The Thirteenth Floor (1999)

Movies about virtual reality and the internet envision worlds within worlds – levels, Jerry, levels. So it is with movies about VR: The Matrix is at the top level, being a critical and commercial success that still stands the test of time. Then you have the next level, films like Dark City, which weren’t box […]

Johnny Mnenomic (1995)

I distinctly remember seeing Johnny Mnemonic (1995) at the cinema when I was a teenager and afterwards trying to convince myself it was good. That it was worth the pocket money I spent on the ticket. Like most people, I was hoping for a great Keanu action movie like Speed. It wasn’t that; it was […]

Trancers (1984)

Flipping through video store magazines as a kid, I’d come across the occasional straight-to-video sequel advertised in its pages and wonder, “What is this film? There must be fans if they’ve made four or five of these!” It’s like another universe. Trancers (1984), like many a Full Moon production (an outfit I’m not that knowledgable […]

Narrow Margin (1990)

Gene Hackman’s presence as a thinking man action star occupied video store shelf space in the 1980s with stuff like The Package, Bat 21 and Company Business. Pre-Tom Clancy, Cold War era, Dad movies utilising Hackman’s trademark quality; an affable chuckle that could snap into authoritarian rage. For the film noir remake, Narrow Margin (1990), […]

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 […]