Category Archives: 7 Star Movies

Crimson Tide Review

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This review is of the TV-14 edited version of the film. All thoughts below should be addressed as such as a review of the unedited version would be more negative

It’s time for a film about war time situations and how it can be tough to agree on a proper plan of action. The stakes have never been higher for any of the characters here and it makes for a really suspenseful watch. The story and characters are both really good and the film moves forward at a really good pace. I didn’t really have any major issues with it and was invested the whole way through.

The film starts out by explaining that a Russian extremist has taken ahold of some nuclear facilities and is threatening to fire them off if he is provoked. Captain Frank is told to assemble his troops and go underwater to set up counter measures. If ordered, he is to launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike at the enemy. He picks Ron as his second in command and they head underwater. The big problem here is that communication gets knocked out early on after an order is given to attack based on certain conditions. When the conditions are met, Frank is ready to attack but Ron wants to find out more information. This threatens to tear the unity of the ship’s crew apart. What can they do about this?

The problem with a disagreement like this is that neither party is likely to back down. Too many lives hang in the balance and many will die if either one is wrong. Frank’s point is that they already have their orders and the fact that they cannot receive new ones does not mean that they abandon the old ones. Every second they wait is a second that something bad could be happening on the outside. It’s imperative that they take out Russia as soon as possible. On Ron’s side, if they attack now and the threat has already been averted, then they will be triggering a world war for no reason.

For me I would definitely side with Frank here. You have to go with the preemptive strike. It’s the whole reason you’re out here and the stakes are too high to stand back. So while he takes some rather drastic steps towards this end, they were completely justified. You just have to do this if you believe yourself to be correct. You’ll have to watch the film to see how it plays out but it’s a decision where hindsight can’t factor into it. So you have to choose a side and then just proceed with no regrets.

I imagine there will be a ton of hard feelings between the crew long after the events of the film have ended. There is quite a bit of violence here after all and that’s something you never really forget. No matter what the cause was, if you’re attacked or pushed around then you’re gonna remember it. The film develops a few of the side characters who each have to take a side by the end. One of them in particular is rather wishy washy with how he picks his sides but everyone else picks a side and sticks to it.

It also shows how easy it could be for a revolt to happen within a ship because there are so many people there with their own tasks that you can’t possibly keep track of them all. So if one guy is missing you probably won’t notice and by the time you notice 8 guys have left their posts, they’ll be in front of you with guns. You’re also completely stuck underwater so there is absolutely no escape. It has to be the scariest part of being in a submarine. I don’t even like being in a train that goes underwater for that same reason. If something happens then you’re basically doomed.

While I don’t tend to love war films, I do really like submarine stories and so that part of the balance won out. This is really a thinking man’s film where the thriller elements are in the strategy. Yes, there are some real fights here like with the enemy subs but this is still more about each character’s ideology. The top two certainly had very different ways of thinking which appears in the film right from the start. The contrast is set up really well for when the main disagreement happens.

The film does a good job of not making either one of the characters look insane either. You could probably make the case that it is leaning towards Ron as the main character here but it’s not too heavy handed. You are still able to make your decision on who you feel was right in this case. A weaker film would have definitely been throwing in not so subtle jabs the whole time.

Apparently a sequel is being worked on so it’ll be interesting to see how that one plays out. I imagine that the story will be a whole lot different for the next one. A sequel for a film like this is always going to either be hit or miss because the story doesn’t automatically lend itself to a sequel and if you don’t have too many returning characters, it will feel like they’re just borrowing the title for money. Well, we’ll come to that bridge when it happens but it will definitely be difficult to surpass this film.

Overall, Crimson Tide is a very good film. The writing is really solid and the situation feels very realistic. You never know how someone will react when a situation like this pops up and even close friends have to end up going at it. You can have as many plans and procedures as you want but when the situation actually happens, people aren’t necessarily going to listen to what is said in the book. They’re going to do what they think is right at the time and you just have to hope that it is close enough.

Overall 7/10

Ride Out for Revenge Review

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It’s time for another western! This one is about good ole fashioned revenge which can always be a tricky topic. How far do yo go in your revenge before you’re just perpetuating a never ending cycle of violence? It’s a tough call to be sure but I never tend to get upset at a character for getting their get back. In this case I’d actually say the film goes too far in making the main characters unlikable to the point where you’re absolutely rooting for the Indians. They didn’t start it so they should get to end this fight.

The movie starts with Little Wolf and his father heading into town to ask for some assistance. They are running low on supplies and are having a hard time surviving. Unfortunately Captain George is not all that broken up about that and instead tells them to get lost. In fact the government has ordered that the Indians all leave the land but they have refused to do so thus far. The Indians bring some gold in order to facilitate a deal but George allows his men to shoot the chief in the back while Little Wolf manages to get away. The bridge is burned now, the Indians will fight to the last man and get their revenge. All of this could have been avoided if George had listened to Tate, who warned against this. Unfortunately the village always makes fun of Tate for taking the side of the Indians. So now things are about to get dangerous.

