In true Dexter fashion, the latest episode, “Sunshine and Frosty Swirl“ began where the premiere of season 7 left off. The title comes from Dexter’s interaction with an inmate who decided to come clean about where some bodies were hidden, after many years. Since Dexter had to be on the scene, he inquired as to how he changed; how he got rid of his evilness, or his dark passenger. After a gruesome suicide of the inmate (he hurled himself in front of a moving semi truck) Dexter realized that he hadn’t changed, and just wanted some sunshine and the ice cream across the street before killing himself.
After Dexter had officially admitted to Deb that he is a serial killer, she had a very difficult decision to make; does she turn him in, or does she help him? As you know, Deb is a sucker for her big brother and offered to help him try to control his urges. Deb has taken on the duty of rehabilitating her serial killer brother.
Deb has blinded herself to the obvious red flags about her brother being a criminal in the past. She seems to be a great detective, yet she has been completely oblivious to all of the signs. As Deb structures this information in her head, she realizes that Dexter was the Bay Harbor Butcher. She also starts remembering other signs. If this wasn’t hard enough news for her to take, she learns that her hero father whom she has spent her entire life trying to please, even after his death, knew about Dexter’s true nature; and had actually trained Dexter.
Although she tries like hell, Deb cannot watch Dexter 100% of the time. I am not sure what is going to happen between Dexter and Louis; after this episode, Louis is clearly not scared of Dexter. Even though Louis must know many dark things about Dexter’s past, he doesn’t seem phased by what he knows. This leaves two possibilities: Louis doesn’t know just how dangerous Dexter is, or Louis sees himself as more dangerous than Dexter. I am curious to see what comes of this.
A fun little turn of events was that Dexter did not kill anyone, but we did see a gruesome death. A mob boss by the name of Isaac, played by Ray Stevenson, murdered a bouncer by stabbing him in the eye with a screwdriver! Holy shit! This was so quick and unexpected, that I got a little bit nauseous. That is how you know this was a good episode; if you feel a little bit sick at the end.
When Dexter told Deb that he’d already tried to quit before and it didn’t work, her response was something I hadn’t really considered before. We all assume that since Harry had to nurture Dexter’s urges and teach him how to use them in a more positive (uh…ish) way, that there was simply no way he could help himself. However, Deb tells Dexter that since their dad helped him to become this sick man, it might be solely because of that, that he cannot stop. Harry didn’t tell Dexter to stop killing; he told Dexter to be picky about his victims, how to clean up after himself, and how to avoid getting caught. He used his son’s illness as a means to get revenge on the criminals who slipped through the cracks in the judicial system. If Harry had tried to get Dexter help, who knows how he would have turned out? I do not think that as his age, Dexter can change his entire way of thinking… his need. I know that Deb wants to see the good in him, though.
This was a very fun episode for me to watch. Being a huge Dexter fan, and having re-watched every single episode of the show recently, I can honestly say that I am excited for what’s to come this season. I had lost a lot of hope before the premiere, because of the lazy and poorly written previous seasons, but this one seems different. Different is what Dexter needed, no? What makes the boring episodes so lackluster? Normalcy and monotony. Here, we are getting some of the missing pieces to the puzzle that is Dexter Morgan… and I like it.
So it hit me one day, a lot of people like to drink to get through shitty movies. There are tons of films, practically made for drinking games. Your Evil Deads, your Dead Alives, your Kazaams, and the like. It’s very popular to get drunk, and watch these kinds of movies, and while I do enjoy that as a fond past time, I thought it more interesting, to try a different type of film. The idea was to watch a movie, very far removed from anything you’d normally play a drinking game to, or enjoy while drunk with friends. Movies like Titanic, Tuck Everlasting, Bridge To Terabithia, or Up. The point isn’t that these movies are bad, and alcohol is needed to get though them, (it helps), but that it’s a movie you haven’t seen before, or in a very long time.
In my case, I hadn’t seen Titanic since it came out, making it 15 years since my last viewing. I then proceeded to drink 13 shots of whiskey during it’s 3+ hour run time, and provided the review below. After sobering up a few hours later, I edited it down to something kinda-sorta watchable.
