THE DANMAN CAN

With Hold The Dark (2018) Jeremy Saulnier  continues the successful string of films he started with Blue Ruin  (2013) and  Green Room   (2015). As with his other films, HTD is another violent tale of vengeance and survival but the tone this time around is moodier and bleaker than ever, owing much to director  Sam Peckinpah . Saulnier's constant collaborator (as actor)  Macon Blair penned the screenplay (and has a small role) in this story of a wolf expert ( Jeffrey Wright ) called to Alaska by a mother ( Riley Keough ) to track down the wolves who took her son. Her husband, played by Alexander Skarsgård  (in his second Netflix film of the year), returns from the Iraq War and he's all kinds of disturbed. Fun connection: Alexander's father Stellan starred in the excellent 1997 Norwegian crime thriller  Insomnia   which Christopher Nolan repurposed to Alaska for his 2002 version  ( review ). Without spoiling anything, when a key plot point happens early on in HTD , the

Metric 's seventh studio album Art Of Doubt  (2018) is a solid batch of new songs that will feel familiar to long time fans who've come to appreciate their sound— Emily Haines 's anthemic heart-on-sleeve vocals and spacious synths, James Shaw 's crunchy arena rock guitars, bassist Joshua Winstead 's driving, growling basslines, and Joules Scott-Key's robotic drumming. A few of the songs last a minute or two too long and I might have dropped a couple tracks to scale back the run time a bit more as well, in particular the closer "No Lights On The Horizon", which is the most uninspired of the bunch. The title track hearkens back nicely to "Empty", the opener of the band's second (or third, depending on how you're counting) album Live It Out  (2005). Some of the choruses get a bit repetitive in the lyrical department and those hoping for another Old World Underground ... (2003) or Fantasies  (2009) won't find it here—instead you ge

Producers John Carpenter and Debra Hill and writer/director Tommy Lee Wallace  decided to take a different approach with Halloween III: Season Of The Witch (1982)—instead of delivering another vehicle for that unstoppable boogeyman Michael Myers , they opted to make a Twilight Zone / Richard Matheson esque comment on consumerism and the mindless nature of the American public. While the film bombed at the box office and Myers was reinstated 6 years later in the fourth film, HIII  has gone on to become a cult classic with definite replay value.  Wallace does a great job channeling the same dark but darkly funny tone, look and feel of Carpenter's late 70s/early 80s output—thanks in large part to the latter's frequent cinematographer Dean Cundey  lensing this film as well.  Tom Atkins  is very Atkinsy here and somehow a sex magnet to every woman but his ex wife. Carpenter and  Alan Howarth  deliver some of their best collaborative, droning synth work. While the action is s

As live action  Star Wars standalone (" Story ") films go, Solo  (2018) is not as good as Rogue One   (2016) but it's definitely more fun, more traditional, and it sits well within this universe. The so-so: despite "gun-for-hire" director  Ron Howard purportedly reshooting 80% of the film, it doesn't feel hacked together, per se, but it still feels rushed at times. The action scenes unfold in very familiar ways. While some of the CG looks excellent, other scenes felt too cartoony for me. I also thought the deaths of a couple of characters lacked proper emotional weight. Additionally, there isn't a strong villainous presence in Solo —maybe that was intentional to focus on our main character, but it still feels off for a SW  film. My final and possibly biggest nitpick: the introduction of the Millennium Falcon felt incredibly average. The good:  Alden Ehrenreich was inspired casting, perfectly embodying the charm and cocksureness of Han Solo (and H

Terrence Malick 's non-traditional narrative style has perhaps never been put to better use than in  The Tree Of Life   (2011), which is truly a visual poem, a cinematic dance. A poem with so much to behold— Jessica Chastain 's impossibly angelic beauty and motherly grace, Brad Pitt's tumultuous jealousy and fatherly anger, the three boys' individual quirks, the naturalistic performances, the sumptuous combination of existing classical pieces with  Alexandre Desplat 's subtle score, just to name a few things. The "creation of the universe" sequence is striking to behold, evoking  2001: A Space  Odyssey   (1968) (even utilizing special effects wizard Douglass Trumbull ), but I've never been a fan of the CGI dinosaurs (they already look dated IMO)—they take me out of the moment. Fortunately, once that scene is over it's easy to soon be engulfed by the movie once again. I also can't help thinking that those "macrocosm" scenes, as gorg

Mistress America  (2015) is an hour and 24 mins long and moves at a blistering pace. At first I couldn't stand Greta Gerwig 's character and by the end I wouldn't say I fell in love with her but she certainly grew on me. She's one of those New York people that "does" a whole lot but doesn't really "do" anything and just seems to have money to do it all (like so many characters in  Noah Baumbach  films).  Lola Kirke is excellent as a fledging writer and college student. The dialogue is sharp and quite funny at times. There are some scenes that feel staged but they're still enjoyable. It very much feels like a Noah Baumbach film.

