Tubi Thursday: Fear of Clowns 2 (2007)

 In 2011, I reviewed the Original (here).  I had no idea that there was a Sequel.
Well, it came out in 2007.

In 2024, I finally get around to it.  Enjoy...

To recap (if you can't be bothered to read the previous Review), this lady had a Fear of Clowns, but also only painted them.

After 2 pointless sub-plots, she escaped this muscle-bound Clown who wanted to kill her.

Some vague amount of time later, he's escaped and he's made some friends.  They should put that on the Poster!

The Cop is also suffering from some rare (made up Brain Disease) to boot.  The pay-off is pretty much nill.

Alongside the Orderly (who's along for the ride), he gets two other Patients to go full Bozo.

They do look alright...it's just a shame that the 'Three Clowns' Plot is as useful or interesting as the Three Jokers Plot.

The Film replaces Sub-Plot Padding with, well, Slasher Film Padding.

We get Cop freaking out Scenes.
We get more random Characters that exist only to die.

We also get a whole section involving some Farmers and this lady from *Adult* Films.

This is enough to get it to 85 minutes, but is it good?

No.  It's not.

*****

I'm happy to see that my lack of excitement to get around to watching this was pretty warranted.  I said that the original was 'decent.'

This one had potential- more killers, more action and more stakes.
This one didn't deliver.

One of the three Clowns is killed off in only his 2nd appearance, while the surviving one just kind of wanders 2 Scenes behind everyone until the Finale.

This is also what is referred to as 'An Idiot Story.'  In short, it only works because everyone is an idiot.
For instance, our Hero plans a trap for the Clown...but his buddies don't actually prepare- at all.
They literally leave their guns in their cars and don't have them for the Finale.

Chalk one up for Something Deadpool Can Do, But Other Films Can't.

There are glimpses of a good- or at least better- and more entertaining Film here.  Adult Film Star, for instance, gets cut in half (in one swing, mind you) and they *almost* pull off the effect, with her slowly 'realizing' her situation.

I wanted to go 'Wow- this one is an improvement.'  Sadly, it's not and most of the Cast have done little since.

On the plus side, I did check and there's no 3rd Film.  As such, I won't be getting another surprised in 2037...

A low-budget Horror Film with a decent idea behind.  Sadly, it is confusing, drawn and out and underwhelming.  Boo?

DC Talk: Superman- Unbound (2013)

 People are scouring the Internet for Footage or Behind the Scenes Shots of the new Superman Film online.

Instead of wasting my time with that, I checked out a Superman Cartoon that I missed from 2013.

Before they went all grim dark to end their DTV Animated Universe (which was more successful than their Live Action one) recently, they kept things going nicely.

Granted- much of it was straight adaptations of Comic Book Stories in the order that they took place in originally.  That's the case today as this one adapts a 2011 Comic that follows the arc in 'Superman-Batman' that introduced Supergirl (released as Superman-Batman: Apocalypse).

I've never read that Comic, but I saw the Film.
Let's check it out...

It's a Bird!
It's a Plane!

It's...Supergirl!

She flies into action to save Lois Lane from some bad guys.

She is later joined by her Cousin- Superman- who tells her that she needs to do better.

To be fair, she took some risks.

Ooh, conflict.

A strange object crashes into the Earth.

It's a Robot that Superman fights and eventually beats.

He takes it back to the Fortress of Solitude, which freaks out Supergirl when she sees it!

It belonged to Brainiac, who conquered and trapped her home World of Kandor.  
He shrunk it down for his collection.

Superman gets proactive and goes out to find the villain before he gets to Earth.

He finds the Giger-eque ship.

His first encounter doesn't end well, with Brainiac capturing him and gaining information about Earth.

Thanks to Superman going there, Brainiac will now go there.
What a twist!

He, of course, escapes and they battle again on Earth.

Can Superman defeat this odd combination of Brainiac and Bane (who looks more like Martian Manhunter) created for this Arc?

To find out, check out the Film now.

