Best Documentaries

Posted on December 8, 2018 by Doc

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This has been a heck of a year for documentaries. In fact, I have more docs on this list than I have ever had before. Maybe there has always been great docs that I just did not see, but it appears to me that there was a bunch of awesome ones in 2018.

In fact, the number one on this list will be in the Top 5 movies of the year for me. That is saying something.

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#10. Remastered: Tricky Dick & the Man in Black. Netflix story of Richard Nixon inviting Johnny Cash to perform at the White House. Interesting doc.

#9. They’ll Love me When I’m Dead. Another Netflix doc, this time on Orson Welles and his attempt to complete his film The Other Side of the Wind.

#8. Free Solo. Just saw this tonight. Most of the film, I found the main featured man, Alex Honnold, pretentious and selfish, however, the footage of his free solo climb of El Capitan’s 3,000-foot vertical rock face at Yosemite National Park was tense and thrilling.

#7. Fahrenheit 11/9. Michael Moore’s latest film focusing on the reason Donald Trump was elected. Still, there was more here than just that moment. He talked a great deal about teachers and the water being poisoned in Detroit.

#6. Shirkers. Off of a recommendation by Perri Nemeroff from Collider, I enjoyed this mystery story about a young woman trying to accomplish her dream of making a movie (called Shirkers) and the manner in which it is prevented by a certain man.

#5. Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind. We see just how brilliant of a man Robin Williams is and how much his life took out of him. It is still a painful experience thinking about how we lost this genius.

#4. Andre the Giant. This on is on HBO and I actually purchased HBO on Hulu specifically for this doc. There are some great moments in this film on the “Eighth Wonder of the World” and we see just how broken down Andre became by the end. There might have even been some real emotion shown by Vince McMahon. (Maybe)

TOP 3….

#3. Three Identical Strangers. A story so strange and difficult to believe that if this were a fiction story, you would say it was just too far fetched. Identical triplets separated at birth find their way back to each other… and that is just the start.

#2. RBG. I found this unbelievably entertaining for a story about a Supreme Court justice in her upper eighties. However, I was completely engaged in the story and I will be praying for her health for as long as Donald is in office.

#1. Won’t You Be My Neighbor. I have never before cried in the car on the way home from seeing a movie, but I did with this film…and for no real apparent reason. It is not as if the film was a heart-breaker or that it tarnished the reputation of Fred Rogers. In fact, it showed us that he was really that great of a human. Maybe the fact that our world today could really used someone like him was what brought on my water works. One of the best movies (not just documentaries) of the year.

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Killmonger#1

Posted on December 8, 2018 by Doc

KILLMONGER #1 (OF 5)

Killmonger#1

“By Any Means“

Writer: Bryan Hill

Artist: Juan Ferreyra

Cover Art: Juan Ferreyra

Because Marvel Studio’s Black Panther was a huge billion dollar hit, we now have a mini series based on the villain played by Michael B. Jordan in that film. Killmonger#1 came out this week detailing a story of Killmonger’s past, nearly an origin story.

Now, Michael B. Jordan’s portrayal of Killmonger in Black Panther was amazing, but this comic version was not quite to the same level.

While I thought the art was solid, I had a difficult time engaging myself with the story. I thought the Killmonger character certainly did not pop as much on the page as he did on the screen.

This actually highlights to me one of Marvel Comics biggest flaws. Once something is popular, they drive it into the ground. How many X-Men books were there? How about Deadpool? Wolverine? Spider-man (although Spidey is my favorite character so he needs all those books).

Right now Marvel has had a couple of Black Panther books, a book featuring the Dora Milaje with Spider-man, the X-men etc, a book with Shuri, The World of Wakanda, and now Killmonger. Where is that book featuring Everett Ross?

I mean, The Immortal Hulk has become one of their biggest, hottest comics, so look for a renewed number of Hulk books coming soon to try and grab onto the momentum.

