Exploitation Nation

Matt Brassfield is a friend of mine that makes no budget shot on video movies.  HERE is the link to his website. He also reviews DVD’s on there and is a general troublemaker in the underground arena. Below are his picks for the best and wort of 2008.

1.) Rambo – Any one who really knows me knows that Sly Stallone is one of my favorite directors, writers, actors of all time, And with this new installment to the Rambo franchise he locks in the number one spot. This film shows an aging John Rambo doing what he does best saving the good guys and slaughtering the bad, but wait there is more to it than just that! It takes a look at a real sick problem of genocide in Berma, and when Rambo kicks into gear to save some christians who have came to help, you find yourself cheering for him all the bloody way!  Really this is a must see film.

2.) Incredible Hulk -  The Green Power House of Rage is back in all his destruction glory. This is a re-launch to the Hulk franchise and it pays more respect to the original TV show then the pervious film. With Edward Norton playing Bruce Banner and Tim Roth playing Emil Blonsky who later turns into The Abomination, whom else could you ask for in this cast? Plus it gets down to what you want to see a giant green man fighting the army and a super villain and breaking shit all around. I just Hope Universal gets there heads on straight and decide to make another.

3.) Iron Man – First thing to be said is the same thing everyone who has seen this Marvel movie has said, Robert Downey Jr. was amazing as Tony Stark. The action in this film was stunning in nature and well done, the acting was top of the line and the twist at the end made you want to come back for more. The Iron Man suit looked great both in CGI and in body suit. Well written and acted film indeed.

4.) Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull – Big Budget action with a SCI-FI twist. Indy is back to save the day from the soviets that are trying to use the crystal skull to get world domination. The action is fun and over the top and it was great to see Ford as Indy again. Sure there was some cheese parts and things that will make your eyes roll but what do you want from a Lucas and Spielberg team up. Over all a fun ride.

5.) X-Files: I want to Believe – Not just another Scully and Mulder looking for Aliens film this time it has a sweet Frankenstein feel. After years of no X-Files the cast returns to the silver screen to deliver a creepy down beat film. People are going missing in a small town and a former priest claims he can see what is happing to the victims, with this strange case the F.B.I calls in Mulder and Scully both whom are wanted for crimes that were committed in the final episode. But when things come to light is this Priest the real deal and who is killing these people and leaving chopped up bodies all over the countryside. Even if it did not do well at the box office this film is worth the watch.

6.) Mother of Tears  - I was really losing faith in Dario Argento with such recent duds like The Card Player and Jenifer under his belt, but I felt better after watching Mother of Tears the third in his Mothers series. The film is not perfect but its fun and over the top. Asia Argento is stunning and is the lead in this film about a powerful witch who is causing chaos in the world, and a daughter of a good witch (Asia) must stop her to save society and herself. Sure the monkey who follows and torments her is funny and lame, but what makes up for that is the extreme gore that takes you back to the golden age of the 80’s Italian Horror.

7.) Punisher Warzone – Frank Castle is back and out for more mob blood. But this time he might have meet his mach in the form of the crazed Jigsaw. Wow what a over the top comic film, its packed with so much violence and the red stuff it almost gave Rambo a run for its money in the gore department. Even though people and critics will have you think this film was horrible I found myself having fun watching it. The Punisher is bad ass and yet loving when need be and Jigsaw is the perfect amount of cheese and crazy. Not the best comic book film but not a horrible one either.

8.) The Strangers – Slow Passed and seems like it might should have been a short, The Strangers is a creepy look at a couple who live out in the boonies and are tormented by a trio of killers who are playing a game of cat and mouse. The acting is good the atmosphere is creepy and the plot feels true to life. The only down fall is the tacked on ending.

9.) Outpost 31 – Dusty Austin is the future of Independent Horror and with this short film he showcases how talented he is. This is about Outpost 31 were a handful of Government workers hide out from the zombie invasion that has taken over the world, but when things go sour it’s up to a brother and sister team to save the world. Wonderfully directed and with quick witty dialogue this is a must watch for Horror fans.

