A Haunting in Venice (2023) - Theme over story telling

"A Haunting in Venice" (2023) - this is the 3rd of Kenneth Branaugh's Agatha Christie's novels he has brought to screen. I have seen them all. I don't think I have ever read one of her stories, but I have watched several movie & TV versions.

Just to sum up this particular film, these are the content warnings for KB's version: [Flashing lights, some thematic elements, some strong violence, disturbing images].

Yup - that sums the film. Plot, character & dialog ... whatever. This movie is a symphony of thematic elements and disturbing imagery along with enough flashing lights that you think your TV might be broken. There are also some people performing unbelievable feats of strength that are indeed violent.

I enjoyed myself. As a form of motion picture entertainment that set out to 'psychologically thrill' me, it works. As an exercise in cinematic story telling based on the writing of arguably the best, most prolific, and popular mystery author of all time -- sheesh. Even more than the first 2, I do not believe he was even trying to tell her story.

I hope he keeps at it. He is one of the few people to spend time producing movies based on complex pieces of literature. I just wish in this case; he would have found a way to combine his desire for intense style with Agatha Christie's superlative writing.

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Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958) - it is a good deal better than the remakes

I got around to watching the original 1958 comedy caper film - the one that "Welcome to Collinwood" was pantomiming. "Big Deal on Madonna Street" is hilarious. It is 25 minutes longer than the remake and never once did I feel the need to check my watch. I even paused to go refill my water glass. There will be no problem telling who is who or how the story goes - it is well shot and characters are unique. The story is a simple and fun. Comparing the "BDoMS" and "WtC" - they are identical in terms of characters and scenes. "Big Deal on Madonna Street" street is terrific, and "WtC" is a slog. The biggest difference is seen in the dialog. In "Big Deal" the people just talk, like you might expect people to talk. They are funny, but not odd. The colloquialisms happen, but they aren't hard to see through. In "WtC", they are using a vernacular to make sure you are immersed deep in an Eastern European ethnic nei...

Alien: Covenant (2017) - Jason X in a toga

A film that raises big questions—about gods, monsters, and the cost of creation—and then answers them with pseudo-intellectual hooha and a bunch of splatters. It’s poetry for meatballs. A creation myth written by someone who forgot the difference between being mysterious and confounding. There’s a premise here. But it never shows up on screen. The director described the film as having [layers of metaphor]. By minute 20, my response to him would be: “Uh nah bruh … you ain’t that deep.” The characters are emotionally unbalanced idiots. This crew is supposedly trained for deep interstellar colonization. No backup plan. No safety protocols. No sense of hierarchy or mission discipline. They panic, scream, and grieve like they’ve just lost soulmates—they are too young to have known each other or been through anything more severe than a power point presentation. They lack agency. They don’t make decisions—they react, flail, and sometimes avoid shooting themselves or blowing themselves up...

"Cocaine Shark" (2023) - Not since "Suburban Sasquatch" ...

Mark Polonia has made almost 80 films since 1985. That is 2+ per year. There was a 3 year pause in his proliferation after his twin brother & production partner John died in 2008. If you consider that he (they) didn’t really start cranking out this entertainment until 2000 - it is more like 3 per year. If he keeps at it as long as they did, he will pass Richard Thorpe and William Beaudine (credited as directing ~180 each). Wowzers. His particular craft is low-low budget. Lower than Roger Corman or Lloyd Kaufman even. Polonia’s production values are limited. You get 2 or 3 sets with plenty of establishing shots to fill the transition. You get special effects and creatures which look like they were assembled by a junior high art class. You will see the same actor playing multiple parts, married couples acting together, and a lot of the same names showing up in multiple different releases. You will see the same people + sets in 2 or 4 of these movies in a room; I assume many of them a...

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