Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 412th Edition

 

Welcome to the 412th Edition of my long-running series.  I am now 1-2 in Fantasy Football finally getting a win last week.  I now look to go 2-2 and progress further.  Today started the annual contest of the Madness where I have always participated.  I never win but always earn the nickname "The King of the Loopholes" and I declare myself the unofficial winner of variety.  I did not get the part in ANNIE at the Muncie Civic Theater so I'll just move on and see what's next next.  I am also proud to report that the great karaoke duo of No BS which includes myself and my friend Brittany sang JUST A KISS by Lady Antebellum on Thursday night which is our first time since her motorcycle accident which happened in late August.  She is progressing very well and it was a great night.  I will now get on with my selections for the week.

Fired Up! (2009):  I start the week out with this comedy that was written and directed Will Gluck.  Eric Christian Olsen and Nicholas D'Agosto star as high school football stars and best friends Nick and Shawn.  They hear about a Cheerleaders' camp and contest which they decide is the perfect way to score with many girls so they decide to join the team despite the head of the team Carly, played by Sarah Roemer, being able to see right through them but knowing they do not have much choice with their lack of success.  The plan goes awry when one of them ends up falling in love.  Molly Sims, Annalynne McCord, Philip Baker Hall, John Michael Higgins, and many others co-star in this comedy.  This is a harmless comedy that will probably be most enjoyed by a group of high school and college guys.

The House of the Devil (2009):  Now I go more into the horror genre in this film written and directed by Ti West.  Jocelin Donahue stars as broke college studen Samantha who takes a babysitting job which turns out to be a rather unusual one but takes it for the money.  She soon learns that her clients, played by Tom Noonan and Mary Woronov, lead a satanic cult where she must soon fight for her life.  Greta Gerwig, AJ Bowen, and Dee Wallace all co-star.  I remember seeing this a couple years ago and actually liked it far more than I thought I would.  Donahue carries it very well by herself when she is at the home by herself trying to figure out what is happening.  This takes place in the 80s and how can you dislike a movie which has THE BREAKUP SONG by the Greg Kihn Band.  This did have some good suspense and Ti West did a great job of making a good movie out of a familiar storyline.

The Lorax (2012):  This is my animated movie which was based on the children's book by Dr. Seuss which was his statement towards global warming.  This takes place in a walled city called Thneed-Ville where everything including trees and even air is artificial.  A boy in the community named Ted, voiced by Zac Efron, wants to see real things and to win over the girl of his dreams Audrey, voiced by Taylor Swift.  He then seeks out the Once-ler, voiced by Ed Helms, who then tells Ted the story of how his greed for land ruined the town to make it what it is today.  The title character is a creature who is a protector of the forests but is driven out due to the greediness of the Once-Ler who then sees Ted as that person who can save the town.  Betty White, Rob Riggle, Stephen Tobolowski, and many others lend their voices. This is a hard film to adapt and at times felt a bit all over the place but Devito was a lot of fun as the Lorax.  It was still a pretty fun film though I know Dr. Seuss would not like it.  It also had some pretty fun music numbers.

American Spoken Here (1940):  This is short film in a series of films narrated by John Nesbitt.  This one takes a look at origins of expressions like "kick the bucket" and many others explaining how their is two types of language which are standard and slang.  This is a charming and amusing short film that is worth the 11 minutes.

King Kong (1933):  Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack direct this creature film which stars Robert Armstrong as filmmaker Carl Denham that is out to make a great film no matter what the cost.  He learns of an unknown island called Skull Island but needs a leading lady.  He soon discovers Ann Darrow, played by the iconic Fay Wray, and along with his film crew and boat crew they set out for the Skull Island but they soon find that they are in for far more than they bargained for when they see a ruthless indigeounous tribe and very unusual creatures.  Ann is soon abducted for the tribe and is presumably their sacrifice until the title character is introduced and has an obvious love for the actress.  Bruce Cabot co-stars as ship member John Driscoll who does not like the idea of the island and sets out to find Ann Darrow while Carl is just looking for footage to take back.  Soon, the big gorilla known as King Kong is exploited in New York where he soon begins to wreak havoc.  This has been remade twice now.  There was the 1976 version which was more of a guilty pleasure than anything.  Peter Jackson then came out with what is actually my favorite version in 2005.  This one though still stands the test of time and even has pretty good special effects for the time.  This is a great creature feature where credit must be paid where it is due.

