Action Movie

Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)

The Great Movie Re-Watch

Rambo: First Blood Part II

Director:

George P. Cosmatos

Writers:

Sylvester Stallone

James Cameron

Starring:

Sylvester Stallone

Richard Crenna

Charles Napier

Julie Nickson

Blurb:

Rambo returns to the jungles of Vietnam on a mission to infiltrate an enemy base-camp and rescue the American POWs still held captive there.

Thoughts:

Rambo: First Blood Part II nearly killed my momentum in my movie re-watch. I was not in the mood to watch it at all. In the end, I had it playing in the background while I folded laundry and played Candy Crush. It is not as good as the first movie and is the birth of Rambo’s current image. It has a huge body count, tons of explosions, and lots of racism. For one brief moment, it seems to call out the government and its treatment of the entire Vietnam war situation, but it is not nearly as scathing as the first movie.

I own Part II because it came in a box set my partner purchased. I nearly convinced myself to skip over it, but it felt like cheating. I don’t hate the movie. It isn’t so violent that it makes me ill, like a couple of the films my partner owns. It’s just not a movie I need to watch more than once.

After the last movie’s events, Rambo is working on a chain gang when Troutman approaches him about a job in Vietnam. He’s given a choice to go back to Vietnam or stay on the chain gang. He chose Vietnam. He’s completely set up for what happens to him, and you know it’s going to happen because he points it out before he gets in the chopper to leave. They hire freaking Rambo to take pictures proving there are no POWs. It was massive overkill, even if there wasn’t supposed to be anyone.

There’s a woman in this one. Rambo kisses her, and then she dies, spurning him on for vengeance. It’s one of my least favorite tropes in action movies. The character was Vietnamese and was supposed to speak in broken English, but the actress did an awful job of it. She pronounced all of the words correctly and skipped over words to make it sound broken. It didn’t sound like anyone I’ve heard who is speaking their non-native language.

Rambo: First Blood Part II showed the flaw in my system. I’ve had urges to watch movies that I own from later years, but I’ve resisted. Having this one in my queue with no desire to watch it made those urges harder to ignore. I ended up starting a binge-watch of Life in Pieces while I kept putting it off.

Next up is Jumpin Jack Flash.

The Last Dragon (1985)

The Great Movie Re-Watch

The Last Dragon (1985)

Director:

Michael Shultz

Writer:

Louis Venosta

Starring:

Taimak

Vanity

Christopher Murney

Julius Carry

Faith Prince

Mike Starr

Blurb:

In New York City, a young man searches for a Master to obtain the final level of martial arts mastery known as the Glow.

Thoughts:

I remember the first time I watched The Last Dragon. It was a memorable experience because I was at work and someone had put it on, and at one point, we were all singing DeBarge Rhythm of the Night. That moment and this movie are imprinted on my mind because of a spur-of-the-moment group sing-a-long.

Looking past that memory, the film is incredibly entertaining on its own. You have the himbo Bruce Leeroy, Taimak, looking for the next level of martial arts. He’s learned all his master has to offer, but he has yet to attain the Glow. Then there’s Laura Charles, Vanity, the super-popular video DJ attracted to pretty, nice men and doesn’t back down even when her life is on the line. There are TWO crazed villains. One wants fame and glory but can’t get there on his own. Last, but certainly not least, Sho’nuff The Shogun of Harlem makes the freaking movie. His goal is to prove that he’s better than Leeroy so that his power over Harlem is uncontested and unquestioned.

The women in The Last Dragon are a big part of why I love the movie. Laura Charles goes after what she wants and doesn’t compromise her integrity or jeopardize her career. She takes it a bit to the extreme because I’m pretty sure you’re life being threatened is a reasonable point to back down. Meanwhile, you’ve got Angela Viracco, Faith Prince, who loves a man who’s promised her wildest dream. But when he shows his true self, she stands her ground and faces off against him. The strength she displays is inspiring.

If you can’t find enjoyment from The Last Dragon, I don’t know what to say…

Pound of Flesh (2015)

Pound of Flesh

Pound of Flesh (2015)

Director:

Ernie Barbarash

Starring:

Jean-Claude Van Damme

Darren Shahlavi

Charlotte Peters

Plot:

A man’s heroic attempt to help a woman in distress ends up with him waking up the next day without a kidney and plotting his revenge.

Review:

In case you couldn’t tell from the plot synopsis or the pic this movie is not good. The question is, is it so bad that it’s good?

No.

That was easy.

When JCVD is the best actor in your movie, you’re going to have a bad time. There was green screen at really odd moments, awkward shots, and poor plotting. The movie was truly embarrassing to watch and apparently one of the better cheaply made action movies out there.

Even if you like those types of movies I really couldn’t recommend this one. The ending is truly horrible and I ended up fast forwarding through a lot of it. The only reason it’s not getting a one star is because I didn’t absolutely hate it.

1.5/5

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015)

mission-impossible-rogue-nation-1

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015)

Director:

Christopher McQuarrie

Starring:

Tom Cruise

Simon Pegg

Rebecca Ferguson

Jeremy Renner

Plot:

Ethan and team take on their most impossible mission yet, eradicating the Syndicate – an International rogue organization as highly skilled as they are, committed to destroying the IMF.

Review:

This was such a pleasant surprise. I’d honestly completely forgotten they were releasing a new Mission Impossible movie until my husband brought it up. Since our daughter is having her first sleepover with the grandparents I thought this was a great movie to keep me distracted.

The IMF is experiencing some backlash from their previous less than covert operations. Blowing up the Kremlin tends to piss off some people. Because of that this entire operation was spent with the agents dodging the bad guys and the good.

Simon Pegg was great, Tom Cruise was great, Rebecca Ferguson was great, you get the picture? The actors were perfect, the story was entertaining, and there were masks. I actually think the movie will end up looking better when I see it on a smaller screen, so much was going on that it was sometimes difficult to focus on everything.

Watching this made me want to re-watch the previous ones and I think once I’ve finished the Matrix Trilogy I will move on to the Mission Impossible series.

4/5

 

The Matrix: Reloaded (2003)

Matrix Reloaded

The Matrix: Reloaded (2003)

Director:

Andy Wachowski & Lana Wachowski

Starring:

Keanu Reeves

Laurence Fishburne

Carrie-Anne Moss

Plot:

Neo and the rebel leaders estimate that they have 72 hours until 250,000 probes discover Zion and destroy it and its inhabitants. During this, Neo must decide how he can save Trinity from a dark fate in his dreams.

Review:

I love this movie. It’s in my top ten favorites. I’m pretty sure I like it more than the first Matrix movie. The last forty-five minutes are jam packed with some amazing action scenes. My favorite is the scene where Neo fights all the bad asses in the palace on the mountain. Some great shots and great action. The highway scene is just as good with the ghost twins providing new enemy abilities.

The CG is dated and occasionally looks pretty bad, but they don’t focus on it for long periods and the way its shot helps mask the shortcomings.

I remember getting out of school and rushing to the theater to see this. I had been blown away by the first and I devoured anything I could find about the sequels before they came out. I was not disappointed by this film and it hurts my heart that people actively hate this movie.

Oh well. I enjoyed watching it again and plan on re-watching Revolutions soon.

5/5