DAMIEN RILEY, world musician and performer

Author: Damien Riley

  • The Belko Experiment (2016)

    You might argue that Rod Serling had a negative view of the future when he wrote his Twilight Zone episodes. Many of them are fatalistic. This film is along those lines. When you have a negative view of authority and even the corporations you work for, it makes sense they might want you dead in the name of an experiment. I think these are the times we live in: sardonic, negative, fearful. This film certainly echoes that.

    The Belko Experiment (2016)
    R | 1h 29min | Action, Horror, Thriller | 17 March 2017 (USA)

    1:01
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    From $14.99 (SD) on Amazon Video

    In a twisted social experiment, 80 Americans are locked in their high-rise corporate office in Bogotá, Colombia and ordered by an unknown voice coming from the company’s intercom system to participate in a deadly game of kill or be killed.

    Director: Greg McLean
    Writer: James Gunn
    Stars: John Gallagher Jr., Tony Goldwyn, Adria Arjona

    This film looks a lot like The Purge. You have the established workplace forcing people to kill each other. I wonder why this experiment is important to the corporation and what do they hope to learn from it. The film didn’t do very well with critics, this nonsensical “experiment” may have had something to do with it. Like I sometimes do, I saw it all as a social commentary in the form of metaphor.

    When employees are let go, they are in essence killed. By that I mean, they cease to exist in the workplace. The victims in this film are bloodied and certainly they would wish they’d have been fired instead. There are a series of killing rounds and a short time where the viewer can divine a meaning from it all. For me the message were nothing new: corporations see us all as expendable and people are evil when they have to kill to survive.

    Final Thoughts
    If you liked The Purge, you’ll like this. It’s more a thriller than horror, though it is labeling itself horror. There are buckets of blood if you like that sort of film. I recommend it as a bloody thriller that it more or less mindless. You can read stuff in like I did but it’s a very banal film, what you see is what you get. Of course, if you see deeper, leave me a comment and we’ll discuss it!

    6/10

  • The Amazing Spiderman

    In The Amazing Spiderman we see Spiderman more without the suit than with it. We also see him less as an untouchable comic book superhero and more as one of us mortals. The question then becomes: “Is this the same brand or a new one?” Here’s a short summary from IMDB: Peter Parker finds a clue that might help him understand why his parents disappeared when he was young. His path puts him on a collision course with Dr. Curt Connors, his father’s former partner.  It was directed by Marc Webb known for 500 Days of Summer and No Doubt: Return of Saturn. Its stars include Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker, Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy, and Rhys Ifans as Lizard.

    This film is a darker, more gritty, telling of the classic comic than the earlier franchise. It unfortunately has a laboriously long section of Peter’s life before the Spidey suit and spends way too much time developing minutae like how his glasses belonged to his father. Still, it is interesting to see what they do differently. Another liability is how Peter and Gwen are both played by actors pushing 30. They are meant to be in high school. At times I thought they were in college. Another different thing is that Peter has a much more stormy relationship with Aunt Mae and Uncle Ben. For example, Peter is almost expelled after fighting with the school bully on the basketball court. Uncle Ben chews him out for this, an act I can’t comprehend the old Ben doing.

    When these hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent on a per-established brand, character development is probably not important. What is important is that you follow the parts of the formula that work. There is a villain, a lizard, whose character is a part of the formula but he is also underdeveloped. As an aside, in my opinion he looks really fake. I’ve seen better CGI on National Geographic dinosaur documentaries. He’s not really sure if he likes Spiderman or not which is very confusing. We also never learn the true nature of the relationship between Peter’s parents and the lizard. Perhaps this was purposely left out for the sequel.

