The Whale God (1962) Directed by Tokuzō Tanaka

Daiei Film, who brought us the Gamera series of films, made this historical drama before the giant turtle made them famous and it's almost sad they didn't stick with this sort of movie. In many ways the story, which centres around a giant whale that returns to a small whaling village every year but escapes being killed and instead kills many of its pursuers, IS a kaiju film even if whales are real creatures. Its ability to best the whale hunters drives many of the villages to want vengeance to an extreme degree, and more and more of them are dragged beneath the sea by the now uncontrollable need to "best" the creature. The lead character  Shaki (Kojiro Hongo) whose father and grandfather were killed by the whale god goes as far as telling anyone who tries to leave the village as traitors. No one can leave until the monster is destroyed. 

I do hope readers will seek this film out, it's on Tubi for free at the moment. It looks fantastic, many if not most of the effects are really well done and are ins ervice of the plot. The whale itself didn't seem bigger than a normal whale, to me anyway, but it's a fearsome creature worthy of it's reputation. he actors are good in thier parts, Hongo is very compelling and grows as a character - but not out of his obsession. 

Keeping mostly spoiler free, there are some very uncomfortable scenes in this, such as a very disturbing rape, woman used as as bargaining chips and property and a population of people that have lost thier reason and sense of humanity. It's a serious film to be sure but also happens in a time and place we have evolved from.... or have we? 

Superman (2025) Written and directed by James Gunn

 

David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nicholas Hoult are the main characters in this first James Gunn outing for DC comics. He does all the right things though the plot is still, like most of these films, over complicated. I like that Superman isn't all powerful and can be hurt and defeated so there are stakes not always present in other versions. I also like how naive he is in many ways, always taking the high road and believing saving lives is more important than politics. I don't think he is wrong and because he is Superman, he can afford to be that way. At one point the people of earth, or at least the city of Metropolis, turn against him because of Lex Luthor on a TV show. I would LOVE to say this is dumb but after seeing how easily people in the United Stated and elsewhere can be fooled into believing the most obvious con jobs, it sadly might ring true. 

There are far too many characters in this film, a DC hallmark but in this case they play well as more background characters and stay in service to the main plot instead of having a million plots and trying to make them all work together. Hoult I think is good but his talent is wasted  in a role that doesn't really bring anything new to the Lex Luthor character. Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern is a fantastic asshole and not like any other green lantern I know of. 

Crytpo the super dog could have been a terrible mistake and he is overused but so well done and I love dogs so much it wasn't a distraction for me. The James Gunn "banter" between characters is sometimes a little much and doesn't always land but again, it's work well enough to keep you engaged. It's no Gardians of the galaxy in that respect. 

I would see a sequel and other films in this new chapter for DC. Maybe they will have the right tone finally but as superhero movies are losing appeal at the moment, it might be a little late. 

Documentary: Brian Eno 1971-1977: The Man Who Fell to Earth

 

A long doc at 2 hours and 37 minutes, this goes through the early career of music legend Brian Eno. A non-musician at the start, he used flamboyance and technical skill to get attention and was lauded as a ground breaker. As time went on he shied away from the limelight more and more as a performer and worked on collaborative projects, famously a few with David Bowie and David Byrne, and moved into his own category of music he called "ambient". Its a fascinating study of a true artist. 

See it free on Tubi

Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) directed by Matt Shakman

 I did not have high expectations for this film. The look of it was interesting, an alternative Earth with 1960's aesthetics. Pedro pascal seems a weird choice for tall and angular Reed Richards (Mr. Fantasic) and marvel's superhero offerings seem to have run their course. I was pleasantly surprised. Setting the action on an alternative Earth freed it from endless superhero match ups and the world was pretty cool to look at. All the actors were good in the roles and it avoided most of the pitfalls that have turned me off these CGI spectacle driver films lately. I thought the cast gave some heart to the events and the story and managed to get through the "Reed feels guilt for the accident that transformed them all" we "we are all family" sentiments (well earned in this one) without feeling too trope heavy or superficial. It's not a deep film, it's a good one. Entertaining, light where it needs to be and about people you care about. There is, of course, a big fight at the end with the monstrous Galactus but they use guile and a team effort over just punching and brute force. I will definately watch a second one with this cast. 

