KGB Productions

It seems that Godzilla Minus One is slaying it's competition at the box office since it was released in December.  But unlike other films this film has been gaining steam and not losing its momentum.  Toho Company the studio that released the film and also the licensee for all things Godzilla has announced a release of Godzilla Minus One in black & white on January 26th for a week.  The studio is releasing it to the fans and saying thank-you to its audiences for making the film a success.  Audiences are slowly coming around and watching the movie, which is breaking various box office records for a foreign film.  The fi lm is a powerful fil m about regret, war, and guilt as well as a monster movie.  What the original film in 1954 was about was a warning about nuclear proliferation & what we as humans are doing to the earth.  It rings true in 1954 and in 2024.  With global warming becoming more, and more evident the film has found it's audi...

Me and the Misses went to see " My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 " the other evening.  I am a fan of the original film, and do have some love for the second one, but this film felt different.  I love the characters, and I loved the story.  The fact that the original film was an indie film hit that took Hollywood by surprise is kind of a cool, which reinforces William Goldman's theory "that Hollywood knows nothing".  Nia Vardalos is a favorite of mine, and she has some really great comedic chops. Ms Vardalous is the writer of these films and she based them on her growing up, and her family, so it feels personal, which are the films strength. The first one is a gem, and the second is cute, and well done.  But the third seems forced.  Right from the beginning we know something is different as pictures of the actors Michael Constantine & Bruce Gray   fade to black & white.  The two actors passed away in both 2021 & 2017, and it feels fitting ...

My son & I went to see The Meg 2 awhile back.  Try and find it in theaters now and you'll have a problem, but no matter soon you can catch it streaming soon.  We got free tickets to it, and so like anyone whose watching their wallets these days we went.  To say that we enjoyed ourselves is an understatement.  Was the film predictable?, was it formulaic?, and was it what you expected?  I have to say yes only instead of just one Meg there are now three, and oh let's not forget the big octopus.  Plus a whole lot of amphibious type creatures that pop up more then once & eat people.  The film is a Chinese/ American co-production, so the Chinese are the good guys and believe in saving the earth.  Jason Statham is sort of an eco-warrior of sorts, and in the beginning we see him bust some evil capitalistic polluters who are dumping radioactive waste into the sea illegally.  But hey that's just the beginning.  Eventually we're back at th...

So not long ago I went to see Oppenheimer.  I confess I did not see it in the biggest screen as all the advertisements and reviews said you should see it.  I did not feel that I missed anything, and I enjoyed the film just as it was.  Is it an interesting film about the man?  I think so, and it made me look up actual interviews of Oppenheimer that they did while he was alive. Did I think it the story was dramatized?  Yes, big time.  At 3 hours the film is a tour de force in patience, and a bit in dramatic license, yet I enjoyed the film and was thoroughly interested in the man and that made me seek out articles & interviews about the man. The film is smartly directed by Christopher Nolan who is a a decent director, and knows how to direct actors.  Cillian Murphy is exceptional, and should get nominated for a his performance, as well as the supporting actors in the film such as Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, and Robert Downey.  Even Gary Oldman puts ...

Living is a movie out of time.  It takes place in the distant past of London in the 1950's.   Bill Nighy plays Rodney Williams a British civil service who receives a grim diagnosis, which changes his view on everything.  The one thing he questions is if he has lived a good life.  A life rich in experience and friends, and he comes to the conclusion that he hasn't and that change can happen, and redemption is possible. Bill Nighy is fantastic in the part, and he gives a quiet performance in this movie.  We are thrust into the characters dilemma early in the movie and the director Oliver Hermanus doesn't waste anytime in getting us familiar with the characters of the film.  I have always liked Bill Nighy's performances no matter what movie he is in.  He does a wonderful haunting performance of Rodney Williams.   The film makes you feel the monotony of Rodney routine.  It is his diagnosis that tips him into the so called pool of life ...

