Catching Up On Cinema

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It's once again time for Catching Up On Cinema's monthly, “Tales From the Shelf” episode!

Brad's Picks:

Unhinged (2020

Rope (1948)

A Bay of Blood (1971)

My Life as a Courgette (2016)

The McPherson Tape (1989)

Trevor's Picks:

The Shallows (2016)

Body Parts (1991)

Megazone 23 (1985 – 1989), Bubblegum Crisis (1987 – 1991), and M.D. Geist (1986)

Black Dynamite (2009)

Death Trance (2005)

And make sure to stick around as the 2 wrap things up with a customary “Speed Round” of runner up films that didn't quite make the cut.

Check out Brad's podcast, Cinema Speak on Libsyn at Cinema Speak, or on Twitter and Instagram.

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This May is “Masterclass Revisited” month at Catching Up On Cinema!

All month long, we'll be revisiting the subjects of Masterclass months we've done over the years to review films that may have slipped through the cracks.

This week we're wrapping up our Masterclass of the Alien franchise with long overdue review of Ridley Scott's, Prometheus (2012)!

Written by Jon Spaihts, and later tailored and refined by Damon Lindelof, Prometheus serves as a both a prequel to Alien (1979) as well as director's Scott's long awaited return to the franchise.

An enthusiastic effort from Ridley Scott, Prometheus boasts the director's trademark heady themes and large scale visual flair, however on occasion it's split parentage between 2 very distinct writer's voices can be felt across it's streamlined 124 minute run time.

Beginning life (on the page) as a straight up prequel and direct lead in to Scott's own Alien (1979), later drafts of the screenplay, and indeed the final film version of Prometheus would see the narrative lean harder into exploring the Engineers and the human races' connection to them.

Hiccups and vagaries in the screenplay aside, Prometheus is a mesmerizing visual experience, possessed of some truly astounding production design and 3D cinematography, as well as some show stopping sequences of tension and violence that rank very high not just among Scott's illustrious filmography, but all of sci-fi horror cinema.

While an enjoyable experience in isolation, Prometheus is not an especially strong prequel to the Alien franchise as a whole, however from this author's perspective, the film serves as a wonderful introduction to Michael Fassbender's character of David, who in turn goes on to become a compelling throughline to Ridley Scott's, Alien: Covenant (2017).

Not quite a masterpiece, Prometheus currently stands as the (exceedingly handsome) black sheep of the Alien series, however should a satisfying concluding chapter of it and the character of David's narrative eventually be made, it very well could find it's significance in the franchise canon promoted by leaps and bounds.

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This week, Kyle and Trevor review Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett's, Scream (2022)!

The first of the series to not be directed by horror icon Wes Craven, Scream 2022 is the fifth and most recent entry in the long running slasher franchise.

Heralded for it's novel mix of comedy, horror, and self-aware meta commentary regarding the slasher genre, the Scream series is an exceptional and innovative mainstream horror franchise.

Remarkably consistent in it's quality of production and entertainment value, (aside from a slight speed bump in the form of Scream 3) Wes Craven's tenure is largely devoid low points.

While the absence of Craven and series writer and steward Kevin Williamson are most certainly felt upon viewing Scream 5, the film largely manages to live up to the long legacy of the franchise.

Ruthlessly self-aware of contemporary franchise movie trends and the niche it occupies therein, Scream 5 continues the series standard of innovation, this time turning it's meta/social commentary lens toward legacy sequels and internet fanbases surrounding said sequels.

Following suit with the current trend of launching a new cast of characters by pairing them up with legacy players from years and films past, Scream 5 only real glaring liability comes in form of it's new faces sadly failing to impress amid frequent nostalgia pops spawned from witnessing the originals strut their stuff.

Wes Craven continues to be missed, and Scream 5 is worse for it, however I'm pleased to know that the latest film in the series follows suit by being a solid contemporary slasher/whodunit with some innovative ideas and something to say.

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*WARNING!* FULL THIS EPISODE CONTAINS FULL SPOILERS FOR THE BATMAN! *WARNING!*

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This May is “Masterclass Revisited” month at Catching Up On Cinema!

All month long, we'll be revisiting the subjects of Masterclass months we've done over the years to review films that may have slipped through the cracks.

This week, we're once again hitting the streets of Gotham City to review Matt Reeves', The Batman (2022)!

Conceived and produced during the collapse of Zack Snyder and Ben Affleck's tenure on the franchise and character respectively, The Batman serves as the first of a new trilogy of films to be helmed by director Reeves.

Featuring Robert Pattinson as a Bruce Wayne with 2 years of Batman-ing and fear mongering under his utility belt, Pattinson's rendition of the character represents the most vulnerable and most obviously traumatized version yet seen on film.

