The Super Network

Every week the people of Super Website (Super Blog) will give you a recommendation of a Film, DVD, Bluray, Book, Soundtrack or any other item for you the readers to check out.

Super Marcey Recommend’s:

All The Boys Love Mandy Lane

In the mood for Amber Heard? Look so further than this little gem, if you can find it! Here is a little bit from my original review.

“I had been waiting for what seemed like years to see this film, I heard about it, saw the trailer and I was really interested. And then in the US there was all kinds of release issues, too much to go into here. However the film was released on DVD in Australia earlier in the year and I actually blind bought it when JB Hi-Fi had a buy 2 get 1 free deal. I don’t blind buy all that often, but I am sure glad I picked this up!

Mandy Lane (Amber Heard) is a quiet girl at school, but the boys sure do want to nail her. The film begins with an incident at a party (I wont spoil that for you) and we fast forward a few months down the track. Mandy gets asked to go away with some school people for the weekend (the boys want to nail her of course, why else was she asked, right?), she accepts. They go away, and well things of the slasher type start to happen, so who is doing it and why?”

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Logan J. Fowler Recommend’s:

Kick-Ass

When high school student Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) ponders why people in the real world don’t suit up and fight crime, he takes it upon himself to do so. His first attempt at stopping an incident lands him in the hospital, but upon release, Dave enters into the fray again, saving a man who from being beaten. His exploits make their way onto youtube to the discovery of Mindy (aka Hit-Girl) and Damon Macready (aka Big Daddy, roles played by Chloe Moretz and Nicolas Cage, respectively), who have their own crime fighting agenda against mob boss Frank D’Amico (Mark Strong). Dave’s superhero ways also call to the attention of the mysterious Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), and the four noble citizens begin to fight the bad guys on their own terms.

Kick-Ass is a vulgar, bloody, raunchy take on the superhero genre, and I loved every single second of it. Earning the award of “movie I loved just as much as the first time” status when I saw it in the theater, Kick-Ass demonstrates the realistic and also the comedic side of a boy becoming a superhero when he has no superpowers.

The film is over the top at points, especially with Hit-Girl spouting too many inappropriate words for a girl her age. Moretz definitely steals the show here, as her character pulls off acrobatic stunts while decapitating villains. Nic Cage also is in rare form, as he seems to be loving his time as Big Daddy, even doing an impression of Adam West. Plasse is also good as Red Mist, and Johnson is very likeable as the lead.

With a very different take on the material, Kick-Ass, as I’ve heard, is the predecessor to films like Super and Defendor, movies that feature a normal human being becoming a super hero. If it got a good ball rolling, then I’m all for more similar stuff, but as I haven’t seen either of those films, I can’t really compare. All I know is, Kick-Ass kicked ass, and was one of my favorite films in 2010. As far as superhero films go, it’s a good call, baby doll.

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Pat Torfe Recommend’s:

Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III

This week, my pick is controversial in the fact that a lot of folks won’t appreciate it. Then again, they probably haven’t heard the whole story or haven’t seen the director’s cut of the film. Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III obviously isn’t a masterpiece, but it’s not the red-headed stepchild of a film that many fans perceive. It’s more like a good idea gone astray thanks to interference from the usual suspects. The story goes that Michelle and her boyfriend Ryan (Kate Hodge and William Butler, respectively) are traveling through Texas when they invariably become lost after some crooked directions from a hitchhiking cowboy named Tex (theViggo Mortensen). Soon Michelle and Ryan meet up with a survivalist named Benny (Ken Foree) and the three of them try to find their way out of wherever they are. Eventually, Leatherface shows up along with other members of his new family, Michelle and Ryan are captured, and it’s up to Benny to save them.

The film is obviously broken, thanks to interference from New Line who wanted changes thanks to “test screenings”, and the Nazis known as the MPAA. The less broken of the theatrical and unrated cuts is obviously the former, since it restores the gore that was snipped in order to secure an R rating and makes things more coherent. Acting-wise, the new family is a mix of crazy characters that you can’t help but be fascinated by. The little girl (played by Jennifer Banko, who also played a role in Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood) was decidedly creepy, as was the allusion that she’s actually Leatherface’s daughter. Her scenes were (surprise) largely cut from the theatrical release thanks to a certain group. Tex is decidedly nuts, with or without an apron. The motormouth pervert Alfredo (played by Tom Everitt) was also a delight as both being a pervert and a weasel. Ken Foree was Ken Foree, so you can’t help but love that one. R.A. Mihailoff as Leatherface was a scary mofo in a psychotic sort of way. The guy isn’t the nutty Leatherface of Gunnar Hansen, but rather a psycho who has a presence about him, in addition to the massive chainsaw.

