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Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Sunday, February 21, 2016
Podcast Episode 52 - Terror Firmer and Poultrygeist
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In episode 52 we take a look at two films from one of the most notorious independent producers of all time, Troma. First up is Terror Firmer, a mega meta look at the Troma film making process with a whole lotta slasher goodness thrown in. We follow up with Troma's take on the dangers of fast food, Poultrygeist. As usual we also talk what we've been watching, a few news items and take a look at a fan favorite from last year, Turbo Kid. Enjoy!
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Podcast Episode 49 - 2015 Halloween Special
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It's time for our annual Halloween special and this year we are talking about Halloween themed tv. Specifically some of our favorite shows from childhood. We hope you enjoy!
Sunday, October 25, 2015
Thursday, October 15, 2015
Sunday, September 13, 2015
Podcast Episode 47
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In this episode of Midnight Triple Feature we focus on one of the more popular genres (for better or worse) to come out of the 80's home video boom, the shot on video horror film. Up first is "Sledgehammer", a microbudget take on the slasher film from the late great David Prior. Up next is "The Bite" from Joel D Wynkoop, a man whose earlier film "Lost Faith" received a solid recommendation from us. We also discuss two more Artsploitation releases, Cub and Reckless. We also talk about what we've been watching, horror news and more! Enjoy!
Sunday, August 23, 2015
Podcast Episode 46
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In episode 46 we are traveling into the near future with two 1980's post-apocalyptic gems. First up is The Eliminators, in which a cyborg, a ninja, a pirate and a scientist must work together to stop and evil doctor from traveling through time to conquer past civilizations. We then move onto Exterminators of the Year 3000, Italy's answer to The Road Warrior. We also talk about what we've been watching, recent news items and more! Enjoy!
Sunday, August 2, 2015
Podcast Episode 45
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In this episode of Midnight Triple Feature we discuss two science fiction horror movies, XTRO and Metamorphosis: The Alien Factor. XTRO is probably one of the only movies out there where you can watch a woman give birth to a full grown man. It's a movie whose reputation precedes it but can it live up to its hype? Metamorphosis is the indirect sequel to a movie we covered in our first ever episode of the podcast, The Deadly Spawn. We loved the original but do we love its unofficial follow up? Listen to find out! We also discuss Terminator Genisys, the Scream television series and more. Enjoy!
Sunday, July 19, 2015
Bonus Podcast - Artsploitation Films Vol. 2 Horsehead & The Treatment
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In this bonus episode of Midnight Triple Feature we review two more recent releases from Artsploitation Films. First up is Horsehead, a surreal trip into the nightmare world of lucid dreaming. Next is The Treatment, an incredibly disturbing story where a man known only as "the troll" forces families to do unspeakable things. We also discuss "All American Bully", "The Lake on Clinton Road", and more! Enjoy!
Saturday, July 4, 2015
Podcast Episode 44
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In episode 44 we return to one of our favorite sub-genres, the slasher film, with three campus set slasher films. First up is Final Exam, a film that takes its leisurely time to get to the good stuff while instead focusing on copious amounts of frat bro bonding and one of the greatest characters to ever be named after a vegetable. Second is The Dorm that Dripped Blood. A grisly little low budget production which was heavily edited on its initial release and was even one of the notorious video nasties. Rounding out the show is Girls Nite Out which is possibly the only movie to feature a killer dressed in a bear suit slashing up college kids with steak knife claws all set to a soundtrack made up of songs from The Lovin' Spoonful. We also talk what we've been watching, revisiting 80's comedies, whats going on in the news and more! Enjoy!
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Podcast Episode 43
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In episode 43 things get heated as we open the show with a game of Super Fight. A card game that pits us against each other in a fight to the death. Who will come out victorious? You must listen to find out! We also discuss the top 3 character fights we'd like to see and review three martial arts action films. First up is Lost Faith. A shot on video masterpiece, at least that's what two of us think. Up next is Death Force, Cirio Santiago's tale of vengeance and samurais. Finally we discuss Raw Force. The only movie to ever combine ninjas, zombies and cannibalistic monks into one single action packed feature. Enjoy!
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Podcast Episode 42.5 - Artsploitation Films
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In this bonus episode we review two upcoming titles from Artsploitation films. First up is "Der Samurai", quite possibly the only film to ever feature a man in a dress running around a small German town slicing the locals into pieces. Second is "House With 100 Eyes", a grisly found footage film shot documentary style with a touch of dark humor thrown in for good measure.
