THE DANMAN CAN

Despite what feels like a tacked-on bit of dialogue at the end (very common during the Golden Age Of Hollywood), The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) is a strong film noir that holds up on repeat viewings. I haven't read James M. Cain 's 1934 novel  (I definitely need to read more classic crime novels), but from what I understand this film adaptation (there have been numerous), the first in English, hews closely to the story. Lana Turner  plays blonde bombshell femme fatale Cora Smith who, alongside Rita Hayworth in Gilda (1946) ( review ), is given one on the best introductions in noir history. Cora naturally hooks in John Garfield 's blue collar worker, Frank Chambers, resulting in a sadomasochistic extramarital affair that sizzles on screen. Cecil Kellaway is the jovial husband, Nick, seemingly oblivious to Cora and Frank's romance. When frustrations arise regarding decisions about the married couple's future, off-handed comments between Cora and Frank ab...

Ingmar Bergman 's Shame  ( Skammen ) (1968) is a powerful and sad film about how war will cause human beings to do terrible things to one another. The scoreless and bleak film features more action than your typical Bergman film—full of explosions and gunfire. But the focus remains on stars Eva ( Liv Ullmann ) and Jan Rosenberg ( Max von Sydow ), a politically uninvolved couple whose marriage deteriorates when they become innocent bystanders caught in the middle of a civil war. While they both do their fair share of mistreating each other with verbal barbs and minor physical violence, it is Jan who causes the ultimate division, irreparably damaging their relationship by his unforgivable actions. There is always poetry in Bergman films and here he saves it for the climax of the film, as Eva recollects a dream that seems to mirror the emotion the film finally imparts its audience with—emptiness. You can find my  Ingmar Bergman Feature Films Ranked  list  here ...

The Prestige  (2006) is my favorite Christopher Nolan film, edging out Memento  (2000) by just a hair. When I made my Top 10 Films Of 2006 list, The Prestige topped it. Upon a reassessment, I'd place both The Proposition and The New World (2005) (released wide in the States in January 2006) above it. But I still love Nolan's rival magicians movie. I appreciate Nolan as a filmmaker but I've never been head over heels for him. This film and Memento  are the closest I come to "fanboying" over him. Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman both give very charismatic and engaging performances. Rebecca Hall isn't given enough screen time, in my opinion, but she's very good when she is on screen. As to  Scarlett Johansson , neither her acting nor her role are anything special, which is fine, as her character is the attractive assistant—intentionally designed to distract the audience. The Prestige  holds up well on revisits, even if I did deduct a 1/2 star from m...

The Search For Weng Weng (2013) is a heartfelt documentary about one genre film lover's obsessive quest to learn more about famous diminutive Filipino actor Weng Weng , most well known as the star of a series of James Bond spoofs. Director  Andrew Leavold 's journey takes him to the home of relatives, into conversations with cast and crew who worked with Weng Weng and, most surreal of all, to a birthday celebration for former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos . Of the subjects interviewed for Search , some express how they are uncomfortable with what the films of Weng Weng represent—a disabled actor placed in absurd situations for entertainment. Others feel that Weng Weng helped make a name for their country and that when reassessed, his films have merit. What Leavold finds, unsurprisingly, is that Weng Weng, while exploited for his stature, not properly compensated in the slightest, and perhaps having lead a life filled more with sadness than any other em...

Just under twenty years have gone by since the release of L7 's last album, Slap-Happy (1999). That's a really long time for a band to not release music. Well, L7 did release two non-album singles in 2017 and 2018, respectively, but neither song blew me away. My so-so reaction to those songs, combined with the fact that Slap-Happy is my second least favorite L7 LP, had me a little concerned about how good the new album would be. Scatter The Rats  (2019) has arrived and I'm happy to say that I like it more than I expected. It took a few listens to grab hold but I'm digging it now. There are a couple of weak tracks ("Murky Water Cafe" is skip-worthy), but overall Rats  features more of the punk/grunge sound that fans have come to love. No surprises, just solid rock. The songs don't have quite as much bite as previousl albums, the drums don't have the same power as they do on albums like Bricks Are Heavy (1992) or The Beauty Process  (1997), and Rats...

