Media Notes: Roundup for February 2020

This is a somewhat random selection of the movies and series on DVD and/or online I watched during February 2020.


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):

• New Jack City (1991. Crime. Drama. Action).  Before Wesley Snipes played Blade the Vampire Hunter, he was drug lord Nino Brown with Ice-T and Judd Nelson portraying detectives Scotty and Peretti trying to bring him down. The time starts in 1986 as crack cocaine is the new drug, and Nino is able to use it to become the drug lord controlling it all. The film does have a pretty good cast, a good blend of action and drama, and some very good performances. You really feel for Pookie, the junkie portrayed by Chris Rock saved by Scotty. Film also features a very good soundtrack. Granted, may be getting a little dated but it is still a pretty good movie overall. Fans of mobster films should have this one on their list too. Via TubiTv.
• Gallowwalkers (2013. Action. Western. Fantasy). Wesley Snipes portrays Aman, a man with the curse that any person he shots dead comes back to life. The curse comes from his mother, a nun in the order of the Sisters of San Diablo, who saves his life but to do it makes a pact with the devil. The curse is the devil's price. Now Aman has to take down those he has killed once and for all, people he killed extracting justice for them raping his lover. The movie is a blend of a bit of horror, fantasy, and western. Technically, these undead are zombies, but they come back to life in full, i.e. they move and act normally. The film starts a bit slow, and it can be a bit hard to keep track of an event here or there due to flashbacks but overall it builds up nicely. It was an interesting concept. Via TubiTv.
• Robo Vampire (1988. Science Fiction. Horror. Action). The plot description: "Narcotics agent Tom Wilde is given a second chance at life after being shot and killed. In a futuristic experiment, agent Wilde is returned to life as an Android Robot. He is sent on a very dangerous mission into the depths of the golder Triangle to rescue Sophie, a beautiful undercover agent who has been captured by the evil drug warlord Mr. Young and his inhuman creation the Vampire Beast" Basically, Agent Wilde is a pain in the ass to the drug lord, who decides it is a good idea to get someone to train a vampire to deal with the agent. It gets worse from there in this Hong Kong feature.The dialogue is terrible, and terribly dubbed. The plot, what plot? The plot is all over between the vampires (Chinese vampires that jump, can appear and disappear, and shot fire and other things out of their fingertips), the new android cop (with special effects so bad they are laughable), and then there is a female ghost pissed off that one of the vampires the drug runners employ was her lover and they took him from her. The acting is pretty atrocious too. There is not much to save this ridiculously silly movie. Yes, this is cheesy, but not even good government cheese. This is seriously bad dollar store kind of cheese, and at times laughably so. You have to wonder who thought this would be a good idea. Via TubiTv.
• Beyond Outrage (2012. Crime. Drama. Foreign Film-Japan). Detective Kataoka of the Organized Crime Unit plots to bring down the Yakuza, or at least cripple it, by getting two clans to go into a war against each other. When an old Yakuza boss, Otomo, is let out of prison, this provides the opportunity. This is a pretty good film with a lot of intrigue as everyone is basically out for themselves while the powerful Hanibishi clan manipulates the strings, and the detective is using the turmoil he is planting to buck for a promotion. As I said, it has good intrigue, drama, and some pretty good action. To be honest, some of these Asian mob films are a lot better in terms of story and drama that what we get in the U.S. I understand this film is a sequel, but I had no idea when I watched it, and I think it can stand on its own just fine. If you like crime and mobster films, this is a pretty good watch. I like this enough I will look for the first film, The Outrage. And turns out there is a sequel to this one, Outrage Coda. Via TubiTv. 
• The Outrage  (2010. Crime. Drama. Foreign Film-Japan). Turns out TubiTv had the first film, so naturally I had to watch it. In this story, the big boss of the crime syndicate is displeased one of his top subordinates is associating himself with the Murase crime family. The Murase run drugs, and naturally the big boss wants nothing to do with it. But the subordinate is friends with the head of the Murase; they served time in prison together, made a pact over sake. So now the big boss wants to be rid of the subordinate but it will not be as easy, and soon conflict breaks out. Otomo works under the subordinate, and gets the order to make it look like he is moving into Murase territory as part of a minor dispute with his boss. Soon as the criminals try to keep face, save their honor, and keep business going it turns into war. In reality, the big boss is scheming, and soon Otomo finds himself betrayed and trying to stay alive as things fall apart and his associates start getting killed. The movie is quite good, with a lot of intrigue and a cat and mouse feel to it. Well worth watching and a pretty good example of the Yakuza films genre. Via TubiTv. 
• Dead Space: Aftermath (2011. Science Fiction. Horror. Animated Film. Video game). Another film off the Dead Space video game. The plot: "When contact with the spaceship USG Ishimura is lost after a Necromorph outbreak, Earth sends the ship USG O'Bannon to investigate, but contact is lost with them as well." Film starts as a small ship carrying an interrogation team find the O'Bannon and its four survivors. The interrogators are to find out what happened to the ship no matter what the cost. As they torture the survivors to get the truth, we get the story of the O'Bannon's fate via flashbacks. The question soon becomes if anyone will survive. Story is a blend of horror and conspiracy thriller; it is somewhat Machiavellian. Fans of science fiction horror with a touch of conspiracy might enjoy this one. If you are keeping track, this film starts right after events of the first video game and serves as a prequel to Dead Space 2. Via TubiTv. 
• Cannibal Ferox (1981. Horror. Adventure).  Another entry in the late 70s/early 80s Italian cannibal exploitation films. Plot in a nutshell: "Three anthropologists out to disprove cannibalism meet men who tortured and enslaved a cannibal tribe. When the tribe seeks revenge, no one is safe." It is 1981 but this movie is late 70s including the soundtrack at the opening which suggests a porn flick (seriously, for a moment I thought I was watching the wrong movie). Mike Logan, one of the two men who tortured the tribe, is running from the New York mob, which he ripped off $100K. He takes his buddy and they run to South America where they get a tip from an Indian about emeralds. Mike and his guy decide to rip the Indian off as well, mistreat the natives, and the rest goes from there as the angry natives take their revenge and do not care which white guy or gal they get. Meanwhile, in New York, a detective is looking to catch Mike to no avail. To be honest, a bit better than Cannibal Holocaust, which I watched a while back, and thought it was slow and no big deal. This one has a better effort at a plot, and the production seems a bit better, which is not saying much for this B-movie exploitation piece. As usual with these films, there is some animal cruelty (animals getting eaten, so on, so fair warning to the sensitive); the human gore is not too bad. 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:

• John Pinette: Still Hungry (2011. Stand up comedy. Humor). This was Pinette's live special in Chicago's Vic Theater. From travails with yoga to food to not doing well in lines, Pinette had great humor and timing when it came to his jokes and life observations. Some observe that he does slip an "f-bomb" here or there, but overall, Pinette was one of the few stand up comedians who was very good and could keep it clean. The couple of cuss words pretty much fit in the context. One of the good ones who was gone too soon. Via YouTube. 
• C.O.P.S. (1988-1989. Animated series. Police. Action. Humor. Children and Young Adult).  See my comment on this in the May 2019 roundup. Watched 3 episodes.