A family reunion and Shark Week definitely cut into my viewing time in July. “Just” 34 films in the month — which is still more than 1 a day. It’s vaguely absurd that feels like “not many films.” As I write this near the end of August, I know there’s a lot more to come.
As always, ratings are out of 5 stars.
Endeavour “Cartouche” **** Morse & co. tackle a murder connected to a movie theater, an aging horror star, & a mummy. Monster-homages.
Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (KaiJuly Roarth) *** Mothra & Kiryu (MechaG) face off against G in sequel to previous film. Fun kaiju battles & continuty. Great score.
Godzilla against MechaGodzilla (KJR) **** Best MechaG film every made with strong female lead, cyborg bio-computers, & hefty kaiju battles + great score.
Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla 2 (KJR) *** Heisei MechaG has Rodan/Radon, Ifukube score, overly cute “baby G,” but cool kaiju connections & action.
King Kong (1933) ***** Adventure films don’t get better than this. Monster films don’t get better than this. No films get better than Kong.
Sherlock Holmes (Gillette – 1916) *** Stagebound version of the play with original star, William Gillette, who brought pipe & deerstalker hat to Holmes.
Jurassic Park (original) ***** Great practical dinosaurs combine with innovative CGI SFX to create an amazing suspense adventure. Classic.
Jurassic Park 3 **** Great cast adds heart & the dinos add excitement to the 3rd JP outing, notable for Spinosaurus & Pteranodons.
Stranger on the Third Floor *** Everyone seems slightly nuts in this crime drama about murder & frames, but Peter Lorre is clearly king of kooks.
Clash of the Titans (2010) *** Video-game style action dominates this loose remake of the Harryhausen classic. Needs less shock, more awe.
People that Time Forgot, The ** Sequel sets out to find survivors of 1st film. Much further from Burroughs soruce.
Flash Gordon: Spaceship to the Unknown *** Compliation of 1st (great!) Flash serial jams hours of plot into less than 90 minutes. Still fun. A.K.A. Rocketship.
Screamers (1995) *** Peter Weller as future soldier vs. screaming, human killing machines on desert world. Thing meets Terminator.
Unforgettable (1996) *** Ray Liota tries to find his wife’s killer by using experimental brain-fluid technology to steal corpse memories. Fun.
Medusa Against the Son of Hercules (Sven) *** Perseus (who has nothing to do with Herc) goes against cool practical FX monsters by Carlo Rimbaldi. Worth it.
Son of Godzilla *** Giant insect battles & funky music help introduce Big Ta’s goofy-looking son, Minilla (Mini-zilla). Good cast helps.
Scenes from a Class Struggle in Beverly HIlls ** Good cast struggles through a sex comedy with not enough sex or comedy set in modern day California.
Private Parts *** Gene Corman produced this tale of a young, sexually frustrated girl who moves into her auntie’s horror hotel.
7 Guardians fo the Tomb *** International cast finds an ancient tomb filled not with great treasure, but with deadly spiders. Toch of Aliens, too.
Unholy Rollers *** Claudia Jennings is excellent in this sexed up Roller Derby film, like explotation version of Kansas City Bomber.
Flash Gordon: The Deadly Ray from Mars *** Movie version of the 2nd Flash Gordon serial isn’t as fanciful as the 1st, but has creepy Clay Men & good stuff.
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory ***** Gene Wilder is brilliantly demented as the candymaker dispensing justice to greedy children amid fantasyland.
Doctor Who: City of Death (Film Version) **** Tom Baker & Mrs. vs. Julian Glover as an evil alien fragmented into different time pieces trying to save his race.
Flash Gordon: The Peril from Planet Mongo *** Higher productin values but a bit less adventure in this movie version fo the 3rd Flash serial. Still worthwhile.
Endeavour: Passenger ***** When a missing girl is found dead in an abandoned train station, Endeavor must unravel a tangled murder plot.
Endeavour: Colours **** A model murdered in a military training grounds puts Endeavor into conflict with his boss’ son & the military.
Comic Book: The Movie *** Mark Hamil heads an amazing cast of actors & comic pros for this mocumentary about golden age hero sellouts.
Justice League **** What were people complaining about? Cast is great, especially Gadot & Afleck. CGI heavy but superhero fun.
Disturbing Behavior ** Teens are subjected to brain altering experiments that makes them both more compliant & more aggressive.
Doctor Who: Creature from the Pit (movie) **** Romana shines in this ep with Lalla Ward & Tom Baker caught between savages, metal hoarders, & a monster.
Doctor Who: Nightmare in Eden (movie ver.) **** When two ships accidentally merge, Tom Baker & Romana must free them while the crew struggles vs. drugs.
Doctor Who: Shada (The Lost Episode) **** Douglas Adams’ “lost” Dorctor Who with Tom Baker & a lost prison planet gets finished with animation. A treat!
Endeavour: Icarus **** Endeavor goes undercover as a teacher at a boy’s school as precinct gang problems boil. Worthy end to season.
Ghost in the Shell **** 1st anime (from the manga) about a secret service led by female cyborg vs. “ghost” hackers, AI, & human doubt.
Masque of the Red Death **** Vincent Price is sublimely creepy as a Satan-worshiping lord in Medieval times facing the plague. Corman great.
Next Month: More films for sure, including a bunch of shark-related films for Sharknado week, and my reviews of all the Conan films to date — and some Conan-adjacent films, too. See you in September for the August reviews!
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