So right away from the starting point here, I would totally be siding with the Indians to get their revenge. Their chief was just shot in the back. I can’t think of any country that would take their leader being assassinated without putting up a fight afterwards. It just wouldn’t make sense and that is why it’s annoying when Tate decides to go and stop them. Of course it’s not an easy decision and Tate admits as much but it’s one of the more annoying tropes that I see out there from time to time.

Person A wrongs Person B. Then when Person B goes back to fight person A, A’s friend C shows up to stop B. Yes two wrongs don’t make a right but it’s also real easy to say that when you’re on the winning side here. The Indians are fighting an uphill battle from start to finish as Little Wolf’s sister is also siding with the humans and not wanting to go down the road of violence. The notion that the Indians will eventually die in war is a valid one but you still have to try and get your revenge or else it will be a stain on your honor forever.

The main characters are also shown to be comically corrupt to really ensure you don’t feel bad for them either. After shooting the chief in the back, they all get drunk and laugh a bunch at the bar. They make fun of Tate and basically threaten him and even the kids have been indoctrinated to hate the Indians. The film’s message about hate as a disease is really clear and even by the end I would say there is no happy resolution here. That said, it still feels very unsatisfying for the Indians who don’t even come close to getting their revenge.

I’d argue that after something happens to a kid in the movie, Tate should have went straight for George and taken him out. After all he’s really to blame for what happened. The town deserves a lot of responsibility too for being sheep about the whole thing but it does start at the top. Then there is a lady who likes Tate and is super jealous of his Indian girlfriend. She is not one of the smarter characters because one way you will absolutely never get with someone is to insult his girlfriend. She never really acted in her best interests and wasn’t a subtle character at all. In fact I think she could have talked her way into going with Tate and the kid if she wasn’t so forward.

The trip is the one big plot hole of the film or I consider it to be one. Tate keeps on mentioning that the Indians will get their revenge that night and so that’s why he plans to leave with the kid right away. Then night falls…and Tate decided to leave in the morning. Really?? Why would you wait when you know that the Indians are coming? That part felt a little contrived and nonsensical. I also think the film would have been a lot better if Tate actually had left and the town had to face up to the repercussions of their actions. In this case, their complete destruction for how overconfidently they handled everything. The Indians should have returned fight away the next day to finish them off or even done the job at night. Once the weapons were taken, that was really it.

War has no victors, a lot of innocent people will get dragged into it either way. So you just let that play out with both groups destroying each other and that ends off the solemn message. The film had a bit of a somber tone throughout anyway so it would have worked just fine. The film did a lot f show don’t tell and handled the topic really effectively. While it may not have been quite as satisfying as I would have liked, it is a good all around film. Quite a few plot contrivances here and there but ultimately I didn’t have any big issues.

Overall, Ride Out for Revenge is a pretty good film. It was certainly leagues better than the last two so it was a good way to end off on the western ride. Tate also made for a good main character since we at least got one voice of reason. I could have used a few more of course but the whole one man against an army plot is a good one. The film’s message is also one of those that will always be timely since these feuds and wars are never ending. As long as humans are still walking the planet, there will always be fighting and violence.

Overall 7/10

The Dawn Rider Review

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John returns for another adventure and this time it’s more of a revenge thriller. Get ready for some classic Western hype. By now if you’ve seen John Wayne’s other films then you should understand the drill. If you haven’t seen any before, just think of this as a quick adventure film. It has a fun tone throughout and music that may be a tad generic but is catchy all the same. It’s a good film to watch.

The movie starts with John riding into town and seeing someone being forced to dance as he is shot at. John gets involved and immediately shows why he is the top gun in town. He outdraws the guy and then beats him up physically. Still, John manages to make friends with the guy and it turns out the other one being shot at was a villain anyway. It’s a small world and it turns out this guy works for John’s father but just as they arrive, the father is shot. Some hoodlums had done a heist and then they get out of there. John intends to avenge his father no matter what. How can he track these villains down though?

It’s nice to see John on the offensive right from the start here. He was definitely not going to back down easily and with his skills there are very few who can hope to stand against him. The film only lasts as long as it does because John has to find these guys but the fights themselves are a little quicker. One guy does put up a reasonable fight while they wrestle around but the victor is never in doubt. John is not somebody who will ever end up submitting. He would sooner die than be defeated here and that’s why he is such a living legend. You cannot underestimate him at any cost.

The main weakness that the film has is the villains are really not notable. Taking down John’s father was a big deal of course but aside from that they are just ordinary joes. Nobody to write home about or anything like that. They just exist to be absolutely devastated by John’s impressive gun combos. Another reason they last longer than they should is because they are easily able to convince Ben (The guy John became friends with) to turn against John. Now I didn’t mind this as much as I usually would since they’ve only been friends for a short while. Ben betraying him works well enough but it still does ensure that you don’t really like Ben much as a character.