The film Megan is a sci-fi/horror film with a lot of dark humor, which makes the movie so interesting to watch.  I had to say this was not on my radar to see.  I thought maybe one day on cable or streaming, but my youngest wanted to see it and so I was game.  I'm glad I did see this and I was pleasantly surprised how good it was.  I should also say seeing this at he movies was a treat.  The direction, the cinematography, and the whole feel of the film gave me an appreciation of this film that I would not have gotten otherwise. To label this a horror film would be a mistake.  It has horror elements in it but it's science fiction more than anything else with a dash of horror.  I do like that the film takes the old Frankenstein myth and updates it to the digital era.  I think because of this the film is a better for it.  The graphic violence is played off screen which works.  If you're a gore hound you will be disappointed, but it does not ...

                                               Empire of the Ligh t directed by Sam Mende s is a brilliant film about the cinema and what it means to us.  It's a love story of sorts between us the audience and what the cinema does for us & it is a love story between the two characters both struggling with their own problems.  I have to say here that I adore this film, and I am biased about it.  Its a very emotional film about how the cinema transports us out of our reality, and the way it magically does so.  Olivia Colman as Hilary is amazing and she should be nominated for another Oscar.  Ms Colman is brilliant as a women with mental health issues brought on by her past.  She shines as she descends into a schizophrenic break and we cannot feel but sympathy for her character as she descends into depression & her delusions.  ...

 The beginning of "The Fabelmans" starts with the family taking young Sammy to the cinema.  Apparently it was the director Steven Spielberg's first film that he saw with his mom & dad.  Throughout the film the movie shows how Spielberg became fascinated with moviemaking became a skillful storyteller.   I am familiar with Spielberg's career and throughout the years he has given many interviews about his growing up & making movies in his teens.   In fact it was a photo of him shooting a miniature of a spacecraft that made me interested in filmmaking.  A good documentary to see if you have time is literally named " Spielberg ".   It is the most definitive documentary about Spielberg & his family.  It is on HBO Max and it is longer than the film the Fabelmans by about 17 minutes.  The film "the Fabelmans takes some liberties on Spielberg's origin story as I call it, and I had no problem with that.  After all this i...

  So the biggest release to come from Marvel Studios is "Wakanda Forever" starring Angela Bassett ,  Lititia Wright , Lupita Nyongo'o , Danai Gurira & Tenoch Huerta .  To say that the film is an ambitious foray into the Marvel Universe is an understatement. The film is directed by Ryan Coogler who directed the first Black Panther movie with Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther.  Mr. Coogler to his credit did not recast Boseman's character.  Both Ryan Coogler & Joe Robert Cole wrote the screenplay of the second one, and in it they tell of the Black Panther's death by an illness.  After all how can you recast Chadwick Boseman?  Boseman played Black Panther with such grace and charisma that it is almost impossible to think of re-casting the film. Yet life continues & for the studio needs to continues the franchise and after all business is business.   Instead of permanently using Lititia character to become the Black Panther the...

  Where do I start with this film.  It tries to be another end of the world film like " Dr. Strangelove " or " On the Beach ", and it tries really hard, and there are some good parts in this film.  It updates our civilization and how social media has affected us and how our politics have become toxic.  I like what it does, but it throws everything in and assaults your senses.  The movie runs 2 hours and 25 minutes, and is in dire need of some cuts.   The movie goes into detail showing how social media & politics & science have morphed into our culture, and why it will be our downfall.  Meryl Streep  plays the US President with a strong influence of the late President Trump administration.   There are parts of this movie that are genius & then there are other parts that really drag on & bring the film down.  I even had myself fast forward through the tedious and non consequential parts.  What makes me say th...

  Okay first of all I have to say I liked Matrix: Resurrections .  Maybe I'm in the minority, but I can really say I enjoyed the film.  Lana Wachowski creates a hip, smart follow up to the Matrix trilogy.  It was inevitable that Warner Bothers was going to do a follow up to the Matrix with or without its creators.  When the studio learned that Ms Wachowski was interested in doing a 4th Matrix the studio didn't blink and so they gave it to her, and why not.  Lana Wachowski was one of its creators and in what better hands to have it in than one of the films franchise original creators.  Lilly Wachowski didn't want to participate and felt she had done that already and was not interested in resurrecting the franchise.  That being said I think Lana Wachowski came up with an interesting premise for the film. I hear in many reviews that the film is "meta" and yes that is a good summing up of the film, but it does a disservice to the film.  The ori...