A good Film, even if I have some reservations/issues with it as a whole.

To start with, I'm not a huge fan of the Art Style- at least when it comes to Superman.  That's 100% subjective, but I had to get that out there.

My bigger issue is with the change to Brainiac in both Comic and Film.  I don't necessarily like giant, 'roided out' Brainiac.  I think the idea was to go 'What if this super-smart character was also super-strong?'

Personally, I think that it takes away from Brainiac a bit if the Finale inevitably involves a big fist fight with him.  It's too 'easy.'

Those complaints aside, the Film has humor, action and heart.  They give everyone a nice little Arc- especially for a 70-minute Film- and everything pays off.  Matt Bomer- cast here before being put in Doom Patrol- is a good Superman too.

This one probably benefits greatly from watching it in order.  You'll get more context about the Characters like Supergirl and why she is the way she is.

The Film is fine- not amazing- but I still recommend it for Comic Book fans.

Now, just to ruin it for one Reader personally, here's Superman as CM Punk...

Who knew that Mindy's Bakery delivered to Kandor too?!?

Before they started the DCEU proper, they could make good Films for the Video/Streaming Market.  Who'd have guessed?

Immediate Response: Ghostbusters- Frozen Empire

 After a nostalgic return to form in 2021, can they follow things up with a good Sequel?

Let's find out...

The Good

* A brand-new Story here- no Gozer or anything- that feels like a big version of what you would see on the Animated Series int the '80s.

* The mix of new and old Cast here is nice as the young folks drive the Plot and the OGs anchor the experience for another part of the Audience.
They all have Character Arcs too.

* The new Villain is big in scale, scary and quite powerful.

* Supporting Actors- like Patton Oswalt, Kumail Nanjiani, Emily Alyn Lind and James Acaster- bring some more depth to the Story and Film overall.

* Everything builds nicely to a big finale that I quite enjoyed.

* Walter Peck is back!

The Bad

* Trailers be damned- the big selling point from them comes near the End.  That's not the Film's fault though.

* Are there too many Characters?  I don't think so, but I can see people's points.  If they could have made a Limited Streaming Series, they could have paced things differently.

* Not enough Bill Murray or Annie Potts.

I really enjoyed Afterlife as an attempt to be more serious and return the Franchise.  

This one has similar depth, but feels more like a big-screen TV adventure in all of the right ways.

Check it out!

Lost in Translation?: Reservoir Dogs

 A Poster and alternate Title that makes me wonder something for the first time...

What does the Title even mean?

As someone who just knew the Film as 'that cool heist Film with the Ear Scene,' it never occured to me that I should wonder what the Title even meant.

Well, in Italy, the Film has a different Title...

According to Google (so it must be right!), it means 'The Hyenas' or 'Hyenas.'

I guess if a 'Reservoir Dog' is one you can't trust at all- which I think is the idea- then I guess this Title gets the same point across.

Plus, it avoids an American Idiom...assuming that it even is one.

Here's another one (since I couldn't decide which to use)...

Okay, so truth time...

I'm not the only one to never bother wondering what the Title meant, right?  Right?!?

Poor Bastards of Cinema: Reservoir Dogs

 Before I get to some more Quentin Tarantino stuff that I've got planned, let's wrap this one up.

I neglected to highlight this rare case (not a Rare Case though) of a Poor Bastard who goes out in a blaze of glory.

Given the context, they still qualify for this.
You'll see...

In Reservoir Dogs, late in the Film we see the tail end of the infamous heist gone wrong.

Our Heroes (?) are making their escape, but lose their car (and driver).
As such, they try to stop a new one...

This woman, however, is not just going to let this happen.

She goes for a gun she keeps in her car (this is 1990's L.A. after all)

She shoots Mr. Orange- who spends half of the Film bleeding out from said wound- as he goes for her door.

He...gets his receipt seconds later though.

A true pyrrhic victory.

At least she goes out with a great face of death (and a great bump- as she is a Stunt Woman).