Lionsgate delivered a preview of the film at the Comic-Con yesterday, and with that we have some early reviews from critics. The word is out that Dredd is apparently pretty good with most critics giving the preview positive reviews. Below I have picked some of the critic reviews so far which I am happy to say sounds promising. Also this motion poster which scared me a bit the first time I saw it.
Dredd Mini Reviews
Collider:DREDD was a super hard R and a lot better than I thought it would be. Again….super hard R. 3D was also great.
CraveOnline:DREDD is like an ’80s Paul Verhoeven sci-fi movie with gratuitous bloody violence. I loved it.
TotalFilm:The body count is high, the humor grim and the violence stylishly graphic.
AMC:Think I just saw the most violent movie I’ve ever seen in my life!
Slashfilm:DREDD is a lot of fun. A return to 80s action, The Raid meets Robocop on a mini scale. great use of high fps slow mo 3d. Gritty & violent
Alexbigman:#dredd screening at #sdcc blew my mind… Best Dystopian movie since District 9…Gritty & Ultra Violent..#dystopian #cyberpunk A+ MOVIE
Ericvespe:Dredd was a lot of fun. Super violent and Karl Urban never once takes off the Judge helmet.
Jordan Hoffman:On a pop fascist level DREDD makes STARSHIP TROOPERS look like BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN #SDCC
Johncampea:Think I just saw the most violent movie I’ve ever seen in my life! #Dredd
tricialeighCK: So DREDD is hands down the most violent film I’ve ever seen in my life.
firstshowing:Dredd 3D – Uh yea, that was awesome. Badass, loved it. Yes, the helmet never comes off. Liked it more than The Raid, a lot more, honestly.
Ethan Andreton:DREDD is brutal, bloody and a bad ass blast of old school action. I was skeptical and ended up being highly entertained.
JYwofresh: Saw “Judge Dredd” it was amazing you won’t be let down go see it when it comes out in September 21!!!!!!
Empire Mini review
We’re delighted to say that it’s a solid, often excellent adaptation, and not at all Dreddful. (Sorry, had to do it.) Karl Urban is excellent as the grizzled gunslinger (and yes, the helmet stays on throughout, which will please fans of the comic no end), growling his lines like a man who’s just gritted his driveway using only his teeth, and the ultra-violence (which, in a way, may please fans while damaging its commercial chances) is presented stylishly. It has problems – it’s bound to suffer comparisons to The Raid, with which it shares a basic plot, but has little of the invention or pulsating pace of that movie’s fight scenes. It has a significantly smaller budget than the rest of this year’s comic book movie crop, and at times it shows. But it’s worth seeing for Urban alone, who erases any memories of the awful Sly Stallone vehicle from 1995.
Total Film Mini Review
Despite rumours of rifts during production, Garland and Travis have created a horribly gorgeous vision of dystopian future where monolithic housing towers are run by criminal gangs – and policing is undertaken by judge/jury/execution officers, Judges. Urban certainly has the downturned mouth and super-cool, gravelly delivery to pull off Dredd’s nonchalance but he’s aided by Garland’s smart, fast script, a relentless flow of Rorschach Test blood sprays from bone-shattering brutality, eye-poppingly beautiful 3D visuals and peppy banter with Thirlby. The body count is high, the humour grim and the violence stylishly graphic and reminiscent of Sin City (scenes involving a drug called Slo-Mo are visually intoxicating).
There are many more I am sure but these are the only ones I can confirm watched the film at Comic-Con. So what we learn from these is that it’s a solid film with great action and a brilliant performance from its main cast, sounds very good. Second we know that it will be an R rated movie from comments such as ‘AMC: Think I just saw the most violent movie I’ve ever seen in my life!’ now from a film critic that is really saying something. Third is that people talking about comparisons between the raid which came out earlier this year have said that whilst the tower block and drug lord story has similarities they will stand apart in every other aspect of the film. That last part is sounding very promising.
