A - AL
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A.I. Rising [2018] Ab Tak Chhappan [2004] Ab Tak Chhappan 2 [2015]
The Abandoned [2006] The ABCs of Death [2012] ABCs of Death 2 [2014]
ABCs of Death 2.5 [2016] Absentia [2011] The Accountant [2016]
Across the Line: The Exodus of Charlie Wright [2010] Acts of Violence [2018] Ad Astra [2019]
Advantageous [2015] The Adventures of Tintin [2011] Agenda: Payback [2018]
AI Rising [2018] Air Force One [1997] Airplane! [1980]
Alien [1979] Alien 3 [1992] Alien: Covenant [2017]
Alien: Resurrection [1997] Alienoid [2022]
Aliens [1986] All About the Money [2017] All Hallows' Eve [2013]
All Hallows' Eve 2 [2015] All the Creatures Were Stirring [2018] All the Devil's Men [2018]
All the Old Knives [2022] Alligator [1980] Alone in the Dark [1982]
Along Came the Devil [2018] Along Came the Devil 2 [2019] Altered States [1980]
Ad Astra [2019]

            

An astronaut is on a mission to contact his father near Neptune who may be about to cause an extinct level event. Visually, outstanding ...lots of eye candy and fairly good action sequences, though the science seems shaky. This is a deeply personal film - far too deep, imo - where most of the time is spent in introspective angst over this father/son relationship. They interrupt that on occasion with a cataclysmic action sequence. This could work but they never got the balance right ...felt like two different films. Swimming underwater on Mars? What was that about?
Alienoid [2022]
aka Oegye+in 1bu
            
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An alien race has been using humans to host prisoners for centuries. They're now breaking out and chaos ensues. Hop-scotching between now and the late 14th century provided us with an extremely complex story, well choreographed action scenes, likable characters and awesome eye candy making it all very fun and exciting. However... much of it bordered on silly slapstick which didn't really work well for me and, even knowing there's a sequel, to sit through 140 mins for a couple reveals I saw coming and then have it just stop... that was quite a let down.
All the Old Knives [2022]

            
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Terrorists kill everyone aboard a plane. 8 years later, an agent must investigate an ex-lover to find a mole. A tense, complicated story that mostly takes place at a dinner table in a Carmel restaurant using flashbacks as a non-linear way of throwing puzzle pieces at us daring us to put it all together. Confusing at first, eventually a picture of love lost and betrayal emerges ...and once the mystery's solved, the reasons behind it are unexpected and heart rending. Exquisitely well-written, directed and acted with strong emotional depth, this was really quite good.
Air Force One [1997]

            
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Air Force One is taken over by terrorists with demands to release a tyrannical leader and the only one that can stop them is the POTUS. Finally got around to watching this and both my wife and I really enjoyed it. A Die Hard style film with Harrison Ford effectively playing the monkey-with-a-wrench role and Gary Oldman in a stellar performance as the fanatical and totally psychotic lead terrorist with absolutely no humanity whatsoever. Although a bit dated with a few of the scenarios somewhat cliche, this was still a tense, exciting, edge-of-seat thriller.
The Adventures of Tintin [2011]

            
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A journalist and his dog find themselves in the middle of a search for a famous ship, the Unicorn. I'm stunned! The animation is this Spielberg / Jackson production is so realistic that I was fooled into thinking I was watching a live action film on more than occasion. The story is exciting, conjuring up memories of childhood adventure stories, and the action / chase sequences (which are quite viewable) left me awestruck. The imagination in this is just overwhelming. For a film I knew nothing about until just recently, how did I miss this? Kids will love it!
Across the Line: The Exodus of Charlie Wright [2010]

         
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About to be arrested for a $10bil Ponzi scheme, Charlie disappears. Now the FBI, a Mexican cartel and a Russian mobster all want him. As far as film construction, awkward with a lot of wrong decisions. It's not a thriller. It spends most of its time intimately involved with its characters... which is fine. Their likable and the big name acting is great. But one group is only there to provide an action sequence and, although promising a big gun battle climax, it doesn't happen. Wouldn't have changed the ending any so why just let it peter out? Run out of money??
Advantageous [2015]

