In Memory Of Val Kilmer

Greetings everyone.

This is a very sad day when im doing this blog post after hearing that actor Val Kilmer passed away at the young age of 65 years old this week. Since i was a lot in VHS rental stores during the 80´s of my childhood i remember seeing Val Kilmer on VHS shelves in films such as Top Secret! and Real Genius. By that time i had seen Top Gun of course and let´s be honest, without Val Kilmer as his iconic character Iceman this film would have never been the same. Iceman was the man every man wanted to be and will always be one of the true 80´s legendary characters. In 1988 it was so awsome to see Val Kilmer take on the role as Madmartigan in legendary director Ron Howard´s high fantasy adventure Willow. I remember seeing this film on VHS after it was released here in Sweden renting the film with my grandfather. Seeing Val Kilmer as a swordsman was really fun and he had great chemistry with actor Warwick Davis as the main character Willow Ufgood. Willow had everything you could wish for in an 80´s sword fantasy film and this is a film you simply have to see. For me personally it was in the year of 1991 when Val Kilmer proved his incredible acting abilities in legendary director Oliver Stone´s American biographical film The Doors. A film that tells the story of the legendary American rock band The Doors where Val Kilmer gives an amazing performance as The Doors singer Jim Morrison. To really understand what a great actor Val Kilmer really was you simply have to see The Doors. In my opinion no one could play Jim Morrison other than Val Kilmer, he was the perfect casting choice for this character. In the 90´s he continued delivering unforgettable films such as Thunderheart, Tombstone, True Romance ( this is one you simply have to see ), Heat and of course playing Bruce Wayne in Batman Forever. This is a film that have divided a lot of Batman fans, some fans love it while others have issues with it. I personally feel that Val Kilmer did what he could with his Bruce Wayne character and i do think he did a good job acting in the Batman suit. The cast in this fim with Chris O´Donell, Nicole Kidman, Jim Carrey, Tommy Lee Jones and martial arts legend Don "The Dragon" Wilsson in a smaller rolle, all of this makes Batman Forever a fun ride with the unique style of director Joel Schumacher.

After releasing several films during the late 90´s i feel that Val made some interesting choices regarding different characters and different genres of films. For example in the year 2000 he played the character Robby Gallagher, an engineer in the sci fi action film Red Planet. A film that didn´t do well at all at the box office but found an audience on VHS and DVD instead. In fact i actually bought a DVD copy of Red Planet to several of my movie nerd fans back in the day. Red Planet is actually not a terrible film, i think the film has a cool look and i do like the acting performances from actors Carrie Anne Moss, Benjamin Bratt, Simon Baker, Tom Sizemore and legendary actor Terence Stamp. If you are a Val Kilmer fan i think you should check this film out, seeing him do a big budget science fiction film like this is a fun reminder of his diversity in trying different genres. In the year of 2002 we saw Val Kilmer play the wild character Danny Parker in the neon-noir crime thriller The Salton Sea. This is quite different film experience in Val´s career and this film almost have some Quentin Tarantino vibes in the style of this film. Another really good performance by Val and i have to appreciate how bizarre this film is in certain places from director D.J. Caruso. Let´s move forward to the year of 2003 when Val Kilmer got some positive reviews not only for his performance as the adult film character John Holmes, but the film Wonderland did get some positive reviews as well ( except from some, for different reasons ). I think Val did a great job playing legendary adult film actor John Holmes and this film have a very impressive cast with actors such as Kate Bosworth, Carrie Fischer, Lisa Kudrow, Josh Lucas, Christina Applegate, Tim Blake Nelson and Janeane Garofalo. The look of the film matches with the time period and captures the look of the adult movie insudstry as well the crimes that were commited during this time. A film worth picking up on DVD if you are interested in the story of adult actor John Holmes and what a crazy life he lived. Just 2 years after Wonderland came out Val Kilmer released one of my personal favourite films in his career in the film known as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang with legendary actor Robert Downey Jr. This is such a fun neo-noir black comedy crime film from director Shane Black and the acting performances between Val and Robert are both brilliant and you simply have to see Kiss Kiss Bang Bang ( i know the title is silly but i promise this is a really good film ).

We can go on for hours talking about some of the amazing films Val Kilmer did in his long movie career but you might have some good advices now of films you should check out. The memories of Val will always be with us and we are grateful for the cinema magic he gave us for so many years. Let´s all check out his different films and remember the good times and i will be doing a special movie tribute review of Val Kilmer to one of his films called Spartan from 2004, directed by David Mamet ( who directed the 2001 crime drama film Heist with Gene Hackman ).

R.I.P. Val Kilmer

Alien: Rubicon

If you ask most people about what their favourite flight action drama film is in Hollywood history there is a slightly big chance that most people would say the 1986 film known as Top Gun. Most people have seen this film at least in my generation of people who were kids back in 1986. I personally don´t mind Top Gun for what it is, a macho tribute to the American Naval Fighter Weapons School with some fun flight scenes. But if im being perfectly honest i actually prefer the 1986 action flight film known as Iron Eagle. This is a much more fun film than Top Gun, it may be more cheesy, have a smaller budget than Top Gun but this is the film where legendary actor Louis Gossett. Jr plays his iconic character Colonel Charles "Chappy" Sinclair and we also have legendary actor David Suchet ( the best Hercule Poirot actor if you ask me ) as the terrorist character Ministry Of Defense Colonel Akir Nakesh. Iron Eagle is a simple but great 80´s action film that should be seen. Speaking of flight action films how many of you remember the 1991 action comedy known as Into The Sun with actors Anthony Michael Hall and Michael Paré? If you rented VHS films in the 90´s there is a chance you will recognize the VHS cover, it almost looks like a Top Gun rip off with a couple of differences. I remember enjoying this film back in 1991 for what it was, an entertaining flight action comedy where the chemistry between actors Anthony Michael Hall and Michael Paré was what made this film especially enjoyable. Let´s stick to actor Michael Paré for a while and he have done a lot of movies in his very long acting career. To be honest i have not seen all of his films, there are plenty i need to check out at some point. One film you should see him in is the 2018 horror film Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich ( one of the best Puppet Master films in many years ) where he plays the character Detective Brown. I recently sat down to watch one of the films that Michael Paré was included in last year called Alien: Rubicon produced by legendary B movie company The Asylum. Is this a film you should put up on your watch list this spring or is this sci fi action film not worth your precious time at all?

A series of alien spheres land on planet Earth destroying everything in their path with ease. It´s up to scientist Dr. Jeff Morrow ( Preston Geer ) and President McCoy ( Michael Paré ) to find a way to stop the alien invasion.

As most of you know by now i have been a fan of several films produced by The Asylum such as Planet Of The Sharks and Empire Of The Shark in the past, and then we have the titles that´s definetely not worth a watch such as the 2013 film Atilla ( i promise this is a terrible choice ). I can happily say that Alien: Rubicon is definetely not one of The Asylum films that doesn´t have any qualities. In fact there are a couple of things i especially appreciate about Alien: Rubicon and let us begin with the rubicon sphere itself destroying buildings and military veichles. I wouldn´s say the CGI effects look great but at least the spacecraft looks good enough for this type of sci fi action film. In a way this film reminded me several times of the 1996 sci fi action classic Independence Day in certain scenes. Obviously this is nowhere near as good as that classic but i still found myself enjoying the battles between the rubicon spheres placed in different cities worldwide fighting against human kind. The best part of this film is without a doubt Michael Paré in this film playing President McCoy and this is the most fun acting performance i have seen him do in several years. I really like to see him as the actual President of the United States and i feel he does a good job portraying this character, it´s almost as if i want Michael Paré to be President in real life ( please consider running a campaign Michael ). Actor Preston Geer is also in this film, some of you might recognize him from another The Asylum film called 4 Horsemen: Apocalypse. I would say his character Dr. Jeff Morrow is functional in this film and he does bring some charming moments. In general the flight action scenes looks ok, at least for a low budget film like this. On the negative side i have to say it´s too bad we didn´t get to see more of the actual aliens attacking, that happens towards the end when they storm out of a rubicon sphere. If they would have more battles between humans and aliens this film could have been even more fun to watch. In the end i do feel Alien: Rubicon is enjoyable enough if you are a fan of The Asylum films such as myself. If you just want a simple alien invasion film then this might be what you are looking for. Director Adrian Avila uses all the classic B movie tools you can imagine and it works, Alien: Rubicon shouldn´t have a problem finding it´s way to your watch list on VOD.

Rating: DDD

Homestead

Every now and then there are films that no one expected to blow up the box office charts and defeat big budget films. When Hollywood think they have a created a film that everyone wants to see, that is not always the case and there are plenty of titles to mention to prove that. A perfect example of this was the summer of 2023 when you might expect that Transformers: Rise Of The Beast would be the big ticket seller. That was not the case and instead a criminal thriller drama known as Sound Of Freedom would become the big surprise that none of the bigger film studios were prepared for. Sound Of Freedom only had a budget around 14 million U.S. dollars and ended up having over 250 million U.S. dollars in ticket sales. If you do the math of these numbers you will clearly see that this is an enormous profit for the film. I remember when i heard that this film had reached over 200 million U.S. dollars and that alone was incredible. But the fact that it managed to climb even higher i seriously don´t think many of us expected that to happen. I did see Sound Of Freedom when it landed on VOD here in Sweden and i did review this film. This film did bring up a very important subject and that is the fight against human trafficking that´s happening worldwide. I personally don´t know if this film is really based on true facts regarding the main character Tim Ballard ( played by actor Jim Caviezel ) but i feel this film is very important because it really brings up the importance of fighting against human trafficking. A well made thriller that the production company Angel Studio got a lot more attention worldwide for releasing this film, because of the controversial subject of human trafficking. A film you should see no matter if you buy a physical copy or rent it on VOD. Speaking of Angel Studios last year they released a film called Homestead, a film completely different from Sound Of Freedom that seemed to bring up the subject of what could happen if a country is attacked by a foreign country. Interesting topic considering the conflicts between Russia and Ukraine for example and people being worried over World War III. Is this a film worth watching or is Homestead not as good as i was hoping it would be?

