Turbulence (1997)

When Turbulence (1997) was advertised on release, I dismissed it as trash, particularly another pre-9/11 airplane action-disaster movie in the wake of Die Hard 2, Passenger 57, Executive Decision, Con Air, etc. Though the movie trailer does feature my favourite 1990s trailer cliche, which is using the bridge of White Zombie’s ‘More Human Than Human’ […]

The Missing Person (2009)

Michael Shannon and John Ventimiglia on the side of a dusty road talking for five minutes about what breed of dog Serpico had in the film Serpico is my idea of cinema, baby! That’s one scene from the neo-noir comedy-drama, The Missing Person (2009), which stars Michael Shannon as an alcoholic private eye named John […]

At Close Range (1986)

The Patrick Leonard score to At Close Range (1986), and the “teasing” (as director James Foley described in the interview accompanying the new blu-ray release) of the Madonna single, ‘Live To Tell’ (written for the movie) is so great. Just a haunting synth ambience that works as an overture to the oncoming tragedy ahead of […]

Throw Down (2004)

Director Johnnie To said in an interview that he “didn’t want any antagonists” in the Hong Kong film, Throw Down (2004). This is intriguing to hear – no antagonists in a neo-noir martial arts movie set in the backstreets, gambling dens and smoky bars of Hong Kong? And that is specifically about the fighting form […]

Security (2017)

Antonio Banderas’ soulful performance in Pain And Glory made me really re-appreciate him as an actor. But also seeing him carry a Direct to Video action movie called Security (2017) was another testament to his presence and talent. Banderas is not sleep walking through this moderately budgeted B-movie Die Hard rip off where he plays […]