The guy is just too easy to sucker the whole time and he also severely lacks in confidence. The guy feels like he needs a ring in order to propose instead of just going forward and doing it. Not really what you would like to see from a lead like this. Meanwhile the film does try to stick some romance into the picture by the end but it’s definitely more on the rushed side. The time skip at the end really comes out of nowhere.

You are hoping for a happy ending with a film like this of course but you will feel like the romance was still too out of the blue. You just didn’t need it here at all. It’s the kind of romance that is just here to check off the boxes instead of adding onto the plot. A weak romance like that will never succeed in feeling all that believable. Beyond that, the writing was solid as always. I enjoyed the script and how smug John always tends to act. He works really well as the main lead for that reason.

Meanwhile the soundtrack is fun enough even if there are no new tracks here. It’s the same tunes you’ve heard a million times but fortunately they are good tunes so it does work out well enough. The pacing is good too so the film has no main weaknesses. I think the best thing about a western like this one is the high replay value. You could re watch it at any time without any issues. The story beats will feel familiar but that’s because they are similar in all of the films so it helps stop you from thinking that you’ve just seen the exact same film.

Overall, The Dawn Rider is a pretty fun film. John really did well on the attack although as an older film it doesn’t feel as much like a revenge thriller as it probably would nowadays. It still keeps a high level of energy and all but you don’t feel the rage that you might expect. I suppose that might have been hard to picture for a film like this so the most important thing is that it’s a good film. I would definitely recommend checking it out whenever you have some time. You will get to see the power of a solid gunman in action.

Overall 7/10

The Star Packer Review

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It’s time for a little more John Wayne action. In this film he has to go up against the legendary Shadow which won’t be easy. This guy has been manipulating a small town for a long while now and shoots down any would be sheriff. So John takes it upon himself to become the sheriff and bring some justice to this corrupted world. It will not be easy by any stretch though. He has one friend but the Shadow has many. One wrong step and this will be John’s final fight.

The movie starts off with a lady getting robbed not once but twice on her way over to town! She’s heading to one of the most dangerous towns in America where the outlaws have really taken over from the shadows. Fortunately John shows up and saves her life. Once in town, John feels obligated to take on the role of Sheriff after watching another one get shot. Everyone warns him not to rock the boat or do anything crazy but he doesn’t care. John will save them all whether they like it or not.

The Shadow’s true identity becomes clear early on but he still maintains a lot of hype the whole time. You’re always wondering what kind of dirty trick he’s going to try next. You see another big goal of the Shadow is to get the main heroine to sell her place but she wants to stay strong even among the threats. John even gives her a gun at one point which really helps a whole lot. It was smart thinking to properly arm her since sometimes it does feel like the heroine is left on her own.

This film’s got a pretty straight forward story and it works out rather well I would say. It’s nice to see John outwitting everyone not through some kind of fancy plan or genius abilities but through every day actions. John was ready to clobber these guys and showed why his abilities are the real deal. He even uses the secret communication method against the villains by holding one of the minions at gunpoint and forcing him to act cool.

The town should still be ashamed of themselves for letting it get this bad but at least now they will be in a good spot for the future. Ideally they won’t let any more criminals take over the place. Maybe John will teach them a little more about self defense and how to handle things. He did well in teaching the heroine so I could definitely see that going over well. Once the whole town is prepped it will be one of the safest places to live.

As always you have the same general soundtrack and array of sound effects. I do think they ought to change this at some point but in this way I guess you could treat the movies like an anthology series of sorts. The characters may change around but they all follow very similar beats. John had a partner in this one for example, a local Indian who helped out. John’s had a partner in a few of these films but is still usually a solo act.

What this film did better than in most is having an actual villain. I’ll be reviewing another John Wayne film shortly and a weakness that one had was in not having any big villains or notable characters. That is always a big mistake because you want someone for Wayne to bounce off of. Instead, he really had to do everything on his own against ordinary henchmen in most films. Still not a terrible thing or anything like that but you would absolutely prefer to see a worthy foe. The Shadow delivered on that and we even got some decent banter as a result. It goes without saying that the writing and pacing were really good as always so this film nailed the fundamentals.

Overall, The Star Packer is a pretty fun film. In most of these western adventures, John plays the role of the lone cowboy or a guy getting framed. It’s a nice change of pace to actually see him become the sheriff who is calling the shots here. Definitely very impressive indeed. The film has less shootouts than in some of the other ones but we still get a solid climax here and also see just how fast John is on the trigger. He’s also not the kind of guy to back down from a fight. Sometimes you just want a fun film that is straight to the point like this one.