A nuclear bomb detonates in Los Angeles, causing widespread chaos and societal collapse across the United States. Families flee their homes, seeking refuge from the devastation. Among them are Jeff Eriksson ( Bailey Chase ), a former Green, with his family. They are drawn to the Homestead, a fortfied compound owned by billionaire Ian Ross ( Neil McDonough ) and his wife Jenna Ross ( Dawn Olivieri ), rumored to be a safe haven. When the gates of Homestead gets flooded with families asking for help the pressure is on Ian to try and keep stability. If they give away too much food they won´t survive very long. But the food supplies is not only their problem, not knowing what will happen outside the gates is even more problematic.

If you have been wanting to see a very American patriotic film where you can both taste and feel the American soul all across your TV screen, then this is the film you have been looking for. Homestead is without a doubt a film made to be a tribute to the country of America as well as to true patriotic Americans who believe in carrying their guns, who are always prepared for war against everyone who hates America and in this case also have contacts of doomsday preppers ( where they saved a lot of supplies if the Apocalypse arrives,  possibly World War III ). Now, since i am not an American i will pretty much tell you what i think about the movie itself without getting too political ( even though this film does have several political messages ). Let´s talk about the positive parts of Homestead and i think it´s great this film tries to tell you the importance to be aware if something serious happens in this world and you know what to do. Where you should go to protect your own family and what supplies you might need. The importance of having your own food supplies. The people that gather at Homestead have different opinions about what´s more important, help people on the outside and i think this is a good approach, we all have different views on what really matters in real life. The image of being attacked by a foreign country is of course very possible and this film show the impact of that, especially in the beginning of this film. I also feel that this film also tries to show us how important it is to help each other in society, that everyone can do something no matter what you are able to do. Actor Neil McDonough ( who i especially enjoy in the TV series Legends Of Tomorrow ) is the actor who gives the strongest acting performance in this film. On the negative side i think the patriotic image becomes a little bit too much, doesn´t really make the film look more powerful. Like the armed patrol cars going all over the Homestead property becomes a little bit too cheesy. As a drama film i would say overall Homestead is a film that will be appreciated if you want a film that talks about the importance of humanity and supporting each other. Not as powerful as Angel Studio´s mega hit Sound Of Freedom but a descent choice if you just want a solid drama film.

Rating: DDD                                                           

The Witcher: Sirens Of The Deep

You can not deny that Netflix have not produced both really good films or especially wonderful TV series. Every year we get to see a lot of different categories no matter if you prefer criminal TV mini series, documentary films or perhaps a horror film. The positive thing about a streaming service such as Netflix is that you can always find something to watch. One of the TV series i would definetely recommend is the criminal TV series Mindhunter, especially if you like TV series that brings up real well known criminals from the past. Mindhunter basically tell the story of FBI agents Holden Ford ( Jonathan Groff ) and Bill Tench ( Holt McCallany ), who works together along with psychologist Wendy Carr ( Anna Torv ), who operate the FBI´s Behavioral Science Unit within the Training Division at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. Together they launch a research project to interview imprisoned serial killers to understand their psychology with the hope of applying this knowledge to solve ongoing cases. Mindhunter is not only very beautiful to look at with the cool 70´s look but i really feel that the chemistry between the main characters Holden and Bill works really good in this TV series. I also feel that Mindhunter is interesting for trying to give a different approach on the subject of understanding how a serial killer function. The fact that legendary director David Fincher is one of the executive producers is of course a very good sign that this is a quality TV series and you should definetely watch both seasons of Mindhunter. Speaking of Netflix TV series one very popular and beloved TV series for several years is the show known as The Witcher. Based on the book series of author Andrzej Sapkowski, this series tell the story of the monster hunter Geralt of Rivia ( played by actor Henry Cavill ). I have seen two seasons of this TV series and really enjoy it, of course Henry Cavill left this show after the third season. We have had an animated film released in 2021 called Nightmare Of The Wolf as well as a prequel miniseries called The Witcher: Blood Origin. So early this year Netflix released a new The Witcher animated film called Sirens Of The Deep and i decided to give this film a chance, even though i don´t watch animated movies very often. Is this worth checking out on Netflix or should you stick to the TV series instead?

Hired to probe seaside village attacks, mutant monster hunter Geralt of Rivia ( Doug Cockle ) unravels and age-old conflict between humans and sea people that threatens war between kingdoms. Aided by allies, he sets out to solve the mystery before hostilities escalate.

I think it would be fair to say that this is the kind of animated film that true fans of The Witcher tv series would enjoy, or perhaps fans of animated action film that has a similar style from MANGA classics. This film almost feels like it´s been inspired by animated classics such as Blood - The Last Vampire, even though they barely have nothing in common at all other than certain details from the animation and similar styles in action scenes. The Witcher: Sirens Of The Deep does not hold back on the violence in this film and i personally feel that this is a very good idea. If you ask me i think an animated film about The Witcher should be very violent since the TV series did have some wonderful violent moments. The animation looks good for the most part and i especially enjoy some of the monsters in this film. Voice actor Doug Cockle ( who does the vioce for the character Geralt of Rivia in the video game The Witcher 3:- Wild Hunt ) does a great job capturing the right kind of personality of Geralt. Another animated character i appreciate in this film is the female character Yennefer of Vengerberg ( with voice actor Anya Chalotra who plays the same character in the TV series of The Witcher ) The battle scenes between monsters and Geralt are fun, well made and there are some scenes where i found myself surprised over a few unexpected surprises. The plot is pretty easy to follow and i think they did a good job capturing the spirit of the character Geralt in an animated version. Anything negative to say? I would probably say a few attempts of being funny in this film doesn´t really work. At least i didn´t find myself laughing but of course others might find these scenes funnier than me. In general i would say that The Witcher: Sirens Of The Deep is good enough to recommend, especially for fans of the TV series and if you like this style of animation that this film uses. Looking for an animated action film for a lovely popcorn night? Then this might be a good pick if you appreciate lots of violence, just like i do.

Rating: DDD

Nosferatu

I have always loved standing on a high view at night, looking out over a city or over a small community underneath the night sky. Watching all the stars in the skies and hearing different sounds with no people around, it is without a doubt relaxing and makes you think about many different things. Some people fear the night not knowing if there is anything out there among the trees, if they walk along a path there might be an animal looking at them. When i visited my grandfather´s cabin on the West Coast of Sweden i could take a night walk along the small forest walking path towards the ocean. I never felt any fear but actually felt like the night helped me appreciate the darkness, respecting it as well. Most people fear of something no matter if it´s being afraid of the unknown or if you are afraid in general for the dark itself. What if there is something out there that might actually harm you if you enounter a truly evil personality? Whenever i think off the novel Dracula by author Bram Stoker i always feel that this book definetely capture that kind of description of what true evil might look like. This is in my opinion one of the best horror books i have ever read and still to this day remains as one of my favourite novels. Not only is this a very well written novel but i also feel this book explain the fascination we have for the darkness and the fear we might feel for such a evil personality as Dracula. Most of you have probably heard of this story before ( based of the Wallachian prince Vlad The Impaler ) and some of you might have seen the 1922 silent film Nosferatu: A Sympathy Of Horror or perhaps the 1979 remake known as Nosferatu The Vampire. One of my personal recommendations on horror films based on the novel Dracula is the 1958 horror film Dracula from director Terence Fischer. This was the first film legendary actor Christopher Lee played the character known as Dracula and it is a true classic. The best film adaptation so far based on the novel of Dracula is without a doubt Francis Ford Coppola´s 1992 horror film Bram Stoker´s Dracula. This film have everything you could wish for, powerful acting performances, lovely costume designs, very well made practical make up effects and really effective horror scenes. The performance from Gary Oldman in this film is absolutely timeless, one of his greatest acting performances in his career. If you have not seen either Dracula from 1958 or Bram Stoker´s Dracula from 1992 you definetely need to see them. So here we are with a new film adaptation of Nosferatu and this version is directed by Robbert Eggers ( mostly known for his 2015 horror film The Witch ). I picked up a physical copy of this film to especially see the extended cut of Nosferatu since i love to see longer versions than the cinema release. Is this one of the horror films you need to see this spring or have they made a new version of Nosferatu that doesn´t really offer anything exciting at all?

The year is 1838, Ellen Hutter ( Lily-Rose Depp ) lives in Wisborg, Germany with her husband, Thomas Hutter ( Nicholas Hoult ), an estate agent. Thomas, eager to secure a lucrative deal, accepts an assignment to sell a crumbling castle in Wisborg to the enigmatic Count Orlok ( Bill Skarsgård ), unaware that this arrangement is a part of a sinister pact between Orlok and his employer, Herr Knock ( Simon McBurney ), Despite Ellen´s ominous warnings, including a confession of a pre-wedding dream in which her bridegroom was Death, Thomas departs to Orlok´s castle in the Carpathian Mountains, leaving Ellen in the care of his friend Friedrich Harding ( Aaron Taylor-Johnson ). This decision to travel will soon prove to be the biggest mistake Thomas have ever made in his life so far.