Now enough about people talking, let’s watch Dredd shred bullets through people in the red band clip below:
What did you think of that clip? Those are very clever slow motion shots; I must admit that was beautiful shots coupled with brutal violence. Look at that jaw fly across the room like a candy wrapper caught in the wind. Dredd doesn’t seem to be in much of a mood for talking with what must be a lot of death sentences that I will be looking forward to in this film. But it wouldn’t be Dredd without them.
So finally what are your thoughts? Do you think it looks great? Can you not wait until the 21st September? Or are you still not impressed? (come on so many good reviews) Please comment below.
Who is Kris Grape? He’s a man obsessed by caps lock and bad spelling; a man who has sent a vaguely threatening e-mail to Filmdrunk; a man who is making a low-budget, indie SF film entitled ‘Space Geography’. And it looks crap.
Here is Grape’s description of his film – from his crazed e-mail to Filmdrunk (and this is a direct quote – spelling mistakes and all – go to Filmdrunk to read all of the craziness) :
“MY MOVIE IS A SCI-FI EPIC WITH ROMANCE, THRILLS, AVCTION, AND HORROR.”
If the film does indeed contain any of these things it fails to show in the trailer. Especially the “AVCTION”. Words can not do the trailer justice. You should watch it. watch it and hope it never escapes, never mind gets released…take a look.
I have watched it several times. It doesn’t get any better. I like ‘bad’ movies, but I like them to have some sort of entertainment value – even if it’s just unintentional humor. This would, probably, stop being funny really fast.
I have also – in the name of research (yes I did some research) – sat through several – mercifully short – effects test shorts on his Vimeo and Youtube pages. And all I can say is that if these are indicative of the effects to be used in this film…well it should be shot and put out of its misery – and then set on fire.
Grape is going to release another trailer for this horrific looking abomination soon – which may or may not be shown here. I’m guessing not though.
I am now going to drink large quantities of vodka in a vain attempt to erase this from my mind.
The 1980s aren’t exactly what you would call a ‘Golden Era’ in Horror Cinema. In fact, it wouldn’t be totally unfair to call it the decade that killed entire genre’s reputation. The 1970s gave us some of the scariest films ever made. Then the 80s followed, filled with cheaply made films and unimaginative sequels fueled by a new Direct-to-Video market that made said movies profitable. Few movies exemplify this formula better than Sleepaway Camp.
This is to be the first of a whole new series here at Grizzly Bomb. For each feature we will examine an individual genre and the quality of its films produced within a specific decade. These lists will be compiled from a point system determined by votes from each member of the staff. It’s very scientific, we used Excel.
For this first topic I asked all 11 members of my staff to give me a list of their Top 10 Action Movies of the 1990s. These movies were to be ranked from 1-10, and the results surprised me a little. But before we get there, there was some discussion over what qualifies as an ‘Action Movie’. For the purpose of this exercise, we looked at movies that are unmistakably Action, and ignored some of those that are more broadly categorized. The 3 movies that best fit this example were Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan, and Leon/ The Professional. While all 3 of these movies have action in them, it just seemed like they were too good to be crammed in as genre flicks, as they run a lot deeper than movies like, Tango and Cash or Bad Boys II, which are simply focused on blowing shit up. We were looking more for the ‘Blowing Shit Up’ stuff.
90’s action was about more than just explosions though, it also really expanded on the Sci-Fi aspects as well. As technology advanced and they found themselves able to do things previously not possible, you really saw the whole genre shift on a closer parallel with the Sci-Fi genre than ever prior. As the decade went on, and Stallone and Schwarzenegger got older, Hollywood also started to move away from the muscle-bound action stars of the 1980’s and more towards special effects driven stories.
Anyhow, as for the results: From the 12 people asked to make a Top Ten list, it resulted in 56 different movies being named. I’ve tallied up the points, and I now give you the Top 25 of them…
Babies make the best sidekicks.