Frankenstein (2025) directed by Guillermo del Toro

Based on the 1818 groundbreaking classic novel by Mary Shelley, the film stars Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, and Christoph Waltz. All of them giving good performances. This well-known highly influential tale has been told over and over and never, like most book adaptations, comes close enough to the source material as it should. 

At 2 1/2 hours, this is a long film. It mostly looks fine, but it is too evenly lit for me, considering the subject matter and has a video game cleanness about it that takes away from the gothic horror of it all. If anyone can make a monster sexy, it's Guillermo del Toro and this version of Frankenstein's creature is pretty sexy despite being made up of bits and pieces of dead criminals and soldiers. Alordi has very expressive and kind eyes that show the character's inner goodness that has gone  south because of his mistreatment and uncaring creator. Isaac is wasted in this role and he tries to bring something to not well written role. We feel nothing for him or really any of the other cast members. 

The start of the film and introduction to Frankenstein and his obession to create life is too long and we never see anything that leads to understanding his motivations except on a superficial level. The sets look good but also, in my opinion, lack the imagination del Toro has put into other projects. We see only a hint of the deep themes of the book and the rearranging of the characters and introduction of romance plot(s) add nothing to the endeavour. The monster's tale part of the film is where it picks up and has some real heart in it but even then it misses the mark more than it hits it. There are several scenes that we should be crying from the events affecting the characters but it never gives us enough reason to care about them to reach that emotional place. 

It's not a terrible movie its just sort of meh from a talented director we expect more from based on a story that has never been truly told faithfully. The Branagh version is closer to the book with a very notable exception at the end. This version changes the story in superficial ways that take away from the genius of Shelley. 

The Abominable Snowman (1957) directed by Val Guest

This early Hammer Horror is about an expedition said to be about finding rare plants in the Himalayas but really about a secretive plan to capture a yeti for science.... and profit. The Lama is somewhat clairvoyant and not a dummy and knows what is really going on, including that another group is coming to enlist Cushing in their yeti hunt. The main actors are Peter Cushing, giving one of the only not great performances of his career, and Forrest Tucker from Auntie Mame and F-Troop fame. Cushing has a wife who is also a scientist but don't be fooled, she might as well be credited as "typical woman" for most of the film. 

Spoilers: 

There is some light drama on whether Cushing should go, lots of blatant rasism and a slow predictable hike up a mountain. No surprise that everyone but Peter Cushing dies at the hands of the abominable snowmen. The porduction is very low budget but handles it well and the yet costumes are pretty good. We only see an arm and a hand until the very end when a couple of them come out of the shadows for a moment. 

The filmis a little slow but not terrible. There are some strong points. One is the Lama is pretty much in control of the situation and never admits the local cyptids are real and makes sure the one survivor will tell the world they found nothing. The wife is a wasted character as she shows signs of being truly independent and strong at times, particulairy at the end but spends most of her time making suopper for "the men". The Yeti are not monsters, they are an endangered race with intellignce (and pyschic powers apparently) and when we see thier faces finally they live up to how they were described earlier in the film as not quite human, not quite animal but a look of wisdom about them. 

Edgar Allan Poe: Buried Alive | Full Documentary | American Masters | PBS

This new documentary on American Masters is yet another reason PBS is needed. It covers his life, starting with the myths about his death started by the obituary about him, published by one of his biggest rivals. Much of it stuck and shows the current trend of getting misinformation out before the facts and repeating it has always worked on the gullible public. 

They don't shy away from his faults but they also point out he created a persona that didn't really reflect who he was in his personal life. The recitations of some of his works are very well done and not read as horror tales for Halloween but as human stories with real emotion behind them. 

