Its a strange time for many of us. Self Isolation, stuck at home, where everyday feels like we are Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, living the same day over apart from waking up to a Bonney and Cher song every morning! But while we complain, there are many more who are out there helping the cause. Braving going into work and being there for those who are sick and making the ultimate sacrifice for the rest of us to enjoy this sudden down time!
For film fans, its a time of frustration. We have seen big movies postponed, like the new generation of Ghostbusters that will not be introduced to the world now until 2021. The driving skills of Dom Toretto and his crew banned for another 12 months with Fast 9 now hitting on April 2021. Countless many more have followed or even delayed, but now is not the time to complain. Our health, your health and everyone your love is more important than taking a trip to the local cinema and when the films we are so looking forward to, starts to be released, it means that some normality is finally coming back to our lives.
Maybe its the right time to dust down your old DVD’s and start to appreciate the films that you once loved. For every Marvel film that has been applauded, why not go back and re-watch BLADE and once more discover a film that started MARVEL on its path to dominance. Or seek out some horror classics that have been forgotten due to their remakes. Just think, there is a generation out there who have only seen the 2006 version of The Fog and have been put off watching the Carpenter classic, because of the utter awfulness this new film played out! Now, maybe its the time to change that!
Whatever you are doing and how you are getting through this lockdown? HCF is here for you with all the latest news and reviews and please from all of us who run the site….stay safe and be careful….
Hughesy
Why Sidney Prescott must be appear in Scream 5!
While fans of Ghostface were a bit wary of seeing a SCREAM sequel without the involvement of Wes Craven or Kevin Williamson, the news that the creative duo behind 2019’s fantastic Ready Or Not have been hired to direct the fifth entry of the much loved Slasher franchise, was a welcome one! Further news this week that Neve Campbell has had talks about reprising her role as Sidney Prescott was also well received and being one of Scream’s biggest fans, I hope its going to go down the path that even Halloween refuses to walk!
Sidney not appearing in any shape or form in a Scream movie seems so wrong but maybe, the idea here is to bring the franchise into a whole new ball game for a new generation of fans. There is not much left of her story to tell, with both the third and the very underrated fourth entry bringing a family motive to the plot. What is left for Sydney to face? How about if she became the Drew Barrymore of the tale? That her shocking death in the opening sequence, proving that this time, all bets are off!
For all the good work the Halloween re-boot did, removing the brother and sister angle from the storyline was all well and good but what we still had was basically a Laurie and Michael showdown that six films (if you include the remakes) had already showed before. Even the next sequel will see the once more bust heads, but SCREAM can be a bit more cleverer than that!
By killing off Sidney from the off, Scream 5 will push the franchise into a brand new dangerous path, which sounds more exciting than watching a climax in which once more, Sydney takes off the mask of Ghostface and its revealed to be her father’s brother’s nephew’s cousin’s former roommate.
Jury is out on Demolition Man 2 news!
If the year was 1996 and it was just announced that a Demolition Man sequel was coming, then I would be very excited. But the year is 2020 and its been 27 years since John Spartan was unfrozen to fight off the madcap antics of Simon Phoenix. In fact, we only 12 years away from the actual date in which Demolition Man is set and we are still waiting for the Sea Shells to be created so we’ll finally know how use to them to wipe our arse!
I am going to honest and say I love Sly and when he is good, he is very good. Just look at his performance in CREED and it reminds you of what he can bring to the screen. But for every good film, there’s also the horrific experience of watching Rambo: Last Blood, a sequel that is so bad that I can’t even bring myself to watch First Blood, to banish the memory.
News this week that Sly is in talks with Warner Bros of making a sequel to Demolition Man was greeted with shock among fans. Why now only Stallone can answer, but you just feel that as a fan, this is a sequel way to late for the action genre and while I hope that it could end up a worthy entry on Sly’s CV, I can not help but think this will end up more like Escape Plan 3, than the high delights of say, The Expendables!
Why re-watching films in Lockdown, plays tricks on your mind!
Maybe its the effects of staring at the same four walls for weeks on end, but over the last few weeks and all thanks to Disney+, I went through the entire catalogue of the MARVEL universe, which watched back to back and in order, is a very enjoyable experience. Once Endgame finished and with no after credits scene to get me excited for the next one, I found myself needing a quick Superhero fix. So I moved onto DC!