Full disclosure: I didn't grow up with Purple  Rain   (1984). I only saw it for the first time 2 years ago for a special theatrical screening after Prince died. I also can't claim to be a huge fan of The Artist—not because I don't like his music a lot, just because I don't know much outside the hits and a few scattered songs (and his discography is extensive ).  As a film, the semi autobiographical  Purple Rain  has a lot of flaws—it's clunky, it's cheesy, and the acting isn't the best. The theme of domestic abuse crops up a lot—The Kid's home life is pretty dour and it's on one hand sad and on one hand perversely touching to see his mother and  Apollonia  stick by these abusive men. Because let's face it, The Kid is a major  jerk in this film—taking out his aggressions on his girl and his band. I'm not really sure that he does anything to redeem himself either, outside of finally letting the girls in his band play their song.  Add

Mandy   (2018) is a hallucinogenic fever dream that blends David Lynch with Heavy Metal , a revenge fantasy of two halves—one tender and tragic, the other savage and stupefying. Even though it's slightly more narrative than Panos Cosmatos 's debut film, Beyond The Black Rainbow  (2010), I liked it a bit less. I can't quite explain why. For a film as weird as this, it somehow still felt a little too familiar. That could be because of the elements involved, things that seasoned b-movie veterans have seen before: beheadings, self-aggrandizing cult leaders, dueling chainsaws. That said, Mandy knows its audience and it delivers (albeit after a slow first half, which I may have liked even more than the latter). Title character  Andrea Riseborough ’s alien-like beauty is oddly entrancing, Nicholas Cage ’s (perfectly cast here) vengeance is fierce, and Linus Roache ’s villain is both sadistic and pathetic. The brilliant Jóhann Jóhannsson  (who sadly took his life earlier thi

Black Sheep  (2006) is a fun little flick with farcically drawn characters, clearly influenced by and indebted to Peter Jackson 's Bad Taste   (1987) and Dead Alive (1992), Sam Raimi 's Evil Dead  films, and John Landis 's An American Werewolf In London  (1981). Sheep  tries a bit too hard to nail its tone and doesn't fully succeed but it's got some great gore gags and goes down like a Sunday afternoon sandwich, familiar enough to tide you over until something more satisfying comes along.

Clinton Brown, the protagonist of Jim Thompson 's novel The Nothing Man  (1953), is a neurotic, internally-struggling, violent male narrator to rival his character Lou Ford (of The Killer Inside Me (1952) and Wild Town (1957)). As with Killer , it's hard to relate to our lead, as he commits one shocking act after another, but we the readers can't turn away, instead turning the next page to find out which direction Clinton will careen next.

Misery (1990) is one of those films that is right up my alley but that I only managed to watch for the first time now. I still haven't read the book but then again, I haven't read nearly enough Stephen King books. I know I'm definitely in the minority here—this film seems to be one that most people have seen, whether they are a horror fan or not—so I'm glad I finally remedied this glaring omission in my film watching history. Largely a one-room, two-lead cat and mouse story about a writer who is "rescued" and imprisoned by his "number one fan,"  Misery actually surprised me with how funny it is and how "light" it feels until the last act, where it goes gonzo. It's really more of a thriller than a straight out horror film and I found myself thinking that it could have easily been rated PG-13 until the last fifteen minutes. Bates and Caan are both superb, the former in her ability to portray bipolar and other disorders incredibly w

It's interesting how "hot button" films like this age—how you process and reevaluate them at certain points in your life, based on the zeitgeist and politics of the time. Falling Down  (1993) is a film that I've seen numerous times and one that I've always liked a lot. I hadn't seen it for at least 13 years (I started logging my film viewing in 2005). As a character study, it's top notch. Michael Douglas ' performance is perfect. As a tense piece of entertainment, it's still really good. It also feels realistic, for the most part, and seems to want to comment on mental illness, domestic violence, racism, and inequality ("not economically viable") in a broad sort of way. But these days it feels just a bit hollow. How much are we supposed to sympathize with our protagonist, he who terrorizes innocent people due to his own breakdown? Just how bad should we feel for our white middle class hero who goes on a rampage in L.A.? The film does