If you are familiar with other films from director Robbert Eggers you know he is a very talented film maker and he makes that very clear in Nosferatu as well. Not only is this a really beautiful dark film but this film also manage to capture the true feeling of Dracula that true fans of Bram Stoker´s novel is familiar with. Since i have seen several versions of this novel in different film adaptations i can say that Robbert Eggers version of this classic novel may be one of the better versions in modern years. This film looks so elegant with all the darkness floating around and the colors matches so well in this time period filled with misery and pain. There are other details i must mention that makes Nosferatu such a lovely film experience. Just look at the beautiful costume design this film have and how well it matches with the time period. I feel that the horror influences is very well crafted where you get a sense that true evil may be surrounding each corner, there is no real escape from the dark forces once you encounter it. The acting in this film deliver a lot of really solid performances, especially from actor Bill Skarsgård ( who most of you horror fans are familiar with through the IT films as Pennywise ) as Count Orlok. Now, i have to be honest he is anot as good as Gary Oldman is in Francis Ford Coppola´s film Bram Stoker´s Dracula, but this is still a very powerful performance and show that Bill can take on very challenging characters. Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter is another perfect example of really good casting choice where Nicholas proves hes become a better actor over the years ( especially since Jack The Giant Slayer ). Legndary actor Willem Dafoe is no big surprise that he nails his performance eactly how i would have imagined, delightful and charming as well. I must mention legendary actor Simon McBurney as well, i promise you will be pleased by his performance. Nosferatu may not carry a lot of new ingredients compared to other film adaptations but this is definetely a worthy remake of a true classic. Thanks to really effective horror influences and very professional film making, this latest version is full of details that matches the ground material so well and make this film a exquisite cinematic experience. I am impressed how well director Robbert Eggers managed to make this film look so good as it does. Not as good as Bram Stoker´s Dracula but still a lot better than most modern horror films i have seen in quite some time, Nosferatu should be picked up on a physical copy and be placed next to your Dracula collection. 

Rating: DDDD

Wolf Man

In the summer of the year of 2001 i was having a Universal Monster movie marathon Saturday with my high school friends Patrick and André in my apartment. Since none of us had seen a lot of the old monster movies released by Universal Pictures i decided to rent some of them at one of our local DVD rental stores. I picked out 3 very well known horror classics and that was The Mummy ( 1932 ), Phantom Of The Opera ( 1943 ) and finally the film The Wolf Man ( 1941 ). All of the DVD cases looked cool and we watched all 3 films over one night. To this occasion i actually baked us an apple pie because i knew these guys would drink lots of coffee ( we always did at movie nights in my apartment ) and they definetely enjoyed the pie. Looking back at this Saturday night i remember we all enjoyed each film for different reasons. I believe Patrick enjoyed The Mummy most of the films because he loved the more modern The Mummy movies with Brendan Fraser, which was why he was curious to see the original The Mummy film. One of the films i especially found fascinating of these three titles was The Wolf Man, a film i have heard about many years in my youth but didn´t really watch it until then. The Wolf Man tells the story of Larry Talbort ( played by legendary actor Lou Chaney Jr. ) who returns to the ancestral home in Lianwalley, Wales, to bury his recently deceased brother and reconcile with his estranged father, Sir John Talbot ( played by legendary actor Claude Rains ). Larry falls in lover with a local girl named Gewn Conliffe ( Evelyn Ankers ) who runs an antique shop. It is in this sop that Larry buys a walking stick decorated with a silver wolf´s head. What he doesn´t know is that this walking stick is carrying a curse. The Wolf Man is without a doubt a true werewolf classic that may look a bit silly to some people today ( considering how werewolf practical make up effects have improved since then ) but i think considering the time period they did a great job making the best they could with the budget. In 2010 director Joe Johnston delivered a a remake simply known as The Wolfman, This film definetely had a different take on this classic story with great acting performances especially from Anthony Hopkins and actress Emily Blunt. I actually prefer the 2010 film over the original film for personal reasons, while i still enjoy the original film. So here we are in 2025 and have another film adaptation of The Wolf Man and this time from director Leigh Whannell ( who most of you remember from the original Saw film ). I simply had to see this film to see if i would be surprised since i always try to watch new werewolf films. Is this the best Wolf Man adaptation we have so far or does it not succeed to reach the same level of quality as the previous films?

Blake Lovell ( Christopher Abbot ) lives in San Fransisco with his daughter Ginger Lovell ( Matilda Firth ) and workaholic wife Charlotte Lovell ( Julia Garner ). Blake is having problems controlling his temper, which causes conflicts in the marriage. One day, he recieves a death certificate for his father Grady Lavell ( Sam Jaeger ), who went missing, and the keys to his childhood home is sent to him inside the death certificate. Blake have not seen his father for many years so he ha no close connection to him. However, he decides to travel back to his childhood home and take Ginger and Charlotte with him there, so try and spend time together as a family and rebuild his marriage. Seeking directions, they encouter a local, Derek Kiel ( Benedict Hardie ), who leads them to the house as the sun sets. Before they arrive, a creature drives them off the road, scratches Blake´s arm and kills Derek. They manage to escape into Blake´s childhood home as the beast seemss to be waiting outside. But the wound Blake had seems to change him, he´s not the same man he used to be.

Since i am a very big fan of director Leigh Whannells film Upgrade from 2018 i was really excited seeing his take on this classic movie monster. I will start by saying this, Leigh is a really talented director using a lot of really effective camera angles, especially in certain scenes that captures the fear of knowing there is a dangerous beast out there. I love the scenes where you only see glimpses of the beast and don´t reveal the whole look, it keeps the mystery alive and the fascination for the beast as well. I think this is a smart move since you don´t want to know too many details from an early start and just keep the creepy horror elements build up tensions along the way. I love the fact that this film tries to tell the story from two different angles, you have the fear from what is waiting on the outside but then you have the fear of the main character Blake who is turning into a beast himself. This gives the film a completely different level of tension that i didn´t expect. When it comes to the relationship between the father Blake and his daughter Ginger i have to say both actors Christopher Abbot and Matilda Firth did a great job capturing that magic between a father and a daughter. Actress Julia Garner proves once more her actings skills matches with her character. I have to mention the practical make up effects because i am a huge fan of films who goes old school and show us flesh wounds that´s not CGI. This is definetely important when it comes to a film where you have two werewolves showing since the best films in this genre used practical make up effects as well. The werewolf design is definetely a throwback to the original film with some differences. I appreciate that this film is mostly focused on one location which is the old house, it makes the atmosphere surrounding this old forest match very well with the story.I honestly don´t understand the negative reviews of Wolf Man because i actually enjoyed this film. Director Leigh Whannell is a talented horror director and he knows how to make a horror film look good, choose the right kind of characters and bring life into this genre that needed a good werewolf film. I definetely recommend Wolf Man for true horror fans and i will be picking up a physical copy to my werewolf collection ( yes i do have a love for this specific genre ).

Rating: DDD

Piglet

Let us for a moment travel back in time to the magical year of 2003. This was the year when Welsh rock band Stereophonics released their third studio album You Gotta Go There To Come Back ( that incudes their huge hit single Maybe Tomorrow ) and American rock metal band Limp Bizkit released their third album Results May Vary, an album that´s very different from their previous records ( perhaps a reason why this album have divided a lot of fans ). 2003 was also the year when iconic action actor Arnold Schwarzenegger was inaugated as Governor of California while one of the biggest movie releases this year was without a doubt director Peter Jackson´s film The Lords Of The Rings: The Return Of The King ( an epic final chapter in The Lords Of The Rings trilogy ). 2003 was my 4th year working in health care and i had already managed to try many different jobs at different health care homes. I can´t talk about the patients themselves but i remember going with a patient to a film he really wanted to see and that was the animated Disneytoon studios film Piglet´s Big Movie. At that time i didn´t really watch a lot of animated movies in my pesonal life, unless it was MANGA films or something similar. So for me to see an animated film in cinema such as Piglet´s Big Movie was definetely unusual. I have seen animated cartoons of Winnie The Pooh as a child so i was familiar with the character known as Piglet. So how was this film you might ask? For an animated family movie i would say it´s watchable, there are some positive details i feel this film manage to capture both the imagination of the world of Winnie The Pooh while also teaching some important things for children. I have not watched this film since i saw it in cinema back in 2003 but i have come across the Winnie The Pooh universe ever since they created the low budget slasher films Winnie The Pooh Blood And Honey ( where the sequel is so far the best ). It seems that this has become a trend in modern days to make horror films of well known children book characters. I don´t mind films such as this as long as they make fun horror films. So here we are with a film called Piglet, clearly inspired by the pig character from Winnie The Pooh and thrown into a slasher film. Is this far better than i expected or is Piglet a perfect example why some low budget horror films shouldn´t be made at all?

On Kate´s ( Alina Desmond ) 21st birthday camping trip, her friends encounter Piglet ( Alexander Butler ), a monstrous human-pig hybrid who brutally murders one of them. They uncover Piglet´s origin and Kate must confront her past to survive the relentless killer.

