Bill Skarsgård's here! Who's apparently my own age, too. Or a year younger... he looks young here. I wouldn't have guessed it.

He plays a good role, and the movie has one hell of an intro, and movie, and end, and the girl is not bad either, though she's only there briefly after all...

If you haven't seen the original Crow (1994) this may be a spoiler.

I assume you have. If you haven't go watch it before you watch this, if for naught else than to pay homage to Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee's son, who died for that movie! And possibly made them up their production efforts and posthumously honor him with one of the most iconic and unconventional darker superhero action movies ever made.

It was good, and so knowing how remakes tend to be... I was skeptical about this one.

But they did it justice, and I'm glad Bill survived this one too.

Even if it was a freak accident that had Brandon killed on the original it feels like a ballsy move to replay the role on this one. Like building a second Titanic. Whatever happened to that project btw?

Bill did great here anyway.

I just inevitably miss the acrobatics, and the real fight choreography the original movie had. Brandon Lee's talents made that one special.

Then again, its oh so much more savage like this. Bill makes it feel a bit more human, in that he actually cannot fight, and does suffer for it.

It's not one of those movies with a happy ending, but it's good. Very good. With a good villain, a good switch with the characters, impacts with the bullets, black blood and tattoos that last forever, luxurious or dark sceneries, another world, welcome twists that the other one didn't have...

It's a hell of a remake.

Like John Woo's recent The Killer - they did that one justice too.

I'm glad. It's true.

 rated 4.5/5: almost awesome

AKA Den Vilda Roboten (I watched the dubbed Swedish version of this too).

Went to a free screening of this one, and sat in a room full of toddlers, with a buddy, feeling somewhat out of place... well not full of toddlers per se, but people substantially younger than me.

One particularly little boy sat to my right, his mom on the other side of him, and during the duration of the film he kept asking somewhat unnecessary questions and remarking on what was going on within the movie.

Not too loudly, though.

It made me realize how well they made the movie though. A lot of it explained itself. The further in we got, the less questions he asked, and yet it's not like they took time out of the actual film experience to elaborate on all details of the plot, and the robot, and the animals. They did so in a natural way as the story progressed.

It made me respect the importance of both good scripting and filmography even more; of showing details that need explained without explaining, too. Of angling it in a way that introduces you to and makes you understand the various facets of the movie without being too obvious about it.

And aside from that this was SUCH A FRIGGIN' GOOD MOVIE.

I think I teared up way more than the little kid beside me did.

I assume children don't feel the same depth in bonds, and distancing, and the trials the characters go through and overcome, since they haven't yet experienced mortality or difficult relationships the same. The movie really handles bonds in a beautiful way.

Visually it was awesome too - a true dreamscape, and in story it's a fascinating mix between a future dystopia/utopia, and the wild.

It takes place on an island, where the one robot is the rarity, but they show you the other side of civilization too, and at one point they fly over a submerged bridge that looks like the one in San Francisco... they hint at a civilization that's been destroyed by climate change and innovation, but never go into the details.

The story is a kid's story. It's exciting, and humorous, and creatively riveting all the way through, yet there's another layer to it, that lets you question tech - to both see the downsides and the benefits of it, and ponder where we're headed, and wonder what happened to the human world to make it as it was portrayed in this particular film.

I started watching this feeling like eeeeh, this seems like something for a way lower age group... but ended up enjoying it way more than the kids.

I assume. With so little minds I can't see them fully realizing the mastery of this! No doubt they enjoyed it too in a different way.

It's such a masterful film.

Glad they screened this one especially, or I'm not sure I would've seen it all.

Appreciate y'all Filmstaden.

 rated 5/5: friggin awesome

Read on...

It's psychotic, unnecessary, with sexy outfits, a creative set of villains... it's depraved, and not bad, but not satisfying either.

It does have a grindhouse kind of vibe to it that I really like, though. With the guy at the gas station in particular. And I like the girls. Speed's an interesting character too. The partial sex scene in the car was nice. But overall... this could use something more. It's predictable, not novel, mostly visual, and the special effects and all are not the greatest.

