I don’t know why I never got around to seeing the THE CROW sequel from the director of SIX-STRING SAMURAI. Always was curious. Still took me 19 years. Lance Mungia’s THE CROW: WICKED PRAYER, just like the previous one, was meant for theaters, but I think it only played somewhere around here? Wiki(dprayer)pedia says its theatrical run was only in Seattle and only for one week, and I do remember seeing an ad for it and being confused, but I was thinking it was in Eastern Washington. Anyway, I didn’t go.
Two Halloweens ago we discussed Tobe Hooper’s first masterpiece. This is his second. He didn’t even want to direct it at first, sort of got pushed into it, but damn did he rally. In many ways THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2 is the Tobe Hooperest movie ever made.
I don’t blame you if you’re skeptical during the opening scene where two obnoxious “senior boys at Wheeler High” calling themselves “Buzz and Rick the Prick” drunkenly drive a Porsche, fire guns, and harass the K-OKLA request line until they receive a drive-by chainsawing on a bridge that must’ve been built by the same people who made that endless runway from the climactic chase in FURIOUS 6. (read the rest of this shit…)
I gotta confess coming to this one from a place of cinematic ignorance. I’ve seen the original Godard movie, but I don’t remember jack shit about it. I thought it was pretty good, I believe. That’s about all I got. Still, I’m sure less people could tell you anything about the remake than everything about the original. So this makes me smart. (read the rest of this shit…)
These last couple weeks have been tough on my mental facilities. I reviewed that great new “ULTIMATE” edition of the original TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE, I also revisited parts 3 and 4 in that original series, then on Thursday I reviewed the new prequel to the remake. So by that point I’d studied and written about pretty much every angle to the whole Texas Chainsaw deal. You’d think I’d be done with it by now, but there is one final chapter: the one spinoff of the original movie that achieves its own level of True Greatness. I am talking about Tobe Hooper’s 1986 sequel, THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2. It’s been available on DVD for a couple years in a bare bones edition (get it, that is a pun because of all the skeletons they have) but Tuesday it comes out in a much deserved special edition with new commentaries, featurettes and deleted scenes. (read the rest of this shit…)
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Recent commentary and jibber-jabber
pegsman on China O’Brien: “And the old “3 in a row” curse has struck again. Richard Norton, Richard Chamberlain and Bruce Glover…RIP all.” Mar 30, 22:21
VERN on Trap: “I agree, I liked when it became The M. Night Shyamalan’s Daughter Mysteries.” Mar 30, 18:16
KayKay on China O’Brien: “Oh man. We’ve lost the great Richard Norton! RIP Sir!” Mar 30, 08:57
Mr. Majestyk on Trap: “That reminds me that I saw TRAP. It’s fun in that patented Shyamalan “a small child with a disease that…” Mar 30, 05:40
KayKay on Trap: “Ok, since I’m totally down with a Josh Hartnett Career Resurgence as an Action/Thriller Hero, allow me to plug FIGHT…” Mar 29, 23:47
Glaive Robber on Black Bag: “Skani, it’s interesting you mention the “good hang” thing, because I’m surprised as to what extent they’re hiding what seems…” Mar 29, 19:05
Aktion Figure on Black Bag: “You know what superhero films are missing? Villains genuinely as interesting and colorful as the heroes. I mean, more than…” Mar 28, 21:28
Skani on Black Bag: “Thanks for the insights, all! I will concede that THUNDERBOLTS does look pretty monochrome, and they’re not really selling a…” Mar 28, 20:10
ron on The Wicked City (1992): “the clock represents the relentless countdown to the Chinese takeover of HK!” Mar 28, 19:48
Miguel Hombre on Black Bag: “One of the reasons comic books so successfully support the continual usage of tropes like the issue after issue ‘the…” Mar 28, 16:25
Muh on Zeiram: “Not a particuarily great movie, but the monster is really cool, especially when it turns into stop motion at the…” Mar 28, 11:01
Muh on The Wicked City (1992): “The opening of this movie was so cool, love that spider lady. After that I don’t remember much, just the…” Mar 28, 10:59
Muh on Black Bag: “Just looked at what the OG Age of Ultron storyline is…if they were going to adapt THAT, it’d have to…” Mar 28, 10:56
Two Halloweens ago we discussed Tobe Hooper’s first masterpiece. This is his second. He didn’t even want to direct it at first, sort of got pushed into it, but damn did he rally. In many ways THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2 is the Tobe Hooperest movie ever made.
Boys, boys, boys–