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
Podcast Episode 42
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Episode 42 is all about Van Damme and we're discussing three of his earlier releases. First up is Bloodsport where we contemplate just how much of this "true" story might actually be true. Next up is Kickboxer where we discuss how useful the forced split device could be when getting ready in the morning. Rounding out the bunch is Cyborg. Known for being a pretty bad film is Cyborg so bad it's good or so bad it's bad. We can't quite agree. We also discuss the current trend of horror in television, Daredevil and more! Enjoy!
Sunday, April 26, 2015
The Cyborg Sequels Reviewed
Before recording our Van Damme episode I decided to watch all of the films in the Bloodsport, Kickboxer and Cyborg franchises. Below are my thoughts on all of the Cyborg sequels. These reviews and more can also be found on our Letterboxd page letterboxd.com/mtfeature
Cyborg 2
In this "sequel" to Cyborg Angelina Jolie plays a cyborg who has been unknowingly implanted with a deadly weapon to take out a rival tech company. I put sequel in quotes because they tenuously attempt to tie this to the first film through flashback footage but it doesn't really make any sense. Cyborg 2 is a bad movie but, as usual, I don't care so much about that as much as how entertaining it is. I don't go into Cyborg 2 with any expectation of a good movie. So, from that perspective it mostly works. Even though the entertainment comes from Jolie's performance, or lack thereof, and the cheesy effects it's hard to walk away from this saying it was boring. Also, while Drago is always a good choice for a villain he's still no Fender.
Cyborg 3: The Recycler
It's shocking to me how much I enjoyed Cyborg 3. First off I really liked the cast. Zach Galligan, Richard Lynch, Malcolm McDowell and some effects from John Carl Buechler...what's not to love for fans of b-movies? It also happens to deliver the most cohesive and probably most entertaining story of the three. Lynch plays a recycler who brings an army of humans to destroy a group of cyborgs to steal their parts causing an all out war. Galligan is the programmer who can help repair the cyborgs and prepare them for battle. There's also a cyborg who happens to be pregnant and Lynch wants it. Cyborg 3 is just a ton of low budget fun and easily gives the first a run for most enjoyable of the franchise.
The Kickboxer Sequels Reviewed
Before recording our Van Damme episode I decided to watch all of the films in the Bloodsport, Kickboxer and Cyborg franchises. Below are my thoughts on all of the Kickboxer sequels. These reviews and more can also be found on our Letterboxd page letterboxd.com/mtfeature
Kickboxer 2: The Road Back
"Kickboxer 2" is a bland movie. It lacks any of the charm of the first movie and while I think Sasha Mitchell is fine in the movie it's hard to match up to what Van Damme had done in the original film. It's also strange that the fights are shot almost completely in slow motion. It kind of drains any potential energy from the scenes. Also shoehorning Tong Po into the story was a mistake. While I appreciate the interest in keeping this within continuity there just wasn't any way the fight between Mitchell and Tong Po was going to be anywhere as good as the fight in the first film. In the end it's really not a poorly made film and I think Pyun is really good at getting the most out of a budget it just lacked any real excitement.
Kickboxer 3: The Art of War
I always say if you're gonna make a direct to video sequel you may as well go as far off the rails as you can and just make an entertaining movie. Kickboxer 3 is a solid attempt to do just that. In this third film Sloane is now in Rio where he befriends two street children. One of them is kidnapped to be sold into slavery so Sloane must take down the entire operation and free the girl. Kickboxer 3 is really not a good movie. Mitchell seems to have slipped into Step by Step mode with his character as he plays him as much less intelligent and more goofy than in the previous film. I also take issue with the fact that Sloane uses guns in this one. It's called Kickboxer. The reason we watch this movie is to see him take out guys with guns using only marital arts. Despite the issues I had it's still much more entertaining than the second film even if it's for the wrong reasons.
Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor
It's kind of like Bloodsport meets Kickboxer. Sasha Mitchell is back again as David Sloan and this time he is recruited out of prison by the DEA to infiltrate Tong Po's mexican fortress which appears to be more of a desert resort. David's wife has also been taken by Tong Po and is being used as a sexual slave on his complex. The only way David can gain access to Po's complex is to take part in a secret tournament between the worlds best fighters. There are many things about Kickboxer 4 that are laughable. For one the original actor who played Tong Po didn't return for the fourth film so they have some other guy with a prosthetic on his forehead which makes him appear to have no eyelids. Maybe the prosthetic blinded his sight so badly that it is also to blame for the fact that Po wouldn't recognize Sloan, a man he fought only a few years earlier and whose family he absolutely loathes. Also, when did Sloan begin working for the DEA? This movie is only 2 years after the last one so did he go to prison the minute he returned from Rio? I guess Pyun decided to just ignore part 3 and do a direct sequel to his original sequel. There's also a few random softcore scenes in this one which feel so out of place I couldn't help but laugh. Basically, this is another bad sequel that is really stupid but also a lot of fun. There are some entertaining fight scenes as well which always help.
