Year: 2024
Rating: 8.0 / 10
Summary: A metal band, Impaled Rektum, decide to escape prison to play at a festival to earn money to save their guitarist's family home.
I watched the original Heavy Trip a few years ago (close to when it was released) and loved it. It’s been a while but I have to say, this movie at the very least was on par if not better than what I remembered of the first movie.
I really think this movie is just fun. There are a few plot beats you can clock as going to happen, but there's also just a lot of fun and unexpected stuff. It really heavily leans on just having fun and being an enjoyable and funny watch. The humor is well done and I laughed for a good portion of it. The characters are so fun and I really like how everything shakes out. There’s even a BabyMetal cameo and their scenes are really well done and cute!! They don’t feel out of place either and fit into the narrative really well.
I just think it’s a really fun time and it’s made me want to go back and rewatch the original as well. Genuinely, if they ever wanted to make another movie for this or hell, even a show or something, I’d love to see it if it keeps up this fun energy.
Year: 1995
Rating: 6.0 / 10
Content Warnings: F-slur [Both said by a gay character and as an insult], excessive drinking, drug use, parental death mentions, taking advantage of a drunk person [kissing, but an attempt to go further that gets stopped]
Summary: After being arrested for hosting an underground rave, a girl decides to turn her life around by becoming a librarian.
It’s a decent movie! I do have some gripes with it, but overall, I don’t regret watching it either. The setting of the 90s club scene is enough to be interesting on its own (as it’s a special interest of mine). I really loved the fashion and the fun in those scenes. I think it had some good comedic parts, especially in the first part (the sequence of her learning the dewey decimal system, the whole Sisyphus thing). I do like the implication at the end that she can still have her partying lifestyle while having a more “serious” job.
I do think enjoyment did peter out later in the film, but I think the ending was fine (Reading later, some people interpreted it as her giving up her fun life, which I do think in regards to her clothes is shown, but she still parties at the end, so I don’t think it’s a total killing of her former self? ). I do think the acting gets a little silly at times, especially the main girl, Mary, but in a film like this the realism isn’t as important (though it was apparent with certain other actors on screen, such as her godmother).
Year: 1993
Rating: 8.5 / 10
Content Warnings: R-slur, F-slur, Explicit sex. Masturbation, Mentions of the AIDS epidemics/deaths via it, drugs,homophobia, mentions of suicide, infidelity, abuse from a parent [mentioned, not shown], violence [gaybashing], suicide, death
Summary: A peek into the lives of a gay friendgroup and the obstacles that arise in their lives.
Totally F***ked Up really feels like it encapsulates the feeling of being 18-21 so well in a visceral sense. I really think this movie blended technique and style really well, along with having really good acting (and using actors who had little/no work before too!) The mix of home-movie documentary style with more “cinematic” parts worked flawlessly. I really think it captured the mood it set out for and did it really well. It captured the feeling of alienation and tension, and something about it just felt very real and personable. The characters are well fleshed out and more than just a surface level– getting glimpses of what they allow to be shown to their friend and the camera. There’s a lot of subdued emotion (i.e, not high emotional outbursts), but it works so well and there's so much depth even to the malaise.
This movie made me think of how much I disliked Trash Humpers. Unlike that movie, the rambling, slice of life without a super defined plot worked so well. I also left this movie very excited to see the director’s other works, especially in this series. Watching it made me reminisce about a movie that has a similar rambling vibe I watched years ago, Dogs in Space, and it really made me happy to watch something that captured me like that did.
Year: 1990
Rating: 5.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Sexual mentions, Light violence
Summary: A high society girl falls in love with a delinquent.
It’s a fine film. I think despite its higher budget than some of his previous films that I’ve seen, it still manages to capture that trashy, parody of Americana style John Waters is known for. I’m not the biggest fan of musicals; The songs were okay, but probably nothing I’m going to remember hardcore. I think the outfits and cinematography is really fun and captures the mood. I think the acting is really good– I was surprised to see how many big names were actually in this film.
