We are the Sprocket Holes vol. 154

Micro-views;



INCEPTION - 9/10;

If this turned your brain to jelly, than it was already half-purred. Everything that could be written about Nolan's Metaphysical Heist Film has been written, so i'll just say yeah, it's pretty friggin great. Every time you think it's gonna go overboard, it remains grounded and focused. for my money though, Marion Cotillard really owned this thing. one of the most compelling and complicated movie villains of the last 10 years. oh yeah and Tom Hardy of Bronson.



PREDATOR 3: PREDATORS 1: no/10

A bunch of dangerous people from around the world are dropped into an intergalactic game reserve where they are being hunted by (STHPOILER) Predators.

You know which ones will live, which ones will die, and which ones "aren't what they seem" before any of them open their mouths to read you the script (which is what much of the movie's dialogue felt like), so there is no real tension. There's gore, but its weak video game CGI gore. there are Predadogs (also CG), which while not a bad idea, are not visually interesting. The Predators do look pretty bad-ass, especially the Super-Predator, but there's not enough of them. but upon further reflection, they were sub-impressive in their height. in the original film, the monstar towered over Ahnuld. in this one, they're at eye level with Adrian "Piansthst" Brody. The duel between a Predator and the Yakuza with a Samurai Sword is the high point. The entire last act just copies random beats from the last act of the first film, only without the build-ups, so again there's no excitement.

in short; it wasn't terrible, but it also wasn't necessary. there is a fine line between paying homage and blatant cloning, and this movie alternates skirting the line with tap dancing on the latter side. The movie seems to exist for the sole reason of 20th Century Fox needing to pump out a quick franchise picture for the summer season, and since they have no comic book properties ready for release, they just meat-grinded out another Predator movie with only a quick cash grab in mind. other people seem to be giving it a pass, but i think that's only because they're holding it up against those execrable Aliens vs. Predator movies. you put this next to the first 2 Predator movies, and it will kill itself just to make sure those two don't hurt it.



JENNIFER'S BODY - who/cares

didn't hate this nearly as much as the rest of the world, but it still got on my nerves. I liked the idea, and the ladies are lovely and act as convincingly as they can, and everyone involved seems like they're having a good time. It's just a touch overwritten and unsure of itself. I dunno... there's some decent ideas here.. just needs more work.



PARASOMNIA - 8.5/10

An interesting, original little horror film, with tons of great imagery and a few really strong ideas. The protagonist was a fucking moron, but that was the point. the girl is a heartbreaker, and the villain is pretty god damn intimidating. a VERY strong third act saves it from the occasional drags.



BIG FAN - 8/10

a boring loner whose only source of joy and power comes from late night phone calls to the local sports radio show, where he launches into pre-written tirades about his favorite and least favorite football teams. very cool black comedy that never takes itself too seriously or tries to hard to go for shock value. its been compared to Taxi Driver, but really its more like King of Comedy. only a little sad and mostly very amusing, never turning into generic stalker/slasher fare.