            
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A character study taking place in a near-future world where society is advancing far faster than the humanity within it and how one woman will do anything to insure her daughter's future ...even if it means giving up herself. Although extremely slow paced, without any sort of climax or resolution to speak of, the characters draw the viewer deeply into their worlds with a slight shift in reality that feels both intimately familiar and subtly foreign and disturbing. Not for everyone but it's an extremely well made, personal journey well worth the experience.
Alien: Covenant [2017]

            

A colony ship, on a trip to colonize Origae-6, is diverted to an earth-like planet via a radio signal. Should have just kept going. This second film in the timeline does a nice job of bringing the events of Prometheus forward into familiar Alien territory ...with a twist that changes pretty much everything we know about the aliens. Much more realistic and welcome characterizations in personality, intelligence, and behavior than the previous film taking things in a fairly logical direction. Not a lot of action in this one but what there is is solid, intense and terrifying. Good stuff!
Alien [1979]

            

The mining cargo vehicle, Nostromo, (which my online persona is named after) is interrupted on its voyage home by an unknown signal which results in a fight for survival with a malevolent and brutal alien. Albeit a common premise, this horror classic is done exceedingly well with terrifying results. Although the limitations of filming in '79 are apparent at times, the film is supremely non-dated and, after watching the two prequels, Prometheus & Covenant, and all the short films that's been produced, it takes on an entirely new slant both in characters and story.
Aliens [1986]

            
  
After being in suspended animation for over 50 years, Ripley returns to LV-426 (the setting for Alien), along with a Marine crew, when a human settlement goes silent. Sigourney Weaver's Oscar nominated performance, of being the only one who understands the gravity of what they're walking into, is perfectly contrasted against the clueless but gung ho Marines who just want to kick butt. Fully developed along a leisurely pace, the shift from painfully suspenseful to the all-out chaos of constant warfare is sudden and shocking. Strap in and hang on for dear life!
Alien 3 [1992]

            

After escaping LV-426, and without knowing that there's a alien egg on board, Ripley and company crash on a prison colony planet. As a continuation of the story... um... yeah, it does that, but at the cost of making much of the survival of Aliens pointless. At 2 1/2 hours, it did maintain my interest for the first 90 mins - the characters and social dynamics were engaging albeit overly and unnecessarily profane - but the last hour was just running around and getting killed and not as effectively as previous efforts. End was sad but logical. Generally entertaining.
Alien: Resurrection [1997]

            

200 years after Alien 3, Ripley, along with a queen xenomorph inside of her, are successfully cloned with predictably devastating results. This one's a good deal of fun with a hybrid Ripley bringing a whole new aspect to her character. The action starts early and presented in an exceptionally measured pace so as not to bore us or wear us out. And the action itself is exciting, well choreographed and intense. Even at this early stage in his career, writer Joss Whedon ( Firefly, Avengers, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) creates an exceptional chapter in the Alien story.
The Abandoned [2006]

         


Siblings revisit a childhood home in Russia to investigate the weird circumstances surrounding their childhood. The structure of the film was a bit disjointed and confusing so I was never really clear what was happening and it's far slower than the heavily edited, chaotic nature of the trailer would indicate. There's a couple of good choice spooks but best to move on ...there's really not much to see here.
The Accountant [2016]

            
  
A high functioning autistic accountant / assassin is hired to find out if money is being embezzled from a high-tech research company. Mistake! Very complex, interweaving story line, loaded with history, presented in a smooth, easy-to-follow format that is intriguing, exciting, heartfelt and extremely satisfying. Several minor twists kept my attention glued to the screen for fear of missing something, as well. One of the best films I've seen in 2017.
Ab Tak Chhappan [2004]
aka 56 and Counting
         


Hindi police drama centering around the head of a special crime unit in Mumbai that basically goes out and kills gangsters. Very well presented story without resorting to sensationalism with terrific characters providing some extremely personal and, at times, emotional drama. Although somewhat long-winded, it kept my interest throughout. Well done!
All Hallows' Eve [2013]

            
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After trick 'r treating, a boy finds a VHS tape in his bag of candy and the babysitter puts it on. It contains 3 horrific stories featuring the meanest clown this side of Pennywise. The filmmakers were smart in not trying to push an obviously low-budget film into something beyond their ability. Despite the lame dialogue and average, at best, acting, they managed to create a hell of an entertaining film with grotesque imagery, edgy tension, goofy aliens and blood splatterings worthy of Herschel Gordon Lewis. Nice job.
Airplane! [1980]

