Hop's Thoughts

Bound To Vengeance - Well above average rape revenge film. Two leads are amazing. Sweet Bean - Touching, simple tale about three lives that find meaning from each other. Moebius -Ki-duk Kim delivers the oddest film ever about castration, fetishes and incest.  The Shallows - If not for the lovely Blake Lively, this would be a worst movie ever candidate. The Darkness - Despite a nice cast, this fails on every level. As horror, it's a sleeper. Swiss Army Man - Dano is amazing in this hilarious and touching film, but truly awful ending. X Cross - Japanese horror that works initially, but then gets silly. Not awful, but not good. Cat People - Classic thriller/horror, uses light and sound to create wonderful tension. Devil - People stuck in elevator. Decent acting gets buried beneath silly non-twist. The Witness - Doc about Kitty Genovese detailing her brother's search for answers. Odd! The Wailing - Popular Korean thriller/horror did nothing for me. Two and a half hours o...

'71 - Solid beginning, but then just becomes a painfully predictable chase movie. Unoriginal! Stranger Things - Far from perfect, but one of the more fun series' I've watched in a while. Detour - 40's B-movie noir. Just over an hour and I loved it. Needs a big time remake. The Adventures of Prince Achmed - First animated film f0m 1926. Pretty, a little too rapey. I Killed My Mother - Xavier Dolan writing this at 16, is almost as amazing as the film itself. The Road - Cormac McCarthy adaptation has me wondering why I bother. Why Viggo, Why? The Square - Tense documentary. Limited in its focus, but powerful message. Behind The Mask: The Rise Of Leslie Vernon - Brilliant idea, unravels after 30 minutes. Money Monster - Much better than I anticipated. McConnell was the standout in exciting film. Broken - Roth is great, but newcomer Eloise Laurence is the star. One of the 10 best of last 5! Exit To Hell - Kane Hodder Grindhouse film. Easily one of the worst movies...

I skipped this last year, but will fully admit, I'd never have guessed my Broncos would be in the Super Bowl. This year, I had two clear cut favorites (Colts and Cardinals) a month ago, but things might have changed. As usual, I go through each game....yes, I predict all 256 games to come up with this. I know, pathetic, but I enjoy it and I've had some success in the past. So here it is. The seed of the playoff teams is in parenthesis AFC EAST New England Patriots* (2) 12-4 New York Jets 7-7 Buffalo Bills 7-7 Miami Dolphins 4-12 AFC NORTH Pittsburgh Steelers* (3) 11-5 Cincinnati Bengals* (5) 11-5 Baltimore Ravens 9-7 Cleveland Browns 3-13 AFC SOUTH Indianapolis Colts* (1) 15-1 Houston Texans 9-7 Tennessee Titans 6-10 Jacksonville Jaguars 4-12 AFC WEST Kansas City Chiefs* (4) 10-6 Denver Broncos* (6) 10-6 Oakland Raiders 8-8 San Diego Chargers 7-9 NFC EAST New York Giants* (4) 9-7 Dallas Cowboys 8-8 Washington 6-10 Philadelphia Eagles 5-11 NFC NOR...

The Lobster - Typical Lanthimos...is it good or bad? Does it matter? You can't stop thinking. The Wave - Norwegian disaster film goes the way of 70's TV movie of the week. Amer - Modern day giallo. Sensual, visually stimulating, but a bit of a snooze. Worth a look. The Hunger - 1983 Vampire flick with beautiful people, being beautiful. So wonderfully 80's. Songs My Brother Taught Me - Scenic, well-intentioned, but needed more feeling. The Terminator - Still holds up, but so many flaws, especially that synthesized score. Purple Noon - The original Mr. Ripley shines with Delon in the lead. Great fun. High-Rise - The most literal allegory ever made. Absolute rubbish, especially Evans and Irons. The Prowler - Good movie? Not really! Amazing Tom Savini SFX kills? Absolutely! A Monster With A Thousand Heads - Tense crime drama that makes it point in 70 minutes. Baskin - From Turkey, the scariest and complex horror film I've seen in quite some time. Viridiana - Bun...

I've been meaning to write a blog for a while now, but didn't want one filled with emotion. Been a rough month for me personally and going it alone has been tough. The usual suspects have been absent from my life, but most of all people have just been busy. Sure, I could quote some internet meme about how if people care they'd make time for me, but that's not always true. I've been there. I've had work, little league, personal relationships, my family commitments and I was young. I woke up at 6:30 and went to bed at 1:30 and not once did I have a minute to step back and say "this isn't living." Did I have fun? Of course, but for four years, I essentially became a slave to routine. I didn't go out with friends, didn't drink, didn't even really know what I was doing when I relaxed. I stared at screens, playing games or watching the same movies I'd seen before or ones that looked just like it. But wait, this isn't a cry for help....

Scouts Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse - Very funny, but lacks horror feel. Good acting. Francofonia - On paper, a brilliant docudrama about art preservation during war. On paper! A Brighter Summer Day - A very simple story, enhanced by it's beauty. Four quick hours. The Girl In The Photographs - As bad as a horror movie can get. An all-time dud. I'm A Cyborg, But That's OK - Surreal look at mental illness, is scattered, but works. Bill Cunningham New York - Funny, touching and possibly even deep. He was NYC fashion! Hail, Caesar! - Coen Bros. offer an homage to post-war Hollywood and nail it. Casting is A+ Event Horizon - Cult Classic did nothing for me. No twists or turns and silly script. Boo! Green Room - Run-of-the-mill claustrophobic thriller. Silly script, but solid cast makes it work. Rams - Icelandic drama about two brothers, their farm and the loss of their rams. That's it.  Wrestling - Short by director of Rams. Odd homosexual tale that just feels w...

Felt - Billed as horror, this sad drama about dealing with rape is odd, but effective. Beau Travail - This simple story feels like a complex dream in Claire Denis' hands. Brilliant! Krampus - Silly, funny at times, but definitely a failure as a horror film.  The Danish Girl - Vikander stands out in a miss-the-mark fictional twist on interesting story. Extraordinary Tales - Animated Poe Anthology is so good on paper, but never translates. Deadpool - Overhyped, silly, with some very funny moments, but the film is rather boring. Emelie - It's not perfect, but it's what horror should be. Tense, uncomfortable and exciting. Anomalisa - Charlie Kaufman strikes again. The film resonates, but lacks something in the end. Joy - Arguably the worst script ever written. The movie manages to fail in every way possible.  The Battle Of Algiers - Content could be debated, but the look and sound is impeccable. 10 Cloverfield Lane - Obvious, silly and boring, but surprisingly well a...