I wasn't expecting a masterpiece from The Predator  (2018) but I guess I was hoping it wouldn't be quite so Shane Black ized. By that I mean that all his trademarks are there—the macho humor, sarcastic male camaraderie, the smart/smart aleck child actor, the sassy female—and they just don't work for me in a Predator film (at least not his versions of them). On top of the Black trademarks, there's a whole lot of bad CGI (the Predadogs in particular are terrible), a slapped together script, sloppy editing, mediocre camerawork, action scenes where it's hard to discern what's happening, and characters that somehow magically adapt to everything that happens to them instantly. My biggest gripe though is that the film is far too comedic (and way too meta). It really just plays out like all the recent superhero films. As in most of Black's films, there's a sense that everything is a joke and the stakes don't really matter that much as long as we have fun

The Slumber Party Massacre (1982) simultaneously serves as a parody of slasher/horror tropes and as an effective slasher in its own right.  Director Amy Holden Jones —who, amusingly, would go on to write films as divergent as Mystic Pizza (1988), Beethoven (1992), and Indecent Proposal  (1993)—intentionally ogles her cast of females, giving the audience laughable extended gazes of their naked flesh. There's also heavy-handed symbolism when it comes to our maniac and his phallic weapon of choice, an absurdly long and thick drill bit.  The killer is seen in full very early on, so his identity is never a mystery, which adds an unusual flavor to a genre that typically relies on revealing its crazies in the final act. The male leads that crash the titular (natch) gathering, hoping to score, turn out to be perfectly inept and taken out fairly easily.  There are a few choice gore gags and a synthesized score that is very much a Halloween  (1978) ( review ) rip-off (really the whole fi

On Mirah 's 6th solo studio (and 10th overall) LP, Understanding , she recorded the skeletons of the tracks whilst in art residencies away from home, later adding flourishes with producer El Crews (of Beulah fame) and Greg Saunier (of Deerhoof fame) back in her home base of NYC. As has always been the case, Mirah draws her lyrical inspiration from love, loss, hope and politics. The songs will feel familiar to those who've followed her musical journey—that of breathy vocals, impassioned cries for peace and harmony, raw and simple guitars, minimal synths and (mostly) gentle percussion. "Hot Hot" (she so often seems to write songs about heat), the album's best cut, melds an indiefied R&B slow jam with chill out dance elements that perfectly suits Mirah's delivery. "Blinded By The Pretty Light" is another highlight—it's Mirah's "I'm On Fire", fitting given the similarity to another title by The Boss and the fact that she o

I never saw Oscar   (1991) in its original theatrical run nor on home video until today. It's a bit too long and not every joke lands, but overall it's very funny in a very Mel Brooks ian way, has an excellent ensemble cast of character actors, wonderful costumes and production design, and solid direction by John Landis . A great light-hearted comedy for any occasion.

Searching (2018) ingeniously uses technology to present an engaging, tense and realistic mystery/thriller. It feels very much like a movie that Steven Soderbergh would make in this genre—one where the performances, direction, sound design, etc. are up to par with the gimmick (the entire film is presented from the point of view of smartphones, computer screens, captured footage, etc.) and where the gimmick (mostly) never feels "gimmicky". There is a twist that I only had an inkling of and I worry about how well the film will hold up on repeat viewings—once you know the twist and the resolution, will the tension remain? Will the film feel dated in 10 or 20 years? Either way, I'm very intrigued by what director Aneesh Chaganty will deliver for his next film.

Never Too Young To Die (1986) is 80s tropes epitomized. It's a low-rent Bond film  (starring, briefly, one-time Bond George Lazenby ) with  Mad Max  castaways for villains, our macho (sort of?) hero  John Stamos one year away from Full House  (1987–1995), Vanity fresh off of  The Last Dragon  (1985) being her sexy badass self (though sadly only kicking ass in the beginning and then being relegated to window dressing), a really weird and hilarious sex scene, political incorrectness galore (including, of course, a hyper intelligent but clumsy Asian sidekick with gadgets that only work some of the time), Robert Englund (not quite well known enough after only two  Nightmare On Elm Street  films) in a wasted part, incredibly goofy humor, and most importantly (the icing on this outrageous movie cake) Gene Simmons  hamming it up big time as  our head baddie, a hermaphroditic version of Dr. Frank-N-Furter from The Rocky Horror Picture Show  (1975). The recent crop of 80s nostalgia imi

The Changeling (1980) is an incredibly creepy gothic ghost story with a committed, grief-stricken lead performance by George C. Scott , an appropriately haunting and mournful score by Rick Wilkins , strong cinematography by John Coquillon , and classy direction by Peter Medak .  Recommended for fans of  The Innocents  (1961),  The Haunting (1963), The Omen (1976), and The Amityville Horror (1979) ( review ).