10.) Return to Sleepaway Camp – I have been a fan of the Sleepaway camp films for a long time and was hyped to see this fourth film in the series. And it’s one of the funniest films I have ever seen! I am not sure if its supposed to be but I found myself in tears over the bad acting, horrible special effects and some of the worst one liners I have ever heard. The plot has some fat kid whom none of the other campers like being picked on and finds himself being looked at when murders start running wild in the camp. Again if you want a good laugh check this film out. Oh yeah “Your Ass Stinks”!

11.) The Wizard of Gore – A remake of Hershel Gordon Lewis’s cult film of the same name has to be close to making my top 10 for multiple reasons. First is that the Wizard himself is played by one of my favorite actors Crispin Glover, who does a wonderful job playing a crazed mind warping killer. Second is that the storyline is twisted and keeps you wondering what is going on and does not loose you with its odd ball turns. And third is that the Suicide Girls are the victims of his blood soaked show. The effects are fun, the story is fun just a good remake for once!

Other 2008 films I viewed that did not make the list of best or worst.

Drillbit Taylor, Never Back Down, Lost Boys 2: The Tribe, Matt and Bruce’s First Time, Next Avengers, Texas Vibrator Massacre, Bark at the Moons Scars, Shutter,

WORST

1.) Cloverfield – Bad Plot, Bad Script is just a few problems I had with this over the top pile of dog poo. A Giant monster destroys New York as a dumb ass and his friends try to get across town to save his true love while his bonehead unfunny friend records the events on a mini-dv camera with the world’s longest running battery. Just think 1999 Godzilla Meets The Blair Witch Project.

2.) April Fools Day – Yet another reason why remakes suck! This film has nothing to do with the original and show cases some of the worst I don’t give a shit about them characters ever. The plot is about rich kids who play a prank that ends up killing a young woman, and sends there lives down the tubes, years later they are haunted by her “spirit” or so they think. The films pay off is as weak as Lama’s javelin throw in Revenge of the nerds.

3.) Prom Night – Remake again makes the worst list. This film is about a young woman who is hunted down by a crazed school teacher who is in love with her and even slaughtered her family years before, the hunt takes place on her special night….her senior prom. The killer is lame and not menacing and take him and the cops out of it and you have an episode of MTV’s show THE HILLS. Skip this pile and just watch the original.

4.) Christmas on Mars – The Rock band the Flaming Lips I am sure had good intentions on this armature sc-fi Christmas film, but it suffers from bad dialogue and bad acting in spots. I mean come on add lib something better then “fuck” every time you forget your lines! Over all this film is to be skipped. I will say the film score is ok.

5.) Batman Gotham Knight – The Animated film that came out before the Dark Knight hit the theatres makes my worst list for lots of reasons. Like the fact each short is bland in story and does not live up to any of the other DC animated films. Plus I am not a fan of the style animation they went for and in fact most look just like the previous story drawn again! DC and WB should be ashamed of themselves and make a better animated Batman film.

6.) The Rock: The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment – WWE’s look at the career and success of Dwayne Johnson. Now I really like watching these wrestling Legend look backs but this one has me puzzled like why is it they don’t even talk to The Rock, its not like he has passed away or is on bad terms with the company. Second is that its almost just another ego stroke for the over rated and over protected Triple H, I mean really do we need that many matches against him? And the worse is how rushed the whole thing feels, I mean the guy next to Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart and Steve Austin helped keep wrestling on the map! Come on WWE make a better DVD about this legends career.

7.) Day of the Dead -  Another horrible remake that has zombies who can crawl walls like Spider-Man!!  Not as bad as Day of The Dead 2, this film follows a group in a small town as they try and survive a zombie invasion.

And that is all from Matt. Look for some more of my friend’s thoughts in the next few days on the end of the year round up.

2008-12-30
23:47:31