    The new Spider Man runs amok doing whatever he feels at the moment. Once however he stops to truly focus on making a web spinner that would require hours of intense tedium and patience in real life. I don’t think with his what looked like ADD he could do such a thing. Flying maniacally on buildings and suddenly having this sort of patience is part of the muddy portrayal of Peter Parker. When he gets into the suit it isn’t much better. The Amazing Spiderman is not as good as the prior Spiderman trilogy because it assumes we are already on board with the new Spiderman’s vision. I for one needed to be shown and I never got that privelege. Here’s my last thing on character development: the romance with Gwen Stacy comes off as staged with awkward dialogue. A couple of times I could have sworn he spoke with an unintended stutter. I didn’t care if they ended up together, it felt as if their relationahip was obligatory top the movie and without passion. He is unlike the previous Spiderman in many ways. In fact, we see a superhero here more like Kickass than a comic book one.

    In conclusion: There is very little that is “new” for us in this film. Of course, it is always fun flying around with Spiderman and there is a truckload of that. I think fans with an open mind will enjoy it but at the same time wish it “felt” like Spiderman. Perhaps it was the name that made this explains why Stan Lee himself financed this “prequel/remake” as its executive producer. We will never know for sure. Incidentally, Stan Lee does appear in a scene where Spidey is smashing through the high school library wall. Lee has headphones on while grooving to music. Based on the number of screens Spider Man was playing on here in our High Desert theaters, Lee is grooving all the way to the bank. As for me and whether this movie was a great action comic retelling, I’ll have to say it falls short. Despite its scattered portrayal of Peter Parker and a lousy CGI villain, this movie won points with its skyscraper scenes and other compelling special effects. I guess we will never know how it would have done if it had its own title and its own original characters.

  • Under the Shadow (2016)

    This film is streaming now on Netflix (USA). While this is a horror film, it shows interesting and important history of the 8 year war between Iraq and Iran. I found it amazing to watch what these two middle eastern countries did to each other, each in the name of its god. There is a strong and scary film here. It’s not horror in every scene but there are enough jump scares to keep fans happy.


    Under the Shadow (2016)
    PG-13 | 1h 24min | Horror, War | 7 October 2016 (USA)

    As a mother and daughter struggle to cope with the terrors of the post-revolution, war-torn Tehran of the 1980s, a mysterious evil begins to haunt their home.

    Director: Babak Anvari
    Writer: Babak Anvari
    Stars: Narges Rashidi, Avin Manshadi, Bobby Naderi

    NETFLIX: Available in United States of America
    From $3.99 (SD) on Amazon Video

    This is the story of a mother and her daughter in time of war. Both suffer extreme stress levels as the father/husband has to leave them alone to go and be a doctor in the war for a time. While home alone in a war zone, the mother and daughter experience a strange haunting that neither can explain.

    I saw a comparison to The Babadook early on. It’s a psychological drama that has horror elements. There are times we do not know if the scary elements are real or just stress induced psychosis from the mother. The daughter has these visions too though so it seems something is happening. It’s hard I think to explain away a lot of what happens. It is in my opinion indeed a legend, a ghost story. How much the viewer wants to believe depends on her/him.

    This film does have subtitles so if that puts you off, stay away. As for me I found them easy to follow and greatly enjoyed this foreign horror film. The casting and acting is top-notch. This is a must for horror fans as well as psychological drama ones.

  • The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012)

    When this animated film was released, it appeared in the ads to be similar in its stop action and quirky appearance to some of its predecessors like: Wallace and Gromit, Flushed Away, and Chicken Run. It certainly piqued my interest with its mega marketing campaign.