25. Universal Soldier (1992)
24. Hard Target (1993)
23. Last Man Standing (1996) 22. Hard Boiled (1992)
21. Desperado (1995)
20. GoldenEye (1995)
19. Point Break (1991)
18. Mission Impossible (1996)
17. Total Recall (1990)
16. Demolition Man (1993)
15. Boondock Saints (1999)
14. Under Siege (1992)
13. Con Air (1997)
12. The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
11. Independence Day (1996)
10. Blade
In 1998 most people had never heard of the Marvel Comics ‘Vampire Hunter’ Blade. That all changed though when New Line Cinemas cast Wesley Snipes and gave him a sword. Granted, a lot of people still didn’t realize they were watching a ‘Comic Book’ movie, but they loved it. The success of the film also did something else, it proved that you could still make comic movies even in the aftermath of Batman & Robin.
This movie told the story of a half-man/half-vampire with all the powers of the vampires, but very few of their weaknesses. He hunts down the undead to avenge his slain family. Stephen Dorff hands in maybe the strongest performance of his career as Frost; the new head of the vampire community.
Aside from a very capable cast (which included Terrier‘s Donal Louge) Blade had all the elements that made 90’s action great. It was fast paced, filled with gun-play, and featured new technology paired with old-school tactics. The movie revitalized Snipes career for a few more years and spawned 2 sequels and a TV show.
US Release: August 21, 1998
Director: Stephen Norrington Notable Cast: Wesley Snipes, Kris Kristofferson, Stephen Dorff, Donal Logue, Udo Kier, and Traci Lords. Oscar Wins/Nominations: 0/0 US/Total Box Office: $70,087,718/$131,183,530 Best Quote: “Some motherf–kers are always trying to ice-skate uphill.” Trivia: Jet Li was offered the part of Frost, but opted to do Lethal Weapon 4 instead.
How 90’s is it? – This whole movie was like a really cool commercial for sunglasses, but with more blood. Very 90’s. I award a copy of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 1 on VHS.
9. Bad Boys
Before he smashed robots into one and other for a living, Michael Bay actually made some really good action flicks. The first of which helped launch Will Smith from Rapper/TV Star into a bonafide movie Superstar. Now one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood, Smith owes many of his career opportunities to Bad Boys. This is also arguably the only movie Martin Lawrence has ever been in where I didn’t hate him.
It’s the story of a couple of Miami Detectives who drive around in a $100,000 car and shoot everything that moves. A huge catch of heroin from a bust of their’s is stolen out of the police evidence locker and they must get it back. My old man used to complain about how often my little sister and I watched this movie because of the abundance of F-Bombs. Apparently those are only ok in mobster movies. He is Italian. Anyhow, this movie is the first time I can really remember such stylized camera work from an American Director. It was like watching a John Woo movie, but with less doves. This is a style that Bay is now known for and probably has trademarked, but when I was 12, it was totally fresh. The sequel that came out in 2003 however, not so much…
How 90’s is it? – From the music to the Micheal Jordan references, this movie was super hip in 1995. I give it a Dodge Viper, a #23 jersey, and a ‘Fresh Prince Greatest Hits’ cassette.
8. Speed
Speed came out in 1994, and probably remained the most spoofed and quoted movie around until Austin Powers showed up in 1997. This movie was a phenomenon, and I think people often forget just how big it was. You can look at what Bad Boys did for Will Smith, and argue that Speed did even more for Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. Keanu transformed himself here from half of ‘Bill and Ted’ into an actual movie star, building on what he started in Point Break. And Sandra Bullock, well she went on to become “America’s Sweetheart” dethroning Julia Roberts, and eventually winning an Oscar. Dennis Hopper also greatly benefited from the movie’s success, keeping him relevant until his death last year.
This was one of those movies where even if you didn’t see it, you know what it was. “Yeah, that’s the one with the bomb on the bus right?” The sequel however had less of an impact, but that’ll happen when you replace the star of the movie. Without Keanu Speed 2 was doomed from the start. It’s not surprising they tried after the success of the first one though. And it’s even less surprising that this movie made the list.