Also featuring Zoe Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Jeffrey Wright as Lt. Jim Gordon, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, a nigh unrecognizable Colin Farrell as The Penguin/Oswald Cobblepot, and Paul Dano as The Riddler, the film boasts strong performances all around, with lead Pattinson surprisingly occupying the majority of the film's screen time.

Nearly 3 hours long, The Batman is a complexly structured film, rich with themes, ideas, and beautiful imagery, but seemingly designed from the ground up to be frustrating in it's pacing and plot progression.

In spite of its incredible arsenal of themes and social commentary, the film boasts enough popcorn entertainment sequences to please general audiences, though it's fair to assume its equally incredible run time could be a bridge too far for some.

Potentially the most explicitly political and thought provoking of Batman films, Reeves' tenure on the character, much like his run on the Planet of the Apes franchise, seems to be defined by delivering spectacular imagery, while favoring the demands of the character and narrative over that of audience expectations.

Dark, brutal, and completely unwilling to be as dumb and simple as we occasionally expect super hero movies to be, The Batman may not yield pure entertainment with a casual watch, but if you're in the mood to chew on a few riddles in order to get to the juicy center of the matter, you'll find yourself handsomely rewarded.

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This May is “Masterclass Revisited” month at Catching Up On Cinema!

All month long, we'll be revisiting the subjects of Masterclass months we've done over the years to review films that may have slipped through the cracks.

First up this month is another tour of Gotham City, as we sit down to review Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski's, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993)!

Based on the groundbreaking Batman: The Animated Series cartoon, the film is the first feature length animated film in the long history of the character.

Initially planned as a direct-to-video project that was later fast tracked and released on Christmas day in 1993, the film would ultimately be critically adored, but sadly a total bomb at the box office.

Completed and released within a ludicrous 8 month production cycle, the film is fairly pedestrian in terms of cinematography and fluidity of animation, however most will agree it's “dark deco” aesthetic and glorious score by composer Shirley Walker more than make up for whatever technical shortcomings it may have.

Boasting the same voice cast as the animated series, including the one-two punch of the inimitable Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill as Bats and Joker respectively, the film is a mature and focused affair, exploring aspects of the characters that would not be revisited in earnest for over a decade.

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It's once again time for Catching Up On Cinema's monthly Catching Up On Blu-Ray episode!

Join Trevor for this solo episode wherein he takes a look at the blu-ray releases for April 2022!

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It's once again time for Catching Up On Cinema's monthly, “Tales From the Shelf” episode!

In this installment, Trevor is joined by his buddy Brad from the Cinema Speak podcast to take part in “The Backlog Boogie: Part Deux”!

Brad's Picks:

The Killing (1956)

Silent Madness (1984) and Forgotten Gialli: Volume One (Vinegar Syndrome box set)

Stephen King's The Stand (1994) and The Stand (2020)

Serial Mom (1994) and Species (1995)

Trevor's Picks:

Tampopo (1985)

Outlaw Star (1998) and Neon Genesis Evangelion Collector's Edition Box Set

Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale (2011) and Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

One Cut of the Dead (2017) and Special Actors (2019)

And make sure to stick around as we wrap things up with a customary “Speed Round” of runner up films that didn't quite make the cut.

Check out Brad's podcast, Cinema Speak on Libsyn at Cinema Speak, or on Twitterand Instagram.

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This April at Catching Up On Cinema, we'll be scraping the bottom of the barrel and reviewing “The Awful Aughts”!

An adaptation of the mildly successful video game property of the same name, the film attempts to cash in on 2 separate trends that were fairly popular through the 2000's, namely video game movies, and leather bound, female headlined action films.

Featuring director Boll's signature style of a rushed and incoherent narrative coupled with an inexplicably notable ensemble cast of actors, the film is often regarded as one of the better overall effort's among his loathsome filmography.

Special thanks to our special guests, Harrison and Jordan from the Grief Burrito podcast!

Check our their website @https://www.griefburrito.com/

Find their socials here

Find their community Discord here

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This April at Catching Up On Cinema, we'll be scraping the bottom of the barrel and reviewing “The Awful Aughts”!

Based on Akira Toriyama's beloved manga, the film serves are one of the earliest examples of a live-action anime adaptation.

Critically panned, and a financial failure, the film is an ugly and lifeless affair, utterly devoid of any of the spirit and charm of it's source material.

Released several years too late to capitalize on the peak of Dragonball Z's popularity in the U.S., the film curiously eschews referencing or including many of the more popular elements of the source material, resulting in a film that fails at delivering even the most basic of fanservice pops.

It is cancer.

I'm sleep

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