Media Notes: Roundup for March 2019

These are the movies and series on DVD and/or online I watched during March 2019.

Movies and films (links to IMDB.com for basic information unless noted otherwise). Some of these I watched via TubiTv.com or other online source. The DVDs come from the public library (unless noted otherwise). In addition, I will try to add other trivia notes, such as when a film is based on a book adding the information about the book (at least the WorldCat record if available):

• War of the Dead (2013. War. Horror.) In the middle of World War II, an American squad joins a Finnish unit searching to destroy a German bunker. They get ambushed in the woods, and soon find out the soldiers they killed are now undead. The few remaining soldiers must now fight to survive and destroy the bunker, where it turns out the Germans were doing experiments to bring the dead back to life. A nice little thriller with a good blend of action and horror in the zombies genre. I'd say pretty good. Via TubiTv.  
• Leviathan (1989. Horror. Adventure. Science Fiction). The crew of a deep sea mining station is three days away from going back home. They discover a sunken Soviet ship, and soon they also unleash a terrible secret. Now, a genetic mutation starts killing the crew, and it is a race against time to survive.  This is a bit like an underwater version of Alien. Not bad, entertaining enough. Via TubiTv. 
• Henry V (1989. Drama. Theater. Shakespeare adaptation). Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of the Shakespeare play has him directing and playing the title character. Prince Harry is now King Henry V, and during the 100 Years War, heads to conquer France.  This is one of my favorite Shakespeare adaptions, and it had quite a cast including Derek Jacobi as the Chorus, Emma Thompson as French Princess Katherine, and a very young Christian Bale as one of the boys in the English army in the supply train. I am always moved by the speech on St. Crispian's day delivered by King Henry. Via TubiTv. 
• The Real Inglorious Bastards (2012. History. Documentary). The story of a small group of Jewish-American soldiers sent by the OSS to infiltrate Nazi-occupied territory to gather intelligence and more. Granted, not as glamorous as Tarantino's movie, but these heroes certainly did their duty and did great deeds. Documentary blends interviews with the surviving members as well as some dramatic recreations. Overall interesting. Via TubiTv.
• Bones (2001. Horror.). Snoop Dogg is the title character, a small time hoodlum/hustler who also happens to be the benefactor of his community in the 1970s. We never quite get what exactly Bones does as his hustle, but I'd say based on clues in the film it's some kind of numbers illegal game. His underlings along with a corrupt cop get greedy and kill him when he will not deal drugs. 20 years later, he returns as a ghost to get his revenge.  It is a slow film as it goes back and forth between flashbacks telling the story and the modern day when a group of kids bought the building where Bones died and are trying to turn it into a night club. I think the movie tries for a more slow build up with a bit of an atmospheric feel to it. It tries to build the suspense, but the tension is not that high. In the end, we get a ghost seeking revenge story and the woman he left behind, who may well be the only safe from his revenge. The movie does have some interesting details. Pam Grier's character is Bones' woman, who also happens to be a fortune teller/psychic. Due to that, of course she reads Tarot cards, and at one point of course she draws a spread with The Lovers, The Tower, and the Death Card. Not great but I ended up liking it; it does have some good moments, and overall, follows a good revenge story. Some of the soundtrack is good too. Via TubiTv. 
• Axe Giant: The Wrath of Paul Bunyan (2013. Fantasy. Horror). The movie description pretty much sums up the plot: "Young adults at a first-time offenders' boot camp discover the legend of the giant lumberjack Paul Bunyan is real, but is much more horrifying than they could have imagined." Movie pretty much starts like any other horror movie with a bunch of stereotypical teens up in the mountains; you pretty much can't wait til they start getting killed off. When one of them desecrates the tomb of Babe, Paul Bunyan's beloved Blue Ox, the giant goes on his killing spree. Start of the movie is pretty slow, and after that, fairly basic in terms of the scares. As a bit of triva, Joe Estevez, brother of Martin Sheen, is the old mountain man who tells the tale of Bunyan. Overall, this was pretty bland. They basically turned the folk legend into a pretty generic horror killer. The end was kind of silly too. Via TubiTv.

Television and other series (basic show information links via Wikipedia unless noted otherwise). Some of these come in DVD from the public library. Others may be via YouTube, which, as noted before, I keep finding all sorts of other old shows in it, often full episodes:

• MXC: Most Extreme Elimination Challenge (2003-2007. Comedy. Game Show. Spoof). The comedic competition show based on Takeshi's Castle. What made MXC funny of course was the dubbing that was added to turn it into MXC.  The basic premise is teams of rivals competing in various challenging events for points. The rivalries are completely made up. The fun is in the dubbing added in which makes this light, ridiculously fun entertainment. Show lasted five seasons on its television run. TubiTv had all five seasons this month, so I spent some time just watching and having fun.I managed to watch into season four. By the way, the show is not always politically correct, but it was silly fun.
• Lewis Black: Black to the Future. (2016. Stand up comedy). A special he performed in 2016 shortly before the election.  Some of the humor is tied to the election season at the time, which can make some of the jokes a bit more painful now (knowing what we know now). However, he still has some humor that is pretty timeless, and in the end, he is always entertaining and gets us to think. Via TubiTv.