So, to review, a random woman is just driving somewhere.  People try to car jack her.
She fights back and dies.

She has no name- thus a Poor Bastard.

With that out of the way, let's see if I can get regular updates going on this Segment again...

Tubi Thursday: The Killing of a Sacred Deer

 Instead of something nice and fun, I forced myself to watch this.

Now I feel like a Poor Little Thing...

A Doctor- Colin Farrell- has a curious relationship with a young man (Barry Keoghan- playing 16) who keeps coming around to see him.

Something is off.

The young man gets a bit obsessive, coming off like a stalker or a spurned lover (a la Basic Instinct).

He ingratiates himself with the family as well.

Cue the 'Eerie Music.'

He keeps talking about his dead Father and we keep hearing vague, overlapping statements like 'He hasn't had a drink in 3 years' and 'My Father has been dead for 2 years.'

He finally warns him that his Family will be in trouble.

Bad things happen to his children and nobody can explain it.

Will an offhand reference to a Greek Tragedy hold the answer?
Fun Fact- Farrell's Son is played by the same young person who voices Kratos' son in God of War.

It all comes to a head in a very dark and serious manner.

Who will survive?
Who will be the same after all is said and done?

To find out, stream the Film now.

Yikes.  This one was...something.

It's been a long time since I watched The Lobster.  I recall it getting really dark and intense in the 3rd Act.
This one does the same.

It also does this weird thing where people sound very natural, but also very surreal.  I can't really explain it- you just kind of have to see it.

This Film is a great showcase for the Actors, so I can see why people like Nicole Kidman and Alicia Silverstone really petitioned hard to be in this.
A weird Batman connection, no? 
Especially with Barry (in Deleted Scenes) as a Joker and Farrell as The Penguin in the most recent Batman Film.

This one is dark.  This one is odd.

If you're still interested after reading the summary, give it a look.  Jus be prepared to be thinking long and hard about what you just watched...

A good Film, but another one that I'm not sure that I plan on watching ever again.  It's just so...so Yorgos.

Shudder Day: Satanic Hispanics (2022/3)

 At long last, I get around to this.

Shudder is just full of Horror Anthologies and this one has been hyped up a bit.

In the Framing Device, the lone survivor of a massacre is acting both really vague and really urgent.

They ask him about stuff from his pockets, setting up the Stories.

In the first Tale, a man is obsessed with two things- not doing anything with his life and patterns.

Well, the latter comes into play in a way that he could not have foreseen.
It might affect the former pretty drastically.

In the second Tale (by Eduardo Sanchez), we learn about a Vampire enjoying a night out on the Town.

It takes a comedic turn, however, when the 'poor guy' has to get home before sunrise and he didn't take Daylight Savings into account.

Desposito!

In the third Tale, a man is haunted by trauma...and a very real threat.

He's made an enemy of a Bruja (aka a Witch) and there's going to be hell (or blood) to pay!

In the finale Tale (by the Director of Juan of the Dead), a man (Jonah Ray Rodrigues) is the last survivor of a group that was cursed for observing a dark ritual.

Can he take matters into his own hands to save himself?

The whole thing wraps up as the man's warnings about how he can't linger really turn out to be true.

Let's just say that the Police Station in The Terminator had it better off.

What will happen to the stranger?

To find out, Stream it now.

Another fun Horror Anthology with the same strengths and weaknesses.

As always, the mix of Stories can be a good one- like Chocolate and Cherries-, an alright one- like Chocolate and Oranges- or a just plain bad one- Chocolate and Anchovies.

So, you have the Intro Tale which is a bit of a slow burn right away. 
The second one is fun and perhaps might have been a good one to actually start with. 
The third one is very dark and violent, providing a stark contrast to the last one.
The final one is a funny one again, so perhaps having it to bookend the Film's Story Section would have been best.

That said, I enjoyed all of the Stories on their own, especially the Framing Device.

As always, my ranking (which doesn't mean that one is bad, to be clear)- Framing Device, Vampire, Jonah Ray's one, the first Tale and then the Bruja one.
I am counting the finale- which is great!- with the Framing Device, so it does give it an edge.