Overall 7/10

Twilight of Honor Review

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It’s time for a classic courtroom drama filled with lots of twists and turns. It’s a pretty solid film that is definitely dealing with a hart hitting case. That said, by the end of it there aren’t many likable characters involved with this mystery. At the end of the day, David the lawyer isn’t here to make friends but to see to it that he wins the case. He will be up against one of the toughest prosecutors in the land though so it won’t be easy. One wrong move and it’s curtains for him.

So lets get to the case. Ben is on trial for the murder of a very well respected and liked lawman. This guy seemed to know everybody and on the surface had a spotless record. What’s even worse is that Ben’s own wife Laura is against him and claims that her husband had been abusive for a long time. This murder was not in self defense or for her honor, it was all about him. Everyone believes Ben is guilty and so the trial is a formality but that’s when they rope in David as the lawyer. David didn’t want this case but now that he’s got it, he’s going to fight his hardest to win. Can he find enough straw to pull this case apart or is he absolutely doomed? Only time will tell.

First off, Ben really doesn’t make David’s job any easier. The guy is really obsessed with his wife. Not in a chivalrous way where he wants her to be okay, but in a tier 1 sub way where he just worships her to the point of losing clarity. He doesn’t seem to care how standoffish she is or the fact that she turned him in for cash. He just desperately wants her approval since he never got it before. The poor guy is a completely broken man. Usually in a case like this where your life is at stake, you will be trying your best to stay in the game so that would have been what David expected. No, Ben stays vague and unhelpful until David really pressures him.

Of course Laura’s not a good character either. I just tend to be harsher on Ben because he should have known better. “How you get her is how you lose her”, a variation of that is a classic saying for a reason. Laura was never the very traditional type and loyalty wasn’t her specialty. When you marry someone like that you are really asking for trouble and Ben found that out first hand. Throughout the movie Laura never improves as a character which is intentional. You could call her the soft antagonist of the film.

The main antagonist is Norris of course. The guy didn’t commit any crimes but he is an impressive prosecutor. He knows all of the tricks and is aiming to win. Justice isn’t the end game for this guy, he is trying to garner support for an election someday. So he even has the crying old ladies walk in dramatically during the hearing. Now this is annoying for David of course but at the end of the day in court both sides are going to do their best in order to win. I would say the irony of working in a courtroom setting is that you aren’t playing for justice anymore. Even if you know that your client is guilty, you are obligated to fight your best. So even though Norris had questionable motives, it’s not like I can fault him for going for the win every time.

Unfortunately the film does have a very underwhelming romance subplot that had no point being in the film. We meet Susan who has always liked David even while he was married and so she has been biding his time. Now that David has been widowed, she has her chance and takes it. She is constantly encouraged to do this by her father and all but this just plays out like a rebound no matter how you slice it. I also think it’s always a bit rough to know that this person liked you even while you were married. David really needed to sidestep the whole thing and tell Susan they could stay as friends or something.

Life comes at you fast but in this case it was just too fast. Art made for a fun mentor otherwise though. He was really invested in the case and gave a lot of good advice. It is clear why he was regarded as such a good attorney back in the day. If he was healthier then he probably could have won the whole case right away. Naturally as the case goes on we find out more and more how the victim was not quite as innocent as the reputation would have you believe. Additionally, Laura wasn’t the most trustworthy of witnesses.

At the end the Jury certainly had a lot to think about and the movie really followed the proper steps in how to handle the drama well. The evidence trickles in and my only complaint would be that I wish we could have gotten more screentime for the rebuttals. We basically skip a lot in the climax to get to David’s closing remarks but I wanted to see them going at it more. After all, those were usually the best parts of the film. I also enjoyed the openly corrupt judge who didn’t even bother with trying to appear fair. It was only after things were really over the top that he started to do anything.

The weakest parts of the film are naturally when we are seeing the flashbacks into what happened. None of the characters in those flashbacks are the slightest bit likable after all so you’re just waiting to go back to the present where we can have some real dialogue and action. The flashbacks are probably a good idea for people to keep up with what’s going on but honestly I would have been fine without them. Just let us picture what is happening in our heads like the jury as the two sides explain their account of the events. That would be a more effective way if you ask me although I imagine this may not be a popular sentiment since people probably enjoy seeing the actual events.

Overall, Twilight of Honor is a pretty good movie. It’s a solid reminder to not believe everything you hear at face value. People always have motives even if they aren’t readily apparent and knowing his to discern truth from fiction is a rather big skill. It’s definitely something you really have to work at over time. If you get enough experience in it, then you will be in a safer spot. Best thing to do is always to evaluate people and facts on your own. Second hand sources are just that, second hand. While the characters in the actual case are all annoying and antagonistic, it doesn’t take away from this being a well written film of high quality.