US Release: June 10, 1994 Director: Jan de Bont Notable Cast: Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, Sandra Bullock, Jeff Daniels, Joe Morton, Alan Ruck, Patrick Fischler, and Beth Grant. Oscar Wins/Nominations 2/3 (Won – Sound/Sound Effects Editing) US/Total Box Office: $121,248,145/$350,448,145 Best Quote: “Pop quiz, hotshot. There’s a bomb on a bus. Once the bus goes 50 miles an hour, the bomb is armed. If it drops below 50, it blows up. What do you do? What do you do?” Triva: Quentin Tarantino were offered the chance to direct, but turned it down. Tarantino later named the film as one of his 20 favorite films since 1992.
How 90’s is it? – It’s Seattle-90’s. Everyone in this movie has a flannel shirt, so I give Speed the entire Nirvana discology, and a Starbucks gift card.
7. Die Hard 2: Die Harder
This is the inclusion that will likely surprise the most people. Not that it’s on the list, but that it’s in the Top 10 ahead of movies like Con Air, Face-Off, and Under Siege. I know it surprised me, but I have to honest. I love this movie. And as I was preparing this article, and watching the trailers again for each movie, this is the one that I felt most pumped to watch. After all, what’s the big knock against this movie? It’s too much like it’s predecessor? Well what’s wrong with that? The first Die Hard film is the greatest Action movie of all time.
Anyhow, this time around, and the Christmas following his LA adventure, John McClane is at Dulles Airport in D.C. waiting for his wife’s plane to land, and wouldn’t you know it? Terrorists take over the Airport. Forced to deal with things on his own because Dennis Franz won’t help him, McClane proves once again, it doesn’t pay to always be in the wrong place at the wrong time. This movie gave us what is easily the best ‘ Yippie-kai-yay‘ delivery of the franchise.
How 90’s is it? – This one is ‘New 90’s’ as John had to “get with the 90’s” and learn how to use a fax machine. I award this movie one Zack Morris cell phone.
6. The Last Boy Scout
Joe Hallenbeck is basically a washed out John McClane, working as a detective and disgraced after his exit from the secret service. He’s a drunk and a smartass, and extremely entertaining to watch.
Jimmy Dix is basically a washed out Michael Vick, dating as a stripper that looks like Halle Berry and disgraced after his exit from Pro Football. He’s a drug addict and a pain in Joe’s ass.
This movie took on Sports Gambling and struggling TV rating for Pro Football. Not very realistic there, but hey, it’s a fun watch. This movie is as close as you can get to an “80’s Action Movie” released outside the 80’s. Shane Black’s screenplay is so full of buddy cop moments and one-liners it’s impossible not to like this if you grew up on movies like Lethal Weapon (also written by Shane Black) and The Running Man. It probably would have led to sequels if not for an under performing Box Office total, opening against Hook during the Holiday season and being deemed ‘too violent’ for Christmas.
US Release: December 13, 1991 Director: Tony Scott Notable Cast: Bruce Willis, Damon Wayans, Chelsea Field, Noble Willingham, Taylor Negron, Danielle Harris, Halle Berry, Bruce McGill, Kim Coates, Billy Blanks, Eddie Griffin, Morris Chestnut, Michael Papajohn, and Rick Ducommun. Oscar Wins/Nominations: 0/0 US/Total Box Office: $59,509,925/ NA Best Quote: “This is the ’90s. You can’t just walk up and slap a guy, you have to say something cool first.” Trivia: The conversation between Joe and Jimmy about the $650 pants was taken from a deleted scene in Lethal Weapon. Murtaugh’s daughter is wearing an expensive dress for a New Year’s Eve party, and he asks “It doesn’t have a little TV in it?” She says no, and Murtaugh mutters “I am very old.” Lethal Weapon is also he movie that Darian is watching on TV.
How 90’s is it? – It’s not. It’s just SUPER late 80’s. So for that it gets a ‘Member’s Only’ jacket and a Prince LP.
5. Die Hard: With a Vengeance
Widely recognized as the better of the 2 Die Hard movies released in the 1990’s, it’s also the first one not to feature Al, Holly, and Richard Thornburg. It also is the first one not to take place at Christmas. This, the 3rd of the series focuses more on John himself, as opposed to the first 2 movies which simply had him thrown into bad situations.
