JoeMama's Movie Reviews

Dr. Strangelove  Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying  and Love the Bomb Starring Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn Directed by Stanley Kubrick When you think of a satirical film, "Dr. Strangelove" rises to the top of the list.  A film directed by the great Stanley Kubrick, it was made during the height of the Cold War between the US and USSR, and serves as a darkly humorous look at what could've been the actual destruction of the world - a film that was so influential that it led to actual changes in policy to make sure something like that would never happen. The US and the USSR are involved in the Cold War, and at any moment all hell could break loose - and that happens when General Ripper (Sterling Hayden) issues an unauthorized nuclear strike against the USSR out of fears that they're adding fluoride to the water supply.  He has the code to cancel the order, but refuses due to his misplaced fears, even to the chagrin of B...

Worst2First:  My Top Ten Films That Need Sequels You won't have to think hard about sequels that should've never been made - it seems that Hollywood thrives on beating their cash cows to death sometimes.  Yet there's some films out there that would benefit from having a sequel, and here are my top ten films that need a sequel. **THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!!!!*** #10  Mystery Men  The year was 1999.  No one had ever even imagined something like a Marvel Cinematic Universe completely revolutionizing cinema as we know it.  Superheros were typically relegated to comic books and Saturday morning cartoon shows.  "Mystery Men" was ahead of its time - a group of "lower tier" superheroes who band together to save the world from danger starring the likes of Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy and Hank Azaria should've been a hit, but instead it was a dud until it became a cult classic on home video.  Now, a sequel w...

Psycho Starring Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, John Gavin, Janet Leigh Directed by Alfred Hitchcock When you consider the incredible, indisputable handiwork of the great Sir Alfred Hitchcock, it's almost impossible to pick his magnum opus, his grandiose masterwork that rises above all others.  "Rear Window," "The Birds," "Vertigo," "The Man Who Knew Too Much," "Dial M For Murder," "Rope," and North by Northwest" could all be strong contenders, but ultimately it's one of his lowest-budget films, a classic that he shot with a shoestring budget and without his ordinary flare, a movie that's more reminiscent of an exploitation film than an epic masterpiece.  That movie is "Psycho." Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) is a lowly secretary who wants to marry her boyfriend Sam (John Gavin), but they're both poor.  When a wealthy real estate client leaves her with $40,000 to deposit in the bank, she see...

Worst2First:  My Top Ten Girl Squad Films After being apart for months, states are beginning to open up again and it's time to get your favorite gal pals back together.  In film, there's no shortage of girl squads that share their ups and downs together and embark on often-hilarious journeys that shape them and make them stronger. Here are my personal top ten girl squad films, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10 A League of Their Own When you have one of the most talented female directors telling the story of an all-female baseball team, you've got the ultimate girl squad.  A fictionalized telling of the real-life All American Girls Professional Baseball League, the film features a strong female-led ensemble cast including Geena Davis, Madonna, Lori Petty and Rosie O'Donnell as they set out to prove that anything a man can do, a girl can do better, and with Tom Hanks as the team's coach, the result is a fantastic ble...

The Boondock Saints Starring Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco Directed by Troy Duffy Hollywood is notorious for butt-kissers who go about trying to get their film produced by the biggest names possible, even at the cost of their original vision.  Typically this happens with those who have been in the game so long that they don't know any better, but those who are outside the mold find it more difficult to pander to the highest dollar.  Troy Duffy is one such man - a lowly barman who saw a drug dealer stealing money off a dead body and decided to pen a script based around that.  He wasn't a flashy Hollywood salesman or sniveling producer, but rather just an ordinary guy with an extraordinary vision, and at first things seemed to take off very well for him, but as fate would have it, the best possible outcome seemed to be his worst. Brothers Connor (Sean Patrick Flanery) and Murphy (Norman Reedus) MacManus are devout Catholic...

Worst2First:  My Top Ten Bromance Films There's a popular meme about "me and the boys:" And now with many states allowing people to leave their homes, it's time for the boys to get back together, and no better way to celebrate than watching a film featuring amazing bromances. Here are my top ten bromance films, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10 Toy Story Sometimes the best bromances begin when you hate each other.  Woody was the favorite toy of Andy's until he got the new Buzz Lightyear toy, and Woody began to feel abandoned and became jealous of Buzz, until the two embarked on a perilous adventure where they learned the value of friendship and became inseparable through three other movies. #9 The Hangover Sometimes the best bromances occur during times you don't remember.  Four friends head to Las Vegas for a wild night before one is set to be married, and the next day their friend is miss...

The Noble Good Fortune of the  Cleverly Credible Mr. Rutland Quincy Sherwood Following the likes of Tolkien and Lewis, novelist Daniel Reed teleports his readers to a world of wide-eyed wonder and amazement, all the while intertwining adventure and intrigue with deeply woven characterizations and important life lessons that transcends fantasy and impacts you to your very being.  His first trilogy centered around the fantastical adventures of Rutland Quincy Sherwood and especially his lineage, and how the journey impacts the characters who partake in it.  Much like real life, it's not always about the destination, but the journey - and it's the journey that changes us for the good or ill, depending on how we deal with it. For this epic conclusion, Arthur Sherwood and his crew travel across the pond in search of the evil Eve, who threatens not just their lives, but could possibly bring about a new world war that'll threaten the lives of not just those on this plan...

Indecent Proposal Starring Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson, Robert Redford, Seymour Cassel Directed by Adrian Lyne It's always been one of those debatable questions: what would you do for a Klondi...I mean million dollars?  Would you kill someone, sleep with someone, or purposefully destroy another person's livelihood?  What is the price for you to do something you think you'd never want to do?  Are you someone who could easily be bought?  While the film has this sort of important question dangling over itself like the sword of Damocles, there's no real payoff for the answer. Diana (Demi Moore) and David (Woody Harrelson) Murphy have been in love since high school, and have been married for a good amount of time.  They obviously love and care for one another tremendously, but then they fall on hard times during a recession where they both lose their jobs and possibly their home, with only $5,000 to their name.  David decides to risk it all in Vegas...

Worst2First:  My Top Ten Spoof Films During this time of quarantine there's been countless YouTube and TikTok of people acting goofy and silly to bring laughter to viewers, and films are no different.  Sometimes you need to watch something that makes fun of something else in a light-hearted way where you find yourself laughing but not feeling bad about it, and that's the great thing about spoof films - they're innocent fun that mocks serious films in an effective and honorable way. Here are my personal favorite top ten spoof films, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10  Robin Hood: Men in Tights Spoofing the classic 1883 Howard Pyle-written character, "Men in Tights" tells a different story about the famed Robin Hood - who steals from the rich and gives to the poor - and his band of merry men as they set out to rescue Maid Marian from the evil Prince John.  They bumble their way through Sherwood Forest to the castl...