Marvel does not seem to understand that the glut of books of these characters hurts the character in the long run. Just write good stories with your characters and don’t try to overexpose EVERYTHING and you may have a chance at success, because you have great characters.

Killmonger feels like it is too much and the story is unneeded.

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KILLMONGER #1 (OF 5)

The Possession of Hannah Grace

Posted on December 7, 2018 by Doc

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You know that the movie is in trouble when 15 minutes into the movie (in the empty theater that I was watching it) I think to myself, “I should really give this more of a chance than I am and not be ripping it so much already.”

Unfortunately, even with that unambiguous personal comment, there was just so much to rip. I felt as if this needed the RiffTrax or MST3K guys to make the ambiance complete.

The Possession of Hannah Grace was just a ridiculous film with laughable moments that wanted to be scary, but failed miserably.

The film started with the typical religious exorcism that we have seen plenty of other times before, but one that takes a sudden and weird turn, one that really did not make any sense at all.

Then, three months later, the body winds up at the morgue and former police officer, recovering addict and new morgue late shift worker Megan (Shay Mitchell) starts seeing some strange things happen.

There are some things dangled in the story that are never dealt with. Plot holes I guess you could call them, but there really is not that much of a plot…can there be plot holes when there really isn’t a plot?

Hannah Grace looked silly as she spider-crawled around the morgue and made it through doors and locks without any problems… and crackled and popped as she did it. It was just humorous, and of course, unintentional.

In the opening credits, I spotted the name of Stana Katic, who played Beckett on ABC’s Castle for years. I loved her and I started looking for her, but her role was severely disappointing for me.

I don’t know what else to say about this stinker. I did laugh several times, though I wasn’t suppose to. It was not scary. It lacked a story. The characters were weak or non-existent. It was just bad.

1 star

EYG Top 10 Kurt Russell Movies

Posted on December 5, 2018 by Doc

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I am back this week. Last week, the Top 10 Show’s category was Top 10 Stan Lee Cameos, which I had done the day of Stan Lee’s death. Then the Wednesday classic episode featured Phillip Seymour Hoffman, who I like as an actor, but, for which, I could not realistically formulate a top 10 list.

So this week, with a real lack of films opening, I was wondering what their category would be. And it turned out that, in honor of the Netflix film The Christmas Chronicles (which I haven’t seen yet), they decided to do the Top 10 Kurt Russell movies.

Now, this wasn’t a total slam dunk either. I mean, I made it up to nine pretty easily, but I had a difficult time finding number ten. I was either going to have to stretch a bit or fill it with one that I hadn’t seen or wasn’t that much of a fan of. I chose the latter.

You see, there are still a bunch of Kurt Russell movies that I have not seen. For example, the original Overboard is one that I have not seen. Tombstone. Bone Tomahawk, any of the Snake Plissken movies. I have not seen. But I did get a list of ten. So here we go.

#10. Big Trouble in Little China. I know this one is a beloved film, but I have only seen it once, in the theaters, and I did not love it. Now, I know that most people pile love on this film, and perhaps I should revisit it as a way to see if my opinion changed over the years. I did not HATE hate it when I saw it in 1986, but I remember thinking that it was just too dumb. Maybe that was the idea, though.

#9. Furious 7. Sure, this is not really Kurt Russell’s film, but he is in it and he plays a big role so I am counting it. This is one of the better of the Fast franchise, mainly because of the loss of Paul Walker. But the introduction of Mr. Nobody was one of my personal favorite parts of the film.

#8. Vanilla Sky. Yes, this is probably another cheat, since it is truly a Tom Cruise movie, but I was really trying to stretch this list out to ten. Dr. Curtis McCabe is the psychologist that Tom Cruise’s character speaks to after coming out of prison and becomes an important part in his story. Russell gives a strong supporting performance here and plays well with Cruise.