Hans Gruber’s brother Simon (Irons) is holding the city of New York in a grip of terror and he wants to play a game with John. From stolen gold to exploding Subway trains this movie never really slows down. The franchise welcomes back John McTiernan, director of the original movie to breath some new life into McClane, but this time giving him a sidekick. And quite the sidekick Sam Jackson makes, constantly at odds with McClane and everyone else. The pair race around the city playing Simon’s games, all the while Simon is filling dump truck after dump truck with gold bars.
This is a movie that to this day, if I catch it on TV I have to watch it, and it was this, combine with Pulp Fiction, that made Sam Jackson a household name.
US Release: May 19, 1995 Director: John McTiernan Notable Cast: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Irons, Aldis Hodge, Dick Cheney, and Anthony Peck. Oscar Wins/Nominations: 0/0 US/Total Box Office: $100,012,499/$366,101,666 Best Quote: “Yippie-kai-yay motherf–ker.” Triva: The line spoken by McClane “Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo” is taken from a song called “Flowers on the Wall” by The Statler Brothers, which appears in the Gold Watch section Pulp Fiction (1994), also featuring Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson.
How 90’s is it? – Kinda 90’s. This movie, unlike a lot of the other ones on this list isn’t unique in style to the decade and could really fit in any time period, so for that it gets an Aerosmith T-Shirt, a Coke, and a smile.
4. The Rock
This is the movie that made Nic Cage, at least for a while, an action star, leading him to later do some movies as Con Air, Face/Off, and Gone in Sixty Seconds. And it reminded people the reason that Sean Connery was one of the world’s first real action stars – He’s a badass.
This was also Michael Bay’s follow-up to Bad Boys, which tricked us into thinking he’d never do a bad movie. Bay’s stylistic camera shots that averaged less than 3 seconds each, and the fast paced flow of plot helped to define the decade’s ‘Action Identity’, and no movie exemplifies that more than The Rock.
How 90’s is it? – Maximum 90’s. This movie is so 90’s in fact that it’s gonna get a OJ Trial Transcript and signed Tanya Harding Ice Skate.
3. True Lies
Schwarzenegger’s last truly great movie, and no surpirse he was paired with Terminator scribe and director James Cameron. This movie examines some of the everyday life stuff that a Schwarzenegger character would have to deal with. The most memorable scene however, isn’t one centered around Arnold, but around Jamie Lee Curtis…
Bill Paxton and Tom Arnold added quite a bit more humor than was in Schwarzenegger and Cameron’s previous collaborations. True Lies marks the end of an era, which at the time we did not know, but this would be last truly great movie to star the Governator (at least to date). This is for Arnold almost what Unforgiven is for Clint Eastwood. A movie where he plays a character that is very similar, but in a different light. Unforgiven is Clint once he is old and broke down, while True Lies is a comedic look at the behind the scenes of his life. The movie was obviously a huge hit and almost spawned a 2002 sequel, but tensions after 9/11 caused them to delay, and as of 2011 they have not moved forward.
US Release: July 15, 1994 Director: James Cameron Notable Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, Tia Carrere, Eliza Dushku, and Charlton Heston. Oscar Wins/Nominations: 0/1 (Nom. – Best Visual Effects) US/Total Box Office: $146,282,411/$378,882,411 Best Quote: “Same thing happened to me with wife number two, ‘member? I have no idea nothing’s going on, right? I come home one day and the house is empty, and I mean completely empty. She even took the ice cube trays out of the freezer. What kind of a sick bitch takes the ICE CUBE trays out of the FREEZER?” Triva: Spencer Trilby (Heston) is based on Nick Fury, the Marvel character. Like Fury, he has an eye-patch, same mannerisms, and heads a peacekeeping organization.
How 90’s is it? – It has Tom Arnold in it. Is that answer enough? No? Ok, well if came from a time where you could still have Middle Eastern terrorists in movies instead of them just being used as Red Herrings. For that I award a retroactive failing grade from the “PC Police” for being too awesome.