  It's been awhile since reviewing movies, and so I figured it was time to return to something I love.  I hope to do this a bit more, so my apologies for not being too consistent, but hopefully I will rectify that in the coming months. Spiderman: No Way Home is a film that was destined to be seen by a family that grew up with its previous films.  My oldest introduction to the Marvel universe was in back in 2008 when my oldest and I saw Ironman .  My youngest entry in the Marvel universe was Captain America: The first Avenger back in 2011.  It became a family event to go see all of them, and it would always be a memorable one for both my wife and I.  The Marvel universe has been ingrained into our DNA, but that's because I'm a Marvel fan.  Always was & always will be.  My gateway to the Marvel universe was "The Fantastic Four" & "Spiderman".  Two comics that I bought and read throughout my childhood.  This is not to poo poo the ...

I took the family to see this late December, and I enjoyed myself, but I was experiencing several emotions while viewing the film.  One emotion is of familiarity.  Having grown up with the Star Wars films and it having such a profound experience on me as a young teenager I come full circle now as I view it with my own children.  I was glad to see the old cast again even if it was briefly.   It connected the film for me, and as well I enjoyed the adventure that the characters were on.  The music and the effect were all fine, and why would it not be since ILM was still involved.  It was a new cast for as new generation, and maybe thats where it gets emotional.   I saw Star Wars back in 1979, and it profoundly changed me and lite my imagination on fire.  I knew that I wanted to become involved in filmmaking.  George Lucas was my major influencer and I knew his work such as " THX1138 " and " American Graffiti ".  To make a long...

It seems that the movie "Joker" has hit a nerve with the audiences.  Based loosely on DC comic's arch nemesis to Batman the Joker the film is rooted more to our past history of violence then it is to the comics. The film seems to be doing well, and it is amazing that Warner Brothers actually made a R rated film based on a comic book villain.  But then again the movie seems to be a bit of a time capsule of what we are going through presently in our political and social scene. This is only my own opinion but a movies such as "Joker" could only come out now in an era where hate, and senselessness to violence towards each other are more the norm then it was in the past. The filmmaker sets the film in the fictitious city of Gotham, but in reality the film was shot in New York city.  This is no mistake.  Only in a city of 8 million plus can we get the feel and look of despair and loneliness through the NYC landscape.  I do not want to denigrate the city that I lo...

The above video is a promotional video from MOVO .  It is a game changer for vloggers and youTubers in creating content.  It's also a great idea for shooting interviews, and activity. Long ago I had companies ask me what type of portable camera can we get to help interview people from across the county.  Back then we used small cannon cameras that could be shipped to the location.  Now ANYONE can do it, and with the MOVO VXR10 you can get great sound.  Along with the MOVO PR 1 mount you can shoot anywhere you want and be successful in getting images without having a teach along with you. The MOVO VXR10 works with both iPhones and Android phones.  You just need a different attachment which it already comes from.  The MOVO PR 1 mount is a mount that you can secure your phone with, and get a pretty good stabilized shot.  It's also great to mount the microphone on top of it.  You may even mount a light on the mount as well. This is p...

I had been interested in seeing these two films for awhile.  I do like some of Lars von Trier  early work  and find him as a director interesting.  I was interested in the the Nymphomaniac series because of the subject matter, and who was in it.  First off the actress Charlotte Gainsbourg does a phenomenal job and she is captivating throughout the two films.  It is her performance that I found to be true, and honest.  Mr Trier does not go for the vulgar.  He shows an individual who is complex and a bit broken.  How she is interacts with others throughout the film is what made me want to continue with the films.  It also shows how Mr Trier and Ms Gainsbourg trusted each other through the production process.  Surely with such a title the film would go into a more exploitative theme, but under the direction of Mr Trier's he involves us (the audience) in the character of Joe.  We are subjected to many relationships and scenes...