Overall 7/10

The Desert Trail Review

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It’s time for another old Western and I dare say this one was having the most amount of fun with the concept. I would even call it a comedy before a Western if I was ranking the genres. There’s a ton of in fighting and slapstick around here with none of the characters being very smart. Whether you enjoy it or not will definitely come down to how much you enjoy the absurdity. Me personally? I got a real kick out of it. This is definitely a film with a lot of replay value.

The film starts off by introducing us to John and Kansas who are friends that get very competitive with each other. They may be friends but when a girl is involved they will suddenly become total enemies. Things start off rocky right away when a lady is having a lot of trouble with her clothes and both guys fall head over heals for her. They keep on insulting each other with John usually getting the upper hand but Kansas being pretty good at pretending to be rich. This lady named Juanita is definitely someone who likes digging up a bit of gold and she takes a liking to both of them as well as to a crook who is also good at getting money. Can she make it so that she can take all 3 of them? It’ll be a tough mission.

Wait that’s the actual plot? Well it might as well be but technically a corrupt town festival tries to short John on his winnings so he holds them at gunpoint and steals the money. Then some other guys come in and rob the place for the rest of the money and make it sound like John took it all. John must now evade the cops by going to a whole new town and also doing his best to one up Kansas by getting a girl there to fall for him instead. There’s definitely a whole lot going on here.

Naturally you will have a hard time rooting for John and Kansas because of all the infighting. John is constantly goading Kansas into trying to fight back and that guy is immediately falling for the bait every time. The problem for him is that John is much stronger than he is. So this means each time that John just beats him up and Kansas is forced to make an excuse to regain his honor. This happens numerous times throughout the movie and keep in mind that this is a fairly short film. So yeah it’s really rough on poor Kansas who is really just trying to hang in there. Of course Kansas isn’t much better since he is still to blame in a lot of instances too.

Then John doesn’t always make the best moves like firing back at the cops while in the house. At that point he is only making things worse for himself although he was probably going to be doomed either way. Holding up the store owner was probably valid for trying to short change him on the money but I dare say that it would probably have been good to have tried going through the sheriff first. Worst case he would still be a fugitive either way which would not make things any easier for him.

The actual villains aren’t the most inspired. You have one who knows that stealing is wrong but he just can’t bring himself to say anything about it. He meekly goes along with everything and even shoots someone. He may feel bad about the whole thing but it’s hard to sympathize too much. He simply made way too many mistakes at that point and he had direct victims so it’s not like he did something mild like have a quick lie. As for the other villain, he doesn’t really have a ton of character but he does show up the two leads at one point. I’ll give him credit for that.

The two main characters may make a ton of mistakes and all but like I said at the start, it’s still just a really fun film. I enjoyed the constant jokes and the pacing is really fun. The soundtrack at this point is completely recycled from other Western titles but at the same time I would still say it is pretty good. I like how on the nose it is. You can almost predict when the music will appear based on what is happening on screen. Some may call that generic timing but I would say that means the timing is very appropriate. It fits in with what the film is trying to show you.

You may wish there were more gunfights here but there was enough to satisfy the Western part. The characters being so over the top is what you should really savor here because you’re just not going to see that very often. I would even say that there may not be any others quite like this one. Now that may be too bold of a claim since there are a lot more Westerns that I haven’t seen yet but this one was just so different in all the right ways. Yeah, I was definitely real impressed here.

Overall, The Desert Trail is a film I can really recommend. It reminds you of why you need to be careful about getting too enamored with someone to the point where you start trying to make your best friend look bad. It’s important to keep your priorities in order and to not be led astray. As long as you enjoy a cheerful film and like some good jokes then you will have fun here. If you can find the antics to be a little too exaggerated at times then that might work against this one. So it is hard to say for sure how much you will like the film until you check it out. You can’t really go wrong with a quick comedy like this though right?

Overall 7/10

Randy Rides Alone Review

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Next up we’ve got another one of those really quick John Wayne films. Sure enough, the guy is back into the mix trying to solve cases and save the day. It’s a pretty simple film that has an effective beginning, middle, and ending. I didn’t really have any issues with the film and of course it end pretty fast so it’s not like there is enough time for anything to drag out. It’s a very focused story from beginning to end and at the end of the day that’s all that we need.

The film starts off with Randy arriving at a halfway house where everybody has been murdered. Whoever the culprits were, they were ruthlessly efficient and there must have been more than one of them. The fact that they took everyone down so easily really speaks to their abilities. Unfortunately Randy took too long to inspect the safe so he is caught red handed when the cops arrive. He is now being framed for the robbery and must try to get out of jail and solve this before it’s too late. It won’t be easy though because it turns out that the leader of the villains is the right hand man to the sheriff.

Matt the Mute definitely has a big role here since he is basically doing double duty as a hero and villain here. As one of the heroes he can’t talk so he is always using his notepad to chat with the others. Definitely an interesting gimmick and I wonder how long he has kept up the pretense of not being able to talk. That must have been a hard role to keep up with but I guess money is a good incentive right there. He actually makes for a pretty good villain. You see superheroes with the double lives a whole lot, but less so for villains.