I understand what the low budget slasher Piglet was trying to do, spin the Winnie The Pooh universe around and put focus on the character of Piglet into a horror tale. It could have been a fun idea if they actually made an effort to make the idea work. Unfortunately, this film is a perfect example when you are not creative enough and basically make a film just to make money from a well known character. Right from an early start in this film i could feel how little effort they made to make this a fun slasher film. Remember last year when i reviewed a low budget slasher film called The Mouse Trap and mentioned how awful that film was? Piglet is not as awful as that particular film but this is still a really bad slasher film. Just the fact that they didn´t even try and make a cooler looking killer mask than the mask we see in this film of Piglet just shows that they are only interested cashing in on the product. Ok so i will mention two positive details compared to The Mouse Trap, in this film you at least get to see some bloody kills so that´s at least positive. If you are going to make a slasher film at least show some bloody body attacks if you are going to make me happy, so we do get some scenes of this in Piglet. I also find the home of Piglet to be kind of fun, it looks like a Redneck nest that´s never been cleaned for a thousand years. But that´s where the positive ends for me regarding the positive details of the film Piglet. What we are left with is in the end is a slasher film that doesn´t have anything interesting to bring to the table in this genre. The acting in general is terrible, the plot is not something you really care about and the character of Piglet is in my opinion wasted in this film, they really should have tried to do an interesting background story of him. Director Andrea M. Catinella ( director of the low budget horror film Island Of The Dolls 2 ) should have put in a lot more effort to make Piglet a fun slasher film, because there is a fun idea incuding Piglet as a killer. It´s such a shame he didn´t do much more to make this a B movie gem and now we are only left with a slasher film that will most likely be forgotten. If you want to watch a more fun slasher film watch Winnie The Pooh Blood And Honey 2, that film actually did entertain me compared to Piglet.

Rating: D

Werewolves

On my several journeys to Scotland i have some really lovely memories. Not only of the wonderful hospitality the Scottish people welcomed me to their homes but the amazing Scottish highlands especially how beautiful it was to experience the incredible landscape. I remember on my second journey to Scotland i woke up one night at the Bed And Breakfast hotel we stayed at up near the Scottish highlands and i stepped outside to get some fresh air. It must have been around 3 a.m. and the moon was shining bright. It was while i was standing there i looked over to the other side of the road where a local pub was closed. I couldn´t see the pub sign letters completely but it was clearly a very old fashioned sign. It reminded me of a pub sign in legendary director John Landis 1981 classic horror comedy film An American Werewolf In London, when the American men visits a pub called The Slaughtered Lamb. Not that it was called something similar but the shape of the sign was similar and was made out of wood. Standing there with such a bright moon i instantly thought about werewolves, how could i not after seeing that pub sign up in the Scottish highlands? Most horror fans know the classic horror comedy An American Werewolf In London and there are other werewolf classics such as Dog Soldiers ( you should own a blu ray release of this film from distribution company Second Sight Films ). When it comes to werewolf films there is both some good releases worth checking out, but there are some terrible werewolves films as well. Who remember the awful 1995 film Howling: New Moon Rising ( the 7th film in this franchise ) ?. One specific title i can recommend though that is worth watching in the werewolf category is the 2014 horror film Late Phases from director Adrian Garcia Bogliano. A blind war veteran is forced to survive against a werewolf while he is prepared to kill the beast. Late Phases is a simple werewolf film but have an interesting plot and the fact that the main character is blind makes this film more interesting. Worth renting on VOD or picking up on a physical copy. Speaking of werewolves late last year was the release of the horror action film known as Werewolves that looked like a fun tribute to B movies of my childhood. I decided to rent the film on VOD since i am a fan of action actor Frank Grillo and i was curious to see him in a horror film. Is this a must see this spring or is Werewolves more terrible than i ever would have imagined?

One year ago, during the supermoon, humans transformed into werewolves who came in contact with moonlight. In response, humans are preparing for another supermoon event, barricading their homes with weapons and self-defense traps. Whatever you do, make sure you are locked inside and do not come in contact with the moonlight.

I might as well be honest and say that Werewolves is a film that is clearly made for B movie lovers, and if you are not a fan of B movies then this is definetely not for you. However, if you love old school monster films we used to get on VHS back in the day at rental stores then you are going to have fun with this fim. This is basically like a mixed combination of The Purge and the Underworld franchise, where werewolves is the main enemy. There are several details to appreciate about Werewolves so let´s start talking about what i appreciate most. The fact that anyone can turn into a werewolf just looking at the full moon is a pretty cool concept, since this is supposed to be a supermoon that only comes out one specific night. I also like the idea that society prepare themselves like this is something similar to a purge night, and try to block doors and windows not to get the moonlight shining in and keep the werewolves outside. When it comes to the characters we have a mixed bag here but the main character Wesley ( played by action actor Frank Grillo ) is a great lead character for this film. He is tough, not afraid to risk his own life while he is worried about his dead brother´s wife and their daughter. Frank Grillo proves once more that he knows exactly how to handle action scenes and it´s fun watching him battling werewolves with actress Katrina Law as the character Dr. Amy. Nice to see legendary actor Lou Diamond Phillips in here even though i wish he had more screen time. The action scenes may not be the greatest i have seen but i think Werewolves manage to balance both horror and action together in a positive way. The werewolves look cool enough to enjoy if you are a werewolf fan. On the negative side i would probably say that this film could have been more brutal, with more brutal body attacks where bodies are ripped apart. Other than that i had fun with Werewolves for being a throwback to action horror films of the 80´s and 90´s. Director Steven C. Miller ( director of the great 2012 Christmas horror film Silent Night ) clearly had fun making Werewolves and he show that by giving us a tasteful B movie treat filled with tasty details. If you want a pizza night with cold beer at home and don´t know what to watch, Werewolves should be the perfect choice for a VOD rental evening.

Rating: DDD

Take Cover

Sometimes when i just want to have a good time, i simply unplug my brain cells and just watch lots of bullets fly in the air, explosions and fights i turn towards 90´s action films produced by the legendary American distribution company known as PM Entertainment Group Inc. They produced a hell of a lot of low budget action films in the 90´s with action stars like Don "The Dragon" Wilson, Lorenzo Lamas, Jeff Wincott, Jack Scalia, Gary Daniels, Jeff Wincott, Jeff Fahey and many others. Back in the 90´s i used to rent several action films released by PM Entertainment because not only did the VHS covers look cool, you knew that most of these films would be a fun watch. It didn´t matter if none of these films had any plots as long as they had plenty of action and terrible dialouge. There are several films i could easily recommend if you enjoy action films in general but let´s stick to one specific title for a moment. Let´s talk about the 1995 action film Rage from legendary action director Joseph Mehi ( who have directed classics such as Final Impact and Maximum Force ). This film star none other than action actor Gary Daniels as the California teacher Alex Gainer who is chosen by the army to be a prime specimen to clone for the army. If you want lots of action, violence and gun battles then you are going to have fun with this film. Especially towards the end at the shopping mall scenes, they are some of the most violent gun battle scenes i have seen inside a shopping mall where stores get completely destroyed. What i love about scenes such as this is that you don´t need a reason to explain anything, just kick a lot of ass and shoot down as many as possible. I do wonder if this film was inspired by the 1992 action classic Universal Soldier, because the military use people in a similar way but for cloning instead. Either way this is a fun B movie action film that smells 90´s from the start to the cheesy ending. If you look around online you should be able to find a DVD copy of Rage, it´s worth checking out if you want classic Gary Daniels action. Speaking of action stars we do have some still working in the movie industry today and one of the greatest ones is of course Scott Adkins. With several really good titles such as Ninja, Undisputed III: Redemption, The Expendables 2, Accident Man, Avengement, there are many titles worth checking out. I have always been a fan of Scott and really appreciate he does his own fight scenes as well as action scenes in general. Early this year i bought a physical DVD copy from the UK of his film Take Cover to add to my Scott Adkins physical collection and to see if this would be another action gem. Is this one of his better releases in recent years or is Take Cover not worth your precious time at all?

Professional sniper hitman Sam Lorde ( Scott Adkins ) is on a mission with his sniper partner Ken ( Jack Parr ). They end up killing the target but one other target is killed that wasn´t planned. Sam have doubts about himself and his sniper career and decides he will do one last mission before he ends being a hitman. Ken is not happy but accept his friend Sam´s choice, so they will celebrate one last night together at a luxuary hotel having the best most exclusive room. What starts of like a promising evening is about to turn into a nightmare.

You might think that Take Cover is just another action release that looks exactly the same as some of the previous Scott Adkins releases. The good news is that this film actually have a bit more complicated plot than his action films in recent years. Imagine if you would be inside a luxuary hotel room with wide windows where snipers suddenly try to take you out? You can´t reach the elevator because you might get shot, so what do you do to survive and find a way out? This is where this film turn more interesting than the generic start that looks very similar to other snipers films. I would say that even if the film starts off pretty dull it actually gets better as the film takes place at the hotel. When it comes to the characters there is a great chemistry between the main characters Sam ( Scott Adkins ) and Ken ( Jack Parr ). It´s like two brothers arguing about anything while they work together and still get along. Even though this is not the most powerful acting performance i have seen Scott Adkins do ( perhaps his best acting performance is in the film Avengement ) i still feel he pulls off a solid enough performance that matches the character. I do like actress Alice Eve ( who i enjoyed in the 2023 horror film Haunting Of The Queen Mary, worth checking out ) as the character Tamara. What is especially nice about her character is that you think she is a certain way from the beginning, and she completely changes showing her true identity. The action scenes looks good as they usually do in a Scott Adkins film and i especially enjoy the martial art fighting scenes. So is there any detail that could have been changed? There are a few dialogue scenes that didn´t feel like they were needed to be included, especially regarding Amsterdam. Overall i still feel that Take Cover is worth a watch if you are an old school action fan. Director Nick McKinless ( stuntman on films such as Zack Snyder´s Justice League ) knows how to deliver classic action entertainment and with Take Cover he makes sure to let Scott Adkins look good on the big screen. Worth a rent on VOD or pay for a physical DVD copy so we can keep this genre alive.