Lucio Fulci 's The New York Ripper (1982) is exploitation cinema at its finest with a reputation that precedes itself. It's full of graphic nudity, shocking gore, and perturbing violence toward women—sure to offend those with delicate sensibilities—but always in the service of the story, stylistically shot, and made by a master of genre filmmaking. Ripper is one brutal and sleazy giallo , primarily because it's so sexualized. In fact (believe it or not), in some ways, Fulci is more restrained than he usually is in this film—not lingering as long as he tends to on the grisly moments, which actually makes them more powerful, in my opinion. I think that's because the audience is given less time to register that what they are seeing is fake. That's not to say the effects work is particularly realistic, but what's portrayed on screen is disturbing nonetheless (and an extreme horror film fan's paradise). Ripper  features perhaps one of filmdom's most nih...

Cliffhanger  (1993) provides action thrills galore and slick direction by  Renny Harlin . The characterization is pretty thin (they make a lot of stupid choices), the villains are over the top (though John Lithgow is perfectly slimy), and a good deal of suspension of disbelief is required. Additionally, some of the f/x work shows its age, but the stunts are very impressive, the mountainous landscapes are gorgeous, and there are some choice one-liners. It's just dumb enough that it doesn't deserve classic status, but not dumb or cheap enough to be a b-movie, making  Stallone  the right guy for the film.  Cliffhanger  carried the tradition of '80s actioners into the early '90s. 26 years on,   it's still gripping, fun, and holds up quite well.

Starship Troopers  (1997) is an incredibly entertaining film that works both as a gory, exciting, sci-fi actioner  and as a smart satire of militaristic fascism and xenophobia. Intentionally presenting its characters as beautiful, warmongering nationalists, Troopers also features brilliantly amusing fake propaganda in the form of news reports interspersed throughout the film. The practical f/x work is excellent while the CGI alternately holds up well (the individual "Arachnids") or not so much (some of the larger bugs and space scenes). While never quite as campy as a Sci-Fi (or SYFY) Channel movie, nor as expertly made as RoboCop  (1987) (one of a handful of perfect 80s action films) ( review ), Starship Troopers  nevertheless remains a strong entry in director Paul Verhoeven 's filmography. You can find my Paul Verhoeven Feature Films Ranked list here .

Fujiya & Miyagi 's newest LP, Flashback  (2019), is only 32 minutes long and only 7 songs. And if you're familiar with their sound, it doesn't necessarily offer any surprises. But it does deliver more of their sublime, sparsely worded, danceable electro-rock jams and it pleases this fan greatly. In what I believe is a F&M first, "Personal Space" (one of the album's best cuts) actually drops a few "F" bombs. "Subliminal" is a song that was originally released on their SoundCloud . As presented on the album, it's a slightly different version and for whatever reason they decided to cut the word "Cuts" from the title (heh heh). On "Dying Swan Act" vocalist/guitarist David Best verbally encourages the listener to "handclap" and when he spells out the band's name I kind of lose it (in a good way). That track, along with album closer "Gammon" employ some very Fripp -esque guitar. Despite...

Less than a year after  White Denim  released their last album,  Performance  (2018), they've cranked out another nine songs, at an even shorter length (29 minutes) than Performance 's 33 minutes, which was until now their shortest LP to date. Side Effects  (2019) is one tight record—duration-wise, obviously (although there is one song which is almost 7 minutes long), but also production-wise, riff-wise and lyrically (there's definitely a lot more music than vocals on this record). "Small Talk (Feeling Control)", a catchy rocker featuring vocoder on the backup vocals, kicks off the album. "NY Money", the aforementioned 6:50 long track, starts off with a proggy riff  before settling into a smooth repetitive groove with a lot of breathing room for guitar and keys to trade off some not-too-noodly noodling. "Out Of Doors", a short instrumental, has a bit of Lindsay Buckingham era  Fleetwood Mac feel and it's followed by another, longer, mo...