#7. Backdraft. Another one I have not seen lately, but that I remember liking when I saw it originally. The Ron Howard directed thriller has some extremely dramatic scenes for Russell and his co-star William Baldwin. The end of the movie is a bit of a stain on what came before, but it does not hamper the overall quality of the film.

#6. Sky High. Here’s one that is totally silly and full of cheese. And I love it. Kurt Russell is a super hero named The Commander and he is married to another super hero named Jetstream. They are two famous heroes, and their son, William, is not sure if he has any super powers at all. He still attends Sky High in an attempt to live up to the legacy before him. This is a wonderful hero’s journey for Will and Kurt Russell eats up the scenery.

#5. The Hateful Eight. Quentin Tarantino’s most recent Western featuring a fantastic cast that includes Russell. John “The Hangman” Ruth is a bounty hunter who has captured his most recent bounty and he will not be giving it up under any circumstances. The film is really good as our characters, including Sam L. Jackson as another bounty hunter, work their way through a blizzard, but the movie takes a huge turn upward when they arrive at the stagecoach stopover and the group begin their violent and Tarantino-like gory interactions. I think The Hateful Eight was underrated as a movie and deserves its spot high on this list.

#4. Miracle. I agree with John Rocha. I love the Disney movie version of the Miracle on Ice from the 1980 Winter Olympics. Playing Olympic Hockey coach Herb Brooks, Kurt Russell helped tell this story of one of the most monumental upsets in the history of sports. The defeat of the USSR Hockey team by the American team was improbable and miraculous. “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!!!” And I believe in this film.

#3. Deepwater Horizon. This is a movie that I absolutely loved and I wished more people saw. It was so good that the public’s dismissal of it is a crime. This is another supporting performance from Russell ( as the main protagonist is Mark Wahlberg’s character), but Russell really brought it as the general operational supervisor, Jimmy Harrell. And he is really rocking that mustache.

#2. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Who could you get to play Ego, the Living Planet? I mean… he’s a planet. How many actors could conceivably pull that off. As soon as I heard that Kurt Russell had been cast in the Marvel Studios project, i knew the role would be in good hands. Plus, we got the de-aging technology in flashbacks making Kurt Russell look like he was years younger. There was a real connection between Ego and Peter Quill and you could almost believe that they were father and son. One of Marvel’s best one-shot villains.

#1. The Thing. Of course. One of the best horror/sci-fi films of all time, Kurt Russell brought his entire gravitas to that role. The alien is fantastic, especially since it is practical effects. Yes, it may look dated by today’s standards, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. There is a great cast filled with awesome character actors and is, arguably, the best film from John Carpenter. There is so much tension and a feeling of claustrophobia as the group is trapped in this blizzard in this station where this alien is taking over their bodies…and you have no idea who is now an alien and who is not. Tremendous. Easily the best film Kurt Russell has been in.

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2018 In Memorium

Image | Posted on December 4, 2018 by Doc

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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Posted on December 3, 2018 by Doc

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In October, I did a series of horror/Halloween themed movies for the binge-a-thon in honor of October 31st. Now that we are in December, however, I do not plan on doing the same with Christmas holiday movies. Simple fact is I am not a huge fan of Christmas movies. I may do a few along the way, but nowhere near the number I did in October.

Still, starting off the month with a film that I had not ever seen before that blends the best of both holidays together was a no-brainer. So I watched Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas.

I had thought I had seen this before, but once it started, I realized that I had not and that I was going to be in for a treat (with no trick in sight!).

Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon of the Princess Bride fame, Danny Elfman when singing) is the Pumpkin King but he is feeling a little down. Halloween has lost its interest for him as everything always goes the same. However, Jack stumbles across Christmas Town and he is filled with the spirit of the season. Jack attempts to bring the joys of Christmas back to Halloween Town, but the results were not for which he had hoped.

I did not know there was as much music in this movie as there is. The songs were very fun and enjoyable. Danny Elfman wrote and performed the music in The Nightmare Before Christmas and it is some of his best work.

