First in our series of films we haven’t seen from 1994 is Roland Emmerich’s Stargate:
Stargate has spawned a number of television series, comic books and novellas, but is the original film worth all that? We discuss and review the Kurt Russell/James Spader vehicle. Do the special effects hold up, and do we really care?
All this and more, so download now!
Be sure to tune in next time as we watch Robert Redford’s Quiz Show:
Jim Law returns to record a commentary with Pete for The Thing. Many things are discussed in this commentary: Canine things, sexual things, ski dozer things, alien things, sequel things, etc. Now go grab your copy of The Thing and join us. Enjoy!!!
This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them.
What movie will you see this weekend?
The Fate of the Furious
Fast 8. Furious 8. F8 of the Furious. Furiou8. Anyway, Dom is back again. However, it seems Dom may be switching sides. Dun Dun Dun. Starring in this elaborate car chase/heist flick are Vin (I am Groot) Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Charlize Theron, Jason Statham, Scott Eastwood, Kurt Russell, Michelle Rodriguez, Helen Mirren, and more. Directing Fast 8 is F. Gary Gray. Gray has directed A Man Apart, The Italian Job, Be Cool, Law Abiding Citizen, and Straight Outta Compton. It seems Gray has worked with Vin, The Rock, and Charlize before. Go see F8 this weekend.
The Lost City of Z
You’re lost. Ok Jax, relax. Based on a true story, The Lost City of Z is about a British explorer who goes missing while searching for a mysterious city in the 1920’s. Starring in this real-life action adventure tale are Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller, Tom Holland, Ian McDiarmid, and more. James Gray is the writer/director of this flick. Gray has written and directed The Yards, We Own the Night, Two Lovers, and The Immigrant. Use that GPS and don’t get lost on your way to the theater this weekend.
This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them. Which one will you see?
Deepwater Horizon
Reasons to see this:
This true story takes place on a drilling rig in the ocean, that causes the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Starring in this “dramaction” flick is Marky Mark Wahlberg, Kurt Russell, Kate Hudson, Dylan O’Brien, Ethan Suplee, John Malkovich Malkovich Malkovich, and more. Peter Berg is the director of this picture. His last 4 directorial feature films are, The Kingdom, Hancock, Battleship (go search out this review from the boys 5/29/12 – old site), and Lone Survivor. Be loyal and see this oil disaster movie.
Masterminds
Reasons to see this:
Masterminds has been trying to set on a release date for quite some time. This film was supposed to be released August 19, 2015 and then October 9th 2015. Then it was pushed back again due to financial issues. Anyway, this film, based on a true story, is about a night guard who plans the biggest bank heist in U.S history. A lot of history this weekend. This cast is chock full of comedic actors; here we go, Kate McKinnon, Kristen Wiig, Jason “Wilde” Sudeikis, Owen Wilson, Leslie Jones, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Ken Marino, and more. Jared Hess emerges as director for this comedy. Hess has directed, Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre, Gentlemen Broncos, and Don Verdean. Be a mastermind and plan your trip to the theater.
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
Reasons to see this:
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is about a young boy who finds clues that lead him to Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. However, this boy and the children at the home have special and unique powers. Sounds like X-Men. Anyway, Eva Green plays Miss Peregrine, while the other cast includes, Asa Butterfield, Samuel L. Jackson, Judi Dench, Allison Janney, Chris O’Dowd, and more. Tim Burton is back in the director chair. His last 4 directorial films are, Alice in Wonderland, Dark Shadows (another great review from the infamous mushroom Battleship night), Frankenweenie, and Big Eyes. It is also announced that he will direct Beetlejuice 2. We’ll see. Go see this Peculiar movie this weekend.
After Supka watched Tarantino’s latest 4 times in one day (I still don’t understand how that works), he demanded that we jump on air and talk about it. He had some feelings that strayed from the Binge staff and had to talk about it. Between Christmas and New Year’s, we finally found time to sit down, crack a few beers and record.
This is a SPOILER filled discussion, so no crying if you haven’t watched The Hateful 88s and listen to this.
When you’re done listening, rank your QT films in the comments section! Here’s mine:
You’d think with me putting up a poster that size that I would be somehow compensated for plugging Million Dollar Arm, the latest sports movie from Disney. Unfortunately for me, and my bank account, that is not the case. As per usual, at some point I will end up giving Disney more of my money. I have twin three year old daughters, so Disney’s gotten plenty of it. But sappy movies like these get me every time and I’m sure this one will do the same. If my count is correct, this film marks the 57th time that the Mickey Mouse folks have dipped into the sports genre. From the old Herbie movies (yes, I also have to count that piece of shit that Lindsay Lohan was in) to The Mighty Ducks franchise (EMILIO!) to The Game Plan (if you’re a father who has daughters, that movie gets you a little bit, even if it is The Rock), Disney has covered most of the major sports in the world. They’ve even done so without the use of Kevin Costner, who I’m legally obligated to bring up when I talk about sports movies. But don’t worry, he’s set to star in McFarland, set to release later this year. But before that, we’ve got Don Draper. You may know him as Jon Hamm. Set to be released next Friday, Hamm stars in this movie as J.B. Bernstein, a sports agent looking to make a splash by bringing in baseball talent from an untapped part of the world, India. How does he plan to do this? By setting up a reality show called……..you guessed it, Million Dollar Arm. Throw in one of the guys from Slumdog Millionaire AND Bill Paxton. SOLD! Honestly, this movie does look pretty good and I’m always up for a good baseball flick.