The rest of the group don’t get as much to do but the fact that there were so many villains is impressive. We actually have a fairly large scale battle of the cops and robbers going at it with Wayne trying to get through that to secure the treasure. He did a good job of setting up the fight and manipulating both sides to a good outcome. Definitely a good look for Randy and at the end of the day he made sure everything turned out right.

The heroine Sally goes through a lot here as she is threatened and put into harm’s way but eventually she did manage to come out on top thanks to Randy. She did help him escape and so that means she ended up directly contributing in the film. I give her full credit there since a lot of characters would have just panicked or something. The romance at the end was super rushed and made no sense though.

Meanwhile the sheriff didn’t look great here. He was a little too quick to nab Randy as the guilty party. The optics were against the hero so I don’t blame him for locking the guy up or anything but he could have at least heard the guy out. Why keep cutting Randy off over and over again? It’s almost like the sheriff was afraid to hear anything and that’s a bad look for him. He needed to just listen and try to evaluate the situation.

Meanwhile the soundtrack is basically the same as in the other short films. There isn’t a whole lot of variety here but at least I do like the tracks so that definitely helps. If the tracks were bad then we would really be in some trouble here. The writing is on point which is also very important for a film like this. Poor writing could make the experience boring at best but that’s never a problem here.

Overall, There’s not a whole lot to talk about here since the film is so short. You definitely have some pretty interesting moments and fun retro fights but it’ll probably blend in with the other westerns eventually. It is a very easy plug and play though because of how short it is though. I would recommend it to anyone who likes a good adventure film. You get to see Randy not just taking down foes with his skills but with his wits as well. It makes him a very complete character and a hero who is quite compelling. I would definitely be up for watching more adventures with him in this continuity because you can imagine that there are always more villains around the corner.

Overall 7/10

West of the Divide Review

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It’s time for a fairly short western this time around. Watching these old 1930s titles is pretty fun to see what would stick around for future generations of films and what wouldn’t. One thing’s for sure, the black and white camera doesn’t help make it any easier to differentiate the characters. For some reason they had the main duo and villain duo wearing similar hats and outfits. Ah well at least you can usually tell who is who based on what’s happening in the story but they sure could have made that a whole lot easier.

The movie has all of the classic corruption themes going around as one guy is trying to steal cattle and money from everyone else. A lady named Fay is even attacked for her money but fortunately Ted and his partner Dusty manage to get it back. This is a full on villain group they’re dealing with though so they decide to deceive the enemies into thinking that Ted is an unfamous murderer. Now he can be involved in the plans and find a way to make sure that Fay and her father are able to get out of this in one piece. Ted will need to really make sure that his gun skills are up to task though or this will be a very short adventure for him.

One difference compared to newer films is that there is a much bigger emphasis on fist fights over gun fights. Ted takes on different opponents as the film goes on and the battles tend to be rather close. He eats some really nasty shots during the course of the film which really puts him in a rough spot. I guess these villains actually train in hand to hand combat or maybe Ted’s just weak. We can’t rule that out either because his opponents didn’t exactly look to be in the best shape of their lives.

The important thing is that Ted wins in the end though and that’s what happens. He puts up a good fight each time and is definitely a strong competitor. Naturally he is unbeatable with a gun as well and looks pretty good in those fights. His partner Dusty is also a trusty sidekick. The guy doesn’t really get much action but he brings in the backup whenever they are needed so the guy has a key role. Additionally it’s just nice to have someone as support. The whole film would be way more difficult if Ted was all by himself.

Meanwhile the villains are fairly generic. There isn’t a lot to these guys, they just want to get rich and do it fast. They figure that might makes right and had been succeeding before Ted got there. Fay doesn’t do much as the main heroine to be honest but I guess there’s not really a lot that she could do at the time. It’s not like she was secretly great with a gun or anything like that.

Probably the most noticeable area where the film feels old is with the soundtrack and sound effects. When the music plays, there aren’t any real sound effects that can be played. It also seems like there is only one piece of music in the film so they just keep on reusing it for all of the action scenes and everything. Not a ton of variety to be found here. At least the music is good but it’s also the same one that was used in a previous film so I guess there weren’t many options back then. It’s not like this holds the film back but it gives you a greater appreciation for the future where there were a ton of tracks going on at all times.

The film also has time to throw in some twists which was surprising. For example we find out that Ted is related to someone which was unexpected. It definitely makes the situation more personal and it’s good that Ted stopped someone from beating the kid up. Ted would have done it anyway of course but it was a good example for the kid. The kid doesn’t look great here as he messes up his first horse ride but I suppose there wasn’t a whole lot that he could have done about that. At least the kid never complained or anything and was just doing his best the whole time.