Going in blind, I thought it’d almost be a spoof of Grease (with the 50s musical theme and good girl falls for bad boy fallout storyline), but I’m glad it was more than that. I can’t say it’s one I necessarily would want to revisit, but I didn’t hate it either.
Year: 2023
Rating: 5.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Sex [Noises only]
Summary: A woman starts recieving hateful letters in the mail and blames it on her neighbor.
I’d compare this movie a lot to Big Eyes– it’s not a bad movie, but I can’t say it stands out much. It’s honestly just a fine movie. There were a few times where I had a laugh, but I can’t say I’ll remember it all too much. It's a shame because I do like movies based around strange historical events and I do think the lead actresses are very talented.
Year: 2001
Rating: 7.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Animal death [Death isn’t shown on screen, but the body is; Not quite sure if fake or not], Child abuse
Summary: Dragon Eye Morrison (a reptile investigator with electric powers) crosses paths with Thunderbolt Budha (an electrician with electric powers). The two are destined to fight.
This is a film I can just say it’s cool. It’s nothing that has a super deep plot– in fact, there’s not much of one to be had. However, despite that, it’s quite charming stylistically. The main characters are both cool and interesting despite the small amounts of dialogue and lack of much explanation besides how the main two guys got their powers (Love Dragon Eye Morrison’s lizards... Very cute, very cool). The soundtrack is also really cool and fits the vibe of the whole film. It’s a short watch (under an hour) and worth the time put in.
Year: 1966
Rating: 6.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Death, Blood, Gore [eye trauma]
Summary: A man named Tetsu and his boss try to live on the straight and narrow, leaving the yakuza. However, the boss’ old rival tries to take advantage of this in a series of events that leads Tetsu to become a drifter on the run from his boss’ rivals
I’ll be honest: I don’t know what was happening for a good chunk of this movie besides the basic “hunting this guy down”. Perhaps it's one of those things you gotta see more than once to fully grasp, or maybe somehow I missed something. Regardless, I do think this movie had a lot of strengths, especially in its filming. The scenes and the usage of color and composition is really stunning and how it frames every shot is done with such thought and finesse, it’d be impossible to miss. There’s a real artistry in the look of the movie and every shot feels so vivid. There's parts of it that feels like Lady Snowblood in visuals, then it has the feeling of a Western, and then by the end there's almost a German Expressionist look to it.
I also want to say the acting is really good, and even though I was confused about a lot of the inner workings of the plot, nothing felt out of place either. I also think the music is really nice; I’m not one for ballads, but how they’re done specifically in this era of Japanese films, or at least the ones I’ve seen, really add to the vibe of the whole affair.
Year: 2025
Rating: 6.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Blood, Murder
Summary: On Valentines the past few years, a serial killer goes after couples in different cities. This year, he's landed in Seattle.
It’s a fine movie! I don’t have much to say about it. When it was funny, it was good and it subverted expectations a few times which was nice. I don’t hate it, but I can’t say it’ll be one that stands out. I think they needed to push more in certain areas– I think of something like Letters to Satan Claws which I think did this type of movie perfectly. I think it was fine for what it was though.
Year: 1995
Rating: 8.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Drug mentions, Nudity/Sex, Mentions of sexual assault/incest, death, gore, infidelity, violence, Animal injury/death [Blood, whining [Not real]],Homophobia, Homophobic Slurs [Used as insult, F-Slur, Q-Slur], Sexual Assault, Flashing lights
Summary: A couple encounters a stranger who changes their life, leading them to life on the road.
NOTE: The Version I watched was the R-rated version as I could not get my hands on the uncut version. The difference is about 10 minutes of film.
When I went into watching this, I was expecting a similar vibe to Totally F**ked Up– Which I got in some respect of the moody atmosphere, but this movie almost felt Lynchian at times. A lot of the movie is done in a strange, dream-like manner with some misdirection that makes it unable to really guess where the movie is headed. There’s a lot never exactly answered for in this film, but I don’t mind it. The shots in the film are so artistic– I think of the checkerboard hotel room and the weird tin-foil bar they visit. The characters are interesting and there's always a weird air of something sinister just beyond the horizon, whether it’s the strange man the couple has invited into their lives, the weird people who keep mistaking Amy for someone else, or the government trying to track them down.
