Movie Junction

“If you believe in Jesus Christ, then you have to believe in daemons.” – Reverend Cotton Marcus William Friedkin’s remains an epic, bone-chilling exercise in exorcism. With its serious tone on the century-long religious ritual, “The Exorcist” quickly became a classic in horror filmmaking. Within the horror genre, filmmakers have regularly copied the scare-inducing techniques and gothic set designs of Friedkin’s masterpiece. But no film in my opinion has eclipsed “The Exorcist,” though some films came close in the process. On the subject of exorcism, two recent films, “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” (2005) </a> and “The Last Exorcism” (2010), draw their inspiration from “The Exorcist.” Both movies offer a believable and fresh perspective on exorcism, a topic that has been irrefutably exhausted by uninspiring sequels in the “Exorcist” series. Directed by Daniel Stamm and produced on a minuscule budget of $1.8 million, “The Last Exorcism,” through positive word-of-mouth and favora

Upon its release “High Tension” (2003) stirred up a fair amount of discussion among horror fans for its much-talked-about twisted ending. Whether you agree with the conclusion or not, the film is definitely a polarizing experience that is going to stay with you for a while. Obviously, the writers were inspired by Hollywood movies such as “Psycho” (1960), “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974), “The Usual Suspects” (1995), and “The Sixth Sense” (1999). Nonetheless, “High Tension” in essence works competently as a slasher flick for two-thirds of its running time. “High Tension” executes all the moves brilliantly in the first fifty minutes. It has all the elements of a horror movie: a mysterious stranger, a bloody massacre, a deadly cat-and-mouse game, and, of course, a final act of redemption. The film begins with brutal force with its depiction of violent murders and excessive gore. But is the whole experience greater than the sum of its parts? It depends on how you feel about the end

Inspired by true events, “Unstoppable” is a thrilling new adventure movie directed by Tony Scott, whose last movie,” The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3,” was also on rails. But instead of developing action elements on a relatively stationary train as he did in “The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3,” Scott this time around manages to create an exhilarating ride as the characters battle to stop an unmanned, runaway train. “Unstoppable” might be original in its execution, but I can’t help feel that the movie is an extension of Scott’s last movie. Nonetheless, “Unstoppable” is a ninety-minute adrenaline rush that does not slow down even for a minute, just like its speeding train. Made with a high budget of over $100 million, the movie generated enough revenue to break even at the box office.     Early on, we see Dewey (Ethan Suplee) at a train yard in Fuller, Pennsylvania, trying to taxi an idle train from its current track, so that an incoming excursion train filled with schoolchildren can use the trac

I recently had the opportunity to review Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married Too?” (2010); the movie is a sequel to Perry’s earlier effort, “Why Did I Get Married?” (2007). Ideally, I should have watched the original followed by the sequel, but it was the other way round. After watching, “Why Did I Get Married?,” I can’t help think that the two movies are very much similar, even though the first movie offers background on the events leading up to the sequel. In fact, the two movies are so alike in their narrative structure that at one point, I could not figure out the differences between the original movie and its sequel. Well, that does not say much for either movie. Both the movies commence with a vacation trip to an exotic location. Taking a break for their busy lives, the four couples plan to spend their time in the snowy mountains of Colorado . Patricia (Janet Jackson) is on a book tour, trying to market her newly published book, “Why Did I Get Married?” She explains the purpo

How many macho guys does the world need to save us from the bad guys?  Enter the world of “The Expendables,” and we have an elite group of seven mercenaries, each with his own expertise in combat. Of course, each mission they undertake becomes an exercise in machismo. Unlike a small group of girlfriends, who would go out on a shopping spree to entertain themselves, our heroes are exactly polar opposite; they play with guns, ride their long-handled Harleys, and undertake deadly missions. It is their idea of taking a pleasurable break from their normal lives. If this sounds interesting to you, then welcome to the big-boys club of “The Expendables.” “The Expendables” includes an action-driven cast in the form of Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Mickey Rourke, and Terry Crews. The presence of the star-studded action cast catapulted the film at the box office and resulted in a worldwide gross revenue of $261 million on a budget of $80 million, the

V for victory; V for visitors; V for visa--these are the words that come to mind after watching the first season of “V.” Following in a similar vein as the recently ended, critically acclaimed, “Battlestar Galactica,” “V” aims to resurrect its original franchise that aired in 1983. The new “V” series aired from November 2009 to May 2010, with the second season is scheduled to start in January 2011. As I have never watched the original “V” series, I didn’t know what to expect from the pilot episode. Set in the post-9/11 world, the opening episode takes us right into the center of the action. We are introduced to big alien spaceships circling above the major cities of the world. Of course, the first sign of alien ships invites panic from the people of earth worried of an impending doom awaiting them. But as things settle down, the mother alien ship broadcasts a message to all the important cities that their intent is to not destroy the earth; in fact, they bring a message of peace an

If you thought Oshima´s "In the Realm of the Senses" was raw, explicit, sexually grotesque, and pornographic, wait until you see Lars von Trier´s "Antichrist." The opening black-and-white sequence shows characters of Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg making love with magnified shots of full penetration (porn stars were used). All of this happens in the first four minutes of the film, and while the love-making act itself does not shock you, the explicitness and urgency with which the director plays his cards just might. And this aspect becomes more evident in the final chapter. Throughout the film, Trier plays with this favorite palette format--that is black-and-white, but also switching back to the color format to depict dismay and disarray in the lives of the grieving couple. Even though the back-and-white imagery is gothic in nature, it reminds us of the director´s best efforts in the past, and more importantly, "Europa" (1991). Trier also pays t

“You are an errand boy sent by grocery clerks to collect a bill.” --Col. Kurtz There is a startling pro-war sequence in the opening moments of “Apocalypse Now” (1979). In this scene, while waiting in Saigon Willard (Martin Sheen) is summoned to appear in front of high-ranking military officials. He is bewildered but stays sharp throughout the interrogation. As the officials explain why he is in the room, Willard is bombarded with a series of specific and pointed questions about his past assignments. Soon, he is introduced to General Corman, who describes the real purpose of Willard’s new deadly mission as well as the rational of the war in question. With no choice, Willard undertakes the mission and is instructed by an unnamed senior official to “terminate with extreme prejudice.” It is worth noting that Corman’s brief speech is the foundation on which the entire movie rests, and it sets the tone perfectly for things to follow. Not only is Corman’s conversation significant in the co

Consider the following two scenarios: What would be Tony Soprano’s reaction if he learned that he was born to a Black mother? Or how would Adolf Hitler have responded upon discovering that his mother was Jewish? I pick on these two personalities because their prejudice and scornful attitude toward Blacks and Jews are well known. While the main protagonist in “The Infidel” (2010) is not a celebrated fictional character nor a major military figure, nonetheless his ethnicity reversal does represent a plausible situation that can befall any ordinary human being. Rather than create an emotional drama surrounding the ethnic identity dilemma, director Josh Appignanesi concocts an effective, raunch-less comedy that is thoroughly enjoyable, yet devoid of conventional stereotypes evident in recent comedies coming out of Hollywood . Enter Mahmud (Omid Djalili), who is a devout Muslim, a loving husband to Saamiya (Archie Panjabi), and a devoted father, with a buddy-type relationship with his son