Tombstone

Only took 800+ reviews to finally get around to Tombstone.

No need to even review it, 10/10, bye. I don't even care if it's romanticized or dramatized, 10/10. I've just been informed by the producer (El Duderino) the review must continue. So yeah Tombstone, probably one of the most loved and classic westerns in cinema, made at a time where there was this tiny resurgence of the genre in the 90s with other examples like Unforgiven and Dances With Wolves, and while granted I have not seen Unforgiven I will go out on a limb for now and say Tombstone is the best of the 90s westerns. And why that is, is surprisingly hard to articulate, it very much is a case of you just need to see it. The plot like most westerns is fairly simple, Wyatt Earp and his brothers, along with his good friend Doc Holliday have just moved to the town of Tombstone to start a new life but get caught up in this gang called the Cowboys who have come to do two things, drink and f*** shit up. This eventually leads Wyatt to pretty much going on this crusade to wipe the gang out completely, and yeah there is quite a bit more to the story than that but it really is hard to explain it when it can only be experienced. The production is excellent, with massive sets, great costumes, the cast is top notch and I seriously could not ask for better, and I feel the big draw and the love this movie has garnered over the years is down to these characters and the cast. You give me Kurt Russell as a badass leading man, I will praise your movie. I don't make the rules, I just follow them. And the problem is, I can go on for considerable time about these characters and the performances given, but there is a limit to how much text I can put on a page and I only have so much time. Val Kilmer is the stuff of f***ing legend in this film, everyone and I do mean everyone who has seen this movie claims Doc as their favorite character and for good reason. Of course I gotta give some major love to Sam Elliot and Bill Paxton, how could I not when they give a very strong familial bond with Wyatt and bring a lot of likability. Even the bad guys in this are super memorable and really enjoyable, Powers Boothe is having a wild time with this role and Michael Biehn I feel gets the worst death out of everyone in the film I mean holy gotdamn! Nothing but A-game acting here. For a more than 2 hour movie the pacing is great, and regarding the fact the film is more about the historical life of Wyatt Earp it doesn't feel school history video, or slow, or boring. Even the big gunfight at the O.K. Corral isn't made a huge deal of, despite the tension and action being executed perfectly, it's not trying to be the best western movie, it's just trying to be a good movie, but all the elements here propels it to being one of the best. There's a lot to unpack from quotable dialogue, character interaction, metaphors to the literal Four Horsemen, heavily dramatic scenes that are so fullblown you still love them, romance that while very old fashioned is still really nice, just go watch the damn movie. I ain't suggesting, I'm telling. 4 stars, 10/10, I'm out! See you tomorrow.

The Terminator

It's a bad time to be a movie reviewer. Nothing is coming out on time.

So let's set the wayback machine for 1984, to check out one of the best sci-fi movies and has left a mark indescribable in size for movies and pop culture. I was very impressed with this movie and it has been considerable time since I last sat down to watch it, we're talking easily a decade here. But I'll be damned if I said it didn't hold up. I actually did forget that James Cameron directed both movies, everyone talks about his work on Terminator 2 but never this one which is a shame cause he had it just as much then and I like the fact he wrote it as well so it truly does feel like his movie. Now the plot is as original as you see it to be, to regular moviegoing audiences the concept of a raging war between man and machine that has reached a stalemate leading both sides to send agents back in time, to save and kill respectively, an important figure that would lead to the defeat of the machines, would be an awesomely original concept and it no doubt is executed about as perfect as you can get but there have been other stories like it before that time and place. Hell, certain plot elements is a spin off of the Grandfather Paradox which in and of itself is a spin off of the Bootstrap Paradox. Google it. So it handles all the elements incredibly well. The time travel is explained and works uniquely, the action is done incredibly well, the special effects were really unlike anything else, even the romance angle isn't half bad. Add on top of that the great camera work, the f***ing hardcore soundtrack, really damn good acting, and you truly have a great movie. Now why it garnered so much popularity and success is another story, the film performed pretty well at the box office and critics did like it but at the same time it took 7 years to make the next film, an unheard of occurence then and more so now. This really could have been the one and only but it had a half life all of it's own. I think just the concept of the film mixed with the excellent special effects is what got people to go see it, but let's talk about Arnold. I have heard so many people kinda bash his performance, "Oh he looks obviously like a giant robot, walks like one, talks like one, it's sort of hard to take him seriously.". F***ing and?? How is that a bad thing? He embodies the role in an almost method actor way, he doesn't move more than he has to, rarely speaks, handles weapons with eerily precise speed and movement, I genuinely was taken aback by his performance but in the best way possible. He kinda scares the hell out of me just a bit, exactly as he should. The film knows how to build that tension, dread, and even anxiety especially towards the end. So...piss off maybe? It's a great movie, easily making it's own genre that Cameron himself dubbed Tech-Noir, a very appropriate title, and unexpectedly got raped into a franchise. It happens. 4 stars, 8/10! Will the sequel surpass this one like it does in many people's eyes? Possibly, but I would never argue if you said the first was still the best. I'll be back.