I occasionally find a non-fiction historical book that catches my interest, I’ll devour Erik Larson and Stephen B. Ambrose works voraciously, but when I read the blurb for Susan Wels’ An Assassin in Utopia, I had to add it to the list. Following historical events of the mid to late 19th century, Wels’ work centers…
Tag: train
Rocky IV (1985) – Sylvester Stallone
There are some flaws in the fourth entry in the Rocky series (I’m looking at that ridiculous robot) and I’m not sure the themes of East vs. West, hubris, and capitalism carry through all the way, because, despite all of the things Rocky (Sylvester Stallone who also wrote and directed) gives up during the course…
Rocky III (1982) – Sylvester Stallone
With ‘Eye of the Tiger’ blaring from every radio station in 1982, it’s wild to think of a time before the song, and the film existed. 1982 was a great year for moviegoers, and Sylvester Stallone brought Rocky back to the screen for a third go-round, in Rocky III. Once again, he wrote, directed and…
Bullet Train (2022) – Blu-Ray Review
Sony Pictures delivers a vibrant, energetic action comedy to home theatres with their release of Bullet Train to DVD and Blu-Ray. Kinetic, colourful and packed with laughs, this violent, almost over-the-top film based on the book by Kotaro Isaka puts Brad Pitt, who seems to be having the time of his life, center stage as…
Terror Train (1980) – Roger Spottiswoode
In the early 80s, poor Jamie Lee Curtis seemed to be in constant trouble with slashers. I remember seeing the fairly generic poster when I was a kid, and the masked face and the knife really bothered me. As mentioned previously it took me a long time to come around to horror films. So until…
Murder on the Orient Express (2017) – Kenneth Branagh
Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Agatha Christie’s mystery novel, Murder on the Orient Express has its good and bad points. I love Branagh’s attention to detail in bringing the Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, to life. Unfortunately, that same attention isn’t given to the supporting cast that brings to life the trouble Poirot finds himself embroiled in….
Murder on the Orient Express (1934) – Agatha Christie
This week I dug into one of Agatha Christie’s most iconic novels, Murder on the Orient Express which features that Belgian detective and his little grey cells, Hercule Poirot. Summoned back to London, Poirot must forgo a layover and board the Orient Express to make it to his next assignment. Unfortunately, the train car is…
Murder By Contract (1958) – Irving Lerner
I’ve been checking out some noir titles over the past few weeks, checking in with one of my favorite genres. This was perhaps my least favorite of the bunch. I think it could have been a little better constructed, and perhaps delved into the issues that plagued the film’s lead character, Claude (Vince Edwards). Claude…
9th Annual Old School Kung Fu Film Fest: Joseph Kuo Edition – 7 Grandmasters (1977)
I was able to check out one last film at the 9th Annual Old School Kung Fu Film Fest that is screening at the Museum of the Moving Image, and presented in conjunction with Subway Cinema, and that was Kuo’s 7 Grandmasters! Featuring a sharp and clean 2K restoration, of the four films I’ve seen…
9th Annual Old School Kung Fu Film Fest : Joseph Kuo Edition – Return of the 18 Bronzemen (1976)
Screening right after The 18 Bronzemen today at the Museum of the Moving Image, Subway Cinema in conjunction with the Museum present the follow-up film, though it was released first in most countries, Return of the 18 Bronzemen. This tells a similar story to that of the first film, but from a different perspective, that…