2. The Matrix
When I saw the trailer for this movie I thought: “Gonna be all special effects, no story”. Boy was I wrong. The fact of the matter is The Matrix had some of the best action sequences I’ve ever seen, and the advancements in special effects changed the way movies were made. The story was very similar to that of the Terminator Franchise. Futuristic war against the machines, one man destined to save humanity and all that jazz. So it’s not that the concept was as new as people thought at the time, rather it was presented in a new way that dropped jaws. Nothing like this had ever been seen visually and that is what made people go back to see it for a 2 or 3rd time.
Kenau hadn’t really taken advantage of the success of Speed, and the weakening grip that Stallone and Schwarzenegger had on the Action genre. It looked as though he could be the next big thing, replacing aging stars like Van Damme, Segal, and even Bruce Willis. But it was 5 years until The Matrix came out and he really hit one out of the park.
This movie did something else too. It launched the career of Hugo Weaving, who played Agent Smith. If you don’t recognize the name, you might recognize his resume: The Matrix trilogy, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, V for Vendetta, The Wolfman, and the voice of ‘Megatron’ in the Transformers movies. He will also be playing ‘The Red Skull’ in the upcoming Captain America: The First Avenger.
The movie itself simply changed the whole industry, and remains (despite a slew of terrible sequels) extremely popular still today, more than a decade after it’s release.
US Release: March 31, 1999 Directors: Andy Wachowski & Lana Wachowski Notable Cast: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, Joe Pantoliano, and Gloria Foster. Oscar Wins/Nominations: 4/4 (Won – Editing, Sound Editing, Visual Effects, Sound) US/Total Box Office: $171,479,930/$463,517,383 Best Quote: “I’d like to share a revelation that I’ve had during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species and I realized that you’re not actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with the surrounding environment but you humans do not. You move to an area and you multiply and multiply until every natural resource is consumed and the only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. Do you know what it is? A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You’re a plague and we are the cure.” Triva: This cast almost looked very different – Jean Reno turned down the role of Agent Smith for Godzilla instead. Ewan McGregor turned down the part of Neo for Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. And Sean Connery was originally offered the role of Morpheus, but turned it down saying he couldn’t understand the script.
How 90’s is it? – Cutting Edge 90’s! This movie gets a ‘White Zombie’ CD and a new trench coat.
1. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Without a doubt, the 90’s movie I’ve seen the most times (edging out The Sandlot and Mallrats) is Terminator 2. It was no surprise to me that this turned out #1 as it was at the top of almost everyone’s list.
This is probably Arnold at his absolute best, and I doubt we’ll ever see him do anything this good again. This movie, brought in over $500 million at the Box Office and shattered records all over the place. It held the record for opening weekend Box Office of an R rated movie for 12 years, and still holds the record for the biggest Box Office increase for a sequel over the original with over a 400% jump.
The movie’s effects, groundbreaking in 1991, still hold up now, 20 years after it’s release. Before the massively over-rated Titantic and Avatar movies, James Cameron made sweet shit like this. And as far as I’m concerned, there is no argument to be made against this being atop the list. It is simply, as perfect a 90’s action movie as you can ask for.
US Release: July 3, 1991 Director: James Cameron Notable Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Earl Boen, Joe Morton, Jenette Goldstein, Xander Berkeley, Nikki Cox, Danny Cooksey, and S. Epatha Merkerson. (Michael Biehn also appears in the Director’s Cut…) Oscar Wins/Nominations: 4/6 (Won – Sound Editing, Visual Effects, Makeup, Sound) US/Total Box Office: $204,843,345/$519,843,345 Best Quote: “I need your clothes, boots and your motorcycle.” Triva: The Minigun used in the Cyberdyne scene was so heavy that Arnold Schwarzenegger was in fact the only person on stage that could carry the gun.
How 90’s is it? – It was Trend-setting 90’s! This movie popularized many 90’s trademarks and for that it’s gets an autographed photo of George Thorogood, season 3 of The Simpsons, and an unopened copy of Windows ’95.
Grizzly Bomb 