Rating: DDD

Anora

In the late 90´s i became very close friend to a working collegue of mine named Robert during my first year working in health care. Not only were we both huge fans of Martin Scorsese films as well as Quentin Tarantino films, we both loved British rock music such as Stereophonics, Oasis and Monaco ( the solo project with Peter Hook basist player from New Order ). During this time he told me that he liked going to a strip club in the Swedish city of Gothernburgh known as Wandas. Of course i knew there were strip clubs in the bigger cities across Sweden but never visited one. So in 1999 i did my first visit with Robert and he would show me around the whole strip club. It was actually quite big with 2 floors. The first floor was of course the strip dance scene itself with a bar and leather sofas. If you wanted to watch the ordinary strip show you could just order a drink and sit in the leather sofas. They also had private rooms if you wanted a bit more private show. On the second floor you found a long hallway with different video rooms ( if you wanted to jerk off to adult films basically ). There was also a sofa infront of a huge TV playing some adult film further down the hallway where an older man in a suit was enjoying himself. Me and Robert basically stayed on the first floor watching the dance shows, and at some occations some of the female strippers would sit down in the sofa we were sitting in just to have converastions. Since that time i returned to visit Wandas with Robert and got to know some of the strippers a little bit better, because they knew we were respectful to the women. Speaking of strippers there have been films made in the past regarding the striptease scene such as the 1996 black comedy Stiptease with Demi Moore, Burt Reynolds and Robert Patrick. I know some people don´t like this film but i have no bigger issues with it, i would say it´s entertaining enough thanks to the great cast. And seeing actress Demi Moore on the strip scene is of course something you don´t turn down. Worth a watch on DVD or VOD if you just want to be entertained by a 90´s classic. Last year i was hearing some really positive reviews from a film called Anora, a film that´s connected to the strip club scene. What really made me curious of this film is the director known as Sean Baker, being a fan of films he have directed in the past. I finally got a chance to sit down and enjoy this film on a physical copy. Is this one of the films you need to experience this spring or is this a film that´s not as good as i was hoping it would be?

Anora "Ani" Mikheeva is a 23-year-old stripper living in Brighton Beach, a Russian-American neighborhood in Brooklyn. Her boss introduce her to Ivan "Vanya" Zakharov ( Mark Ejdelstejn ), the young son of a wealthy Russian oligarch, Nikolai Zakharov (  Aleksei Serebyakov ). Vanya is in the United States to study, but prefers to party and play video games in his family´s Brooklyn mansion. Vanya hires Ani for several sexual encounters and pay her 15.000 U.S. dollars to stay with him for a week. Vanya and his entourage fly to Las Vegas, where Anya ask Ani to marry him so that he can obtain a green card instead of returning to Russia to work for his father. Even though Ani is skeptical at first, she aproves his wish because she have geniune feelings for Vanya. This will turn out to be a huge mistake, not only for Ani but especially for Vanya.

If you remember the insane 2012 film known as Spring Breakers and how wild that film was, imagine something similar to that but takes place during strip club scenes and Las Vegas as well and you have a pretty good image of how this film Anora looks like a big part of the runtime. The film changes tone after a while but right from the start it´s a wild ride of nude bodies, sex, alcohol and drugs. So if you are a sensitive person then this is definetely not a film for you. There are several details i feel that this film does right. The portrait of a strip club business feels realistic and how the business works. You get a sense how the female strippers learn how to treat customers just in case they might get a big tip, and if they paid good enough they might be able to cross boundaries of regular rules. The main character of Anora ( played really powerful by actress Mikey Madison, most of you probably recognize from the TV series Better Things ) is a woman who basically lives day by day just to get enough money to survive. Mikey Madison really go all in to portrait the woman of Anora as a lost soul who still have a small dose of dignity left buried deep inside of her. I personally feel this is her strongerst acting performance so far in her career. Regarding the relationship that Anora develop with Russian bad boy Vanya ( played well by actor Mark Ejdelstejn ) you can feel quite early that this is not going to end well. Even when you have all the money to spend, you don´t have to take responsibilities as ordinary young people, at some poing the house of cards will fall down. And that exactly what this film tries to show as well as how destructive relationships might destroy lives. I have to mention the crazy performance of actor Karren Karagulian as Toros, he is not the person you want to upset. There are actually some funny scenes as well when a group go out looking for missing Vanya where i found myself laughing. Anora is a film that really show that happiness isn´t always about money but having real people in your life matters more than any luxuary lifestyle. A very tragic but also funny film as well that show life can be one hell of a roller coaster. Director Sean Baker ( who directed one of my personal favourite films of 2017 known as The Florida Project ) proves once more why he is such a brilliant director capturing a realistic view of the dark sides of humanity while also showing a beautiful portrait of the struggles of a young woman. Anora is definetely a must see if you want to experience something different than most Hollywood films.

Rating: DDDD

Monster Summer

There was something special about being a kid in the 80´s. We didn´t have cellphones, we had computers but we could basically just play video games on them and we actually spent time together at pizza restaurants, VHS stores playing arcade games and renting VHS tapes, at our local comic book store and at the beach. If we wanted to meet somewhere we either used our home phone or phone booths downtown. This was when we still had phone books to find phone numbers to the right adress. I remember me, Robert and Henrik during summer time going on our bicycles to the lake of Bjursjön in 1988 where we used hang out together. If we were lucky they had a café open at Bjursjö stugan during summertime ( a cabin that was connected to the lake ) so we could get ice cream or sodas. This was where we would also meet girls our age ( we were 11 years old at that time ) and just hang out together. When i have been to different lakes and the ocean as well in modern days you can tell things have changed, People don´t talk together like we did in the 80´s, a lot of people are too busy with social media and i see children not being very social like we used to be. Of course times changes you can´t escape that, but the social part have changed a lot and i think it´s great for children to be social outside social media. Speaking of the 80´s there were so many great teenage / children films released back then such as The Neverending Story, The Goonies, Stand By Me and i think we might have to include the horror film Stephen King´s IT from 1990 as well. There are some attempts to try and bring back the 80´s in films such as the 2011 sci fi teenage thriller Super 8 from director J.J. Abrams. A very well made film regarding a group of teenagers who witness aliens invading their small town. This film have so much nostalgic feelings all around it with capturing the time period really well as well as the characters match really good. One of director J.J. Abrams best films in my opinion and a true love letter to the 80´s. I highly recommend you to watch Super 8 if you want a real popcorn evening at home. Speaking of films bringing back nostalgic feelings last year a film called Monster Summer was released that is supposed to take place one summer of 1997. Im always open minded to films trying to capture different time periods, especially during the 80´s and 90´s. I noticed that the trailer reminded me of teenage films of the 80´s so that got me curious. Is this a film for fans such as the classic film The Goonies or did the film Monster Summer not deliver that much fun at all?

Noah Reed ( Mason Thames ) is an ordinary school kid just hangin out with his friends Eugene Wexler ( Julian Lerner ) and Sammy Devers ( Abby James Witherspoon ) as they visit the suspicious older man Gene Carruthers ( Mel Gibson ) property out of curiosity. Noah forget his backpack at Gene´s home who later on return it to him. It turns out that Gene is just an ordinary man, but something strange seems to be happning in town where young people suddenly disappear and return behaving very odd. Noah begins to investigate why people are suddenly being taken away as he gets help from Gene who is also suspicious about this mystery

I may as well start by saying that Monster Summer is not a future classic by any means nowhere near The Neverending Story or The Goonies. Those films can never be replaced by any modern films no matter how hard anyone tried. However, i will say that i do appreciate the effort of Monster Summer where they actually tried to capture some of that cinema magic that we used to get from teenage films from the 80´s and 90´s. This film actally understand what kind of audience it is made for and the best part of it all is that it leans heavy on nostalgic factors of the 90´s. The teenagers dress like the 90´s and they talk like we did in the 90´s. Details like these are important if you want to capture the time period right. There are other details that i feel makes this film work as well as it does and i feel that the characters match well with the plot. It feels like this could be teenagers hanging out during the summer in the 90´s just chillin inside the lead character Noha´s ( played by actor Mason Thames ) treehouse. Now i have to be honest and say the most positive surprise is how good legendary actor Mel Gibson is in this film as the character Gene. I have always been a fan of Mel but in the last 5 years there have been a few films i had issues with. But it feels like in this film he really steps up and deliver a solid performance. The mystery surrounding the witch in this film is done simple but effective and the special effects are done nicely without getting too complicated. The make up effects of the witch ( when it´s revealed who it really is ) looks like something similar to the witch in the 2014 film Into The Woods where Meryl Streep played a witch, and it actually works. So anything that could have been improved? Honestly there is not much to compain about because this is a good family movie. Monster Summer may not be a future familly movie classic but this film proves why we need to go back to more simple days in the 90´s. Director David Henrie shoud continue making films inspired by my youth because he is clearly good at making a film in this genre. If you want a nostalgic trip back to the 90´s then Monster Summer should please you, worth checking out on VOD or streaming.

Rating: DDD

Devil´s Knight

There was a time in my youth when i used to travel to the capital city of Stockholm quite alot since i visited my cousins living there. We celebrated Christmas weekends together while doing other events together as well, and one other thing we did that i can still remember was our museum visits at different locations around the city. One of the museums in Stockholm i found really interesting was the Medieval museum and the artifacts they have found from this time period. It was like stepping back in time where you would get a sense how life used to be back then, while you learned about certain people who made a very big impact in Sweden during the medieval years. I noticed in a newspaper here in Sweden not that long ago that the Medieval museum have moved to another location so i think i will visit again, not only to see what other artifacts they have found over the years but also to see their new location. I personally feel it is good to learn about history since we can learn a lot from the past, but we may also understand more regarding our ancestors. So no matter where you live on this planet, if you are able to visit a museum that have medieval artifacts and teach history i would highly recommend you to go. Speaking of medieval times there are plenty of movies that bring up this time period in history. One of my very first films in this catgory i remember seeing back in 1987 on VHS, was the mystery thriller drama The Name Of The Rose with legendary actor Sean Connery and a very young Christian Slater. This film also have a very unique performance by Ron Perlman as the hunchback Salvatore. Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud this film takes place during the early 14th century where William of Baskerville ( Sean Connery ) investigate mysterious murders taking place at Benedictine in Northern Italy. If you love murder mysteries and strong acting performances then this might be something for you. If you pick up the physical release of The Name Of The Rose there are some great special features included, i highly recommend listening to the commentary track. I do enjoy watching more modern films taking place during medieval times so whenever i see a film that takes place during this time period i always try to check each title out. I had an oppuertunity to watch a medieval horror film called Devil´s Knight, produced by the very well known brothers Sonny Mahal and Michael Mahal who have produced several quality films over the years. Is this a great choice for horror fans in general or is Devil´s Knight not as solid as i was hoping it would be?