Horror of Dracula (1958):  Terence Fisher directed this version of the vampire legend which is through Hammer Films. Christopher Lee stars as the title character in this one and Peter Cushing plays his rival Van Helsing.  I actually favor this version over the Universal version.  There were some rewrites of the story due to copyright issues but was still a great story.  Universal's version is still a classic but feel this one retains more of its creepiness.  Also, the climatic battle between Dracula and Van Helsing was a lot better in my opinion.  Last week I used Hammer's CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and now I continue with this one.  Hammer put out what I believe were some of the best horror and monster movies and one should not miss this one.  The leads are great in their roles and this film has some great action scenes.

Paranormal Activity (2007):  I will make a confession that this is the first time I have seen any of these films.  Oren Peli wrote and directed this horror film.  Katie Featherstone and Micah Short star as characters of their first names.  They are a young married couple who are just moving into a suberban home.  Katie begins to complain about a strange presence while Micah is very obsessed with his video camera and is looking to get footage of the presence that she is talking about.  These two mostly carry this movie within the house and do a pretty good job considering being unknowns.  It starts out slow with their interactions of adjusting to the new home and Micah not really believing her at first and then progresses to get creepier and creepier not having to rely on gore.  It does a good job with the first person camera footage with the two working well together to carry the film.  I did not think it was the best of the genre but was still pretty innovative and well done.  I intend to watch the sequels this month.

Batman (1966):  I now bring some of the early Batman franchise which was based on that 60s sitcom.  In this one, Adam West and Burt Ward star as Batman and Robin.  Usually there would be one main villain each week but this one had the Joker, played by Cesar Romero, the Riddler, played by Frank Gorshin, Catwoman, played by Lee Meriwether, and the Penguin, played by Burgess Meredith.  They all join forces to take on the caped crusaders and pretty much take over the world.  I'm not going to go into the plot of what was going on.  Those who know the sitcom will know more of what to expect.  Keep in mind, they are not movies that Christopher Nolan and Tim Burton brought to life.  I suppose it is more like BATMAN FOREVER and BATMAN AND ROBIN.  Batman names each weapon and vehicle the bat-something.  Robin seems very holy.  This must be taken for what it is worth, and really more like fun.  If you like the sitcom, you'll love this and if you do not like this presentation of Batman, you will probably not like it.  This is available on Instant Netflix.

The Appaloosa (1966):  This is my western for the week which was directed by Sidney Furie.  Marlon Brando stars as Matt Fletcher who is a gunslinger and buffalo hunter and is harassed by bandit general Chuy Medina, played by John Saxon.  Soon, Matt's horse is taken and sets out to get him back and mostly takes on the gang single handedly.  This is a pretty decent western with some good scenery, music score, and even a believable Saxon as a Mexican.  Brando was good in his spagetti western. 

Arachnophobia (1990):  Frank Marshall directs this movie about some of the most deadly spiders and loose in California.  Jeff Daniels stars as Dr. Ross Jennings who has moved into a small town under the impression he will inherit the local doctor's practice upon his retirement.  He has moved in only to learn that doctor decided to to retire after all which really limits his work.  There soon begin to be some mysterious deaths which are ruled as heart attacks but he does not buy it.  John Goodman co-stars as a local exterminator and Julian Sands co-stars as a spider expert who help Ross get rid of the spiders.  The difficult thing for Dr. Jennings is his fear of spiders just like the title says.  Harley Jane Kosak, Stuart Pankin, and many others co-star in this horror comedy.  Arachnophobia might be the most common phobia in the world.  I know many who have it and request to me that I kill them which I do not like that but I understand.  I know many of the toughest people go into panic only when they see that little creature.  If you have that phobia, this might not be for you but if you can tolerate them at least on the television and know they will not come after you, this is a pretty good movie.

Well, that is it for this week.  Tell me what you like and what you dislike and stay tuned for next week.