         

This parody of Airport and Zero Hour launched a whole new sub-genre of comedy. Totally saturated with puns, innuendos, slapstick, irreverent and outrageous, in-you-face gags, it's quite likely if you don't see something humorous in every scene, you're probably not paying close enough attention. This total onslaught of silliness was cloned over and over again throughout the years but none have achieved the level of comic quality of this film. Absolute classic!
Acts of Violence [2018]

            
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A girl is kidnapped by traffickers / drug dealers from her bachelorette party in a club and starts a war. This is a good example of a film being far from perfect and yet still being quite good if you don't pick it apart. It's full of some really convenient plot points to move the story along - some of which were rather unrealistic - and the story is a very simple one we've seen before. But the characters were compelling and heartfelt, they maintained a great level of tension and the realistic action was exceptionally well constructed. I loved it.
Agenda: Payback [2018]
aka Unhinged
         
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A hustler, who's great at getting people to invest money in schemes that never pan out, is kidnapped by one of his victims who, in turn, invites other victims, one by one, to come by for a visit. This is a highly intense, sometimes painful, thriller that seems pretty straight forward to start but suddenly, when things go wrong, becomes an incredibly complicated game of wits and survival. Unlike the ratings seem to indicate, I found this film to be well written, well performed, and highly engaging. Good fun.
The ABCs of Death [2012]

            
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26 stories, each representing a letter of the alphabet, by 26 different writers/directors. Unfortunately, it didn't work very well. Less than half dozen of the stories were any good. Of the rest, some were incomprehensible or full of abstract imagery that made no sense. Many seemed to be centered around toilets. Some were extremely revolting for the pure sake of being revolting ..especially the last few that I found to be very unpleasant to sit through. Better luck with the sequels.
Along Came the Devil [2018]
aka Tell Me Your Name
         
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Apparently, it was decided it was time to make another exorcism movie as we haven't had one for, what ...6 months? Although it did a pretty good job in presenting us with the gross and gnarly possession make-up and the appropriate demonic behavior, there's absolutely nothing new here. And, what is presented, is not nearly as good as many. The laughably stupid ending, which I'm sure they thought would be a big surprise, did nothing more than basically turn the whole movie into one big shaggy dog joke.
Along Came the Devil 2 [2019]

         
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Jordon heads back to her hometown to find her sister and mother from the first film and a demon causes problems. There's about a 15 minute segment that's intense, violent, and well worth watching as dad has a Jack Torrance moment. Unfortunately, it's sandwiched by a whole lot of dragged out mundane blah, blah, blah. The character of Jordon has absolutely no screen charisma whatsoever and the writing is pretty lame, for the most part. The climax came off as a 'we ran out of money' ending resolving nothing. Are they really going to subject us to #3? *sigh*
ABCs of Death 2 [2014]

            
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26 short stories centered around death by 26 different filmmakers ...just like the first one. However, unlike the first one, this one has a greater ratio of good entertainment over the bad, nonsensical, and pointless fare that permeated the first one. In fact, I don't recall any story here that was intentionally repulsive for the sake of being repulsive which was rather common on the first one. I still don't think the collection is great but it's certainly improved and has a few really good ones.
ABCs of Death 2.5 [2016]

         
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Rather than present short films based on all the letters of the alphabet, like the other films, this one features vignettes all based on the letter 'M'. Out of 500 entries, this is supposedly the best 26. Halfway through this, I was solidly leaning towards a Mediocre tag and heading downhill but the 2nd half really turned it around with some truly inspired little creeps. There are a bunch which are rather pointless and, like the first film, a few meant only to be as revolting as possible but scattered among them are some real treasures ...certainly enough to get a Good tag.
Alligator [1980]

            
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Flush a baby alligator down the toilet, mix it with some dead dogs used in a hormone experiment, let it stew for 12 years and you end up with one mean, big ass reptile. This movie was actually far better than I expected it to be. There were some characters, some dialogue and a few gags that were downright silly but, being as it was made in 1980, I'll give it some slack. The alligator effects, although obviously not state-of-the-art, were sufficiently gnarly and messy enough to make the whole thing rather entertaining. Get the popcorn!
A.I. Rising [2018]
aka Ederlezi Rising
         