I did try and see the difference between the different cuts of the film. The only thing I could find changed in my version was the last sequence was cut quite a lot... Which honestly, maybe it’s sacrilegious to artistic integrity or whatever, but I don’t mind gore being cut out. I knew what was happening in this cut, I don’t need it spelled out for me in vivid detail.
Year: 1997
Rating: 9.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Sex/Nudity, Domestic violence, Sexual assault, Drugs, Blood, Death, Guns, Emetophobia, Suicide, Attempted suicide [via drowning], Violence, Slur [r-slur]
Summary: A strange day in the lives of various LA teens.
This movie made me grateful that I watched the trilogy in order because it feels not only like a mashup of the last two but also a good culmination. I feel it has a lot of similar elements of both and I think it overall meshes really well together between being bizarre and a more serious drama. I think it feels more fleshed out than The Doom Generation and more cinematic than Totally F**ked Up [Both which were great in their own right as I said in my review of each].
I didn’t really know where this was going and I'd go as far as sometimes calling it unfocused in terms of the sheer amount of characters involved, but somehow I think it really works out. The more bizarre elements play in really well and I don’t mind them at all– even the weird ending.
The visuals of the film are amazing, both in terms of the amazing fashion and the vividness of the shots and the framing. It was overall just a really fun and unique experience and I really liked it.
Year: 2024
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Death, Blood/Gore, Mentions of sexual assault [Not happening/shown]
Summary: After her twin sister dies, a woman named Darcy goes to stay with the sister's ex-husband on the anniversary of her death.
Oddity was an unexpectedly good watch. Going into it, I had some things I consider red flags– 1. The guy’s fake eye looked really unrealistic (giving party city...) 2. I see a film by Shudder and I brace myself. However, past those critiques, it honestly was a pretty good film! The horror aspects in it felt justified and it didn’t feel like too much or too little. I also think the tension was built up well to warrant the creepier parts without it feeling like they were going for cheap scares. The blood in it was kept at “enough to make you go ew” but not enough that it feels gratuitous either. The acting was really good and stayed good the whole movie.
I didn’t really know where this was going and I'd go as far as sometimes calling it unfocused in terms of the sheer amount of characters involved, but somehow I think it really works out. The more bizarre elements play in really well and I don’t mind them at all– even the weird ending.
The plot was really good. At first, I didn’t know what to think of the whole out of sequence narration because I felt a little confused, but they did enough to establish the main plot points and didn’t overuse it. For most of the movie, I couldn’t guess exactly what was going to happen next but it was nice in that fact. I thought for a good chunk of the movie the girlfriend might’ve been involved in the wife’s death, but I was happy to find out she wasn’t; And it made sense to go that route because of her earlier comments with the camera. I overall like the ending as well, and I hope the implication was the husband was either going to die or was cursed, which I'm fine with either.
Year: 2001
Rating: 10.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Death, Murder, Blood/gore
Summary: The school year is about to end, leading a group of delinquents to graduate and ruminate on their lives and time spent in school.
I’m rating this on a re-watch and I just have to say: This movie gets better with every rewatch. It’s such a masterpiece of mood and feeling. It brings a lot of guttural feelings to the front and it just one of my all time favorite movies.
To start: The casting is perfect. The guy who plays Kujo does such a good job of playing someone who's cool and gloomy. The guy who plays Aoki also does such a perfect job of emotional expression, especially in contrast to Kujo's actor who remains quite stoney until the end. Everyone else holds that same standard, making it feel like a realistic drama piece. The music fits it perfectly– rough around the edges, screamy and fast punk music scattered throughout.
