5 Movies to Make You Forget the Heat...

Hot town, summer in the city...it's really F*ing hot here in the U.K. and I hear there's a heat wave in the U.S. too. Here's five movies that will, hopefully, make you forget the heat...there will be a lot of snow involved.

Let The Right One In
Brilliant, moving, surreal, moody Swedish film that just happens to have a vampire in it. It takes place during winter. There's a lot of snow...and blood.
Oh and the title comes from a Morrissey song.








The Thing

Takes place in the Antartic, so there's lots of snow...and blood. Horror master John Carpenter's masterpiece sci-fi/horror about an alien in a research station. It stars Kurt Russell and has some really cool special effects.

30 Days of Night
Another vampire movie...but these vampires don't sparkle, they are feral, almost rodent-like pack animals. As it's set in Alaska, there's a lot of snow...and blood. And Josh Harnett isn't too annoying.








The Shining

Dad goes mad as the winter caretaker of The Overlook Hotel. There's lots of snow...and blood. Check out the Wikipedia page..there's a lot of theories about this movie...oh and the film 'Room 237'.








And now for a non-horror movie, though the story is horrific and brave.

The Great White Silence
This is a docementary about the Terra Nova Expedition between 1910-13, from which Robert Falcon Scott and four others never returned. It's about the Antartic so there's a lot of snow...no blood this time.
We had the Scott Expedition Exhibit at the Natural History Museum in London last year and it was breath-taking.

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Five Summer Movies Part Two: Oh The Horror!

As I was writing the last post, I kept coming up with summer themed horror movies, so I decided to write up a list of just those movies...
Note: I don't recommend movies I haven't seen, so no Friday the 13th or Sleepaway Camp.

The Ruins
This movie is part of the 'stupid white people in a foreign country' sub-genre. In Mexico, four Americans team up with two German and Greek guys to search for the German guys brother, who went off with a female archaeologist to see some Mayan ruins. Once they get to the Mayan pyramid, they are confronted by some actual Mayans who basically hold them hostage on the ruins.
I don't want to give too much away but this movie is really good...very intense, some interesting twists and some gruesome scenes that make you go 'holy shit!'


Picnic At Hanging Rock

Not really a horror movie but it's still really creepy, moody, surreal, confusing and disturbing. And it takes place on St. Valentine's Day but it's Australia, so it's still summer there.
The young girls at Appleyard College near Woodend in Victoria go on a picnic at Hanging Rock in honor of St. Valentine's Day. Several of the girls and one of their teachers decide to go and explore Hanging Rock. Weird things happen on the rock and half the girls never return from the rock and are never to be seen again. Were the kidnapped by the local Aborigines? Did they wander off and get lost in the outback? Was it something more supernatural? We never know...the mystery is never solved.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

The original, of course. You can actually feel the sticky heat and hear the buzzing of the flies and smell the...blood.

There are a lot of 'out-of towners get terrorized by the locals' movies but this is still the best. 

 

 

 

Carrie

Because it's famous climax happens at the prom. And I love Brian De Palma. Like, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, there are other prom night horror movies, including Prom Night, but this is the best looking. And it was Stephen King's first novel.

 

 

 

Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil

I love, love, love this movie! It is a horror/comedy, I wouldn't say spoof, I'd say homage...it takes all the cabin in the woods, creepy locals and 'innocent' teenagers and turns them on their head. It is hilarious and a bit scary too. If yo uare a fan of horror movies, you will see all the horror cliches coming but be laughing too hard to care.

I highly recommend this movie. It is now one my best friend Susan and my, favorites.

 

 

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Five Summer Movies: Part One

Here's some of my favorite summer movies, in no particular order,  just in case we do have another crappy summer...

Dazed and Confused - Richard Linklater (1993)
This cult movie by Ricjard Linklater is about the last day of high school in the suburbs of Austin, Texas in 1976. It's stars basically, everyone: Matthew McConaughey, Jason London (twin brother Jeremy was in 7th Heaven), Ben Affleck, Milla Jovovich, Cole Hauser (Pitch Black, 2 Fast 2 Furious), Parker Posey, Adam Goldberg (Friends, Joey), Joey Lauren Adams (Chasing Amy), Anthony Rapp (Firefly, Suburgatory), Renée Zellweger and Rory Cochrane (Empire Records, CSI: Miami).
Plot: Long story short...graduating seniors haze the incoming freshmen...much shenanigans ensue, much beer is drunk and many a roach is smoked...all to an excellent rock soundtrack including; Foghat, Aerosmith, KISS, Alice Cooper, The Runaways...etc. Some of the fashion is questionable but that's the 70's. It's also an insanely quotable movie, the dialogue is classic.
If you aren't stoned when you watch this movie, you'll feel stoned.
Just lay back and chill out and enjoy the ride.

My sister and I used to love this next movie! We would make our mom rent it from the video shop all the time. We really should have bought it we watched it so much.

Summer School - Carl Reiner (1987)

Plot: Slacker teacher Mr. Shoop (Mark Harmon) is forced to teach summer school to a class of misfits and losers...shenanigans ensue.
It stars loads of people you recognize but can't put your finger on why...
Surfer girl Pam is Courtney Thorne-Smith from Melrose Place; Larry, who's male stripper is Ken Olandt who has been a lot of t.v. shows including The Young & The Restless; jock Kevin is Patrick Labyorteaux who was in Little House and JAG; pregnant Rhonda is Shawnee Smith from the Saw franchise; geeky Alan is Richard Steven Horvitz is now a popular voice actor for animated and live action films and t.v.; dyslexic Denise is Kelly Jo Minter who was in House Part and Nightmare on Elm Street 5; intimidating Jerome  is Duane Davis who was in Ghosts of Mars, and two horror-film-obsessed underachievers, Dave is Gary Riley who was in Stand By Me and Francis, a.k.a. 'Chainsaw' is Dean Cameron who you should just click on his name and read his Wikipedia because he's done some cool stuff recently.

Meatballs - Ivan Reitman (1979)
I love Bill Murray. This was his first starring role. This is what we all wanted summer camp to be like.
Another great summer movie starring Bill Murray...and Chevy Chase, is Caddy Shack. 'Be the ball.'
I don't think I really need to say anymore about these movies except you should watch them if you like to laugh.

Dogtown and Z-Boys

This is a documentary about the Zephyr skateboard team and how they changed skateboarding into what we know it today, in the 1970's and 80's.

This movie makes me proud to be a Californian. Skateboarding could only have come from southern California.

Miss Firecracker
I love this movie! Holly Hunter is Carnelle the cousin of Tim Robbins and Mary Steenburgen, who was a former Miss Firecracker. Carnelle has a bit of a reputation around town and wants to change that by entering the Miss Firecracker Contest.
It's one of those American movies where everyone in town is an eccentric or a bit odd. And Tim Robbins is really sexy in it.

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