If they had a crazier main villain maybe this would be a bit better... he's pretty sedentary after all. His motive's not motive enough for me - it'd be better if he was openly psychotic and vengeful. Even if they really capture the hate in his eyes in the one scene...

Visually, it looks good. Nice work on filming, costumes and arrangement. Script and characters though: a little lacking.

 rated 3.5/5: not bad at all

I saw the fifth one of these way back in the day...

I remember thinking I ought watch all the ones leading up to it too, but I don't think I ever did. Yesterday somehow we stumbled upon the first one, under a different name - in Swedish it's called 'Hotet från Underjorden' or translated 'The Threat from The Underground' - and so I've at least started my Tremors journey now! And it may be a while before I continue it...

This first one was good though.

It may not be the most captivating. You just don't feel that great a sense of fear or desperation even when people actually do die - though never any of the main characters - which may be part of the reason you don't. And yet... they do keep it exciting. The props are impressive. The scenery's nice and dusty too.

It's not a comedy in a slapstick kind of regard, it's more so a comedy in that it's just fun to watch. The characters have quirks, it never gets overly dark, occasionally they say something clever, or time something well, or there's some irony involved, or there's something fun about the banter between the main two characters, though I'm not sure I'd actually classify this as comedy after all.

Wonder if the sequels were categorized differently.

I'm glad to see that some of the characters here are still there in the future. In the fifth one at least I recognize Burt on the cover when I look back now.

The main character's changed though. Kevin Bacon was in this one, and I'm not sure he was in any of the sequels... they apparently had bigger plans with the second, but didn't get the budget to actualize them, and so that may have been where the fat of the franchise changed.

But I liked this one.

It's not a spectacular movie in any regard, but it's good, simple but well-constructed 'popcorn action', as one IMDB movie review calls it.

That's a good way to summarize it.

The props probably were pretty complex here, but it's not a complicated kind of movie otherwise. It's simple fun. It's good entertainment. Good action. Good character bonding and all too...

Good watch.

 rated 3.5/5: not bad at all

When his mistress threatens to expose the secret of their affair, a respectable insurance broker seeks the help of his underworld brother to save his reputation.

This movie is just full of surprises, in the best possible way!

South Africans have a skewed sense of humor, and I love it.

It's wholesome, it's well-scripted, the pace is good, the characters have character, and bonds, and there's crisis, and plenty of bizarre twists and turns and bad-asses like no other along the way... it feels laid-back and easy at a glance, yet it's got it all. It's good action. A simple slice of life kind of gangster movie on steroids, kinda.

Don't expect a surplus of people getting gunned down along the way - barely anyone does - and when they do it's in the most bizarre way. But that seems like one of the strengths of the movie too. They really capitalize on the kills. Each one's a big deal, and unique, and has repercussions, and further enhances the overall madness and ruggedness of the plot.

The dialog's never wasted, either. It's remarkable how good a movie gets when it's done well, even with so simple mediums...

Even if the whole work-out theme is an innovative background too, makes the clashes in lifestyle and demeanor all the more entertaining, is the red thread that seems to pull it all together, and the main character really does seem to be in killer shape.

Everybody carries themselves well. They truly do feel true to who they are in the movie. And they all have charisma and appeal; seem suited for the screen.

There's a strong Jew permeating culture involved too but... in the best way. You'll see.

Friggin' awesome movie. Friggin' loved this'.

 rated 5/5: friggin awesome

This seemed more an episode than an actual movie, this one. An introduction to 'gatherers' we don't get to follow all the way. We're introduced to an alternative Chernobyl, with a flare for the supernatural, and it's cool, but the narration's without emphasis, and the story... leaves much to be desired.

Everybody stabs everyone in the back somehow, and tells stories, and searches for artifacts, and then it's over. You wonder if it really is over. Who died; who's still there; who was the mysterious man under the covers?

What about the girl? What role does she play?

The one thing I wonder most though is: Was this really filmed in Chernobyl? Because if so that is cool. Very cool. The movie though...

It looks cool. The premise is very cool. The execution's a mess.

 rated 2.5/5: almost not bad