Kickboxer 5: The Redemption
So Sloan of the previous 3 sequels is now apparently dead. It could also be that Sasha Mitchell was arrested the same year this film was made for domestic abuse but maybe that's just a coincidence. Anyway, as far as the film goes it's nothing special. Mark Dacascos plays a kickboxer out to avenge his friends death which ultimately brings him to South Africa. I do have to say that the martial arts in this film are much better than anything given in the other sequels so maybe for that reason it could get a slight edge over the others. Of course it's still not a very good movie but is fine as throwaway entertainment.
The Bloodsport Sequels Reviewed
Before recording our Van Damme episode I decided to watch all of the films in the Bloodsport, Kickboxer and Cyborg franchises. Below are my thoughts on all of the Bloodsport sequels. These reviews and more can also be found on our Letterboxd page letterboxd.com/mtfeature
Bloodsport 2
Bloodsport 2 features Daniel Bernhardt as Alex Cardo, a man thrown in prison when he attempts to steal a sword that happens to be the prize given to the winning contender of the kumite. While in prison he is taught the iron fist technique from fellow prison Master Sun played by James Hong. Upon his release Alex enters the Kumite so that he can defeat Damien, a sadistic guard from the prison who pits prisoners against each other in fights to the death.
As expected Bloodsport 2 is a step down from the first film. The only thing that really holds the film together are James Hong and the fights. The competition itself hits all of the same beats as the original right down to a death scene where the judges stand up and turn their backs. Donald Gibb also returns as Ray Jackson in throwaway role as the "comic relief" where he just stands on the sidelines hitting on the sole female competitor. Also, as with the first film, there's some plot lines that could be cut out completely without harming the film but despite its flaws I have to admit I was entertained for the full 90 minutes. While I doubt I'll ever return to it there are worse ways you could throw away an hour and a half.
Bloodsport 3
Wow, can it get any worse than this? This movie has an entire hour of filler "building up" to The Kumite and by the time it finally reaches the third act the viewer will be so bored they won't even care.
Bloodsport 4: Dark Kumite
Maybe it's just because I watched this right after part 3 but I am walking away from this one thinking it's the second best in the franchise. It's the first of the sequels to fully embrace a b-movie vibe with some great over the top performances and a death by pen scene that I didn't expect. The plot sees Cardo back in prison only this time he goes there on purpose to expose some evildoing in the prison. He ends up being forced to participate in the Kumite only in this tournament only one contender walks away alive. As a kid I always thought that's what Bloodsport was until I actually watched it. This one pretty much fulfilled what my childhood brain thought Bloodsport would be and I am grateful for that. Sure, it's all really dumb but it's a surprising amount of fun.
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Podcast Episode 41
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In Episode 41 we are discussing two indie features starting with a kung-fu mashup "The Order of One: Kung-fu Killing Spree" followed by a micro budget horror film "The Chauffeur". We also discuss what we've been watching, play guess the Razzie winner and more! Enjoy!
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Podcast Episode 40.5
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In this "minisode" of Midnight Triple Feature Mike & Jeff sit down to discuss the found footage horror film "The Taking of Deborah Logan".
Friday, February 20, 2015
Podcast Episode 40
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In episode 40 we celebrate Friday the 13th with a discussion of "The Tommy Jarvis Trilogy" featuring reviews of parts 4, 5 and 6 of the Friday the 13th franchise. While discussion over parts 4 and 6 remain docile and overall agreeable part 5 splits our group pretty decisively forcing one of us to vehemently defend "A New Beginning". We also discuss why Brad Fuller has clearly not seen the original Friday the 13th franchise, the newest Leatherface film, what we've been watching and more! Enjoy!
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Podcast Episode 37
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In this episode of Midnight Triple Feature we deviate from our normal fare to focus on three of 2014's biggest superhero films. First we discuss Captain America Winter Soldier which happens to be not only one of the better films of 2014 but possibly the best film produced as part of The Avenger's cinematic universe. We follow this with Xmen Days of Future Past which marks the return of Wolverine to the franchise, which at least one of us is happy about. Finally we finish up with one of the biggest surprise hits of 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy. We also talk our 3 favorite superhero films. Enjoy!
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