2 hours well spent watching. 

Faust (1926) directed by F. W. Murnau

Murnau's Faust is a masterpiece, like most of his other films. It’s not perfect and has some issues that many films of this era have when seen by modern filmgoers. Visual mastery is NOT one of those issues. I have long wanted to do some art based on this film but as you can see by the images in this post... what could I do that could compare in any way? The upper image shows how the movie influenced Disney's "Night on Bald Mountain" sequence in "Fantasia". The lower image could easily be a painting by one of the great masters but it is a single image from the film. The quality and texture of the fim along with the lens choices and amazing compositions of Murnau look like paintings come to life. 

The story is well known and has been made a million times since. Mephistopheles makes a bet with the arch angel Michael that if he can turn a man as good as Faust then the earth will be his exclusive domain. He gives him the power to heal which does not go as well as planned, when Faust finds he cannot heal someone wearing a crucifix because these healing powers come esentially form the devil. He also gets his youth back and this is where the film starts to go a little wrong. Far too much time is spent on Faust basically whoring around and falling instantly in love, as Mephistopheles (played by the always fantastic Emil Jennings)  makes sure nothing end well. Jennings performance is scary at points and reminds me of Divne on other points as he infuses an over the top almost drag sensibility in the lighter sections. The director's film "The Man who Laughs" also suffers a bit from having a start that is impossible to top and movies inot a more traditional story that while still great isn't as engaging as the intro to the story. 

It's almost a 100 year old film but I won't spoil the end except to say I found it unsatisfying and a hollow victory. Won't stop me from watching this again and again though. 

 

Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966) directed by Jun Fukuda

Also called Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster, this is an odd Godzilla movie in that the human part f the plot isn't so boring or beside the point. Godzilla only appears at the end and Mothra appears after Godzilla. Ebirah is a giant lobster who only shows u now and then, killing anyone who tries to leave the island run by an evil terrorist organization called the Red bamboo.  There is also a giant condor that comes out of nowhere and doesn't last long. The Mpthra worshipping native of a nearby island are slaves fo teh red Bamboo who have them making a yelloe substance that can stop Ebirah from attacking boats so the terroists cane come and go as they please. 

OK the human story is not exactly plausible but the characters are fun and interesting enough to keep you interested. The effects are not gratifying, some of the model work is super but the lack of realism has a certain charm. Some shots of the tiny singers who call Mothra are just dolls and on some of the boat senes, the ment rowing or dolls or even articulate puppets. It's super obvious and, like I said, charming. 

The bad guys are killed by Ebirah while making their escape but they have set an atomic bomb to destroy the island before they fled and our heros become concerned that it will killed Godzilla who saved them. Why? Godzilla is usally living off nuclear energy and jumping into the water wouldn't save him so close to the explosion if it was a danger to him. Don't watch a Godzilla movie, aside form the forst Godzilla minus 1 if you are looking to make sense of it! 

Ladies in Retirement (1941) directed by Charles Vidor

 

Ido Lupino plays a housekeeper trying to keep her two mentally problematic sisters from the madhouse. Since they are about to be kicked out of their current home she asks her boss if they can stay with them. At the amenities time her "nephew" rips off her boss, an old actress with a wild past and decides he can do the same to his aunt when she returns. 

Spoilers:

This was presented to me as a dark comedy in the vein of "Arsenic and Old Lace" but I don't think so. It does have light moments but it's more drama with some levity than anything else. Everyone in it is good in their roles, though except for the old actress, they are play terrible people. The actress tires of the two sisters who are quite a handful and wants them and Ida gone... so Ida kills her. The nephew shows ups, eventually finds out and tries to blackmail his auntie the killer. He is wanted by the police already. 

Since this is not a well know film, I won't spoil too many more details but I am not sure what the moral, if any there is. It's pretty good overall, though. The sets and matt paintings give it a great old horror film vibe and it looks amazing. The opening titles are fantastic!