Now I am one of those fans who believe the DC Animation films are fantastic with Batman: Mask Of Phantasm being one of the best Dark Knight stories ever put to film, but at the same time…..well, lets just say I am not the biggest fan of their recent output! Yes! JOKER was immense, Wonder Woman showed the way, while Aquaman was surprisingly a film that rose from its seabed to entertain. But films like Man Of Steel and of course Batman’s fight with Superman in which even now when I hear the word “Martha” a shiver goes through my body, well….I couldn’t care if I never bothered to watch them again!
Well this week I did decide to revisit them and something strange happened. Maybe I can blame the Lockdown but it was the first time I actually sat there and was not aghast at what I was seeing. Henry Cavill actually made the Man Of Steel more than watchable, while apart from that still idiotic “Mum’s name” line, BVS did have some pretty decent moments and the arrival of Wonder Woman was still an amazing and a rousing scene that made me want to re-watch her solo film straight after!
Both films are still beset with massive problems and major plot holes that insult the two characters, but Cavill does carry the mantle of Superman really well and perhaps deserves one more film to make him memorable in the role and while the ship has sailed for Affleck, looking back, he delivered a performance more suited to the cowl than Clooney and Kilmer ever managed too and its a shame that the script he had did not suit the intensity he brought to the Bat Cave!
After I have written this, I am off to watch Justice League, a film that I have refused to watch and yet now with this lockdown seems the right time to take a look! Whose to know? By being stuck in for the last 8 weeks, I may believe once the final credits roll that its better than Avengers: Infinity War!….
The sign of the times….
This week I have been covering the news for HCF and most of the headlines we have been getting is from the Streaming giants NETFLIX, which sums up just how big and dominant the company have gone! With sequels to Extraction and Bright on its way and not including Mike Flanagan bringing yet another TV show to subscribers, NETFLIX, is very much part of our lives now.
Not all is perfect though. My fellow critic David S recently reviewed the newest film to its catalogue, Dangerous Lies and like so many of its original attempts, they fail to hit the mark!
The best thing about NETFLIX and always as been is the fact that we can “Binge” most shows and while their output of films is more miss than hit, its biggest strength is still the ability of not having to wait a week for the next episode and until that’s changed, they will always rule for the fan base in need of a quick fix!
The Goldberg family provides the comfort in this surreal time!
One of the best things that has happened to me during this lockdown is discovering the beauty that is The Goldbergs! I am not usually the one for sitcoms, but from the very first episode, the 80’s setting filled me with so much nostalgia, even more so when they show old clips from the movies of that decade. The Charlie Sheen cameo in their Ferris Bueller homage was a real geek moment and I am only a few episodes away from the now famous Freddy Kruger appearance, which saw Robert Englund reprise his iconic role.
Its not the greatest comedy, but in these worrying times, spending some time with The Goldberg family has been a refreshing treat and with the show set around a young film geek in the shape of Adam, he is someone, most of us can relate to, even more so thanks to his infectious love for all thing films!
Peaky Londoners
Missing Peaky Blinders? Then make sure you catch Sky Atlantic’s amazing Gangs Of London which will please any fans looking for a similar sort of action. It also helps that Joe Cole who played John Shelby in the hit BBC Show is one of the main stars.
Thought Of The Day:
Its a few years old now and its only because of my recent watch, but with so many plot flaws in Batman V Superman, I still don’t understand what Lex accomplished by creating Domesday! I mean if Batman killed Superman, who would have stopped this monstrous creature? Lets be thankful that the Caped Crusader’s Mum wasn’t called Rita, otherwise we all be in the shit!
Funny Movie Gags
I have my temporary driver’s license – and – my astronaut application form… I didn’t pass that though, I failed everything but the date of birth.
-The Jerk
What was said in the HCF Office this week!
“Ross I had no idea you were into masochism?”
Underrated Horror Films You Must Watch
Final Thought!
While at this particular moment in time, 2020 may look like a very bleak year, can you imagine what we have to look forward to when all the restrictions are finally over? Having witnessed her end, we now get to see Black Widow’s beginning. 007 will be showing why he has No Time To Die! Wonder Woman will show us what she got up to in 1984 and don’t forget these two are on their way for another bogus adventure….
so hang on in there. Life will only get better……….
Stay Safe and until next time…..
Be the first to comment