Recent Stuff At Which Some Looking Occurred

Somewhere in the Night (1946)
One of the first (hell, maybe it WAS the first) amnesia-themed flicks (like the better-known but similar D.O.A.) in the film noir genre, SITN has been a kinda forgotten gem, resurfacing recently thanks to repeated airings on Fox Movie Channel. John Hodiak plays an amnesiac WW2 vet, unable to remember his name or his life, but equipt with an engraved wallet (George Taylor), a letter from "Your pal, Larry Cravat" addresst to George Taylor on the letterhead of the Elite Bath Houses in Los Angeles, and a scathing letter from a jilted dame that gives him a hatful of what-for + makes him question whether he wants to find out about his past if he was such a louse. But his curiosity wins out + before long, he's stirring up trouble asking questions at Turkish bath houses + nightclubs, docks in the middle of the night + fortune-tellers, making some serious enemies + also gaining the assistance of the lovely nightclub chanteuse + her nightclub owner boss/admirer. Any more will ruin the flick, but there's a coupla million bucks in stolen Nazi money involved, along with some clever surprises + the snappy dialogue requisite of the genre. Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and an almost-lost classic noir. Pay attention + you'll see Harry Morgan, playing the waaaay-butch tough attendant at the bathhouse...



Zombieland (2009)
Yeah... zombie moobies are becoming a bit overdone now, especially since most of the greatest zombieflix are not so recent. 'Cept for some clever spins on the genre like 28 Days Later or Shaun of the Dead. Or Zombieland. Like Shaun..., this one embraces the horror-comedy blend that, like peanut butter + choklit, works so well. The cast is excellent, but the sho'nuff show-stealer is Woody Harrelson, as an over-the-top zombie-killin' mofo... Also wonderful is the guest-bit by Bill Murray as himself. Fun as hell - but don't think too hard or you'll start to ask yrself some mooby-crashin' questions about the powergrid + availability of ammunition + non-expired foodstuffs + the like... really, just shut up + enjoy!



Jennifer's Body (2009)
Soooo... the most recent entry in the teen-angst-as-monstrosity genre (but we're anxiously awaiting the adaptation of Charles Burns' excellent graphic novel Black Hole) features the otherworldly Megan Fox as a tainted virgin sacrifice that becomes a demon-possesst maneater. Literally. If she doesn't feed, she starts to look sickly + rundown. Amanda Seyfried plays her bestest, narrating the story from her new home in the asylum... There's some black humor + tease-y shots of MF swimming nekkid + similar stuff that certainly appeals to her fanbase. Not as crappy as I'd expected, but then I've always been a (wait for it...) sucker for a pretty face... (Hollah at y'boy, Broke-Toe)! Is the world to be overrun by creepily-beautiful people in the near-future (or has it already happend, what with her + Angelina Jolie + their ilk)?