Categorie archief: Films

The Verdict: Fear Street Trilogy

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

The Fear Street Trilogy (consisting of Fear Street: 1994, Fear Street: 1978 and Fear Street: 1666) is Netflix’s most surprising release so far this summer. It revives a genre that has been dead for a while now: the slasher. The first scene, in which a girl is stalked in a shopping mall by a skull-face masked killer, reminds of Scream. But soon it diverges from this genre classic by going supernatural. You see, the town of Shadyside is cursed by the witch Sarah Frier, who was hanged in 1666, and is therefore now plagued by possessed killers who go on murder sprees. The bordering town of Sunnyside, on the other hand, is perfectly peaceful.

In the first part, teenage girls Deena and Sam, who are having a sexual affair to please the male audience, have to survive the next rampage and find a way to end the curse. In the second movie, a killing spree occurs during a summer camp in 1978 (yes, very much like the first Friday the 13th). In the third and final film, we first learn the history of Shadyside and Sunnyside through a transcendent experience by Deena. And then, after a major plot twist, it is up to her and her friends to end the terror once and for all. While the first part gets the lowest rating on IMDb, I liked it best, because it has the most old fashioned horror moments. But the whole trilogy, successfully directed by relative newcomer Leigh Janiak, is entertaining throughout. With genuine scares, excellent casting and plenty of brutal kills. This is how you do a slasher.

The Fear Street Trilogy is now available on Netflix

The verdict: to stream or not to stream? To stream.

Dungeon Classics #14: Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon’s Chief Editor JK sorts through the Dungeon’s DVD-collection to look for old cult favorites….

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001, USA)

Director: Kevin Smith
Cast: Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Ben Affleck
Running Time: 104 mins.

The stoner comedy is a genre that I as an ex-stoner can definitely appreciate. Jay and Silent Bob, who before this movie were side characters in Kevin Smith’s four previous films (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma), are the perfect stoner buddies. The foul-mouthed Jay is hilarious, and Silent Bob provides not so subtle feedback through body language alone. The duo embark on a quest to Hollywood to prevent a film being made based on their comic book alter ego’s Bluntman and Chronic. On their way, they meet many weird characters played by well known actors, such as: Jason Lee, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Eliza Dushku, Shannon Elizabeth, Will Ferrell, Chris Rock and – most impressively – Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill. The movie is filled with dick-jokes, fart-jokes, gay-jokes, and movie references (especially Star Wars). Highlights include comedian George Carlin’s cameo as cock smoking hitchhiker and the confrontation with Mark – Luke Skywalker – Hamill as Cocknocker, the villain of the Bluntman and Chronic movie. Yes, this is definitely the Citizen Kane of stoner comedies.

Trailer: The Many Saints of Newark

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

The Many Saints of Newark (marketed with the subtitle A Sopranos Story) is an upcoming American crime drama film. It is directed by Alan Taylor and written by David Chase and Lawrence Konner as a prequel to Chase’s HBO crime drama series The Sopranos. The film stars Alessandro Nivola, Leslie Odom Jr., Jon Bernthal, Corey Stoll, Michael Gandolfini, Ray Liotta, and Vera Farmiga. Set in the 1960s and 1970s in Newark, New Jersey, using the 1967 riots in the city as a backdrop for tensions between the Italian-American and African-American communities, the film follows the teenage years of Tony Soprano and his mentoring by protagonist Dickie Moltisanti in the midst of a violent gang war his family is involved in. Dickie Moltisanti is the deceased father of Christopher Moltisanti in The Sopranos and is often referred to as a legend in the show. We will now finally find out if it really was the cop who killed Dickie or if Tony just made that up to form a stronger bond with Christopher.

New Line Cinema obtained the rights to produce The Many Saints of Newark alongside HBO Films. Warner Bros. Pictures was to initially release the film on September 25, 2020, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, its release date was rescheduled to October 1, 2021, as well as a month-long simultaneous release on the HBO Max streaming service. (Wikipedia)

Frank Nitti: The Enforcer (1988)

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld


‘Every great men needs an enforcer’

Directed by:
Michael Switzer

Written by:
Lee David Zlotoff

Cast:
Anthony LaPaglia (Frank Nitti), Vincent Guastaferro (Al Capone), Trini Alvarado (Anna), Michael Moriarty (Hugh Kelly), Michael Russo (Paul Ricca), Clayton Landey (Ted Newberry), Bruce Kirby (Anton Cermak), Mike Starr (Sergeant Harry Lang)

The real life prohibition era gangster Frank Nitti is mostly known as the psychopathic killer played by Billy Drago in Brian de Palma’s The Untouchables (1987). One year later, Nitti would get his own (TV) movie. This is a more biographical approach to telling the gangster’s life story, who was – as it turns out – much more than merely an enforcer.

When his friend and boss Al Capone went to prison, he took over as boss of the Chicago outfit. Nitti was very clever. Even during the time when street fighter Capone was running things, he would often come up with the best strategies for maintaining power in Chicago. But things turned sour when the police attempted to kill him and other (business) problems arose when the Mafia’s big cash cow – the prohibition – came to an end.

Anthony LaPaglia plays a solid lead role, but unfortunately Vincent Guastaferro is less convincing in the crucial role of Al Capone. Another weak point of the movie is the screenplay. Often, it is hard to see what goes on in the character’s mind and what drives his actions. Especially at the end when he makes the dramatic decision of ending his own life, which was indeed how Nitti died (rather than being thrown off a building by Elliot Ness). On the flip side, the movie looks pretty good. And Trini Alvarado plays a small, but disarming role as Nitti’s wife Anna who tragically dies towards the end.

Rating:

Quote:
FRANK NITTI: “If somebody big wants to fall, then the world would have to fear and respect the man who brought him down. But not if it’s done in the dark.”

Trivia:
Anthony LaPaglia would later play Al Capone in Road To Perdition although his scenes would be deleted.