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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Film

Published: 10 January 2022

Hits: 800

The reviews were so-so, trying to be kind, not too damning, but I wanted to see it nonetheless, it was filmed in Fort MacLeod, Drumheller, the badlands, I wanted to visit if only in film. And for that it was good - it was interesting seeing how they rebranded all the local businesses (in reality, like the butcher downstairs - or digitally? I would hope digitally given the abundance of special effects.)

But the movie - well, 0 stars is generous. And I get that there's really not a lot of plot to this - but - basically I could sum it up with "Ghosts - Celebrity Cameos". And by the time the old crew did their obligatory cameos it had the same awkwardness of seeing Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie in an adult diaper commercial - I don't care what they paid you, but just don't. And I understood why Bill Murray didn't want to do this - Really - but in the end he did and I'm pretty sure in those final moments I could see his regret.

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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Film

Published: 05 January 2022

Hits: 608

So, staying at a friends and they're (understandably) bored with watching "Aussie Gold Hunters". 

I don't blame them. Only...well, there's the mystery of the vanishing Canadian Gal - Lindsay Victoria Ironside. She appeared in 3 episodes - turned up the biggest gold nugget so far (6 Oz) - and then suddenly falls from favor and disappears. No mention of her since.

A quick google search turns up nothing. Nor does a deep Google search. Did she get caught nicking Gold? Are there non- disclosure agreements in place? Or did she try hitchhiking in the outback and come to the dire end most backpackers in the outback come to? (I don't mean redbacks or snakes, I mean "The Big Aussie Book of Serial Killers".) WTF, I want to know...

Meanwhile...on to my host's choice of Television.

MacGruber. I'm presuming a piss-take on the popular 80's TV show "MacGyver", which I never watched, but I'm not thinking it matters. 

Starring Laurence Fishbourne. Sam O'Neil. The latter, a 5 second cameo, the former, a recurring role that perplexes even the most dumbfounded. And Val Kilmer - ?? Really? Have your drug habits laid you this low? You look healthy enough!

How? Why?

The inane potty/slapstick/predictable humor of MacGruber - I mean - most pilots are cancelled on far, far less, it's hard to believe that THIS made a series. And that they got this cast involved. 

But - Val Kilmer, Val Kilmer ... What do I remember him from?

And so I find it. Right. "Top Secret". And while I recognize it - in the same sort of way I might recall "Animal House", I haven't seen it, only scenes. 

So - time to give it a watch.

This was far far better than it had any right to be. The same sort of humor - slapstick - campy, outdated (the references to "Blue Lagoon" would go over peoples heads now, as would "East German Women's Swim Team" and "Lesbians Bars of North Carolina"), the sight gags still resonate - an overall "Mel Brooks" tone - but Val Kilmer - well - wasn't he the good looking chap? And he could sing - and dance - and - quite clearly - act.

What happened? I don't think he lost talent, I think that films merely demanded less and less. I mean - look at the talents of Fred Astaire and where could he use them today?

(and - don't suggest "In The Heights" or the remake of "West Side Story" - this is just talent wasted.)

Anyways - an interesting little time capsule of a film that rather summed up an era. It paired well with being in Edmonton - probably I was there when it first came out and missed it. 

And - a lot of my positivity probably stems from the fact that I had just watched "MacGruber" - next to which even "Space Force" would look positively hilarious. But - I didn't find it too too bad - so - 3/5 stars. ***. And - Good Job Val Kilmer - but - please - please read the script before you take on your next role. And bring back the song and dance...

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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Film

Published: 24 December 2021

Hits: 628

Guillermo Del Toro's Film Noir & remake of a classic film about a grifting sideshow carny. Permeated with a dark ambience, great set pieces and props, good performances by Cate Blanchett, Ron Perlman, Willem Dafoe, that said it grows a little stale and old when you can see the ending clear as day a mere 20 minutes into the film. After which it becomes a tired exercise in seeing how it realizes itself. Meh. Although - the sideshow attractions, the tarot cards, the good Psychiatrist's office - they all serve to inspire, merely a less predictable plot would have driven it along a lot better.

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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Film

Published: 16 December 2021

Hits: 879

Serendipity, this, downloaded on a whim, enjoyed it very much. A pretty clean, writ large layout of "The Hero's Journey", with some intriguing symbolism and details. 

I'm pretty sure I read this once, should read it again, it fits in with a few of my own projects and was appropriate to the moment. I love it when that happens.

Very good. You might enjoy.