In the medieval world of Veloka, monsters and demons alike roam and terrorize humankind. The Bone Devil has plagued the Kingdom of Remeny for years. After a group of trackers fails to kill the creatur, King Samuel ( Kevin Hager ) decides to bring in an elite group of monster hunters to destroy this ancient evil and bring hope to the people of Veloka. 

One of the first things that came to my mind while watching Devil´s Knight was how this film reminded me of another medievel horror film called Season Of The Witch with Nicolas Cage and Ron Perlman ( a film i have always been a fan of ). Both films takes place during the medievel times but have completely different plots. The one detail that is similar in these films is that they gather a team who are chosen to do a mission in the name of goodness. I do appreciate the fact that Devil´s Knight have such a high ambiton to try and look like old school films of medieval stories with sword fighting knights, but what especially stand out in this film is the demonic creatue that suddenly appear at certain locations. The design of this demonic creature as well as the monsters are actually quite impressive and i feel they blend in very well with the plot of this film. The sword fighting scenes between the knights, monsters and the demonic creature are much more gory than i expected so that was a positive surprise.  There are a lot of characters in this film where have several well known actors such as Eric Roberts, Kevin Sorbo, Daniel Baldwin and many others. There are especially two characters i feel make a certain impact and that is actor Kevin Hager ( who you can see in the apocakyptic vampire film Bloodthirst ) as King Samuel and actress Sarah Nicklin as Princess Sabine. Both of their acting performances especially feel powerful in this film. I am surprised over the performance of Kevin Sorbo´s character Guard Captain Baldur, this might be one of his better acting performances in recent years. There are some other characters who also make a positive impact but i have to mention the knights costume design, i really appreciate that they do look like medieval soldiers and the helmets are especially cool. There is one smaller detail i feel could have been improved and that is the attempt to tell jokes in this film. It could be me who just didn´t get the jokes good enough, either way that was just something i picked up along the way. Devil´s Knight is a medieval film filled with plenty of treats for both horror fans and medieval fans in general as well and i have to say the horror elements works more effective than i expected in this combination. Director Adam Werth ( director of Bermuda Island, a film worth checking out ) bring back life into a genre that needed a solid medieval film like Devil´s Knight.

Rating: DDD

Wineville

I remember summer of 1993 while celebrating Kräftskiva in Värmland ( Kräftskiva is a tradition meal where Swedish people eat crayfish in the month of August ) with my grandparents. This was during my 16 years birthday and my grandfather wanted to celebrate this day for his grandson properly, so he had loaded up with alcohol and different kinds of wine bottles. During this meal we all had lots of crayfish, fresh bread, even some Västerbottenpaj ( it´s like a pie made with spiced cheese, it´s really good and considered to be a Swedish classic among pies ) and my grandfather gave me all kinds of stuff to drink to the meal. One moment i was having beer, then spiced alcohol called brännvin and then wine as well. By the end of the evening i had too much to drink and especially wine towards the end that i ended up in a ditch puking like hell. Of course it was one hell of a hangover the next day but my grandfather had a good laugh about it and said:- You will be fine just have some breakfast. This was actually my first time turning 16 where i was this drunk, and i actually didn´t drink wine for some time after that night. I did continue with the beer and brännvin instead, perhaps because i liked the taste of them better. To be honest im not a huge wine lover in general and i would rather have whiskey, rum, vodka or other kinds of alcohol if i have to choose. I can enjoy a glass of white wine to a fish meal or while eating crayfish, in the end i would probably choose beer instead. I do think you can make a good hotpot with red wine, it will give the hotpot some really good flavors combined with spices and veil bouillon. Speaking of wine i do have a really good recommendation for a film that talks about wine and enjoying life in general in the 2004 comedy-drama film Sideways from director Alexander Payne ( director of the brilliant Jack Nicholson film About Schmidt, a must see ). Sideways is a very well made film about 2 good friends Miles Raymond ( Paul Giamatti ) and Jack Cole ( Thomas Haden Church ) who decides to travel together before Jack´s upcoming wedding. They will taste different wine bottles, enjoy good food and have a joyful vacation. During the trip some things happen that will change everything and completely turn their vacation plan around. Sideways is a very charming, well acted film that really digs into male friendship as well as dealing with life in general. If you enjoy light hearted films that give realistic performances then you should watch Sideways. The acting performances in this film is really good so if you want strong performances, this is the film to choose. And by the way if you pick up the DVD or blu ray listen to the commentary track, we find out some very interesting details in there regarding the making of this film. Speaking of wine i heard last year there was a grindhouse inspired horror film called Wineville that was getting some positive reviews. My plan was to watch this film during Christmas weekend but plans changed so i decided to finally sit down and give this film a chance. Since im a big fan of grindhouse horror in general, is this a horror film that you need to experience or is Wineville unfortunately not as good as i was hoping it would be?

Tess Lott ( Brande Roderick ) travels back to her family home with her only son Walter Lott ( Keaton Roderick Cadrez ) after her father passed away to figure out what to do about the farm and the vinery that the family have worked on for many years. Tess have a very bad past with her abusive father and do not like coming back to home, but decides to do the best out of the situation. While staying there she finds out people have gone missing from this area. What Tess doesn´t know is that her family members carry even darker secrets than she ever would have imagined.

I have always appreciated independent horror films that tries to bring back the feeling of old school grindhouse 70´s horror and that´s exactly what Wineville manage to do. If you have seen grindhouse cinema classics and appreciate practical make up effects ( there is actually some really gory scenes in this film ) then i promise this is a film that will please you. In a sense you can say that Wineville is a film that tries to bring back a time period where you had great characters, and it´s not just about the brutal killings of people that matters. This is one detail i feel is important since sometimes certain horror films forget about making good characters, that you will remember for different reasons. Im actually suprised that for a low budget horror film like this i can´t say any of the actors does a terrible performance, they perform better than i expected. So let´s dive into the characters a bit and talk about some of them. You have of course main actress Brande Roderick ( who not only look fantastic but is of course a Baywatch legend ) as the character Tess Lott. What i especially like about Tess as a character is that shes a very natural mature mother, it feels like you would enjoy spending time with her just being a simple woman and shes quite charming as well. Child actor Keaton Roderick Cadrez as the character Walter proved to me that this young man have acting skills that could take him far, and i really appreciate the work he put into this role. General Hospital actress Carolyn Hennesy as the crazy character Aunt Margaret feels like the redneck cousin of Annie Wilkes ( fantastic performace by Kathy Bates ) in the Stephen King film adaptation of Misery and i feel that Carolyn really capture that dangerous personality that this film needed to become more effective, from a psychological level. This is the first time i have seen actor Casey King and i have to say, he did a really powerful impact with his character Joe. The horror elements in Wineville are simple and the plot is easily constructed but that actually helps the film work more effectively, with great characters and the brutal murders the combination simply feel more natural. The locations of this film at an old vineyard matches well with the plot. There are a few smaller details that could have been improved but overall im surprised of how much i appreciate Wineville for trying to bring back 70´s grindhosuse cinema and manage to do this well. Director Brande Roderick have not only made a solid horror film but the film looks great as well. If you want raw brutal old school horror then Wineville hits all the right spots, definetely worth picking up on physical media.

Rating: DDD

The Paragon

Sometimes i like to dive into odd films that may not be appreciated by some people. When i mean odd films i mean where everything doesn´t make any sense and suddenly you have scenes that comes out of nowhere for no reason. I love this kind of film making and i really appreciate creative directors who dare to do the oppisite and just make the film in their own unique way. Even if it´s not often i discover odd films i try to be on the lookout for them, just in case there might be some fascinating independent films coming out that seems fun. There are some odd films i can highly recommend that i feel should be seen, but let´s just stick with one specific film for now and that is the 2009 drama comedy known as Gentlemen Broncos. Directed Jared Hess ( director of the cult classic Napoleon Dynamite, in my opinion one of the best films of the year of 2004 ), Gentlemen Broncos is definetely a very unique film experience that tells the story of science fiction writer Benjamin Purvis ( Michael Angarano ). He recently finished his sci fi story known as Yeast Lords, which centers on a hero named Bronco ( Sam Rockwell ). While attending a two-day writing camp for aspiring fantasty and science fiction authors, Benjamin attends lectures by his idol, the prolific and pretentious writer Ronald Chevalier ( Jemaine Clement ). Chevalier announces a contest for the writers, in which the winner´s story will be published nationally. As Chevalier reviews the stories from the campers, he gets a call from his publisher, rejecting his latest manuscript. Not knowing what to do Chevalier finds Yeast Lords and decides to use Benjamin´s story and just change some pieces for his own new manuscript. Gentlemen Broncos is a really crazy drama comedy that´s all over the place with science fiction battles and switches over to the ordinary life of Benjamin. The acting in general is really charming and i just love all the crazy things happening for no reason at all, Gentlemen Bronocos should deserve to be a cult film in the future for being so odd and wonderful. Definetely rent this film on VOD or pick up a physical copy of Gentlemen Broncos. Last year a comedy drama from New Zealand caught my attention in a film called The Paragon, a film that reminded me of something odd in the style of director Jared Hess but this specific film is directed by Michael Duignan. Is this a film you simply need to see or is The Paragon too odd and too bizarre to experience at all?