There is a wonderful animation style as well, with character designs that are as creative and imaginative as you can get. Some of the character designs could be scary for young children, but I found them wonderfully creepy. The stop motion animation is a work of art and must have been a labor of love for the filmmakers.

Ken Page’s Oogie Boogie is a masterful villain and a perfect foil for Jack and his friends. I am not as much of a fan of Sally (Catherine O’Hara) though she has some funny moments. She felt almost tagged on.

The Nightmare Before Christmas is a beautiful and dark film that shows how important both Halloween and Christmas are and I am very pleased to have seen it on HBO.

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2017 Movies in 2018

Posted on December 2, 2018 by Doc

Each year, there are films that are released in the previous year in limited release to qualify for Oscar consideration, but they do not go wide release many times until January. That would make them 2017 films that I see in 2018. Two years ago, I eliminated these films from my list of Top 30 films of the year because they were really films from the previous year. However, I figured, why not recognize these films anyway. All it would mean would be they can have a list all to themselves.

I have six 2017 movies that I saw in 2018.

#6. Call Me By Your Name. A lot of people loved this, and I thought it was great too, but I was not as much of a fan of this as most. I enjoyed it. No doubt that Timothee Chalamet showed himself as not only a star of the future, but a star of right now.

#5. The Post. The true story of the Washington Post and their decision to publish the Pentagon Papers, which showed a cover up involving the Vietnam War. Starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, the film was dramatic and showed the importance of a free press, a lesson we need to keep in mind even today.

#4. Molly’s Game. I did not expect to love this movie as much as I did, but there is an amazing performance from Jessica Chastain in a remarkably compelling true story about Molly Bloom and her high stakes poker games that she organized. Aaron Sorkin wrote the script and the dialogue showed.

#3. I, Tonya. The story of Tonya Harding, the US figure skater who reputedly hired someone to club the knee of her biggest competition prior to the Olympics. After watching this biopic, you may have a better understanding, if not actual empathy, for a figure whom had always had the worst reputation around. Allison Janney is brilliant as Tonya’s villainous mother.

#2. Hostiles. Not too many people saw this western starring Christian Bale, but Hostiles is way better than I thought it would be. Bale is a US Army captain who is assigned to escort a dying Cheyenne war chief and his family back to their tribal land. There is so much strain and anxiety along the way that the two enemies find that they have more in common than they thought.

#1. The Shape of Water. This was a near perfect movie for me. I loved everything about it (with the exception of the strange dance number in the middle of the film). Guillermo del Toro directed the heck out of this and really made me pull for this unlikely and downright oddball couple. Who would have guessed that I loved this movie as much as I did? Not I. Yet, I was totally mesmerized by the film when I finally got a chance to see what everyone was raving about.

What movies will everybody be talking about this year when I have to wait until January to see them? Unfortunately, I’ll just have to wait to find out.

Year in Review-2018

Posted on December 2, 2018 by Doc

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It is December and every year, we at EYG, compile our best and worst lists from the year and review what we have seen in the world of pop culture. Year in Review will list our top TV shows, movies, comics, wrestling matches, Schmoedown matches etc.

Of course, these lists are only our opinion and everybody else has the right to have their own opinions and to disagree with our choices. Just because I hated something, does not mean you can’t love it. That is why this is a safe local on the webs.

Over the next 31 days, we will be adding posts to this section dealing with all of Geek Culture. Most of the movie lists will come later in the month as I have yet to see Aquaman, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse, Mary Poppins Returns, Bumblebee among many other great movies.

I always enjoy making these lists and expressing my thoughts on the past year. 2018 was a year where the Avengers broke 2 million dollars, Black Panther became a cultural significance, where I slowed down on my TV watching, where we lost a legend in Stan Lee among other amazingly talented people and where the Mouse got his gloved hands on FOX.

2018 was the year of the documentary. One of them may find its way into the Top 5 films of the year (not may, WILL!). Horror movies were everywhere in 2018 and most were pretty good.