This sci fi is about an emotionally retarded scientist, being sent to Alpha Centauri by his employer, along with a cyborg who basically becomes an emotionally confused female. Hard to tell if the first half was sci fi or soft porn. And then, in an effort to make her more human, he removes her operating software. First thing she does is deny him sex! Their behavior and interactions were ridiculously contrived, unrealistic, and abysmally dull. In between these 'personal' moments, we get treated to long scenes of eye candy that are mediocre at best. Asinine.
Ab Tak Chhappan 2 [2015]
aka 56 and Counting 2
         

Too much film wasted getting our hero from the first film, who has retired after the death of his wife, to rebuild the Encounter Corp as gangs are controlling the streets once again. Also, too much film spent on politics and melodrama. As a result, it didn't have the punch, intensity and level of action as the first one. Basic and familiar story formula where the big reveal will come as no surprise to most. Comes off more as a TV cop show episode than as a movie albeit a pretty entertaining one if you're not looking for anything new.
Alone in the Dark [1982]

         

4 criminally insane psychopaths escape an institution and lay siege to the house belonging to their new doctor as they think he killed the old one. I'm sure all the big names drew a crowd but this has to be the most casual and leisurely psycho killer movie I've ever seen. It just strolls along with no suspense or tension to speak of ...even the action and attack scenes feel lethargic. The writer / director, Jack Sholder, went on to direct The Hidden, one of the best thrillers of the 80's but it appears he hadn't gotten his chops yet on this one. Pretty dull.
Altered States [1980]

            
  
One of my favorite films since its initial release, a scientist, using psychedelic drugs and sensory deprivation chambers, attempts to regress back to the first conscious thought with terrifying results. William Hurt is perfect in his first film role as the obsessed scientist and surrounded by well known and much younger actors that we know well today. The story is highly scientific and philosophical as well as being horrific with spec fx that are incredibly effective, when you consider the film is over 40 years old. Still a favorite.
All Hallows' Eve 2 [2015]

            
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Another anthology of horror tales that let me down. Not so much for the quality ...they were ok, even though none of the tales really stood out. My disappointment stems from some of the stories being re-edited and posted on Crypt TV's YouTube channel and I've seen them already. The wraparound story was lame, almost like they put it together as an afterthought. It was watchable and generally entertaining - certainly not as terrible as the ratings seem to indicate - but the first collection was mucho better. No Art the Clown in this one.
All About the Money [2017]

         
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One of three friends, all of whom are living miserable lives, tricks the other two into capturing a major drug lord for the $25mil reward. This film was crude, but not too crude, zany, but not too zany, far fetched, but not too far fetched, a simple story, but not too simple... Basically, it's one of the more balanced comedies I've seen with truly likable and memorable characters and some genuinely funny laugh-out-loud moments. Done improperly, this could have been a silly waste of time but they did a great job and I found it extremely entertaining.
All the Creatures Were Stirring [2018]

            
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A Xmas horror anthology. Since they made no effort to not make the film look or feel low budget (probably spent all their money on the fairly well known character actors), I almost turned it off until a sudden and shocking moment in the 1st story had my undivided attention. Alas, the 1st story just stopped, the 2nd was ok, the 3rd, a slightly humorous version of Scrooge with no surprises, the 4th could have been written by a 10-year-old, the 5th was actually amusing, original and had an upbeat ending, and the wraparound was just silly. Marginally entertaining.
Absentia [2011]

            
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Prior to the films Oculus, Hush, Before I Wake, Ouija: Origin of Evil, and Doctor Sleep, Mike Flanagan made this little gem on KickStarter funds. It's about two sisters, one whose husband disappeared 7 years ago that she's about to declare dead. Is he? If not, where's he been? The obvious low budget look of the film is handled with precision so that rather than feel amateur, it feels personal and real. The smoldering tension and creepy soundtrack makes the film drip with malice. Scary fun that will give you a phobia of pedestrian tunnels.
All the Devil's Men [2018]

            
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Ex-Special Forces, now mercenaries, are hired by the CIA to track down and kill a terrorist. The trick to enjoying this one is to simply not expect it to be anything other than what it is ...a high-action, militaristic, shoot 'em up with several players, all with their own agendas that constantly force the story to twist and turn in various directions. The characters are well defined caricatures, which are exactly what they're supposed to be in this unrealistic world of "who's the bad guy". If you take it as is, it's really an exciting popcorn movie with nary a dull moment.
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