Dutch ( Benedict Wall ) is a crippled man after a hit and run accident, he is frustrated and angry not knowing who hit him with the car. Dutch find a poster with information how to become a psychic. As he takes one of the telephone numbers from the poster, the phone booth next to him rings. The one answering is Lyra ( Florence Nobel ), who promises to help Dutch have psychic powers so he can find out who drove the car that injured him. Dutch go to the adress given to him and this is where his real journey begins, to understand more about himself but also learn how to use psychic powers.

The Paragon is a film that is kind of difficult to describe. On one hand this is a charming story about a man trying to find his way in life while this is also an odd story about what meaning each one of us have in this life ( and in other galaxies and what each galaxy means ). I would say this film is also about learning to use psychic powers and if this sounds weird than trust me, it just gets more weird as the film goes on. And this is one of the things i really appreciate about The Paragon, this is a straight up nerd sci fi comedy that really tries to give us the image that it´s ok not to be the same as everone. We all have different qualities and even if some people might think we are strange, just be yourself and don´t worry too much about it. I would also say this is a film that tries to give us a deeper look how mind control works and how we can learn to use our minds in different ways. There are some really funny scenes in this film where i found myself laughing over the nerdy tone that the odd character Lyra ( played really well by actress Florence Noble ). Her serious tone all the time speaking to Dutch ( played by actor Benedict Wall ) is such a good match that i love hearing her sounding like everything is meant to be taken seriously in life. You are not supposed to enjoy life, you are supposed to be serious every day. There is a great chemistry between the main characters and even if they are very different from each other, and have different views on many things they still seem to get along in some magical way. Even if the science fiction theme do become very obvious in certain scenes with some weird events it doesnt affect the story in any negative way. I personally feel that The Paragon is a film that we need in modern day society, a film that dares to be different and does not follow the typical Hollywood pattern. This is a fun sci fi comedy that really give you a sweet after taste, almost as if you had a desert at a restaurant and feel surprised how much you enjoyed it. Director Michael Duignan proves that you can make intelligent and fun films as long as you have good ideas and great charatcers included, and The Paragon have all of this. If you want to experience something unique and still have a good time, you should definetely rent The Paragon on VOD.

Rating: DDD

The Coffee Table

In my ordinary day life i always have coffee every morning and i also have some during day time as well. Coffee is one of those things i need to have to function, or at least that´s the way it feels and i just keep this tradition going. I didn´t always drink coffee in my youth and i didn´t start enjoying it until i started working night shifts at the company known as Odal. This is where my coffee drinking actually started in the autumn of 1998 at the age of 21. All of my working collegues had coffee on every shift so it became like a social thing to sit down and talk on breakfast or lunch breaks. Our boss Hans was also nice enough to sometimes buy us a cake to enjoy with the coffee. Since then i developed my passion for coffee and i buy different flavors in stores, i might try a different kind of coffee at a café with a nice slice of apple pie. I don´t mind an Irish coffee either with some whiskey in there, perfect on a winter evening. Speaking of coffee and cafeés ( could be a diner as well ) i have a personal facourite film that actually have coffee as a connection to the film itself. And that is the 2005 drama film Coffee And Cigarettes by legendary director Jim Jarmusch ( director of Ghost Dog: The Way Of The Samurai ). This film tells different stories from different characters while they are having conversations over a cup of coffee and a cigarette. What makes this film so good is the conversations, there is a lot of passion in the subjects and each character have a unique past. Really good acting performances from Bill Murray, Tom Waits, Iggy Pop, Steve Buscemi and Cate Blanchett among others and the film looks really good on a technical level. A film you should see if you love fascinating films with depth. Speaking of coffee i heard last year of a Spanish film called The Coffee Table was getting good reviews after being screened on many film festivals worldwide. A film that seemed to be a quite different cinema experience. In fact this film took a very long time before getting a physical release. I finally got a chance to watch the film to see if this would be something i would appreciate. Is this a film you need to experience or is The Coffee Table not as good as i was hoping it would be?

Jesus ( David Pareja ) and Maria ( Estafania de los Santos ) are a couple going through a difficult time in their relationship. Nevertheless, they have just become parents to a little boy. To shape their new life, they decide to buy a new coffee table. A decision that will change their lives completly.

The Coffee Table is a perfect example of a film you should know as little as possible before watching this film. Avoid any trailers or reading about the film, i did the same thing going into The Coffee Table and i am so glad that i did. This is not only a disturbing film in many ways but especially if you are a parent to a child. Im not going to go into details and just let you decide if you want to watch this film or not. The coffee table itself is connected to the plot in a simple way, where you understand why this table is a symbol of grief. You might wonder how can a table make you feel sad? There is a perfect explanation to this once you see the film and understand what i specifically mean. This is an odd film in many ways that combines serious drama, comedy but especally bring in some very dark horror elements into the mix. On a psychological level this is where The Coffee Table works best, when the disturbing truth reveal itself and makes a powerful impact on the audience. I would argue that this might be one of the films that will really affect parents of all ages if you decide to watch The Coffee Table, because there is a scene in this film that will definetely shock you no matter how young or old you are. The acting in general is really good from basically the whole cast, and i would say actress Estafania de los Santos as the mother Maria stands out with her aggressive tone and ironic dialogue in certain scenes. Actor David Pareja have some very rough scenes to act out in, where we are supposed to feel the pain he feels. The Coffee Table is a film i will most likely never forget since it is so unique, so different from anything we usually see in ordinary film releases. It is a heavy film to swallow and have so many lairs of sadness written all over the surface. Director Caye Casas have not only made a really powerful film but have made a film that will make you question humanity. A must see if you want to see something different and uniqe, The Coffee Table will not leave your mind easily.

Rating: DDDD

P.S. If you want to watch a European blu ray release of The Coffee Table there is one coming from distrubtion company Second Sight coming out this year, just check their homepage for updates.                                 

Gladiator 2

Films that tries to capture different time periods in history can be very fascinating for many different reasons. We may get a look into a completely different society that functioned quite differently from what things do in modern times. There are of course certain details that we still use today like they did in ancient history, we still make hand made objects and hand made clothes just like they did back in those days. The difference is of course back then they could not mass produce products like we can in modern factories. I really didn´t get interested into history until i was 20 years old when i travelled to Greece for the first time in the spring of 1997. This was when i went to see the the Cave Of Zeus that´s located on Mount Ida on the island of Crete. Before i went here i didn´t really know much at all about Greek Mythology because i never really got into reading much about it. After i did this visit to the Cave Of Zeus i became more fascinated regarding the history of Zeus and actually checked out some books in my hometown library when i got back to Sweden. You could say that i have Greece to thank for inspiring me to learn more about history and since then i started to check out more regarding history in each country i visited on vacation. 3 years after my first visiti to Greece there was a very big movie premiere worldwide of the historical action film Gladiator in the year of 2000 from legendary director Ridley Scott. A film that turned out to be the best acting performance i had seen actor Russel Crowe do so far in his career at that time and i also loved the performance from actor Joaquin Phoenix. The gladiator scenes were very impressive, the costume design looked really good and in general this turned out to be a very powerful film to experience. Still until this day Gladiator is one of my personal favourite films when it comes to telling stories connected to the history of the Roman Empire. Gladiator is one of those films you should see if you have not seen it, still to this day it looks really good. For many years we hear news about a possible sequel and for quite some time it seemed like we wouldn´t get one, at least not with Russel Crowe included into the cast. So here we are with the official sequel Gladiator 2 with brand new characters and director Ridley Scott back as the director. Is this a worthy sequel to the classic film Gladiator or does this sequel fail to live up to the same quality as the original film have? 

Sixteen years after Marcus Aurelius ( Richard Harris ) death, Rome is ruled by corrupt twin emperors Greta ( Joseph Quinn ) and Caracalla ( Fred Hechinger ). In the North African kingdom of Numida, the refugee Hanno ( Paul Mescal ) lives with his wife Arishat ( Yuval Gonen ). The Roman army led by General Acacius ( Pedro Pascal ) invades and conquers the kingdom, killing Arishat and enslaving Hanno and the other survivors. The slaves are taken to Ostia, where the Romans pit them against baboons to advertise them as potential gladiators. Hanno savagely kills a baboon, impressing the stable master Macrinus ( Denzel Washington ), who promises Hanno an oppurtunity to kill Acacius if he wins enough fights in Rome. There is no other option for Hanno, this may be his only way out to regain his freedom.