So… with 2018 coming to an end, let’s look back on the year that was….

BY THE WAY FROM THIS POINT ON THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!!!!! BE AWARE

Boy Erased

Posted on December 1, 2018 by Doc

Boy Erased Movie Poster

Joel Edgerton has shown himself to be a strong director. His film The Gift was a fantastic story and now he has added to it with the powerful film Boy Erased.

Based on a true story and the book by Garrard Conley about his own experiences. Jared Eamons (Lucas Hedges) was a teen, confused by his sexual orientation and, after some events happened to him at college, he approached his conservative, religious parent with the fear that he has “thoughts” about men. Jared’s father, Marshal Eamons (Russell Crowe), a Baptist preacher, found a conversion therapy program, run by a man named Victor Sykes (Joel Edgerton), that said that they could “cure” Jared of his homosexual tendencies.

Once there, Jared slowly begins to realize his mistake and looked for help from his mother Nancy (Nicole Kidmon).

The acting in this film, across the board, is phenomenal. All of your main stars give stand out performances in Boy Erased, anchored by another strong, and surprisingly subtle, performance from Lucas Hedges. Hedges has truly cemented himself as one of our finest young actors working today. Joel Edgerton continues to thrive in everything he does. The character of Victor Sykes is one of the most complex and layered characters in this movie, his internal struggle playing off everything that he is trying to do.

Russell Crowe is amazing as the Baptist preacher whose faith is challenged by the lifestyle of his son and his love for his son fighting against his personal beliefs. Crowe is shown as a good man who just can not get out of his own way.

Nicole Kidmon delivered a fantastic performance as Jared’s mother, who is able to show both her conflicted faith and her fierce protective nature for her son.

Just the fact that places like this conversion center ever existed is a stain on our life and culture, but what is worse is that these places continue to exist. The info at the end of the film indicated that 36 states still allow these places to be legal. In the world of 2018, that ignorance is simply unacceptable and backwater. We need to move past this kind of bigotry and start dealing with people as people. Boy Erased does just that in some very powerful moments.

Admittedly, the film starts a little slow, but the performances certainly outweigh any negatives. This is a potent film that has a message that we all need to hear.

3.8 stars

Daredevil #612

Posted on December 1, 2018 by Doc

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“Apeirophobia”

The Death of Daredevil Conclusion

Writer: Charles Soule

Artist: Phil Noto

Cover Art: Phil Noto

I have been enjoying the recent run of Daredevil very much. I have been engaged in the story and every twist that has happened.

And because of that, Daredevil #612 is both one of the best and one of the worst Daredevil stories I have read.

I’m not sure the term “bait and switch” does this justice.

The first two-thirds of this issue was fantastic. It was a joyous end to the saga of Wilson Fisk, NYC Mayor. It had an awesome takedown of Kingpin at the hands of not only Daredevil, but a huge cast list of guest stars.

Then, it all changed.

I am not sure how I feel about the end of this comic. Fact is that it feels like a cop out. I am not sure if I can describe this without spoiling, but I will try.

The end negated a huge chunk of this story and took some of what I had really connected with and wiped it away. I must say that I did enjoy the very end of the issue, leading into the new Daredevil series from Chris Zdarsky, titled “Know Fear,” but the way it got to the last scene felt like a cheat.

So, while I would recommend the book, it does have a chance to make you very angry.

Of course, if it makes you angry, perhaps that is a good thing.

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The Lion King (1994)

Posted on November 27, 2018 by Doc

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I’d been on a but of a bad run for the Doc’s Classic Movies section here at EYG. Three straight films that I had watched that fell below expectations or were just downright bad. I did not want to continue such a streak.

I knew what I could do.

Last week, the new trailer for the upcoming “live-action” version of Disney’s The Lion King came out, directed by Jon Favreau, and everyone found themselves getting chills and goosebumps. The reason was the teaser trailer looked so remarkable and it brought everybody back to a world that was nearly universally beloved. The world of The Lion King.

