reveals that the girl- Harriet- has been hiding out in Australia all of this time and sending him the flowers to 'let him know that she's alive.'

She has a tearful reunion and confesses that the Uncle abused her so badly that she had to get away.

She was helped off of the island by her Sister and hid out.

Michael finally goes to jail- minimum security- but is then given enough evidence to take down the bad guy who wronged him by Lisbeth.

He is vindicated and the man dies (how he does varies by which version you watch) and he figures out that Lisbeth stole lots of money from him.

The End.

A Film that hits as hard as the American one, although I can't speak for the Book.

Maybe I'll finish the 25 other Books I've bought with intention to read and get back to this Series.  For now, it's just the Film(s).

What this version does really well is balance the 2 Leads and the focus on them.  The American one tends to focus a bit more on Michael, whereas this one gives them more of an equal focus.

Lisbeth objectively has the more interesting and complicated backstory. 
Plus, the Book is named after her!

Noomi Rapace is so good here too. I can't wait to see her in the next 2 Films.

There are many odd little tweaks between the 2 versions.  For instance, the yearlong story is explained as 6 months on the case and 6 months in jail here.  In the American version, it is just a year to work the case.

The Swedish Film is actually more subdued with the graphic stuff.  Then again, it isn't by the guy who made Seven, so...that tracks.

If you only know the Remake, watch the Original.  I watched it subbed, which is what they actually filmed and it does force you to pay attention.

It might not be better- that's 100% subjective- but it absolutely stands on its own merits.

The odd thing- the quirky Production Company Logo for a Film involving such dark themes and murder...

It does have a visible dragon tattoo as well.

Next up, the 2nd Book becomes a Film too- just only in Sweden.  Will this follow-up shock and delight as much as the 1st one?  Stay tuned...

Tubi Thursday: Road Wars- Max Fury (2024)

 I can't be bothered to even give this my Max Fury, to be honest.

It's a Film by The Asylum.
You probably guessed that.

Is it any good though?

This is possibly a Sequel to 'Road Wars,' but don't worry about it.

A small group of survivors in a vaguely post-apocalyptic world kick out a bad guy (Vernon Wells) for what he did.

Of course, that just means making him go like 10 feet away...and he just shoots one of them.

5 years later, the children of that guy are living with a Stepmom and, well, the most useless survivor.

They bicker, since young people in a Film, and don't agree on what to do.

The bad guy is apparently still just kind of hanging around this small stretch of (I assume) California desert they live in.

He now has face paint like Mr. Fuji managing Demolition and a small crew of men still looking for the rest of those who 'wronged' him.

The Stepmom and guy (Egon?) are pretty useless, with the latter getting wounded and just kind of laying around for 90% of the Film.

The lady does kill a bad guy or two but then (softly) falls over after firing her gun.

I think she's supposed to be sick, but it just looks sad.

Now it is up to the young ladies to get medicine and save the day!

Can they survive the (tiny stretch of California) wasteland?
Will Wells get his revenge?

To find out, stream it now!

It's not the worst Film, but it is far less than advertised!

Are there Road Wars in Road Wars: Max Fury?  Yeah...no.
People drive cars slowly on desert roads until you get one car pushing another in the climax.

Wasteland action?  Well...a little.
Generic guys in generic Wasteland Attire mostly go down in one shot and have no characteristics.

The Wasteland is just the California Desert, save for (literally) a 10 second CGI shot of a knocked over car.

So is there nothing good here?

Honestly, the Acting is alright, it's nice to have Female Leads (the redeeming thing about their Jumanji rip-off) and they do clearly have a little bit of a story here.
Wells tries his best to be menacing at, well, nearly 80 years old.

This isn't a terrible Film, but it is also NOTHING like what it promises to be.

This guy would not be pleased...

A Film that could have been some ridiculous nonsense.  Unfortunately, they didn't try too hard and got, well, this.

Rip-Off Cover Art: Beast of War (2025)

 This Australian Shark Film was fun.

I mentioned the connections between this Film and Jaws.

Well, someone selling the Film on DVD/etc. didn't think it was quite enough.

So that's how we got this...

Apologies for the low quality.

That's just the Shark from the Jaws Poster.

Come on, now!

FYI this is not a bootleg or anything (as far as I can tell).

This is the same picture (in slightly better quality) from a DVD release...

Has Copyright law changed without me finding out?

I don't think so...