The story is impeccable. I feel they really added a lot to the original story from the manga and fleshed it out perfectly. It captures the feeling of being lost academically and unsure where to go next, mixed with the ending of a certain era of your life. There’s a lot of rage in it– both expressed in a more silent manner and a more upfront manner. It’s more of a slow burn drama in some respects, but it feels so visceral. The dilapidation of the school and the framing of the world around them gives way to how everything ended up this way. Kujo and Aoki’s relationship is a major piece of the film and the last 20 minutes or so are just perfection. Hell, the last 10 minutes or so, when we hear Kujo and Aoki’s first meeting as Kujo runs to save Aoki, knowing already it’s too late, face finally expressing something more than a quiet dissatisfaction– god, it’s so well done and jaw dropping, even when you know the outcome. The last frame of Kujo standing over the spray-painted figure Aoki made to mimic what Kujo draw... God, it’s so beautiful in such a tragic way.
I love this movie so much. I feel in some ways I can’t even properly express it because it feels so much better experienced than talked about. I love this movie and it’s one I recommend to everyone.
Year: 2025
Rating: 7.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Death, Blood, Gore (foot, eye, ect), emetophobia, eating disorders [a big plotline revolving around that especially as it relates to purposefully eating a tape worm], violence, nudity, sex, forced kissing, surgery
Summary: A retelling of Cinderella, focused on one of her step-sister's quests to marry the prince and become beautiful.
I have a particular warmth to fairytale based movies. I liked this one for what it is: A retelling of Cinderella, more in the Brothers Grimm style.
To start: The casting is perfect. The guy who plays Kujo does such a good job of playing someone who's cool and gloomy. The guy who plays Aoki also does such a perfect job of emotional expression, especially in contrast to Kujo's actor who remains quite stoney until the end. Everyone else holds that same standard, making it feel like a realistic drama piece. The music fits it perfectly– rough around the edges, screamy and fast punk music scattered throughout.
I really think the acting is great throughout. Granted, the main girl who’s supposed to be the ugly step sister, Elvira, didn’t register to me as ‘ugly’-- but in a way, I kind of wonder if that's part of the greater narrative (Arbitrary beauty standards and such). I also think the filming and framing of each scene was really fun. The dream-like visions were always a delight especially contrasted with the rest of the film. I also like how in some ways, the movie had some reminiscences of 70s horror with its filming of scenes. While discussing the technical, it would be a shame not to mention the beautiful set design and wardrobe. If you’re going to have a movie set in grand estates and castles, then just go out and find one for god's sake!!! They delivered and it never failed to look visually stunning. The costuming in the movie is absolutely divine as well. Even the gaudier outfits (I would consider what Elvira wears to the ball to be this) are so decorated and interesting still to look at, I can’t be mad at them.
Now, into the plot of the film. I do like how it’s pretty much the Cinderella story but with a flipped perspective of one of the step-sisters. I think it manages to capture a sympathetic light on Elvira– her father is dead, her mother is controlling, her step-sister [Agnes] has a certain callousness to her (though, not to say it’s fully unwarranted in some respect; She loses her father). She’s fallen hard for her imagined idea of the prince and her mother encourages her to pursue him by any means necessary… Which ends up in self mutilation.
Even though Elvira I feel is sympathetic for her circumstance, I will point out that Agnes is a sympathetic character as well, for different reasons. Her storyline is following Cinderella [stepmother who ignores her, in this case to the point of neglecting to properly allocate funds so she can bury her father whose corpse is rotting in the house and instead spending it on surgeries to change Elvira’s looks]. She’s in love with the stableboy and yet she knows the only way ahead in life is to marry someone she doesn’t love.
I really like the complexity of both their intertwined stories. I also really like the third sister who is seemingly the only one who realizes how insane this whole situation is: Alma. She seems younger than Elvira, but is also the only one who seems visibly disturbed by everything going on. Her character is more integral to the end, realizing she has to save her sister from herself and her mother. I really like her addition to the plot and find her as a character much more interesting than in other portrayals where both step sisters are obsessed with beauty.
All in all, I enjoyed it. I do think it adds to the overall concept of Cinderella in a way that's interesting and it definitely kept my attention throughout (Though, some scenes I did have to avert my eyes from…)
7:48pm .. .. // 05.31.2025