    The Pirates! Band of Misfits

    “Pirate Captain sets out on a mission to defeat his rivals Black Bellamy and Cutlass Liz for the Pirate of the year Award. The quest takes Captain and his crew from the shores of Blood Island to the foggy streets of Victorian London.” -IMDB

    Cast

    Hugh Grant The Pirate Captain (voice)
    Salma Hayek Cutlass Liz (voice)
    Jeremy Piven Black Bellamy (voice)
    Martin Freeman The Pirate with a Scarf (voice)

    Directed by

    Peter Lord, Jeff Newitt

    Written by

    Gideon Defoe, Gideon Defoe

    Other Info

    Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family
    TV-PG
    Fri 27 Apr 2012 UTC
    88min
    IMDB Rating: 6.7

    I must have seen the trailer 100 times both in theaters and on the web. The Pirates! Band of Misfits was directed by Peter Lord and Jeff Newitt who are the masterminds behind Aardman Animations which is known by some to be one of the most prestigious animation companies in the world. One thing that sets them apart in my view is that they produce stop animation where the camera must be stopped intermittently and the figures are moved millions of times to create the animation.The biggest voice actors are Hugh Grant as The Pirate Captain, Martin Freeman as The Pirate with a Scarf, Imelda Staunton as a ruthless Queen Victoria, David Tennant as Charles Darwin, Jeremy Piven as Black Bellamy, and Salma Hayek as Cutlass Liz. It is most definitely a quirky work with little inside (often hidden) jokes throughout. For example, when Peg Leg Hastings says “lock up your daughters” it’s a reference to a Slade song. But you wouldn’t get that if you were a kid right? I know mine didn’t get it. It’s too bad that much of the humor of The Pirates! Band of Misfits is lost on kids.

    Original and quirky, but over kids’ heads is how I would describe this movie in a sentence. For that reason, I’d only recommend it for Aardman enthusiasts and not optimal entertainment for kids 13 and under. Mine were bored most the way through.

    The story is about Pirate Captain who is seeking to be “Pirate of the Year.” Through a disjointed and often unexplained chain of events, he comes into contact with the historical figure Charles Darwin. Darwin is taken aback by Captain Pirate’s dodo bird and convinces him to come to London with the bird to present it at a science convention. From there, Queen Victoria gets involved who hates pirates and loves to eat endangered or exotic animals. Confused yet? Well, like most animated movies, there is a happy ending where everything gets wrapped up in a pretty bow. For me, the metaphorical beauty was the end credits. Watching my kids yawn, ages 13, 7, and 5, was far too contagious for I myself to fend off.

    FINAL THOUGHTS
    The Pirates! Band of Misfits is a visually stunning film. The filmmakers have my respect for their compelling stop action animation. Unfortunately the story is not engaging and lacks side-splitting humor like, for example, that of the slugs in Flushed Away. Still, lovers of the animation style will enjoy it. It’s not the best Aardman feature but it’s not a bomb either. I hope the next one considers the kids a little more because I will certainly want to see what Aardman does next.

  • Men in Black 3

    Fans of the Men in Black franchise recently became thrilled to know there is now a 3rd installment. Like its predecessors, the third movie has all the slime, goofy special effects, and laser guns you could ask for in a sci-fi action comedy. It also has some really good actors and that is what ultimately makes this movie franchise a winner.

    Men in Black 3 was directed by Barry Sonnenfield, known for Pushing Daisies and the Lemony Snicket … children’s movie (among others). He has created an exciting movie here that includes a powerfully written twist at the end. The film stars Will Smith as Agent J, Tommy Lee Jones as agent K, and Josh Brolin as a younger agent K. By way of trivia, IMDB reveals that Sacha Baron Cohen was considered but not chosen for the role of Boris. He would have been great no doubt but as it stands, the character they got to play Boris does an excellent job. Based on the acting, special effects, and clever twist at the end, I gave this movie a high rating. It was a fun roller coaster ride that provoked thinking about stuff like time travel. I love sci fi movies that make me think.

    By way of summary: Agent J is transported back in time to help save Agent K from Boris’ deadly actions. As he goes back, we see the slime and future devices in retrospect … “retro-furtristic” if you will. It could have been a film on Roswell or Area 51 as it presented the retro cars of the 40’s and 50’s. Horrible Boris the Animal is at his worst here. We witness him murder and commit crimes through time and up to the present. Nevertheless, through a series of events, Boris is defeated and Agent J returns to the present day victorious. He has saved K’s life by going back in time. I won’t reveal the twist here but fans of the franchise are going to love it. I think anyone, pre-existing fan or not, will find it both touching and exciting at the same time.