That new version comes out in 2019, but to snap the streak of bad films, I loaded up the 1994 animated version, which is considered by many to be the greatest animated film of all time. While that might be a bit too high for my ratings, there is no denying that this movie is in the argument.

The Lion King is a beautiful story of love and betrayal. It is Shakespearean in design (sharing similarities to Hamlet) and transcendent in animation. The music is both catchy and completely engaging and the characters are wonderful. Scar (Jeremy Irons) is one of Disney’s most heinous villains, with his manipulations leading toward the murder of his only brother, the King Mustafa (James Earl Jones) and the attempted murder of Mustafa’s son, Simba (first voiced by Jonathan Taylor Thomas, then by Matthew Broderick) proving his evil intentions. Scar is perfectly happy to let Pride Rock go down in devastation as long as his power as king is unquestioned.

Young Simba goes off to meet his lifelong pals, Timon (Nathan Lane) and Pumbaa (Ernie Sabella), after the death of his father. One song montage later, years have past and Simba is living the life of Hakuna Matata.

There is a great voice cast here as well including Whoopi Goldberg, Robert Guillaume, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings, Rowan Atkinson, and Moira Kelly.

The score from Hans Zimmer is truly amazing and the songs that were written by Elton John and Tim Rice make this movie extra special.

There were extra hidden jokes that I had not heard the first time that were funnier now as an adult. This is an emotional ride with a terrible tragedy, yet continues the circle of life. The Lion King is one of Disney’s best animated features. Obviously, it is a…

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The streak is broken…

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Posted on November 24, 2018 by Doc

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This is one of those films that I do not feel that I will ever revisit.

Don’t get me wrong, I am glad I saw it after all of these years, but to say that it was disturbing is a mild understatement.

A Clockwork Orange is a classic Stanley Kubrick film that plays with the ideas of violence and the responses to that violence. Does it take things too far? That might be true. I have to say I am not sure how I feel about the movie.

On one hand, Malcolm McDowell gives a top notch performance, though he seems to be yelling too much for me. You believe that this guy is a vile and vicious person and his actions are wicked. McDowell does a great job of portraying that. However, I never found myself feeling for Alex after the prison procedure “cured” him of his tendencies. It felt like he deserved the pain that he was suffering with.

The cinematography is wild and weird. The sets and the backdrops are wonderful to look at. The overall performances are solid. The direction is classic.

And yet, the very topic of the film makes me uneasy. I am just not sure that it does anything for me. Especially with the way the film ends.

There are some great technical aspects of this 1971 film, but I can think of many Kubrick films that I would prefer to see.

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Weird Science (1985)

Posted on November 24, 2018 by Doc

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It seems as if I have never seen the 1980s classic Weird Science, because when I pulled it up on Amazon Prime today, I was unfamiliar with the movie. I mean, I knew the general plot and I knew a couple of details (I know I had seen the “shower” scene before), but I realized quickly that this was almost totally new material.

The reason I knew?

I hated it.

This was everything that I dislike about this genre of movie. Here I was thinking that I had missed something by not seeing Weird Science, but I just thought it was immature, ridiculous, sophomoric nonsense with mean spirited characters who I really did not want to spend any time with.

I was about to shut it off. I was preparing to make this a “Putrescent” film.

However, I will say that the third act of the movie improved considerably. I liked how the film worked itself out and how the two main characters, Gary (Anthony Michael Hall) and Wyatt (Ilan Mitchell-Smith), actually showed growth and became the type of people that I did not want to smack across the face.

So many moments in Weird Science that irritated me instead of making me laugh. It highlighted the bottom of the barrel for teens and their behavior. I just did not like what I was watching.

As I said, the ending, while ridiculously over-the-top, showed some promise of what could have been.

This one was not a good movie and I am not sorry that I hadn’t watched it up until today. Unfortunately, I can’t say that any longer.