Overall, West of the Divide is a good film. If you like westerns then you should get a nice kick out of this one. It is old and definitely feels dated but at the same time you can definitely say that it is a quality picture. It doesn’t really have any glaring weaknesses and the pacing is really good at all times. It is the kind of movie you can easily recommend to anybody passing by. The short runtime also makes it very accessible. It’s easy to see why people really enjoyed these short films back in the day.

Overall 7/10

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny Review

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It’s time for the final Indiana Jones film. I remember this one got a lot of attention when the trailers were coming out. To me it looked like it would be a fun film but I can’t say I’ve ever been super into the franchise. So I sorta just forgot about it for a while there but now after watching the rest of the films I was ready to check this one out. It’s a fun nostalgia sequel and I would put it right in the middle from the previous films. So it definitely does a lot of things right and it’s a really good way to close out the series.

The movie starts out with the best sequence in the entire film as Jones infiltrates a Nazi train and takes down a bunch of agents. He even manages to secure the Dial of Destiny. Many years pass and in the present, the main Nazi scientist has returned. He wants to use the Dial of Destiny in order to go back in time and change history in some major ways. He will need both Dials for this though and that won’t be easy. Additionally he has to contend with a lady named Helena has taken the dial for her own purposes. Well, basically she wants to be rich and now her ex boyfriend and his army is involved. All of these forces are fighting for the dial so Jones is forced to come out of retirement for one last journey. Can he still fight?

Right off the bat I can say the make or break point for this film will be how much you can still enjoy Indiana Jones here. For starters the guy is definitely really old and the film doesn’t try to trick you about this. He feels old the whole time as he can no longer handle the big adventures as much. The guy can still throw a solid punch and gets some running here but you’re not going to see any extended fight scenes. It’s probably why we had the opening flashback sequence. Also like I said that was the best part of the movie so they go through the peak rather quickly.

I appreciate that Jones still has a strong moral compass and is trying to help out even in his old age though. It’s certainly not an easy mission but he’s not complaining and is doing his best here. He’s been through a lot as we find out what happened to his son and his marriage. It does mean that a certain scene at the very end of the film doesn’t really work for me though. It’s just a bit too late and the whole song and dance has happened one too many times. At least that’s the way I see it. I would have ended the film a bit differently although it is still a satisfying journey all the way through.

The new heroine Helena is okay but she really does get them into a whole lot of trouble. She beats the heroine from the second film but definitely loses to any others. As a supporting character she just never really warmed up to me. Likewise I didn’t care for the thief kid here either. So Jones himself really has to carry the team which is hard since he’s not in his prime. We do have an extended car chase scene in the middle of the film and it was fun to see Jones pull out his skills there. If there’s one thing he’s always been really good at, it’s making snap decisions and outwitting everyone else.

The main villain is also a bit on the weak side although I think this is a bit intentional on the film’s part. He’s always very whiny and not particularly strong. He starts to get humiliated from his very first appearance and can’t even hold his own with Jones. The guy has to rely on his thugs the whole time and even then he panics near the end. He’s a very insecure genius and while he has his fun moments like when he’s confidently giving interviews, he never appears as a threat from a villain’s perspective.

The only main part where the film was disappointing is that we don’t get much time travel. With the premise I figured we’d be going to the past fairly early on but as the film ticks on you start to realize that this won’t be possible. At one point I thought we might not even see the past at all. That would have been a lot of fun though since time travel always has a lot of potential. I think the movie should have given lots of scenes for that and this is where they went wrong. The climax involves some really fun imagery and I could have used more of that.

One thing you can’t call the film is boring though. The adventure is pretty fast paced with a whole lot going on. You’ve got villains around every corner and having them infiltrate Jones’ school and start shooting people was intense. You do feel bad for his poor colleagues who got roped into this though. It’s why heroes hide their secret identities because then stuff like this happens. I do think they could have had security/the cops look a bit better during the initial chases though. You’d think a cop getting shot during a huge parade would warrant a much bigger call to arms across the city and get at least some more officers around. The villains never really have to answer for this and while the heroes left the country rather fast, it felt like something that wouldn’t just die out. I’d have liked to have seen the U.S. do a little more later on.

Overall, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is a pretty fun film. I give the writers serious kudos for having this film feel a whole lot like the older ones. It has the proper fun, action tone that you’d expect from these films. They did a great job on making the film feel very authentic the whole time. While Jones himself is definitely the most different since you’re used to seeing him on the front lines, everything else is as you’d expect it. It’s also fun to see how the cinematography and everything has changed over the years. When the film starts it immediately looks way clearer and more detailed than the previous films. Almost as if the graphics of real life itself have improved. Of course it could also just be a case of streaming making it look more grand or just the cameras that were used. Either way it made this feel like a true cinematic experience that stood above the other titles in the franchise in terms of scale. Although the original film continues to live on as the best one in the series.