But this did get me to thinking. How will this movie stack up against my all-time favorites? Disney has actually released some very solid sports movies over the years, so here’s what I’ll do. Below, I’m going to give you my top five, and a little bit about the movie and why I like it. Then, once again, I’d like to get you involved. I’ll put mine into a poll and let you vote on them, along with an “Other” option as well, just in case your favorite doesn’t match up with one of mine. You can vote until next Thursday. Then, I’ll give the winner the full Binge Media Revisit treatment. But seriously, if you write in Herbie Fully Loaded, I will find out who you are and have you banned from the site. No…seriously….don’t fucking do it.
5. COOL RUNNINGS
How many times in your life have you talked about this movie? It could be one or one hundred, but you know that every time you say it, you say it with a Jamaican accent, or attempt to anyway. And how could you not talk about this movie? It’s about a bobsled team from Jamaica for God’s sake. While much of the film is fictionalized, the story is real and quite amazing, and the final scene where they carry their sled across the finish line is actually pretty awesome. Added to the mix is the late, great John Candy. Picturing John Candy doing anything athletic is enough to make you laugh.
4. INVINCIBLE
Invincible tells the story of Vince Papale, a down on his luck bartender from South Philly, played by Marky Mark Wahlberg. After his funky bunch of friends convince him to attend the open tryout for the Philadelphia Eagles, the story follows his journey at the tryout and his relationship with coach Dick Vermeil, played by Greg Kinnear. Wouldn’t you know it? He makes the team and scores a touchdown in a game against the hated New York Giants. There are a lot of good subplots in this film, one that involves Elizabeth Banks, which I’m always okay with, as well as Papale’s relationships with his friends and his father. The only thing that I wish were real would be a story about another team. I hate the fucking Eagles, man. But the movie still cracks the top five.
3. THE ROOKIE
Perhaps the most emotional movie on this list, The Rookie stars Dennis Quaid as Jimmy Morris, a Texas high school teacher and baseball coach. After making a deal with his team that he would try out for the major leagues if they won the title (which they do), Morris’ dream of pitching in the show becomes a reality in a very heartwarming tale of love, baseball, fathers and sons, and hope.
2. REMEMBER THE TITANS
I honestly flipped a coin between this and The Rookie for the number two spot on this list. This is one that if I come across it on a lazy Sunday afternoon, I’ll watch it to the end. It stars Denzel Washington as football coach Herman Boone in 1970s Virginia as two schools merge, bringing in the black and white aspect. How will the coaches get along? How will the players get along? Spoiler alert: It all turns out okay. Well, except for Gary. Poor bastard. But I will tell you, watching this movie is like watching an old episode of Who’s the Boss?, as you just feel bad for thinking the things you do about the little girl because you know what she grows up to be. But really, the little girl in this movie is Hayden Panettiere and because I’m such a nice guy, here’s a bonus pic.
If only she weren’t engaged to that Russian. And speaking of Russians (kick-ass segue)…….
1. MIRACLE
“Do you believe in miracles?” The best call in sports history from the great Al Michaels pretty much says it all. Miracle tells the story of the 1980 U.S. hockey team as they journey towards their epic matchup with a seemingly unbeatable Russian squad. And it’s got Kurt Russell as coach Herb Brooks, which only makes it better.
So there you have it. Now it’s your turn. You have until Thursday, May 15th at 3 p.m. to cast your vote and make sure to tell your friends about it. If you feel the need to defend your choice, use the comments section below or tweet @THElukenorris and make sure to check back at the end of next week to find out the winner.
The Lowdown: A scientific research team is under siege after a mysterious creature indoctrinates the team, causing mistrust and dissent amongst the men.
The Breakdown: I was trying to hold off on writing this one until closer to the big day but I couldn’t resist. After a solid re-watch with a friend who was seeing it for the first time, I couldn’t help but gloat. The Thing is amazing, plain and simple. If you haven’t seen it, you need to. It’s not only a great horror-thriller but it also presents one of the great psychological conundrums in all of film; who can you trust? This simple question is at the core of the film, driving the main plot along as well as some of the individual characters’ motivations. Even small moments, such as the team’s captain lying about turning his music down so another one of the crew can sleep play on the idea of trusting someone else, even in their own minute way.
I used to wait years at a time to watch this film, doing my best to forget who gets killed and when so that watching the film would always be a fresh experience. There is a spontaneity to the pacing and structure of the events in the film that is hard to describe. You know from the outset that this is an impossible situation for anyone to get out of, and the film sticks to its’ guns with an ending that is as satisfying as it is bleak. Kurt Russell gives one of his best performances as MacReady, the confident but ultimately hopeless hero of the film. His character is the kind that you know would be a blast to have a beer or ten with. The male camaraderie in the film is also one of its’ strong points as there are literally no women in the film. The situational setup of the film only helps ramp up the tension and suspense.
Of course, I’d be remiss to ignore Rob Bottin’s fantastic effects. The grotesque beauty of his creations is one of the great spectacles in movie history. Quite simply, you haven’t lived until you’ve seen a mutated dog-rat’s head explode open to reveal a flower-petal-like crevice with a five-foot long tongue try and eat something. Bottin’s visuals are rooted deeply in the human biology and structure, creating a deep connection to the visuals that transcends the insanity and un-realism on the screen. It’s touches like this that really help immerse the audience and add to the films’ lasting impact.
The Comedown: The Thing is a titan of horror and thriller films. Carpenter and Russell put in the finest work of both of their careers (maybe arguable with Carpenter as Halloween is amazing as well). The visual effects are the benchmark for alien mutation scenes in film to this day, and the script is nothing short of simplistic perfection. The Thing is easy to recommend, especially when it’s in season.