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The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Posted on November 24, 2018 by Doc

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The Coen Brothers are back with an exciting and enjoyable anthology film that features six short Western stories that perfectly encompasses their brand of humor, irony and storytelling.

As in most of the Coen Brothers’ work, there is a tremendous cast of actors appearing in the film. James Franco, Clancy Brown, Stephen Root, Liam Neeson, Tom Waits, Tim Blake Nelson, Zoe Kazan, Tyne Daly and a group of other recognizable Western character actors.

Each of the six stories in this anthology have different styles of a Western, starting with the Gene Autry-style parody of the good guy cowboy and ending with a stagecoach ride that sums up the entire film featuring some serious performances from Tyne Daly, Jonjo O’Neill, Brendan Gleeson and Unforgiven’s Saul Rubinek.

I really enjoyed almost all of these Western shorts. I will say that Zoe Kazan’s “The Gal Who Got Rattled” was my least favorite and was the one where my attention was diverted the most. Not that it was a bad short, but I just was more engaged in the other stories.

I loved the “Ballad of Buster Scruggs” story that kicked off the film. Tim Blake Nelson came singing into the town in his white, pristine cowboy outfit only to reveal himself as one of the worst killers you would find. The contrast was fascinating and I was also surprised when it ended when it did. Buster had been talking to the screen and breaking the fourth wall as he went along and he felt like someone who might continue through the movie. Nope.

Irony plays a big part in these stories, as does death. If there is a topic that carries through the entire film, it is death. The old west was certainly shown to be a place of death and of danger for all by the Coens. However, there is a distinct feeling of fancy in each of the stories, albeit at different levels.

Stephen Root’s bank teller character in “Near Algodones” is a real hoot. You can see the reaction from James Franco at the ridiculousness of Root’s responses. One of my favorite moments was when Root came running out from behind the bank. It was just a laugh riot.

Tom Waits’ Old Prospector character in “All Gold Canyon” was another great story, this time nearly a one man’s journey, his obsessive battle against the land and his intense desire to find gold in whatever manner he could. The Prospector’s dialogue is very funny as he talks to himself, grumbling about the success or lack thereof.

“Meal Ticket” features Liam Neeson who owns and runs a traveling show that featured a man who has had his arms and legs amputated. This man would vocalize famous writings and speeches for the entertainment of the crowds. At first, he was quite the novelty, but his originality began to waver and he would soon be surpassed by the next big thing. I think if you really want to look for hidden meaning, this one is ripe with possibilities.

If you are a fan of Westerns, this is a must see. If you love the Coen Brothers and their past films, this is a must see. I am not especially a fan of either of those but I found this film to be funny, dramatic and full of wonderful irony and fun.

4.6 stars

EYG Top 10 Boxing Movies

Posted on November 24, 2018 by Doc

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This week, in honor of Creed 2, the Top Ten Show created the list of Top 10 Boxing Movies. Again, as it seems like several weeks, my list was incomplete. But since the week was busy, I was able to watch three movies that were not on the first list I wrote. These movies make the list, I feel, more reasonable.

#10. Grudge Match. How could you not like seeing Stallone take on DeNiro in the boxing ring. Two of the greatest icons of boxing movies squaring off. This movie was okay. Lots of people did not enjoy it, but my memory was that it was better than I expected it to be. It could be the example of going into a movie with a real low expectation and enjoying it more than you expect. Sure, they are pretty old in the flick, but it still is quite the moment.

#9. Creed II. Look. With the later in the week Top 10 list, I got to see Creed II and it was really very good. Yes, it feels as if Rocky III and Rocky IV were crammed together, but, as you will see, I like both and that did not feel like a negative. I also really enjoyed how the film went into the characters of Ivan and Viktor Drago. It gave these characters considerably more characterization with the minimal amount of screen time. Michael B. Jordan is really great as Creed and he has become that character.