Again, the film suffered from studio interference in script and in final product, but that shouldn’t dissuade you from actually seeing the uncut version. It’s a nasty affair, and the extras on the DVD help to show that New Line was in the wrong with what it was doing, and also how director Jeff Burr had to put up with crap from the MPAA. To sum it up, my favorite line of the documentary accompanying the film is one where Burr discusses the MPAA cuts: “If you cut a film enough times, it starts to bleed, and Leatherface was a bleeder.”

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Nick Bosworth Recommend’s:

The Cannonball Run (1981)

What really is there to say about the legendary Burt Reynolds that hasn’t already been said? Pain in the ass? Sure. Terrible with investing his money? Damn straight. One thing you can’t call Burt however is not funny because as far I’m concerned this man ruled the 70’s. From Deliverance to Smokey & The Bandit, Burt and his epic mustache/laugh did it all and his legend will forever live on because it. One of my personal favourites however will always be the legendary “Cannonball Run” comedy from 1981 which Burt was the leading man along with a supporting cast of some of the biggest names in entertainment including Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr, Dom DeLuise, Farrah Fawcett and many more (sadly every single name I just mentioned other than Burt has died). The film depicts the real life competition where some of the most daring street racers in the U.S. come together for the chance at a massive cash prize by crossing entire country from East cost to West and see who gets there first. From ambulances to Aston Martin’s to Lamborghini’s, all the drivers face off for the big event.

Now I’ll be honest that this is a very tough movie to review as there’s so much going on all throughout the entire movie. There’s so many characters, so many plot devices and tons of laughs throughout including some awesome car chases involving cops, Jackie Chan beating the crap out of people in his first American film and Roger Moore fantasizing about being James Bond while getting bitch slapped by a biker dude. The main focus however is on Burt and Dom (and his split-personality counterpart Captain Chaos) who play best friends determined to win the competition that year. They both decide to drive an ambulance and recruit a hilarious yet strangely psychotic doctor and a beautiful blonde Farrah Fawcett to pose as their patient. Together they all race across the country but run into some heavy opposition including Dean and Sammy who play two fake priests driving a Ferrari (these two are fucking hilarious together), Terry Bradshaw and so many more hilarious talent from that era.

I guarantee you’ll need to watch this movie twice to catch all the cameos. The car chases are thrilling, the stunts are real, the music is hysterical, the one-liners are non-stop and I recommend this to anyone who loves watching fast cars, hot women and Burt’s classic smile. It’s also worth mentioning that this movie has the greatest outtake reel of all-time during the credits. Enjoy and keep on truckin’!

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Bede Jermyn Recommend’s:

Captain America: The First Avenger

Just like everyone else on the planet, I absolutely can’t wait for THE AVENGERS to come out next year. All the films that Marvel Studios produced so far (IRON MAN 1 & 2, THE INCREDIBLE HULK, THOR) have all been successful at setting up the characters who will eventually be teaming up for that epic superhero film. However, before THE AVENGERS can truly take off, there is one more character whose story also still needs to be told to set up that film. That story, of course, is told in the most recent comic book film CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER.

Set during World War II, the film tells a story of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), a young man who desperately wants to join the army but due to his physical frame and health issues, he keeps being rejected. While attempting to enlist at another recruiting centre, he meets a scientist named Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) who offers him a chance to join the army by volunteering for a top secret project that he is working on that could turn him into a “super-soldier”, which will help him to become bigger, stronger, faster and better than he ever was before. When the experiment becomes a success, he decides to use his powers to become Captain America, in an effort to become both a hero and symbol for his country during the war. However when finds out that a man by the name of Johann Schmidt a.k.a. the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving), the head of Adolf Hitler’s advanced weaponry and science division, is planning to take over the world, he must do whatever takes to stop him.

This is an absolutely awesome and highly entertaining film that I had an absolute blast with from beginning to end. Seriously, I had the biggest grin on my face throughout the entire time I was watching this film. I think that it is due to director Joe Johnston (HONEY, I SHRUNK THE KIDS, and JUMANJI) who does a terrific job with his direction. The film could have easily not worked, but Johnston was able to tap into the spirit and tone of the great superhero and adventure films of the past like RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, as well as his underrated 90’s superhero film THE ROCKETEER.

It helps that he has a fantastic cast on his hands: Chris Evans does a fantastic job in the role of Steve Rogers, he brings an everyman quality to character that makes Rogers a strong, determined and likeable; a character that we as the audience can root for. The supporting cast (which includes the likes of Hugo Weaving, Stanley Tucci, Tommy Lee Jones, Hayley Atwell, Dominic Cooper and many others) all deliver pitch perfect turns in their roles.

The art direction/costume design both capture the time period very well, the action scenes are well staged, the visual effects are terrific and the great score by Alan Silvestri captures the old school charm of WW2 film scores.

Overall I absolutely loved CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER, it is definitively without a doubt one of the purely entertaining films that I have seen lately. So if you love superhero or comic book films, then I highly recommend everyone to check it out. I guarantee that you’ll have great time with it as well. After watching this film, it has me even more pumped for THE AVENGERS.

| IMDB|