Adam Selvidge's Website Blog
Jake Cardigan’s quest to piece together his fractured life is interrupted when it’s discovered that a new, deadlier strain of Tek called ‘grease’ is infecting r This is a much different adaptation than the Marvel Comics version that came out a long while before this one. This has more violence, more sexual content, and more post apocalyptic feel to it than the more hopeful and sanitized Marvel version. It’s not necessarily done for the better, as the plot gets buried under the weight of trying to be edgy, but it works for the most part. I picked up all but...
Doom: Directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak. With Dwayne Johnson, Karl Urban, Rosamund Pike, Deobia Oparei. Space Marines are sent to investigate strange events at a research facility on Mars but find themselves at the mercy of genetically enhanced killing machines. I received this as a reward for spending money with Universal and I was blessed with the “unrated” version. I can’t tell what’s different about it from the regular version and I’m definitely not going to watch the other version and try to compare them. It’s still a goofy movie that takes itself slightly too seriously and the first person shooter...
Signs: Directed by M. Night Shyamalan. With Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, Rory Culkin, Abigail Breslin. A widowed former reverend living with his children and brother on a Pennsylvania farm finds mysterious crop circles in their fields, which suggests something more frightening to come. I was reminded that I own this on HD-DVD when I found it in a box in my closet during a clean out day and I fondly remember being freaked out by it, so when I saw it on itunes for just $5, I snagged a copy. It’s still a great film about family and choices and...
Captain America II: Death Too Soon: Directed by Ivan Nagy. With Reb Brown, Connie Sellecca, Len Birman, Christopher Lee. The star spangled hero must battle a villain’s plan to poison America with a chemical that horrifically accelerates the aging process. The second of two films, there’s a bit of re-used stuff at the beginning that had me worried for a moment, but after that first section, it’s all uniquely shot material. You’ll be happy to hear that the van that was destroyed in evil’s attempt to kill Captain America in the first film has been fully restored and Steve is...
Captain America: Directed by Rod Holcomb. With Reb Brown, Len Birman, Heather Menzies-Urich, Robin Mattson. A recipient of an experimental body enhancement chemical retaliates against his would be killers as a star spangled superhero. I bought this two movie dvd on a whim, it was only $6 and came from Shout Factory, so why not? The two movies were Captain American (1979) and Captain America II: Death Too Soon (1980), both of which were made for tv movies with the same solid feel that the Hulk show had during that same time period. This first movie sets up Cap as...
Everything Everywhere All at Once: Directed by Dan Kwan, Daniel Scheinert. With Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, James Hong. An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, in which she alone can save the world by exploring other universes connecting with the lives she could have led. I’ve heard good things about the film, most of them are true, so I can highly recommend the film. Maybe one day I’ll write a 1,000 word essay on a good film, but today’s not that day. Seems like I only write that long when someone’s rustled my...
Secret Headquarters: Directed by Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman. With Owen Wilson, Michael Peña, Walker Scobell, Jesse Williams. While hanging out after school, Charlie and his friends discover the headquarters of the world’s most powerful superhero hidden beneath his home. When villains attack, they must team up to defend the headquarters and save the world. I feel like this is Michael Pena’s highlight reel for his acceptance as the next MCU superhero, he does a great job here as the less than heroic adversary to The Guard, as played by the goofy as always Owen Wilson. The cast of kids in...
Three Thousand Years of Longing: Directed by George Miller. With Tilda Swinton, Idris Elba, Erdil Yasaroglu, Sarah Houbolt. A lonely scholar, on a trip to Istanbul, discovers a Djinn who offers her three wishes in exchange for his freedom. I didn’t expect to like this as much as I did, the trailer was pretty vague about what I was getting myself into, but that might have worked in my favor, as I didn’t expect it to go in the direction that it ultimately went in. There’s a good story here, some great visual effects, and I highly suggest it. Buy...
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: Directed by Ryan Coogler. With Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke. The people of Wakanda fight to protect their home from intervening world powers as they mourn the death of King T’Challa. There is nearly nothing about this film that I enjoyed. I hate to say that, as Chadwick Boseman was damn near perfect as the Black Panther, but he was really only great in movies that didn’t have Black Panther in the title, that first one completely lost me in the plot and lack of logic in its science fiction. Director Ryan Coogler...
Don’t Worry Darling: Directed by Olivia Wilde. With Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, Chris Pine, Olivia Wilde. A 1950s housewife living with her husband in a utopian experimental community begins to worry that his glamorous company could be hiding disturbing secrets. A rather fantastic look into what we get when we ask for too much from the people we love. I love where they went with the movie and could see this being either something that gets dismissed, but I think it deserves more than that. Buy On Amazon!