    In my final analysis, I found Men in Black 3 to be a wild and crazy ride that I might consider going on a second time. The actors and the writing deserve the most credit I think. And of course, let’s not underestimate the power of slime. For a fun night out at the movies (kids or adults) I recommend Men in Black 3.

  • Rock of Ages

    Rock of Ages is the film adaptation of a musical that has been going strong for years on the strip and across the country. It has both a mainstream and cult following. There has been much buzz about this movie and whether it will do justice to the musical that has taken the world by storm. Can the accoutrements of film achieve what musical theater has done? I just watched in XD and I’d say: sometimes, yes, and other times, not even close. One thing is the same in both however: the music of the ’80’s is amazing, without question. Rock of Ages features music from: Bon Jovi, Guns N’ Roses, Def Leppard, Foreigner, Journey, Poison, Whitesnake, Night Ranger, Twisted Sister, and REO Speedwagon.

    The film was directed and produced by Adam Shankman, known for Hairspray, A Walk to Remember, and others. The film was written, not surprisingly, by seasoned, successful Hollywood names the accolades of which include: Wall Street, Megamind, American Psycho, Just Go With it, and others. From powerful rich writers to actors in the same vein, this movie has a cast of verified stars: Tom Cruise (Stacee Jax), Diego Boneta (Drew Boley), Julianna Houge (Sherrie Christian), Alec Baldwin (Dennis Dupree) just to name a few. The casting is good and I discovered when researching for this review that Tom Cruise indeed sang all his own parts. I had my doubts since they sounded quite professional in the movie. Tom Cruise pulled it off! The movie plays a lot like the musical. I recently saw it AS a musical at the Pantages in Los Angeles so I was certainly extra critical in my analysis of the film’s musical performances. All the actors could sing and their performances rivaled the stage versions.

    By way of trivia, Def Leppard did not grant rights to use their songs in the stage musical. They surprisingly did however allow their music to be performed in the movie version. Tom Cruise sings an amazing cover of their “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”

    This movie is a lot of fun and has great music. I felt like dancing in my seat to it. It does lag at points however and the Stacee Jax character is given way more screen time than his character merits. This is a love story and that is the focus of the stage musical. Stacee Jax’s character makes the movie boring at times. It is better when he sings. It was almost as if they felt they needed to showcase their big star (for whom they no doubt paid dearly). Stacee Jax had a much smaller role in the stage musical as it should be.

    Here is a bare-bones synopsis: A guy and girl come to Los Angeles seeking fame and fortune in rock music. They pay their dues in bars, restaurants, and stripper bars until they finally achieve their dreams. Along the way they learn the pain of the city which includes an eccentric Stacee Jax as an unwitting teacher. He is the celebrity lead singer of a rock band that everybody in the movie virtually worships. There is a side plot here of religious people trying to get rock and roll off the strip. It smacks of Tipper Gore and her censorship crusade.

    That is the movie in a nutshell. All throughout, you get amazing and inspiring music from the 80’s. To be honest, I don’t think they needed to hire so many A-list actors and writers, the music it what sells this one. No-namers could have done the job just as well. If you go, just go for the music and you will be delighted.

    In my final analysis, Rock of Ages is a funny, touching, rocking film that most adult audiences will love. Overly religious types may be offended at suggestive scenes and material. There is a LOT of sexual content and imagery so if that turns you off, stay home. As for me, the free spirit of hair band music of the 80’s was refreshing and enjoyable. I like the spirit of the 80’s and what the bands represented and the pole dancers weren’t horrible either. As they sing so beautifully in the final scene: “Don’t Stop Believin’, hold on to that feeling!” I remember listening to that Journey song in the 80’s and I can say now all these years later that I am still holding on to that feeling.

    Trailer: