May Movies - Week 3

Good Afternoon Ladies & Gentlemen,

Another fun week of movie watching... oh boy... another great mix...

May 15 – Xtro 2: The Second Encounter (1991)
 
Okay, so the original Xtro was a killer alien movie that happened to hit theatres in 1982 around the time E.T. was getting all of the money & even GREAT killer alien movies like The Thing were being panned… so it basically went into obscurity. We watched it for the first time thanks to Lucien Greaves of the Satanic Temple & his Wednesday movie nights… and it wasn’t bad. So nearly a decade later, the same director came back (doing nothing in between?) and this “sequel” has nothing to do with the original, as it’s scientists opening a portal to another dimension or something & this creature comes across, eats a bunch of people, and hijinx ensue. Top billing goes to Jan Michael Vincent as a general who had gone to the other dimension & comes back… but he is by far the worst part of this movie, just nothing from him, like he’s given up on acting already. The other side characters do a decent job with what they’re given but… yeah, I can’t recommend this one really.
 
Rating – 4/10 – I hear Xtro 3 is better & I have access to it but… we’ll see
 
May 16 – Miracle Mile (1988)
 
Harry (Anthony Edwards) has finally found the girl of his dreams (Mare Winningham) after a magical date at La Brea Museum & Tar Pits… but after his alarm clock loses power & he sleeps in on their date, he goes to her job (a few hours late) to get her phone number or address… but instead answers a payphone where someone says that a nuclear holocaust is about to hit LA in about an hour. It’s 4 AM & the streets are empty except for a few night owls… and Harry has to save as many people as he can… including his dream girl! This movie is an EXCELLENT experience in hysteria… you don’t know if it’s all legit… is it a dream? Is it a prank? Did Denise Crosby really leave Star Trek: TNG for a cameo in this? Nearly everybody in this movie is a fantastic character actor, the movie is a tight 80 minutes, lots of social commentary, romantic elements, general craziness… and the even crazier things is, Anthony Edwards & Mare Winningham apparently just eloped in 2021! So the couple ends up together in the end! Well, you now… in real life… but do they in the movie?
 
Rating – 10/10 – I cannot recommend this movie enough! It’s a crazy flick & I love it!
 
May 17 – Dopesick (2021)
 
To be fair, this is actually an 8-hour or so Mini-Series on Hulu… but it’s got a great cast with Michael Keaton, Rosario Dawson & more going through a dramatic rendition of how Oxycontin became a readily available & highly addictive opioid to the masses and through 7-8 different perspectives. Is it a little difficult to watch? Of course! The topic is difficult to live with! There’s really not a way to make it easily consumable children’s time filler. That being said, I highly recommend it… and please… be skeptical of the medical community. Not necessarily doctors, nurses, etc. because most really are doing God’s work… but keep in mind, that they’re still human beings. A lengthy difficult watch of a show… but great acting & necessary message.
 
Rating – 9/10 – 8 hours though… I’d recommend “The Pharmacist” documentary as well & I think it’s only 2.5 hours.
 
May 18 – Cool as Ice (1991)
 
Look… I know this movie is absolute trash! I recognize it. You’re essentially taking a one-hit wonder performer (I hesitate to say rapper but I’ll admit the guy can dance & sells his persona at times in a music video, but that may be more to production’s credit) and putting them into a haphazard movie plot… and expecting financial returns before he’s found out. Well… I still enjoy this movie for the absolutely insane set design, some of the beats are legit & mildly entertaining characters (not the main character for the most part). If you haven’t seen the movie, I’d recommend checking it out… but be prepared for head scratching.
 
Rating – 8/10 – Like I said, I enjoy this movie… but I also make fun of it while watching… rife for parody
 
May 19 – Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution (2019)
 
Twenty years after the original Pokemon: The Movie – Mewtwo Strikes Back, Netflix financed a completely CGI shot-for-shot remake! Why? Why the heck not? As you might suspect, it’s essentially the same movie with only minor changes & using what appears to be the video game graphics for characters & environments… but it does also fill in some holes in the plot that (at least the English version of) the original left out… like more to Mewtwo’s motivations & such. Oh & in case you didn’t read last week’s entry… Scientist make the ultimate Pokemon, he gets loose & hijinx ensue…
 
Rating – 8/10 – It’s okay for what it is… mostly only minor changes but I enjoyed it as much as the original
 
May 20 – The Protégé (2021)
 
In all of our research for Female Assassin Movies that we did in December, January & February… I did not know that there was a movie released in 2021 directed by Martin Campbell (“Casino Royale”, “Goldeneye”, etc.) starring Maggie Q as a female assassin named ANNA (!?!) who is taken in by an older assassin (Samuel L. Jackson?!?) as a child to become the greatest female assassin in the world… but then she gets involved in a web of treachery (including Michael Keaton?!?) and hijinx ensue?!? How did I not hear about this?!? I love all three of the main actors… and the supporting crew is pretty good too… so how did this movie do? I’d only recommend it if you’re into the genre.
 
Rating – 8/10 – I really enjoyed the movie… but it did have its points that dragged & I felt like I had seen this movie dozens of times before verbatim.
 
May 21 – Pokemon: Detective Pikachu (2019)
 
I had seen this movie when it first came out on DVD… but honestly could not tell you much about it. I had no context or frame of reference for it before watching some animated movies & getting backstory from Izzy… and it’s actually a really cute film! Basically it’s about a kid (in his 20s?) whose detective father is killed, but then he meets up with his partner (Pikachu voiced by Ryan Reynolds) & they have a little detective story unfold. Throw in the girl from “Freaky” and about 50-60 Pokemon characters and voila… you have a movie. Is it the greatest? Not really… but it’s technically the first video game movie to be fresh on Rotten Tomatoes so… there’s that!
 
Rating – 9/10 – My one major complaint… you have Ken Watanabe in a fighting monster movie… and he doesn’t say “Let them fight!”

Next week's collection is already well on it's way... and you don't want to miss it!

​Steve