"Missing in Action" by D. B. Bates
Despite the film’s simplicity, I find myself on the cusp of recommending it. It lacks the campy appeal of more mindlessly entertaining Cannon fodder, though it contains the typical displays of raw,...
View Article"Lifeforce" by Matt Wedge
Lifeforce is one of the first films that the Cannon Group rolled the dice on with a big budget. As with most of their grasping attempts to hit it big, their roll came up snake eyes. With a budget...
View Article"The Winning Season" by D. B. Bates
Try as I might, I can’t see the logic in The Winning Season heading to DVD after a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it “theatrical run” for awards consideration. A funny, dark-edged sports comedy featuring Sam...
View Article"Missing in Action 2: The Beginning" by D. B. Bates
But this film’s problems run deeper than a lack of strong characters. Plenty of action movies — especially those made by the Cannon Group — work with stereotypes more than actual characters, and they...
View Article"Rampage" by Matt Wedge
Rampage boasts solid, if unspectacular, credentials. On IMDb, it currently sits at a 6.4 out of ten rating. On Netflix, it has a surprisingly high 3.3 out of five rating. The cast is peppered with...
View Article"The Cell 2" by Matt Wedge
This is just one of the many lapses in logic presented by the film’s four (!) writers and director Tim Iacofano. While The Cell also had severe plot gaps, director Tarsem Singh was able to use the...
View Article"The Badge" by Matt Wedge
I’ve always felt that the true test of an actor is how well they hold up in a bad film. In a good film, with a solid script and capable direction, an actor can coast and let the material carry them....
View Article"King Lear" by D. B. Bates
I’ve seen many, many, many bad movies over the years, but this is the first one I’ve seen that seemed intentional. Usually, bad movies happen on accident — even the notoriously reviled Manos, the Hands...
View Article"The Vampire's Assistant" by D. B. Bates
If you’ve never heard of Darren Shan’s series of Cirque du Freak books, you’re probably not alone. When I got the script, it simply had a title and Brian Helgeland’s name. I didn’t know it was an...
View Article"Single White Female 2: The Psycho" by D. B. Bates
I admit recommending Single White Female 2: The Psycho is a tough sell. A direct-to-video sequel whose biggest name (Brooke Burns) went from Baywatch to reality game-show host doesn’t seem like the...
View Article"RoboGeisha" by Matt Wedge
Whether I would have ended up watching the film on my own is debatable. Knowing my love for a good exploitation film, I probably wouldn’t have been able to avoid that title for very long. But if this...
View Article"Mystic River" by Matt Wedge
That’s why I was so shocked when I first saw Mystic River. It struck me as a stunning misfire from a usually reliable director with a good cast overacting like they were in a high school production of...
View Article"Broken Lizard's Club Dread" by Matt Wedge
The result was a film that was funny without going for the obvious jokes that the Scary Movie franchise had already poached numerous times over. But critics bashed its straight-faced approach to comedy...
View Article"The Ultimate Solution of Grace Quigley" by D. B. Bates
The film’s writer, executive producer, and longtime champion, A. Martin Zweiback, took me up on that. As you may have seen, he sent me a videotape of the “writer’s cut,” which filled me simultaneously...
View Article"Murphy's Law" by D. B. Bates
Bronson plays Jack Murphy, an alcoholic robbery-homicide detective whose wife has just left him. In a bizarre twist, Jan (Angel Tompkins) has left Murphy in order to live out her dream of stripping...
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