#8. Southpaw. This one is mostly for the acting skills of Jake Gyllenhaal. Gyllenhaal is fantastic in the role as Billy Hope. The relationship between Billy Hope and his daughter Leila (the fabulous Oona Laurence) is a highlight of the film too. Problems are throughout the rest of the movie but Gyllenhaal’s work is top notch and elevates the film.

#7. Rocky. The first Rocky movie won an Academy Award and was a great film, including the shocking moment of defeat at the end of the film. Stallone is really great as Rocky Balboa. This film sets up the entire series with this great film of an underdog facing off against the ultimate challenge.

#6. The Fighter. Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale play the Ward brothers in The Fighter, directed by David O. Russell. There is an ESPN documentary following Christian Bale’s character’s attempted comeback, but it winds up instead focusing on his cocaine habit and he winds up back in jail. Wahlberg’s character tries to break away from his family for a comeback. This is a great look at the life of working class people and their tribulations.

#5. Rocky IV. The movie where Rocky defeats Communism. This is so silly of a concept, but the movie is cheesy greatness. The fight between Rocky and Drago is fantastic. The death of Apollo Creed at the hands of Drago is a shocking moment and provides amazing motivation for Rocky IV (and Creed 2, by the way). And of course, “I Guess What I’m Trying to Say, Is That if I Can Change, and You Can Change, Everybody Can Change!”

#4. Raging Bull. Okay, I had not seen this one before this list and I know it was a hole in my cinema viewing list. So, I got a chance to watch it on Thursday. I know everyone and their mother love this movie, but I was not sure how I felt about it through much of the film. I really disliked DeNiro’s Jake LaMotta because he was such a horrible person. I really wanted him to get his ass handed to him. As the film progressed, I was able to appreciate the talents that it took to create this movie. The filming was amazing, with the black and white in particular. DeNiro was unbelievable as Jake. I hated Jake, but I really found DeNiro’s performance near perfect and I can understand why he received an Oscar for it.

#3. Rocky III. I am in the minority here, but this is my favorite of the Rocky movies. I was a fan of Mr. T and Hulk Hogan when they were in the WWE around Wrestlemania I and seeing them both in here is awesome. I enjoyed how Rocky had to search out Apollo to help him come back and defeat the first undefeatable opponent. This was the first Rocky movie that I saw at the time it came out and I can think back and remember how much I enjoyed the film. And I pity the fool…

#2. Creed. This was quite a surprise. When we realized that this was a continuation of the Rocky universe, focusing in on Apollo’s son, Adonis Creed, it was very exciting. Then, we got an even bigger surprise. Sylvester Stallone came back as Rocky Balboa and gave one of the best performances of the year. In fact, his defeat in the race for the Oscar is one of the biggest mistakes the Oscars have made. Creed revitalized the Rocky universe with some wonderful new characters, directed by the great Ryan Coogler.

#1. Million Dollar Baby. The Clint Eastwood directed film starring Hilary Swank was another movie that I watched for this list. Million Dollar Baby was a film that I was not that interested in seeing for the longest time, but when I saw it this Thursday, I absolutely loved it. I was completely invested in the story of Maggie Fitzgerald, the female boxer trained by Clint Eastwood’s character Frankie Dunn. I did not know anything about the third act of the movie and it crushed me when I saw it. I was never interested in this movie and I resisted seeing it, but that was a mistake. This is a fabulous movie and I really loved it. I am very glad that I watched it for this list because it feels like it should be here and the list makes more sense with it on it.

Honorable Mentions: Rocky II is was on this list before I watched some of the others. There were two other films that dropped off the list. The first one was Bleed for This which included Miles Teller as Vinny Pazienza. The other was a major cheat and I knew it was a major cheat, but I was sticking it at #10, and that was Pulp Fiction for the Bruce Willis section. Yeah, I know. I have not seen Cinderella Man. Hands of Stone was another one that I considered.

EYG23