Knowing how many people worldwide who loves the original film, it must have been a big pressure on director Ridley Scott since he knows the fans will not accept a sequel unless it feels like a worthy sequel. To be completely honest i didn´t keep my own expectations that high to this film because i didn´t want to be too disappointed in case it would have turned out to be terrible. Luckily i will say, Gladiator 2 is not as bad as some of us fans of the original film thought it could be. There are a number of factors that make Gladiator 2 a solid sequel so let´s start to go through some of the details that this film does well. I personally feel that the costume design in this film is well made, if we are thinking about the time period where this film takes place. It feels like these are people living during the Roman empire and the costumes are clearly meant to capture that historical time period. The gladiator scenes are well made and they actually made some refreshing updates on some of the gladiator fights, where especially one scene makes a big impact with sharks inside the arena. I feel that this is a good idea to try and add something different and not just repeat the same concept too much. That way you still keep the gladiator battle fun but do a different take on the survival concept. You know sometimes when you may think the hero may be the best part of the film? Not in Gladiator 2, i will definetely say that the best character of this film is the evil Macrinus ( played really good by actor Denzel Washington ). Each scene that Denzel Washington deliver dialogue pick up this film to a completely different quality level, and that clearly shows how much effort he made to make this character feel so powerful on the big screen. So what doesn´t work as good in this sequel? I would say the lead character Lucius ( played by actor Paul Mescal ) is not as powerful as Russel Crowe was in the original film´s character Maximus. Im not saying Paul is terrible in the lead role, but he doesn´t match the same screen magic as Russel Crowe had in the gladiator scenes. I know some people have complained about there are some historical faults in this film, i personally don´t have a problem with that since there are plenty of films that does the same and still turn out to be entertaining. Gladiator 2 is a action adventure that will most likely please you if you love films that takes place during the Roman empire and appreciate a lot of violence. Director Ridley Scott proves once more he is a very talented film maker and this is definetly a genre he is passionate about. If you want epic sword battles, muscles, beautful locations and beautiful women as well then this is the film for you. Gladiator 2 knows what audience it was made for and this is definetely a film for historical fans in general.

Rating: DDD

Heretic

 I still remember the autumn of 1994 for three different reasons, this was when British acid jazz funk soul band Jamiroquai released their second studio album The Return Of The Space Cowboy and i was in the Swedish city of Gothenburgh at the release weekend at their biggest record store Bengans. It was also this autumn i saw the latest Roland Emmerich film Stargate on a cruise ship to Denmark who had a special screening of the film on board the ship together with my sister. But before all of this happened there was one movie release in Sweden during this autumn that had become a huge success at the box office and that was the romantic comedy known as Four Weddings And A Funeral. I have never been a huge fan of romantic comedies and i remember seeing this poster in cinemas thinking:- This does not look like a film for me. I did not see this film in cinema that year so i decided to wait until the film was released on VHS instead in case i had nothing else to watch. I believe i didn´t rent this film on VHS until the late summer of 1995, because there were so many other films i were more interested in at that time. Four Weddings And A Funeral turned out to be a typical romantic British comedy with a lot of characters and some crazy stuff happening as well. Looking back at this film i don´t think it´s one of the terrible romantic comedy films, it does have some charming moments. But there was one actor i just could not connect with in this film and it was Hugh Grant as the character Charles. I wouldn´t say the performance is terrible but i just didn´t feel like i cared about his feelings for Carrie ( played by actress Andie MacDowell ). Over the years that followed Hugh Grant actually surprised me big time by doing a great performance in the charming 2002 comedy-drama About A Boy ( i also love the movie soundtrack by artist Badly Drawn Boy ). This film really showed that if he gets the right character, Hugh Grant can work really well with a good script included. In his career he have made some good performances in certain films and ever since i heard about a film called Heretic i became really curious about this film. It seemed very different from what we have seen Hugh Grant do in the past and this caught my attention. I love it when an actor does something completely different and challenge himself. Is this one of the films you need to see this winter or is Heretic nowhere near as good as i was hoping it to be?

Two young Mormon missionaries, confident Sister Barnes ( Sophie Thatcher ) and timid Sister Paxton ( Chloe East ) have a hand written note of what homes they should visit. On this note they have the adress to an older man named Mr. Reed ( Hugh Grant ). As they knock on his door he welcome them both in, promising they will also meet his wife. Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton inform Mr. Barnes that they are there to tell him about the book of Mormon. At first it seems like an ordinary conversation but these Mormon ladies get a feeling that something is not quite what they expected with Mr. Reed. They get a feeling this man may not be as friendly as he might have seem from the beginning.

I have noticed that Hugh Grant have really tried to step away from his past, not repeating himself as he did back in the 90´s and early 2000 taking on characters that almost felt the same. Heretic is really his biggest proof yet so far in his career that he really can act very powerful. This is without a doubt the best acting performance i have personally seen Hugh Grant do but there are more things i really have to talk about this film as well. I love it when a film takes place especially at a house and the plot is mostly focused on one location. There may be different rooms of this house but this film manage to express a disturbing image through the right camera angles, the dark that seems to be surrounded in this home with no glimpse of hope other than eternal darkness. The most interesting part of Heretic is where we really get to see how disturbed the personality of the character known as Mr. Reed ( who is of course played by Hugh Grant ). How he loves to play games and challenge others especially in the subject of religion to convince especially two Mormon young women that he have the answers. There is a lot of dialogue scenes in Heretic and if you don´t like too much dialogue i would recommend that you still give this film a chance. You see this is a much more psychological horror film with depth than we usually see. The dialogue is very important to understand the psychological expressions of Mr. Reed, why he is behaving the way that he does. Not only is the acting brillant by Hugh Grant but i feel that both female actors Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East give powerful performances. Heretic gives a very fascinating look into the mind of a mad man, but also gives us a lot of interesting points regarding religion and faith. The horror elements are simple but very well constructed into the plot. Directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods ( who directed the sci fi dinosaur movie 65 with Adam Driver ) have really stepped up big time on a film quality level with Heretic compared to 65. This film does not only look great but have some of the most interesting dialogue scenes i have seen in a long time between fascinating characters. Heretic clearly shows that you can make quality horror on a limited budget and this is definetely a film you should see.

Rating: DDDD

35 Years Anniversary Review Of Predator 2

Action movies are not the same anymore as they used to be. What do i mean by that? There was a time when action movies really lifted the genre to new grounds during the 80´s and 90´s and it seems it´s becoming more difficult in modern days to reach the same level. There are a few exceptions where the action franchise managed to strike back such as The Expendables franchise, but if you look at the overall picture there are not many titles that have made the same impact. Back in the 80´s for example it was completely different when the action genre really lived up to expectations with classics such as First Blood, Lethal Weapon, RoboCop, The Terminator, Aliens, The Road Warrior, Cobra, Commando, Rambo - First Blood II, The Delta Force, Die Hard, we could go on for hours if we really wanted to mention every 80´s action film you should see. But just looking at these titles you realise what an incredible time the 80´s was for this specific genre. So for a moments let´s talk about one of the real true action classics of this time period that i did not mention earlier and that is the 1987 science fiction action film Predator from director John McTiernan. Predator really gave the action audience everything you could wish for with lots of big guns. lots of explosions, big muscles, knife edge sharp dialogue, really perfect characters for this film and a really cool looking alien. Predator tells the story of a team of commandos ordered to do a mission in Central America to save a local cabineet minister whos helicopter was shot down in the jungle. What this team of commandos don´t know is that there is something far more dangerous out there waiting for them. Predator is one of the best Arnold Schwarzenegger films of all time and have so many classic action scenes. If you have not seen Predator you simply have to, it is one of those films that are timeless. In 1990 a sequel of Predator was released this time with actor Danny Glover in the lead role instead of Arnold Schwarzenegger, where the alien visit the city of Los Angeles instead of the jungle in Predator 2. This year in 2025 it will be 30 years since this sequal was released in cinemas so i decided to do a 35 years anniversary review of Predator 2. Is this sequel still good today after so many years or have this film aged poorly and lost some of the magic it once had?

In 1997, Los Angeles is experiencing a heat wave and a turf war between heavily armed Colombian and Jamaican drug cartels. L.A. Police department is really struggling with the war between all the criminal gangs and Lieutenant Mike Harrigan ( Danny Glover ) is making sure him and his team are cleaning up the streets as good as possible. But when the city of Los Angeles gets a visit from the alien known as The Predator ( Kevin Peter Hall ), no one is safe in this city anymore and Mike Harrigan is about to face his toughest battle so far.

Predator 2 have always divided fans of the original film and while some think this is a really good sequel to Predator there are some fans who feel this film does not hold up as a sequel. I am actually on the side that think this is a really good sequel to the original film. Is it as good as the original film? No, but being a sequel i think is pretty damn good one for actually doing something different and actually making this film work. So what does Predator 2 bring to the table that i really appreciate? First of all the action scenes are really fast, hard hitting and there is a lot of violence in this film. If you are going to have a manhunt between humans and an alien in Los Angeles there should be a lot of violence. You have massive gun scenes, explosions, bodies being ripped apart, you can pretty much say this sequel really wanted to be even more gory than the original film in certain scenes. They really managed to make the Predator hunting scenes work really effective in this film, giving us a different approach of the Predator adjusting to the city life. I love several of the crazy characters that this film has as well, especially at the police district where these cops don´t take shit from anyone. Just look at the female character Leona Cantrell ( played by actress Maria Conchita Alonso, who can also be seen in the Schwarzenegger classic The Running Man ), she reminds me of the classic female character Vasquez in Aliens. Leona will rip your balls off without even regretting anything, shes that kind of tough cop that we need on the streets. Then you have the more funny wacky character Jerry Lambert ( played by legendary actor Bill Paxton ) who is full of charming dialogue and personality. Legendarry actor Danny Glover does a really good job on his lead character Lieutenant Mike Harrigan, a man who have no fear and will kill without a doubt. Another thing Predator 2 does really well is showing us the struggling issues the criminal gangs are facing with this alien wiping them out. Doesnt matter what guns they have, they could easily all be executed by the Predator. Of course the Predator himself ( Kevin Peter Hall ) does an excellent job in this incredible costume. Predator 2 is a hell of a good time if you love a combination of science fiction, horror and action. Director Stephen Hopkins did a really good job making this film a worthy sequel and it´s actually one of my favourite sequels of the 90´s in general. I don´t need to explain anything else just go watch Predator 2 on streaming or physical media, this is how a sequal is supposed to look like.

Rating: DDDD