Overall 7/10

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Review

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Now it’s time for Indiana Jones to edge closer to the next generation. This one introduces a new kid who can actually be rather fun at times. I’m not saying he’s amazing or anything like that but he does bring a lot of confidence and energy into the picture. This makes for a fun film as a result and I’d probably put it in second behind the original film. There is a lot of fun adventuring to be had here and the film moves at a good pace.

The movie starts off with Indiana being captured as always and he still escapes but not before getting betrayed by his friend Mac. Mac basically just wanted a lot of money and didn’t care who he got it from. Well sadly this means Indiana’s reputation is shot as people think he is a commie so he is forced to take a leave of absence from his teaching position. He prepares to leave the country but is stopped by a teen named Mutt. Mutt informs Indiana that there is one last job to do. Indiana’s old friend Ox has gone crazy after looking into a powerful gem and our hero needs to look into this. It may have something to do with ancient civilizations and it’s not like Jones was ever one to back off from a challenge like this. Can he still hold his own in a fight at his age?

The main thing you will be wondering as you watch the film is how Indiana hasn’t died of some kind of bacteria disease just yet. He’s constantly touching old mummies and dead bodies without any gloves or protective equipment. That seems like an absolutely terrible idea right? All it would take is one misstep and he is absolutely cooked. Ah well I guess he’s lucky. Unfortunately as always Jones looks bad in the romance department here. It’s retroactive in fact as we find out he got cold feet right before the wedding. It’s a terrible look for him. Also while it is played for laughs, we see how he holds very different standards for a random guy vs his son. His tune changes real fast.

Jones is generally more in control than in the previous films though so maybe old age actually helped him out this time. He knows how o handle himself in a fight as always but also isn’t getting outmaneuvered as much. I do think he was a bit easy on Mac towards the end though. When you have a traitor there can be no mercy at al, Mac never gave me a reason to actually think that he would be any good at all. The guy was willing to sell everybody out in order to get what he wanted and that makes him as evil as it gets. The first time Jones got to punch him was definitely satisfying.

Spalko is the first villain in a minute who is actually memorable and solid. She’s not relying on her feminine wiles to win a fight or anything like that. No, she can just straight up fight and gives Indiana a real battle the whole time. That’s what I want to see from one of these villains and she’s one of the more powerful opponents that we’ve seen in a minute as well. Ultimately her own ambitions were what got to be too much for her.

As for Mutt, well he’s a fun lad like I said in the intro. He’s always ready for a fight an his pocket knife comes in handy on more than one occasion. Without him the heroes would have really been in a bad spot. He isn’t always prepared like when he brought a knife to a gun fight but it’s also not like you would expect a teen to have his own gun just yet. Mutt is definitely a very rebellious character but written in an effective way so that he doesn’t come across as too annoying.

Marion shows up rather deep into the film and doesn’t look bad. I would just say that she is too merciful. She should want nothing to do with Indiana after what he did. It’s something these films never seem to learn when it comes to romance. Things don’t just patch together in an instant. There is always going to be some resentment and you can’t build a good relationship out of that. The film should have kept them as just friends or something instead. It’s also not like you really needed any romance here and could have kept us in suspense instead for a future film.

Indiana’s friend Ox tends to be super annoying though. It’s not fully his fault as the guy went absolutely crazy but that’s the case for almost the whole film. He can barely talk and when he does it is just cryptic nonsense. He’s basically more of a plot device than a character. The plot itself was interesting but I definitely would have cut him out. You just don’t need the guy. Meanwhile the film can’t help itself with the creepy crawlies and so this time you have a ton of Ants eating people. A bunch of them also get stomped with some really crazy ooze effects.

Was all of that really necessary? The ants design is pretty intense when you focus on how they actually look. I definitely give the film some good credit there but otherwise you really could have skipped those. Then we have the climax with some pretty big implications for the series. I fully expect all future films to completely ignore the ending though. Jones keeps finding some rather crazy stuff but then doesn’t tell the world or try to make it a big deal. He should be using this knowledge for the betterment of humanity but of course he will need to go slow or he will be jailed for conspiracy or something like that. You could probably do a whole film on Jones just trying to gather his bearings on all of the things that he knows now. The film’s effects were definitely solid.

Overall, Indiana’s dynamic with Mutt is actually rather solid. I enjoyed their scenes together and Mutt holds his own way more than you would expect from the average teen. Perhaps the film series is just good at handling kids and the rest. While the film admittedly has less of a sense of danger than the previous ones, it is still a lot of fun which is the important part. The opening scene involving a fridge was really quite solid as well and shows what a quick thinker he is. Not just anyone would have been able to handle that. Finally Indiana just loses less than he does in the other films. He’s still not always on top or anything like that but he is starting to act like the main adventurer he is supposed to be. Even if he is quite a bit older now.

Overall 7/10