King Kong: Skull Island

The giant ape King Kong has made numerous appearances on screen and found a home among the most legendary beasts of cinema. Kong first appeared in the iconic 1933 film and since then Kong has trashed New York City more than once and battled Godzilla frequently too. Jordan Vogt-Roberts' version of the story of the giant ape is set in 1973, with the Vietnam war providing a suitable backdrop. The imagery used in the film, such as the fiery explosions and shimmering images, mirror the pictures regularly seen in Vietnam War films such as Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket.

Against the Tide 2017

 

This blogathon is hosted by Dell On Movies. I also know the font changes in the post. Blogger is so rubbish I no longer care. 

The rules are:

1. Pick one movie that "everyone" loves (the more iconic, the better). That movie must have a score of 75% or more on rottentomatoes.com. Tell us why you hate it.

2. Pick one movie that "everyone" hates (the more notorious, the better). That movie must have a score of 35% or less on rottentomatoes.com. Tell us why you love it.

3. Include the tomato meter scores of both movies.

4. Use one of the banners in this post, or feel free to create your own.

5. Let us know what two movies you intend on writing about in one of the following ways:

• Comment on this post
• Comment on KG's Movie Rants
• Tweet me @w_ott3
• Tweet KG @KGsMovieRants1

6. Publish your post on any day from Monday August 14 through Friday August 20, 2017.

Thursday Movie Picks

Summer blockbusters tend to be big, expensive, and full to the brim with major stars that get audiences flocking to the cinema, even a rare appearance of the Sun on British land may not stop a cinematic juggernaut. 

Nowadays blockbusters are made up of the tenth film of the franchise, and the odd original film (which risks the chance of financial failure) which is a shame.

Dunkirk

In the closing week of May 1940 the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and many thousands of allied soldiers were left standard on the beaches of Dunkirk entirely surrounded by the German Army. Facing a highly organised and efficient army and bombs dropping from the air, the Allied troops waited for rescue. Dunkirk is the telling of Operation Dynamo, which led to the rescue of over 300,000 Allied troops.

War for the Planet of the Apes

Led by the brutal Colonel (Woody Harrelson) the last remnants of humanity look to save their species and destroy the apes, before the apes win the war and take over. The war heavily hits Caesar as he loses something dear to him which sends him on the path of revenge.

The Bequiled

Shortly after Sofia Coppola’ success at the Cannes Film Festival (where she won best director) her latest effort was the target of criticism for the removal of a black slave character from the story (the character featured in both the 1971 original and the novel). Sofia’s defence was that she didn’t wish to half arse such a serious topic (slavery) and thus focused on the isolation white Southern women felt during the years of the American Civil War. It does seem questionable that a black character would be excluded entirely from a picture set during a war where slavery was the main reason for the fighting, but Coppola’s view of the novel does not deal with that aspect of the war.

It Comes at Night

It seems to be the case that every year a horror movie is released to much critical acclaim but a lot of audience distain. Granted there might be a sense of an audience unwilling to be tested or broaden their horizons but mostly it’s because the studio incorrectly advertised the film and sold a different product to what the audience got. It happened with The Witch and now it happened with It Comes at Night. It perhaps does the film a disfavour even if the box office proceedings were boosted by the film’s questionable advertising.