Movies I Was Told To Watch - Big Trouble in Little China

Film: Big Trouble in Little China

Recommendor: Alex, friend (aka commenter Nic Cage)

Thoughts: Yes, you read that right. I managed to make it to the age of 32 without having seen Big Trouble. No Jack Burton, no Six Demon Bag, no James Hong (a future FF-UN, to be sure), no Kim Catrall and that damned mole of hers. It wasn't a conscious decision - it was most likely a combination of my ambivalence towards John Carpenter and the fact that I didn't have cable when I was growing up.

The verdict? Probably not unlike the kind of verdict that someone in my demo that hadn't seen The Goonies until now would give. I enjoyed it for all the things that probably made the children of the 80s love it: the cheesy plot, the bad acting, the goofy effects - it's like Bloodsport with a better story and a lack of bad accents (and Ogre). It's too late for me to unabashedly love it, but I wouldn't turn it off were it to pop up on TV in the future.

That said, it is pretty bad. Having been made in 1986, many of the effects, such as the exploding man, have not aged well. The acting, particularly by Russell, is subpar even for the type of movie. Kim Catrall makes for an unbelievable object of desire for Russell's Jack, seeing as how she's never been desirable. The action consists mostly of chase scenes rather true action (or magic). And by the time the credits roll, you're left with many more questions than answers: Why doesn't Kurt Russell...do anything? Why didn't Lo Pan simply kill Jack and Wang the 800 times or so he had a chance to? Why wasn't Bolo Yeung prominently involved? What ethnicity exactly is Suzee Pai (Miao Yin)?

But it's hard not to like any movie where a truck driver is the hero. Preach on, Burton.

Recommendor Rating (Listen/Ignore): Listen (Alex's overall rating: 2-0)

Fletch's Film Rating:

"Darn tootin!"

And then...

Movies I Was Told To Watch - Brotherhood of the Wolf

New feature time. This one's pretty self-explanatory. Whether it be a recommendation from a family member, friend or fellow blogger, I'm told all the time (as I'm sure you are, too) that "you really ought/need/HAVE to see (fill in the blank flick). So, after I watch it, I'll post a few words about it here; most likely just enough to give my impression, whether it was worth the recommendation, and maybe the "record" of the recommendor (as in, "Almost every movie my buddy Frienddude tells me to see has been great. His record is 10-3.").

In other words, this is an excuse for me write a little something about non-theatrical movies that I don't normally write about. First up...

Film: The Brotherhood of the Wolf (Le Pacte des loups)

Recommendor: Alex, friend (aka commenter Nic Cage)

Thoughts: This 2001 French action pic (who knew there was such a thing?) feels like a strange-yet-interesting mix of The Village, Gladiator, and Last of the Mohicans. Samuel Le Bihan stars as Grégoire de Fronsac, a gardener - taxidermist - philosopher - all-around badass who ventures from Paris to a remote province to investigate a number of killings of the locals by a mysterious beast.

Legend, myth and hyperbole lead Fronsac and his Iriquois "brother"(Mark Dacascos, awesome)in a long quest to learn just what is this crazy, deadly beast, falling in love along the way. Monica Belucci and real-life husband Vincent Cassel co-star.

Brotherhood starts off well. The rogueish LeBihan (kind of a mix between Christopher Lambert and Thomas Jane) and his companion arrive on horseback to witness an elderly man and his daughter being beaten by a group of ruffians that we don't quite know yet. In the pouring rain (explaining the odd look they sport above) and in an open field now filled with puddles of mud (note: not the crappy band), Dacascos' Mani slowly descends from his horse and engages the scoundrels. Despite roughly 6-to-1 odds, Mani makes quick work of them using a hybrid of fighting techniques (some of it reminds me of Steven Seagal and his "using the opponents' energy against them" stlye called "whatever it's called"). Through this action sequence and the film's others, director Christophe Gans is wise and kind to his audience by backing the camera up enough so that we can see what's going on. Thanks bunches, Christophe.

Despite the excellent action and beautiful cinematography, the film lost me about 2/3 though, as the "big twist" turned out to be "blatantly obvious." Considering my track record with twists and turns (I'm not horrible at guessing, but I'm not great, either), the fact that it was SCREAMING its twist here is bad news.

However, that didn't take away all the joy. Still a good flick. Fans of action, French films, Monica Belucci's bust or scary beasts could all do much worse.

Recommendor Rating (Listen/Ignore): Listen (Alex's overall rating: 1-0)

Fletch's Film Rating:

"Darn tootin!"

And then...