All in all, a fun Film with some really neat ideas and direction.

Now if you don't mind, I need to cut my fingernails...

Seriously, this one is well-done.  A good-to-great Anthology makes me want to seek out the other Directors' works and this is no exception.

Remake This: Insomnia (2002)

 Nolan has his Oscar(s) finally.  Let's see what he was up to before he really broke big with Batman.

In this case, it is the Remake of the Norwegian Film Insomnia from 2002.
Confusingly, I've read that he wrote the Script, but also that he didn't.  I guess he incepted it?!?

Can this compare to the original Film (seen here)?

It has two Oscar Winners- Al Pacino, Robin Wiliams- in the Lead Roles and a one-time Oscar Winner- Hillary Swank- in a Supporting Role.
She would, of course, win another Oscar just 2 years later.

Does this one hold up to his now-current scrutiny?  Let's find out...

An L.A. Cop (Pacino) is sent to Alaska to help them with a crime.
His Partner- D.B. Sweeney- comes too and they work with a young Cop- Swank- who sort of idolizes him.

The case is simple enough...or so it seems.

Pacino is distracted by issues at home with IA (Internal Affairs) who are questioning how he worked his past cases.

Sweeney says that he plans to testify against him.

They set up a sting operation to catch the killer, but things don't go smoothly.

To be fair, they brought 'Davis' from Corner Gas (no joke- it's the same Actor) along!

The killer gets away in the fog and a shooting occurs.

Pacino fires at what he thinks is the killer...but it is actually Sweeney.

Ouch!

He keeps this a secret from the other Cops- blaming it on the killer.

As such, he begins to suffer from insomnia.
This is not helped by the 24-hour sun there.

He gets very odd and aggressive with the case, even going so far as to harass Katherine Isabelle- the victim's friend- in the process.

By the way, her presence and 'Davis'' make it clear that this one was shot in Canada (if there were any doubts).

As it turns out, the killer- Williams- saw the shooting go down and basically blackmails Pacino for info on the case.

It's like Strangers on a Train...but it is a Ferry.

Williams leads the Police to think that the abusive Boyfriend is the killer by way of planting evidence.

Pacino is not happy to let him do that, finally realizing how corrupt he's been.

Mind you, this is after he shot a dead dog (FYI it was not dead in the Original) to fake a ballistics test on the bullet in his dead partner.

He tries to take Williams in, but he's in no condition to take down anyone.

Swank also ends up there- having proven that Pacino shot his partner- and seems to scare Williams off- for the moment.

She understandably doesn't trust either man.

Pacino manages to get the drop on Williams and kill him, but is shot in the process.

He makes sure that Swank doesn't get rid of the evidence against him (like in the Original).

Oddly, the Version where he dies is technically the 'Happy Ending.'

A good Film, no question about it.  Both Versions are good, to be fair.

This Version is thankfully not a 1-to-1 Remake, with different Shots, tweaking of the Plot and a different location. 
It isn't like Cold Pursuit, which was basically the same Film as In Order of Disappearance that was just moved to a new location and with very, VERY minor tweaks.

Fun Fact- Stellan Skarsgard was in BOTH Original Films!

There are many ways you can nitpick this Film- for instance, the Cop uses cold water on blood, but he should know that warm water is better- but does that get you anywhere?

Everyone is really good here.  Pacino is vulnerable here, Swank is sincere, Williams is menacing and Nolan's direction is strong here.  Hell, even other people here- like Maura Tierney, Isabelle and Sweeney- are good here.

I will say that the Film is very bleak, even with changes made for the U.S. Version.  

All in all, the Film is quite good and it is clear that Nolan had bigger things to do in the world of Cinema.

I'm Going To Tell My Kids That This is 'The Matrix.'

Next up, a big shift to an Animated Film.  

With all of the obsession on both sides about the Superman Film in production, let's look at a 2013 Version.  Stay tuned...