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Well, I couldn't resist. I went back and found my video cassette and watched it again.

Our Man Flint is...well I don't know what Our Man Flint is. It's an alleged spoof of Bond. Yet it takes itself so seriously at times that you aren't always sure. It's as if they started out trying to make fun of Bond and then switched to an attempt to build a parallel film series. Part of the problem may be that, when viewed today, some of the more absurd elements (Flint's "better than the government's" gadgets, his absurd amount of knowledge) were later used in Bond films, particularly once Moore took the role. Viewed in the 60s, I imagine these elements would have been funnier based on the Bond series' more tempered approach. (The most excessive Bond film when this came out was Thunderball.)

There is a lot of what may either be silliness or inconsistency in this movei. Flint snaps his girls out of their trances by telling them, "You're not a pleasure unit" although his keeping four (soon five) women at his pad suggests the opposite ("Later, baby.") The "Un-American" eagle can pick him out of what is obviously a crowd of Americans. And so on. Coburn is good, with a hint of the sardonic in his deadpan portrayal. Sometimes it's a little too deadpan and you start believing him, though. Lee J. Cobb is amusing as the head of the government organization (Z.O.W.I.E), although again, you're never quite sure how to take him. The femme fatale (Gila Golan) is lovely, but a little wooden.

There are kitschy 60s references to spare in here - Flint's primary contribution to Austin Powers. Yet even they also seem to take themselves a little too literally at times. The music is largely a repetitive retread of Flint's Theme, which may have been a comment on the constant reworking of the Bond theme. It still manages to retain its freshness, however, a tribute to how well it's used. (Again, not unlike the Bond films.) This is a fun movie, especially if you're a fan of the 60s and possibly if you're a fan of Bond...although I don't think you really need to be to enjoy Flint.

A Study in Terror (British) was less than. Even some of the John Scott score seemed out of place.
Thomas

ah blah

Not really

Dawn of the Dead remake: I like it too... Especially the last third is thrilling, I definitely had an Aliens kind of vibe, with the whole escape scene in the campers, it reminded me so much of the Ripley's rescue.

Saw WALL-E (BLU-RAY) yesterday. Man I was so looking forward to it due that I overestimated it a little, in part due to the hype... Don't get me wrong, it's still a fine film and I wouldn't have minded if the whole movie was like the first part, I mean the whole waste disposal robot left on earth for cleanup duties going on adventures is what attracted me from the start. After Wall-E and EVE leave earth it all goes into regular animated movie mode, lots of goofy characters and chaotic situations clearly to please the kids. Though I had a few giggles.

I will re-watch it, I should have a better time with it, once I accept it for what it is.

And the blu-ray quality is stunning, the format is invented for animation, believe me!!

I'd go to see it too if i wasn't giggling all the time with the thought of Norton becoming the Hulk; or with the thought of everything Hulk-esque

RV: The Mist

One of the better adaptations of Stephen King's horror works, by the director of The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption, from one of King's best -and most Lovecraftlike- novellas.
Very rich in mood, and powerfully evokes the helpless eerieness of the novella's setting where two dimension's collide: after a freak storm, some small-town folk barricade themselves in local supermarket against a very thick fog when it becomes clear "there's something IN the fog, and it's taking people".

Not without flaws: the religious maniac lady gets WAY too much speech time without anyone interrupting, which simply doesn't feel very realistic (especially in this day and age). And we get to see several "monsters" very clearly which moves the 'unknown terror' into a 'yucky horror' domain (which has never appealed to me). But the good outweighs the bad, as the acting is very good across the board, the terror and feelings of desperation are stark and uncompromising, and the ending... well, let's just say if you have read the novella: the ending here has a twist on that.
And it's very, very bleak.

4 out of 5

Mark Isham's score is moody and scary and works a treat in the movie.
I'm not too sure it would be a good listen away from it, though.

3.5 out of 5

Now we totally agree
The best King adaptation (of a horror novel ). Darabont really knows how to read Stephen King (both King´s horror and dramatic novels).

Who doesn't?

I think I'll go back to Val Lewton tonight

RV: Blood in Blood out
Last weekend saw Dolores Claiborne, and now this. Two Taylor Hackford gems in a row. I think I'm fast becoming a huge fan of him. Blood in Blood out was an EPIC! Truly a movie that warranted the three-hour running time. A pallet of characters like you wouldn't believe. Obviously a very depressing image of male human nature, but that's life. And this movie shows you an uncompromising view of it. And of course one of my all-time favourite scores by Bill Conti.

Also saw:
The Omen
Finally. The original one. That was indeed quite impactful, and I really enjoyed it. Maybe slowed down a little too much in the middle, and if it were me I would've spotted the monastery scene with a Goldsmith piece. Otherwise no complaints, and Goldsmith's score was just as every bit effective as I'd expected. And watching him talk on those DVD extras was awesome.

Karloff as Gray was superb. RLS story.

I wanted to expand on this

The direction and acting is top notch! Silvestri's sparing use of the score is perfect. The use of the silence, darkness, and the sound of the waves is very effective.

And the ending was well executed. One of, if not my favorite survival film.

Cast Away is top-notch from start to finish, a truly captivating experience. And the score is one of the most heartfelt and stirring works Silvestri has ever done.